Religious syncretism is the blending of religious belief systems into a new system, or the incorporation of other beliefs into an existing religious tradition.
This can occur for many reasons, where religious traditions exist in proximity to each other, or when a culture is conquered and the conquerors bring their religious beliefs with them, but do not succeed in eradicating older beliefs and practices. It frequently involves melding church and state power. Many religions have syncretic elements, but adherents often frown upon the application of the label, especially those who belong to "revealed" religions, such as Abrahamic religions, or any system with an exclusivist approach, seeing syncretism as corrupting the original religion. Non-exclusivist systems of belief on the other hand feel more free to incorporate other traditions into their own.
Ancient history
Classical Athens was exclusive in matters of religion. Some sources assert that the Decree of Diopeithes made the introduction of and belief in foreign gods a criminal offense and allowed only Greeks to worship in Athenian temples and festivals (as foreigners were considered impure). Other sources dispute the existence of the decree.
Syncretism was a feature of Hellenistic Ancient Greek religion, though only outside Greece. Overall, Hellenistic culture in the age that followed Alexander the Great itself showed syncretist features, essentially blending Mesopotamian, Persian, Anatolian, Egyptian, and (eventually) Etruscan–Roman elements within a Hellenic formula. The Egyptian god Amun was developed into the Hellenized Zeus Ammon after Alexander the Great went into the desert to seek out his oracle at the Siwa Oasis.
The Romans, identifying themselves as joint heirs to a very similar civilization, identified Greek gods with similar figures in the Etruscan-Roman tradition, though usually without copying cult practices. (For details, see interpretatio graeca.) Syncretic gods of the Hellenistic period also found wide favor in Rome. For example, Serapis, Isis, and Mithras. Cybele, as worshipped in Rome, essentially represented a syncretic East Mediterranean goddess. The Romans imported the Greek god Dionysus into Rome, where he merged with the Latin mead god Liber, and converted the Anatolian Sabazios into the Roman Sabazius.
The degree of likeness varied: Jupiter was perhaps a better match with Zeus than the rural huntress Diana was for the feared Artemis. Ares was not homologous to Mars. The Romans physically imported the (statue of) Anatolian goddess Cybele into Rome from her cult center in Anatolian Pessinos in the form of her original aniconic archaic stone idol; they identified her as Magna Mater and gave her a matronly, explicitly iconic image developed in Hellenistic Pergamum.
Likewise, when the Romans encountered Celts and Germanic peoples, they mingled those peoples' gods with their own, creating Sulis Minerva, Apollo Sucellos ('Apollo the Good Smiter') and Mars Thingsus ('Mars of the war-assembly'), among many others. In Germania, the Roman historian Tacitus speaks of Germanic worshippers of Hercules and Mercury; most modern scholars tentatively identify Hercules as Thor and Mercury as Odin.
Roman religion had had syncretic elements from very early on, for example in incorporating the Greek god Apollo and semi-divine Hercules. The Romans did not consider adopted religious elements to be less meaningful or otherwise inferior to earlier Roman religion, and such early acceptance made it easier for them to integrate the religions they encountered as they expanded their empire.Scheid, John. Graeco Ritu: A Typically Roman Way of Honoring the Gods. Harvard Studies in Classical Philology, Vol. 97, Greece in Rome: Influence, Integration, Resistance (1995), 15–31.
Early Christianity Gnosticism is identified as an early form of syncretism that challenged the beliefs of early Christians. Gnostic dualism posited that only spiritual or invisible things were good, and that material or visible things were evil. Mainstream Christians have generally held that matter is essentially good because they believe that God created all things, both spiritual and material, and described creation as "very good". Simon Magus has been identified as one of the early proponents of Gnosticism.
In the first few centuries after the crucifixion of Jesus, there were various competing "Jesus movements". The Roman emperors used syncretism to help unite the expanding empire. Social conversion to Christianity happened all over Europe. Conversion became even more effective when missionaries accommodated established cultural traditions and incorporated them into a Christian framework.Jerry Bentley, Old World Encounters: Cross-Cultural Contacts and Exchanges in Pre-Modern Times (New York: Oxford University Press, 1993). Sometimes old pagan gods—or at least their aspects and roles—were transferred to Christian saints, such as when Demetrius of Thessaloniki inherited the role of patron of agriculture from Demeter and the Eleusinian Mysteries after the latter's demise in the 4th century.
Syncretism is distinguished from cultural assimilation, the latter of which refers to the church's ability to "incorporate into herself all that is true, good, and beautiful in the world". This idea was present in the early Christian Church; the Second Apology of Justin Martyr states: "Whatever things were rightly said among all men, are the property of us Christians".Étienne Gilson, History of Christian Philosophy in the Middle Ages, Justin Martyr, page 13 The Church has assimilated many (though not all) of the ideas of Plato and Aristotle. Augustine of Hippo is remembered for assimilating the ideas of Plato, while Thomas Aquinas is known for doing so with the ideas of Aristotle. In his essay on the development of Christian doctrine, John Henry Newman clarified the idea of assimilation.
Early Judaism
In Moses and Monotheism, Sigmund Freud argued that Judaism arose out of the monotheism briefly imposed on Egypt during the rule of Akhenaten. Some writers have cited the Code of Hammurabi as a likely starting point for the Jewish Ten Commandments. Some scholars hold that Judaism refined its concept of monotheism and adopted features such as its eschatology, angelology, and demonology through contacts with Zoroastrianism. However, some scholars dispute that claim.
