shiv sastry [01/08/07 14:51 +0530]:
I suspect that what is termed as Hinduism is a conglomeration of ideas that include animism. Which brings me right back to the question - what are the characteristics of animism that one could use to identify an animistic belief as Hinduism.
this for starters, from wikipedia -
In a more restrictive sense, animism is the belief that souls inhabit all or most objects; it attributes personalized souls to animals, vegetables, and minerals wherein the material object is.to some degree.governed by the qualities which comprise its particular soul. Religions that are animistic in this more restrictive sense generally do not accept a sharp distinction between spirit and matter, and they generally assume that this unification of matter and spirit plays a role in daily life.
