# Robin Hanson on "Explaining the Sacred"

I found this post an interesting prompt. I'm thinking about it, and I'd enjoy hearing what other LessWrongers think about it.

Going ahead pasting the text here, hope that's okay:

> The following are 45 correlates that I’ve collected of things called “sacred”. I invite any of you to offer a theory of the sacred that explains as many of these as you can, as simply as you can. (And to suggests edits of this list.)
> 
> 1.  Sacred things are highly (or lowly) valued. We politely revere, respect, & prioritize them.
> 2.  We revere sacred beliefs as well as acts. We feel dirty when thoughts go near illicit ones.
> 3.  Sacred is big, powerful, extraordinary. We fear, submit, & see it as larger than ourselves.
> 4.  Sacred things matter for our health, luck, and other outcomes we care about.
> 5.  We want the sacred “for itself”, rather than as a means to get other things.
> 6.  Sacred things are either more homogenous, or more unique, whichever is better.
> 7.  Sacred induces strong emotions: e.g., awe, joy, serenity, devotion, repulsion, & fear.
> 8.  We get emotionally attached to the sacred; our stance toward it is part of our identity.
> 9.  We desire to connect with the sacred, and to be more associated with it.
> 10.  To approach the sacred, we use self-control to purify ourselves, sacrifice, & commit. 
> 11.  We enjoy sacrificing for the sacred, to purify, & respect sacred, including via odd beliefs. 
> 12.  Sacred brings us comfort & consolation in hard times; losing it can feel devastating. 
> 13.  We affirm & learn sacred via mythic stories & accounts of how we & it fit in a universe.
> 14.  We have rules regarding how to approach sacred stuff, in part to protect us.
> 15.  The sacred isn’t for use by commoners, or for common purposes. 
> 16.  Shared views about the sacred bind, define, and distinguish social groups.
> 17.  Shared rituals & festivals bind & emotionally charge us, & help us to see sacred.
> 18.  We want associates to share our view of and attachment to the sacred.
> 19.  We get offended when others seem to deny our sacred views, and respond vigorously.
> 20.  We feel more equal to each other regarding sacred things; status matters less there.
> 21.  Either everyone (e.g. love) or very few (e.g. medicine) are entitled to opinions on sacred.
> 22.  Charismatic leaders motivate, get acceptance in part via appeals, connections to sacred. 
> 23.  Experts of the sacred are more prestigious & trusted, get more job security.
> 24.  Sacrificing for the sacred is seen as pro-social.
> 25.  Sacred things are sharply set apart and distinguished from the ordinary, mundane.
> 26.  Sacred things do not fit well with our animal natures, such as self-interest, competition.
> 27.  We dislike mixing sacred and mundane things together.
> 28.  We dislike money prices of sacred, & trades that get more mundane via less sacred.
> 29.  We dislike for-profit orgs of the sacred, relative to non-profits or government agencies. 
> 30.  Sacred things feel less limited by physics, & can seem to have unlimited possibilities.
> 31.  Sacred things really matter, fill deepest needs, complete us, make us pure, make all one.
> 32.  Sacred things last longer, and decay or break less. Sometimes eternal and unchanging.
> 33.  Sacred things are purer and cleaner, and closer to the ultimate core of existence.
> 34.  Sacred things have fewer random coincidences; their patterns mean something.
> 35.  Sacred things have fewer value conflicts with each other; you can have them all at once.
> 36.  It is harder to judge the relative value of sacred things, compared to mundane things.
> 37.  We understand the sacred poorly using cognitive rational analysis, or numbers.
> 38.  We understand the sacred better using intuition, flow, and creativity.
> 39.  How sacred things seem is less misleading; you can more trust their appearances.
> 40.  The sacred is mysterious, unlikely and even inconsistent. Who are we to question it?
> 41.  Sacred makes us stand outside ourselves, feel ecstasy, transcendence, different reality.
> 42.  We do not make or control the sacred, it makes and transforms us.
> 43.  Stuff (objects, dates, people, words, sounds) that touches the sacred gets sacred itself.
> 44.  We connect to sacred themes better via contact with sacred stuff.
> 45.  Over time, things that we often connect to tend to become sacred via nostalgia.
> 
> My attempt is described [here](http://hanson.gmu.edu/SacredAfar.pdf).