All language subtitles for PBS.First.Civilizations.Series.1.Part.2.Religion.720p.HDTV.x264.AAC.MVGroup.org.eng

NANARRATOR: EVERY CIVILIZATION

NEEDS A STORY...

A SHARED NARRATIVE

TO BELIEVE IN,

AND THE MOST POTENT NARRATIVE

IS RELIGION.

BUT HOW AND WHY DID RELIGION
BECOME SO POWERFUL?

WHAT PART DID IT PLAY

IN THE BIRTH OF CIVILIZATION?

MAN: IF YOU WANT TO PRAY,

YOU'VE GOT TO COME
TO THIS SPACE.

THIS IS THE BEGINNING OF
RELIGION AS WE KNOW IT.

SECOND MAN: RELIGION BROUGHT
PEOPLE TOGETHER.

THIS LEADS TO THE FEELING
THAT WE ARE

PART OF SOMETHING
BIGGER THAN OURSELVES.

THIRD MAN: RELIGION HELPS
CREATE A COHESIVE SOCIETY

THAT ALLOWS
A CIVILIZATION TO FORM.

GLORY AND PRAISE
FOREVER AND EVER.

ALL: AMEN.
NARRATOR: WE DIDN'T ALWAYS

LIVE THIS WAY.

FOR 99% OF OUR TIME ON EARTH,

WE HAD NO ORGANIZED RELIGION.

BUT THEN...

WE SETTLED DOWN, GREW FOOD,

BUILT CITIES, FOUGHT BATTLES,

WROTE STORIES, SOLD GOODS,

AND WORSHIPPED GODS.

[INDISTINCT SHOUTING]

THIS IS THE STORY
OF THAT TRANSITION...

STEPPING STONES ON THE ROAD
TO CIVILIZATION.

[SHOUTS INDISTINCTLY]

IT'S A STORY SET
ACROSS THE GLOBE

IN THE MIDDLE EAST, CENTRAL
AMERICA, SOUTHERN ASIA...

ALL OF THEM SEED BEDS
OF CIVILIZATION.

HERE, OUR ANCESTORS
DESIGNED THE BLUEPRINT

BY WHICH WE STILL
LIVE OUR LIVES.

THIS IS WHERE
THE MODERN WORLD BEGAN.

NARRATOR: THE LONGEST-LASTING
CIVILIZATION

IN THE HISTORY OF THE WORLD

WAS IN ANCIENT EGYPT.

FOR 3,000 YEARS,
THE PHARAOHS RULED,

AND THEIR PEOPLE BELIEVED.

IT WAS HERE
CIVILIZATION AND RELIGION

BECAME FUSED AS ONE.

EVERY MAJOR CIVILIZATION SINCE

HAS ADOPTED THE SAME FORMULA.

RELIGION IS THE GLUE
THAT BINDS US TOGETHER.

BUT HOW DID ANCIENT EGYPTIANS
COME UPON THIS REALIZATION?

ARCHAEOLOGIST JEFF ROSE

IS HEADED FOR
AN ANCIENT WATERING HOLE

IN EGYPT'S WESTERN DESERT--

NABTA PLAYA.

ROSE: NOWADAYS,
THIS IS ALL JUST DRY DESERT,

BUT 7,000 OR 8,000 YEARS AGO,

THIS WOULD HAVE BEEN
ROLLING GRASSLAND

WITH ELEPHANTS AND GIRAFFE.

YOU WOULD HAVE HAD
GROUPS OF HERDERS WITH CATTLE

MOVING AROUND THIS LANDSCAPE,

FOLLOWING THE WATER SOURCES
THAT BECAME AVAILABLE.

SO, HERE AT NABTA PLAYA,
WHEN THE SUMMER RAINS CAME,

IT WOULD FILL UP
THIS BASIN WITH WATER,

AND ALL THOSE HERDERS
WOULD COME AND CONGREGATE HERE

AROUND THE LAKE
JUST FOR THE SEASON.

NARRATOR: THE HERDERS
BUILT SOMETHING SACRED.

IT'S BEEN DESCRIBED
AS EGYPT'S STONEHENGE.

IN REALITY,
IT'S 2,000 YEARS OLDER.

BEGUN OVER 7,000 YEARS AGO,

IT'S ONE OF THE OLDEST
RELIGIOUS SITES IN THE WORLD.

IT MAY NOW LOOK LIKE
A JUMBLE OF ROCKS,

BUT THIS IS WHERE
THE BUILDING BLOCKS OF RELIGION

BEGAN TO EMERGE.

ROSE: FOR OVER
TWO MILLION YEARS,

WE WERE HUNTER-GATHERERS,
AND HUNTER-GATHERERS

TYPICALLY PRACTICE
A RELIGION CALLED ANIMISM.

ANIMISM IS WHEN YOU--
WHEN YOU SEE THE DIVINE,

YOU SEE THE SPIRITS OF NATURE
ALL AROUND YOU.

IT'S IN THE SAND,
IT'S IN THE ROCKS,

THE WIND, AND THE WATER.

IT'S EVERYWHERE.

BUT WHEN THEY SWITCH
TO HERDING,

THIS CHANGES THEIR WORLDVIEW.

[GOATS BLEATING]

NARRATOR: WHILE HUNTER-GATHERERS
ROAMED FREELY

ACROSS THE LANDSCAPE,

HERDERS SETTLED
FOR WEEKS AT A TIME

WHEREVER THEY
COULD FIND PASTURE.

THIS LED TO A NEW KIND
OF RELIGION.

ROSE: THE FIRST THING
THAT HAPPENS

WHEN PEOPLE START HERDING,

THEY START BUILDING
SACRED SPACES.

IF YOU WANT TO PRAY,
IF YOU WANT TO WORSHIP,

YOU'VE GOT TO COME
TO THIS SPACE.

AND WHAT THIS DOES
IS IT BRINGS PEOPLE TOGETHER

FROM ALL OVER THE PLACE

INTO THIS ONE AREA
TO WORSHIP TOGETHER.

NARRATOR: THE SITE IS HUGE.
10 SQUARE MILES OF STONES

ARRANGED INTO
CIRCLES AND MOUNDS.

THE LARGEST ROCKS,
THE MEGALITHS,

WERE STOOD ON END AND PLACED
IN LINES ACROSS THE DESERT.

ROSE: SO, THIS
GIANT MEGALITH HERE,

I MEAN, THIS THING
WEIGHS SEVERAL TONS.

IT WOULD HAVE BEEN
CARRIED A FEW MILES

JUST TO GET IT TO THIS POINT,

AND THAT REQUIRES
ORGANIZED LABOR.

THAT REQUIRES PEOPLE
WORKING TOGETHER.

WE CAN SURMISE THAT
THEY WOULD HAVE HAD

SOME KIND OF SPIRITUAL
SIGNIFICANCE TO THESE THINGS

TO PUT THAT MUCH
EFFORT INTO THIS.

