CHAPTER VI
THE PHENOMENON OF RELIGION
We have seen that Marx considered religious criticism
to be the basis of all criticism. This means that the depth
and quality of our criticism of other aspects of social life
depends to a great extent on our understanding of the
phenomenon of religion. This calls for a thorough investigation
of the phenomenon of religion, its different manifestations and
variations which are as varied and diverse as there are peoples
and cultures. From the dawn of consciousness, from the time
man began asking questions concerning the meaning of life and
existence, there had been some form of religion. It is man
alone who is capable of being religious, it is one of his
species-characteristicso Ernst Bloch says, "It is not the
individual child who paints, but something universally childlike
in him. And it is not the common man who sings, but common needs
or a common spring in him.There is as it were a collective
soul at work which makes the child paint and the common man singo
So also it seems that in man there is something religious that
makes the particular individual and groups religious. Religion
seems to belong to the very core of- hviman existence,
1, Definitions of Religion
To define religion is one of the most difficult tasks that
could be undertakeno A survey of some of these attempts would,
though it may not give us a precise definition of religion. 282
would, help us to xinderscand the phenomenon better. Heniry
Brooks Adams says# "To the highest attractive energy# man gave the name of divine, and for its control he invented the science called Religion, a word which meant, and still means, the cultivation of occult forces whether in detail or 2 mass.” According to a Dictionary of 20,000 foreign words and phrases published in the USSR, "Religion: a fantastic faith in gods, angels and spirits...a faith without any scientific foundation. Religion is being supported and maintained by the reactionary circles. It serves for the subjugation of the working people and building up the power of exploiting bourgeois classes."^ However for Hillaire Belloc, "Every major question in history is a religious question.... It has more effect in molding life than nationalism and common language."^
For a great scientist like Thomas Alva Edison, religion is
"damned fake... Religion is all bunk,"^ But for the equally eminent scientist Albert Einstein, religion had a different meaning and perspective. He says, "My religion consists of a humble admiration of the illimitable superior spirit who
reveals himself in the slightest details we are able to perceive with our frain and feeble minds. That deeply emotional conviction of the presence of a superior reasoning power, which is revealed in the incomprehensible universe, forms my idea of
God,"^ For him religion and science were complementary,
"Science without religion is lame, religion without science 7 is blind," John Morley said, "All religions die of onie 283
Q disease# that of being found out." But it is not easy to find out what makes man religious and the fact that religion has not died yet# means that it has not been found. There had been numerous attempts to find it out, because as Virgil says, “Happy is he who has been able to know the cause of things, and has trampled beneath his feet all fears/ and inexorable Fate, and the roar of greedy 9 Acheron," Since hiiman existence is a search for the ultimate, a "movement of transcendence in which man seeks a fully authentic presence to his being through a dynamic and authentic presence to the Being of the Absolute,the search must go on.
The characterisation of religion by Rudolf Otto (1869-
1937) as the experience of the mysterium tremendum et fascinans has almost become a classic description of religion.
According to him it is a mystery, and experience of the wholly other, something that is set over against man, it is something that makes him tremble and at the same time fascinates him.
According to Joachim Wach (1898-1955), Otto's description will ultimately defy any attempt to describe, analyse and comprehend 12 the meaning scientifically, Wach basing on Otto, himself says "Religion is the experience of the Holy,"^^ The same sentiments with regard to religion are expressed by H.H, Price, 14 when he says that religion is the feeling of the 'sublime'.
It is a combination of fear and love. Something awe-inspiring 284
in the presence of which one feels diminished and yet finds a certain fulfilment and exaltation in being thus diminished,
John Baillie says, that "religion is essentially a relation between two terms or more exactly, a communion between two personal existence# the human soul and God,*'^^ For Erich
Przywara# "religion is the relation between absolute God and relative man."^^ R.C. Gandhi, modifying Whitehead's definition of religion, says that "it is what man does with his self- consciousness, not his solitariness. In self-consciousness we discover the possibility of exploratory communication, the possibility of calling upon God without being under an obligation to first establish his reality," 17 Geddes Mac
Gregor defined religion as that which is characterized by interest in, concern for, encounter with, sense of absence from, sacrifical love of, commitment to and joy over that which is judged to be more important than anything else in one's experience and which so conceptualized is taken to be a symbol of that which lies at the heart of all experience. 18
Gunter Lewy who investigated the role religion plays in revolutions, defined religion as "a cultural institution, a complex of symbols, articles of faith, and practices adhered to by a group of believers that are related to, and commonly invoke the aid of, superhuman powers and provide answers to questions of ultimate meaning," 19 For Tolstoy, "true religion is a relation, accordant with reason and knowledge, which man established with the Infinite Life surrounding him, and it is 285
such as binds his life to that Infinity, and guides his 20 conduct," Auguste Sabatier writes, "Religion" is a commerce,
a conscious and willed relation into which the soul in distress
enters with the mysterious power on which it feels that it 21 and its destiny depends," Lactantius claims that, "religion,, 22 alone distinguishes us from animals." Moses Maimonides considers "people who have no religion,,,, as irrational 23 beings, and not as human beings,** Calvin maintains that
"worship of God,., is the only thing which renders men superior 24 to beasts." Lord Herbert Cherbury asserts that "religion 25 is the ultimate difference of man,., (not) rationality,**
Eric Fromm defines religion as "any system of thought and
action shared by a group which gives the individual a frame of
orientation and an object of devotion," 2 6 Thomas O'Dea says,
"Religion is man's response to breaking points at which he 27 experiences ultimate and sacred power,"
Thus as Leszek Kolakowski says that "various definitions
are thus permissible; however those which imply that religion
is 'nothing but’ an instriiment of secular— social or psychological— needs (e.g,, that its meaning is reducible to
its function in social integration) are illicit; they are
empirical statements (false, I believe) and may not be 28 admitted in advance as parts of a definition," The definition
he gives is "The socially established worship of eternal
reality, 286
From the many attempts that have been made to define
religion# it is clear that religion is a very complex
phenomenon to understand. It defies any attempt to define
it in a narrow conceptual framework. Thus an understanding
of religion calls for a many-sided approach to this
phenomenon. In the following section we shall attempt a
many-sided approach to the problan of religion. We shall
start with a self-understanding of religion and then turn
our attention to the understanding of it from the point of
view of the individual (psychology)# society (sociology)
and culture (anthropology).
2. Self-Understanding of Religion
"That which those sciences concerned with Religion regards as the object of Religion is# for Religion itself# the active and primary Agent in the situa tions or, in this sense of the term the Subject. In other words# the religious man percieves that with which his religion deals as primal# as originative or casual; and only to reflective thought does this become the Object of the experience that is contemplated. For Religion# then# God is the active agent in relation to man# while the sciences in guestion can concern them selves only with the activity of man in his relation to God; of the acts of Himself they can give no account whatever,"30
Thus from the perspective of the religious person# the man
who studies religion deals only with its secondary aspects.
When religion is made a part of science like sociology or
psychology# again, it is removed from the reality of reli'gion
itself. In this section we deal with thinkers who have made
religion their prime concern. Max Muller (1823-1900) was 287
one of the first thinkers to make religion the exclusive object of his studies. He considered religion a "mental faculty to apprehend the inifinite through nature apart
from the senses and reason.Cornelius P. Tile (1830-
19 02) could be considered a pioneer in the study of the
' science of'religion' , One of his endeavours was to understand and trace the development of the 'religious 32 idea'. In this he attempted to understand those actions and words of human beings which manifest man's belief in the superhuman and serve to bring him into relation with
it. The reasons for man's belief in God was investigated by Nathan Soderblom^^ (1866-1931). He came to the conclusion
that this belief originated from the notions of 'soul', power,
and Supreme Being or OrCT-ginator, William Brede Kristensen
(1867-1953) held that the beliefs and values of religious people should be understood in the context of 'the belief of the believers'. He wanted religious texts to be studied
independently of its time of composition and place, keeping 34 in mind the eternal nature of their truth and value.
Gerardus Van Der Leeuw (1890-1950) was of the opinion that what we can investigate is not revelation itself, but the response of the man who had the revelation and his response to it.Rudolf Otto (189 6-1937) considered 'the holy' to be an autonomous category in itself, a category of meaning and value in the context of religion. In this way he gave religion an autonomy and epistemological foundation for 288
religious knowledge,Joachim Wach (1898-1955) accepted
Otto's definition of religion, because it stressed the objective character of religious experience in contrast to the merely subjective character stressed by psychologists.
