Religious pareidolia

[[Image:nun morph.gif|thumb|right|165px|There's a nun in my bun!<br/>Or is it vice versa?]]{{Psychology}}[[Image:Godbunny.jpg|thumb|165px|right|Or maybe it's a mama [[kangaroo]] with a lil' baby Joey in her pouch?]]
{{cquote|"God is trying to send us a message [[Problem_of_evil|through natural disasters]]."<br>Then why doesn't God just hire a f*cking sky writing airplane?|||Charlie Sitzes<ref>http://deadstate.org/?fb_comment_id=1120977387995045_1121079537984830</ref>}}
'''Religious pareidolia''' is the [[psychology|psychological]] phenomenon of seeing religious imagery in otherwise mundane objects.  It can be compared to Rorschach ink blots or images "seen" in the shapes of clouds.  Religious pareidolia is a subset of [[pareidolia]], which is itself a subset of [[apophenia]].

==Strangeness==
Religious pareidolia has a strangeness and dichotomy to it that is often overlooked by the otherwise [[normal]] people experiencing it.  Those experiencing religious pareidolia are quite often themselves very [[religion|religiously]] [[faith|faithful]]. The images being seen are overwhelmingly of people highly respected and/or venerated by the observer.  The oddity lies in the nature of the natural item or phenomena that is the source of the pareidolia.

These natural items and phenomena have included cinnamon buns, a grilled cheese [[Marian apparition|sandwich]], a chihuahua's ear, the gristle on several chunks of beef,<ref>[http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/africa/7520149.stm 'Allah meat' astounds Nigerians]. BBC, 22 July 2008.</ref> a water stain on a roadway underpass and, well, some strange places.<ref>[http://farm1.static.flickr.com/90/250193639_f57df74813_o.jpg Strange image], Flickr, undated.</ref> In 2004, a toasted cheese sandwich sold for $28,000.<ref>[http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/americas/4034787.stm 'Virgin Mary' toast fetches $28,000]. BBC, 23 November 2004.</ref> The observers never see the strangeness of their sightings as anything more than a minor mystery. It never occurs to them that such respected icons of their religious faith would, one should expect, have more dignity than to show up where they do. It also never seems to occur to them that $28,000 could feed a lot of starving people.

To top it off, members of other religions do the same thing, seeing figures from their religions in ordinary objects: Hindus seeing Ganesh in a potato,<ref>[https://www.upi.com/News_Photos/view/upi/e035558bc4ee3a91ae88d5a97509c62b/Hindus-worship-Ganesh-shaped-potato/ Hindus worship Ganesh-shaped potato]. UPI.</ref> for instance. Christians tempted to see apparitions of Jesus or Mary in ordinary objects as evidence that their religion is right should take a look at apparitions from other religions, to see how unconvincing they really are to someone who isn't already a follower of the religion making the claim.

==Moon==
Various cultures and religions have interpreted the {{wpl|Man in the Moon|features of the Moon}} as deities or similar figures:
;Woman:  In Elizabethan [[United Kingdom|England]], the spots of the Moon were supposed to represent a witch carrying sticks of wood on her back, or an old man with a lantern. A more recent Western image is the profile of a coiffed woman wearing a jeweled pendant, the jewel being the crater Tycho, which at full moon is very bright and has bright radiating lines (rays). In [[New Zealand]] Maori legend, the Moon shows a woman with a local tree, the Ngaio. However, throughout Melanesia and Polynesia, the Moon is seen to be a cook over a three-stone fire. Many lunar deities are also female, e.g. [[Hecate]], Selene and Diana in Greek Mythology. In [[Chinese]] Mythology, Chang'e (嫦娥, also known as Heng'o 姮娥) lives on the moon.
;Rabbit:  In Chinese culture, the rabbit in the Moon (a companion of Chang'e) is pounding medicine. Similarly, in [[Japan]] and [[Korea]], popular culture sees a rabbit making mochi and tteok, respectively, in the Moon. The mythology of Pre-Columbian Mesoamerica also featured a lunar rabbit; for example, Tecciztecatl, the Aztec Moon god, was sometimes pictured as an anthropomorphic rabbit.
;Writing:  Shia [[Islam|Muslims]] believe that name of Maula Ali Ibne-Abi Talib ([[Muhammad]]'s son in law) is written on the Moon. This interpretation has roots in several [[hadith]] by Muhammad where he compares Ali to the Moon and himself to the [[Sun]]. The notion is that Ali's teaching is the light that shall guide the Muslims after Muhammad has departed. There are also other esoteric interpretations of this analogy in [[Islamic]] [[philosophy]].

