Religion is the unified system of beliefs and practices a person adopts to deal with ultimate concerns in life, death and beyond. These concerns may be expressed in terms of a relation to the supernatural (and its relationship with humanity and the cosmos) or, as in more humanistic traditions, in terms of a moral code that outlines relationships with other believers, outsiders, oneself and the natural world. Religious traditions typically contain a sacred canon of scriptures, texts and histories that provide guidance and direction. They also usually include rituals and ceremonies, moral codes, and a division of the universe into two comprehensive domains, one sacred, the other profane.
While it is common today to hear that there is no such thing as religion, or that the concept conflates an array of different beliefs and practices, it is also true that the term has been used to describe a broad range of social phenomena, from the most sublime moral and spiritual teachings to grim remnants of intolerance and patriarchy. Consequently, the debate over the concept of religion involves many disciplines including history, anthropology, sociology, psychology, religious studies and philosophy.
The majority of scholars who have discussed the definition of religion have adopted “monothetic” approaches, holding that each instance of the category in question must share a particular defining property that sets it apart from other instances. But there are also those who have taken a more polythetic approach, acknowledging that there are properties that are “common” or even “typical” of religions without being necessary for them to be included in the category.