Muslim Woman

Religion is as old as the rise of self consciousness in men but its origin, as that of man is shrouded in obscurity. A man has probably lived on earth for about a million years. During the greater part of this period, he had no civilization and has not left his impress on any durable material. All we know about him is based on his fossilized remains and while they tell us a good deal about his physical shape and structure, they tell us little about the man in him. Men acquired some rudiments of civilization when he began to work on stone and metal and to shape for himself tools, which hitherto he had taken ready made from nature. The remains of his artifacts, however shed valuable light on his developing needs and beliefs.

Religion can be traced back to the dawn of human civilization. The caverns of primitive men, wherein dead bodies were laid with a provision of food and weapons, suggest beliefs and practices which are unmistakably religious in character. It would seem that no sooner had man attained the stage of mental development, represented by self consciousness and started on the road to civilization than his breathless wonder at the world around him gave way to speculation on his origin and destiny and on the power which created the world and sustains it. His thinking took the form of myth-making and his tools of thought were not concepts but symbols. He felt vaguely but intensely an infinite power at work in the world around him. This dimly sensed power evoked in him the responses of fear and reverence or worship. The urge to worship appears to have always been there, but man can worship only that which he believes to be both good and powerful, because of his own helplessness. Primitive man was slowly and painfully groping his way to the idea of religion. He was seeking with his scanty resources, for an object which he could appease or revere and worship. No doubt, he worshipped crude objects or simple natural phenomena, but we must not forget that for him they only symbolized the supreme power at work in the universe. Worship is a characteristic religious activity and the anthropologists have amassed ample evidence to prove that primitive man did worship something or other. It has also been proved that primitive tribes, even now living cherish beliefs and engage in practices which are undeniably religious in character in as much as they refer to some deity or deities and to life after death.

In the light of these findings one can safely affirm that religion is a universal phenomenon (for the simple reason that, as explained in the Introduction, the instinct of self-preservation is inherent in man).

In the modern age, religion is visible in many different aspects, sometimes it is looked upon as a natural phenomenon and as such it falls within the sphere of science. But as the experience of individual man, it falls within the purview of psychology, while as a social fact, it is the concern of the sociologist. The sociologist is however interested only in the function of religion as a cohesive force in society.

*Muslim Woman by Religion Islam