by mona domosh roderick neumann patricia l. price terry g. jordan-bychkov c. 2012 w.h. freeman &...
TRANSCRIPT
BY
MONA DOMOSHRODERICK NEUMANN
PATRICIA L. PRICETERRY G. JORDAN-BYCHKOV
C. 2012 W.H. FREEMAN & CO.
The Human Mosaic12th Edition
THE GEOGRAPHY OF RELIGION
SPACES AND PLACES OF SACREDNESS
Chapter 7
Religion
A social system involving a set of beliefs and practices through which people seek harmony with the universe and attempt to influence the forces of nature, life, and death.
Classifying Religions
Proselytic religion (Universalizing religion) A religion that actively seeks new
members and aims to convert all humankind.
• Islam• Christianity• Can grow out of ethnic religions
• Christianity from Judaism
Classifying Religions
Ethnic religionA religion identified with a particular ethnic
or tribal group Does not seek converts.• Judaism, ShintoStrong territorial and cultural group IDMember by birth or adoption of complex life-
styleCannot be part of the culture unless part of
the religion
Tribal (Traditional) Religions
Small groupsLocal culture groupsNot modern culturesClose ties to nature
Tribal Religions
Animism Belief that life exists in all objects
Shamanism Community acceptance of a religious
leader, healer, and worker of magic Shaman
Secularism
Indifference to or rejection of religion and religious belief
Increasing in modern societiesVery prominent in former and current
communist societies
Usual patterns
Universalizing Expansionary
Ethnic Regionally confined unless people are
dispersed (i.e. Jews)Tribal
Contract as members become modern or are converted
Classifying Religions
MonotheismBelief in a single deity (one god)
PolytheismBelief in many gods
Classifying Religions
Syncretic religions Religions, or strands within religions, that
combine elements of two or more belief systems.
Orthodox religions Strands within a major religion that
emphasize purity of faith.
Classifying Religions
Fundamentalism A movement to return to the founding
principles of a religion Usually show intolerance to other
religions or even those within their own religion that do not follow the “proper ways”
JUDAISMCHRISTIANITY
ISLAMHINDUISMBUDDHISM
TAOIC RELIGIONSANIMISM/SHAMANISM
Region
World Distribution of Major Religions (Fig. 7.3)
Religious Groups in Lebanon (Fig. 7.4)
Judaism
Founded 4,000 years agoHoly Book = TorahParent religion of Christianity
Subgroups (result of Diaspora):• Ashkenazim: central/eastern Europe• Mizrachim: Middle East/northern Africa• Sephardim: Iberia (Spain/Portugal)
Christianity
Monotheistic and proselyticShares hearth in southwest Asia with Islam and
JudaismHoly Book = Bible (including Torah)
Christian faiths:• Roman Catholics• Protestants• Eastern Christians (includes Armenian and
Coptic Churches)
Leading Christian Denominations in the United States (Fig. 7.7)
Islam
Proselytic and monotheistic Over 1 billion adherents Fastest growing world religion Founded by Mohammad Holy book = Qur’an or Koran Sharia = Islamic law
Islamic division:• Sunnis (84%)• Shiites (16%)
FIVE PILLARS
•Belief in Allah•Zakat (almsgiving)•Prayer 5 times daily•Fast during Ramadan
•Pilgrimage to Mecca (Hajj)
FIVE PILLARS
•Belief in Allah•Zakat (almsgiving)•Prayer 5 times daily•Fast during Ramadan
•Pilgrimage to Mecca (Hajj)
Muslims at Prayer in Mecca (Fig. 7.8)
Hinduism
Polytheistic (supreme God = Brahman)Belief in reincarnationDharma = harmonious and eternal truthAhimsa = principle of nonviolence
Varna (castes) based on occupation:• Brahmins (priests)• Kshatriyas (warriors)• Vaishyas (merchants and artisans)• Shudras (workers)• “Untouchables”/outcasts have no caste
Outgrowths of Hinduism:
•Jainism•Sikhism
Outgrowths of Hinduism:
•Jainism•Sikhism
Ganesha, Hindu God of Wisdom (Fig. 7.9)
Hindu Temple, Bali, Indonesia (Fig. 7.10)
Buddhism
• Parent religion is Hinduism• Based on teachings of Siddharta Gautama• Nirvana= state of enlightenment• Most widespread in South and East Asia• Tendency to merge with other religions
Four Noble Truths
•Life is full of suffering•Desire is the cause of suffering•Cessation of suffering comes with the quelling of desire•Eightfold path of personal conduct and meditation helps individual overcome desire
Four Noble Truths
•Life is full of suffering•Desire is the cause of suffering•Cessation of suffering comes with the quelling of desire•Eightfold path of personal conduct and meditation helps individual overcome desire
Buddhism in South Korea (Fig. 7.11)
Taoism and Animism
Taoic religions• Confucianism (China)• Shinto (animistic)• Taoism: Three Jewels are
humility, compassion, moderation
•Animism/shamanism•The idea that souls or spirits exist not only in humans but also in animals, plants, rocks, natural phenomena (thunder, lightning), and geographic features (rivers, mountains)
CULTURE HEARTH
A FOCUSED GEOGRAPHIC AREA WHERE IMPORTANT INNOVATIONS ARE BORN AND FROM WHICH THEY
SPREAD.