AND IF THAT'S THE CASE,
WE'RE LOOKING AT

SOME SORT OF PROTOTYPE CHURCH.

[INDISTINCT CHATTER]

NARRATOR: THE FIRST MONUMENTS
WERE ALL

INSPIRED BY RELIGION...

AND OFTEN WERE ALIGNED
IN A SPECIFIC DIRECTION,

JUST LIKE THE STONES
AT NABTA PLAYA.

THIS MEGALITH WOULD HAVE BEEN
STANDING UP STRAIGHT,

AND THERE'S
A WHOLE LINE OF THEM,

AND THEY'RE ALL
POINTING TO THE NORTH.

SO, IF YOU THINK ABOUT IT, THEY
DIDN'T HAVE COMPASSES BACK THEN.

THEY HAD NO WAY OF KNOWING
WHICH WAY WAS NORTH

EXCEPT FOR THE NORTH STAR,

THE FIXED POINT IN HEAVEN
THAT NEVER MOVES.

THAT'S INTERESTING, BECAUSE
IN LATER EGYPTIAN RELIGION,

WE KNOW THAT THE NORTH STAR

IS THE ENTRANCE
INTO THE AFTERLIFE.

SO, WHAT WE COULD
BE LOOKING AT HERE

IS THE VERY BEGINNINGS
OF THE EGYPTIAN BELIEF

IN LIFE AFTER DEATH.

NARRATOR: AT HEART,
ALL RELIGION

IS THE SEARCH FOR MEANING,
FOR ORDER,

TO EXPLAIN WHY THINGS ARE
THE WAY THEY ARE.

ROSE: SO, THIS STONE CIRCLE
COULD VERY WELL BE

THE WORLD'S OLDEST CALENDAR.

WE HAVE HERE
TWO ALIGNMENTS OF STONES.

ONE POINTS NORTH
TOWARD THE FIXED POINT,

TOWARD THE NORTH STAR...

AND THEN THE OTHER
ALIGNMENT HERE

POINTS 70 DEGREES TO THE EAST.

SO, ON THE SOLSTICE,
ON JUNE 21st,

THE SUN WOULD HAVE COME UP

AND SHONE STRAIGHT
THROUGH THIS LINE,

AND IT WOULD
TELL THEM RIGHT WHEN

THE SUMMER RAINS
WERE ABOUT TO START.

NARRATOR: FOR US, A CALENDAR
IS A SCIENTIFIC INSTRUMENT

FOR PREDICTING THE SEASONS.

BUT FOR THE ANCIENT EGYPTIANS,

IT HAD
A RELIGIOUS SIGNIFICANCE.

ROSE: THEY DIDN'T HAVE
THIS DISTINCTION

BETWEEN RELIGION AND SCIENCE.

THE STARS, THE GODS,
THE SEASONS, THE SUN,

THEY WERE ALL LINKED TOGETHER.

SO, FOR THEM, THEY WERE
JUST TRYING TO UNDERSTAND

HOW THEIR WORLD WORKED.

NARRATOR: THE CALENDAR
HAS BEEN MOVED

FROM NABTA PLAYA TO A MUSEUM

180 MILES AWAY TO PRESERVE IT,

ALONG WITH EGYPT'S
OLDEST RELIGIOUS SCULPTURE.

ROSE: THIS GIANT ROCK
IS NO ORDINARY MEGALITH.

IT'S BEEN SCULPTED BY
THE INHABITANTS OF NABTA PLAYA,

SOME HAVE SUGGESTED
IN THE SHAPE OF A COW.

SO, WE COULD SEE THE HEAD HERE,
AND THEN THE TORSO HERE.

WHAT'S REALLY STRANGE
IS IT WAS FOUND

BURIED BENEATH A SERIES
OF COLLAPSED OTHER MEGALITHS.

[INDISTINCT SHOUTING]

[COW MOOS]

ROSE: FOR THE INHABITANTS
OF NABTA PLAYA,

THE COW WAS THE CENTER
OF THEIR WORLD.

[COW MOOS]

THESE ARE HERDERS
WHOSE LIFE, WHOSE FOOD,

WHOSE MILK, WHOSE MEAT
COMES FROM THE COW.

ONE OF THE ASTONISHING THINGS
WE FIND AT NABTA PLAYA

ARE YOUNG COWS SACRIFICED
AND BURIED BENEATH THE GROUND.

[COW MOOING]

WHY WOULD YOU
SACRIFICE SOMETHING

THAT IS SO ESSENTIAL
TO YOUR LIVELIHOOD?

AND IT'S POSSIBLE
THAT THESE COULD BE

WAYS OF OFFERINGS TO THE GODS

TO CONTROL NATURE,
TO BRING THE RAINS,

TO ENSURE THAT THEIR
LIVELIHOOD CONTINUES.

[INDISTINCT SHOUTING]

WHAT WE'RE SEEING HERE
AT NABTA PLAYA,

THIS IS THE BEGINNING
OF RELIGION AS WE KNOW IT.

I MEAN, NOW THESE PEOPLE
HAVE TO APPEAL TO THE GODS

TO MAKE SURE NATURE DOES
WHAT THEY WANT IT TO DO

IN ORDER TO SURVIVE.

THIS IS EXACTLY HOW
RELIGION OPERATES TODAY.

NARRATOR: RELIGION SEEMS
SO FUNDAMENTAL

TO THE HUMAN EXPERIENCE,

IT MAY BE HARD-WIRED
INTO OUR BRAINS.

NEUROSCIENTIST ANDREW NEWBERG

IS RESEARCHING
THE IMPACT OF PRAYER

ON RELIGIOUS BELIEVERS.

OK, GO AHEAD.

WOMAN ON SPEAKER: OUR FATHER,
WHO ART IN HEAVEN,

HALLOWED BE THEY NAME.

THY KINGDOM COME,
THY WILL BE DONE,

ON EARTH AS IT IS IN HEAVEN.

GIVE US THIS DAY
OUR DAILY BREAD...

NEWBERG: WE'RE LOOKING
AT A VARIETY OF

DIFFERENT AREAS OF THE BRAIN

TO SEE WHAT AREAS SEEM TO BE

TURNED ON OR TURNED OFF
DURING INTENSE

RELIGIOUS OR SPIRITUAL
EXPERIENCES AND PRACTICES.

AND WHAT YOU CAN SEE HERE
ARE TWO SCANS THAT ARE DONE,

ONE DURING THE PRAYER STATE,

ONE DURING THE RES STATE,

AND DURING THE PRAYER STATE,
YOU CAN SEE THAT

THERE'S A LOT MORE
RED ACTIVITY HERE

THAN WHAT YOU SEE OVER HERE.

NARRATOR: THIS SORT OF
INCREASED BLOOD FLOW

IN THE FRONTAL LOBE

SHOWS UP IN ANY MENTAL TASK

REQUIRING FOCUS AND ATTENTION.

