Eastern Religious Traditions Exam

What were the Aryans?

A nomadic group of people from the early development of Hinduism

What were the Aryan scriptures called?

The Vedas

What does Veda mean?

Literally means knowledge. The four scriptures were originally orally transmitted

What are the four Vedas?

Rig Veda

Yajur Veda

Sama Veda

Artharva Veda

What aspect of worship was important in Vedic times?

Rituals were important, especially rites of sacrifice that were performed to sustain cosmic order and please the gods. (Note: sacrifice means offerings to god/gods)

What happened in the Late Vedic period?

Philosophical innovations began to supplant the older Vedic emphasis on sacrifice. Upanishads, namely, philosophical texts became more widespread.

Who is Agni?

The fire god, mediator between human beings and the gods, who brings gods to sacrifice in Vedic sacrificial rituals

Who is Shiva?

The gods of destroyer

Who is Vishnu?

The preserver of the universe (avatar/incarnations: Krisna and Rama)

Who is Brahma?

The creator

What are the 4 castes in the caste system?

Brahmin

Kshatriya

Vaishya

Shudra

Who are Brahmin?

Priests

Who are Kshatriya?

warriors

Who are Vaishya?

Merchants, farmers, craftmans etc

Who are Shudra?

Slaves

What are the first three castes also known as?

Twice-born classes as their boys can have a Upanayana ritual

What is the Upanayana ritual?

A sacred thread ritual that symbolizes their second birth in a religious sense and they are eligible for study Vedic knowledge under a guru (teacher)

What is it called when you are outside the caste system?

The untouchable. They were called Harijan (children of God) by Mahatama Ghandi, but they call themselves Dalit (the oppressed)

What is Brahman?

the underlying essence of the universe, usually translated as hte Absolute Truth/ Ultimate Reality/ The Supreme/ Supreme Being. The supreme, unitary reality, the ground of all Being

What is Atman?

The Deep Self, the eternal Self, essence within each individual. It is successively reincarnated until released from samsara.

What is the difference between Brahman and Atman?

They are identical but Atman is viewed from an individual perspective and Brahman is viewed from a collective prospective.

What did Svetaketu and his father’s conversations illustrate?

They illustrated the feature of the Brahman, and the relationship between Brahman and Atman through the analogies of things made of clay, river and ocean, etc.

What is Karma?

originally it means action and deeds, the moral principle of cause and effect. It encompasses all kinds of actions, not only physical actions, but also speech and mental actions. A person’s situation in any given moment has been shaped by all previous actions. It is the driving force of one’s successive transmigration.

What is dharma?

means law, duty, righteousness, all of which have to do with living in a way that upholds cosmic and social order.

What is samsara?

the cycle of rebirth

What is moksa?

liberation or freedom from the cycle of rebirth

What are the two different opinions on moksa?

It can mean the union of one’s atman with Brahman, such that no sense of individuality any longer exists. Or it can mean the eternal existence of atman in the company of the supreme God

What is Ramayana?

the epic involves in issues of fulfilling one’s dharma in the public, political realm, and in the private, familial realm

What do the characters in Ramayana represent?

Rama is an example of an ideal man, son, and king. Sita is the example of a loyal wife. Lakshmana is the loyal brother. Hanuman is the selfless devotee.

What is the Bhagavad Gita?

The shortened version from the longest epic Mahabharata, which has a great impact on Ghandi

What are the three yoga (ways) leading to liberation in the Bhagavad Gita?

Jnana yoga

Karma yoga

Bhakti yoga

What is Jnana yoga?

knowledge yoga

What is Karma yoga?

Action yoga. Cultivate “desireless action” or acting without attachment to the fruit or benefits of the action

What is Bhakti yoga?

Devotion yoga. Comes to dominant Hindu practice and belief. The path of devotion is available to anyone, regardless one’s gender or caste. The only requirement is selfless devotionto a personal deity.