He held that the creative energy of religion is inexhaustible# 37 every aiming at fuller expressions. For the religious individual/ religion is a fact of life, it is what gives meaning to his life which he expresses through rituals and
symbols. What religion means to the religious person is not
something that can be grasped by a mere scientific detached and objective analysis. Because Religion is the state of being grasped by an ultimate concern, a concern which qualifies all other concerns as preliminary and which itself contains the answer to the question of the meaning of our life. Therefore this concern is unconditionally serious and shows a willingness to sacrifice any finite concern which 38 is in conflict with it.
To be religious, thus, is to give religion the final
and decisive voice in one's life. According to John Stuart
Mill, "The essence of religion is the strong and earnest direction of the emotions and desires towards an ideal object, recognized as of the highest excellence, as rightfully 39 paramount over all selfish objects of desire," To gain a self-understanding of religion, this ultimate nature of religious commitment has to be kept in mind. There are different types of religions, viz.. Ceremonial, Moral, 289
Mystical, Revealed and Secular. To be religious in
ceremonial religions means to offer prayers and sacrifices
to the gods. In a moral religion, to be religious means to
do good to one's fellow hijjman in conformity with the moral
ultimate. In mystical religions, to be religious is to seek
union with the one true reality, in revealed religions, to
respond in faith and obedience to the God of revelation with
divine help and, finally, in secular religions to cooperate 40 in the realization of ideal hxjmanity. However, in
historical religions we see all these different religions
intermingled, the difference is one of emphasis. From the
religious perspective the actions of a religious man are to
be understood as his response to the ultimate he believes in
and which gives meaning to his life,
3. A Psycho-Social Understanding of Religion
(a) Religion in the Context of the Individual; A Psychological Understanding of Religion.
William James (1842-1910) provisionally defines religion
as "the feelings, acts and experiences of Individual man in
their solitude, so far as they apprehend tnemselves to stand
in relation to whatever they may consider the divine. Since
the relation may be either moral, physical or ritual, it is
evident that out of religion in the sense in which he takes
it, theologies, philosophies, and ecclesiastical organizations 41 may secondarily grow," For William James, religion plays a
a positive role in everyday life. According to him it 290
expands our horizons and gives man a sense of value and hope.
For practical life the chance of salvation holds hopeo "No
fact in human nature is more characteristic than its willingness to live on a chance. The existence makes the
difference, as Edmund Gurney says, between a life of which
keynote is resignation and a life of which the keynote is 42 hope." For James, religion seems to help in keeping the
hope aliveo
Sigmund Freud (1856- -1939) did not consider religion
to an enhancing element of human life. Religion has its
origin in man's helplessness in confronting the forces of
nature outside and the forces within himself. It was something
that was suited for the childhood of humanity, which man has
to outgrow. The teachings of religion according to him are:
"not precepts of experience or end results of thinking; they
are illusions, fulfilments of the oldest, strongest and most 43 urgent wishes of mankind.” Religion expressed man's
"attempt to get control over the sensory world, in which we
are placed, by means of the wish world, which we have developed within us as a result of biological and psychological 44 necessities." Howevisjr, religion is incapable of achieving
it. Morality, therefore, must not be based on religion,
because religion is a false ground for morality,
Carl Gustav Jung (1875-1961) finds himself holding almost
at every point the opposite of Freud's view on religion. 291
Jung developed a new approach to the study of religion on the level of depth psychology. According to him. Religion is the submission to powers higher than ourselves. Religion "is a careful and scrupulous observation of what Rudolf Otto aptly termed the 'numinosum' that is, a dynamic existence or effect/ not caused by an arbitrary act of will. On the contrary, it seizes and controls the human subject, which is always rather 45 its victim than its creator." Religious experience is characterized by a specific kind of emotional experience: surrender to a higher power, whether this power is called
God or the^unconscious.
Slimming up the respective positions of Freud and Jung,
Eric Fromm says that "Freud opposes religion in the name of ethics - an attitude which can be termed "religious". On the other hand, Jung reduces religion to a psychological phenomenon
and at the same time elevated the unconscious to a religious phenomenon.
Eric Fromm, whose definition of religion we have already
seen was deeply committed to a secular hi;iinanism. For him religion is an ambiguous phenomenon, Man can grow fully only when he gets out of narcissism. In this endeavour religion both helps and hinders. He considers the fight against idolatry, which according to him is the absolutization of a partial faculty of man, as essential to the teachings of the prophets. In idolatry man worships himself in an alienated
form. The ideal is the object of narcissitic passion. The 292
idea of God, however, calls for the negation of the idols, i.e., the negation of narcissism# because only God# and not man, is omnipotent and omniscient. But while the concept of an indefinable and indescribable God was the negation of idolatry and narcissism, soon this idea «f God itself was made into an ideal in contradiction to the original concept of God and religion again became a manifestation of group narcissism. 47
The differences in the opinions of James, Freud, Jung and
Fromm show that religion is a psychologically complex phenomenon.
Psychology alone is in no position to present a total explanation of religion. To complement the psychological views on religion, we should turn to other science also.
(b) Religion in the Context of Society; A Sociological Understanding of Religion
Man's accepted beliefs and value systems came in for serious questioning during the industrial revolution. There was a rendency during this time to write off religion as something that had been important and perhaps useful in the past ages, but having no importance in the contemporary world.
As society developed religion gradually becomes meaningless.
This evolutionary way of thinking about religion, was strongly contended by a number of sociologists from the turn of this century. Max Weber (1864-1920) focussed on the impact of religious views and ideas on society and of the relationship 295
of religion to other aspects of human cultxire,^^ He considered religion to be primarily purposive and only later it became symbolic. Weber says that the most elementary forms of religious behaviour was motivated by gain in this world and oriented to this world. "That it may go well with thee...# and that thou mayest prolong the days upon the earth" (Deut,4:40), expresses the reason for being religious. Weber's understanding of religion went against the mythological and symbolic understanding which was prevalent at that time.
49 Emile Durkheim (1853-1917) considered social reality as an entity# a force in itself of collective nature with its particular institutions. For him religion was society in a projected and symbolized form. He defined religion as
"a unified system of beliefs and practices relative to sacred thingsy that is to say# things set apart and forbidden - beliefs and practices which unite into one single moral community called a Church# all those who adhere to them.*'^^
Though Durkheim was an agnostic# he come to the conclusion that apart from the deep sense of the sacred that characterizes society there cannot be a durable form of society. He tells us that the distinction between the sacred and the profane is one of the profoundest distinction ever reached by human mind.• ^ 51
Marcel Mauss (1873-1950) considered religion a 'total social phenomenon'. According to him,there existed a 29^
relationship underneath all the expressions of a society at a given time, including religion and the behaviour of the individual. Thus he found no real opposition between 52 the individual and society. As we have noted, Weber was primarily interested in the ways in which different types of social experiences was related to different modes of religious expression and belief, Durkheim concentrated upon the general social significance of religious expression and belief. After Weber, Malinowski and Parsons have seen religion as a form of knowledge, something which answers pre existent and eternal problem of meaning, Talcott Parsons describes religion of each society as expressing the most ultimate level of values - that which ultimately endows all human activity with meaning. Thomas Luckmann saw in religion the capacity of the human organism to transcend its biological nature through the construction of objective, morally binding, all-embracing universe of meaning. This means that religion is not merely a social phenomenon but also an anthropological phenomenon. Religion is symbolic self-transcendence. Thus anything that is specifically human seems to be religious,
(c) Religion in the Cultural Context; Anthropology and Religion
54 Anthropology as a study of man in different cultures and civilizations, gave a new understanding of religion. The study was most often directed towards primitive societies and their concept of religion, John F, MacLennan (1827-1881) was one of 55 the first to describe totemism as a form of religion. 295
A thinker whose philosophy was to have considerable influence on anthropological research in the second half of the 19th century was Auguste Comte (1796-1857), Religion for him was the first step of man's mental development.^^ Herbet Spencer
(1820-1903) stated that religion started with the cult of ancestral spirits (animism), with the assumption that, just as fear of the living is at the root of political control/ fear 57 of the dead is the root of religious control. He believed that by definition# the unknowable is the domain of religion, while science was the realm of knowledge. The evolution of religion tpok place according to the degree of man's intellectual 58 development and increase of knowledge, Edward B, Taylor
(1832-1917) was the real founder of anthropology as a science of man and his culture. He believed that the belief in soul 59 rather than ghosts to be the source of belief in spirits.
