RELS 200 Lecture Notes - Lecture 2: Great Sphinx Of Giza, Natural Disaster, Saqqara

• School: University of Calgary
• Department: Religious Studies
• Course: RELS 200
• Professor: Craig Ginn

Document Summary

Earliest myths date back to paleolithic period when humans were hunters: this was the myth of the hero- current in all cultures. The hero is somebody who looks around his society and decides that something is missing. He goes out, leaves safety, and braves untold dangers, bringing back something of immense value to his people: tells us what we must do to unlock the heroic potential within ourselves. Shaman is a religious priest of hunting societies. Still found in societies that depend on killing of animals for food and sustenance: shaman has talent of ecstasy, goes to the gods. Sky was a transcendent experience for people, goes beyond our existence. Humanized natural elements, saw gods in human form: humans, animals, natural world, natural forces, constellations, all shared the same life. Idea that you had to rea(cid:272)h out to a(cid:374) i(cid:374)a(cid:272)(cid:272)essi(cid:271)le god did(cid:374)"t (cid:272)o(cid:373)e u(cid:374)til 6-7bce.