I equate animism and shamanism with religion.
Well, I would say that animism and shamanism are two different things. Not all animistic societies have shamans, at least not in the sense we traditionally think about them. But of course judging solely by the state of current-day animistic societies gives only a glimpse into prehistory. Anyway, the problem I see is that more often than not we try to attach our modern-day categories to behavior that is more primal (even though the behavior itself might have led to the emergence of those categories). How would you even define a “spiritual” emotion that impels one to behave in a way that would to a modern human appear as religious? And what could be even defined as religious behavior? All I see are various (compulsive and soothing) responses to a certain kind of knowledge, a way of life which has nothing to do with some (alleged) hardwired religiosity (whatever that means). Not to mention that rituals are quite common among animals too. Are they religious by your standards?
What is a pre-tribal society?
For example Pygmies. Some of them still have no concept of tribe and live in territorially defined bands of loosely related families (if I get it right). As it seems, establishing of a tribe or pseudo-kinship goes hand in hand with customs like circumcision, etc. Then again, Pygmies are sharpening their teeth to “don’t look like a chimpanzee” (but I would still like to know if it’s a “borrowed” custom or not).
anthropologists have found artifacts far from their origin strongly suggesting commerce between tribes […] It’s unlikely that in all, or even in most cases, the owners where the artifacts were found trekked all the way to retrieve these.
I know of no conclusive (or even strong) evidence in support of commerce. Sure, I would assume that some exchange was indubitably going on, but we also know for certain that hunter-gatherers trekked pretty long distances (and oftentimes in the vein of migratory birds). Also, e.g. Natufians in Levant were descendants of European folks from Danube basin and local population. So, that’s that.
Pirahã vs. Yanomamo, who are famously known for consuming entheogens and spirit journeys as well as constant tension, shifting alliances and warfare with neighboring tribes.
Where did you find that? I was searching for info on Pirahã and entheogens and found nothing. I would be interested to know if that practice is indeed traditional, or, as is the case with Pygmies and their use of cannabis (but also iboga, I guess), appropriated from neighboring tribes in relatively recent past.
As for warfare —notwithstanding the origins of that conflict and other circumstances (I have no clue), do you consider e.g. ghetto gang conflicts or neighbor disputes (which can get pretty violent on occasions) as warfare too?
No, your kin and tribe shared your same beliefs and took vision quests seriously and literally. It didn’t depend on forecasting mammoth appearances, rainfall or anything else.
Ah, that was merely an anecdote to illustrate the point that our ancestors were not idiots and that they were very pragmatic and logical, even if that logic was not entirely intellectual. Something along the lines of how Pirahã rejected Christianity because of lack of evidence and thus practical purpose. So, if that person was the only one with such kind of visions (with zero utility to boot), I would dare to wager that the rest of the tribe would laugh their asses off.
there was no “dualist” conflict. The spirit world was as real as the profane world.
That’s precisely what I am saying. Both sides of the coin are real, but still treated as two. Although conflict cannot exist outside of dualism, dualism does not have to entail conflict.
