Why No Major Western Religions?

[Secret Chief]

And oral traditions have less reach and are prone to sink into oblivion.

Perhaps that is generally true. After the Buddha died (circa 400 - 500 BCE), the teachings were passed on orally by monastics, as was normal in that culture at the time. The earliest surviving written texts date from between (approximately) 100 BCE to 300 CE.

 

[☆Dreamwind☆]

Do you have examples of horrible things pagans have done?

*points to history books*

 

[Heyo]

*points to history books*

The problem with the history books is that they are written by the winners (and, especially in this case, those who had writing at all). So, all we know about the Kelts is from Roman authors.

 

[Rival]

The problem with the history books is that they are written by the winners (and, especially in this case, those who had writing at all). So, all we know about the Kelts is from Roman authors.

There's a really good book I have called Pagan Britain, by Ronald Hutton. It obviously only touches Britain but it goes right back to the Palaeolithic Age. I would recommend it; I'm still reading it.

 

[IndigoChild5559]

The problem with the history books is that they are written by the winners (and, especially in this case, those who had writing at all). So, all we know about the Kelts is from Roman authors.

You are largely correct. But we also have archeology. This is, for example, how we know they offered human sacrifices.

 

[☆Dreamwind☆]

The problem with the history books is that they are written by the winners (and, especially in this case, those who had writing at all). So, all we know about the Kelts is from Roman authors.

Kay and? People back then, weren't exactly sweet and gentle angels who lived in peace most of the time. They did bad things back then too, just as they do now. Such as warred, enslaved, tortured, raped, plundered and killed. Some of those things were certainly in the name of religion. No sense in claiming it may not have happened when there is plenty of physical evidence, and tales passed down through generations via spoken and written accounts. Not to mention some abhorrent ancient practices and attitudes still survive today.

 

[Heyo]

You are largely correct. But we also have archeology. This is, for example, how we know they offered human sacrifices.

Do we though? There is still a discussion about multiple bog people, if the evidence hints at a ritual sacrifice, a crime or a form of capital punishment. And that is only for those who had evidence of violence. Without that, it might have been a simple misstep.

 

[IndigoChild5559]

Do we though? There is still a discussion about multiple bog people, if the evidence hints at a ritual sacrifice, a crime or a form of capital punishment. And that is only for those who had evidence of violence. Without that, it might have been a simple misstep.

I just go with the consensus of scholars. They have done the archeology, and they say they have ample evidence of human sacrifice. That's good enough for me.

 

[paarsurrey]

Why No Major Western Religions?

#42
I spent much of my youth worshipping at the local Dionysus temple...

#44
You know many Dharmics here.

Some people call it Hinduism.

#67
Now European history starts at the Roman Period, with everything else consigned to pre-history. How unfair.

#71
The most famous example of this is the "Trail of Tears," where indigenous nations living in coastal Florida were forced to arid Oklahoma, but there are lots of others.

#73
This is what makes me mad; it's as though they didn't care or lived in a naïve world.

The Jews, Christians, Muslims, Dharmics, Daoists, Confucians, Zoroastrians and others have their holy writings. These are compounded by great works like the Talmud, Church Fathers, Hadith, and other such traditions.

And we have some longbarrows.

#112
Yes. It's something that has come up multiple times as I've been reading more literature written by indigenous citizens. As a Druid who also connects deeply with the land, I feel I can relate but at the same time can't imagine how traumatic being ripped from one's ancestral lands is. Even today, indigenous communities have to fight the United States for basic respect of their traditions. The citizens here, who don't practice indigenous or nature-based religions, just do not understand that deep connection to the land. They don't get why it is a problem to erect a new fancy telescope on a sacred mountain. I try not to think too much about it because it makes me mad when I do.

#113
Starting a world religion is a very rare thing. I agree with you that is is odd that 3 of the 5 came from the same area -- the middle east. I don't have an answer for you on that matter. Good question!

#123
The Americas did. Primarily the English and Spanish destroyed it with not a whole lot surviving today.
I would argue it was the same in Europe. The Celtic people dominated much of Europe at one point, but they didn't really write anything down until much, much later, closer to when we started having Irish, Scots and Welsh. Then the Germanic tribes ascended. But they were militarily thrashed and diminished by Rome (as were the Celts). And we know what of there's does survive does have some Christian Scribe tampering. And what we have that does survive isn't much because the was destroyed by Rome, Ottomans, Christians, et. al..

#124
The Greek Philosophy is still considered the bedrock and foundations of Western Democracy and Society. And of course they also had a heavy influence in Ottoman thought.
Due to the Mediterranean Exchanges I think it's safe to say Europe, Asia Minor and Northern Africa can all rightly claim various aspects of Greek philosophy.
But I also get what you're saying. While even Rome was heavily influenced by Greece, most of Europe was subjected to Roman rule, and as Christianity spread Europe would still largely turn to Rome for influence even after it's decline as a state.

I liked the above points in the thread.
Revealed Religions, I understand, were/are not made by the human beings, these are sent by One G-d (who may have different names in different people/nations; in my religion it is Allah*) by Word of G-d (in my religion it is Quran) revealed on the heart of a Messenger (in my religion it is Muhammad)verbally, also written as well, as it got revealed, as a secondary measure, as commanded by Allah.
All other revealed religions were tribal only, except Islam, which is universal, please, right?:

1:2 All praise belongs to *Allah, Lord of all the worlds, Holy Quran: Read, Listen and Search

Right?

Regards
_________________
Original Arabic narration/text from Muhammad's time, is below:-
1:2 اَلۡحَمۡدُ لِلّٰہِ رَبِّ الۡعٰلَمِیۡنَ ۙ﴿۲

 

[JACC2312]

Why are all major religions from the East?

Even historically, Rome was full of Mirtha-worshippers and Manichaeans.

Why hasn't the West (Europe, the Americas etc.) produced any religions the likes of Islam or Zoroastrianism?

I'm not talking about small Pagan religions followed by a small amount of people who are essentially re-inventing it.

We just didn't seem to create anything on that scale and pass it along.

There are very Few independent centers on the surface of the World where Civilization developed from primitive societies to Cities and Jerarchy, China, India, Mezopotamia, Egypt, Mexico and Perú, the rest of the World learned from this Centers. In these territories Primitive peoples learned to Grow Crops and had a surplus that allowed to sustain an upper class capable of intellectual development and Abstract Thinking. none of these Civilizating Centers was atheistic at all. After all it is of humans to have Abstract thinking and thus dilusidation of Trascendent truths only animals show to be atheistic by nature.

Now "The West", From Greece to Spain and from Norway to Italy was a very primitive territory when Mezopotamia and Egypt had already developed systematic thinking and elaborated compilations of Laws and Mathematics, Including astromnomy, Astrology in fact was developed by these civilizatory centers but only the Mezopotamian version survived to our days. So the west had to learn all the Developments that Middle East civilizations had already advanced centuries earlier.

The Civilizatory Centers have in common, Warm Temperatures, Seasonal Floodings that allowed a secure source of food but that required to check the stars to understand the Chalendars to learn when to prepare the land to the seeds and be ready for the Rains and the Rivers floods, Europe basically had to learn to survive in cold winters from hunting and recollecting, and although Spain is not as cold as the rest of Europe, Spain doesn't have big rivers or a regular rainy season none the less It was in Spain where Celtics grew and expand before phenicians arrived and replaced their believes.