He considered 'the belief in Spiritual Beings' to be a minimxani definition of religion#^^ A serious blow to Taylor's theory of animism was dealt by the field studies of Alfred H, Hoitt
(1830-1930) in Australia, His research showed the existence of high gods among people whose level of development according to Taylor's theory required lower forms of animism,Andrew
Lang (1844-1912) called attention to the existence of so- called supreme beings among primitives which could not be 6 2 explained by the theory of animism. The man who noted the difference between magic and religion was James George Frazer
(1854-1941). According to him magic precedes religion 296
historically and is an elementary form of thinking while religion is the acceptance of superhuman consciousness and personal powers.
Robert H. Codrington (183 0-1922) during his stay in
Norfolk Island, Melanesia discovered that the concept of
'mana' to be of supreme importance and to be the basic factor of religion of the Melanesians.^"^ Robert H, Marrett (1866-1944) studied the theoretical importance of •mana'. It was neither a soul/ nor a supreme being but a power of influence,^^ Wilhelm
Schmidt (1968-1954) is known for his theory that religion started with a primeval monotheism and morality,According to Bronislaw Malinowski (1884-1942), the general problems of culture should be seen in terms of fundamental human situations.
Magic and religion arise in human situations of stress and crisis in life.^"^ Religion establishes and enhances all valuable mental attitudes such as reverence for traditions, harmony with environment and confidence in the face of 68 struggles and difficulties. Magic supplies man with a number of readymade ritual acts and beliefs which will help him to face critical situations in life. In othe r words the function of magic is "to ritualize man's optimism".The investigations of Robert H. Lowie (1883-1957) into the religions of North
American Indian tribes put an end to many current notions of religion. He believed that religion is a universal feature of human culture, not because there is faith in spirits in all societies but because all recognize in some form or other 297
70 awe-inspiring and extraordinary manifestations of reality.
According to Paul Radin (1883-1959), religion is "the fusion of a particular feeling and attitude with an interconnected
series of specific acts and beliefs. Both the feeling, the
acts and the beliefs are merged and interpenetrated by the material and spiritual implications of living in a clearly- defined cultural frame work.''”^^ Alfred R, Radicliffe-Brown
(1881-1955), the father of social anthropology, emphasized the role religion plays in the maintenance and formation of society. For him religion should be studied from this 72 perspective, Martin P, Nilsson (1874-1967) saw religion 73 as a "protest against the meaninglessness of events,..."
Religious persons do not consider that the events that occur in the world as neutral phenomena. They interpret them as meaning
ful for the individuals. This protest can also take a negative form by advocating salvation and freedom from the existing situations.
This approach to religion from the anthropological perspective, gives us an insight into the religious nature of man. Though social anthropology has been the product of minds which, with very few exceptions, regarded religion as outmoded superstition, 74 suited to a pre-scientific age, their investigations have helped us to understand religion, and call into question many accepted views on religion,
(d) Summary
Now to sum up what we have been investigating concerning 298
religion from different aspects and dimensions:
1, Religion is the result of human contingency. In this world man feels and experiences himself as a contingent and limited being. Religion is an attempt if not to overcome, at least to come to terms with this fact of human existence,
2, The experience of contingency is in contrast to the belief that there is something other than man which is unconditioned and unlimited, with which man can communicate and vice versa.
This encounter calls for a response,
3, The other reality is absolute, awe-inspiring, mysterious, fascinating and sublime,
4, The response that the other demands is absolute, total and uncondi ti onal,
5, The relation, in which man holds the Supreme Other, gives him emotional security, a sense of worth and value in the world and makes the world and life itself meaningful to him,
6, This response to the Ultimate results in a practical imperative to behave in a certain way in society and to have a certain attitude towards nature,
7, Thus religious response is purposeful on the one hand and symbolic on the other. The symbolic points to the Ultimate concern of man. 299
8, This experience gives rise to structures in society and
furnishes society with cult and rituals to maintain and
perpetuate its values.
9. Since man is a social animal and since the experience takes
place in given cultural milieu^ it gives rise to a community
which share in this value system.
lOo Religion is an aspect of human culture. Thus, the rituals
and rites should be understood in the cultural context and the
experience should be interpreted within this context.
4. Theories of- Origin
We have seen that religion has to do with certain dimensions
of human existence and experience on the one hand# and on the
other with the 'supernatural*, which might be termed God, But
when we say that God is the object of religious experience we must
realize that 'God' is an extremely indefinite concept/ the highly
exceptional and significant Other, The first reaction to the
encounter ■./ith the Other is one of amazement, as Soderblom has
remarked. Given this state of affairs, it is extremely
difficult, if not impossible, to bring within the parameter of
rationality everything there is to religion. It is debatable
whether human behaviour with all its motives and diversity could
be brought under strict scientific investigation. Levi-Strauss
has come to the conclusion that categories such as rational' and
irrational, intellectual and effective, logical and pre-logical,
as meaningless for explaining human behaviour. He says. 500
"In the first place, there existed beyond the rational category at once more important and more valid: that of meaningful.... those actions which seem most purely effective, those results which seem least logical, and those demonstrations which we call pre-logical, are in point of fact precisely those which are meaningful in the 75 highest degree." This fact is to be kept in mind as we investigate the origin of religion.
According to David Hume (1711-1776), religion was the result of an intellectual error, Man as an intellectual being tries' to comprehend the world and in this attempt he committed mistakes which gave rise to religion. The primitive man, being afraid of natural phenomena, discovered gods who could control them. Schleiermacher 0.768 -*-183^ found the origin of religious feeling in the feeling of absolute V 6 dependence. With the advent and development of psychology as a separate science it was found necessary to look into the human psyche for an explanation of religion in its origin. In the ensuing psychological explanations, h\m\an needs were transferred to beliefs. Basing themselves on the available data, Freud and his followers found an explanation in the neurotic state of individuals. Anthropologists established the fact that religion was a universal phenomenon, Spencer
(1820-1903) believed that man had not innate tendency to fdrm religious ideas. For him the basis of religion was the fear of the dead. Different evolutionary modes of religious 561
77 thinking have been suggested by thinkers like Swanson and 7 8 Bellah, No universally acceptable theory concerning the origin of religion has come into existence even today. Max
Muller thought that the Rig Veda reflected the primordial phase of Aryan religions and consequently one of the most archaic stages of religious beliefs and mythological creations. But the French Sanskrit scholar Abel Bergaigne showed that the
Vedic hymns were far from being the spontaneous and naive expressions of naturalistic religion, that they were the product of a highly learned and sophisticated class of 79 ritualist priests. The theory of the origin of religion in primitive animism was dethroned by the discovery of High
Gods. The investigations of Malinowski, Schmidt and Frazer disproved Freud's theory of totemic gods. The discovery of
Catal Huyuk, one of the most highly developed Neolithic towns in Anatolia, has yielded the most important data for the understanding of Neolithic society in its economical, social and religious aspects. The mother as Goddess, often identified with mother earth, was the supreme goddess of the religious world, while the earthly mother became the centre of family 80 and social life. From such evidences it is difficult to hold on to the theory of Freud.
Now that we have seen the 'self-understanding of religion' and have some ideas to how religion is to be understood within the context of the individual, society and culture, we are in a position to direct our attention to what is known as religious experience. 302
5. Religious Experience
By experience we usually mean the conscious perception
or apprehension of reality. Reality may be external# bodily
or psychic. However, the word experience is not an ordinary
classifying or distinguishing term because it has the
paradoxical property of applying to so many different things# 81 practically to everything. It could be said that the
boundaries of experience are the boundaries of reality.