What are the four stages of Hinduism daily life?

student

householder

forest-dwelling hermits

renouncers (sannyasi)

What are the four aims of Hindu life?

dharma

kama & artha

moksaW

What is kama & artha?

these two aims apply to the second life stage of householders. Kama means the fulfillment of desire and artha means pursuit of wealth and social prestige. Kama and artha should be pursued in accordance with dharma

What is moksa?

ultimate liberation from transmigrationand the cycle of birth and rebirth, achieving union with the divine. W

What is a wedding in Hindu?

an initiation ritual for women, somewhat equivalent to upanayana ritual for men. The wedding is sanctified by a fire sacrifice. Offerings are poured into the fire to offer to gods to ask for blessings

What is the ritual of death in hindu?

purify the body, cremation. It is considered to be the last sacrifice

What is Jina in Jainism?

conqueror. Those who conquer one’s desire to achieve final liberation

Who were the founders of Jainism?

it is believed that there were 24 tirthankaras (fordmakers), Mahavira, the 24th fordmaker historically existed. The life story of Mahavira reflect the Jain value of non-harm (ahimsa) and promote ascetic life

What are the two divisions of Jainism?

Digambara (sky-clad)

Shvetambara (white-clad)

What are the three jewels of Jainism?

right faither, right knowledge, and right behavior

What is ahimsa?

the central concept of Jainism, means non-violence

What is jiva and ajiva?

life and no-life

What are the five categories of living things based on senses?

five-sensed creatures (humans, animals, birds)

four-sensed creatures (larger insects)

three-sensed creatures (small insects)

two-sensed creatures (worms, shellfish)

one-sensed creatures (vegetable bodies and earth bodies)

What is loka?

the place of rebirth in Jainism

Why do some scholars label Jainism as transtheistic?

Because there are gods in Jainism, but Jainism believes that one’s salvation relies on one’s own, not on the power of deity, or the grace of gods

What is Sallekhana?

ritual fast to death by gradually reducing intake of food or liquid. This is a common practice within Jain community. Jains do not think this is committing suicide. Not only monastics, but also laity practice Sallekhana. This practice is believed to be auspicious, and can help one to remove one’s karma.

What is a Sikh?

a learner or disciple of Sikhism

What are gurus in Sikhism?

10 human gurus. Founder = Guru Nanak.

Who is God in Sikhism?

Akal Purakh (Timeless One), formless one, Vahiguru (the Supreme guru)

What is haumai in Sikhism?

“I”ness, self-centered pride, self-reliance and ignoreance of one’s reliance on GodW

What is manmukh in Sikhism?

someone bound to egoW

What is hukam in Sikhism?

divine order, all-embracing principle, to submit oneself to hukam, the divine order means to remove one’s egotism

What are the 5 “k” markers to Sikh identity?

kes: uncut hair

kangha: comb

kach: short breeches

kara: bracelet

kirpan: sword

what is Ziran in Chinese cosmology?

in Chinese it is called Ziran, means self so, nature

What is the law of chinese cosmology?

the cosmos operates according to its own law. The law is not given by an outside law giver

What are the three features of the law of Chinese cosmology?

cyclical process (rotation of the sun, rotation of four seasons)

progress of growth and decline (rising and falling of the tide)

bipolarity (yin and yang)

What are the characteristics of Yin?

female

yielding

passive

dark

cool

wet

soft

What are the characteristics of yang?

male

dominant

aggressive

bright

hot

dry

hard

What are the ways to know the Operation of the Universe?

Ui jing/I-ching (book of changes)

Two basic gua/kua (hexgram)

qian/ch’ien (male/yang) & kun/k’un (female/yin)

What is Fengshui?

Literally means wind and water, geomancy. The layout and location of one’s residence or the tombs of one’s ancestor can impact one’s fortuneW

What is the principle of geomancy?

the balance of yin and yang; the smooth movement and preservation of qi (vital force)

What are the eight characters and individual destiny?

one’s destiny can be decided by the year, month, day and time of one’s birth. This year, month, day, and time are represented by eight Chinese characters

what is Confucius’ self-perception?

a teacher, transmitter and preserver of the teachings of sages in antiquityWh

who are the sage kings/rules in the antiquity that Confucius admired?

