The Evolution of Religion

The origins of religion lie deep in the story of human evolution.
But as Rupert Sheldrake and Mark Vernon discuss in this new
episode of The Sheldrake-Vernon Dialogues, the scientific study
of our encounter with other worlds is changing. It has been
proposed that humans believe in gods because punishing presences
keep individuals in check, but that's discredited. New research
is turning back to an older idea that our ancestors developed the
ability to enter altered states. It’s fascinating partly because
new evidence puts spiritual questing in the driving seat of human
evolution. It also takes us back to reflections made by Darwin
that qualities like beauty are active right across the animal
kingdom.