RAS AOS 2 - Unit 1

• What was the symbolic revolution?

  A theory that explains that spirituality developed into a religion during an explosion of human creativity.
• Which of the nine aspects is evidence for the origin of religion?

  artifacts, symbols, sacred places/spaces - tangible things. This included things like burials, grave goods, cave artwork, carved artifacts and adornment.
• What are the theorised origins of religion? 


  Animism, The afterlife, certain ideas about gods and how they interacted with humans.
• Define Neolithic Revolution

  Was the transition period where humans moved from a hunter-gatherer society to farming villages and then to sophisticated socieities.
• What are hunter-gatherers?


  The lifestyle in which the earliest humans took in which they relied on hunting and finding vegetation.
• What is Gobelki Tepe and how does it relat to the symbolic revolution?

  It is a temple in Souther Turkey and is known as the first strcture that humans had put together. It relates to the symbolic revolution as it contained carvings on stones which signify the spirituality of the early humans.
• What did the carvings in the Gobelki Tepe represent?

  ANIMAL BONES: signified the diet of the hunter-gatherers. PREDATOR ANIMALS: Were totemic, symbolic function or a symbol of the tribe.
• How was Animism portrayed in the hunter-gather society?

  SKULLS OR SKINS OF THE ANIMALS: They were worn as it was believed that individuals would inherit that skills of the animals while hunting. WORSHIPPING TO A CERTAIN ANIMAL: This was one as they believed that it would help them yield a successful hunt. BURYING OF ANIMALS: hunters believe that animals gave up their lives for them = done to honour them.
• How did the discovery of Mungo Woman and Man underline the symbolic revolution?

  Mungo Woman was cremated twice = the preparation of her body after her death showcases that perhaps she was respected deeply = relates to a developing moral values or spirituality. Mungo Man = was found buried in layers of dirt that was not of the nearby area - underlines the effort people put into burying his body with care and respect = suggests that he was perhaps respected, maybe he had a particular role?
• Define Located Religion? 


  Natural special places that have spiritual significance or represent a spirit being.
• What eras were included in the Early History?

  The Collapse of the Bronze Age (1200-1100 BCE) and Iron Age (1200-500 BCE)
• What happened during the Collapse of the Bronze Age?

  Due to natural disasters like earthquakes and volcanic eruptions and military invasions = cities were destroyed.
• Shamans --> People who can make contact with spirits and act as an intermediate between earth and the spirits (or gods/ancestors). 

  • They would ask the gods/spirits for prosperity and to be a helpful guide in seeking answers during difficult times 
  • They were able to interpret real-life events and convey a hidden meaning 
  • They were used as sources to help remember record histories of their communities
• Writing and Building

  • Due to the growing towns, which eventually became cities, a formal form of communication needed to be formed. This was essential to organise the activities of these groups. 
  • → This new development of communication resulted in number systems and writing systems → SUMERIAN CUNEIFORM

  Scribes --> Were known as the religious leaders who were in charge of record writing and communicating with the gods. 

  → This is why religious buildings were made to facilitate religious leaders where there were large sanctuaries for the gods