Definitions of Religion

Asian 60W Introduction to Buddhism Spring 2010

Academic Definitions of Religion

Two Well-Known Examples Clifford Geertz:

Religion is defined as (1) a system of symbols which acts to (2) establish powerful,

pervasive, and long-lasting moods and motivations in men by (3) formulating conceptions

of a general order of existence and (4) clothing these conceptions with such an aura of

factuality that (5) the moods and motivations seem uniquely realistic. (Geertz 1966, 4)

Émile Durkheim:

A Religion is a unified system of beliefs and practices relative to sacred things, that is to

say, things set apart and forbidden—beliefs and practices which unite into one single moral

community called a Church, all those who adhere to them. (Durkheim 1965, 47)

Works Cited Durkheim, Émile. 1965 (1912). The Elementary Forms of the Religious Life (originally: Les

formes élémentaires de la vie religieuse, le système totémique en Australie, Paris: Felix Alcan, 1912), translated by Joseph W. Swain. New York: The Free Press.

Geertz, Clifford. 1966. “Religion as a Cultural System.” In Anthropological Approaches to the

Study of Religion, edited by Michael Banton, pp. 1–46. New York: Praeger.