When and How Did the Brain First Invent the Idea of Gods?

"Spirituality may be a specific processing capability that developed following a change in the brain's wiring. This may have happened about 40,000 years ago, when Homo sapiens demonstrated changes in burial practice. Changes in specific brain regions may have evolved to encourage altruistic behaviors that benefit others. Religious thought and spiritual behaviors appear to have emerged explicitly in humans. Spirituality may represent a specific processing capability that constitutes a sudden, major transition in the evolution of the brain's cognitive abilities."

"It is thought that the ability to imagine counterfactual world scenarios, i.e., a logically absurd world of supernatural causes and beings, was achieved only by humans. Recent archaeological and neurobiological evidence suggests that as the human brain evolved, specific cognitive abilities appeared that paralleled the invention of gods and their role in human life. Gods came from the human brain. Artifacts offer insights into when these cognitive abilities and behaviors evolved."

"Artifacts offer insights into when these cognitive abilities and behaviors evolved. Sophisticated and multistep tool and weapon making and the production of jewelry for self-ornamentation all suggest advancing cognitive abilities. One of the oldest known works of art, the Lion-man from the Hohlenstein-Stadel in the Lone Valley, created approximately 40.000 years ago, is an expression of this higher cognition and may constitute one of humanity's first tentative steps toward art and religion."

Spirituality may be a cognitive processing capability that emerged after a change in brain wiring around 40,000 years ago. Homo sapiens exhibited altered burial practices that indicate an understanding of death and developing autobiographical memory. The capacity to imagine counterfactual scenarios allowed concepts of supernatural causes and beings to arise. Archaeological evidence—complex tools, jewelry, and the Lion-man figurine—reflects advancing symbolic cognition and proto-religious expression. Changes in specific brain regions may have promoted altruistic behaviors that benefited group survival. Enhanced planning, future projection, and social coordination supported shared beliefs and deities, marking a major cognitive transition.

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