Despite the halakhic prohibitions against polytheism, idolatry, and associated practices (Avodah Zarah), several combinations of Judaism with other religions have sprung up: Messianic Judaism, Jewish Buddhism, Nazarenism, and Semitic neopaganism. Several Jewish Messiah claimants (such as Jacob Frank) and the Sabbateans came to mix Kabbalistic Judaism with Christianity and Islam.
Post-classical history
Zoroastrianism and Islam
The Danish orientalist Arthur Christensen, in his book Iran During The Sassanid Era, mentioned that the sources dating back to the era of the Sasanian Empire in Old Persian that refer to Zoroastrian doctrine do not match the sources that appeared after the collapse of the state, such as the Pahlavi source and others. Christensen argued that, because of the fall of the Sasanian state, Zoroastrian clerics sought to save their religion from extinction by adapting it to resemble Islam in order to retain followers.
Gherardo Gnoli comments that the Islamic conquest of Persia caused a huge impact on the Zoroastrian doctrine:
Maneckji Nusserwanji Dhalla described the doctrine of the Gayomarthians as another attempt to mitigate the dualism that has always been the essence of Zoroastrianism. This was due to the Prophet Muhammad's emphasis on monotheism and the Muslims' mockery of the doctrine of worshipping two gods, which made the Zoroastrians view dualism as a defect, so they added monotheism, which led to the Zoroastrians' division into sects and he mentions examples of the Zoroastrian attempt to establish a monotheistic belief by diminishing the importance of Ahriman, including that Ahura Mazda and Ahriman were created from time, or that Ahura Mazda himself allowed the existence of evil, or that Ahriman was a corrupt angel who rebelled against Ahura Mazda. Then he mentions the name of a Persian book from the 15th century in which it is written that the Magi (Zoroastrians) believe that Allah and Iblis are brothers.
The Zoroastrians also combined the characters in Zoroastrianism with Islam, as Zoroaster was considered Abraham, and Jamshid is used as another name for Solomon.
Islam and West Asian religions
The Islamic mystical tradition known as Sufism appears somewhat syncretic in its origins, but many other modern scholars reject this view. Encyclopædia Britannica, Retrieved on August 1st, 2016
Mainstream Sufism does not present itself as a separate set of beliefs from the mainstream Sunni tradition; well-established orders like those of the Naqshbandi, Qadiri, and Shadhili have always been part and parcel of normative Islamic life. During the Sufi presence in Bengal, Muslim–Tantric syncretism was a general trend, and Nobibongšo by Syed Sultan is an example of it. The book tells the lineage of the prophets of Islam. Apart from Adam, Noah, Abraham, Moses, and Jesus, the poet also describes Dharmic figures such as Brahma, Vishnu, Rama, and Krishna.
The Barghawata kingdom of Morocco followed a syncretic religion inspired by Islam (perhaps influenced by Judaism) with elements of Sunni, Shi'ite and Kharijite Islam, mixed with astrological and heathen traditions. Supposedly, they had their own Qur'an in the Berber language, comprising 80 surahs, under the leadership of the second ruler of the dynasty, Salih ibn Tarif, who had taken part in the Maysara uprising. He proclaimed himself a prophet. He also claimed to be the final Mahdi of Islamic tradition, and that Isa (Jesus) would be his companion and pray behind him.
The Druze, during the development of their religion, integrated elements of Ismailism with Gnosticism and Platonism. The Druze faith also incorporates some elements of Christianity. Due to the Christian influence on Druze faith, two Christian saints became the Druze's favorite venerated figures: Saint George and Elijah. According to scholar Ray Jabre Mouawad the Druze appreciated the two saints for their bravery: Saint George because he confronted the dragon and Elijah because he competed with the pagan priests of Baal and won over them. In both cases, the explanations provided by Christians are that Druze were attracted to warrior saints that resemble their own militarized society.
Satpanth is considered a syncretism of Ismaili Islam and Hinduism.
South and East Asian religions
Buddhism has syncretized with many traditional beliefs in East Asian societies, as it is compatible with local religions. Notable syncretizations of Buddhism with local beliefs include the Three Teachings, or Triple Religions (a concept that harmonizes Mahayana Buddhism with Confucian philosophy and elements of Taoism) and Shinbutsu-shūgō (a syncretism of Shinto and Buddhism). The religious beliefs, practices, and identities of East Asians (who comprise the majority of the world's Buddhists) often blend Buddhism with other traditions including Confucianism, Chinese folk religion, Taoism, Shinto, Korean shamanism, and Vietnamese folk religion. Before and during World War II, a Nichiren Shōshū priest named Jimon Ogasawara proposed the blending of Nichiren Buddhism with Shinto.
Hinduism, Buddhism, Jainism, and Zoroastrianism in ancient India have made many adaptations over the millennia, assimilating elements of various religious traditions. One example of this is the Yoga Vasistha text which had developed by the 14th century CE.Christopher Chapple, The concise Yoga Vāsiṣṭha by Venkatesananda, 1985, pp. xii
Peter Flügel regards the Akram Vignan Movement established by Dada Bhagwan in the 1960s as a Jain-Vaishnavi Hindu syncretistic movement.