By giving all importance to religious symbols, Geertz does not take into account any social, historical, political or economic factors that can influence life, worldview and belief system of a person. Geertz essentially argues that religious symbols create belief, but Asad denies this, instead arguing that religious symbols only serve as a catalyst for belief. Thus, since social conditions differ from culture to culture, Asad believes that it is futile to try to find common ground between all religions. Instead, he insists that examining historical facts, which can give us insight into the type of institutions and ideologies that were present at the time to allow a certain mode of belief to become predominant, is the best way to study.