Introduction
Animism, one of the world’s oldest religions, predates
monotheism and polytheism. It existed around 2 million years ago, and some
scholars claim organized religions emanated from it.
Animists believed everything has a spirit. They believed spirit/consciousness
exists in the sand, water, humans, animals, trees, stars, and everything in the
universe. They even believed the earth had a spirit.
Animists respected all living things since they believed every
creature has feelings. For this reason, they only cut down trees or hunted
animals when necessary. Some historians claim animists asked trees for
forgiveness before cutting them down, and they conducted sacred rituals before
killing animals to prevent their spirits from avenging their deaths.
Moreover, animists believed everything in the world is
sacred, valuable, and has rights because all things have a soul. Also, they
believed in the existence of a spiritual world, and they worshipped rivers,
trees, and rocks, as they believed everything is holy.
Why Modern Society Must Practice Animism
Modern society must practice animism because it will
eradicate our materialistic perception of the world by reminding people that
the world is sacred. Furthermore, the society must practice animism because it
encourages the conservation of nature. Christianity and Islam have not
prevented people from destroying nature because they only focus on encouraging
people to respect and worship a Male God.
Animism will prevent the destruction of nature since it
enlightens people that nature has personal rights and deserves respect because
it has a soul. For this reason, the society will avoid dumping waste in rivers,
killing animals recklessly, and cutting down trees because it will respect and
value the sacredness of nature.
Besides this, people will respect each other because of the
belief that the Divine Spirit exists in everyone. There will be no killings or
the exploitation of labor because of the belief in the sacredness of human
life. Furthermore, practising animism will make modern society acknowledge the
existence of the spiritual world and the importance of awakening our spiritual
selves. It will make people to focus on the inner world instead of the outer
world hence resulting in lower stress levels.
Conclusion
We ignore ancient religions because we believe they were a
product of primitive foolish folks. Little do we know that ancient religions
such as animism had a powerful effect on society and nature. They made
people respect each other and conserve nature. Besides, they resulted in people
valuing life hence making mental illnesses such as depression rare.
THE END
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