Mercea Eliade (1907-1986), professor, historian of religion, and philosopher, gives interesting insight into the origins of using water in rituals of transformation the purpose of sacred space. In his book The Myth of Eternal Return (New York: Pantheon Books, 1954). Eliade emphasizes the view of creation and the role it played in what he calls the “archaic” cultures. By archaic he was generally referring to pre Judeo-Christian and therefore Pagan cultures of the ancient world.
By the early Neolithic (c. 10,000-8,000 BCE) the Mediterranean world, and even beyond, left evidence of the first definable widespread religious devotion. The evidence, which was conclusive before Eliade’s and has only continued to mount since, are statues, figurines, altars, and bas-reliefs of what some scholars have nicknamed the “Great Goddess.” Since this was still an era before th invention of writing, we have to wait for the first creation myths to be written down in order to have descriptions of the way this “Great Goddess” was viewed. Eliade and many other scholars have noted that she first appears as the primordial chaos from which all things were created, including the gods themselves. She is the thing that existed before all things, from which all things were born. Even in the version of the Mesopotamian creation myth found in the Bible, “God” is moving over the face of the chaotic deep.
For the ancient Pagan cultures creation was/is a continuing process, not something that happened way back then. As such many ritual activities were disigned around puting individuals in sync with that continuing creation, even if only for a moment. The use of water in ritual as a transforming element predates Christian “baptism” by thousands of years. According to Eliade, however, its original function was not necessarily that of “cleansing” as it is often viewed in both Pagan and Abrahamic (Judaism, Christianity, Islam) religions. The intent was to symbolically put the person being submerged or doused temporarily in the primordial undifferentiated (shapeless, formless etc.) state that existed before creation. In this respect the person is created anew, or we might say reborn.
In my next post I will look at how this manifests in the concept of sacred spaces, whether temples, groves, or circles.
Pagan Philosopher 
I never thought of it that way, but it does make perfect sense. It is nice to learn something new and outside of the box everyone in a while. Thanks for posting this! ♥