Today it is difficult to give a definite answer to the question of which religion is the most ancient, the first to arise. Archaeological excavations provide more and more new ground for further conclusions regarding the emergence of religion.

Islam is a young religion

Surrendering oneself to God is how “Islam” is translated from Arabic. This religion, which is one of the world's, originated only in the seventh century. Its followers are Muslims, whose communities are in one hundred and twenty countries. Twenty-three percent of the world's population is Muslim. In forty-nine states they constitute the majority.

From a historical point of view, this is a very young religion. Finding personal experience, not harming anyone, openness to the gaze of God - this is what lies at the core of Islam. Believers believe that only God decides when to create a soul and when to dissolve it; accordingly, it does not appear at birth and does not disappear at the moment of a person’s death. According to Muslims, only Allah decides the fate of a person.

This religion can be called the youngest also because the average Muslim is only twenty-three years old.

What was ancient Christianity like?

The traditional worldview of the population has undergone significant changes with the advent of a new religion - Christianity. It appeared at the end of the first century BC - in the first half of the first century AD in the Eastern Mediterranean.

With the advent of Christianity, the mythological idea of ​​life and world order began to collapse, and faith in a savior God appeared who could save every person. The main attribute of a just and pure god was justice.

The cults of the Eastern Mediterranean manifested themselves in different shapes. In the end, the ground was prepared for the spread of Christianity, since it was in it that the trends that had arisen by that time found their greatest embodiment. In early Christianity, suffering was deified, since God's grace was revealed exclusively to those who suffer. Faith called for unity in love, without dividing people into strangers and our own.

Christians perceived themselves on earth as temporary wanderers. At the center of the teaching, at the same time, it was man who was responsible for his actions and had the opportunity to choose his path to the Kingdom of God. This was the beginning of the transformation of Christianity into a world religion.

At first, the followers of the preacher Jesus were only a small group. The doctrine of it arose in the first half of the first century AD. Jesus, continuing the prophetic movement, first acted as a prophet. He opposed ritual regulation and formal rituals, which influenced the further spread of Christianity.

The idea of ​​Christian charity was to help all those who suffer, and the reasons for this suffering are not important, it does not matter whether it is a woman or a man, a poor person, a cripple or a harlot. Mercy concerned the individual. Christianity said that anyone can be saved through faith. Gradually, Christianity, conquering the souls of people, began to turn into a world religion.

The oldest religion on Earth

The oldest religion in the world currently known (we do not take into account primitive cults) is Zoroastrianism. An accurate chronologization of the teaching that originated in Iran is difficult because it is so old. Most experts agree that the roots of Zoroastrianism go back to the sixth millennium BC, which means that the age of Zoroastrianism exceeds 7 thousand years. The first written monuments of this religion appeared at the turn new era, however, at that time Zoroastrianism was already extremely ancient. The first material sources of the teaching were written down in the now dead language of the Avesta - the name of the holy book of the Zoroastrians.

The central place of Zoroastrianism is occupied by the deity Ahura Mazda - the beginningless creator of all things, the father of all laws of the universe and the leader of the side of Good in the fight against Evil, which occurs in the world without his permission. His only prophet among people was Zarathustra, who, according to his teaching, brought to people the truth about God's revelation and opened their eyes to bad customs: bloody raids on neighboring tribes, looting, teachings of priests that encouraged violence.

Zoroastrianism had a huge influence on the Abrahamic religions, including the largest: Judaism, Christianity, and Islam.

What other ancient religions are there?

Several of the most ancient religions are known. One of these is the religion of the Sumerians. They had a rather complex pantheon of gods. Man had to subordinate his life to the service of these gods. The intermediaries between people and the seven main gods were gods called the Anunnaki.

One of the most unusual is the Inca religion. Their pantheon is very diverse, since, conquering new peoples, they added their deities to their pantheon. Of the modern world religions, the most ancient is Buddhism. It appeared more than two and a half thousand years ago. The basis was the ancient teachings of India - the desire for the divine, nirvana and enlightenment. This can be achieved only by rising above all attachments, through meditation and self-improvement. It is known about such ancient religions as the religion of the Druids, Celtic beliefs, shamanism, etc.

