Religious fetishes include objects that have some mystical properties. Rooted in ancient times, fetishism is known to almost all peoples of the world. Personal amulets, designed to protect their owner, were worn around the neck, believing in their magical properties. They worshiped everything that seemed to people to have some kind of mystical power. It could be a piece of something large, for example a small part of a magical tree, a piece of stone, a drawing of an animal or a figurine of a bird. A statue depicting a particularly revered ancestor, made of clay, stone and wood, could also become a fetish. Any thing that people found and captured their imagination could become a fetish, which everyone subsequently worshiped.
Fetishes had their own place of action. For example, one object was credited with protecting the house, another with controlling the weather, and a third with causing rain.
In Uzbekistan, the snake was held in high esteem. She was considered the beginning of good and evil. Also known is the cult of worshiping bulls, personifying the masculine principle, horses, camels and lions. They tried to appease objects of worship with prayers and show gratitude, because the well-being of entire settlements depended on them.
One of the most striking fetish objects is a wooden doll - alela of the Yenisei Kets. Alela was made of wood and dressed in traditional Kets clothing. The doll was depicted as an old woman who protected the house and household members. The doll was passed down from parents to children; it was always taken with them when moving and was sacredly protected.
Fetishism as religion
Fetishism is attraction, veneration of an inanimate object. The object of worship is endowed with supernatural and even magical properties. Now fetishism is more associated with sexual deviations.
The concept of the word "fetish" originally meant an idol or talisman . Modern psychologists define it as an object that causes strong emotional or sexual arousal in a person .
Hand fetishists feel aroused by a beautiful manicure and other decorations on their hands.
Sigmund Freud began studying fetishism at the beginning of the 20th century. He identified several forms of the phenomenon and described their nature.
According to the Austrian psychoanalyst, fetishism is a deviation from natural sexual orientation. Their cause is childhood psychotrauma caused by grievances, misunderstandings or emotionally charged events.
Most often, fetishism develops in people with a vague gender identity. With the help of a fetish, sexual relationships are born, often distorted.
According to Freud, fetishism is not always associated with mental disorders. Only in combination with other deviations does it require correction. Getting rid of them is not so easy.
The term was introduced into scientific circulation by Charles de Brosse in his work “On the Cult of Fetish Gods, or Comparison of the Ancient Religion of Egypt and the Modern Religion of Nigeria.”
In this article
- A variety of fetishistic representations will not be considered.
- the question will not be raised - fetishism is a term or concept, but such a problem exists.
- The works of modern authors on archeology will not be widely used, only one article.
The work is intended to show and highlight the following current problems:
- the ambiguity of the concept of fetishism;
- the emergence of fetishism;
- whether fetishism should be considered a religion;
- identifying fetishism from the general mass of cults of personal patrons.
Many times in the literature it has been pointed out that the term or concept “fetishism” is unclear, which is given one or another meaning.
To list the names and works of all researchers who have written about fetishism, the author of this report believes that this does not make any sense, since they are well known to everyone.
Let's outline the main definitions:
1 – Fetishism is the veneration of any material objects (including celestial bodies, people and animals);
2 – Fetishism is the veneration of only inanimate and only earthly objects;
There are 3 provisions in this definition;
A – A fetish is the material object itself that is given veneration;
B – A fetish is not called the object itself, but the spirit residing in it;
B – A fetish is the inseparability of an object from the spirit residing in it;
3 – Fetish and fetishism do not mean any type of revered objects, but a certain attitude of a person towards the supernatural world, precisely that attitude in which a person believes in his ability to force supernatural beings to serve himself.
It is clear that with such uncertainty and ambiguity of the term “fetishism”, some researchers preferred not to use this term at all. This position was adhered to by Bogaraz V.G. and Lucien Lévy-Bruhl, using the term “amulets”; however, the semantic meaning of “amulets” remained the same as “fetishes”.
