On Characteristics and Effects of Totem Worship——and on Evolution from Totem Worship to Ancestor Worship

Totem worship is one of mankind’s extremely ancient and peculiar cultural phenomena. Totem , together with the clan system, came into being in the matriarchal clan period of primitive society; totem is the symbol of different marriage groups and clans. Compared with other forms of primitive religions, totem has its own characteristics, and has had great effects on the development of primitive society. Eventually with the development of productivity, the popularity of scientific knowledge, and the improvement of mankind’s recognition, totem worship came to disappear and was replaced by ancestor worship.