==The eBay factor==
Of course, the most likely answer as to why observers are not bothered by the nature of the natural objects containing the pareidolia is simple: money. The more gullible, or perhaps more faithful, will often pay sums that are far in excess of what the natural item would be worth. This process works similarly to the religious [[relic]] industry that manufactured multiple [[Holy Foreskin]]s and multiple complete sets of Jesus' baby teeth. There's a [[sucker]] born every minute.

==See also==
* [[Pareidolia]]
* [[Pattern recognition]]
* [[Improbable things happen]]
* [[Marian apparition]]
* [[Relic]]
* [[Fun:Richard Dawkins' face found on tortilla|Richard Dawkins' face found on tortilla]]
* [[Shroud of Turin]]

==External links==
*[http://www.nytimes.com/2007/02/13/health/psychology/13face.html?pagewanted=1&_r=1 Faces, faces everywhere] - ''The New York Times'', 13 February 2007

===Recent sightings===
*[http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/americas/4562170.stm Mother Teresa cinnamon bun]
*[http://blog.oregonlive.com/breakingnews/2008/02/eugene_radio_station_puts_virg.html Virgin Mary pretzel]
*[http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/northern_ireland/8143015.stm Virgin Mary - stumps me!]
*[http://www.theregister.co.uk/2005/07/15/google_spots_jesus/ Jesus in Peruvian sand.]
*[http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/wales/8071865.stm Jesus on a] [[marmite|marmite lid]] - although most rockers may see Toni Iommi.
*[http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-1257171/Holy-smoke-Bank-worker-saved-divine-intervention-finds-Jesus-frying-pan.html Jesus in burned bacon (the king of the Jews in ''bacon?'')]
*[http://www.patheos.com/blogs/friendlyatheist/2009/08/09/virgin-mary-makes-an-ironic-appearance The Virgin Mary on a condom.]
*Sadly, far fewer than the expected number of pilgrims flocked to see [http://bitsandpieces1.blogspot.com/2006/09/jesus-image-found-in-dogs-butt.html Jesus in a dog's butt]
*[http://www.thesun.co.uk/sol/homepage/news/3139107/Devil-appears-in-bathroom-tile.html?ref=nf 
Leonard Nemoy
 'The Devil' appears in a bathroom tile]
*Jesus with an outstretched arm (or possibly a [[Dalek]]) in the rings of a [http://www.bleedingcool.com/2010/10/16/man-sees-dalek-in-tree-trunk-mistakes-it-for-jesus/ tree branch]
*[http://www.nbcchicago.com/news/local/virgin-mary-turtle-122390529.html Virgin Mary on a turtle] (looks more like Darth Vader)
*[http://www.kwtx.com/home/headlines/50946582.html Virgin Mary in bird, er, dropping]
*[http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3FwREz324Ko&feature=related You will convert if you will see these images.] A whole load of images which we're ''sure'' haven't been altered in any way. And a 49-legged baby.
*A supposed [http://files.caliburn.nl/blog/brasil1.jpg image of Jesus in a rock.]  [[Image:Th_unsure.gif]]

===Atheist pareidolia and humour===
*[https://www.humanthoughts.org/Huw%20Powell/recipes/chilled-grease.html Making your own] million dollar grilled cheese sammich
*The [http://www.satireandcomment.com/0208toast.html atheist equivalent] 
*[http://www.theonion.com/content/news/evolutionists_flock_to_darwin?utm_source=onion_rss_daily Evolutionists Flock To Darwin-Shaped Wall Stain]
*[http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Xfqht0LEOWQ&feature=popular Godless Comedy from That Mitchell and Webb Look] Video fun where atheists see Godless images, and a Christian tries to explain them.
*[http://scienceblogs.com/pharyngula/2009/09/pareidolia_for_the_godless.php Pareidolia for the godless]

==References==
{{reflist}}

[[Category:Psychology]]
[[Category:Religious terms]]

Categories: Psychology, Religious terms