Historically, the use of the word religion to denote a separate sphere of human activity
would appear to be a recent development and then only in a limited set of cultures.
Looking at humans as a zoologist, taking a systems approach and applying Occam’s
razor I would suggest that all human social or group forming behaviour is elicited
from the same neurologically based, genetically determined or hard-wired mechanisms.
My proposal is that this is that described in the default hypothesis: a selfish
default and a conditional group based secondary mode.
Social behaviour without a rule of law is still possible - it is based upon the default
mode with self-interest, family ties and a dominance hierarchy determining social
interactions. Put simply, humans form gangs who use force to gain what they want
in competition with other gangs. As in a wolf-pack the strongest individual dominates
the group through force and the size of the group is determined by how many individuals
can be coerced into obeying one leader.
