World Religions: Comparative Discussions

Hindu’s believe that each individual has a non-material self which never changes. This “self” is called atman. It is not the mind or the body, but goes beyond anything temporary that we ascribe to ourselves. Its western equivalent is usually considered “the soul.” Still, this does not quite sum up atman, as atman goes beyond individuality and connects us to every other living thing as well, including (and perhaps, especially) God. Hindu’s believe that there is one God, but as he is infinitely powerful and has infinite attributes, he is manifest in many different ways and beings. Those beings include all animals and people. The illusion that each person is his or her own body, and failing to realize that we are all one eternal soul, is what leads to the troubles of this life. The illusion (or maya) is what causes people to act selfishly or do wrong deeds, and prevents them from achieving liberation.

The eastern religions that we have discussed in class are Hinduism, Confucianism, Buddhism, and Taoism. The western religions that we have discussed in class are Christianity, Judaism, and Islam. The Eastern Religions have originated in countries such as China, India, and Japan. The western religions originated in Europe and the Americas. There are few similarities between eastern religions and western religions, but many differences. The biggest difference between the two religions is that eastern religions believe in more than one god, whereas western religions believe in one God.

Jerusalem 101 - four quarters of the old city - jerusalem. (n.d.). Retrieved from http://www.generationword.com/jerusalem101/3b-four-quarters.htm

List and describe the eight elements that are developed in varying degrees in most religions?

As a scholar taking the class ‘Introduction to World Religions”, I had the opportunity to take part in a culture that is not normally found in the western world. I entered the Mon Buddhist Monastery in Akron, Ohio on October 2nd, 2016 only to be amazed at their way of life. Going into the temple, I knew of the basic religious practices and traditions that the monks and Buddhists had participated in daily. When I was coming up to the monastery, it did not look like anything other than an old brick building, but once we were inside it looked like a recreational area. Somewhere where they would meditate, hold daily activities, and teach the younger Buddhist about their way of life. On the far back wall, there was a stunning shrine dedicated to the Buddha where one would pray. Many figurines were displayed as well as flowers and offerings along it.

Some of the classical world religions that exist today in our society would have to Buddhism, Christianity, Confucianism, Hinduism,Islam, Jainism, Judaism, Shinto, Sikhism, Taoism, and Zoroastrianism. However, Buddhism originated from the teachings of an Indian prince named Siddhartha at around the 500 BCE (Buddhism) Offhand one can say buddhism relate to meditating and being at peace while living in the moment. Buddhism has four common rules which is what they mainly believe in. The first one being that to exist is to suffer and has a purpose, second one being their is a cessation of suffering which leads to nirvana, next is that their is a path with suffering. The way they look at experience is by categorizing is in five different forms.

Through discrimination and a pure heart, man gains wisdom. Shankara says, “But the wise man, in the greatness of his knowledge and spiritual discrimination, sees the Atman as reality and thinks, “I am Brahman” (Shankara 58). Just like Shankara illustrated, our body and flesh mean nothing. They mean nothing to our identity. When one truly realizes Atman, they rid themselves of living with this body and they identify themselves with Brahman completely. By realizing that Atman is Brahman, man realizes that Brahman lives within us, and is self-existent (Shankara 69). This shows us that there is nothing else but Brahman and that Brahman is the universe (Shankara

Judaism, Christianity, and Islam are three major monotheistic religions that share many similar characteristics. However, they also have key differences as well. Judaism is the oldest of the three, which originated about 3,500 years ago.

Man is an immortal spiritual being, his experience extends well beyond a single lifetime, and his capabilities are unlimited, even if not presently realized; these three dictums are held as tenet’s. Spiritual salvation is up to oneself and spiritual enlightenment and freedom for all mankind is what one strives for. To obtain spiritual freedom new members must go through an audit or a mental purging. During an audit, a member recalls past lives in order come to terms with aberration of those lives. Furthermore, the belief in God is not dogma, it is an infinite energy or supreme being and through the quest of enlightenment one will find their own opinions on

From start to finish, Siddhartha longs for atman. Philosophers and thinkers throughout time have strived for the same sense of self. Through enlightenment,

In The World’s Religions Book, William A. Young describes two poignant ecological approaches. These two similar approaches are the Theravada and Mahayana Buddhism approach. Theravada Buddhism relies on “The Middle Way” for guidance for how individuals should assist in Earth’s ecological issues. “The Middle Way” proclaims the importance of the individual’s responsibility to “balance consumption” and “reproduction”. In a world where individuals abide by these guidelines will ultimately result in a world where “all can be adequately cared for materially, emotionally, and spiritually” (313).

The avatar Krishna brought up Hindu concept of atman saying, “the Eternal [atman] in man cannot die”. Hindus believe in brahman, the essence of life. The brahman in humans is the soul, or atman. As opposed to the human body, the atman is eternal. The ultimate goal in Hinduism is to achieve moksha, or reunion with brahman. But it takes multiple lifetimes to achieve moksha, so Hindus believe in samsara, or rebirth. After the physical death of the human body, the atman then takes another form and Krishna reminds Arjuna of this by saying, “As…our mortal body wanders on in

Hindus believe in an everlasting soul (atman) that is reincarnated almost intact from birth to birth, and through spiritual practice Hindus seek release (moksha, also known as liberation) so that the soul can join with the Divine God, known as Brahmin.

     In a complete contrast to the teachings of the Jainic movement the Theravadan Buddhists saw there being no atman at all. Buddhists accepted the teaching of the doctrine of karma which causes all who have it to be reborn into a state of life according to the built up karma. The only way to stop this rebirth is to achieve Nirvana. The state of non-existence or annihilation. They also felt that when passing from one existence to another no permanent entity or atman transmigrated from body to body. The reason for there being no self is because self can not be found in the five basic aggregates or Skandhas. These being matter, feeling, perception, constructing activities, and consciousness were all made up of dharma or small atomic units. This seems to be contradictory because if there is no self then these dharma shouldn't be present because they would in a sense create a self, even if they just came in and left every second.

Next Death speaks of being “taught by a teacher who knows the Self and Brahman as one, a man leaves vain theory behind and attains to truth.” This I find very interesting because, I to believe that all forms of life are different facets of the large diamond that Hindu’s would call Brahman. Knowing this is one of the first things that you must realize, as you begin your path to enlightenment. The Hindu idea of the Self, being separate from the body, doesn’t seem to be that hard of an idea to grasp. The human body is simply the form that the Self has been given to take in this little bleep of time. The mind though has a tendency to be overtaken by the senses and forgets the true Self. To find ones true Self again one must follow the path of meditation.