The question that we want to deal with is whether there is
a specific religious. "That there is a complex phenomenon
called "religious exprience" can hardly be doubted. But this
could be a complex of experiences which# taken in isolation,
are all moral or aesthetic experience of different sorts," 8 2
An example could be found in the study of literature, A work
of literature is composed of many levels carrying with it
different levels of meaning and values. The total value of the
work consists in the interplay of these many levels. Something
similar seems to be the case with religion too. Taken in this
sense# religious experience is not something special or
particular but an aspect of a total human experience. The
anthropologist Dorothy Lee# studying primitive cultures# found
that religion does not primarily consist of special forms of
experiences of forms of worship of God or gods# or the idea
of the supernatural. Yet religion is always present in man's
view of his place in the universe# in his relatedness to man 83 an nature. Every aspect of life was permeated with religiono According to William James, there is a sense of deliverance which characterizes religious experience, a feeling that there is something wrong about the way we naturally are and that we can be saved from what is wrong by making proper connections with higher powers.®^ Eric Fromm sees man as being confronted by 'existential dichotomies' such as being born without choice and the inevitability of death, impossibility of reaching full potentialities in a given cultural context, etc. He contrasts these with' historic al dichotomies' like war
and poverty in the midst of penty, disease etc. Man rebels against these dichotomies and seeks rationalizations, as a
result of which he creates a frame of orientation and devotion which may take the form of some sort of supernatural religion 85 or a secular religion. For Fromm all religions and ideologies are the results of man's fundamental need to relate meaningfully to himself, to nature and other human beings,
Abraham Maslow followed up the suggestion of James and investigated the high points of human experiences which he calls 'peak experiences,' He believed that these peak 8 6 experiences are at the core of religions. In peak experiences
there is a total and unique concentration which usually will
not be seen in other types of ejq^rience, A mother fondling her baby could be transported into ecstacy by watching the baby's face. She could feel that the child is sacred, unique and-
that every child is a child of God. In these experiences
there is an element of self-transcendence and selflessness.
They are self-validating and have profound influence on the 304
life of the one who experiences. After the experience one feels grateful to a Reality which had been kind enough to reveal to him or her a glimpse of eternity and ultimate 87 reality. According to Gorden W. Allport, a deeply moving religious experience is not readily forgotten but is likely to remain as a focus of thought and desire,*'.... the authenti cally religious personality unites the tangible present with some comprehensive view of the world that makes this tangible present intelligible and acceptable to him. Psychotherapy recognizes this integrative function of religion in personality# s^^ndness of mind being aided by possession of completely embracing theory of life," 88
This search for value and meaning is an undeniable part of human experience. People who had refused to believe in any purpose or meaning of life have been at times forced by events
to rethink and reconsider their convictions, A case in point is Professor Cyril Joad# who had been convinced that God should be discraded to the scrapheap of hximan superstitions# but who was led to change his views when confronted by the 89 evil that he witnessed during the war.
Max Plank too pointed to the same dimension of human experience when he said:
Thus/ we see ourselves governed all through life by a • higher power# whose nature we shall never be able to define from the viewpoint of science. Yet no one who thinks can ignore it... The individual has no alternative but to fight bravely in the battle of life# and to'lJX)w in silent surrender to the will of a higher power which rules over him.^*^ 305
Karl Kenniger says that# talking to a dying patient or to a recovered one, he always feels a sense of receiving so much undeserved gratitude. There is something magnanimous
about such occasions. "This reverence for mystery, for vastness, for beauty, for inscrutable intelligence, for order and power - this is one component of the sentiment 91 called religious."
So far we have dealt with signs and signals of transcendence 92 as something special, even though within the realm of experience itself. These signals could be found in our every day activities too. An investigation of empirically given human situation would disclose to us aspects of behaviour which transcends the material conditions and limitations of the given situation. For example, a mother comforting a child while it is crying is telling in reality to the child that the world is in order, transcending the immediately present two individuals and their situations. The impulse that makes man trust in this order and commit his destiny to it, is a universal order which is ultimately trustworthy. Such representations can be justified only within the framework of a religious perspective.
Another instance of this signal of transcendence is what 93 Peter Berger calls argument frcm play. The works of the Dutch historian John Huizinga has shown that the playful element is one of the basic elements of human culture. He has argued that culture itself would be impossible without this dimension. 306
The play sets up a universe of discourse of its own for the
duration of the play# with its own rules and structureso
While one is immersed in play, time acquires a very specific
quality, namely, eternity. This is true of intense joy as
expressed by Nietzsche's Zarathusthra in the midnight songi
"All joy wills eternity - wills deep, deep eternity!" 94 Another essential element of human life is hope. Hiaman
hope has always asserted itself most intensely in the face
of experience that seemed to spell death and disaster. The profoundest manifestation of hope can be seen in acts of
courage ta'ken in defiance of death. The artist who, in spite
of his failing health, wants to finish his materpiece, the
man who risks his life to save the innocent, the one who
sacrifices everything that he has in the hope of a better
society - all these bear witness to that aspect of human life
which|suspend the reality of our 'living towards death', as
Heidegger describes our serious life. For Ernst Bloch, as
we have seen,, hxaman life itself is characterized by hope.
In Artsbasheve's novel Sanln, Sanin himself who is an
unashamed materialist asks, "Why should I get myself hanged
so that workers in 3200 A.D. can have as much food and sex
as they want?" This is Sanin's reply when his former comrades
rebuke him for refusing commitment and opting for the good
life instead. The novel was p'ublished soon after the 1905-
revolution. The answer he gives may be wrong, it is one that 95 is difficult to prove wrong. If there is no hope, then the 507
sacrifice of a life for a distant future is meaningless.
According to Bloch, it is hope that carries our life through to the end, our purposes without falling into despair or without allowing us to remain complacent. This hope makes us adventurous and it is a quality which is inevitable for the development of our life, literature, philosophy and practice. In The Principle of Hope, Bloch wrote "when there is hope there is religion.The religious man faces death with confidence as if it is the real beginning of life. Among the Dinka tribe the 'master of fishing-spear' is actually buried aline. He goes to the grave hoping that life is not ended, giving a sense of continuity and permanence 97 of his people.
Religion not only provides a context for hope but also 9 for damnation. 8 When what is to be huimanly cherished is outraged so fundamentally, no condemnation of it seems to be adequate if it is just temporary. It seems to need supernatural dimension. Humour too is specifically human.
The one basic discrepancy that humour shows is the discrepancy between man and the universe. The comic reflects the imprisonment of the human spirit in the world, comedy and 99 tragedy are commentaries on man’s finitude.
Transcendence is not a given fact, but a chance of freedom that is open to all who want. As Jaspers says, human existence is one in which possible Existenz appears to itself. Man does not only exist, he can transcend if he wants or else he can 508
refrain from transcending, Where there is only a desire
to preserve existence there is no transcendence. But if one
has to be faithful to one's ExistezA then he has to make attempts to transcend the given.
6. The Meaning of Religion
The origin of culture could be found in man's attempt to
live in a meaningful whole.According to Cassirer# "In
language, in religion, in art, in science, man can do more
than to build up his own universe - a symbolic universe that
enables him to understand and interpret, to articulate and
organize, to synthesize and universalize his hxaman experience,
Max Weber, Malinowski and Parsons have thought of religion as
a form of knowledge, something which answers the personal
problems about the meaning of human existence and suffering
in particular. For Martin P. Nilson, religion is a protest
against the meaninglessness of life, Hoffding too have 103 defined religion as a belief in the permanence of values.
The values which religion maintains is that life and events
have a meaning and not mere accidents of history. The belief
in a world, a divinely ordered cosmos wherein everything is
given meaning, is neither self-contradictory nor inconsistent
with empirical knowledge.
(a) Religion as the Ultimate Concern
For Tillich, religion has to do with man's ultimate concerno
He says, "the great religions ara concetrated on a personal 509
development in which ultimate concern appears and transcends 104 the personal limits, though remaining in a person*" He explains what ultimate concern is in the following words:
"The unconditional concern which is faith in the concern about the unconditional," The infinite passion, as has been described is the passion for the infinite. Or, to use our first term, the ultimate concern is concern about what is experienced as ultimate," In his Systematic Theology, he explains the content of this ultimate concern, "the question now arises: what is the content of our ultimate concern?,,.