WOMAN ON SPEAKER: GIVE US
THIS DAY OUR DAILY BREAD...

NARRATOR: BUT THE ACT OF PRAYER

ALSO AFFECTS THE BACK
OF THE BRAIN--

THE PARIETAL LOBE.

NEWBERG: THIS AREA OF THE BRAIN
NORMALLY TAKES OUR--

ALL THE SENSORY INFORMATION
THAT COMES IN TO US

AND HELPS US TO CONSTRUCT
OUR SENSE OF SELF

AND HOW THAT SELF RELATES
TO THE REST OF THE WORLD.

AND SO, WHAT WE HAVE FOUND
A LOT OF EVIDENCE FOR

IS THAT WHEN PEOPLE HAVE VERY
INTENSE SPIRITUAL EXPERIENCES,

THIS PARIETAL LOBE
THAT NORMALLY

HELPS YOU TO ESTABLISH
YOUR SENSE OF SELF

ACTUALLY STARTS TO SHUT DOWN.

AND SO, WHAT WE SEE HERE
IS THAT DURING

THE RESTING STATE,

IT'S MOSTLY IN THIS
RED ACTIVITY,

WHEREAS DURING
THE PRAYER STATE,

IT'S BEEN SHUT DOWN.

IT'S ALMOST ALL
IN THE YELLOWS HERE.

AND AS THAT AREA
STARTS TO QUIET DOWN,

WE LOSE OUR SENSE OF SELF.

SO, WE FEEL THAT
SENSE OF CONNECTION,

THAT SENSE OF COMMUNION,

THAT SENSE OF BECOMING
ONE WITH THE UNIVERSE,

BECOMING ONE WITH GOD,
AS PART OF THAT PRACTICE.

[PEOPLE SINGING INDISTINCTLY]

AND SO, IT CERTAINLY
SEEMS LIKE OUR BRAINS

ARE BUILT IN SUCH A WAY THAT

FACILITATES RELIGIOUS
AND SPIRITUAL IDEAS,

ENABLES US TO HAVE THEM
FAIRLY EASILY,

AND--AND MAKES THEM A PART OF--
OF HUMANITY'S BELIEF SYSTEMS,

AT LEAST FOR THE LARGE
MAJORITY OF PEOPLE.

NARRATOR:
IN EVOLUTIONARY TERMS,

WE SEEM TO NEED RELIGION.

NEWBERG: PRETTY MUCH
EVERY CIVILIZATION,

FROM THE DAWN OF CIVILIZATION
TO THE PRESENT MOMENT,

HAS HAD SOME TYPE OF
RELIGIOUS OR SPIRITUAL ELEMENTS

THAT ARE A PART OF--OF HOW
THEY THINK ABOUT THE WORLD,

HOW THEY CONSTRUCT
THEIR IDEAS ABOUT HUMANITY,

HOW WE SHOULD BEHAVE,
OUR MORAL SYSTEMS AND SO FORTH.

AND ALL OF THOSE THINGS
KIND OF COME TOGETHER

TO HELP CREATE
A COHESIVE SOCIETY

THAT ALLOWS A CIVILIZATION
TO--TO FORM.

[INDISTINCT CHATTER]

NARRATOR: FOR RELIGION
TO SPREAD,

IT NEEDS TO BE SHARED...

AND COMMUNICATED TO OTHERS.

THE MOST POWERFUL FORM OF
COMMUNICATION IS IMAGERY...

PICTURES, SYMBOLS.

ROSE: THE EASTERN DESERT
OF EGYPT IS FULL OF WADIS,

AND A WADI IS
A STREAM BED THAT GETS

OCCASIONAL STORM FLOW
RUNNING THROUGH IT.

NOW, 6,000 YEARS AGO,
THERE WOULD'VE BEEN

A LOT MORE RAIN IN THIS AREA.

SO, THE HERDERS
LIVING IN THESE PARTS

WOULD'VE BEEN ATTRACTED
TO PLACES LIKE THIS

FOR THE GRAZING,
FOR ALL THE ANIMALS,

AND FOR THE WATER ITSELF.

THEY LEFT
THEIR LEGACY HERE,

BUT UNLIKE NABTA PLAYA,
WHERE THEY WERE

BUILDING STONE CIRCLES
AND ERECTING MEGALITHS,

THEY ETCHED THEIR ART
ONTO THE CANYON WALLS.

NARRATOR: HERE AT
WADI BARAMIYA,

THERE ARE HUNDREDS OF IMAGES

CARVED ONTO THE ROCKS,

AN INSIGHT INTO THE WORLD
OF THE PEOPLE

WHO GATHERED HERE.

MOST OF THE DEPICTIONS OF WHAT
WE'RE SEEING IN THIS CANYON

ARE ANIMALS--THINGS LIKE
GIRAFFE AND GAZELLE

AND COWS AND GOATS AND OSTRICH--

EVEN A FALCON,
WHICH IS INTERESTING,

BECAUSE IN LATER
EGYPTIAN RELIGION,

THE FALCON IS SO CENTRAL.

YOU SEE A LOT
OF HUNTING SCENES.

SOME HAVE SUGGESTED
THIS IS TO ENSURE

A SUCCESSFUL HUNT OR PERHAPS TO

CELEBRATE A SUCCESSFUL HUNT,

BUT FOR ME, WHAT IT MEANS,

THEY'RE TRYING
TO CONTROL NATURE

AND--AND BEND IT TO THEIR WILL.

I MEAN, YOU LOOK AT
THIS PANEL RIGHT HERE,

AND THIS SAYS IT ALL.

SO, HERE WE'VE GOT SOME COWS.
WE'VE GOT GOATS.

WE ACTUALLY HAVE THE HERDERS
DEPICTED ON HERE.

AND NOW THEY'VE
ACTUALLY PHYSICALLY, THEY--

THEY'VE DOMESTICATED
THE ANIMALS.

THEY'VE IMPOSED THEIR ORDER
ON THE NATURAL WORLD.

NARRATOR: IN ALL
EMERGING CIVILIZATIONS,

RELIGION WAS CALLED UPON
TO IMPOSE CONTROL

OVER THE ENVIRONMENT

AND BRING GOOD FORTUNE.

RELIGION ALSO GAVE HOPE
OF ETERNAL LIFE.

ROSE: SO, HERE,
WHAT WE'RE LOOKING AT

ARE THESE 50 TINY, LITTLE
STICK FIGURES ON THIS BOAT

AND THEN THIS ONE FIGURE
WHO'S TOWERING OVERHEAD.

NOW, WHAT WE KNOW FROM
ANCIENT ART ALL OVER THE WORLD

IS THAT WHEN YOU SEE SOMEBODY
THAT MUCH BIGGER,

HE'S A GOD OR SOME KIND
OF A DEMIGOD.

