animism
Sign in to saveAnimism (from meaning 'breath, spirit, life') is the belief that places, objects, and creatures all possess a distinct spiritual essence. Animism perceives all things—animals, plants, rocks, rivers, weather systems, human handiwork, and in some cases words—as being animated, having agency and free will. Animism is used in anthropology of religion as a term for the belief system of many indigenous peoples in contrast to the relatively more recent development of organized religions. Animism is a metaphysical belief which focuses on the supernatural universe: specifically, on the concept of the i
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Animism is the belief that places, objects, and creatures—including animals, plants, rocks, rivers, and even weather—possess their own spiritual essence and agency. It is used in anthropology to describe the belief systems of many indigenous peoples, contrasting with organized religions that developed more recently.
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Article
46 sectionsContents
- Etymology
- "Old animism" definitions
- Edward Tylor's definition
- Social evolutionist conceptions
- Confounding animism with totemism
- "New animism" definitions
- Hallowell and the Ojibwe
- Postmodern anthropology
- Ethical and ecological understanding
- Relation to the concept of 'I-thou'
- Religion
- Concepts
- Distinction from pantheism
- Fetishism / totemism
- African indigenous religions
- Asian origin religions
- Indian-origin religions
- Chinese religions
- Japan and Shinto
- Kalash people
- Korea
- Philippines indigenous religions
- Abrahamic religions
- Pre-Islamic Arab religion
- Paganism
- Ancient paganism with animist roots
- Continuity in folk religion
- Revival and modern pagan movements
- Contemporary interpretations
- Shamanism
- Animist life
- Non-human animals
- Flora
- The elements
- Spirits
- Other usage
- Psychology
- Attempts to reconcile with science
- Socio-political impact
- Art and literature
- See also
- Notes
- References
- Sources
- Further reading
- External links
Animism (from meaning 'breath, spirit, life') is the belief that places, objects, and creatures all possess a distinct spiritual essence. Animism perceives all things—animals, plants, rocks, rivers, weather systems, human handiwork, and in some cases words—as being animated, having agency and free will. Animism is used in anthropology of religion as a term for the belief system of many indigenous peoples in contrast to the relatively more recent development of organized religions. Animism is a metaphysical belief which focuses on the supernatural universe: specifically, on the concept of the immaterial soul.
Although each culture has its own mythologies and rituals, animism is said to describe the most common, foundational thread of indigenous peoples' "spiritual" or "supernatural" perspectives. The animistic perspective is so widely held and inherent to most indigenous peoples that they often do not even have a word in their languages that corresponds to "animism" (or even "religion"). The term "animism" is an anthropological construct.