What Ancient Rituals Reveal About Human Nature
Why do virtually all human cultures, separated by vast distances and completely isolated from one another, develop surprisingly similar religious practices?
In his groundbreaking 1996 work "Creation of the Sacred: Tracks of Biology in Early Religions," renowned scholar Walter Burkert tackles these profound questions through a revolutionary lens: what if the foundations of religion aren't merely cultural inventions but are deeply rooted in our biological makeup? 3
Burkert, one of the world's leading authorities on ancient religions, embarks on an intellectual adventure that begins 5,000 years ago, plunging us into a fascinating world of divine signs, rituals, and beliefs unmitigated by modern science.
His startling suggestion? That we remain much closer to our earliest ancestors—the first Homo religiosus—than we might think, and that by tracing parallels between animal behavior and human religious activity, we can detect the biological underpinnings of what makes us religious beings 3 4 .
Similar religious practices emerge independently across isolated cultures
Religious behavior may have evolutionary origins in survival strategies
At the heart of Burkert's thesis is the provocative idea that sacrifice—ranging from virgins to circumcision to giving up what is most valued—is essential to all religions because it serves a biological function 3 .
Burkert suggests that practices of sacrifice and offering may have their roots in evolutionary survival strategies. Just as animals in dangerous situations might sacrifice a limb to escape a predator, humans developed rituals of giving up something valuable to appease what they perceived as powerful forces controlling their environment 3 4 .
Prevalence of Sacrifice in Ancient Religions
Burkert identifies several core religious elements that may have natural foundations:
The concept of moral transgression and its consequences may derive from observable cause-effect relationships in nature, refined through social structures 3 .
The practice of offering gifts to deities mirrors social exchange patterns that strengthen community bonds—a crucial survival advantage for social species 3 .
The universal notion of a structured universe with powerful beings at the top may reflect the hierarchical social structures observed throughout the animal kingdom 3 .
The human tendency to look for patterns and signals in an uncertain environment represents an early system for making sense of the world, a cognitive technology for survival 3 .
These concepts suggest that religion may have emerged not as a primitive misunderstanding of nature, but as a sophisticated biological adaptation that helped human communities cooperate, survive, and thrive.
Burkert's approach is distinctive in its focus on ancient religions of the Near East, Israel, Greece, and Rome. He argues that precisely because these belief systems "lack later refinements," they may reveal the basic properties and dynamics of religion in their purest forms 3 .
By comparing these ancient traditions across cultures, Burkert identifies recurring patterns that point to possible biological origins rather than mere cultural diffusion.
Examining rituals across cultures to identify universal patterns
Studying ancient religious practices before theological refinements
Finding parallels in animal behavior for potential evolutionary precursors
Exploring how humans perceive patterns and agency in the world
Burkert's work represents a significant departure from traditional approaches to studying religion. Rather than focusing exclusively on textual analysis or theological interpretations, he brings together multiple disciplines to detect the "tracks of biology" that might be invisible to scholars working within a single discipline.
Burkert's fundamental inquiry functions as a natural experiment: If religious practices and concepts appear consistently across cultures that developed in complete isolation from one another, does this suggest these elements have biological rather than purely cultural origins? 3
Burkert's comparative analysis revealed striking consistencies across ancient religions that suggest deep biological roots rather than superficial cultural similarities. The tables below summarize key findings from his research:
| Religious Concept | Expression Across Cultures | Potential Biological Foundation |
|---|---|---|
| Sacrifice | Offering of valued items (food, animals, sometimes humans) to deities | Ritualized version of biological cost-signaling; similar to animals sacrificing escape options for safety |
| Guilt and Punishment | Moral transgression requiring appeasement | Cause-effect understanding crucial for survival; social regulation |
| Gift Exchange | Offering gifts to divine beings | Extension of social exchange patterns that strengthen community bonds |
| Cosmic Hierarchy | Structured universe with powerful beings at top | Reflection of hierarchical social structures observed throughout animal kingdom |
| Signs and Omens | Interpreting natural events as divine messages | Cognitive pattern-recognition system for negotiating uncertain environments |
| Culture | Form of Sacrifice | Intended Purpose | Biological Parallel |
|---|---|---|---|
| Ancient Greece | Animal sacrifices, libations | Appease gods, seek favor, give thanks | Appeasement behaviors in primate social hierarchies |
| Ancient Israel | Animal offerings, first fruits | Atonement for sins, worship, communion | Deference signals in social mammals |
| Ancient Rome | Food offerings, ritual slaughter | Maintain divine favor, ensure state prosperity | Ritualized behaviors that reduce conflict in social groups |
| Near Eastern Cultures | Various valuable offerings | Negotiate with divine powers, seek protection | Costly signaling demonstrating commitment to group |
Burkert's approach suggests that religious practices are not arbitrary cultural artifacts but may serve important functions that contributed to human evolutionary success:
Rituals strengthen group bonds and facilitate cooperation beyond immediate kin 3 .
Sacrifices demonstrate commitment to the group through meaningful costs 3 .
Religious frameworks provide models for navigating unpredictable environments 3 .
Concepts of guilt, punishment, and divine observation encourage prosocial behavior 3 .
These functions would have provided significant survival advantages to early human communities, creating evolutionary pressure for the development of religious capacities.
| Research Tool | Function | Application in Burkert's Work |
|---|---|---|
| Comparative Anthropology | Identifying cross-cultural patterns | Revealed universal elements in ancient religions of Greece, Rome, Israel, and Near East 3 |
| Historical Analysis | Examining earliest known religious forms | Focused on ancient religions as they may show purer biological influences 3 |
| Biological Observation | Finding parallels in animal behavior | Traced potential evolutionary precursors to human religious practices 3 |
| Interdisciplinary Synthesis | Integrating multiple perspectives | Combined insights from anthropology, biology, cognitive science, and history 3 |
Burkert's interdisciplinary approach allows him to detect the "tracks of biology" that might be invisible to scholars working within a single discipline.
If religious concepts are biologically grounded, similar patterns should appear in cultures worldwide—a prediction borne out by subsequent anthropological research.
Walter Burkert's "Creation of the Sacred" offers a revolutionary perspective on religion—not as a mere cultural artifact or primitive superstition, but as a sophisticated expression of biological imperatives that have enabled human survival and social organization. His work suggests that the religious impulse is neither accidental nor arbitrary, but fundamental to how humans are built to interact with the world and each other 3 .
This biological perspective does not necessarily diminish the spiritual significance of religion any more than understanding the biology of love diminishes the experience of romance.
Rather, it deepens our appreciation of how thoroughly our biological inheritance shapes every aspect of human experience, including our most profound spiritual yearnings.
The conversation that Burkert joined continues today, with scientists, philosophers, and theologians still grappling with the profound questions he raised about the ultimate reasons for, and meaning of, human religiousness 3 .
As Burkert reminds us, despite all our modern worldliness and technological sophistication, we remain not so far removed from the first Homo religiosus who looked at the world with wonder and sought to negotiate with the powers behind it 3 .