Religious Studies Notes

Judaism:
- Tanakah, the first 5 books of the Tanakah is called the Torah.
- Tankha provides an introduction to the Israeli god, outlines the Jewish covenant to God, and moral and ethical obligations.
Islam:
- The Quran
- Has 114 chapters, 6000 verses, 6666 ayats, and quran means “recitation”
- Quran has the following themes:
  - Tawhid: Allah and predestination (hereafter)
  - Risalah: Angels of Allah, books of Allah, Messengers of Allah
  - Akhirah: Life after Death and the day of judgement
Hinduism:
- The Vedas Scriptures
- Written in Sanskrit
Buddhism:
- The Tripitaka
- Comprise of the teachings of Buddha, collectively known as dharma
- 3 sections, each is called a pitaka
Christianity:
- The Bible
- New Testament & old testament
- Genesis, exodus, leviticus, numbers, deuterometry

Karma
- Law of cause and effect, where one's actions determine their future consequences
Dharma
- Moral duty and righteousness that guide your ethical behaviour
Atman
- Individual's soul or true self which is considered divine
- Seeking unity with Brahman
Samsara
- Cycle of birth, death, and rebirth, driven by karma
Moksha
- Liberation from rebirth, and union with your soul and Braham in the ultimate reality
- In samsara, if you are good you will be rebirthed into a good life, if you are bad you will rebirth into a bad life (ex. Good: average man -> wealthy man, Bad: Average man -> dog)

Torah is placed on a Bimah, which is a stand/podium for it
Instead of touching the Torah with your hands, you will touch and point using a yad

Discipline Basket (Vinaya pitaka)
- The basket of guidance
- Rules given to the community of buddhist believers (Sangha)
- Contains hundreds of rules about basic morality
- Helps guide you away from the vices
The Sutras
- Held as the most important of the 3 baskets
- Also called the discourse basket, a written collection of Buddha’s teachings (over 10000 teachings)
Abhidhamma Pitaka/ Philosophical Basket
- Contains theories and descriptions of things like the nature of time, the workings of the humans mind, and even the state of matter
- With its rather metaphysical - like content, this is probably the most contested of all three basket

January 630 CE Muhammad SAW returns to Mecca
In 630 CE Muhammad restored the Kaaba/cleansed it of the deities, leaving only the house/Kaaba

The purpose was to ensure that society would always have an appropriate amount of weavers, potters, and soldiers help to ensure order

Sunni Muslims (Islam):
- Disagree with the idea that a leader had to be a descendant of Muhammad SAW
- Faces on individuals direct relationship with Allah
Shia Muslims (Islam):
- Believe in succession/leadership based on blood relatives to Muhammad SAW
- Focuses on the role & authority of religious leaders
Orthodox Jews (Judaism):
- Followers that strictly follow the teachings of Judaism (Following the letter)
Reform Jews (Judaism):
- Followers that reform Judaism to fit modern society, or loosely follow it

A practice that avoids extreme self-indulgence and extreme selflessness, strive for a balance between both