New religious movements appear almost every year. The website has a detailed article on the youngest religion.
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Ancient religions are ideas that reflect human belief in the existence of supernatural forces and beings that control processes and phenomena material world. This includes primitive worship various subjects, ancestors, phenomena and forces of nature, animals.

The origins of the first religious ideas of our ancestors modern man are closely related to the emergence of early forms spiritual life. At a certain stage of the transformation of Neanderthals into Homo sapiens, already possessing the ability to reason, the process of accumulating and comprehending practical experience began.

A primitive savage is already a reasonable, thinking person, capable of a certain analysis, comprehension of a specific situation, practical experience, fixed in regular activity, of which the following practices were the most common:

Burial practice

The intelligent cave man buried his loved ones in special burials, and the dead went through a ritual of certain preparation for their afterlife: their body was covered with a layer of red ocher, household items, jewelry, utensils, etc. were placed next to them. This means that the group that buried their dead already had rudimentary ideas about the afterlife. And no matter how vague these ideas may be, it is clear from them that the afterlife seemed to Upper Paleolithic people to be a continuation of earthly life. In other words, in the Upper Paleolithic era, ideas about the existence of, along with, real life another world - the world of the dead and spirits: it was believed that the dead could somehow influence the lives of the living (which, in particular, explains the special care for the dead).

Practice of magical images

The practice of magical images in cave painting, which appeared precisely with the beginning of the Upper Paleolithic, with the emergence of sapiens (intelligent) man. The vast majority known to science cave drawings are scenes of hunting, images of people and animals, or people dressed in animal skins, or even just half-humans, half-animals. These images indicate that primitive people believed in the existence of supernatural connections between people and animals, as well as in the possibility of influencing the behavior of animals with the help of magical techniques, through the powerful spirits of their deceased ancestors in the world, or with the help of intermediaries between the living and the dead, i.e. various kinds of sorcerers and shamans.

Man in ancient times sought to understand and explain the world in which he lived, although he did not separate himself from nature. One of the first ways of understanding the world was associated with a person’s transference of his own properties and sensations to the whole world. the world around us. This is how the belief that nature is alive arose. Stones, trees, rivers, clouds - all these are living creatures, only they are unlike humans, just as a tiger, an elephant, and a bear are unlike him. And those that differ too much from a person may also have completely special properties that are incomprehensible and inaccessible to people. Fire burns, lightning kills, thunder thunders beyond the power of any human being to shout.

Watching how sprouts emerged from the ground, grew stronger, and became trees - The earliest people they believed that someone cared about growing edible fruits for them, someone populated the lands, waters and skies with animals, fish, birds. Someone finally gave birth to the man himself. A sensitive, wary, attentive man of ancient times simply could not help but feel the invisibly present force in the world, on which both life and death depended. Often, when studying primitive beliefs, scientists encounter the veneration of this force in the person of the Mother Goddess.

These connections between people and animals, mediated, moreover, by the cult of fertility and reproduction known to man at that time (figurines of a woman-mother with emphasized sexual characteristics are often found at the sites of cavemen excavated by archaeologists) were represented in the representation of primitive groups at the stage of their transformation from hordes to clan groups there is a very definite religious understanding.

Totemism

Totemism arose from the belief of one or another group of people in their kinship with a certain type of animal or plant, most likely, initially precisely those that formed the basis of the food of this group. Gradually it turned into the main form of religious ideas of the emerging kind. Members of the clan group (blood relatives) believed that they descended from ancestors who combined the characteristics of people and their totem (i.e., half-human-half-animal, half-human, half-plant, various kinds of fantastic creatures and monsters).

The totemic clan group usually bore the name of its totem and sacredly revered it. At first, veneration, apparently, did not exclude, but even assumed the use of totemic animals and plants for food; Moreover, it was precisely this fact (i.e., the consumption of totem meat) that could give rise to the idea of ​​kinship between a person and his totem - after all, both of them ultimately consisted of the same substance.

However, this kind of connection between people and totems dates back to the deep past, and only ancient legends can indirectly testify to their existence, such as, for example, myths preserved among the Australian aborigines, testifying to the initial close connection between totemic ideas and hunting with its hunting magic and camouflage people into animal skins.

