“In thinking about religion, it is easy to be confused about what it is.” (Smart, 1992) To combat this, Smart uses seven dimensions to define common characteristics of religion. Much of what will be explored will fit his dimensions. The practical and ritual dimension can been seen in all three religions through worship and rituals and patterns of behaviour. The latter are those acts that help the believer develop spiritual awareness or ethical insight, such as yoga or meditation in Buddhism and Hinduism. The experiential and emotional dimension of religion explains that religion feeds on human emotions and key events from history to illustrate this is, the enlightenment of the Buddha, or the visions of Muhammad. A person will not follow something without meaning or emotion driving it. The narrative or mythic dimension of religion refers to the use of story telling in religion. Typically, all faiths use stories to illustrate their beliefs or events in history, whether they might be of things to come, or like in this essay, stories of the Buddha, or Muhammad. The use of story telling is important as the stories are often based on accounts of history or documents that have been found. Story telling can enhance the believers faith and are often integrated into rituals. The doctrinal and philosophical dimension of religion talks about the importance of the holy books/ doctrines. Since the doctrines typically have an account of the leaders life, and the leaders are usually educated, believers read the doctrines to gain an insight into the leaders life; and thus strive to become more like them or abide by their teachings. The ethical and legal …show more content…
I will now examine what it means to be religious with a critical enquiry into Buddhism, Hinduism and
Thesis: There are five characteristics of a religion. A religion should include some form of supernatural force or being, it should be practiced by a group of people, the believers of said religion must make sacrifices showing dedication the religion, the religion should contain proofs of how an individual should act, and it should have supernatural beings or forces that intervene in a believer’s
...o de-essentialize and de-Orientalize religious system of Islam, and instead locate it as part of a historical discursive tradition where practices were contested and in flux. This challenges notions of what authentic religious practices are in Theravada Buddhism, and in doing so expands an understanding of what forms can take. For this reason, the work is useful, and highly recommended for an aspiring religious or anthropological scholar.
Buddhism can be indirectly defined by using Ninian Smart’s Seven Dimensions of Religion. Ninian Smart pioneered the idea of secular religious study (Ninian Smart). In 1968, he tried to define religion by defining the shared “dimensions,” or properties, rather than creating a dictionary definition of the word. Initially, there was six dimensions, but in 1998, he updated the list to seven (Smart, Blackboard, Religion 100). The first dimension is ritual and practical, which are the practices directly involving a religion, such as prayer and weekly worship services. The second is an experiential and emotional dimension, which are the emotional experiences of the central figures or the feelings a practitioner gets, such as the mystical feeling of “being born again.” The third is a narrative or mythic dimension, which is the stories within a religion about the events surrounding the creation or important events, such as the stories in the Christian Bible or Islamic Qur’an. The fourth dimension is a doctrinal and philosophical, are the texts or philosophies, which bind its practitioners to a particular view of life, such as the certain actions that lead to a path of salvation. The fifth dimension is ethical and legal, which is a set of ways a practitioner should live their life, which is influenced by the narrative and doctrinal dimensions, such as the several hundred rules within the Judaism or Shari'ah law in Islamism. The sixth is social and institutional, which is the dimension that seeks to capture how a religion is organized by, and interacts with, its practitioners, such as the vast interconnected churches of the Roman Catholics, as well as individual members, such as priests and prophets. The seventh and final dimension material,...
Religions play a crucial role in impacting how adherents live their lives and their understanding of humanities enduring questions of life. Religion is an active system of faith. Christianity is a religion centred on the teachings of Jesus Christ and the bible. A living tradition is one that is active amongst followers in present society. Whereas a dynamic tradition is capable of adapting and amending in order to meet the needs of society. Christianity is formed as a living and dynamic tradition, which is defined by its distinct characteristics. Characteristics include, sacred texts and writings, rituals and ceremonies, beliefs and believers and ethics. Ultimately, Christianity is shaped as a living and dynamic tradition through the characteristics of religion’s impacts on adherents.
