Glossary of Theoretical Terms

The Foundational Concepts of Religion

Immanentism – a form of religiosity oriented
towards the presence of supernatural
forces and agents in the world around
us, which are attributed with the
power to help or thwart human
aspirations. It is found in every society
and religious system, and is defined
here by 10 features. An immanentist
tradition or system is solely defined by
immanentism.
Transcendentalism – a form of religiosity oriented towards
the transcendence of mundane
existence and the imperative of
salvation or liberation from the human
condition. It is characterised here by 15
features. A transcendentalist tradition
is one in which transcendentalism has
achieved a certain hegemony, albeit
always in dialogue with
immanentism – as in Buddhism or
Christianity.

An immanentist tradition Immamentism

Transcendentalism
A transcendentalist tradition
Immamentism

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 Glossary 323

The Foundational Concepts of Kingship

Divinised – kings are divinised when they are
Kingship regarded as godlike and treated as if they
were metapersons. As the mode of ruler
sacralisation promoted by immanentist
religiosity, it locates that sacrality in the
being and capacities of the ruler.
Righteous – kings are righteous when they are
Kingship idealised in moral terms and assigned a
special role in the quest for salvation.
As the mode of ruler sacralisation
promoted by transcendentalist religiosity,
it locates that sacrality in his or her
relationship with the imperatives of a
transcendentalist tradition.
Heroic – a form of divinised kingship that focuses
Kingship on the inherent supernatural power or
charisma of the ruler, and which is
revealed through observable
achievements, especially on the battlefield.
Cosmic – a form of divinised kingship that makes
Kingship the king a crucial intermediary between
human society and the divine forces that
govern its affairs, ensuring the
reproduction of order and flourishing. It is
revealed through ritual performance.
Sacred – Any form kingship which is conceived,
Kingship performed, and legitimised in terms of
immanentism and/or transcendentalism.
It is therefore an umbrella term
encompassing both divinised and
righteous kingship.

Sacred kingship

Divinised Kingship Righteous Kingship

Cosmic Kingship Heroic Kingship

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 324 Glossary

Further Concepts Defined

Auto-iconoclasm – occurs when people destroy the
ritual objects and images they had
previously held as sacred in a way
that is consistent with the internal
assumptions of their own religious
tradition, as when a collective
understanding emerges that the
metapersons invoked by the objects
have become useless or malevolent.
Charisma – the social power available to
individuals who are attributed with
supernatural qualities and potencies,
especially where these are revealed
through heroic accomplishment.
Conceptual – the capacity of a religious group or
Control tradition to maintain control over the
terms in which the success or failure
of ritual activity is interpreted, such
that unwanted outcomes do not cast
doubt on the efficacy of that activity.
Consolidation – the process by which the ruler or
the state gains control over religious
activity, centralising and
instrumentalising its social power.
Diarchy – occurs when kingship is split into
two offices, usually where one takes
on a more active role and the other a
more ritualised role (or the heroic
and cosmic roles).
Durkheimian – evokes a long tradition of the
interpretation of religion expressed
most completely by Emile Durkheim,
in which the capacity of religion to
produce social order and cohesion is
emphasised.

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 Glossary 325

Economy of Ritual – is evident in situations where the

Efficacy value of a religious practice is
associated with its perceived efficacy,
such that new rituals, ritual
specialists, metapersons, or entire
systems may be adopted if they are
perceived to be more effective than
old ones.
Empirical – religious behaviour focused on
Religiosity outcomes that are realised in – and
therefore assessed in terms of – lived,
observable reality.
Intellectualisation – the process by which a religious
tradition is shaped by a class of high-
status literate intellectuals, who value
textual authority, systematisation,
abstraction, self-reflexive thinking,
offensiveness, and debate.
Legitimation – the establishment of the mental,
cultural, and behavioural norms
which allow power to be exercised
with consent, such that it is assumed
to be natural, inevitable, beneficial,
moral, just, divinely sanctioned, or
soteriologically vital.
Mana – originally a Polynesian term, it is
also used here to refer to supernatural
potency or efficacy made immanent
in the world.
Metapersons – supernatural agents who have some
of the characteristics of people but
are not present to the senses in the
way that ordinary people are, and
who have diverse powers to influence
human well-being, for good or ill:
ancestors, spirits, deities.
Moral Community – a group that shares a common set of
moral understandings, values, and
norms, and is conscious of doing so.

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 326 Glossary

Non-Euphemised – a form of sacred kingship in which

Kingship the amoral, violent, terrifying, and
transgressive dimensions to the
exercise of power are expressed. It is
allowed but not necessitated by
immanentist religious systems.
Offensiveness – a tradition has an offensive quality
when it is predicated on the existence
of alternative worldviews, which it is
oriented towards challenging. Ernest
Gellner saw it as a feature of
‘ideology’, but it is also a defining
feature of transcendentalism.
Relativisation – the relegation of a given cultural
feature or system to secondary
importance through an awareness of
its merely customary and
contingent basis.
Righteous – the targeted destruction of religious
Iconoclasm sites and images in accordance with
soteriological imperatives. It is
usually a function of the monotheistic
sensibility of abomination.
Ritualisation Trap – occurs where the ritualisation and
isolation of the ruler diminishes their
political power and freedom.
Social Power – the capacity to shape, cohere,
motivate, and discipline groups of
people.
Soteriology – relating to salvation or liberation.
State – ‘A coercion-wielding organization
that is distinct from household and
kinship groups and that exercises
priority over all other organizations
within a substantial territory’
(Charles Tilly).
Supernatural – refers to beings and forces that
modern science does not recognise in
its account of the natural world.

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 Glossary 327

Supernatural – refers to visions of an imminent

Utopianism transformation of society through the
agency of supernatural forces and
beings such that it is lifted into a
permanent, idealised, utopic state.
Exhibited by prophetic and cargo
cults, and also ‘millenarian’
movements (although in this book
the latter term is reserved for
transcendentalist variants).
Warrior – the targeted destruction of the
Iconoclasm religious sites and images of the
enemy for both religious and political
reasons. In immanentist settings it
will often imply the subordination of
enemy claims to supernatural power.

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