4 – A fetish is any object that captures a person’s imagination: a stone of an unusual shape, a tree, a skillfully made figurine. These objects were attributed properties that were expressed in the ability to help in fishing activities, heal, protect from enemies, etc.;
5 – Tokarev S.A. gives the following definition: A fetish is the religious veneration of an inanimate material object to which supernatural properties are attributed.
However, this definition is not entirely consistent with the position of the author himself, since Tokarev S.A. himself, pointing in his definition to “religious veneration of an inanimate material object,” does not consider fetishism to be a religion, but indicates that fetishism is one of the most constant elements every religion. And if we take it as an axiom, and for some reason we need to start from the statement of S.A. Tokarev, that fetishism is a constant element of any religion “which is not distributed unevenly in religions” (my commentary by Vladimir O.), then, consequently, fetishism in Germany arose earlier than religions themselves.
And here the question of the emergence of fetishism naturally arises.
Soviet religious scholars Frantsev Yu.P. and Tokarev S.A. attribute the emergence of fetishism to the process of decomposition of the communal-tribal system (here it would be more correct to say the process of the emergence of tribal religions or tribal cults and the emergence of such a form of religion as nagualism (the cult of personal patron spirits)). They argued their position with the following fact: fetish is a purely personal subject for each person. And in a pure primitive communal system, where the individual is completely absorbed by the collective, the emergence of such an element of religion as fetishism is impossible. And it is difficult to disagree with this argument, since we find cults of personal patrons only among peoples whose anthroposociogenesis went beyond the framework of the primitive communal system, and their beliefs are represented by tribal cults (religions) and cults of personal patrons - (one can very cautiously assume that with the cult of personal The patron is bound with pectorals made from a whole boar tusk which originate from Chalcolithic burials).
And so, to sum up this part of the report, let’s say that the emergence of such an element of religions as fetishism is the result of the development of religions. The degree of their development depends not on themselves, but on the stage of anthroposociogenesis at which each of them grows. Thus, regarding the emergence of fetishism, we apparently have to draw two conclusions that are inconsistent with the usual ideas about it:
- firstly, this is not a form of religion at all, but a relatively late element of religions;
- secondly, fetishism is an element of the cult of personal patrons.
And here the question immediately arises of identifying fetishism from the general mass of cults of personal patrons.
Fetishism as an element of the cult of personal patrons is closely intertwined with it, and the cult of personal patrons is closely related to nagualism and intertwined with it, then how can we identify fetishism and not confuse it with individual totemism? How can we unravel this tangle?
The main criteria for identifying fetishism are:
- firstly, the presence of any inanimate material object;
- secondly, the presence of an individual “person” who endows any inanimate material object with a sacred-magical meaning;
- thirdly, this is a purely personal relationship between a person and a fetish, which he contrasts with the main tribal, local-communal, family-tribal, patron deities.
However, the individual totemism of the “churinga” of the Aranda tribe falls under the above criteria. And to really set clear and comprehensive criteria for defining fetishism is a very difficult task, because cults of personal patrons are found in different parts of the world and among different peoples, and there they have very different appearances and meanings under different conditions. And in fact, it is enough to take even a general glance at the history of the religions of all peoples to be convinced that fetishistic ideas form an integral part of any religion. There is hardly a single one of them in which fetishistic beliefs do not occupy a more or less prominent place. At the same time, as shown above, it is hardly possible to date the greatest expression of fetishism to the early stages of the history of religion: another question is where there is more of it - in Aranda with their sacred “churingas” and similar objects or in Christianity with its countless images of saints, crucifixes , relics and charlatan relics. The word fetishism is one of the most constant and relatively late elements of any religion, and it is impossible to consider fetishism as a form of religion, because the phenomena denoted by this word are known in all religions without exception.
