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The “Soul” According to Eastern & Western Religions
The idea of the soul varies widely in religious tradition. While these variations exist, its basic definition is unvarying. The soul can be described as the ultimate internal principle by which we think, feel, and will, and by which our bodies are animated. The soul is seen as the core principle of life or as the essence of a being 1. Views on the permanence of the soul vary throughout religious tradition as well. While some view it as a mortal entity in flux others believe the soul is an immortal and permanent unit. These interpretations vary from time period to time period and between religions. These characteristics of the soul are interpreted differently through an Eastern or Western perspective. In general, Eastern and Western Religions, with the exception of Buddhism, consider the soul to be a permanent entity, which is either reborn or sentenced to a permanent heaven or hell.
Christianity views the soul as the permanent entity within oneself, which is judged by God. The purity of one’s soul decides whether it passes to heaven or hell. Christianity shares this basic belief with both Islam and Judaism which also say heaven or hell is the final resting place of the soul. The Eastern religion, Hinduism, preaches that Atman, or permanent soul, is in every being and is the embodiment of the ultimate divine, Brahman. Buddhism, on the other hand, believes in Anatman, or impermanent soul, because everything in the world ...
Christians. Hindus believe in reincarnation, they believe the soul is immortal and takes birth time
Religion reinforces the beliefs of individuals within a society. Additionally, religion has played a vital role in society since it influenced the way they lived and the rituals they may or may not have practiced. Different regions of the world during ancient time held a distinct set of beliefs, each based on different or similar principals. Deriving from the polytheistic set of beliefs, monotheism came in place of many Gods, holding just one god accountable for the creation and the existence of mankind. Christianity and Buddhism share similarities and differences, but most importantly the impact that each had on the culture is what is mostly referred to.
The spirit within one is eternal, indestructible, and never changes. Because death is inevitable to all creatures, humans have been perplexed with the concept of death and an afterlife for centuries. Once we are deceased, does our soul become confined underground, or does it transcend to a divine world? According to different religious texts, there are different steps one must take in order to reach salvation and the afterlife. Although Genesis text and the Bhagavad Gita originate from two different religions that do not directly address an afterlife, they both speak of the soul and higher entities, which imply a final resting place for the soul that can be achieved through sacrifice, prayer, and devotion; this in return provides
The five Eastern religions of Hinduism, Buddhism, Confucianism, Daoism, and Shinto have some similarities when it comes to the their beliefs on death. Hinduism and Buddhism both believe in karma and reincarnation, while Daoism and Shintoism revolve their beliefs around nature. Confucianism chooses not to focus on things we do not know, so their beliefs on death are limited. In deciphering the different beliefs on death associated with each religion, it is important to understand the different belief systems and their origins. While some religions merged the views of the other religions, some came from the views of an originating founder. Each religion has their own view on life after death and whether or not their followers should be concerned
Religion, “part of the human experience that has to do with a god or gods, a higher power, or the ultimate values of life” (Cason & Tillman 6-7), is one of the most controversial and interesting subjects for humanity. It has been around for as long as anyone can recall and they have difference and similarities in their founders, beliefs, and history. Religion has served to give some sort of a meaning to life and everything around it. In modern society, some religions have grown and expanded significantly. These larger religions have been classified as world religions. In addition, these world religions have been split into two categories known as Eastern and Western religion.
Religion is defined as "the belief in and worship of a superhuman controlling power, especially a personal God" . There are many recognised religions of the world, which all teach its followers to live life "the right way", whose definition varies according to the religion itself. They have some beliefs and practices that distinguish themselves from each other. Some examples are differences and similarities of Buddhism and Islam.
Although Buddhism and Christianity show several parallels, their three key differences are that Buddhists do not believe in one divine being, and have different views about both the purpose of life and the concept of afterlife. Buddhists do not believe in a Supreme Being, God or Creator, though many Buddhists today worship the Buddha - the central figure of Buddhism - and his teachings. They view him as someone with a universal spirit, an essence that can be attained by everyone rather than only a higher deity that rules over the world (Brown). Especially in Mahayana Buddhism, the concept of the Buddha nature is fundamental (“Pure Land”).... ...
Christians, for example, believe that souls that have lived by the words of their God will exist eternally in heaven as divine beings themselves. This conception of an afterlife is generally what we people who are residents of the Unitied States hold to be true. For American culture has its roots in Europe and European culture was and is still influenced by Christian faiths. Similar to Christianity, the Hinduism also eases the fear of death by presenting a life after death. Disimilarities present themselves in the two faiths concerning exactly what kind of afterlife is lived. Believers of the Hindu faith expect to be reincarnated after their demise, either as an animal or human being depending on the manner in which their lives were carried out.
The idea of a soul is an interesting topic; it is either something as people that are comfortable with or are afraid of what will happen to us after death. A soul is supposed to be a spiritual part of a human 's life but, what about religion and other people 's opinion on this topic? The religion that I have decided to look into on what their take on a soul is, Buddhism.
The soul can be defined as a perennial enigma that one may never understand. But many people rose to the challenge of effectively explaining just what the soul is about, along with outlining its desires. Three of these people are Plato, Aristotle, and Augustine. Even though all three had distinctive views, the similarities between their views are strikingly vivid. The soul indeed is an enigma to mankind and the only rational explanation of its being is yet to come and may never arrive.
Now we will compare both Buddhism and Christianity. In the afterlife of Buddhism, they believe that they go to Nirvana to get reincarnated and go into a different body. In Christianity they believe that they go to Heaven or Hell. As in if you're good throughout your life you go to
Though that worldview is a closed system, no miracles are possible. Naturalism is that the universe is composed of merely matter and energy, but to human beings, external reality looks in on two forms, as both subjective and objective. Nihilism is where nothing exists. Reality is a closed system it acts only within itself. Existentialism reality simultaneously both subjective and objective. In Eastern religions, Atman is Brahman that is the sole of each human being and is the soul of the cosmos. It is an external reality. Some things are more One than another. Many roads lead to the One. Reality is beyond personality. New Age is an external reality manifesting itself in two dimensions. A visible universe is accessible within ordinary consciousness,
People in America today seem to be only concerned with them. They are always looking out for number one. That is a saying that has been taught to us for years. Along with another popular precept: you can't please everyone all of the time. These are just a couple of examples of how Americans are taught to be selfish. Sure, mom and dad always teach generosity to their young children, but in this society, those lessons diminish with age. We learn that life isn't always fair and people don't always have to share if they don't want to. In this so-called free country, the rich get everything and the poor get nothing. This type of environment has caused a rat race among the people. He who has the most wins. In America it is for the most money, but there are many other people in the world who might disagree. What would they want the most of? you ask. Well, that depends on whom you ask.
All the six orthodox schools of Indian philosophy admit to thinking of the soul as not only immortal but also as endless. The reasoning of the materialists like Charvakas amounts to this that, however consciousness is unseen in external objects, it develops into manifest in these objects when they form an organism creature.... ... middle of paper ... ...
The Buddhists belief about the afterlife is heavily revolved around the teaching of the process of being reborn and death until nirvana is achieved, and the influence of positive or negative karma. The view is that all things living will continue to live, through rebirth and the continuation of consciousness between various bodies and lives until one has attained nirvana. Each consciousness has been reborn in previous lives and will continue to do so until the entity is able obtain power over the process. This consciousness brings its past karma through each life and dictates which possible realm of existence it could be reborn in to. The Buddha explained that the endless cycle of life, death and rebirth can bring only pain and suffering. All