Our ultimate concern is that which determines our being or non-being.,., Man is ultimately concerned about that which conditions his being beyond all the conditions in him and around him, Man is ultimately concerned about that which determines his ultimate destiny beyond all preliminary necessities and accidentsIn life there are many objects that can be the object of concern: wealth, health, nation, fame, country, etc. There is a possibility of any of these things becoming objects of our ultimate concern. "Every one 107 has a god or gods; not everyone acknowledges God," Tillich's answer to this would be that any ultimate con(,;ern which falls short of the ground of being too is religious; idolatrously religious,
108 (b) Religion as the Response to Ultimate Power
What is Ultimate Reality is not an easy question to answer. We might say that to the highest conception that is 310
possible for a religious man he gives the name of Ultimate
Reality, It is the most fundamental, most comprehensive and 109 enduring source of all realities man has-known. It is
the power in the presence of which man feels helpless and
dependent. In moments when his world lies scattered it is
to this power that he turns for guidance and security. In
religion man seeks to orient himself to this reality which
7 calls the tune, "It is the dimension that man confronts in
his extremest situations and at the limits of his existence#
that is the "boundary situations*' where man finds himself
impotent before cosmic power, before suffering and death, „110 and where he faces the narrow limits of his human knowledge.
Religion is his response to this ultimate source of power.
The quest for ultimacy is also the quest for unity,
ultimate oneness. This quest for unity could be found even
in religions that are manifestly polytheistic and even in
primitive religions which do not have the concept of a
supreme mind. An absolute and ultimate meaning can be provided
in the last analysis only by an ultimate unity.
(c) Religion as World-Construction^^^
The world into which man is born is not a cosmos, man has
to make a cosmos of the chaos that surrounds him. Every human
society is an enterprise of world-building. Religion occ-upies
a distinctive place in this enterprise. The sacred cosmos,
which transcends and includes man in its ordering of reality. 511
provides raan a shield against terror and anomie. It was
only by way of the sacred that man was able to conceive of
a cosmos in the first place. The maintaining of this world 112 also could be considered a religious act. All humanly
created worlds are by their very nature precarious, based on
insecure foundations. Because the individuals who create them
are often driven by self-interest and egotism. It is through
a complex process of socialization that a society manages to
keep its institutions functional- These organizations need
justification, and religion has beem historically speaking, one
of the most widespread and effective means of legitimation. By
locating these social organizations in the context of the
sacred and cosmic framework, religion gives them an ultimate
validity, valid ontological states. Religious rituals and
mythologies recall the basic values that any society wants to
preserve and hand down to successive generations*
7• Religion and Symbol^^^
"Since man is a homo symbolicus, and all his activities
involve symbolism, it follows that all religious facts have 114 a symbolic character," This is true because every religious
activity, every cult of objects, points to a meta-empirical
reality. When a tree is worshipped, it is not as a tree, but
as a manifestation of the sacredo According to Eliade, the 115 characteristics of religious symbols are the following,
1. Religious symbols are capable of revealing a modality of
the real structure of the world that is not evident on the 512
level of immediate experience. Thus symbols reveal the structure of the world as the religious person has conceived it,
2. In the primitive culture the symbols are always religious because what is real for him is the powerful, the meaningful and the sacred,
3. A religious symbol is capable of expressing simultaneously a number of meanings.
4. These symbols provide him with a perspective from which the world could be understood.
5. It has the capacity to express paradoxical situations otherwise quite inexpressible.
6. Religious symbols have an existential dimension, symbols still keep their contact with the source of life.
Symbolic thinking is not the exclusive privilege of the child, of the poet, of the unbalanced mind or of the primitive man.^^^ It is consubstantial with hiiman existence. The symbol is able to reveal certain aspects of reality that cannot be otherwise expressed. They express the most hidden modalities of human existence. An investigation into these, reveals to us what man is. Human mind could not function in a world devoid of meaning. The discovery of the real meaningful world is closely related to the sacred, because in the most archaic level of culture living as a human being was a religious act. 313
It is through religious symbols that man expresses and transmits to generations his encounter with and conceptions 117 of the meaningful and the sacred. According to Paul Tillich, the religious symbol combines the general characteristics of the symbol with the peculiar characteristic it possesses as a religious symbol. The first characteristic, as we have already seen, is that the inner attitude is directed not towards the symbol itself, but towards what is symbolized. Something that is intrinsically invisible is made a perceptible element. Thus the concept of "surplus value" could be used as a symbol of economic exploitation, the concept of "Supreme Being" as a symbol for religious man's ultimate concern. The symbol is not merely a sign, it has an inherent power,. It cannot be interchanged at will. A real symbol points to an object which never can become an 'object'. Thus religious symbols point to and represent the transcendent but do not make the transcendent immanent,
A negative theory of symbols holds that what is symbolized or intended by a symbol is not an objective reality but a state of mind, the subjective character of religious individuals.
The psychological and sociological theories of symbols hold that they have no reality other than symbolizing the psychological and sociological situations. This tendency of thinking had given decisive impulse by Marx and Nietizsche,
Since religion is a cultural phenomenon dealing with the
Ultimate, the meaning of life, world etc., it cannot avoid symbols. In earlier stages, the symbolic was to a great
extent mythical. In myth the symbol and the symbolized
have not been clearly distinguished* But as soon as we
recognize a symbol as a symbol we are transcending the realm
of myth. In the field of religion we must be constantly on
the guard not to reify the symbolized. The recognition of a
symbol as a symbol is a step towards transcendence.
In attempting to communicate the religious concepts and
values man has to use symbols. However, symbolic thinking
is not limited to religious field alone, he uses it whenever
he attempts to communicate, because man is a symbol-marking
creatiire. Perhaps the first symbols he used were to express
his own self image. So we shall now turn our attention to
the investigation of man as he understands himself in the
religious context,
80 Concept of Man in Religion
Man has always sought for self-knowledge. The pre-historic
myths and legends gave expression to the question of what man
is. In historic times. Religion has considered man to be a
' unique creature. This awareness of uniqueness was the result
of a process. "To know oneself as a self, to be human, is
to experience oneself as an individual "over against" the
rest of the world.... Out of these total experiences of
over-againstness each person develops the sense of unique
individuality that makes him a conscious self in his own right. 515
one which centers aroxind the awareness of his separate and unique personal identity." 118 In this process of self- realization religion adds its own dimension. When man contemplates himself in the context of the Ultimate, he is not merely a creature of the earth but some one who is created in the image of God, or who is part of the Absolute whose destiny lies beyond the transient and the temporal.
Human existence here on the earth is a struggle between the lost paradise and the bliss that awaits. So man's real nature cannot be understood without this futuristic dimension in the religious context/ whether it be the Ultimate future, the Christian heaven, the Hindu moksha, the Buddhist Nirvana, or the ideal existence of Confucianism. 119
“A man is only a man when he is like God and lives in 120 fellowship with him." These words of Stephen Neill summarizes in a way the religious conception of man. For personalistic theisms, man is uniquely valuable because he is a person, that is, a being with spiritual capacity, special moral and rational powers which set him apart from other creatures and enable him to reach his true personal identity,
Man by his own power cannot do this, he needs help and guidance from the Absolute, For monism and non-theistic religions, man is a unique phenomenon* He may be a link in the chain of existence, yet in his wordly existence he has special possibilities and dangers. He has the unique capacity to become aware of his true nature and reality hidden deep 316
within his consciousness. 121
Are these conceptions of man valid today even from a religious perspective? Dr, Philip Hefner puts it dramatically when he asks;
What does it mean to be a man, when the heights and depths of human emotion (the emotional range worthy of Oedipus Rex or a Lear) can be manipulated by chemical or by electrical charges? What does it mean to be a man when a sexual reproduction of life is foreseeable? What do life and death mean in an age when ressuscitation of the heart/ transplanting of organs and employment of certain drugs make it possible to maintain heart and lung indefinitely?1^2
Is man, then, merely an epi-phenomenon, a useless passion as
Sartre calls him? No so for the man of religion# because for him man is not a problem to be solved but a mystery to 123 be at the growing tip of evolution. ^ For the religious man the knowledge that he is still an unfinished product does not make life meaningless. He knows that he is bound to the universe in countless ways. As Julian Huxley puts i^t,
"the earth is not simply a pedestral on v/hich man is set like a statue, but rather a gigantic stalk on which man is to 124 flower." In the Teilhardian conception, the whole of evolution has moved in the direction of man, has led to the emergence of man who forms the crown and climax of it. From the evolutionary-phenomenological perspective it is as the spearhead of evolution that man gets his dignity and superiority.