Korenevsky S.N., Kalmykov A.A. Chalcolithic burial from the burial mound Aigursky 2 (Stavropol Territory) // Materials on the study of the historical and cultural heritage of the North Caucasus, archaeology, paleoanthropology, local history, museology. Vol. VII M., 2007. P. 48.
* contemporary author Ch. de Brosse.
Lebbock J. The beginning of civilization and the primitive state of man. M., 2011.
Bogaraz V.G. Chukchi Religion. M., 2011. pp. 46-52.
Lévy-Bruhl L. Supernatural and nature in primitive thinking. M., 2012. pp. 27-32.
Religious Studies. Ed., Yablokova I.N. M., 2013. P. 217.
Tokarev S.A. Early forms of religion. M., 1990. P. 33,34.
Frantsev Yu.P. Fetishism and the problem of the origin of religion. M., 1940. P. 85-93., Tokarev S.A. Early forms of religion. M., 1990. S. 50, 292-302.
The primitive communal system in its pure form has not been recorded in any of the sources with which the author of the report is familiar.
Korenevsky S.N., Kalmykov A.A. Eneolithic burial from the burial mound Aigursky 2 (Stavropol Territory). // Materials on the study of the historical and cultural heritage of the North Caucasus; Archaeology, Paleoanthropology, Local history, Museum studies. Vol. VII M., pp. 50,51,52,53,54,55,56.
As noted by S.N. Korensky. and Kalmykov A.A. pectorals made from a whole boar tusk are rare. Of the 6 burial grounds: Aigursky 2, mound 17, burial 6, Vesyolaya Roshcha 2, 15/1, Nalchik burials 36 and 35, Mariupolsky, Khvalynsky, Petrovo-Smirnovo, only 7 burials have similar pectorals. 7 pcs. Korenevsky S.N. and Kalmykov A.A. It is believed that the pectoral was a rank item that was not always placed in the grave. But if the pectoral is a ranking thing that determined a person’s status during life, then how, without this thing, will a deceased person in the next world confirm his high status? The authors of the article indicate that the buried young man in grave 17/6 received a pectoral after undergoing an initiation rite. But undergoing initiation does not exclude the acquisition of a personal patron.
I use the term Sacred-magical, since fetishism in the further period of its historical development will be very closely connected with magic and will receive its new expression in the form of amulets.
Lévy-Bruhl L. Primitive mythology The mythical world of Australians and Papuans. M. 2012. P. 113,114.
Lévy-Bruhl L. Primitive mythology The mythical world of Australians and Papuans. M. 2012. P.113,114.
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Primitive religions of the ancient world and fetishism
Primitive people endowed totems with magical properties.
Ancient cults of primitive people are based on belief in patron spirits and the endowment of magical properties to material objects and natural phenomena. Early religions are divided into:
- Animism is a belief in immaterial spirits. Ancient people endowed elements, objects, and inanimate objects with magical powers and saw them as patrons. The concept is suitable to describe all primitive cults.
- Fetishism is a belief in magical properties attributed to an object. These include stones, animal bones, figurines and even natural objects. Everything unusual and incomprehensible became a fetish in ancient tribes. They worshiped him, cajoled him, asked for help.
- Totemism is a faith based on the worship of the patron saint of the clan. His role was played by animals, birds, plants. A person not only worshiped them, but also associated himself with patrons, developing certain qualities (dexterity, strength, endurance). Totems were used to worship the spirit of the clan.
Later primitive beliefs are based on magic and shamanism. Magic is belief in supernatural forces, the ability to control them through rituals. Shamanism is the worship of the spirits of ancestors and gods, with which only a shaman can interact.
Popular fetishes
- Masquis, figurines, and tom-toms were intended to provide a connection between the spiritual and material worlds. Today they are used by many peoples during ceremonies and rituals.
- Drums are treated with special awe and respect. They are considered spiritual beings. In order for the drum's strength to increase, new strength is poured into it by making offerings. Each sacred drum has a personal performer, who is allowed to touch it only after special dedication.
