The World's Religion by Huston Smith

In Bhagavad Gita chapter 2, what's the relationship between desire/attachment, and rebirth?

Excessive attachment leads to rebirth.

What was the Realists' answer to social chaos? (Huston Smith, The World's Religions, p. 164).

Forceful laws; an elaborate legal mechanism of penalties and rewards.

Against a backdrop of traditional Chinese religion, which possessed a certain perspective on the relative priority of heaven and earth, how did Confucius accomplish a change in ethical emphasis, according to Huston Smith (p. 185)?

He shifted people's attention from heaven (transcendent religion) to earth (politics & ethics) without dropping heaven from the picture entirely.

Within traditional Chinese religion as received and edited by Confucius, how does Heaven speak to earth (i.e. human society), and earth to Heaven? (p. 184)

Heaven speaks to earth through augury; earth makes sacrifice to heaven.

Hinduism includes a wide diversity of yogic traditions, and a wide variety of divine names and images. What does the textbook suggest about why such a variety exists within Hinduism?

Hinduism accommodates many yogic traditions and many divine names and images because it is comfortable affirming that there are many possible ways of relating to God.

In Bhagavad Gita, chapter 2, (translated by Shri Purohit Swami), how does Krishna characterize the Atman ("Spirit")?

It has always existed & will always exist; it is immutable; it puts on new bodies as robes

In Bhagavad Gita 3, when Arjuna asks what it is that drives a man to sin, what is Lord Shri Krishna's answer?

It is desire and aversion, born of passion.

In the same passage, what is it that is primarily responsible for consuming and corrupting our knowledge and wisdom?

It is desire and aversion, born of passion.

In Huston Smith's exposition of Hinduism, what is the main point that is established by the story of Sri Ramakrishna, who "howled with pain" when he saw two boatmen quarreling? (pp. 23-24).

It's possible to transcend the narrow, exclusive interests of the ego.

What is the best contrast between the perspectives of 'jnana yoga' and 'bhakti yoga,' as explained in Huston Smith's "The World's Religions," p. 33?

Jnana yoga emphasizes the non-distinction between God and the self; Bhakti yoga emphasizes the distinction between God and the worshipper.

What is the term within Hinduism for "action," sometimes translated as "the effect of one's actions"?

Karma

When Lord Krishna gives the following advice in Bhagavad Gita 3, what is the context? ( "Surrendering thy actions unto Me, thy thoughts concentrated on the Absolute, free from selfishness and without anticipation of reward, with mind devoid of excitement, begin thou to ...." -translated by Shri Purohit Swami.)

Krishna is urging Arjuna to fight in battle against his cousins, the Kauravas.

In traditional Chinese religion, who is the supreme ancestor spirit? (p. 186)

Shang Ti, the Jade Emperor.

Around when was Confucius born, according to Huston Smith (The World's Religions, p. 154)?

551 BCE

What is the closest approximation of the Confucian concept of 'jen'? -- Pick the best answer, not simply an associated or subsidiary quality. (p. 172)

human-heartedness; a sense of human dignity; benevolence.

What is the best explanation of the Confucian concept of 'te', as explained by Huston Smith? (pp. 177-17What is the best explanation of the Confucian concept of 'te', as explained by Huston Smith? (pp. 177-178).8).

power; specifically the power of moral

What is the term within Hinduism for "the wheel of death and rebirth"?

Samsara

According to the textbook's description of social class in early Hindu religion, which of the following categories were included in the system of "castes" (i.e. varnas)? (cf. pp. 55-59.) -- Check all that apply.

1. Brahmins. 2. Kshatriyas. 3. Vaishyas. 4. Shudras.

Why does Huston Smith think we should take religion seriously, pp. 8-9?

1. For the religious, religion tends to give coherence and focus to all our different concerns. 2. Religion challenges the individual to the highest adventure they can undertake. 3.Religion is the opening through which the inexhaustible energies of the cosmos, enter human life.

According to the textbook, ch. 1, pp. 62, which of the following names refer to God under the aspects of Creator, Preserver, and Destroyer?

1.Brahma the Creator 2.Vishnu the Preserver 3.Shiva the Destroyer

Which of the following aspects are involved within the Hindu concept of "Brahman," as used in the sentence "Atman is Brahman"? Check all that apply, but do not check anything that does not apply.

1.Infinite being. 2.Infinite consciousness. 3.Infinite bliss.

What is included in the textbook's description of the "stages of life" in Hinduism? Check all that apply.

1.Married householder. 2.Student/apprentice. 3.Retirement from social obligation. 4.Becoming sannyasin.

According to Huston Smith's explanation and illustration of 'li', which of the following relationships belong to the "Five Constant Relationships" in Confucian thought?

1.Parent and child. 2.Husband and wife. 3.elder friend and junior friend. 4.Ruler and subject.

According to Hinduism, what are the "ends of human life"?

1.Social success: wealth, fame, power. 2.The good of the community. 3.Pleasure. 4.Social success: wealth, fame, power. 5.The good of the community. 6.Liberation from one's apparent infinitude.

