We already know that the history of mankind can be divided into two section, the second is about that era and later when the alphabets had been created and man could leave his thoughts in paper and the first section is that of the period when man was not literate and could not preserve his history. This is called the pre-historic time.

The absence of alphabets or writing does not mean that we have no knowledge about the conditions of those days and those people because we find illustrations in caves and especially underground caves that reveal their conditions and history.

Today the archaeologists are searching for historical evidences all over the world through various means and study each artifact or ins c r i p tion found very minutely. It is only then that they write about those times, cultures, society and their history and this is how we find their religious inclinations and beliefs.

Samuel King writes:

“The forefathers of the present humans (whose relics have been found in the excavations) or Neanderthals were religious people. The proof is that they buried their dead in a special style by placing their working tools besides them and thus proved their belief in the hereafter” (1)

The Neanderthals lived more than hundred and thousands years ago when writing was not discovered or created at the dawn of history.

Their actions were weak because we know that worldly tools will not be used in the hereafter. But this action proves their belief in the hereafter amongst them.

The Book The Tenets of Collectivity of Herbert Spencer has been archived in the encyclopedia and it says that since the ancient people could not think and had no ideas so they understood the hereafter according to their mental capacity. This is why they had strange customs and rites about worldly things.

Though they believed in the hereafter they believed that it was only for those who died a natural death and some considered it only for the powerful and famous people.

Then there were those among the ancient people who used to bury the arms of the person with him. They used to bury the utensil with the women and toys with the children (so that they could use them in the hereafter).

Some people buried the animals with the dead together with some seeds for food and some earth so they could farm in the hereafter.

Sometimes they went a step further and buried the widows, the slaves and some friends with the dead so that they would feel comfortable in the hereafter. In Mexico in Latin America they used to cut off the heads of the priests and bury them with the dead so that he could be guided in the hereafter about religion.

Some times they buried the court singers too so that the dead could be entertained in the hereafter.

The number of the slain dead with the person who died depended on his social stature. Some historians have written that at times the numbers who were slain to accompany the dead rose to 200 people.

Whenever a favorite child died they would slay its mother, paternal aunt and grandmother to be with it in the hereafter. (2)

There is no doubt that all these frivolities were duty to the negative thinking of these people.

The book History of civilization also states that from the pre-historic times to the last days of the ancient era the dead were buried with a special ritual together with many household things and strange faces. The close relatives used to send gifts for them. All these rites and customs point out that they did believe in the hereafter. (3)

1. Study of Human Civilization by Samuel King vol.1 page 291

2. The Encyclopedia of the Ancient Century vol.1 page 90 to 94

3.The History of Civilization. 1 page 99