King Wen

King Wu

Duke of Zhou

What are the five Confucian classics?

Book of Poetry

Book of Change (divination manual revealing the operation of the cosmos)

Book of Documents (classics of history)

Book of Rites

Spring and Autumn Annals (ancient Chinese Chronicle

What is li?

rites, norms of behavior, propriety, decorum. Li can morally transform people or instill moral qualities in a person. To enable one aware of his/her social position, to discipline oneself. Confucius believed that li could bring order to the society by morally transforming people

What are the 5 cardinal relationships?

ruler-subject

husband-wife

father-son

older brother-younger brother

friend-friend

What is zhengming?

rectification of name. Everyone knows his/her position in the society and acts according to his/her position entitles him/her to do and fulfill what they are supposed to doW

What is filial piety?

devotion to one’s parents or ancestors. Filial piety not only means one should take care of the material needs of one’s parents, but also should have right attitude when one serve one’s parents or ancestors

What is junzi?

a morally perfect person. Idealized person

What is ren?

human, benevolent. A humane person overcome his/her selfish interest to put other people’s benefit before him/her.

What is the Confucius Ideal ruler?

rule with li, rule by virtue, rulers should be moral examples for the subjects to follow

What is Dao/Tao in Confucianism?

moral and social order, moral truth; the appropriate way to do things

What is the main text for Daoism/Taoism?

Dao de jing

Who is the author of the Dao de jing?

Laozi/Lao-tzu (Old Master)

What is Dao/Tao?

the Way, cannot be described by language. Dao is the source of everything, and makes things as they are. Dao is associated with simplicity, naturalness, spontaneity, and full of potential.

What is Wu wei?

literally means non-action. In Daoism, it means doing nothing against the Dao (way), let things follow it’s own natural course

What is Freedom in the Zhuagzi?

free oneself from the formula of behavior, free from artificial constrains and open up one’s mind and make room for spontaneous and natural response to occur

What is relativism in Zhuangzi?

nothing is absolutely good or bad, desirable or undeniable. It depends on perspectives and contexts

What is the Dao in Zhuangzi?

emphasis on that the Dao determines the particular way of the cosmos to operate and the nature (inborn qualities) of each individual. It makes all things queal and transcends all the conventional distinctions

What is Wu wei in Zhuangzi?

doing nothing against the Dao, no action based on any purposeful motives of gain or striving, avoiding conflicts and obstruction and finding a way to fit the constrain to act at ease and effortless

What is Zinzai (mind fast)?

free oneself formulaic way of thinking, free from man-constructed standard

What does Buddha mean?

means the enlightened/awakened one

What is the story of the Buddha’s enlightenment?

Siddhartha Guatama realized the inevitability of suffering after he encountered old age, death, sickness and a renunciate. He left his family to begin his spiritual career to find out the way to end suffering. He achieved enlightenment through practice meditation and adopting the Middle Path

What did the Buddha talk about in his first sermon?

middle path )namely, avoid extreme austerities and indulgence in sensual please) and the Four Noble Truths.W

What are the Four Noble Truths?

suffering (birth, old age, sickness, death)

Cause of suffering (caused by craving)

end of suffering

the way to end suffering (eightfold path)

What is jnana?

Wisdom, discernment. The right view and right resolve

What is the right view for Buddhism?

opposite to Hinduism, Buddhism believes there is no permanent self (anatman)

What is sunyata?

emptiness, means empty of a permanent self

What is Sila (virtue)?

right speech, right action, no sexual misconduct, no intoxication, and right livelihood.

What is samadhi (concentration)

right effort, right mindfulness and right concentration (meditation)

What is Buddhist karma?

action, deeds, driving force of one’s transmigration

What is transmigration?

six realms of existence (the low-level realms: residents of hells, hungry ghost and animal; the high-level realms: human being, demi-god and god)

What is Nirvana?

blow out/transcend the cycle of birth and death (samsara), liberation from suffering