Actions and morality are considered of secondary importance to the initial act of faith that functions as the basis for these (Miller, 2009).
Christian morality functions on the basis of faith. Like Hindus, Christians honor their connection to the divine by means of actions, but they do not see actions as a pathway to bliss; this is the role of faith. In other words, Christians live morally laudable lives because they are faithful rather than in the hope of gaining anything from this. As such, there is a fundamental separation between actions and their consequences; actions are based upon the connection with the divine, rather than the other way around. Actions, in other words, are the result of faith. Faith paves the way to moral action, rather than action being a vehicle towards bliss (Miller, 2009).

While both Hinduism and Christianity are therefore focused upon morality as divinely inspired and connected,…...

mla

References

Facts for Faith (2002). "Do all Religions Lead to God?" Facts for Faith 52-8. ProQuest Research Library. Web. 27 Nov. 2011.

Fisher, M. (2011) Living Religions, 8th ed. Upper Saddle River: Prentice Hall.

Miller, L. (2009). "We are all Hindus Now." Newsweek Aug 31: ProQuest. Web. 27 Nov. 2011.

Hinduism and Buddhism
Historical Context of Hinduism

Ontario Consultants on eligious Tolerance list a number of areas in which Hinduism differs from other more monotheistic religions in that Hinduism does not have the following:

A single founder

A central religious authority

A singles concept of deity

A specific theological system

A single system of morality

The concept of a prophet

They further explain that Hinduism should not be considered a religion in the same way that Christianity is, that Hinduism is more correctly considered to be an all encompassing way of life, in much the same way as Native American spirituality (Hinduism, 2011).

Hinduism is generally considered to be the world's oldest organized religion, consisting of numerous different religious groups that evolved in India since around 1500 BCE. Hinduism ranks as the world's third largest religion, following Christianity and Islam. Hinduism followers make up approximately 14% of the world's population, or about 950 million as of 2004. It is the…...

mla

Reference List

Hinduism: The world's third largest religion. (2011). Religious Tolerance.org Web site. Retrieved June 18, 2011 from  http://www.religioustolerance.org/hinduism.htm 

Fast Facts on Buddhism. (2007). Religion Facts Web site. Retrieved June 18, 2011 from  http://www.religionfacts.com/buddhism/fastfacts.htm 

Flood, G. (2009). History of Hinduism. BBC Web site. Retrieved June 18, 2011 from  http://www.bbc.co.uk/religion/religions/hinduism/history/history_1.shtml 

Gill, N.S. (2011). Siddhartha Gautama's 8-fold path: The rules of Buddhism. Retrieved June 18, 2011 from http://ancienthistory.about.com/od/indusvalleyrel/a/1120098FoldPath.htm

Hinduism is among the world's oldest religion that has no beginning it was there before recorded history. Unlike most other religions, it cannot be linked to a single founder as it is formed from diverse traditions. It is a predominant religion in the Indian subcontinent and is one of its indigenous religions (Sen, 2005) Due to the fact that it cannot be clearly defined and does not have rigid guidelines various forms of religious expressions coexist in Hinduism. It is actually a way of life since there are no set customs or rituals that make a person a Hindu if followed. It has four main denominations or sects which are Saivism, Shaktism, Vaishnavism and Smartism.
Beliefs

Within Hinduism there is the belief of a supreme God whose qualities are represented by deities which emanate from him. The Supreme Being is all-pervasive that is both immanent and transcendent and is also the creator…...

mla

References

Shattuck, C.T. (1999). Hinduism. London: Routledge.

Sen, K.M. (2005). Hinduism. London: Penguin. (Chapter1 and 2)

Kumar, V., (2003). Hinduism Beliefs: Facts About Hinduism. Retrieved October 15, 2012 from  http://www.godrealized.com/hinduism_beliefs.html 

Pushatak M., (2006).The Philosophy of Hinduism: Four Objectives of Human Life; Dharma (Right Conduct), Artha (Right Wealth), Kama (Right Desire), Moksha (Right Exit (Liberation)

Hinduism, Buddhism, And Jainism
Hinduism is among the world's oldest faiths, and is regarded as a total way of life, or dharma, which evolved by the great sages and seers of ancient India (Hinduism pp). ith traditions dating back before recorded history, the early phase of the Verdic tradition in India is generally dated between 10,000 -- 7,000 BCE. (Hinduism pp). However, in spite of the fact that Hinduism evolved more than 5,000 years ago, it is also very much a living tradition, and thus, Hindus are certainly one of the most intensely religious people in the world (Hinduism pp). India has been a veritable laboratory of religion for thousands of years, with numerous sects emerging, however, the country remains predominantly Hindu (Hinduism pp).

