The word "totem" is borrowed from the language of the North American Indian tribe Ojibwa, whose members call it the coat of arms or the sign of the clan dedicated to any animal. Totemism is characteristic of most primitive societies; a totem can be not only an animal, but also a plant, a natural phenomenon, an element, a thing.
Totemism
Totemism is a religious system inherent in many primitive societies and primitive tribes. Totemism was inherent in the ancestors of modern people, and today many tribes continue to worship totems. Unlike other religious systems, in which people deify a person, distinguish certain gods or one god, totemism distinguishes a class of objects. And if the totem is an animal, not the only special representative of a particular species, but all animals of this species. It can be a class of any other objects or phenomena.
People worshiping the totem people believe that they are relatives of this item or phenomenon, that the totem was the ancestor of their tribe, their ancestors descended from it. Therefore, all members of the community are also considered relatives, although in reality this does not mean consanguinity. Totem societies recognize only such family ties based on worship of one totem, while consanguinity is put in second place, and if real relatives worship other totems, they are considered enemies.
The followers of this religious system have a twofold relation to the totem: on the one hand, they honor the totem as the creators of their tribe and relative, have the kindest feelings for it, imitate it, on the other hand, a mystical all-consuming fear of the totem is characteristic of many societies.