Totemic ideas played a huge role in the process of formation of clan society: it was they who most contributed to the delimitation of a group of relatives from the rest, the emergence of a clear idea of ​​one’s own, that is, those who belonged to to this totem, to whom the norms and customs already developed over centuries were strictly applied, and strangers who did not belong to this totem and thus seemed to stand outside all the accepted norms and customs of this collective. This is important social role totemism also affected the nature of the evolution of totemistic ideas.

Over time, as the clan structure strengthened, the idea of ​​the totemic ancestor with its mixed zooanthropomorphic appearance, the totem as a close relative, and the marital ties between a person and his totemic relative began to come to the fore. Finally, the idea of ​​reincarnation arose, that is, the possible reincarnation of a person (in particular, a deceased ancestor) into his totem and back.

All this led, on the one hand, to the strengthening of the cult of dead ancestors and belief in their supernatural capabilities, and on the other, to a change in attitude towards the totem, in particular to the emergence of prohibitions on eating the totem. A system of prohibitions and taboos arose, the most important of which related to the prohibition of eating a totem, with the exception of those cases when the consumption of totem meat was of a ritual nature of communion with it and thus reminiscent of ancient norms and rules.

The custom of tabooing, which arose along with totemism, became in the conditions of a primitive tribal community the most important mechanism for regulating social and family relations. Thus, the gender and age taboo divided the collective into strictly fixed marriage classes and thereby excluded sexual relations between close relatives. The food taboo no less strictly regulated the nature of the food that was intended for the leader, warriors, women, children, etc.

A number of other taboos were intended to guarantee the inviolability of the home or hearth, regulate burial rules, and fix rights and responsibilities individual categories community members. All these taboos were unusually strict. Thus, during periods of initiation, that is, the initiation of boys and girls into the ranks of adult men and women, the taboo forbade women to be present at men’s rites, and men to attend women’s ceremonies.

Some things that belonged to the leader, including food, were also sometimes taboo. Researchers provide examples of how taboo breaking was perceived. Once, in relatively recent times, one of the tribal leaders in New Zealand left the remains of dinner, which were picked up and eaten by a member of his tribe. When the latter found out that he had eaten the remains of the leader's meal, which was taboo, he began to writhe in painful convulsions and soon died.

Examples of this kind are far from isolated, and they all indicate that the prohibitions enshrined in taboos were revered primitive man as sacred and immutable, the violation of which was inevitably punishable by death. The very fact of awareness of a violation of a taboo paralyzes the will of the violator, the ability of his body to live, and inspires him with the need to die.

Thus, totemism, with its belief in a totemic ancestor possessing supernatural powers, with the cult of one’s own as opposed to others, and a system of prohibitions and taboos, turned out to be historically one of the first forms of religious ideas of the emerging social community - the tribal community.

Currently, many Australian tribes, expelled from their inhabited territories during the colonial period, are striving to return to their totemic sanctuaries and revive ancient rituals on the newly acquired land of their ancestors. “Our tribal land is our mother,” the Aboriginal people say. “It contains our dreams, our totems.”

Totemism was once widespread in India. To this day, some Indian tribes, living isolated in inaccessible mountain and forest areas and not familiar with Hinduism, maintain a division into genera bearing the names of local plants and animals. Their myths are replete with stories about the origin of the first people from various animals, about the miraculous transformations of people into plants, animals and birds, about marriages between people and animals.

The cult of sacred animals (cows, monkeys, elephants, crocodiles), often having totemic roots, also entered Hinduism. The main gods of the Hindu pantheon are always accompanied by sacred animals. Thus, Shiva’s companion is a bull, Ganesha, who appears in the form of an elephant, is a rat, Vishnu is a bird, etc. (see more in the “Hinduism” section). These were probably totems of ancient clan and tribal groups.

Totemic features are clearly visible in the images of gods and heroes in the beliefs of the indigenous people of Central and South America. These are Huitzilopochtli - the “left-handed hummingbird” - the supreme deity of the Aztecs, Quetzalcoatl - “a serpent covered with green feathers” - one of the main deities of the Indians, the creator of the world, the creator of man, the lord of the elements (see the article “Religions” ancient civilizations America").