Mobility
Religious hearths
Major religions concentrated in three hearth areas:
Semitic hearthIndus-Ganges hearthEast Asian hearth
Origin and Diffusion of Five Major World Religions (Fig. 7.14)
Semitic Religious Hearth
The 3 great monotheistic religions Judaism, Christianity, Islam
Southwest AsiaOnly proselytic religions
spread by conversion
Semitic Religious Hearth
Christianity Hierarchical Diffusion Convert the king -> convert the people Militaristic Contagious diffusion -> Contact conversion
Islam Predominantly militaristic “do battle against them until there be no more
seduction from the truth and the only worship be that of Allah”
http://www.cnn.com/2012/07/06/world/africa/mali-un-warning/index.html?iref=allsearch
Diffusion of Christianity in Europe,
1st-11th Centuries (Fig. 7.15)
Indus-Ganges Religious Hearth
Hinduism and BuddhismPlains in northern IndiaHinduism was first and
initially spread overseas by missionaries and trade
Buddhism continues to diffuse today Relocation diffusion by Asian
immigrants
East Asian Religious Hearth
Confucianism and Taoism Did not spread until hierarchical diffusion took hold
Diffusion was hindered by the Chinese government after 1949
Diffusion in Asia through trade and military conquest
Pilgrimages
Journeys to places of religious importance
Travels create a connection with the sacred spaces of their faith
May be regarded as places of spatial convergence
Pilgrimages
Some religions mandate pilgrimages i.e. Islam -> hajj
Other religious meanings promote pilgrimages Forgiveness Connection with religion Attainment of a desired objective
Religious Pilgrimage
Journeys to sacred spaces have strong impacts on local economies.
Bangkok, Thailand Great Mosque, Senegal
Lourdes, France
Religious Segregation (Fig. 7.18)
RISE OF EVANGELICAL PROTESTANTISM IN LATIN AMERICA
RELIGION ON THE INTERNET
RELIGION’S RELEVANCE IN A GLOBAL WORLD
Globalization
Globalization
Religion must adapt to changes in order to thrive in some locations
Catholic Church and Latin AmericaDisenfranchisement with the church
Protestant churches are growing rapidly
Will the church change?
Religion on the Internet
Religion now available anytime at homeWhat does that mean in terms of place?
Does it take away the meaning of religion? Does it create virtual communities that disregard
location? Does it damage the community created by religious
meeting places? (churches)
Is Religion Relevant?
913 million non-religious, secular people today
Secularization is on the rise especially in industrialized nations
Religions are failing to:Meet the needs of rural folk cultureAdapt to contemporary urban scenes
Importance of Religion in the United States (Fig. 7.22)
Secularism in Europe (Fig. 7.23)
APPEASING THE FORCES OF NATURE:RELIGION AS ADAPTIVE STRATEGY
SACRED SPACES IN WORLD RELIGIONS:•RIVERS
•MOUNTAINS•TREES
•FORESTS•ROCKS
Nature-Culture
Appeasing the Forces of Nature
Religion and the adaptive strategyPhysical environment factors
influence religious developmentAnimistic religions
Ceremonies meant to manipulateGanges RiverJordan River
Influence of physical environment is less pronounced in the major Western religions
Except for…Plagues sent by GodDroughts, hurricanes, earthquakes
sent by God
Environmental Influence in Animism (Fig. 7.25)
Plant and Animal Impact
Plants and animals play key roles in many religions
Plants or animals may diffuse with a religionVineyards became popular across
Europe as Christianity diffused through the continent
Plants and Animals
Religion may explain the absence of crops or domestic animals in certain regions.
Islam and Judaism prohibit pork
Domestic pigs are rare in areas dominated by Islam and Judaism
Impact of Belief Systems on Plants and Animals: Pork Consumption (Fig. 7.27)
Diffusion barriers
Religious taboos can prevent the spread of cultural food trendsMormons and caffeine (absorbing)Pennsylvania Dutch and tobacco
(permeable)
Hindus and Beef (It’s NOT what’s for dinner)
Almost no Hindu will eat beef
CowsProvide dairy productsAre used in farming
(labor and fertilizer)Have been
incorporated into Hindu beliefs
Ecotheology
The study of the influence of religious belief on habitat modification.
Human dominion over nature
Religious impact on nature Clearing of forests Burial practices
Wood Gathered for Hindu Cremations (Fig. 7.28)
RELIGIOUS STRUCTURES
FAITHFUL DETAILS
LANDSCAPES OF THE DEAD
SACRED SPACE
Religious Landscapes
Visual imprint of religions
StructuresChurch spiresMinarets and
MosquesTemplesCrosses on the side of
roadsCemeteriesStatues or shrines
Structures
Elaborate vs. simple or even non-existent
Large religious structures represent the authority of a particular religion over life
Religious Structures (Fig. 7.30)
St. Basil’s, Moscow
Hindu Temple, India
Protestant church,Southern U.S.
Temples Dedicated to Ancestors in Bali, Indonesia (Fig. 7.31)
Stacked Stones at South Korean Pilgrimage Site (Fig. 7.32)
Muslim Mosque in Northern Nigeria (Fig. 7.35)
Landscapes of the Dead (Figs. 7.36 - 7.38)
Necropolis, Egypt Taj Mahal, India
Yucatan Peninsula, Mexico
Sacred Spaces (Figs. 7.39, 7.40)
Western Wall, Jerusalem Clearwater, Florida