HIST 2070 Study Guide - Summer 2018, Comprehensive Midterm Notes - Soul, Meditation, Hinduism
12 Oct 2018
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Department
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HIST 2070
MIDTERM EXAM
STUDY GUIDE
Fall 2018
Two examples of primal religion:
Polytheism: ancient Greece
oThe worship of or belief in multiple deities, which are usually assembled into a pantheon
of gods and goddesses, along with their own religions and rituals
oThere was a hierarchy of deities, with Zeus, the king od the gods, having a level of
control over all the others, although he was not almighty
oSome deities had dominion over certain aspects of nature
Zeus was the sky god, sending thunder and lightning
Poseidon ruled over the sea and earthquakes
Hades projected his remarkable power throughout the realms of death and the
underworld
Helios controlled the sun
Other deities ruled over abstract concepts; for instance Aphrodite controlled
love
Animism: the Oji-Cree of North-western Ontario
oThe Oji-Cree people of Northwestern Ontario are but one example of a vast and varied
range of cultures that spread across the Americas beginning 30-60,000 years ago
oThey were people who lived entirely on hunting, fishing, and gathering berries in
season, as the land in northwestern Ontario provides no opportunity for settled agriculture
oBeliefs focused on spirits who controlled unpredictable factors such as: the weather, the
availability of game or fish, or of berries, the amount of snow, the flow of rivers, and so on -
all the things that decided whether a family - or group of families - would live or die
oIt is the concept of 'power' or 'power-control' that is the fundamental religious concept
of these people
Inhered in the individual who received it in a dream from the spirit world
oPower was usually manifested in the ability of such an individual to effect some result,
such as, either causing or curing an illness
oRespect and its corollary, fear, resulted because evidence of a particular power meant
an individual might in fact have more power not yet revealed
oThe Oji-Cree ascribe 'power' to a range of living things and objects - not just human
beings - but to animals, fish, wind, and thunder
oOji-Cree people accorded respect to anything they encountered, unless the individual
knew his or her own power was greater, and this occurred usually only when the individual
was a medicine man or shaman
oIndividual aspect of power was granted at puberty when each person underwent a
'vision-quest' - both male and females participated in this lonely vigil
oAn individual would also receive from his spirit his or her 'secret' name, an indication in
a belief in the power of words, especially of knowing 'names'
Once again, metaphor appears, as words for the Oji-Cree are what they say;
they are not merely 'like' or symbolic of a material reality
oMyths and stories of power were common to all northern peoples - some which
explained the origin of the universe, others which explained ill-fortune
Among the most prominent were both myths and stories about the Windigo -
an immensely powerful evil spirit that was said to drive individuals mad and to do
great evil such as murder
Unit 02 conclusion:
Modern civilizations compartmentalizes life, while primal religions and cultures do not
find more resources at oneclass.com
find more resources at oneclass.com
Metaphor governs the mentality of primal peoples - a cave painting is not like the animal it
portrays, rather it is the animal in a mystical fashion
In all cases, there is a lack of separation between daily life, public life, life in general and
religious belief
find more resources at oneclass.com
find more resources at oneclass.com
Document Summary
The worship of or belief in multiple deities, which are usually assembled into a pantheon of gods and goddesses, along with their own religions and rituals o. There was a hierarchy of deities, with zeus, the king od the gods, having a level of control over all the others, although he was not almighty o. Some deities had dominion over certain aspects of nature. Zeus was the sky god, sending thunder and lightning. Hades projected his remarkable power throughout the realms of death and the underworld. Other deities ruled over abstract concepts; for instance aphrodite controlled love. Animism: the oji-cree of north-western ontario o. The oji-cree people of northwestern ontario are but one example of a vast and varied range of cultures that spread across the americas beginning 30-60,000 years ago o. They were people who lived entirely on hunting, fishing, and gathering berries in o season, as the land in northwestern ontario provides no opportunity for settled agriculture.