In the religious ideas of the ancient Greeks, traces of totemism are preserved by myths about centaurs, often found motives for the transformation of people into animals and plants.

Animism

Animism is the belief in the existence of spirits, the spiritualization of the forces of nature, animals, plants and inanimate objects, attributing to them intelligence, capacity and supernatural power. The beginnings of animistic ideas arose in ancient times, perhaps even before the appearance of totemistic views, before the formation of clan groups, that is, in the era of primitive hordes.

However, as a system of fairly conscious and stable views of a religious nature, animism was formed later, almost in parallel with totemism. In contrast to totemism, which was focused on the internal needs of a given clan group, on its differences from others, animistic ideas had a broader and more universal character, were understandable and accessible to everyone, and were perceived quite unambiguously.

This is natural: primitive people deified and spiritualized not only the formidable forces of nature (sky and earth, sun and moon, rain and wind, thunder and lightning), on which their existence depended, but also certain noticeable details of the relief (mountains and rivers, hills and forests), where, as they believed, there were also spirits who needed to be appeased, attracted to their side, etc.

Even a single noticeable tree, a large boulder stone, a small pond - all of this, in the imagination of the primitive savage, had a soul, a mind, could feel and act, bring benefit or harm. And if so, then all these natural phenomena, mountains and rivers, stones and trees should be treated with attention, that is, certain sacrifices should be made, prayer rituals and religious ceremonies should be performed in their honor.

The belief, dating back to animism, that the souls of people, especially the dead, continue to exist mainly in an incorporeal form, served as a connecting link between group totemistic and universal animistic beliefs and rituals. Paying tribute to the souls of their deceased ancestors, primitive people thereby hoped for the protection and patronage of the dead in giant world otherworldly forces.

Thus, animistic and totemistic beliefs and rituals merged in the practice of the primitive collective into a single, inseparable complex, within the framework of which the harsh realities of everyday life and the difficult struggle of the collective for existence were reflected. This reflection was illusory and fantastic, and the function of bringing it into line with real life fell to the lot of magic.

Magic

Magic is a complex of ritual rites aimed at influencing supernatural forces to obtain material results. Magic arose in parallel with totemism and animism so that with its help it was possible to realize imaginary connections with the world of spirits, ancestors, and totems.

Fetishism

Fetishism is the custom of worshiping various objects to which supernatural properties were attributed. They were called fetishes (from the port. feitisso - “amulet”, an object with protective, protective properties). This form of religion was later called fetishism. Apparently, it is one of the earliest forms known to all peoples of our planet.

Any object that for some reason captured a person’s imagination could become a fetish: a stone unusual shape, color or size, a piece of wood, parts of an animal’s body (teeth, fangs, pieces of skin, dried paws, bones, etc.). Later, figurines specially made from stone, bone, wood, and metal appeared. If the fetish did not fulfill its functions, it was replaced by another. Some peoples had a custom of thanking and sometimes punishing fetishes.

Many fetishes have survived to this day in the form of amulets-amulets (from Latin - amuliri - to remove, to avert). An amulet was an object to which it was attributed magical properties ward off misfortune from a person and bring good luck. The amulet-amulet was supposed to protect its owner in every possible way from troubles and troubles. The ability to ward off evil was also attributed to talismans (from the Greek - telesma - dedication, enchantment). But the amulet was worn openly, usually around the neck, and the talisman was hidden from prying eyes.

Sometimes a particle of a revered object became a fetish: for example, a stone from a mountain that was worshiped, a piece sacred tree or an image of a revered animal (figurine of a whale, tiger, bear, bird, snake, etc.). A fetish could simply be a drawing or even a tattoo on the body. In addition to personal fetishes, there were also common ones for the entire tribe or country. Usually they became some large mountain or a beautiful, strong tree. Common fetishes could also have their own “specialization”: one controlled the seasons, another was in charge of health, the third was in charge of hunting, fishing, etc.

