Religion test 1

what are the challenges with the definition of religion?

because religion is studied from different perspectives its difficult to have a formal definition

Why do we study religion?

to be aware of peoples cultures and beliefs

who were the harappan society

was one of the largest civilizations of the era, advancement of society suggests a religious motive

the great bath

suggests a religious motive because of the work and effort,

horned male in seals mean?

possibly a shaman/male diety

what are concepts shared by human cultures

powerful gods, sacred places, life of some kind after death, the presence of spirits interacting with humans.

what are the three worlds

sky: most powerful diety

earth

underworld

what are some natural sacred places

high mountains, great rivers and waterfalls

why did the harappan culture end?

best guess is the arrival of indo-europeans and the changing flow of the indues river that led to flooding and drought

hinduism

from the sind - region around the indus river and was first used by british colonizers to describe non muslims occupying india

dharma

means justice faith duty and social obligation like the word religion but doesnt cover some of the religious practices

what is the indo europeans language

sanskrit

what patterns emerged from harappa (8)

CASTE system beginning = starting of the priestly class, avatars, scriptural tradition, prophets, energy god, building structures and large temples sacrificing rituals, shamanism,

shaman

ritual specialist an intermediate between the spiritual world and physical world.

indo europeans

known also as indo-aryan= noble one

language family and cultural system that stretched across europe by the IE warriors, spreading the caste system

avatar and an example

means coming down in sanskrit and is god in truly human form

krishna ( blue ) is the avatar of vishnu

what are the vedas (also years of creation) what does it mean and what is its other name

composed throughout 1500 BCE to 400 BCE

the vedas= knowledge also known as shruti= that which was heard

the collections of hymns: stories books and sections and is scripture composed in sanskrit- like their torah

what are the vedic rishis

people who take the knowledge and write down the vedas, they are the ones comimg in contact with the spirtuality so they write it down

what is the rig veda

first part of the vedas composed in 1500 BCE, and some recognize it as the only vedic text

who are the brahmins

known as the priests=the custodians of the vedas, are the only ones allowed to study, write and teach the vedas

what are the four vedas

rig veda

sama veda

yajur veda

atharva veda

what are each vedas composed of(4)

samhitas (hymns)

brahamanas (rituals)

aranyakas (compositions of the forest)

upanishads (philosophy)

rig veda (2) what does it contain and the pattern?

contains: 1000 hymns, magical poems, riddles, and legends.

pattern: hymn praises a god then petitions the god for benefits

the creation hymn (2)

the first hymn in the rig veda and it suggests the process of creation that happend even before the gods were created,

we can not comprehend what was there before the gods.

what is the purusha sukta and what does it mean?

it is a hymn that describes how the universe itself was created through cosmic sacrifice of the primeval man- purusha (entity)

means the hymn to the supreme person.

purushas body and its sacrificed to what?

has a thousand heads eyes and feet, is and was everything.

his body is the parts of the world like his mind is the moon and his eye the sun

the varnas

the four classes of hindu society (caste system)

where are the origins of the caste system (1) and what makes what (caste-4)

they’re from purushas body,

his mouth the priestly class, his arms the rulers, legs producers, feet the servants.

caste system in sanskrit and what are they (5)

brahmins = priestly class

kshatriyas/rajanyas= rulers and warrior

vaishyas= merchants, artists, tradesman, and farmers

shudras= servants

dalits= outcasts, not even in the system, they are involved in polluted things so street and latrine cleaners and anything to do with dead bodies.

sama veda, they are? + contains? (2)

they are: renditions of the rig veda that are rearranged according to specific ceremonies.

contains: verses that are sung during sacrifice

yajur veda

from the rig veda

formulas spoken by priests during sacrifice

triple knowledge of hinduism (3) summarize (1)

rig veda: hymn knowledge/ content

sama veda: chant knowledge

yajur veda: ceremonial knowledge

hymns turned into chants used in ceremony

atharva veda contains and used? (5)

formulas for the priests to chant in daily events, births age ceremonies and food rituals and medicinal chants

what is the difference between the upanishads and the vedas? (2 +1 ex)

vedas= ritualistic

upanishads= more philosophical view and approach

ex. what is the meaning of this?

upanishads (3+ 1 what will it achieve to study?)

philosphy of hinduism= higher knowledge, instead oh going to brahmins you discuss concepts within others who study the up.

this knowledge can not be taught but only evoked through enlightment

this will help you achieve moksha

karma

ritual action/ a system of rewards and punishments attached to actions

samsara

the continuing cycle of death and rebirth (reincarnation)

moksha

liberation of samsara - attaining of transformational wisdom which will grant u immortality

meaning of atman is brahman and what is another saying used to understand this (3 points)

atman= soul

brahman= supreme being

tat tvam asi= you are that , meaning we are brahman, our souls and brahman is one

where is the book of ramayana + what is it (not plot or anything)

is in the epics= sacred books

what is the plot of ramayana

the father/ king decides to give his crown to rama, but is forced to exile rama instead because one of the kings wives promised his son baharata the crown, rama accepts exile and goes into the forest with his wife sita and his half brother, ramas father dies baharata comes back and finds out he is the ruler although he was not aware of this. tries to convince rama to return but rama knows his father exiled him so he wants to listen to him. baharata rules. sita is captured in the forest by a demon, rama searches for the demon along with his brother and some monkeys, the leader of the monkeys finds sita and tells rama. rama fights the demon, wins and rama and sita reunite, they return home and are crowned.