SO, WHAT WE CAN INTERPRET
FROM THIS PANEL

IS THAT THIS GOD IS
FERRYING THESE PEOPLE

OFF INTO THE AFTERLIFE.

AND THIS IS THE SEED THAT
WE SEE BLOOMING FULLY

IN LATER EGYPTIAN SOCIETY.

NARRATOR: THERE ARE
OTHER ODDITIES

AMONG THE ROCK ART...

STRANGE-LOOKING HUMANS
WITH STICKS ON THEIR HEADS.

PERHAPS THEY ARE
THE HORNS OR FEATHERS

OF A SHAMAN.

[MEN CHANTING;
STICKS CLACKING RHYTHMICALLY]

ROSE: A SHAMAN
IS AN INTERMEDIARY

BETWEEN THE GODS AND
THE PEOPLE ON EARTH.

SO, THEY WERE THE PEOPLE
WHOSE SPECIALIZED JOB IT WAS,

WAS TO COMMUNE WITH THE DIVINE.

SOME HAVE SUGGESTED
THAT THESE PICTURES

WERE MADE BY SHAMAN WHEN
THEY WERE IN A TRANCE STATE.

BY THAT SAME LOGIC,
THEN THIS IS THIS--

ENTRYWAY, IT'S ALMOST A PORTAL

INTO THE OTHER WORLD
FOR THESE PEOPLE.

SO, WHAT WE'RE SEEING HERE
FOR THE FIRST TIME

ARE PEOPLE WHOSE SOLE JOB IT IS

IS TO COMMUNICATE
WITH THE--WITH THE GODS,

WITH THE DIVINE ON OUR BEHALF.

IN A SENSE, THIS IS THE--

THE BEGINNINGS
OF THE PRIESTHOOD.

NARRATOR: PSYCHOLOGIST
ARA NORENZAYAN

IS AN EXPERT ON
THE ROLE OF RELIGION

AS A CORNERSTONE
OF CIVILIZATION.

NORENZAYAN: THE EMERGENCE
OF THE PRIESTHOOD CLASS

IS AN IMPORTANT DEVELOPMENT
AND PLAYS A ROLE

IN THE RISE OF
EARLY CIVILIZATIONS.

THESE ARE INDIVIDUALS
WHO HAVE POWER.

THEY HAVE A POWER
TO UNITE THE FAITHFUL.

TO YOU THE HONOR,
GLORY, AND PRAISE

FOREVER AND EVER.

AMEN.
ALL: AMEN.

[SINGING INDISTINCTLY]

NORENZAYAN: THIS IS AN IMPORTANT
JOB IN CIVILIZATIONS

WHERE INDIVIDUALS ARE LIVING

IN INCREASINGLY LARGE
AND ANONYMOUS GROUPS.

THAT'S WHERE
THE PRIESTHOOD CLASS COMES IN,

WHERE THEY CAN PROVIDE
RITUALS AND CEREMONIES

THAT TELL PEOPLE
THIS IS SOMETHING

THAT WE ALL
SHARE AND BELIEVE IN.

THAT'S WHY WE'RE
PART OF A COMMUNITY.

AND PRIESTS AND SHAMANS
HAVE DONE THAT

SINCE THE RISE OF CIVILIZATION.

RELIGION AROSE
ALONGSIDE CIVILIZATIONS,

BUT I WOULD SAY THAT RELIGION
ALSO ENABLED CIVILIZATIONS...

[SINGING INDISTINCTLY]

BY FACILITATING
SOCIAL SOLIDARITY,

BY CREATING SOCIAL
COMMUNITIES AROUND

CORE SACRED BELIEFS

THAT MAKES THINGS
EASIER FOR COMMUNITIES

TO DEVELOP AND EXPAND.

NARRATOR: SINCE ANCIENT TIMES,

RELIGION HAS ALWAYS PROVIDED

A COMMON SENSE OF PURPOSE.

IN ANY RELIGION, PRIESTS
HAVE ALWAYS HAD THE POWER

TO SHAPE THE WAY WE THINK,

BUT POWER IS MEANINGLESS
UNLESS YOU CAN

BRING YOUR PEOPLE WITH YOU...

AND THAT IS THE ROLE OF RITUAL.

EVERY WEEK IN ISTANBUL,

ISLAMIC MYSTICS KNOWN AS SUFIS

ARE LED BY THEIR SHEIK
INTO A TRANCELIKE STATE...

HOPING TO GET CLOSER
TO THEIR GOD AND EACH OTHER.

ANTHROPOLOGIST
DIMITRIS XYGALATAS

WANTS TO RECORD
THE EFFECT OF THE RITUAL

ON THE SUFIS' BODIES.

[BEEPING]

THESE DEVICES
ARE PHYSIOLOGICAL
ACTIVITY MONITORS.

THEY MEASURE HEART
RATE, BREATHING RATE,

AND THEY ALSO MEASURE
THE SPEED AT WHICH
THEY'RE MOVING.

AND THE IDEA
BEHIND USING THOSE

IN THE CONTEXT
OF THIS RITUAL IS THAT

WE WANT TO SEE WHAT
HAPPENS IN THEIR BODY

DURING THIS EVENT.

[CHANTING IN NATIVE LANGUAGE]

NARRATOR:
THE PHYSICAL EXPERIENCE

OF MOVING AS ONE

IS A FORM OF TEAM BONDING.

HUMAN BEINGS HAVE
AN EXTRAORDINARY ABILITY

TO COORDINATE THEIR BEHAVIOR.

IN A RITUAL LIKE THIS, WE SEE

A LOT OF COORDINATED ACTIVITY,

A LOT OF SYNCHRONOUS MOVEMENT.

[CHANTING CONTINUES]

NARRATOR: AS THEY
MOVE TOGETHER,

THE SUFIS' HEART RATES
START TO ALIGN.

THIS IS KNOWN AS SYNCHRONY.

[CHANTING CONTINUES]

XYGALATAS: WE HAVE FOUND
THAT GOING THROUGH A RITUAL

THAT INVOLVES A LOT OF
ENERGY AND AROUSAL

AND EVEN SUFFERING

CAN RESULT INTO
A FEELING OF EUPHORIA.

[CHANTING CONTINUES]

THIS IS SIMILAR
TO THIS EXPERIENCE
OF THE AMERICAN RUNNER

WHO FEELS EUPHORIC AFTER
SEVERAL HOURS OF SUFFERING.

[CHANTING CONTINUES]

AT THE SAME TIME,
THIS HORMONAL EFFECT

HAS VERY IMPORTANT
SOCIAL IMPLICATIONS.

[SHOUTING RHYTHMICALLY]

THIS LEADS TO A FEELING
OF ONENESS WITH THE GROUP,

THE FEELING THAT WE ARE PART OF
SOMETHING BIGGER THAN OURSELVES.