A special group of fetishes is associated with the cult of ancestors, widespread among many peoples of the world. Their images become objects of worship. Sometimes these are idols - humanoid figures made of wood, stone, clay, and sometimes the ancestor is represented by a special sign, as was customary, for example, in China. A striking example of a fetish associated with the cult of ancestors are the Alels of the Yenisei Kets. Alel is a wooden doll with a large head, arms, legs, eyes made of beads or buttons, dressed in traditional Ket clothes made of cloth and deer skins.

Usually the dolls depict old women who are called upon to help the family in all its affairs. They guard the house, watch over children, livestock - deer and dogs. Alels pass from parents to children. When migrating, they are carried in a special birch bark container. According to the Kets, a person must take care of them, feed them, clothe them, and treat them respectfully. Otherwise, family members risk death.

Later, all these external phenomena were transformed in the consciousness of people into gods, each of whom personified one of the forces of nature. Egyptian, Celtic, Slavic beliefs, the pagan pantheon of ancient Gods appear in Ancient Mesopotamia, Greece and Rome. Also, many modern religions have their roots in ancient pagan beliefs, such as shamanism and Hinduism.

However, in this section we consider that part of the ancient beliefs, the traditions of which subsequently underwent significant changes due to the influences of other religions, or were lost.

70 thousand years ago

Today it is quite difficult to answer the question, what was the most ancient religion. It is known that before the birth of modern world religions, paganism dominated the world. Previously it was generally accepted that the most ancient religious rituals took place approximately 30-40 thousand years ago in Europe.

However, recent archaeological excavations carried out in the southern African country of Botswana give reason to believe that 70 thousand years ago, even before homo sapiens was formed, the predecessors of Homo sapiens performed ritual worship.

In the summer of 2006, Sheila Coulson, a professor at the University of Oslo, discovered a small cave on the northern side of the Tsodilo Hills (Kalahari Desert), inside which was a stone sculpture of a python two meters high and 6 meters wide. Scientists believe that this statue could serve as an object of worship.

Sumerian religions

Also in this place, as a result of excavations, about 13 thousand tools for working with stone were discovered. It should be noted that until the 90s, access to the cave was difficult, and therefore it could not be found earlier. If scientists were not mistaken with the dating, then this find will force a reconsideration. modern ideas about human evolution and migration.

Of course, the religion of one of the most ancient civilizations - the Sumerian civilization - is very interesting. The Sumerian pantheon of gods was very complex: there were seven main gods and gods called the Anunnaki, who were considered intermediaries between people and the main gods. The names of the Anunnaki were used to seal oaths.

According to the myth about the creation of people, “Enki and Ninmah,” the gods fashioned man from clay, and man’s destiny was to serve the gods. Each had a personal deity who protected the person (the prototype of the guardian angel in Christianity).

Afterlife and Inca religion

The Sumerians' ideas about the afterlife were quite specific. It was believed that the dead, having passed through the seven gates of the underworld, crossed the river, which served as the border between the world of the living and world of the dead. Views from judgment of the dead the Sumerians do not have them. It was believed that the fate of everyone who died in the afterlife was not easy; only those who fell in battle, those with many children, and those for whom funeral rites were performed were awarded a tolerable life.

The Inca religion is one of the most unusual. The pantheon of gods is very diverse, which is explained by their tolerant policy towards the conquered peoples: they generously included foreign gods in their pantheon, and did not try to prohibit other beliefs, therefore the duties of many gods are repeated.

The Incan holy places were called "huaca", they could be rocks, hills, cliffs, streams, mountains, caves, houses and even mummies. Many of them are still revered by the peoples of Peru. From the Report to the King of Spain it is known that the Indians of Peru had 10,422 idols, of which 1,365 were mummies. It is noteworthy that some of the mummies were the founders of Inca clans, tribes and villages.

Ancient Buddhism

Today it is reliably known that Buddhism is the most ancient of the three modern world religions. Buddhism arose approximately 2,500 years ago from the ancient teachings of India. The founder of Buddhism was Buddha Shakyamuni (623-544 BC).

In Buddhist teachings, earthly life, as well as heaven and hell, seems to be just one of the steps that a person must overcome on the path to the divine, through liberation from the chain of rebirth. Liberation from the chain of rebirth is achieved through strict adherence to all rules such as: not causing suffering to either a person or an animal, not eating animal food, meditation, etc.