Modern manifestations of fetishism
Fetishism is divided into the following types:
- Commodity . Implies the reification of production relations between members of society. As a result, a person depends on goods.
- Legal . The fetishist brings his faith in legal norms to the absolute; only with the help of them is he able to resolve any issues.
- Sexy . A person experiences sexual arousal at the sight of certain things or appearance. This includes lace lingerie, stiletto heels, a schoolgirl uniform, or any other item, including jewelry. Often, without a fetish, a person cannot achieve sexual release.
One of the most popular types of fetish involves feet.
There are separate types of sexual fetishism: hand and foot fetish. Hand fetishism is a sexual attraction to hands. A person experiences excitement at the sight of a wrist or fingers, palms, or nails with a certain manicure. He is excited by non-sexual activities, such as washing dishes. Foot fetishism is a sexual attraction to feet.
Is fetishism a disease or not?
Medical professionals consider modern fetishism pathological if it interferes with the ability to lead a fulfilling life or personal relationships. If a dependent person lives and enjoys the absence of the object of desire, this is not considered a deviation.
Fetishists are often not dangerous to others, but there are exceptions to every rule. Fetishistic disorders are dangerous if:
- Fetishism took the form of a pathological mental disorder.
- There are other mental illnesses: schizophrenia, depression, sadism.
These people sometimes do the most crazy things to get the object of desire, but often they do not pose a threat to society. Fetishism sometimes becomes a big problem in the life of a couple because sometimes the attraction to certain things becomes the priority of the fetishist, and he can experience sexual satisfaction without the presence of a partner. Women are shocked by the oddities of their halves, for example, by the fact that their husband wants to smell bare lingerie.
If your significant other is not bothered by the behavior of the fetishist, she may not pay much attention to him. Sometimes such attraction occurs in people and is considered normal. But if there are serious problems, immediately consult a psychiatrist or sexologist.
Fetishists, symptoms of strange attractions
Fetishism becomes a problem if a person’s normal sexual life is impossible without it.
People turn to a sexologist or psychotherapist if:
- Sexual arousal and sex itself are possible only if there is a fetish nearby.
- Without thinking about it, a person cannot get aroused or have an orgasm.
- Fetishism replaces real relationships.
To treat pathological desires, various psychotherapeutic practices, psychoanalysis or the aversive method are used.
Complications
Severe forms of fetishism disrupt the normal sexual activity of patients - the role of the partner during sexual intercourse is simplified, and satisfaction is most often one-sided. Some forms of the disorder can be dangerous to the psyche, life and health of the patient and others. This can happen, for example, when there is a compulsion for children's clothes, toys, and the child may behave in a fetishistic manner in the presence of children. In another case, a child may be attracted to disabled people and forced to have sexual relations with them. In these cases, fetishism can lead to social disapproval, social maladjustment and prosecution.
Origini
Initially, the term was used in relation to ancient peoples and their worship of idols. At the turn of the nineteenth and twentieth centuries, the term underwent an expansion towards the sexual domain. Fetishism takes on its erotic meaning in 1887 with Alfred Binet's publication Fetishism in Love, in which the psychologist describes it as "intense arousal of the genitals by the contemplation of inanimate objects."
The term fetishism is well suited to this kind of sexual perversion.” The fetishist becomes essentially an adherent of sexual activity, more or less tolerated according to different cultures.
To live or not to live with a fetishist
Fetishism can become a serious problem in married life, since love and attraction to certain objects sometimes become paramount for the addict, and the satisfaction of physiological needs often occurs without the participation of the spouse.
Women may be shocked by their husbands' strange fetishes, which may include unwashed underwear or an attraction to a particular body part.
If the person living with the fetishist is not too bothered by this attraction, this may not be too much of a problem: sometimes such manifestations are common to everyone and are not considered strange. But in case of serious problems in a couple, you should always seek help from a psychotherapist and sexologist.