[CHANTING CONTINUES;
MAN SINGING]

AND THIS HAS
TREMENDOUS CONSEQUENCES

FOR THEIR LOYALTY TO THE GROUP,

THEIR BEHAVIOR
TOWARDS ONE ANOTHER.

THIS BRINGS THEM
LITERALLY CLOSER TOGETHER.

[CHANTING CONTINUES]

[MAN SPEAKING NATIVE LANGUAGE]

TRANSLATOR: OUR HEARTS
ARE CONNECTED.

WE ARE BROTHERS AND OUR
FRIENDSHIP INCREASES.

WE BECOME CLOSER TO
THE PERSON NEXT TO US.

HE KNOWS ME, I KNOW HIM.

AS WE GET TO KNOW EACH OTHER,

OUR AFFECTION GROWS.

SINCE OUR HEARTS ARE CONNECTED,

LOVE RESTS WITHIN US
AND WE ARE ONE.

[CHANTING CONTINUES;
TAMBOURINES JINGLING]

XYGALATAS:
RITUAL WOULD HAVE BEEN

ONE OF
THE FUNDAMENTAL MECHANISMS

THAT BROUGHT PEOPLE TOGETHER,
CONTRIBUTED TO THE FORMATION

AND THE MAINTENANCE
AND THE COHESION

OF THE FIRST
LARGE-SCALE SOCIETIES.

[CHANTING CONTINUES]

YOU COULD SAY THAT WE ARE
THE RITUAL SPECIES.

NARRATOR: 5,500 YEARS AGO,

THE CLIMATE OF EGYPT
BECAME HOTTER AND DRIER,

WITH DRAMATIC CONSEQUENCES.

AS SAVANNA TURNED TO DESERT,

THE HERDER LIFE WAS OVER.

THE NILE VALLEY WAS NOW THE ONLY
HABITABLE PLACE IN EGYPT.

THIS WAS THE START
OF A SETTLED EXISTENCE,

A FARMINLIFE LIVED
AT THE RIVER'S EDGE,

DEPENDENT ON HARNESSING
THE SUMMER FLOODS.

[BIRDS CALLING]

AND WITH FARMING CAME
THE FIRST VILLAGES AND TOWNS.

[BLEATING]

THIS NEW WAY OF LIFE
WOULD HAVE A PROFOUND EFFECT

ON THE COURSE OF CIVILIZATION.

NEKHEN WAS ONE OF
THE FIRST NEW TOWNS

BUILT ALONG THE NILE,

A HOME FOR FARMERS, TRADERS,
AND ARTISANS.

[SPEAKING
NATIVE LANGUAGE]

[THUD]

NARRATOR: BUT NOW THERE WAS
ALSO A RULING ELITE

WHO CLAIMED THEY HAD
A RIGHT TO GOVERN.

[THUD]
[SPEAKING NATIVE
LANGUAGE]

NARRATOR: THESE RULERS
WERE TO LEARN

A CRUCIAL LESSON--

THEIR HOLD ON POWER
WOULD BE STRONGER

IF ENDORSED BY THE GODS.

ARCHAEOLOGIST RENEE FRIEDMAN

HAS BEEN DIGGING AT NEKHEN

FOR OVER TWO DECADES.

HER TEAM IS
CURRENTLY EXCAVATING

ONE OF THE CEMETERIES.

FRIEDMAN: HERE WE'RE
WORKING ON THE EXCAVATIONS

OF TOMB 72,

WHICH WAS THE TOMB
OF A YOUNG MAN...

BETWEEN 18 AND 20 YEARS OF AGE.

AND WE WERE QUITE
SURPRISED TO FIND

THAT IT WAS ALMOST INTACT, UM,

AND IT'S SET UP WITHIN
THIS HUGE COMPLEX,

WHICH IT TOOK US A NUMBER OF
YEARS TO UNCOVER AS WELL,

SO, IT WAS A GRADUAL
PROCESS OF DISCOVERY.

NARRATOR: THE YOUNG MAN
WHO WAS BURIED HERE

IS THOUGHT
TO HAVE BEEN A RULER,

PERHAPS THE KING OF NEKHEN.

HE DIED YOUNG....

BUT HIS JOURNEY
TO THE AFTERLIFE

HAD THE SPLENDOR
OF A ROYAL FUNERAL.

FRIEDMAN: ALL AROUND
THE EDGES OF THE TOMB,

WE FOUND THE WHOLE ENTOURAGE
OF FOLLOWERS,

BOTH HUMAN AND ANIMAL.

HE HAD AN OSTRICH,
ELEPHANTS, WILD CATTLE,

AND HE ALSO HAD
DOMESTIC ANIMALS.

SO, HE'S TAKING HIS
WHOLE WORLD WITH HIM

TO THE NEXT LIFE.

NARRATOR: BUT THIS RULER WAS
NOT ALLOWED TO REST IN PEACE.

FRIEDMAN: WHEN WE
EXCAVATED THE TOMB,

WE REALIZED THAT THERE WERE
VERY LITTLE BONES OF THE OWNER

LEFT WITHIN IT.

WHEN WE STARTED TO WORK MORE
AROUND THE SURFACE,

WE STARTED TO PICK UP BONES,

AND WHAT WE NOTICED IS THAT
MANY OF THEM WERE BURNT.

[INDISTINCT SHOUTING]

WE THINK THERE MIGHT HAVE BEEN

SOMETHING LIKE A REVOLUTION.

SO, IT BECAME CLEAR TO US
THAT THESE BONES HAD BEEN

FORCIBLY REMOVED
FROM THE BURIAL,

THE PERSON
HAD BEEN DISINTERRED,

AND THAT WAS THE PURPOSE.

THEY WEREN'T INTERESTED
IN TAKING HIS OBJECTS.

THEY WERE INTERESTED
IN TAKING HIM...

PREVENTING HIM FROM
HAVING A SECOND LIFE

IN THE AFTERLIFE.

NARRATOR: WHY DID
THE PEOPLE OF NEKHEN

WANT TO DESECRATE
THE SKELETON OF THEIR RULER?

FRIEDMAN: WE SEE
FROM OUR CEMETERY THERE

HOW VERY, VERY WEALTHY
THE ELITE WERE.

THE ABILITY TO KEEP CROCODILE,
BABOONS, LEOPARDS,

AND FEED THEM, WE KNOW,
WITH THE FOOD

THAT WAS MEANT FOR PEOPLE.

SO, THEY WERE REALLY
SHOWING OFF THEIR WEALTH,

AND WE CAN SEE ALSO FROM
OUR NON-ELITE CEMETERIES

HOW ACTUALLY
PRETTY POOR--IMPOVERISHED

THE REGULAR PEOPLE WERE,

AND THEY MAY HAVE
JUST HAD ENOUGH.

NARRATOR: IN ANY CIVILIZATION,

RULERS NEED LEGITIMACY,

A REASON TO RULE.