The basis of Buddhist doctrine is a person’s desire for the divine principle, enlightenment and nirvana, which can be achieved through elevation above earthly attachments, spiritual self-improvement and meditation.

Religion is an integral part of the life of almost every person. The need to worship higher powers is expressed in a spiritual awareness of the world and belief in the supernatural. Arises interesting question about what it is like, how it arose and developed.

Having studied all the available information about the Paleolithic period, scientists came to the conclusion that people of this era developed spiritual relationships, as indicated by the customs of ritual burials of that time, and most likely, our ancestors believed that the world was inhabited by deities, and considered different places to be alive . In addition, burial customs give us an idea of ​​the belief in the afterlife.

But still, what was the most ancient religion? The answers to the question depend on what position they take various authors, students Some argue that religion was artificially created by man and was not the result of evolutionary development. So, according to this point of view, woman and man knew only one God, who created them, they worshiped him by making various sacrifices. Monotheism and sacrifice described in the Bible were the first characteristics of religion in its original form. Evidence of this can be found in the ancient literary monuments of China, Greece, Egypt and the traditions of many peoples.

But there is another point of view, based on the theory of evolution of Charles Darwin. According to it, a long period of time was required for the formation and development of religious beliefs. At first, these beliefs were based on people's worship of spirits, as there was fear of their power. Israel then reduced the diversity of gods of different nations to one tribal god, which paved the way for the improvement of religion as such.

Considering which religion is the most ancient, it should be noted that in modern times exists on Earth large number religious directions, the so-called spiritual knowledge, which is divided into several systems. Thus, the primary teaching includes the Aryan - Vedantism (secret science). Then it transformed into Brahmanism, and then into Buddhism. Aryan traditions were adopted by Russian prehistoric religion, and this is how paganism appeared - the worship of the elements. These beliefs were not completely defeated, and after several thousand years a religion developed on their basis

And Babylon became the basis for the emergence of knowledge, which is partially transmitted to us in the Bible (therefore, the opinion that Christianity is the most ancient religion is erroneous). On their basis, it developed and had a great influence on the spiritual development of all of Europe. In addition, these teachings formed the basis of the religion of ancient Judea, on which Christianity would later rely. The knowledge of ancient Egyptian civilization, Jews and Christians is partially preserved in Islam.

The black race practiced ceremonial magic, preserving the rituals and customs of African sorcerers. The Yellow Race gave birth to the teachings of Lao Tzu (Daonism), as well as shamanism, Zen Buddhism and Shintu.

Thus, it is impossible to say with certainty which is the most ancient religion on Earth, since from early times all knowledge, rites, rituals and customs were spread during the mixing of peoples and migration of tribes. Thus, the idea of ​​sacrifice first belonged to the civilization of the black race, later it was adopted by the peoples of all continents and existed for more than one millennium on Earth.

Thus, the answer to the question of what is the most ancient religion on the planet is ambiguous and depends on the worldviews and views of historians.

Traditionally, questions of faith cause the most controversy and debate. How many copies have been broken in figuring out which religion is the most correct, which one deeply reflects the essence of man and the world, which one is better than all the others.

And it is extremely rare that such debates take place peacefully. Most often, having exhausted all arguments, participants grab clubs (in ancient times), swords (closer to us) or bombs and missiles ( today).

As a result, it may seem that such debates have been going on forever, and that religion has surrounded man just as forever. But this is far from true. And even the most ancient religions of the world appeared in the quite foreseeable past, which only confirms this. So, let's figure out what our distant ancestors actually believed in and how exactly they did it.

Forerunners of religion

It is sometimes believed that any belief in supernatural forces is already a religion. But scientists clearly list its main characteristics, separating it from mythology and primitive beliefs. Each of these forms of worldview was based on the previous one, logically flowing from it. Therefore, in order to understand ancient religions, you need to describe their forerunners in a nutshell.

Ancient Beliefs

With ancient beliefs everything is relatively simple. The man did not distinguish much difference between himself, the tree, the stone, the stream and the wolf. Just think, one is lying on the ground and not running anywhere, and the other is regularly howling in the nearest forest, anyway, each of them is alive in their own way.