It is with man that the future of evolution rests. He is a
"terminus" but also a new begiriiiing. By exercising his creative ?17
energies he will lead evolution to fulfilling its process,
Man, as we have said# is a mystery and so not something
that can be detached from our own being and t.hen systematically
analysed and categorized. Even when denying the uniqueness of
man, we affirm it by our capacity to deny it, "My name if Nobody,”
Ulysses told Polyphenus# and the gloomy truth is that for the
purpose of final identification chis remains tne hxanan name/"
says Ernst Bloch, X 2 6 But not for religion/ the whole of
religion is the expression of an awareness that man is really
someone,
9, Religion and Ethics
Religion is a protest against the meaningless of life/
that is to say/ our existence does not seem to have a meaning
unless we give it. To make life meaningful/ man must choose
between different possibilities/ and the religious man makes
his choices within the framework and context of his God/ his
conception of himself and the goal of history as defined by
his religion. In the process of world construction man
creates institutions, techniques, philosophies and religions
in order to make his life meaningful, and the character of
these institutions reflects the understanding society has of
itself. The ethics of a society is the reflection and
understanding of the self-conception of that society. Thus
the ethics of Aristotle/ the first systematic moral philosophy/
reflects the ethical consciousness of the Greeks, In the 318
moksha is outlined in several of the Upanlshads also.
Moral life is assiomed as a condition antecedent to the 129 inquiry of Brahman-Atman. Ethical virtues as integral parts of dharrna, have found a lot of emphasis in Ramayana.
In the Bhaqavadqita/ the duty to act and perform one's duty without desire or attachment is stressed. In Jainism, right faith# right knowledge and right conduct constitute the path of salvation. It recommends for the perfection of right conduct five kinds of vows: non-violence# truthfulness, non-stealing, abstention from sensuality and from greed.
In Buddhism too great importance is given to right conduct and behaviour. In Christian morality the believer experiences moral obligation wholly and entirely in the light of God's gift, the light of God's love and grace. Moral obligation is experienced as an invitation to imitate Christ, 'the man for others', A Christian understanding of morality includes an ethics of interior disposition and an ethos of responsibility. However, genuine intention cannot be had without openness to others and without a spirit of responsibi lity and a readiness to devote oneself to others,The
"pillars of Islam", the chief duties of the faithful,
are prayer, profession of faith, fasting and pilgrimage.
The Koran exhorts the faithful to relive the necessities 132 of orphans, pilgrims, prisoners and the poor.
The basic ethical concepts of the west which were largely formulated under the influence of Christianity are the 519
beginning culture had been predominently religious and so it is not surprising that for long religion and morality had been closely associated. It was religion that justified the mores, customs in a society. The man v;ho allowed himself to be guided by the prevailing customs was considered to be moral o
W.W. Bartley III argues that the sharp distinction between religion and morality cannot stand. He bases himself on the definition of religion as given by Keynes; religion is one's attitude towards oneself and the ultimate. The love of beauty and the development of inward consciousness could be called religious. VJithout a heightened self-awareness our interpretation of external world could lead to distortion# and since religion is determined by our attitude to ourselves and to the ultimate reality, to act morally means to act according to this interpretation. To act morally in this context means to act religiously. The aim of religion and 127 morality is the same - to conquer evil. The possibility of acting morally without religion is not denied. However, morality has been closely connected with religion historically.
In the Vedas the concept of Rta invested the moral order 128 with sublimity and inviolability. To act according to Rta was to act according to reality which would result in attainment of heaven, immortality or prosperity. The course of life that a man should adopt in order to be able to attain 520
133 following, Man is sufficiently free so as to be responsible
for his actions. Because of this essential freedom, there are
universally valid ethical norms that are to be obeyed by all#
irrespective of the personal and accidental circumstances.
The ethically legitimate aims of individuals are their self-
realization and the development of their capacities and
faculties. However# this must be subordinated to the ethical
norms of Christianity# its humanistic secularizations and the
norms of the society in which one lives. These sets of norms
are sanctioned by God by h\iman nature and social necessity#
that is# the need to sustain society and its development.
Another important aspect is the belief that there is no
contradiction between individual morality on the one hand
and social-political morality on the other. The individual
can develop within the framework of the given society so
sanctioned by Christian principles and by the nature of man.
Consequently the institutions of this society has to be
protected and developed,
10, Evil and Suffering
From Epicurus to the modern sceptic# the question why
God did not prevent evil has scarcely changed. Either God
cannot prevent evil (and then is he really all powerful?)
or he will not (and then is he really holy# good and just?).
Many attempts have been made to answer the paradox. The
religious man had to confront the problem from the very
beginning. Mythological solutions hove suggested the 321
positioning of the dual principles of good and evil as in ancient Persian religion and Marcionism, or has pushed the problem back to fallen Angels as in Judaism and
Christian mythology. Pessimism disguises the problem of evil by denying any meaning to reality. Rationalism and pantheism solve the problem by recognizing nothing as 13 4 evil. According to Scholastics evil is not something positive but negative. It is the lack of a perfection which should be present in a free spiritual being. All these are attempts to give some meaning to suffering within the religious context. The love of God does not protect from suffering but protects in suffering. Even Christ did not escape suffering but suffered to the bitter end. The suffering of Christ is meaningful in the context of the ressurection only. In all the religions of the world, suffering and evil are not endured for their own sake but for a purpose, viz., for liberation, Edurance of suffering seems to have a role to play in liberation.
In the religious context, evil not only has an ontological status but also a subjective dimension. There is an interiorisation of the experience of evil, which is called guilt. For the believer the problem of evil is also an ethical problem. According to Paul Ricoeur this is because of a double relationship with freedom and 135 obligation.“ To affirm is to take upon oneself the
responsibility and the origin of evil. Evil is evil 522
because it is the work of freedomr The subject admits that he is capable of evil and admits himself to be the author of evilo^^^
(a) Suffering and the Religions of the World
The distinctive genuis of Israel lay in its belief that 137 God might disclose himself in history. In the book of
Genesis we are told that creation is good and that evil
/f and suffering are the result of man's alienation from God,
In later writings, suffering is simply accepted as one of the facts of life, Christianity grew out of Jewish world and inherited many of its beliefs, Man is both the aiithor and victim of evil. He suffers death, temptation and pain, thus he is a victim. At the same time he can be the author of wickedness, cruelty and sino In Christian understanding, evil is under the power of God and suffering could be used by man for the attainment of his end. When one is united with Christ, suffering and death lose their power. So
St. Paul says, "Where Death is your victory? Where, Death, is your power to hurt?" (I Cor,15,54-55)
Islam too rose within the cultural context of Judaism and Christianity, Suffering in Quran is a necessary part of the purpose of God, It creates in the faithful a disposition of surrender to God and helps in the discrimination of the sincere from the insincere. Suffering not only froms character but also exposes it - under pressure man will 323
reveal his true self, Hinduism is more a way of life than a form of thought and in it suffering could be seen as a result of the conflict inherent in creation.
According to Dro Radhakrishnan the cosmic process is one of universal and unceasing change and is patterned on a duality which is perpetually in conflict# the perfect order of heaven and the chaos of the dark waters. Life creates opposites, as it creates sexes, in order to 138 reconcile them." Of all the religions. Buddhism is the one which concentrates most on suffering immediately and directly, Buddha's search for truth started as the result of his encounter with old age suffering and death.
The answer he gets from his quest, the doctrine of the noble truths, expresses the BudHhist conception of the nature, the origin and the cessation of suffering and the way to reach nirvana. For Buddha, the cessation of suffering could be 139 attained by following the noble eightfold path.
None of the explanations provided by various religions that we have seen is satisfactory. The endeavour of religions have been to make suffering which is inevitable meaningful to the believer somehow or other. Suffering is that fact of life in which all men, whether they be religious or not, find themselves at some time or other in their lives.
In the harrowing death-scene of the child in Albert Camus'
The Plaque Dr. Rieux the atheist tells the Jesuit Fr, Panelux, "... we are working side by side for something that units us - beyond blasphemy and prayers. And it's the 140 only thing that matters." 524
Notes and References
1 Bloch/ Ernst# Man On His Ovm (New York/ Herder and Herder# 1971)/ p.147.
2 Selders, George/ (compiled by) The Great Quotations/ Pocket Books/ New York/ 1967/ p.813,
3 ibid./ 813,
4 ibid./ 813.