Buddhism is a religion and philosophy that was founded in India around 525 B.C, by Siddhartha Gautama, called the Buddha (Buddhism pp). One of the world's great religions,…...

mla

Work Cited

Jainism. The Columbia Encyclopedia, Sixth Edition; 2/24/2005; pp.

Buddhism. AllRefer.com; pp.

 http://reference.allrefer.com/encyclopedia/B/Buddhism.html 

Hinduism. Spiritual-Path; pp.  http://www.spiritual-path.com/hinduism.htm

The idea of destiny in the Hindu religion is thus related to the religion's purpose, which is to come finally to union with God. Karma and the unending cycle -- samsara -- hold great sway with the Hindus. The entire religion may be viewed from this aspect.

The question and origin of Christian on the other hand comes from the history of Jesus Christ himself, who life story is preserved in the narrative of the New Testament, and predicted in the narrative of the Old Testament. Followers of Christ, who preaches charity above all things (according to the Pauline gospel), strive to live their lives in accordance with the message of salvation, redemption and charity that Christ taught through his life.

By becoming "like Christ" as St. Paul says to do, followers of Christianity can effect for themselves a new identity. Their religion is meant to transform them into better men and…...

mla

Reference List

New Testament. (2011.) Retrieved from http://www.devotions.net/bible/00new.htm

Sikora, J. (2002). Religions of India. Lincoln, NE: Writer's Club Press.

In response to the question of who social order is determined, Lord Krishna said, "Birth is not the cause, my friend; it is virtues which are the cause of auspiciousness. Even a candala observing the vow is considered a brahmana by the gods" (Caste pp). Stated in the Bhagavad Gita, "The fourfold caste has been created by Me according to the differentiation of Guna (attributes) and Karma" (Caste pp).
Hinduism believes in behavior, rather than belief and experience over authority, and recognizes no intermediary or prophet as standing between man and God (Tribute pp). The first principal of Hindu Dharma is that "the Reality is one without a second," and since it is beyond description by human mind, it is indicated by a single word, "Brahman" (Tribute pp). The distinguishing feature of Hinduism is pluralism combined with freedom of choice, one is free to choose, question and reject, even to…...

mla

Works Cited

Tribute to Hinduism: Introduction.  http://www.atributetohinduism.com/introduction_to_hinduism.htm 

Hindu Cosmology.  http://www.atributetohinduism.com/Hindu_Cosmology.htm 

The Caste System.  http://www.atributetohinduism.com/Caste_System.htm#No%20Religious%20Sanction%20in%20Hindu%20Scriptures :

Hindu1 Rituals and Myths. http://www.hindubooks.org/essence_of_hinduism/hindu_rituals_and_myths/page5.htm

The responsibilities of one's current caste also constitute the dharma which will further advance or punish one in your next life. In other words, exceeding one's dharma in not only unnecessary, but in all probability will hurt your dharma, causing you to fall into a lower caste in your next life. This intertwining of social strata with religion creates a fatalism derived from inevitable destiny, guilt complexes of past life caste determination, a philosophy of acceptance, and fear of punishment for transcending one's dharma.. Both religions maintain a broad perspective of religious worship; however,. Hinduism is polytheistic while Buddhism maintains no structured belief in an independent, sentient god-like entity (especially in human form).
Both religions believe in a system of reincarnation, and both religions emphasize the community over the self. The major rift between the two religions seems to stem from the role of social structure in the two religions.…...

mla

References

Smith, Huston. The World's Religions: Our Great Wisdom Traditions. New York: Harper Collins. 1958.

Hinduism as a whole, including its extensive literature, complex rituals, and rich culture, allows its followers to have whatever they want. Of course, this is not as simple as it seems, as many people do not actually understand what they really want. Thus, India has examined this question for centuries, finally listing the four main things that people want.
For starters, people want pleasure. Human beings have a natural tendency to seek pleasure, and are biologically created with pleasure-pain reactors. For this reason, Hinduism does not ask its followers to give up pleasure, as there is a natural impulse to seek it. Still, this does not mean that India allows its people to seek pleasure above all else. "To the person who wants pleasure, India says in effect: Go after it -- there is nothing wrong with it; it is one of the four legitimate ends of life (p. 14)."

However, it…...