If your fetishes have negative connotations for you or your partner, then you should consult a psychologist or sexologist
History3
Alfred Binet first used the term in a sexological sense in an article in 1887. His theory is based on the observations of Jean-Martin Charcot and Valentin Magnan about a case of nightcap fetish, a girl whose first sexual emotions were associated with her mother's vision of a nightcap at the age of five. Binet constructs a theory in which childhood sexual experience determines the fixation of fetishism. He sums it up in the formula: “We always return to our first love.”
Sigmund Freud builds on Binet's work and defines fetishism as the sexual practice of seeking orgasm through objects or body parts, regardless of sexual intercourse. Consequently, there is sexual fetishism, when a body part or object comes to the place of the partner's genital organ and completely replaces it. Freud's theory develops during his reflections.
Initially focused on the concept of libido, fetishism is presented as a perversion. The explanation for the origin of sexual fetishism is related to childhood trauma, symbolized by castration anxiety. According to Freud's theory, a boy, upon first discovering that a woman does not have a penis, performs a displacement on an inanimate object that he sees at the same time.
Thus, the fetish replaces the woman's missing phallus. This object will then be needed in the future for sexual gratification. According to him, the fetishist will resort to ego splitting, that is, one part of the personality recognizes castration anxiety through the fetish object, the other does not and suppresses it, the splitting feature remains due to the lack of communication between these two poles.
This theory, however, goes beyond the limits in cases of female fetishism, where castration anxiety is not expressed in the same way; in fact, Freud is essentially calling out a fetishist and restricting women to the fetishism of clothing that he deems "normal."
The first clinical observations of the fetishism of clothing or the passion of fabrics appear in 1908 in the article Erotic passion of fabrics in a woman by Gaetan Gatian de Clerambault. After Freud, the theory of fetishism is subject to other influences. In the 1930s, Melanie Klein adopted Karl Abraham's concept of the "partial object" and focused more on representing fetishism on the part of the maternal object in its attachment/separation dimension rather than in its phallic dimension.
In the 1950s, Donald Winnicott contributed his theory to the "transitional object", which he distinguished from "fetishism" - even if he recognized fetishism's precursor in this process.
According to him, the "transitional object" is the illusion of the mother's phallus, relating to the "normal" emotional development of the child; conversely, fetishism is a hallucination associated with maternal relationships. In 1954, Jacques Lacan chose fetishism to illustrate his theory of the Imaginary-Symbolic-Real trilogy. Castration anxiety is presented as a proportion of the clinical history.
Read more about the types and subtleties of sexual fetishes in our article.
Possible causes of fetishism
When it comes to sexual fetishism:
- Child psychological trauma: a child for some reason stops trusting his parents, as well as all adults. Later, difficulties arise in building trusting relationships with adults and peers, including representatives of the opposite sex; a growing person finds sexual release using inanimate things;
- Some story that occurred during puberty and formed certain associations in the brain, for example, the association of sexual arousal with a bra carelessly left by a mother or older sister in the bathroom;
- A traumatic sexual experience in the past, after which a person is subconsciously afraid to come into contact with living partners, giving preference to things;
If we talk about religious fetishism , then the reason here is the traditions formed over the years in the human mind. Commitment to these traditions or a certain faith is formed in the child in the family in which he grows up. Perhaps a person experiences fear or loneliness, so he concentrates too much on the object of faith.
Worship of this or that thing may be associated with trauma after the loss of a loved one: the unfortunate person cherishes the things of the deceased as a memory.
The reason for commodity fetishism can be an excessive emphasis on the purchased item, especially if a person got it with great difficulty, he saved up for this item for a long time.
Normally, despite admiring certain things, a person’s priority is still people. If things occupy the main place in a person’s life, then he is most likely a fetishist. It is advisable for such a person to seek help from a psychologist or psychotherapist so that fetishism does not worsen the quality of his life.
