For long periods of time, humans have advanced to seek meaningful causal patterns in nature to understand the world, and filled many of those patterns with intentional action, some of which included gods. People developed social organizations to enforce moral rules. The set of moral principles evolved as a form of social control to ensure the survival of humans. Religion was the first social establishment to set moral principles, and represented God as a pattern for the world as the ultimate enforcer of the rules. In Karen Armstrong's "Homo Religiosus," it is mentioned that humans have required something to believe in since the beginning of time in order to shape and find the value in their lives. Using periodic information of the Paleolithic era, Armstrong tries to persuade the readers by arguing that religion is not the belief in a god, but rather the practice of a set of controlled actions. Truth and value of a life could be clear and verified through the religious practice and understanding the core principles of the religion.
Religion was part of everyday activities in the ancient time. The cave paintings explain the lifestyle and the religion practiced previously. Just as art, religion involves people to "construct meaning in the face of the relentless pain and injustices of life" (Armstrong 25). Just as how architecture relates the past to the present, religion functions the same way. Architecture requires one to step outside the standard and examine it. Religion is not simply a relationship with God, as Armstrong mentions, but ekstasis. This means that people need to live and practice religion; it requires people to use all their senses. Religion is similar to art. A poem, a play, or a great painting shapes people's perception. People are pushed into a new state of consciousness when they find something distinct. For example, Armstrong describes a boy who is separated from everything familiar, and is pushed into a "new state of consciousness" to train him to hunt in the "sacred manner" (25).