rama and sita in sequel

people are suspicious of sita since she was kidnapped by the demon, shes banished when shes preganant and gives birth to twins, when they are grown they go to war against rama but find out who he is, rama asks for sita to go through a public trial to prove her innocence she refuses and asks mother earth to take her back. shes then swallowed into the ground.

what is rama seen as ?

incarnation (avatar) of vishnu

ideals of household- in ramayana

the wife is expected to be loyal like sita staying by ramas side even after banishment as well as rama when he was banished.

mahabharata plot - krishna

the story of the great struggle among the descendants of a king named bharata, theres a war between two families the pandavas and kauravas. an avatar of vishnu krishna. krishna doesnt want to fight but serves for a warrior, the warrior doesnt wan to fight relatives but krishna says that wjen fighting for whats right violence is ok

bhagavad gita + krishna on the soul

after mahabharata and basically the warrior is told not to grieve the deaths after the war. if he doesnt fight he will be a coward and wont protect his people.

• krishna on the soul - the soul is eternal and it will live on in a new body so no need to grieve the bodies.

why is krishna worshipped (2)

because having avatars is like having personal gods, get advice from a god basically directly. you can make a personal connection

three ways to achieve liberation(where found 1+ 3 ways)

found in bhagavd gita

1. karma yoga- way of action

2. jhana yoga- way of knowledge

3. bhakti yoga- way of devotion

the way of action

act without the attachment of karma, any karma is bad and you are still material even with good karma. do whats right and enjoy this life time because the karma is the next life regardless

the way of knowledge (2)

wisdom will give you real insight on the real nature of the universe, meditating asking questions learning scriptures and clarifying doubts will let you achieve moksha

the way of devotion

to achieve moksha you must leave dharma (religion) and devote all of yourself to krishna

puranas meaning

old and known as old tales

how are puranas diff from the vedas

basically retelling stories from vedas with popular gods like vishnu, shifts the emphasis from the major vedic deities

how is vishnu different from other gods?

comes down to earth - avatars, and rids evil from the world by establishing dharma.

vishnus reincarnations, how many, what were they? (5)

vishnu had 10 reincarnations in the present cycle of creation, we had 9 people await for the tenth.

first is the fish, 2nd tortoise, 3rd boar, 7th rama, 9th buddha or some think krishna.

lakshmi (4)

vishnus consort, shes the goddess of good fortune, she has four hands, (dharma moksha kama artha). blesses with wealth and eventually moksha.

shiva vs vishnu plus what is his roles

no incarnations, usually has paradoxical roles like creator and destroyer dancer and yoga master

shivas linga

linga = phallus

a standing pillar like stone placed inside a receptable called a yoni

shivas yoni

yoni = womb

what does shivas linga and yoni represent and what does it remind us?

represents : creation, and energies of shiva,

it is a reminder that female and male forces are united and they generate the universe which leads to emancipation from the cycle of reincarnation.

the dance of shiva (3)

the whole universe shakes when he dances,

represents that he is the master of the universe,

he is portrayed as nataraja (king of dance) and he is both an ascetic and dancer, dancing through creation and destruction of the cosmos

what are shivas two mastered dances

the tandava - voilent dance that gives rise to energy

the lasya- the gentle lyric dance representing the tenderness and grace of the universe

parvati - the goddess (3)

the wife of shiva

she is the mother goddess

has the power behind the creation of the universe

durga - the goddess (4)

warrior aspect of the goddess,

has many arms with weapons

uses her wrath against oppressors

causes destruction for creation to emerge

kali - the goddess (4)

fierce and wild

dark figure wearing a garland of skulls

associated with death and violence

destroys evil to defend innocent

hindu trinity

creator - brahma

preserver - vishnue

destroyer - shiva

what are the ages of times definition and end (2)

cosmic cycles of creation and destruction as the days and nights of Brahama,

at the end of the cycle the entire cosmon is drawn into the body of vishnue or shiva where it remaind until another brahama is evolved

kali yuga (1 definition+ why is there suffering? 4)

the current age we are in within the cycle

there is suffering because of this degenerate era theres decline in life span human satisfaction morality.

