Cultures Belief System - Essay Example

Religion thus enabled Babylonians to earn recognition in the field of astronomy and astrology which helped establish the twelve zodiac signs on which most cultures to this day depend, accepting the possibility that man’s destiny can be governed by the stars and the planets (Babylonian).

Similarly, Egyptian history documented a belief system that shaped the early minds to materialize cultural and architectural insights into physical structures crafted according to the religion which regarded truth in life after death. Hence, Egyptians have since managed to live with a burial custom that bathed and embalmed corpses, widely known as ‘mummies’ which were then entombed in pyramids – a tradition thought to prepare the dead for life in another dimension (Resurrection).

By having a theocratic form of government besides that, ancient Egyptian civilization sought the ‘rule of god’ through the pharaoh whose power was absolute. With the belief that a pharaoh had equivalent might and authority with those of a god, he assumed full control over his entire dominion ruling in terms of the executive, legislative, judiciary, as well as military aspects throughout (The Ancient).

On the other hand, the Caste System of India which has been the prevalent form used in social stratification originated from Hinduism. With the transmigration of the soul, the Hindus believed that a good soul is granted rebirth in a human being of higher intellect whereas the bad counterpart becomes reincarnated in a creature of lower status. Bearing a chief influence upon social order, the principle of Hindu religion classified the Hindus into four stiff classes the top of which are the Brahmins or the priests and scholars down to the Sudras or the laborers and slaves, excluding the untouchables (The Caste). So the ancient Indian culture began looking up to the highest status in that order, claiming that the state of Brahma is achieved only by a blameless soul according to the Hindu doctrine.

Moreover, the underlying principles of other religions – Buddhism, Sikhism, and Jainism which brought forth concepts of yoga, vegetarianism, and karma helped as well in developing philosophical systems created by Indian thinkers during ancient times. Most of the philosophies that formed the civilization of old India adopted yoga or a type of spiritual training that places discipline and balance between the mind and the body (Bharati). Also, because Indian people worshipped several gods especially with heightened devotion in the past, correspondingly, Indian art has often reflected it in the earliest modes of pornography and varying expressions of making love as conveyed by the romantic stories of these gods.

This flourishing knowledge was further carried on to enhance the founding of both the religious and non-religious edifices that yield to designs particularly made sensible with a spiritual vision. Through the architecture of certain artistic constructions such as the Taj Mahal, Kailasha Temple, and the Mogul palaces, inlays of precious metals and very fine adornments of such structures made this cultural feature manifest how passionate the early Indian societies toward their reverence for the gods and the value or reward sought after striving to attain good living. Read More