AT NEKHEN, THAT CAME
BY WAY OF RELIGION.

[BIRD CRYING]

TO PREVENT FURTHER REVOLUTIONS,

THE RULERS OF NEKHEN

WOULD CLAIM THEIR POWER CAME

FROM THE LOCAL GOD HORUS,

THE FALCON GOD.

FRIEDMAN: AT THE SITE, WE FOUND

SOME OF THE EARLIEST
FALCON STATUES

FROM ANCIENT EGYPT,

AND THIS IS, IN FACT,
ONE OF THEM,

MADE OUT OF GREEN MALACHITE--

BEAUTIFULLY CARVED
SO THAT THE WINGS

ARE SEPARATED FROM THE BODY.

IT WAS A VERY MASTERFUL
PIECE OF CARVING,

BECAUSE THIS IS
VERY HARD, BRITTLE STONE.

THE EGYPTIAN FALCON--IT'S ONE OF
THE FASTEST ANIMALS ON EARTH.

IT CAN GO OVER
250 MILES AN HOUR.

SO, IMAGINE SEEING THAT
COMING DOWN AND STRIKING.

SO, YOU WANTED TO HAVE
THE POWERS TO BE EFFECTIVE,

QUICK, AND DEADLY.

THE NEXT STEP IS TO BECOME
THE GODS, TO BECOME

THE LIVING EMBODIMENT
OF THE GOD,

TO SAY, "LOOK WHAT
I'VE DONE FOR THIS GOD.

NOW THE GOD IS LIVING IN ME."

AND THAT WAS A WAY OF
CEMENTING THEIR POWER

BECAUSE YOU HAD TO GO
THROUGH THE KING

TO GET TO THE GOD.

HE BECAME THE INTERFACE.

HE BECAME THE LIVING GOD.

[CROWD CHEERING]

[BIRD CRYING]

NARRATOR: THE GREAT AGE
OF EGYPTIAN CIVILIZATION

BEGAN 5,000 YEARS AGO,

WHEN LOWER AND UPPER EGYPT
WERE UNITED

BY ONE OF THE FIRST GOD-KINGS
OF NEKHEN--KING NARMER.

HIS MILITARY CAMPAIGN
OF CONQUEST

IS COMMEMORATED IN AN ARTIFACT
FOUND AT NEKHEN

BUT NOW ON DISPLAY IN CAIRO.

IT'S KNOWN AS
THE NARMER PALETTE.

WOMAN: THIS IS THE FIRST TIME
WE HAVE AN OBJECT

THAT ACTUALLY SHOWS
A KING OF UNIFIED EGYPT.

WHAT WE SEE UP AT THE TOP

IS ACTUALLY THE NAME OF NARMER,

SO, THIS ACTUALLY
DOES IDENTIFY IT

AS BELONGING TO KING NARMER.

AND THEN WE SEE NARMER
WEARING THE CROWN HERE

OF UPPER EGYPT.

AND HE'S SMITING HIS ENEMIES

USING, ESSENTIALLY, THIS STICK

WITH A ROUND MALLET,

WHICH IS CALLED A MACE.

BENEATH THIS REGISTER LINE,
WE SEE

SOME OTHER CAPTIVES
THAT ARE BENEATH THE FEET

OF THE KING THAT
HAS NOW CONQUERED THEM.

SO, THE OTHER SIDE,
WE HAVE NARMER NOW

WEARING THE CROWN
OF LOWER EGYPT...

AND HE SEEMS TO BE
QUITE VICTORIOUS

AS HE HAS HIS PROCESSION,
AND THEN YOU SEE

A LOT OF DECAPITATED,
PRESUMABLY CAPTIVES

FROM LOWER EGYPT THAT
HE HAS NOW CONQUERED.

AND WE HAVE THE GOD HORUS
ESSENTIALLY GIVING HIS APPROVAL.

NARRATOR: HORUS, THE FALCON...

WHO HAD BEEN
THE FAVORITE GOD AT NEKHEN,

NOW BECAME THE LEADING GOD
OF ALL EGYPT...

A PATRON AND PARTNER
OF THE KINGS.

EGYPT WAS NOW A FULLY-FLEDGED
CIVILIZATION,

A STATE UNITED UNDER A GOD-KING,
A PHARAOH,

COMPLETE WITH
ORGANIZED GOVERNMENT,

SOCIAL HIERARCHY, WRITING, ART,
AND ARCHITECTURE.

AND LINKING IT ALL TOGETHER
WAS RELIGION.

NORENZAYAN: EVER SINCE
THE EGYPTIAN PHARAOHS,

CONNECTING POLITICAL POWER
WITH DIVINITY

HAS BEEN AN IMPORTANT IDEA
IN--IN CIVILIZATIONS.

EVEN TODAY,
CHRISTIAN QUEENS AND KINGS

CLAIM SUPERNATURAL POWER
FROM GOD,

AND THAT'S A SMART THING TO DO.

THAT'S A SMART WAY
TO HOLD POWER.

HOW CAN YOU CHALLENGE A KING

IF THAT MEANS CHALLENGING GOD?

ANOTHER SMART IDEA WAS FUSING
DIVINITY WITH WATCHFULNESS.

CAN SEE THAT IN THE GOD HORUS
IN ANCIENT EGYPT.

WITH HIS ALL-SEEING EYE,
HE WAS WATCHING OVER PEOPLE.

THE IDEA OF A MORAL GOD
BECAME A NEW IDEA.

WITH THE RISE OF MORE COMPLEX
AND LARGER CIVILIZATIONS,

THIS IDEA STARTED TO SPREAD...

[SPEAKING INDISTINCTLY]

AND WORK ITS WAY INTO

JUDAISM, CHRISTIANITY,
AND ISLAM.

NARRATOR:
IN CHRISTIAN CHURCHES,

THE VERY SAME ALL-SEEING EYE
WATCHES ON.

LIKE HORUS,
GOD SEES EVERYTHING.

NORENZAYAN: SO, GOD IS
WATCHFUL, OMNISCIENT,

BUT ALSO MORALLY CONCERNED--

SITS IN JUDGMENT
AND REWARDS GOOD BEHAVIOR

AND PUNISHES BAD BEHAVIOR.

AS A RESULT,
THAT COULD HAVE EFFECTS

ON HOW PEOPLE TREAT EACH OTHER.

SO, WE CAN SAY THAT
WATCHED PEOPLE ARE NICE PEOPLE.

NARRATOR: PSYCHOLOGISTS
CAN DO EXPERIMENTS

TO TEST HOW BEING WATCHED

HAS AN IMPACT ON OUR BEHAVIOR.

HERE, A FUNDRAISER TRIES
TO RAISE MONEY FOR A CHARITY.

HE STANDS OUTSIDE A RESTAURANT,

AND OVER THE COURSE OF AN HOUR,

RAISES $25.

