Worldview is the logical process of looking at and interpreting the world. A person comes to understand situations and categorize ideas through their worldview. Ethos encompasses the attitudes, moods and motivations of life. Ethos is not always rational or easy to explain, and can include general feelings and how a person reacts to issues and situations. Alone, worldview and ethos are hard to convey to others. Religions use symbols as mediums to spread worldview and ethos. Symbols, such as myths, rituals and artifacts, bind worldview and ethos together for people. Religions use symbols because they can convey the meaning of an idea and the concepts of values through physical objects.
Zoroastrians give their children a sacred shirt when they come into the religion. To Zoroastrians, children are unable to sin until they are part of the Zoroastrian faith through a ceremony called navjote. During this ceremony the children undergo cleansing rituals and in the end are given a shirt with a front pocket and cord to be worn under their clothing for the rest of
…show more content…
These are marked, as by Fali the chief priest of an agiary, a fire temple, by a ritual prayer to mark the time of day. The specific times of day reinforce the religion’s ideals for each part of the day. The ritual is also a constant reminder of the values placed on the members of the religion. The fire temple itself is a marker of the lasting time and commitment to religion. Anywhere else, a fire may be simply a fire, but to the Zoroastrians, the constantly burning fires in their temples are sacred and hold more meaning than for mere warmth of utility purposes. The fires have been proudly burning for over three thousand years, a testimony to the long heritage of tradition and identity imbedded in the Zoroastrians. This is an example of a symbol, the fire, inspiring people to feel more connected to their heritage. This feeling is