Hinduism and Christianity are two religions that have been around for thousands of years. Both of these religions have developed many philosophies on different aspects that can be compared to show their similarities and differences. The Hindu and Christian religion agree on many things. Based on humanity, our society follows some of the rules also because of the religion and laws. From the holy literature, there have been many different concepts that have been pledged but they all are supposed to lead you to the same effects such as a happy, healthy life, contribution to the world around us humans, and some kind of freedom after death. Some of the main subjects that can be reflected upon after learning of the history and fundamentals of these religions are the paths to enlightenment and/or salvation, the style of treating women through religions aspects, and the afterlife. This paper will give an analytic comparison of these two religions relating to the topics.
Ford, Stephen. "Review of Buddhism." Tutorial workshop for Introduction to Religion Class at York University. Toronto. 21 Feb. 2005.
Religion cannot be lived in textbooks, it is about the personal consciousness of those that believe and “their own account of their religion and its relevance in contemporary life” (Fisher, 1996). It is performed, experienced by the individuals living within society and communities. For some it is a sense of hope, to connect with a supreme power, to end the cycle of birth and death, find inner peace and/or a way of life. Traditional understanding of religion through textbooks, television, and internet does provide one with understanding about the religion doctrine and what they believe in. The majority of people will know what religion is when seeing it, for example, a Buddhist Monk sitting cross-legged in meditation. However, it is important to study religion off campus in order to grasp an explanation and a clear understanding of how beliefs change personal lives, how individuals tackle certain situations due to belief for example, Buddhist Monk sitting cross-legged in meditation, but w...
When common practices and experiences are determined amongst world religious leaders, it is offend borrowed from the myths developed by human existence which was written in scripture during archaic times. Traditionally, practices that occurred during historical events are stretched out due to the worldview of individuals. These practices are advanced by personal belief or a natural
Religions of the ancient world were in a state of constant flux. Karl Jaspers states that between the eighth and fourth centuries B.C.E, “great changes took place in all the civilized world” (qtd. in Basham 36), and the great thinkers of these times began thinking independently and individually. Moreover, “after these great thinkers the world was never the same again” (qtd. in Basham 36-37). These times were dubbed the “axial period” (qtd. in Basham 37). The axial religions that emerged during this period were profound and lasting. In fact, the religions discussed in this paper—Judaism, Hinduism, Buddhism, and Christianity—are considered the most practiced religions to do this day. Although these religions have changed over time, their underlying structure remains intact.
Religion is an organized collection of beliefs and cultural systems that entail the worship of a supernatural and metaphysical being. “Religion just like other belief systems, when held onto so much, can stop one from making significant progress in life”. Together with religion come traditions that provide the people with ways to tackle life’s complexities. A subscription to the school of thought of great scholars
For the layman, familiarity with the major religions stems from the stories that are associated with them. Using the narratives that are derived from the sacred texts is the most prominent way in which our society identifies the Western religions. The Jewish tradition is best correlated to stories like the Exodus and the parting of the Red Seas, for example, as are the many tales of the miracles of Jesus connected to Christianity. This essay will present narratives as an easy method of providing the basic groundwork for the Western religious traditions of Judaism, Christianity, and Islam because of their simplicity and easily transmittable nature. Furthermore, narratives impart many of the rules, laws, and moral fundamentals for these faiths, and are used by religious writers as a novel method of initiating discussion or providing a parallel for other narratives.
...e commonalities then portrayed. Not only did these dimensions help in describing the different aspects of religion, but it also shows the significance of the seven parts, and what may be considered important to one religion may be at the bottom of the list for another. When learning about different religions, the seven dimensions help in breaking them down into different categories making it easier to understand what each one is really about. Therefore Smart has made it easier on those who wish to study the complex subject of religion and distinguish differences and similarities amongst them all.
"What is Buddhism? | The Buddhist Centre." What is Buddhism? | The Buddhist Centre. N.p., n.d. Web. 17 Apr. 2014. .
Fort, Andrew O, and Patricia Y Mumme. Living Liberation in Hindu Thought. Albany, NY: State Univerasity of New York Press, 1996.
Most people in the world derive their religious beliefs and traditions from their parents and peer influences. From a religious point of view, “There are many definitions for the term ‘religion’ in common usage. [Broadly defined], in order to include the greatest number of belief systems: ‘Religion is any specific system of belief about deity, often involving rituals, a code of ethics, and a philosophy of life’” (Robinson, 1996). However, in examining Hinduism, it is difficult to label the practices as a religion. This paper will expound upon the Hindu traditions, taking into account the characteristics of sacred elements, their meaning, and significance.