HE THEN DOES THE SAME THING

OUTSIDE A CHURCH

AND MAKES $70.

NORENZAYAN: THE RESULTS
OF THESE STUDIES SHOW THAT

PEOPLE ARE MORE
COOPERATIVE AND GENEROUS

WHEN THEY'RE REMINDED
OF RELIGIOUS CONCEPTS

OR WHEN THEY'RE NEAR
A CHURCH, FOR EXAMPLE.

THE FEELING IS THAT
YOU THINK OF MORAL AGENTS

WHO ARE WATCHING YOU
AND JUDGING YOU.

YOU'RE ALSO THINKING OF
CERTAIN MORAL STANDARDS

OF WHAT'S RIGHT AND WRONG,
AND SO, PEOPLE BECOME

MORE COOPERATIVE AND GIVE
MORE TO THE GOOD CAUSE.

I THINK THAT'S ONE OF
THE POWERFUL REASONS

WHY RELIGION HAS SUCH A STICKING
POWER IN HUMAN HISTORY

AND FOR HUMAN CIVILIZATIONS,

TO THE EXTENT THAT TRELIGIOUS IS

AND REMINDERS ALLOW PEOPLE TO
SCALE UP THEIR COOPERATIVENESS

WITH MORE AND MORE PEOPLE.

THEN THAT BECOMES
AN ESSENTIAL PART

OF HOW HUMAN CIVILIZATIONS
CAN FUNCTION.

NARRATOR: RELIGION AT
THE SERVICE OF CIVILIZATION--

PART INSPIRATION,
PART JUDGMENT, PART FEAR.

NORENZAYAN: OF COURSE,
POLICING IS NEVER EFFECTIVE

UNLESS THERE IS
THE THREAT OF PUNISHMENT.

WE FIND THAT IN MANY STUDIES,

THESE KINDS OF BELIEF IN
SUPERNATURAL PUNISHMENT

SEEM TO BE MORE POTENT
THAN THE PROMISE OF REWARD.

SO, HELL IS
STRONGER THAN HEAVEN.

NARRATOR: WHEN CIVILIZATION
AND RELIGION ARE FUSED,

ONE PRIEST CAN
BE MORE EFFECTIVE

THAN 100 POLICE OFFICERS.

IF GOD IS ALL AROUND US,
WATCHING AND JUDGING,

THERE'S ONE PROBLEM--
HE'S INVISIBLE.

SO, IT'S EASY TO FORGET
ABOUT HIS PRESENCE.

FOR ANCIENT EGYPTIANS,

THE SOLUTION WAS ARCHITECTURE...

TO MAKE VISIBLE THE INVISIBLE.

SAQQARA IS A HUGE COMPLEX
OF TOMBS SOUTH OF CAIRO.

IT WAS HERE, 4,700 YEARS AGO,

THE EGYPTIAN PHARAOHS
BEGAN TO BUILD BIG

AND PROCLAIM THEIR DIVINITY.

INSTEAD OF BEING
BURIED UNDERGROUND,

THEY WANTED TO BE SEEN IN DEATH,
ABOVE THE SURFACE.

ARCHAEOLOGIST LOUISE BERTINI
BELIEVES THIS SINGLE IDEA

DROVE THE EXPANSION OF
EGYPTIAN CIVILIZATION.

BERTINI: FIRST TYPE
OF MONUMENTAL TOMB

THAT WAS BUILT HERE AT SAQQARA

WAS WHAT'S CALLED
A MASTABA TOMB.

"MASTABA" COMING FROM
THE ARABIC WORD FOR "BENCH,"

WHICH MEANS A RECTANGULAR, UH,

SUPERSTRUCTURE THAT
WAS CONSTRUCTED

OVER THE BURIAL CHAMBER.

THEY WERE CONSTRUCTED
OUT OF MUD BRICK.

THESE MASTABA SHAPES
HAD POSSIBLY EVOLVED

FROM WHAT'S CALLED A TUMULUS,

A CIRCULAR MOUND THAT WOULD
HAVE BEEN CONSTRUCTED OVER

TO MARK THE BURIAL BENEATH.

THESE MOUNDS
POSSIBLY EVOLVED OUT OF

THE BELIEF IN THIS
PRIMEVAL MOUND

THAT EMERGED FROM
THE WATERS OF NOON

THAT USED TO COVER THE EARTH,

ACCORDING TO THE EGYPTIAN
CREATION MYTH.

AND THEN THESE MOUNDS
ARE ESSENTIALLY A REFERENCE

TO CREATION, SO, YOU HAVE

REBIRTH AND RESURRECTION
IN THE AFTERLIFE.

[ROCKS BREAKING]

NARRATOR: AS THEIR POWER GREW,

THE PHARAOHS WANTED TOMBS
THAT WOULD LAST FOREVER.

[SHOUTING IN
NATIVE LANGUAGE]

NARRATOR:
THE ROYAL ARCHITECT IMHOTEP

WAS THE PIONEER OF
A NEW DIVINE ARCHITECTURE

FIT FOR A GOD-KING.

BERTINI: IMHOTEP DECIDED
TO ESSENTIALLY

CONTINUE THE TRADITIONS
OF BUILDING A MASTABA TOMB,

BUT WHAT CHANGED
MONUMENTALLY HERE

IS NOW THE USE OF STONE.

SO, HE'S MAKING SURE THAT

YOU HAVE YOUR HOUSE
FOR ALL ETERNITY

IN A NEW ARCHITECTURAL MEDIUM

THAT WILL HOPEFULLY LAST.

NARRATOR: THIS WAS
THE FIRST TIME

ANYWHERE IN THE WORLD

PEOPLE BUILT FROM STONE
ON SUCH A SCALE.

THIS WAS THE MATERIAL
WHICH WOULD UNDERPIN

SO MANY GREAT CIVILIZATIONS.

BUT IMHOTEP
DIDN'T STOP AT STONE.

HIS OTHER GREAT BREAKTHROUGH

WAS TO THINK BIG.

DIVINE ARCHITECTURE WOULD
REACH UP TO THE HEAVENS.

BERTINI: IMHOTEP
ORIGINALLY STARTED

BUILDING A MASTABA TOMB,

AND THEN IT WAS EXPANDED
A NUMBER OF TIMES,

AND THEN, ESSENTIALLY,
A SECOND MASTABA

AND A THIRD MASTABA
WAS BUILT ON TOP OF IT

TO WHERE YOU
ACTUALLY HAVE, ESSENTIALLY,

ALMOST 7 LAYERS OF MASTABAS

ON TOP OF ANOTHER

TO THE FINAL STEP PYRAMID.

WE DO KNOW FROM VARIOUS TEXTS

THAT THIS WAS SEEN
TO ACTUALLY BE

AN EXTREMELY
IMPOSING CONSTRUCTION.