Which of the following, are names for certain more or less unified collections of sacred writings within the tradition(s) of Hinduism, written down at various times?

1.The Vedas. 2.The Upanishads. 3.The Bhagavad Gita, within the Mahabharata.

Which of the following methods, figure(s) in "bhakti yoga," the discipline of Devotion? Pick the best answer.

1.The worship of one's chosen ideal. 2. Japam -- the practice of repeating the name of the 3.deity, so they will be present. 4.Ringing the changes on love. 5. The worship of one's chosen ideal.

When did Confucius's texts become the basis for the training of all government officials in China? (Huston Smith, The World's Religions, 187)

130 BCE

According to Huston Smith's explanation of Confucius's idea of 'Wen,' which of the following, best illustrates the Confucian attitude towards art, literature, and poetry? -- Pick the best answer.

Art, literature and poetry have an indispensable role in creating the Chun-Tzu, the consummate gentleman.

What is the central truth of Hindu religion, the truth which fulfills the last and greatest "end of human life"?

Atman, my deepest self, is Brahman-- i.e. infinite being/consciousness/bliss

In the section called "point of departure," Huston Smith acknowledges that a full history of religions would include documenting the bad, as well as the good: violence, superstition, corruption, etc. -- Why does he choose not to focus on these things?

Because his book is a book about religious values and ideals.

How did Confucius exert the most influence on others in his society?

By teaching well.

What is the term within Hinduism for "duty" as in "obligation"?

Dharma

How does Lord Krishna in his discourse to Arjuna in Bhagavad Gita 3, suggest that we can be free from anxiety?

Do our prescribed duty as a sacrifice to God, without being concerned about the subsequent results of the action.

How does the Hindu text Bhagavad Gita 3, in laying out the principles of Karma Yoga, describe the way that we should worship God through work?

Do right actions as a sacrifice, surrendering the results and not expecting reward

The Bhagavad Gita, from India's national epic the Mahabharata, gives a description of the path of "karma yoga." According to this path, how should we act for the best results?

Do your duty without attachment, i.e. without worrying about the results.

What is the Hindu term for liberation from one's apparent finitude?

Moksha

In the section "impact on China," how does Huston Smith explain how the Confucian "Doctrine of the Mean" would have been applied in society, "until recently"? (pp. 190-191)

Negotiation and mediation being an often-preferred way to resolve disputes.

Which of the following is an important method of "jnana yoga," the discipline through knowledge? (pp. 29-32). Pick the best answer.

Practicing a perspective of detachment from the individual's exclusive, phenomenal, self, so they can see their unity with the godhead.

What is the primary meaning of the Confucian concept of 'li'?

Propriety; the way that things should be done.

What is the end goal of "rajah yoga" as described on p. 49?

Samadhi -- union with God.

Which of the following is the best rendition of the Confucian concept of 'chun-tzu'? (p. 173)

The Mature person

There were social problems faced by society as a whole, during the time when Confucius was alive, due to the "collapse of the Chou Dynasty's ordering power" (Huston Smith, The World's religions, p. 160). What was the label for this time-period in Chinese history, as described by Huston Smith?

The Period of the Warring States.

Given Krishna's characterization of the Atman ("Spirit"), what logically follows?

The Spirit kills not, nor is It killed. It was not born; It will never die, nor once having been, can It cease to be.

Among the sacred writings of Hinduism, which collection probably contains the oldest scriptures?

The Vedas.

What is the best translation of "karma yoga"?

The discipline through action.

What is the best translation of "rajah yoga"?

The discipline through experimentation on the self; the 'royal road' to union with the divine.

What is the best translation of "jnana yoga"?

The discipline through knowledge.

What is the best translation of "bhakti yoga"?

The discipline through love or devotion

In the section "Impact on China," p. 190, what is the Confucian attitude towards old people, as shaped by the idea of the "five constant relationships"?

The older you are, the more respect you should receive.

How does Krishna comment on the reliability of the five senses, in Bhagavad Gita chapter 2? -- Pick the best answer.

The senses deceive us by giving rise to false estimates about what is truly valuable.

What is the main point of the section in Huston Smith's chapter 1, "coming of age in the universe"?

The soul or jiva tastes many different delights as it makes its journey on the round of samsara, but after many lifetimes these delights lose their novelty and the soul moves on to the deeper pleasures of realizing its deep unity with Brahman.

The word "yoga" is cognate with our word, "yoke." -- What is the point of all the different kinds of "yoga" in the religion of Hinduism? (pp. 26ff)?

To help us to see through the illusion of the apparent, limited, exclusive, self, so we can realize (or achieve) "union" with the divine

According to Huston Smith's description of rajah yoga, chapter 1, pp. 41-50, what is the method of rajah yoga?

To use psychophysical exercises on one's self in a concentrated way, to achieve a maximum vivid realization of our own infinite depths.

What was Confucius's alternative answer to the problem of social chaos? (pp. 167ff)

Tradition; deliberate and critical appropriation of social custom.

What was the Mohists' answer to social chaos? (Huston Smith, The World's Religions, p. 166).

Universal love.