laws of manu (2)

reflects the social norms at the time = caste

it is what society should look like but doesnt mean it does

brahmins (3)

mostly priests

only ones authorized to teach the vedas or

had power and prestiege and could do spirtual learning

kshatriyas (4)

rulers and warriors

could study vedas not teach

have divine ancestory

they do not live in luxury but are fortunate

vaishyas (4)

merchants

could study the vedas not teach them

responsible for commercial and agricultural work

have power of wealth and economic decisions

shudras (3)

servants

serves the other classes

can not accumulate wealth- restriction

dalits (3)

untouchables

excluded from caste system

deal with corpses animal hideas and death over all

what are the four stages of life

student= celibacy

householder= marriage

retirement = to the forest

renunciation= samnyasin, achieving moksha

vedanta

end of the vedas

what is shankara saying (3)

the only reality is brahman so the atman are brahman

to achieve moksha we must realize brahman is atman vice versa

we are obscured by maya which is cosmic delusion

liberation according to shankara (2)

it occurs when we dispell maya and remove ignorance by transforming knowledge, and it will only manifest after death

yoga (3)

the physical and mental discipline and meditation

detach the mind from the external sensory stimuli

leads to union with the divine

south indian Bhakti (3)

south indian devotion group to a god

has a scripture which is poetry focused

focused on secular themes like love and warfare

songs of the alvars (4)

in the language tamil

equivalent to the sanskrit vedas

means songs of the devotees of vishnu

acknowledges women and dalits !

north indian bhakti (3)

also open to every caste

also used to vernacular languages

focuses on the devotion of rama or krishna or sometimes vishnus divine without form

hindu and muslim in north india

there was synergy which caused of works being composed with both ideology

both were grouped together because of the rejection to distinction

chaitanya (1 who is he? +3 what did he believe?)

bengali divine devotee to krishna

emphasized the importance of bhakti worship and love

he believed the only way to moksha is through trusting devotion to a loving and gracious deity

humans lack requirements of religious action and duty in the kali yuga and that is why they can not acieve moksha

ISKCON (2 what are they? + 1 where was it brought?)

international society for krishna consciousness

hare krishna movement

brought to new york from chaitanyas movement in the 19th century

hare krishna movement

krishna worship

teaches the soul is eternal and believed in karma reincarnation

ISKCON practices (3)

mystical practices of chanting the praises of krishna while dancing in ecstasy

rituals to krishna held multiple times a day - everything in life is for krishna

one leader standing infront of the altar and makes an offering of vegetarian food and fire to the images on the altar while others chant, drums , dance, as the pace builds they become louder more extreme until climax where they jump into the air

ISKCON physical traditions (8)

given a sanskrit name

saffron colored robes

paint marks called tilaka on the body from a holy lake in india - associated with krishna

vegetarian

no alcohol or caffeine

working full time for the movement or in the temples (they dont make money for themselves

some shave heads except for a pony tail in the back

string of 108 chanting beads to chant the hare krishna

ISKCON controversy (4)

strong opinions

chanting in public trying to raise money looks bad

discouraged from talking to family seems cultish

schools by ISKCON had sexual and physical abuse

ram mohan roy ( what did he study? what did he reject? what did he establish? fight for? believed in? =6)

studied the quran vedas and buddhism as well as the Christian scriptures

rejected christain idea of jesus as the son of god

compared jesus’ moral teaching to hindu traditions

establishing a society to discuss the nature of brahman in the upanishads rejects myths

believed in monotheism humanism and social reform

fought for womens rights to abolish child marriage sati and to give them education

what is sati (2)

the showing of an ideal wife

when her husband dies she goes on the fire burning his dead body to kill herself for him to show the ultimate sign of devotion

why would a woman commit sati? (6)

they were basically viewed as untouchable after husbands death

they have no status,

nobody wants to associate with her

they are a burden financially

widow couldnt hide it they had to show it

can not participate in any rituals

what happened to sati because of ram? (3)

illegal

he argued they were never in hindu vedas or classical hinduism

then the sati prevention act diglorified sati which mostly abolished sati

Gandhi ideology, what was he, how did he die (6)

leader of the indian national congress

made non violent techniques = truth force

encouraged fasting to self purify and rebel against British authority and bring attention to social injustice

promoted social reform calling dalits children of god

protests against dalits and british colonizers

murdered when muslims got their own state and hindus thought he betrayed them by a hindu man

temple worship, deities, priests (5)

there are many murti = an object of worship of a deity

deities are royalty so they get the treatment of ritual baths carried in procession canopies etc.

no congregational prayer

priest prays on behalf of devotees- they are ritual specialists at temples not counselours

devotees give offerings like fruits and flowers and priest returns some in return as a gift from the diety

temple architecture (3)

temples correlate to the universe and divine beings

like heaven on earth

ideal temple: has 7 enclosures (floors) with goprus= large towers on top, and near a body of water

chakra (3)

wheel of dharma and vishnus weapon

center of energy - in the torso of the human body

represents cycle of samsara

sri chakra (4)

sacred instrument = it is a mandela

triangles facing up- male principle representation

triangles facing down- female energy representation

bindu at the middle= union- this means unity of both genders

domestic worship (4)

family member led

deities treated like guests, given offerings and lights around

the devotees recite stories and verses

specific rituals for women for goodluck and fertility and family’s happiness

ayurvedic medicine, meaning, goal (5)

= knowledge of enhancing life

started off with illness lacking balance between air phlegm and bile

aim to prolong life and get rid of illness

bridge between international medicine and indian philosophical/religious theories

draws elements of yoga by focusing on unlocking chakras