This will be explored through primary and secondary sources revealing the information behind the annual commemorations. Gods and festivals had an important place in the lives of all Spartan citizens, as it was expected that all member of society would play their part in the religious life of the community. Both gods and festivals are found to have a association with one another as festivals are majority of the time celebrated in the honour of various gods, as Sparta are heavily devoted to their religious and militaristic lifestyle. According to Thucydides “the gods were at the top of the chain of command that ran down through Spartan society. Their traditional rules, about festivals and sanctuaries, were there to be obeyed without question.” This exemplifies that the Greek gods were of high importance and held the power to determine and undermine the way Spartan society, military and religion was practised in everyday life.
The Ancient Egyptians thought of Egypt as being divided into two types of land, the “black land” and the “red land. “ The “black land” was the fertile land on the banks of the Nile, and was mainly used as a growing land for their crops because of their deposition of rich, black silt every year after the Nile flood. The “red land” consisted of a barren desert and acted as natural barrier to protect Egypt from invasions by neighboring countries. Despite being a desert, it was a source of precious metals and semi-precious stones. The ancient Egyptians believed that it was important to record and communicate information about the religion and government.
The Nile River, in particular, was an aspect of agriculture whose impact on African societies would change the way we see it today. The ancient Egyptian civilization developed along the Nile River, where the soil was rich and the agricultural opportunities were plentiful. The Nile River cut through something of an arid landscape, so the people clustered along the riverbanks, where, in addition to farms, they constructed towns and cities. Though we often think of ancient Egypt in terms of massive construction projects, such as the pyramids, most Egyptians lived in smaller towns. Unlike the Tigris and Euphrates Rivers, the Nile floods at a predictable time of the year and in relatively predictable stages.
These religious traditions, practices and rituals, were also influenced by other cultures beliefs, such as, the Roman influence in the Ptolemy period. ‘A remarkable feature of the Egyptian funerary religion is its complexity, which developed as new beliefs were incorporated without old ones being discarded’ (Spencer, 1982). Ancient Egyptian beliefs in afterlife changed dramatically from the Old kingdom to the New Kingdom. Although fundamental aspects did remain the same, they associated their life cycle, with their observation of nature, with the solar cycle where the Sun God Re (sun) daily passage across the sky dying at night and being reborn each morning. This continuous cycle was incorporated into their funerary beliefs that death was an extension of life and in the natural cycle afterlife was
Ancient Egyptian Religion The Force Behind Everything As the ancient Egyptian religion was an important part of everyday life for all Egyptians (rich and poor), they built a great many temples and had shrines in their homes. The term used to describe ancient Egyptian theology is Polytheism. This just means that they believed in many Gods. Gods were not only formless entities with certain roles - but the Gods were also the forces of nature, the elements, and the characteristics of certain powers. Some Egyptian Gods merged with foreign Gods too.
They believed it was their duty to keep them happy at all costs. The gods controlled their lives and could choose to end it at anytime by causing famine or overflowing the Nile. The social structure is like that of a pyramid with the pharaoh being at the top and the slaves being at the bottom. In between the top and the bottom are the government official, nobles, soldiers, scribes, merchants, artisans, and farmers respectively. The Egyptians believed some human beings were gods.
Chris Mortimer AP World History Settembrino October 1, 2013 The Influence of Geography on History DBQ The land we live on is a vital part of the lives we live and this has been shown throughout history. Geography shaped the lives of people of the ancient world socially, economically, and politically. Socially, geography impacted the interactions of people and provided the tools for culture to develop. The land itself provided the early base of ancient economies through both agriculture and trade. Politically geography often determined whether a ruler maintained his empire or whether he fell.
Though Mesopotamia and Egypt were alike there were some differences between the two. With Mesopotamia gaining all the wealth from agriculture and with a few natural defenses, this made the people susceptible to have more invasions and to have internal conflicts. Egypt on the other had didn’t have as many interruptions as Mesopotamia, because of the high mountains and deserts helped to protect the Nile Valley. In Egypt their main focus was the funerary practices. The rulers devoted their time to the design and decoration of extensive funerary complexes, as well as the pyramids and subterranean tombs.
Pericles stated that he wanted all citizens to have an equal opportunity to serve the public. The Legislative branch passes the laws, the Executive branch carries out the laws, and the Judicial branches had trials with paid jurors. In the US most of the democratic theories that the government uses are either identical or very similar to the Ancient Athenians theories. Myron's famous sculpture, the Discus Thrower is an example of a kind of sport in ancient Greek times that resembled modern day javelin mixed with Frisbee. Greece was the first civilization to incorporate sports and make it a tradition.
Ancient Egyptian religion Ancient Egyptian religion was a complex system of polytheistic beliefs and rituals which were an integral part of ancient Egyptian society. It centered on the Egyptians' interaction with a multitude of deities who were believed to be present in, and in control of, the forces and elements of nature. The myths about these gods were meant to explain the origins and behavior of the forces they represented. The practices of Egyptian religion were efforts to provide for the gods and gain their favor. www.wikipedia.org Egyptian religion made an importance through the centuries and today in a way that it was the basis from where Egyptian civilization derived.