5 ibid., 816,
6 ibid., p,816.
7. ibid./ p.816,
8. ibid./ p.816.
9 Price, H.H./ Essays in the Philosophy of Religion^ Oxford University Pres:, London, 1972, p.87,
10 Adelmann/ Fredrick J./ (ed.) The Quest For the Absolute/ The Hague, Martin Nijhoff/ 1966, pp. 207, Richard T, jy^urphy, S.J./ "A Metaphysical Critique of Method: Husserl and Marleau-Ponty,”
11 OttO/ Rudolf/ The Idea of The Holy/ Oxford University PresS/ 1936.
12 Wach Joachim/ Sociology of Religion/ University of Chicago/ Chicago Press, 1911, p.12,
13 ibid./ p.13.
14 Price, H.H., op.cit., ppol5 ff»
15 Baillie, J., The Interpretation of Religion/ H & T. Clark/ Edinburgh; 1929/ p.448 (quoted in Sullivan/ op.cit./ p.6.)
16 Przyvara, P.E., Polarity, trans. A.C. Bouquet, Oxford University, London/ 1935, p.22 (quoted in ^ullivan/ op.cit., p.6.)
17 Gandhi, Ramchandra, The Availability of Religious Ideas Macmillan, London, 1976/ p,9. 325
18 MacGregor, Geddes, Philosophical Issues in Religious Thought, Hughton Hifflin Company, Boston, 1973, p.20
19 Lewy Gunter, Religion and Revolution, Oxford University Press, New York, 1974, p.4.
2 0 Sullivan, John Edward, Ideas of Religion, University Press of America, Washington, 1979, p.7.
21 ibid.. pp.7 f. 22 ibid., p.8. 23 ibid., p.8. 24 ibid., pp., 8 f. 25 ibid. 1 p.9.
26 Fromm, Erich, Psychoanalysis and Religion, Yale University Press, New Haven, 1950, p.21.
27 Smart, Nlnan, The Philosophy of Religion, Oxford University Press, New York, 1979, p.16,
28 Kolakowskl, L,, Religion, Oxford University Press, New York, 1982, pp.10-12.
29 ibid., p.12.
30 Van Der Leeuw, Religion in Essence and Manifestation, Harper, New York, 1963 (trans. J.E. Turner), p.23,
31 Waardenburg, Jacques, Classical Approaches to the Study of Religion, Muton & Co. The Hague, 1973, p. 14 (henceforward referred to as Waardenburg)o
32 Cf. Cornells, Tlele, P., Elements of the Science of Religion in Waardenburg, p.97.
3 3 Cf, Waardenburg, p.54.
34 Cf, ibid., p.55.
35 Cf. Van Der Leeuw, op.cit., p. VoloII, p,679.
36 Cf, Otto Rudolf, op.cit.. 526
37 Cf. V/ach J. / op, ext,, p. 14.
38 Sullivan/ John Edwards, op.cit./ p.107,Quoted from Christianity and the Encounter of the World Religions, N.Y. 1963, pp.4-5.
39 ibid., p.l08o
40 Cf. ibid., p.87.
41 James William, The Varieties of ReligiousExperience, Mentor, New York, p.42. 42 ibid., p.397„ 43 freud Sigmund, The Future of an Illusion, In Waardenburg, p.361, 44 Freud Sigmund, New Introductory Lectures on Psycno- Analysis, trans. W.J.H. Sprott, ed. E. Jones, Hogarth Press, and the Institute of Psycho Analysis, London, 1946, p.l25o
45 Jung, Carl Gustav, Psychology and Religion, Yale University Press, New Haven, 1938, p.4.
46 Fromm Eric, Psychoanalysis and Religion, p.20
47 Fromm Eric, 'Individual and Social Narcissism', in Personality and Religion, WilliaiTi Sadler, (ed.) , SCM Press, London, 1970, pp.130 f.
48 Cf. Weber Max, The Sociology of Religion, introd. Talcott Parsons, Trans. E. Fischoff, Social Science, Paperbacks, London, 1966, p.l.
49 Cf. Waardenburg, pp.43 ff.
50 Durkheim, Emilia, The Elementary Form of the Religious Life, trans. J. Swain, Gorge Allen and Unwin, London, 1976, po47.
51 Cf. ibid., see the Introduction by Robert Nisbet.
52 Cf. Waardenburg, p.325 ff. cf. also. Marcel Mauss, A General '^heory of Magic, trans. Robert Brain, Routledge and Kegan Paul, London, 197 2. 527
53 Cf, Berger Peter L.# The Sacred Canopy/ A Doubleday Anchor Book, New York, 1969, pp.176 f.
5 4 Cf. Waardenburg, p.28, According to Cassirer, "Culture means a v/hole of verbal and moral activities - of such activities as are not only conceived in an abstract way, but have the constant tendency and the energy of realization. It is this realization, this construction and reconstruction of the empirical world, that is involved in the very concept of culture and that makes up one of its essential and most characteristic features," Cassirer, Ernst, Symbol, Myth and Culture, Yale University Press, New Haven, 1979, p.65,
55 Cf. Waardenburg, p,28. According to Eric Fromm, there is a great deal of totemism in today's culture also, "A person \^;hose exclusive devotion is to the state of his political party, whose only criterion of value and truth is the interest of state or party, for whom the flag as a syinbol of his group is a holy object, has a religion of clan and totem worship, even though in his own eyes it is a perfectly rational system (v/hich, of course, all devotees to any kind of primitive religion believe). If we want to understand how systems like fascism or Stalinism can possess millions of people, ready to sacrifice their integrity and reason to the principle, "my country, right or wrong," we are forced to consider the totemistic, the religious quality of their orientation," (Eric Fromm, Psychoanalysis and Religion, pp.31 ff)
56 Cf. Waardenburg, p.29,
57 Cf. ibid.
58 Cf. ibid.
59 Cf. ibid., p.31,
60 Taylor, Edward B., Pxlmitlve Culture, Vol. I, John Murray, London, 1913, p,424. ■^28
61 Cf. Waardenburg, p.32»
62 Cf, Lang# Andrew# The Making of Religion, Longmans# Green & ‘-o. , London, 1909, p.45,
63 Cf, Frazer James, The New Golden Bough# ed. Revised. Theodor H, Gaster, A Mentor Book# New York# 1959, Cf, also Warrdenburg# ppo35# 253,
64 Cf, Waardenburg# p,36,
65 Cf. Marett# Robert R.# "TheTabu-Mana Formula in Waardenburg", p.263,
66 Cf, Schmidt, Wilheim, The Origin and Growth of Religion# trans. Rose, H.J.# Methuen and Co.# London,.1935# p,2o
67 Cf, Malinowski Bronislaw# Magic# Science and Religion# in Waax'danburg, p,557.
68 Cf, ibid.# p,558.
69 ibid.# p.559,
70 Cf, Lowie# Robert A,# Primitive Religion# Liveright Paperbound ed.# New York# 1970# pp.xvi-xvii,
71 Radin Paul# The World of Primitive Man, in Waardenburg# p.583,
72 Cf, Radicliffe-Brown# Alfred, Structure and Function in Primitive Society, Routledge and Kegan Paul# London# 1952# pp.154 f,
73 Martin P, Milsson# "Religion as Man's Protest Against the Meaninglessness of Events"# in Waardenburg# p.615,
74 Cf. Evans-Pritchard, Essays in Social Anthropology# Faber and Faber# London# 1962# p.44,
75 Budd Susan# Sociologists and Religion# Collier-Macmillan# London, 1973# p.18,
76 Cf. Sullivan# Ideas of Religion# p.7 529
77 Cf. Swanson# G.E., "Experience of the Supernatural" in Sociology of Religion# (ed.) Roland Robertson# Penguin, Harmondsworth# 1969, p.263,
