Cognitive representation of supernatural agents in rural population

By Thakur Seema

A religious belief in the present scenario across the world seems to be at a gargantuan level. Most of the people believe in a supernatural agent and often report religious or spiritual experiences despite decades of secularization (Pollack, 2008). In India, rarely do we find a community without any folk or traditional beliefs and customs and superstitions. Himachal Pradesh is considered as "Dev Bhumi" where the religious beliefs in their local deities are found at every choke point of life. Be it a traditional ritual observance like deities possession, psychological accounts and expectation of outcomes, it has proved effective for promoting "La Dolce Vita" philosophy of saccharine life (Zinta & Negi, 2016). It seems that attaining hedonism through eudemonism has remained as the cherished goal of humanity since their inception of religion is metaphysical in nature. It incorporates ideological, intellectual, ritual, experiential, and consequential dimension. It connotes specific behavioural, social, doctrinal, and denominational characteristics. The Himalayas with long chains of mountains is rich in religious beliefs, customs, and traditions. Such immutable 'deity belief culture' generally seems to be commenced with classical text like "Puranas, Vedas and Mahabharata". It is still prevalent with great fervor in the current society, especially in Himachal Pradesh where the literate, illiterate, employed and unemployed people of rural and urban areas have cognitive representations of their local deities while beginning their daily activities of any kind (Zinta & Kataik, 2013; Thakur, 2009). Ancient wisdom teaches a man to lead a happy and healthy life. The sacred sectarian institutions, their obligatory creeds, and rituals, by means of mystic experience, have proved effective in ameliorating socio-emotional conflicts. Pui-Lam Law (2005) has stated that the folk beliefs are indeed not restricted to one source of religious ideas but are combinations of ideas on magic. Some of the folk beliefs may be rooted in science; some may not make sense at all. A unique achievement of human cognition is the invention of supernatural elements, which reside inside the individual, and thus exert two-way control on thinking, feeling, and behavior to mould one's affectionate and sensual relationships (Faw, 2006; Jones, 2009). The cognitive science is exploring the dynamics of supernatural elements in the human mind by involving folk psychology and cognitive neuroscience. By cognitive scientists and social psychologists, it has been proved that the generalization of attachment theory of John Bowlby developed on human infants and the Harlow's,

• Format: Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: 6107506314
• ISBN13: 9786107506317
• Release Date: August 2022
• Publisher: Ahmed
• Length: 438 Pages
• Weight: 1.28 lbs.
• Dimensions: 0.9" x 6.0" x 9.0"