In every of the four River Valley Civilizations, religion played an enormous role in shaping and cultivating each civilization. This essay will briefly discuss how religion formed the River Valley people’s government and view on geography. Religion dictated how the peoples of the River Valley Civilizations managed government and geography.
Religious leaders played prominent roles in every River Valley Civilizations form of government. From ancient Egypt and Mesopotamia to China’s historic empire and the Indus River Valley, all the River Valley Civilizations had significant religious figures. In ancient Egypt, the pharaoh was revered as a God and therefore was given his right as supreme governing authority in the eyes of the people. The elusive emperors of China gained there governing rights by a mandate of heaven creating long lines of dynasties until the common people of China felt the dynasty had lost the favor of the Gods. Chinese emperors were not only governing leaders but also the spiritual leaders of ancient China. Mesopotamian and Indus River Valley priests were referred as has head officials who had vast amounts of authority in these two civilizations primitive forms of democracy. Religion shaped the structure and social caste of the four River Valley Civilizations.
Religion had a major effect on how the people of the River Valley Civilizations treated and viewed the land and their geography. The Indus Valley Civilization believed that spirits embodied all things including trees, soil and the wind. Civilizations often gave sacrifices to the land and waters to ensure a bountiful harvest the coming fall. In Egypt, the people that lived of the Nile River would throw in presents and gifts as offerings to secure the annual flooding of the Nile. If great tragedy struck civilizations, such as drought, famine, of flood, the people would shout out to the Gods and repent for what they
