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ANIMISM

I  The Term 'Animism'

It is a doctrine that all natural objects and the universe itself have souls. Animism is common among primitive peoples. The term Animism is derived from the Latin anima, meaning 'soul'. In its most general sense, animism is simply the belief in souls. In this general sense, animism is present in nearly all religions. In a more restrictive sense, animism is the belief that souls inhabit all or most objects; it attributes personalized souls to animals, vegetables, and minerals wherein the material object is-to some degree-governed by the qualities which comprise its particular soul. Religions that are animistic in this more restrictive sense generally do not accept a sharp distinction between spirit and matter, and they generally assume that this unification of matter and spirit plays a role in daily life.

British anthropologist Sir Edward Burnett Tylor argued in Primitive Culture (1871) that this belief was the most primitive and essential form of religion. Though animism itself is not a religion in the usual Western sense, it does contain the foundations on which religions are built. Animism was the term used by Tyler, as a proposed theory of religion. He used it to mean a belief in souls. For Tyler, all religions are forms of animism. However, many use the term 'animism' to refer to a specific group of religions-especially, religions that attribute souls to non-human entities.

II  Animisn Today

Although precise figures are hard to come by, the estimates concerning the percentages of animists in the world are significantly large. For example, Gailyn Van Rheenen, an expert on animistic religions, estimates that "at least 40 percent of the world's population" is animistic. The International Bulletin of Missionary Research lists "Tribal Religionists" as making up around 17% of the world's population. This percentage is lower than Van Rheenen's probably because it counts only those who are strictly tribal religionists and does not take into consideration those who are numbered.

Today animists live in significant numbers in countries such as Zambia, the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Bangladesh, India, Gabon, the Republic of Guinea Bissau, Indonesia, Japan, Laos, Myanmar, Papua New Guinea, Peru, the Philippines, Canada, Russia, Sweden, Thailand, Timor Leste, and the United States. Modern Neopagans, especially Eco-pagans, sometimes describe themselves as animists, meaning that they respect the diverse community of living beings and spirits with whom human share the world/cosmos. Currently, Neo-Animism is a rather new trend that develops allover the world as a counter movement to the World Religions.

III  Some General Facts

The animistic form of a religion is called "Folk Religion", such as "Folf Hinduism" and "Folk Buddhism". The tendency for people to gravitate toward a folk form of their religion explains why many people who come from a country with a Hindu or Islamic heritage do not believe the way the "textbook" description of their religion says they should believe (See Dean C. Halverson, The Illustrated Guide to World Religions, p.31).

Most animistic belief systems hold that the spirit survives physical death. In some systems, the spirit is believed to pass to an easier world of abundant game or ever-ripe crops, while in other systems, the spirit remains on earth as a ghost, often malignant. Still other systems combine these two beliefs, holding that the soul must journey to the spirit world without becoming lost and thus wandering as a ghost. Animism is the belief that objects and ideas including animals, tools, and natural phenomena have or are expressions of living spirits or vital essence.

Kinship is central to Animistic systems. Animals are kin to humans and people often have an animal spirit. Just as human souls are assigned to animals, so too are trees and plants often credited with souls, both human and animal in form. In many parts of the world trees are regarded as the abode of the spirits of the dead. Some cultures do not make a distinction between animate and inanimate objects. Natural phenomena, geographic features, everyday objects, and manufactured articles may also be attributed with souls. Side by side with the doctrine of separable souls, exists the belief in a great host of unattached spirits. These are not immanent souls that have become detached from their bodies, but have instead every appearance of independent spirits.

IV   Common Animistic Beliefs and Practices

Dean C. Halverson finds six common Animistic beliefs and practices (See, The Illustrated Guide to World Religions):

(1) One God Beyond Many Spirits: Most animistic religions teach that there is one Supreme Being who exists beyond the intermediate ancestors, spirits, and gods. This God is either by nature monistic (an impersonal oneness) or monotheistic (a personal Being). This Supreme Being is either too far removed from His creation or too abstract to be known. It might be that the Supreme Being uses the intermediate spirits to do His will and to serve as His representatives, but He still cannot be approached or known directly.

