How the Invention of the Light Bulb changed Religion

It's safe to assume that the world has lived in relative darkness for the better part of twelve thousand years. It is then only natural to presume that many of our ideas and habits, were first established because the world was actually hidden from humanity. Darkness is the key factor behind many of the world's first fairy tales about scary monsters that go bump in the night, or demonic bogeymen, who lurked in corners to pounce us. It is also easy to see how this fact about darkness, was the first breeding grounds of radical ideas of evil entities, which caused people to do very bad things at night time. However, it wasn't until the creation of Greek mythology, did a true underworld first take it's shape. Which would then only be enhanced by future pagan religions, such as those of the Roman or Vikings. From these first ideas of a dark, creepy, underworld, evolved a religious ideology that is the bases for Christianity's Hell today.

Hell is an acrid atmosphere to dwell in, and solely saved for the soulless, the damn, wicked and condemned to spend eternity. The seedy avenues and dark corridors of the Dark and Middle ages, only fed into the idea of this place, and into the notion that darkness represented the time of day when bad things were to happen. From Werewolves to Vampires; these so-called bogeymen folklore villains, only came out at night. Even though the original bogeyman has many points of origin, this imaginary monster, is believed to be linked to the ideals of evil, darkness, and ultimately to the fallen archangel Lucifer himself, after the plague.

As the story goes, Lucifer was created by God, and was consider to be an angel. Ironically though, the name Lucifer means light, and thus Satan was given the title "Angel of Light," by God himself. When God created Adam, God demanded that Lucifer and the archangels, bow down to Adam, because he was made in God's likeness. Lucifer having been created long before Adam, felt that mankind should bow down to the archangels, because they were the first beings, to be created. In the end, some of God's angels agreed with Lucifer, while other faithful followers remained loyal to God, and thus bowed down to God's newest creation. As the story goes, Lucifer's notions and ideals separated him from the other Archangels, and cost him and his followers their place in heaven. A war would soon ensued, pitting Lucifer and his followers, against God and his archangel Michael. Inevitably God won the battle against Satan and his pride, and so he, casted Lucifer out of heaven to the fiery pits Hell. Lucifer soon turned into Satan, and the angels that followed him, turned into demons.

Living in a world without the aid of lamp light, only contributed to these stories and ultimately escalating everyones' fear of the dark. Up unto the late eighteen hundreds, people did not go out at night, and it really was that plain & simple. Candle light, torch light and gaslight just wasn't powerful enough for people, to feel safe to stroll the streets. People were simply too afraid of the dark. Thus the addition of electricity, and the advancement of that electricity being routed into street lanterns and into peoples homes, allowed folks to mingle together after darkness fell, and stroll the streets and corridors that were once forbidden.

Another factor directly related to the invention of the light bulb, was the profound impact that light would have on religious folklore, such as the story of Lilith, which dated back to eighth century bce. This legend was one of many stories that developed into a myth, and led to the creation of other evil ideas, which only happen at nightfall. Still born babies found dead in their respectful cribs, were believed to be the victims of Lilith's demonic thirst and hunger. It was a believed that Lilith's possessed center powers, and were at their greatest potential during the night. Her powers metastasized into many dangerous forms, and she could use these forms to lurid people into her fantasy. One such form took the shape of jealousy, and other well known characters she played, was the role of seductress or victim. With the invention of the light bulb, people could see that there was no demonic, winged, women lurking in the night. People could see for themselves that there wasn't a Lilith figure, preying on local womens' husbands, or like the bogeyman, feeding on innocent children and returning them to their beds dead. For the longest time, Jewish people turned to the Lilith story when a child died from crib death, for the obvious reasons. With the invention of the light bulb, stories like these no longer served a purpose, and finally, render useless.

Whatever could not be controlled by force, fear tactics were employed to steer people in one direction to the next. The invention of the light bulb, changed this a bit. I have often believed the Book of Revelation, was specifically used in the bible, as a tool for the church to use against the people. What better way is there to control people, but, through ignorance and fear? However, with the added aid of light, people could finally see to read, and thus gather certain knowledge for themselves. They no longer had to rely on other people to learn things. Now they could see things first hand. Ultimately, this new "technology" made it easier for people to gain an education. Finally the average person was becoming smarter.

The invention of the light bulb happened in 1879. Though Thomas Edison invented the modern-day incandescent light bulb, he is not believed to be the first. With the discovery of the Baghdad battery (which is dated around the time period 224 ad), it is now speculated that the ancient pyramid builders of Egypt, possibly use the aid of artificial light, to build many of their megalithic structures. If that is true, this would place the invention of the light bulb somewhere around 3150 bc. Whatever the case maybe, it is a scientific fact that most everyday people lived without lighted homes until sometime after 1879.

With the advancement of electricity to rural America, it is a fact that education began to play a much more vital role in the lives of impoverish families. Another aspect to consider is with the invention of the light bulb, people saw for themselves what was actually taking place at night. When homes were finally lit up, people could see that it was neither Lilith nor the bogeyman monster harming their children at night. Churches could no longer employ scare tactics, and use a person's own imagination to scare them into submitting. For the first time in history, people could literally see things for themselves. That was a huge step forward for mankind.

I am positive that this has had a direct impact on the way people believe. As with the Lilith story, many ancient scare tactics have all but subsided to oblivion. From these facts, I think it is quite clear that the invention of the light bulb to be mankind's greatest discovery.

Christianity's religious rival without a doubt is the Occult. The Occult is a group of people who participate in mysterious practices and powers involving magic and spirits. The origins of both of these religions are over 2000 years old, and some even say that the Occults' origins can be traced back as far back as 8,000 thousand years ago, when the ancient religion of Zoroastrianism was first started in ancient Sumeria.

Zoroastrianism is believed to be the foundational roots of Judaism, Christianity, the Occult and Islamic religion. There is even the notion that Abraham, the father of Judaism, Christianity, and Islam, was part of a Zoroastrian religious sect. Although that idea is speculative, what we do know about for sure, is Zoroastrianism was the world's first monotheistic faith. The religion of Zoroastrianism was founded by Zarathustra in Persia, which of course is now modern-day Iran.

"Zoroastrianism is the oldest of the revealed world-religions, and it has probably had more influence on mankind, directly and indirectly, than any other single faith." —Mary Boyce.

"The Boogie Man Song"

[Mos Def]
Bismillah ir Rhman ir Raheem
{In The Name Of God, The Most Merciful, The Most Compassionate}

What it is, what it is, what it is, What it is
What it is, what it is, what it is
What it is

See me, want me, give me, trust me
Feed me, f**k me, love me, touch me

This whole world is cold and ugly
What we are is low and lovely
I am the most beautiful boogie man
The most beautiful boogie man
Let me be your favorite nightmare
Close your eyes and ill be right there
While...Open...All...Over...A-gain

See me, touch me, give me, want me
Feed me, f**k me, trust me, love me

This whole world is cold and ugly
What we are is low and lovely
I am the most beautiful boogie man
The most beautiful boogie man
Let me be your favorite nightmare
Close your eyes and ill be right there
While...Open...All...Over...A-gain...Ag-ain
Ag-a-in [Fades Out]