REL 205-Exam 1

Tirthankaras

The great enlightened teachers in Jainism, of whom Mahavira was the last in the present cosmic cycle.

murti

images of the gods, which are representative of aspects of Brahman

Gaming rituals are used by some indigenous cultures to

influence the weather.

The 1893 World's Parliament of Religions in Chicago helped increase interest in Buddhism in the West because

it included a large delegation of Buddhist teachers from Japan, China, Thailand, and Sri Lanka.

The term "fundamentalism" can be misleading because

it may not involve a return to the true basics of a faith

Jina

In Jainism, one who has realized the highest, omniscient aspect of his or her being and is therefore perfect.

Kshatriya

A member of the warrior or ruling caste in traditional Hinduism, Jainism, and Buddhism.

Puja

Act of worship or prayer

ascetic

Austere, detached from worldly comforts; a person who lives in this way.

karma (janism)

In Hinduism and Buddhism, our actions and their effects on this life and lives to come. In Jainism, subtle matter or particles that accumulate on the soul as a result of one's thoughts and actions.

Meditation

Combination of conscious-breathing and concentration on Atman.

Charkas

Energy points along our spine

Diwaii

Festival of Lights is a major holiday that is also celebrated by Buddhists, Jains and Sikhs.

Shvetambaras

Jain order of monks who are less ascetic than the Digambara.

Karma (Hinduism)

Karma is the Hindu view of causality in which good deeds, words, thoughts, and commands lead to beneficial effects for a person, and bad deeds, words, thoughts, and commands lead to harmful effects. One's karmic state affects the reincarnation of the soul: good karma may lead to reincarnation as a human while bad karma can lead to reincarnation as an animal or other forms of non-human life. • Many Hindus hold a theistic view of karma in which a personal god—such as Vishnu in Vaishnavism and Shiva in Shaivism—is responsible for administering karma according to a soul's actions.

Navratri

Nine Nights.

ahimsa

Nonviolence, a central Jain principle.

The system for teaching people of all backgrounds and religions to transform their thoughts, develop "right emotions," and efficiently use the mind and body is called

Preksha Meditation

anekantwad

The Jain principle of non-absolutism, because truth has many aspects.

aparigraha

The Jain principle of nonacquisitiveness.

Namaste

The divine in me recognizes the divine in you

jiva

The soul in Jainism.

Dussera

This is the important tenth day of Navratri.

The three main schools of Mahayana Buddhism in Japan are

Zen, Jodo Shinshu, and Nichiren

Digambaras

a highly ascetic order of Jain monks who wear no clothes.

The story of Mahaprajapati's admission to the Sangha has been interpreted as

a justification for the status of nuns.

The ethical principle evidenced by Digambara monks not wearing any clothes is called

aparigraha

Ganesha Chaturthi

celebration the birth of Ganesha, son of Shiva.

Scholars have determined that the concept and definition of religion is

complex, elusive, and difficult to study.

Personal spirituality without any attachment to a particular religious tradition can be expressed outside of words in ways such as

contemporary artistic creations.

Conservative Christian communities object to the scientific theory of biological evolution, preferring to teach the concept of intentional divine creation of all life forms otherwise known as

creationism

The natural power of women is characterized in some cultures as

dangerous.

Mahavira had a community consisting of 14,100 monks, 30,000 nuns, 310,000 female and 150,000 male lay followers from all caste systems, because Jains

do not officially recognize the caste system.

While living in the diaspora, the traditional Jain qualities of asceticism and renunciation are giving way to

environmentalism, animal rights, vegan diet, nonviolence, and interfaith activities.

As a final means of cleansing one's karmic burden, the ultimate spiritual practice in Jainism is

fasting unto death at the end of life

The number of Jains in the world today is approximately

four and half million.

The "McDonaldization" of the world is an example of a growing phenomenon that is impacting traditional religious understanding called

globalization

mudra

hand gestures used

The sight of a monk changed Siddhartha's life by causing him to

live a life of renunciation.

The lives of the Jakun were governed by taboos, such as do not cut down unfamiliar trees or shout into the forest, which taught them to

live carefully and be mindful of the spirits around them.

Contemporary feminists challenge the exclusion of women in male-dominated religious systems by promoting change of patriarchal dominant themes, such as

masculine images of the divine and gender-exclusive language in holy texts.

The worship of and belief in one God is called

monotheistic

Buddhist social activists, particularly in East Asia, are guided by the principles of

nonviolence, compassion, and social justice

According to the Buddha, attachment leads to pain because

of people's ignorance that everything is in a constant state of flux.

Some indigenous traditions exemplify "democratized shamanism" by

offering worship opportunities to all.

Shamans are commonly initiated into the ability to move between realities through

physical death and rebirth.

The Jain understanding of karma is different from that of Hinduism and Buddhism because Jains believe

subtle matter accumulates on our soul as we act and think.

Digambara monks possess a broom of feathers in order to

prevent harm to any creature in their path.

The main reason the Ogoni in Nigeria continue to oppose the extensive destruction of their environment by multinational companies is to

protect the graves of their ancestors.

The Shvetambaras diverge in practice from the example set by Mahavira by

relaxing the requirement of nudity for monks.

Posing a grave threat to life and peace, sparking political oppression, and causing environmental destruction, radicals, terrorists, and even sadists justified their causes through

religion

Indigenous people may practice a global religion while still

retaining many of their traditional ways.

Ritual practices relate to the fulfillment of dharma for Jains because

ritual is less important than personal personification.

The two major forms of Theravada meditation practice are

samatha and vipassana

Forced by European colonists to adopt Christianity, the worshipers of Vodou in Haiti

secretly fused their old gods with their images of Catholic saints.

Through his extensive analysis of myths, Joseph Campbell found that they have four primary functions:

sociological, psychological, mystical, and cosmological

samsara

the continual round of birth, death, and rebirth in Hinduism, Jainism, and Buddhism

The followers of Vajrayana call it the "third turning" of the wheel of Dharma because

the early schools that included Theravada are considered the first, and Mahayana schools are the second.

According to the Heart Sutra, Avalokiteshvara sees that the following are empty of true existence because they exist in relation to and are dependent on other phenomena:

the five aggregates of a person

The materialist perspective is different from the functional and faith perspectives because

the materialist point of view states that the supernatural is imagined by humans and only the material world exists.

kevala

the supremely perfected state in Jainism.

It is best to leave the interaction with spirits to the specialists because

the world of spirits is thought to be dangerous.

Buddhism is often described as a nontheistic religion because

there is no personal God to whom to pray.

Despite their great variety, "indigenous peoples" have two characteristics in common: their spiritual beliefs, rituals, and social practices are centered on their own ancestors, and

they relate to specific geographic places.

yoga

to yoke or to join

Arti

waving of the fire lamp in counter-clockwise direction

Hinduism

•No Founder •No specific theological system •No single/unified concept of deity •No single holy text •No single system of morality •No central religious authority •No concept of a prophet •The Oldest of the organized religions. •3rd largest religion in the world. Approximately 950 million followers Estimates of the number of Hindus in the U.S. vary greatly: 2010- 1.5 million reported.