This is how they appeared:

• Animism- faith in the living, in literally words, nature.
• Totemism- the belief that a wolf, owl or deer can be a close relative, if not by blood, then certainly by spirit.
• Fetishism– but not in the modern sense, but as faith in the possibility thought process in inanimate objects.
• Shamanism and magic- the belief that some people can interact not only with their fellow tribesmen, but also with the spirits of everything that surrounds them.

In a sense, these beliefs are the most ancient religions. But in them, a person did not separate himself from the world around him, he lived next to it, and everyone felt easy and comfortable.

Mythology

But then mythology appeared - a slightly more complicated previous version. In it, too, animals easily turned into people, people became plants, rocks came to life, or, on the contrary, people turned to stone. But entities have already appeared that are superior to this strange cycle - gods (for now - in plural). Although the line between them and people was also quite fragile. The gods were happy to mischief or help people, they took revenge on them to the best of their ability or begged for various gingerbread, but, in general, it was a single closed system. Anyone also knows examples:

• Greek myths are a multi-part love-tragicomic film about the relationship between a dozen Olympian gods, a myriad of smaller gods and goddesses, many incomprehensible creatures like satyrs, nymphs and other centaurs-minotaurs and people.
• Ancient Roman mythology is the same serial film, adapted to Roman conditions.
• Egyptian myths - passions around the solar cycle, its birth, death, the next birth - and further in a circle with the participation of hybrid gods.
• Indian mythology is an absolutely incomprehensible to a stranger mixture of beliefs of several hundred tribes and nationalities that inhabited today's India.
• Slavic mythology is the basis of many fairy tales familiar to us from childhood. As a rule, it is not recommended to read them to children in their original form to avoid stress.

You can continue in this spirit for a very long time, because each nation had its own mythology, and sometimes even several.

Religions

So long and the hard way We finally come to religions. So how does even the most ancient religion of the world differ from the most recent mythology? The duality of the world. Previously, everything was simple and clear for a person: here I am, here are the gods, here is nature, everyone lives together and does not interfere with each other.

But people aren't looking simple ways, and in order to completely complicate and confuse everything, they created religions. In them, God (or gods - not fundamentally) are allocated beyond the boundaries of this world, placed above it, having the ability to set and create circumstances for those living in it.

A person also receives a dual nature: on the one hand, he lives in this world, on the other hand, then he will leave it and move on to a better one (or a worse one, depending on how he behaves). Both the oldest religion and the youngest have such principles.

Examples of ancient religions

To make it a little easier to navigate, here are a few examples of the most ancient religions:

• Judaism. The first of a series of Abrahamic religions, which also includes Christianity (a very widespread religion), Islam (also popular) and many of their branches.
• Taoism. Searching for and following the “path” that every object, phenomenon and person has.
• Hinduism. Based on the mythology of this people, only even more complex and confusing. Base for many other religions: Shintoism, Krishnaism, Buddhism, Shaivism, Shaktism and many others interesting words.
• Zoroastrianism. Worship of fire in all possible forms.

From these religions, several hundred, or even thousands of new ones developed like mushrooms after rain. And they continue to appear every day. As you can see, the most widespread religions today are not only not the most ancient, but also secondary, in relation to others.

And this makes it absolutely pointless to search for an answer to the question of which religion is the most ancient, the most correct or the best. All of them have the right not to exist as long as they bring people benefit, joy and an incentive for self-improvement, and not vice versa.

The newest religions

But even today, more and more new religions are appearing, and not only as offshoots from existing ones, but also completely unique:

• Pastafarianism. Adherents believe in the Flying Spaghetti Monster and even defended the right to have their passport photos taken in a colander, their sacred item of clothing.
• Kopimism. Sacred symbols for them are the keyboard shortcuts Сtrl+C and Ctrl+V, and the ritual of copying and distributing information is religious rite. This is how they gracefully circumvented the ban on torrent trackers.
• Googleism. This youngest religion recognizes the Holy Google as an eternal, immortal and omniscient being.

So, even such strange beliefs are not at first glance (and at second glance either) also recognized as religions. It's funny, isn't it?