As Gillin and Gillin says, “The social field of religion may be regarded as including those emotionalized

beliefs prevalent in a social group concurring the supernatural plus crest and behaviour, material objects
and symbols associated with such beliefs.”

Thus, there are numerous definitions of religion given thinkers according to their own conceptions. As a
matter of fact the forms in which religion expresses itself vary so much that it is difficult to agree upon a
definition. Some maintain that religion includes a belief in supernatural or mysterious powers and that it
expresses itself in overt activities designed to deal with those powers.

Others regard religion as something very earthly and materialistic, designed to achieve practical ends.
Sumner and Keller asserted that, “Religion in history, from the earliest to very recent days, has not been
a matter of morality at all but of rites, rituals, observance and ceremony”.

Religion, in fact, is not a mere process of mediations about man’s life; it is also a means of preserving the
values of life. While it is possible to define religion as belief in God or some super-natural powers, it is
well to remember that there can also be a Godless religion as Buddhism.

Nature of Religion:

In sociology, the word religion is used in a wider sense than that used in religious books. A common
characteristic found among all religions is that they represent a complex of emotional feelings and
attitudes towards mysterious and perplexities of life.