The Law of Mystical Participation—Whatsoever may be the case today, in earlier times man did not have this
religious experience
in isolation but always as a member of Society. Religion is the spirit of the Clan. The Sacred and the numinous, can be nothing else than the Tribe itself. The Holy Spirit is felt in tribal gatherings and social rites in which the individual is carried away by the power outside himself.
Religious forces reflect the way in which the collective
consciousness of the group acts upon the individual consciousness. Sacred symbols and objects, and later, spirits and gods are all derivative from intense tribal feeling and this too gives a sacred sanction to Tribal Law, enhances the feeling of solidarity, gives confidence and assurance to the individuals,and lifts them completely above themselves. All morals, beliefs, myths, and religious feelings are a reflection of the social structure. The individual absorbs all his values from the tribe into which he is born, and in sharing them and participating in tribal religious life, he is made a good tribesman and helps to maintain the sanctity of his Society. The effect of religious ceremonies—the Corroboree, the Sacred Dance, the public ceremony—is to recreate periodically the being of the tribe upon which every man depends,as it depends upon him. The result is to raise man to a higher form of consciousness and to make him lead a life superior to that which he would lead if he followed only his individual ways.The Threefold Nature of Religion—Religion as it thus emerges in human consciousness and society has three aspects: It is a system of belief: However fantastic or crude, or animistic they may be, ideas conceptions of supernatural powers and belief about their efficacy must exist. It is a system of rites: Something has to be done. It may be in connection with agriculture or forestry, it may be magical dances before the hunting expeditions or the warlike foray; and it may be in initiation rites, or in funeral ceremonies, but religion is always bound up with obligatory rites, designed either to placate the powers and prevent them from doing harm or to enlist their aid. It involves powerfully charged feelings: Although religion is never merely a matter of feelings, beliefs and rites carry with them the most powerful consciousness of the numinous, of a super-individual authority, of a mana which is almost like an electric charge and is as dangerous as it is powerful.Religion Defined—Religion has been defined as the attitude of individuals in the community to the powers which they conceive as having ultimate control over their destinies and interests. By attitude we mean the responsive side of consciousness and not mere passive acceptance of the fact of there being the supernatural. It pre-supposes an object however, and is not merely a subjective religious feeling. It is a relatively active state of consciousness which is the subjective response to something outside.It involves all three functions of the mind which is knowing, feeling and willing. Religion is thus a felt practical relationship with what is believed in as a supernatural being or beings. Here the emphasis is on the practical relationship, the necessity of religious rites and practices for human existence; man is dependent upon mana, for his crops, for his safety, for the birth of his children, for his success in hunting, for deliverance from plague, from pestilence and famine, for the continued support afforded to him and his family of a united, helpful and powerful organized community.