Technology and Burial Mounds…

What makes a religion or religious customs change? It’s a big question, but the second to last paragraph in the fifth chapter of Indian Mounds of Wisconsin by Robert Birmingham and Leslie Eisenberg may provide some insight. The paragraph attempts to explain why the Native American effigy mound construction came to an abrupt halt around 1200 A.D. Birmingham and Eisenberg agree with Robert Hall’s idea which explains the phenomenon as such:



“Robert Hall believes that the end of the period of burial mound construction (which was supplanted in Oneota culture by large belowground cemeteries with individual graves) occurred as ceremonialism shifted emphasis from world renewal in general, symbolized in various ways by the periodic construction of mounds, to new agriculturally based concerns about the fertility of the earth, which became a matter separated from the death ritual. In short, culture had dramatically changed, and the building of earthen mound ceremonial centers was s custom that was no longer needed.”(141)



This passage describes the specific case of the Native Americans quite well, but I believe there is also a larger concept put forth about general change in religious or ceremonial behavior.
It is suggested in the passage that the Native Americans stopped building the effigy mounds because they did not fit into their changing views of the earth. There society was becoming more focused on agriculture, a change considered by most to be an advance in technology and sophistication. From this perspective, one might conclude that the change in the religious or ceremonial behaviors of the Native Americans (not building effigy mounds) was a direct result from a technological advance in there society.

Applying this concept to major changes in religious or ceremonial behavior in different cultures and religions helps to validate the idea. Two examples are the Catholic Church’s stance on science and modern Muslim mosques. The Catholic Church is fairly obvious in that over time scientific advances have changed the churches ‘official stance’ on the nature of things. The big bang theory is a good example of this. The example of the mosques may seem a little less significant, but before modern speaker technology the muezzin (leader of the prayer call or adhan) was required to sing atop the minarets. Electronic speaker systems now allow the muezzin to sing into a microphone which is then projected to the surrounding area.
While advances in technology may not be the only cause of change in a religion or culture, one can see that it is a very present force. It is what compelled the Native Americans to discontinue building ceremonial effigy mounds. One only need to look at changes in other cultures and religions to see the influence of technology.

While advances in technology may not be the only cause of change in a religion or culture, one can see that it is a very present force. It is what compelled the Native Americans to discontinue building ceremonial effigy mounds. One only need to look at changes in other cultures and religions to see the influence of technology.