Spirituality In Sport In Different Historical Contexts

Abstract

Aim. The purpose of this study is to analyse how the spiritual values of sport evolved over time, from antiquity to the present. Religion and sport are interdependent in different social and historical contexts. The terms meanings over time are different and fine context differentiation is required. Methodology. Research is based on participatory observation, document study and meta-analysis. Results. From ancient times, sport was a way of venerating the gods, a way of expressing corporality, a means of expressing spirituality. In the current social context sport is not religious but personal and it is a means of social recognition by venerating the winners. In a political context, the great leaders politicized the games transferring the glory and grandeur of the games to their personal worship. In the Christian Age,the values of sport ashygiene, corporality, physical beauty displayed were replaced by new ideology with obedience, religious manipulation and obscurantism. In these conditions, sport and physical manifestations took place in a useful utility form: work, military training, horse and water transport, etc. Conclusions. In a historical and social context, sport has moved from a component of gods’ veneration rituals, expression of corporality and social representation, to a phenomenon of great magnitude, without religious valences and with great economic and social impact.