THEY HAD NEVER SEEN
ANYTHING LIKE IT IN HISTORY

AND NOT JUST
BECAUSE OF THE SIZE

BUT BECAUSE OF
THE CONSTRUCTION MATERIAL.

IN FACT, IT WAS WELL THOUGHT OF
EVEN IN LATER, IN HISTORY,

WHERE WE ACTUALLY HAVE
VARIOUS PILGRIMS COMING HERE,

KINGS BEING BURIED AT THE SITE,

AND OTHER VARIOUS ELITES
THAT ARE BURIED IN THE AREA,

ESSENTIALLY, TO TRY
TO HAVE THAT CONNECTION

TO THIS REALLY FIRST
GREAT PYRAMID.

NORENZAYAN:
MANY GLOBAL RELIGIONS

ADOPTED THIS IDEA--

BUILD BIG, BUILD TALL.

YOU SEE IT IN CHRISTIANITY,

YOU SEE IT IN ISLAM
AND THEIR OFFSHOOTS--

SPIRES, MINARETS,
TEMPLES, PYRAMIDS,

IMPOSING THEMSELVES
ON A LANDSCAPE.

THEY MAKE US FEEL
A SENSE OF GRANDEUR.

THEY GIVE US A SENSE
OF AWE AND A CONNECTION

TO SOMETHING LARGER
THAN OURSELVES,

SOMETHING THAT'S POWERFUL
AND DIVINE IN OUR LIVES.

THROUGHOUT HISTORY,
UP UNTIL THE 19th CENTURY,

THE TALLEST BUILDINGS
IN THE WORLD

WERE ALL RELIGIOUS STRUCTURES.

THEN IN 1888, THE WASHINGTON
MONUMENT WAS BUILT RIGHT HERE,

THAT BECAME THE FIRST
SECULAR STRUCTURE

THAT WAS THE TALLEST BUILDING
IN THE WORLD.

EVEN THEN, IT ADOPTED
THE RELIGIOUS DESIGN--

THE OBELISK THAT STOOD
AT THE ENTRANCE

OF ALL
ANCIENT EGYPTIAN TEMPLES.

SO, EVEN SECULAR
MONUMENTAL ARCHITECTURE

BORROWS RELIGIOUS SYMBOLISM
TO MAKE A STATEMENT.

NARRATOR: THE MOST
RECOGNIZABLE MONUMENTS

OF ANCIENT CIVILIZATION

ARE THE PYRAMIDS OF GIZA...

GIANT TOMBS FOR GOD-KINGS.

EACH OF THEM WAS BUILT FROM
TWO MILLION BLOCKS OF STONE...

[INDISTINCT SHOUTING]

CRAFTED AND PUT INTO PLACE

BY THOUSANDS OF WORKERS...

WITHOUT PULLEYS, WHEELS,
OR IRON TOOLS.

ARCHAEOLOGIST ASHRAF MOHIE
BELIEVES THE BLOCKS WERE MOVED

USING A SYSTEM OF RAMPS.

[ROCKS BREAKING]

NARRATOR: MORE THAN
A TECHNOLOGICAL ACHIEVEMENT,

THE BUILDING OF EACH PYRAMID
WAS A RELIGIOUS ACT,

A DIVINE DUTY.

[INDISTINCT CHATTER]

NARRATOR: IT WAS
PREVIOUSLY THOUGHT

THESE WORKERS WERE SLAVES,

BUT WHEN THEIR TOMBS
WERE DISCOVERED,

ARCHAEOLOGISTS HAD
TO THINK AGAIN.

SLAVES WOULD NOT BE AFFORDED
THE LUXURY OF A TOMB.

NARRATOR: IT'S THOUGHT
TEAMS WERE CONSCRIPTED

FROM ALL OVER EGYPT
TO WORK ON THE SITE,

ATTRACTED BY THE PRESTIGE

OF WORKING FOR THE GLORY
OF THE GOD-KING.

[INDISTINCT CHATTER]

NARRATOR: IT'S EASY
TO IMAGINE THE PYRAMIDS

AS A DRAIN ON CIVILIZATION...

BUT THE OPPOSITE IS TRUE.

BUILDING BIG, FOR THE GODS,

GENERATES ITS OWN REWARDS...

GROWTH, COHESION, IDENTITY.

LITTLE WONDER
THE GRAND RELIGIOUS MONUMENT

IS A FEATURE OF
SO MANY CIVILIZATIONS

TODAY, AND THROUGH TIME.

NARRATOR: SOME
MODERN-DAY CIVILIZATIONS

SEPARATE CHURCH FROM STATE

TO SHOW THAT
ANCIENT SUPERSTITIONS

HAVE BEEN REPLACED
BY THE SECULAR VALUES

OF REASON AND SCIENCE.

AND YET, OUR PAST IS
NOT SO EASILY FORGOTTEN.

NORENZAYAN: TAKE WASHINGTON.

IT'S FILLED WITH
SECULAR MONUMENTS THAT

ENSHRINE AMERICA'S
CREATION STORY.

FOR EXAMPLE,
THE LINCOLN MEMORIAL

CELEBRATES FREEDOM...

THE JEFFERSON MEMORIAL
CELEBRATES INDEPENDENCE...

AND THE WASHINGTON MONUMENT
MEMORIALIZES THE LIFE

OF THE FIRST PRESIDENT
OF THE UNITED STATES.

BUT EVEN THESE MONUMENTS
THAT ARE SECULAR,

THEY LOOK RELIGIOUS.

THEY ARE SECULAR SHRINES.

IN MANY WAYS,
THESE SECULAR MONUMENTS

SERVE THE SAME PURPOSE
THAT RELIGIOUS MONUMENTS

SERVED IN THE PAST
AND EVEN TODAY.

THEY PROVIDE THE SOCIAL GLUE
THAT CONNECTS

A WIDE RANGE OF PEOPLE
INTO ONE LARGE MORAL COMMUNITY.

THAT'S THE NATION-STATE
IN TODAY'S EXAMPLE.

TAKE THE DOLLAR BILL,

THE MOST SECULAR OF INVENTIONS.

YOU SEE THE ALL-SEEING EYE,
THE EYE IN THE SKY

WATCHING OVER US

ON TOP OF ALL THINGS,
A PYRAMID,

AND NEXT TO IT, THE WORDS
"IN GOD WE TRUST."

YOU CAN'T GET MORE
RELIGIOUS THAN THAT.

NARRATOR: THE LESSON
OF CIVILIZATION IS CLEAR.

THOSE WHO BELIEVE TOGETHER
STAY TOGETHER.

IT DOESN'T MATTER SO MUCH
WHAT WE BELIEVE,

JUST THAT ENOUGH OF US
SHARE THE BELIEF.

THIS WAS TRUE FOR
THE FIRST CIVILIZATIONS.

[CROWD CHEERING]

IT'S TRUE TODAY.

RELIGION--THE SOULMATE
OF CIVILIZATION.

(gentle spacey music)

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