The political economy of Indo-European polytheism : how to deal with too many gods / Mario Ferrero.
This book sheds new light on the evolution and transformation of polytheistic religions. By applying economic models to the study of religious history and by viewing religious events as the result of rational choices under given environmental constraints, it offers a political economy perspective fo...
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| Main Author: | |
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| Format: | Ebook |
| Language: | English |
| Published: |
Cham, Switzerland :
Springer,
[2022]
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| Series: | Contributions to economics.
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| Subjects: | |
| Online Access: | Springer Humanities and Social Science eBook Collection 2022 English/International |
| Summary: | This book sheds new light on the evolution and transformation of polytheistic religions. By applying economic models to the study of religious history and by viewing religious events as the result of rational choices under given environmental constraints, it offers a political economy perspective for the study of Indo-European polytheism. The book formally models the rivalry or competition among multiple gods in a polytheistic system and the monotheistic solution to this competition. Presenting case studies on the transformation and demise of various polytheistic religions, it highlights the pivotal role of the priestly class in driving religious change and suggests a joint explanation for the demise of Greco-Roman religion and the resilience of Hinduism and Zoroastrianism. It will appeal to scholars of the economics of religion and religious history and to anyone seeking new insights into the birth and death of religions, and the birth of monotheism in particular. |
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| Physical Description: | 1 online resource (xi, 188 pages) : illustrations. |
| Bibliography: | Includes bibliographical references and index. |
| ISBN: | 3030979423 3030979431 9783030979423 9783030979430 |