78 Cf. Bellah R.N., 'Religious Evolution'# in R. Robertson# op.cit.# p.263.
79 Cf. Eliade# Mircea# The Quest# Chicago University Press, Chicago# 1969# p.44,
80 Cf. Fromm# Eric# The Anatomy of Human Destructiveness# Harmondsworth# 1977# pp.211-217,
81 Cf. Waismann# Fredrich# Philosophical Papers# ed. Brain McGuninness, D, Reidel Publishing House, Boston# 1977, pp.136-149,
82 Bochenski# J.M.# O.P.# 'Some Problems for a Philosophy of Religion'# in Religious Experience and Truth#(ed.) Sydney Hook# New York University# Nev; York# 1961# pp,40 ff,
83 Cf. Lee# Dorethy# 'The Religious Dimension of Human Experience'# William A. Jr, (ed.) in Sadler Personality and Religion# SCM Press# London, 1970# p,34,
84 Cf. James William# op,cit.# pp, 383 f.
85 Cf. Brown# J.A.C.# Freud and the Post-Freudians# Harmondsworth# Penguin# p,154o
86 Cf, Maslow# Abraham H.# Religions# Values, and Peak- Experiences# New York# p.154,
87 Maslow# A,# 'Religious Aspects of Peak-Experiences' in Sadler, Personality and Religion, p.177, see also pp,168-179, The Viking Press# 1970, pp.59-81. 88 Allport, Gorden W., Personality# Constable# London# 1937# p,226. 350
89 Cf, Menninger/ Karl, "The Common Enemy", in Sadlr, pp.240 f.
90 Plank, Max, 'The Meaning and Limits of Exact Sciences', Science, 110, 30, Sept., 1949, 319-327. (Quoted in Sadler, p.243.)
91 Sadler, p.244«
92 Cf. Berger, Peter, A Rumour of Angels, Penguin, Harmondsworth, 1970, pp.69 ff,
93 Cf. ibid., 76 ff„
94 Cf. ibid., pp. 81 ffo
95 Cf. Bloch, Ernst, Man on His Own, p.84 ff.
96 ibid. ,pJ9.
97 Cfo Lienhardt G., Divinity and Experience; The Religion of the Dinka, Oxford University Press, London, pp,238-319,
98 Cf, Berger, Peter, A Rumour of Angels, pp.85 ff,
99 Cf. ibid., p.92.
;)('IDO Cf. Jaspers, Karl, Philosophy, Vol. I, trans. E.B, Ashton, The University of Chicago Press, Chicago, 1969, pp.77 ff,
101 Van Der Leeuw says, "Over the variety of the given he throws his systematically fashioned net, on which various designs appear; a work of art, a custom, an economy. From the stone he makes himself an image, from the instinct a commandment, from the wilderness a tilled fieldj and thus he developed power. But he never halts; he seeks ever further for constantly deeper and wider meaning. When he realizes that a flower is beautiful and bears fruit, he enquires for its ampler, ultimate significance; when he knows that his wife is beautiful, that she can work and bear children, when he perceives that he must respect another man's wife, just as he would have his own respected, he seeks still further and asks for her final meaning. 55 1
Thus he finds the secret of the flower and of women; and so he discovers their religious significance," Van Der Leeuw, op.cit., pp.679 f,
102 Cassirer/ Ernst, An Essay on Man, Yale University Press, New Haven, 1962, p.221,
103 Nilsson Martin P,, op.cit., Waardenburg, p,615.
104 Tillich, Paul, Dynamics of Faith, Harper Torchbooks, Harper and Brothers, New York, 1958, p,41,
105 ibid., p.9.
106 Tillich Paul, Systematic Theology, Vol.I, James Nisbet & Co., Herts, 1953, p,17,
107 Smith, John P,, 'Ultimate Concern and the Really Ultimate*, Sidney Hook, op.cit., p.68,
108 Cf, King, Winston L,, Introduction to Religion, Harper and Row, New York, 1968, pp,13 ff,
109 ibid., p,14.
110 ibid., p.l7o
111 Berger, Sacred Canopy, pp. 3-28,
112 Cf. ibid., pp.29-51.
113 fitymolog±:ally the word "symbol" comes fromcertain usages in ancient law, Tv/o parts of a ring, staff ortablet served, when they were brought together, to identify legitimate guests (tessera hospitalitatis^ messengers or partners. Thus the word came to have the meaning of "treaty", and in ecdesiastical language could legitimate the common profession of faith and obligatory formulae of creeds (the "symbols") and then instrxaments, images and act in which the faith was expressed^ Sacramentum Mundi, Vol. VI, ed. Karl Rahner et al. Burns Si Oates, 1970, p.199, 332
114 Eliade, Mlrcea and Klttagwa, Joseph M,# The History of Religions^ The University of Chicago Press# Chicago, 1969, p.95o According to Cassirer the definition of man as rational animal is an inadequate one. He says, "Reason is a very in. adequate term with which to comprehend the forms of man's cultural life in all their richness and variety. But all these forms are symbolic forms. Hence, instead of defining man as an animal rationale, we should define him as an animal symbolic\im. By so doing we can designate his specific difference, and we can understand the new way open to man - the way to civilization," Cassirer Ernst, An Essay on Man, Yale University Press, New Haven, 1962, p,26,
115 Cf. ibid., pp.95 ff.
116 According to Cassirer, the symbolic way of looking at the world and relating to it has changed the very concept of man and his relation to the world. He says, "Man has, as it were, discovered a new method of adopting himself to his environment. Between the receptor system and the effector system, which are to be found in all animal species, we find in man as third link which we may describe as the symbolic system. This new acquisition transforms the whole of h-uman life. As compared with the other animals man lives not merely in a broader reality; he lives, so to speak, in a new dimension of reality. There is an unmistakable difference between organic reactions and human responses." Cassirer Ernst, An Essay on Man, p,24o See also, Eliade, M., Images and Symbols, trans. Philip Mairet, Sheed and Ward, New York, 1969, pp.12 ffj and; Skorupski, John, Symbol and Theory, Cambridge University Press, Cambridge, 1976o 335
117 Tillich Paul/ 'The Religious Symbol' ed. Sidney Hook, Religious Experience and Truth, pp.301-321,
118 King, Winston L., op.cit., 256 ff.
119 The Indian mystic Ramana Maharshi taught that spiritual salvation was to be gained by persistently inquiring into the character of the question 'Who am I?" (Ramchandra Gandhi, op.cit., p.3)
120 Kitwood T.M., What is Human?, Inter-Varsity Press, London, 1970, p.92.
121 Cf. King, Winston L., op.cit,, p.256 ff.
122 MacGregor, Philosophical Issues in Religious Thought, p.17?.
123 Cf. ibid., p.180.
124 Wildiers, N.M., An Introduction to Teilhard de Chardin, Fonatana/Collins, London, 1968, p.62.
125 Cf. ibid., pp.80-82.
126 Bloch, E., Man on His Own, p.52.
127 Cf. Bartley III, W.W., “The Conquest of Evil", in Talk of God, Royal Institute of Philosophy Lectures, Vol. 2, 1967/68, Macmillan, London, 1969, pp.86-99> see also the introduction by G.N.A. Vesey,
128 Cf. Radhakrishnan S., History of Philosophy; Eastern and Western,' Vol»i, George Allen and Unwin, London, 1953, p.45.
129 Cf. ibid., pp.70-71.
130 Cf. ibid., pp.147-151
131 Cf. Sacramentum Mundi, Vol. 4, pp.ll2-115o
132 Cf, Radhakrishnan S., History of Philosophy East and West, pp.504 f. 55^
133 Cf. Marcuse/ Herbert, Soviet Marxism, Columbia University Press, Nev; York, 1958, pp„ 197-199,
134 Cfo Joad, Cyril, The Recovery of Belief, Faber and Faber, London, 1952, p„54.
135 Cf. Ricoeur^ Paul, 'Guilt, Ethics and Religion' Talk of God, pp.100-117.
136 Cf, ibido, p,107.
137 Cf, Bowker, John, Problems of Siifferinq in Religions of the World, The University Press, Cambridge, 1970, p,5, cf, pp5-41.
138 Bowker, op.cit., p,203, (quoted from Radhakrishnan. The Principal Upanishads, Oxford, 1953, p,59)
139 Cf. Radhakrishnan, S,, History of Philosophy Eastern and Western, pp, 152 ff»
140 Camus, Albert, The Plaque, Penguin, Harmondsworth, 1960, p,178.