(2) The Ultimate/Immediate Division: The animist views the 'formal' religions-Christianity, Islam, Hinduism, etc.-as being relevant with respect to the ultimate issues, such as who is God, what is humanity's problem, and what happens after death.

...Continued

(3) The Spiritual Realm: According to animism, the spiritual realm with which we must deal consists of both personal spirit-beings and an impersonal spiritual energy.

• The Personal Spirit-Beings: Animists believe there are two different kinds of spirit-beings: those that had been embodied (such as deceased ancestors) and those that had not (such as spirits and gods). The spirits are often seen as being mediators between usi and God, able to intercede on our behalf. But to mediate on our behalf they must first be given homage. Spirit-beings possess specific powers and are localized geographically. Some spirits exert their powers over human endeavors (such as a business venture, a marriage, community relations, or war), while others exert their powers over aspects of nature (such as storms, the seas, or fields)
• An Impersonal Spiritual Force: Besides the personal spirit-beings, animistic religions also teach that there is an impersonal spiritual energy that infuses special objects, words, and rituals. Such energy gives these objects the power that people need to accomplish their desires. Animists will often attribute magical powers to an object.

(4) The Concept of Sin: Animists are not concerned so much about offending the Supreme God; instead, their concern is of a more immediate nature in that they are afraid of offending the local spirits. They realize that an offended spirit will inevitably exact retribution in the form of injury, sickness, failure, or interpersonal strife. Van Rheenen writes, "Animists live in continual fear of these [spiritual] powers" (Van Rheenen, Communicating Christ in Animistic Contexts, 20).

(5) Contacting the Spirits: Animists are more inclined than Westerners to attribute spiritual causes to their sickness or bad fortune. Divination, which is "the practice of giving information...which is not available by natural means" (Henry, Rodney L., Philipino Spirit-World: A Challenge to the Church, 71), is the means by which a person discovers either how he or she has offended some spirit or which person has cast a curse on him or her. Divination is also the means by which one discovers how to resolve the problem-either what the spirit requires or how to throw a counter-curse.

(6) The Afterlife: There is no universal and consistent doctrine throughout the many animistic religions as to what happens to a person after death. Many see the person's spirit as continuing to exist after death either by being reincarnated into another life on earth or by "graduating" to a higher spiritual level. The belief is also common that the person who dies becomes an ancestral spirit. The family must then continue to give offerings to that ancestor because it has the power either to protect or to plague the family.

V  Animistic and Biblical Worldviews

(1) God:

• In Animism, God exists, but He is beyond our abilities to know Him or to communicate with Him
• In Christianity, God exists, and although He is beyond our comprehension, He is nevertheless knowable; and He has made himself known to us through Jesus Christ and through the Bible (Hebrews 1:1-2)

(2) Ultimate/Immediate Issues:

• Formal religions are concerned only with the ultimate issues of sin and salvation; but animism offers the power to cope with the immediate, everyday needs
• The God of Christianity is concerned both with the ultimate and the immediate issues. God desires to provide not only for our eternal needs but also for our daily needs (1 Peter 5:7)

(3) The Spirits:

• In Animism, the spirits are seen as being either intermediaries between us and God or as representatives of God
• In Christianity, the spirits are deceptice; they seek to take the place of God in our lives

(4) The power of the Spirits:

• In animism, the spirits and the instruments of magic have the power either to do harm to others or to bring benefits to us
• In Christianity, the spirits do have power, but our utilizing such power leads to bondage. God has demonstrated through Jesus Christ that He is greater than the spirits and magic (cf. 1 John 4:4; Colossians 2:15; John 8:32-36)

                        (Researched from various sources)