Hinduism is a complex and seemingly contradictory religion. It is also a way of life. The key concepts of Karma, The Caste System, the four permissible goals, the ways of salvation, and the infinite manifestations of God combine to create a culture immersed in ritual. Karma binds the belief in the transmigration of the soul and the hope of reaching Moksha (salvation) to right behavior. The Caste System, as delineated in the Vedas 1, serves to stratify society and eventually leads to discrimination and social strife. The Four Permissible Goals of the Hindu Religion "recognize that men naturally and therefore legitimately seek, in the course of many rebirths, four aims in life" (oss, 178). They are pleasure, power, morality, and salvation.2 There are three ways to reach this salvation. These are the Way of Works, the Way of Knowledge, and the Way of devotion.3 Finally, the multiple faces of God…...

mla

Noss, David S. And John B. Noss. Man's Religions. 7th Edition. New York: MacMillan Publishing, 1984.

Noss, David S. A History of Worlds Religions. 10th Edition. New York: Prentice Hall. 1999.

Smith, Huston. The World's Religions, Our Great Wisdom Traditions. San Francisco: Harper. 1991.

Both the Puranas and the Upanishads are important sources of information for the Hindus, with a large number of them having become better acquainted with God as a result of heavy learning.
It is not enough for one to have solid information in Hinduism for the respective person to successfully cross the path to afterlife. Hindus believe that only he that has experience both in knowledge and in ignorance is able to obtain immortality, with the particular person succeeding by crossing death through lack of knowledge and acquiring life after death through understanding. For the Hindus death is not a disaster, at it is only part of a much greater process named Jiva. Reincarnation is not something impossible in Hinduism, as it also is a part of Jiva. The soul is considered to leave the body after death and spend some time recharging its energy in a mysterious place of…...

mla

Works cited:

1. Beck, Guy L. (2006). "Sacred sound: experiencing music in world religions." Wilfrid Laurier Univ. Press.

2. Chandra, Suresh. (1998). "Encyclopaedia of Hindu gods and goddesses." Sarup & Sons.

3. Clooney, Francis Xavier. (2001). Hindu God, Christian God: how reason helps break down the boundaries between religions. Oxford University Press U.S..

Chandra, Suresh. (1998). "Encyclopaedia of Hindu gods and goddesses." Sarup & Sons.

Hinduism Is and hat it Is Difficult to Reconstruct a Historical Chronology of Its Development
It is a fairly simple matter to identify the precise point of origin of many of the world's major religions; for example, the origins of Buddhism, Christianity and Islam can be historically placed with some degree of accuracy because of the known historical personages associated with their creation (Zaehner 1307). By sharp contrast, the origins of the world's most ancient religions such as Hinduism and Judaism have largely been lost in the mists of time, but this has not impacted the popularity of this religion today or the efforts of researchers to shed more light on their origins (Kelkar & Vaishnav 24). To this end, a brief overview of Hinduism is provided below, followed by an assessment of why it is particularly difficult to reconstruct a historical chronology of its development. A summary of the…...

mla

Works Cited

Brockington, J.L. The Sacred Thread: Hinduism in Its Continuity and Diversity. Edinburgh:

Edinburgh University Press, 1981.

Doniger, Wendy and Brian K. Smith. "Hinduism." In Encyclopedia Britannica, Vol. 8.

Encyclopedia Britannica.

Hinduism religion is a complex set of principles that encompass the following nine basic beliefs: The divinity of the Vedas (ancient scripture) and the Agamas (primordial hymns), which are God's word; the belief in one Supreme eing which is transcendant; the belief that the universe experiences constant cycles of creation, preservation, and dissolution; the belief that karma creates a person's destiny through personal thoughts, words and actions; the belief that the soul reincarnates until liberation from the cycle has been achieved; the principle that divine beings exist in worlds beyond Earth; the belief that a satguru (spiritual master) is essential to fulfill all aspects of being; and that all religions are paths to God and deserve respect (http://www.beliefnet.com/story/26/story_2656_1.html).
Furthermore, all Hindu followers must fulfill five basic obligations, including daily worship (upasana), Holy days (utsava), virtuous living (dharma), pilgrimage (tirthayatra), and rites of passage (samskara) to be considered true to their…...

mla

Bibliography

Brekke, Torkel. "The Conceptual Foundation of Missionary Hinduism." The Journal of Religious History 23.2 (1999): 203-214.

Hinduism. 28 July 2003.  http://www.culturopedia.com/Religions/Hinduism.html 

Hinduism. 28 July 2003  http://www.encyclopedia.com/printable.asp?url=ssi/section/Hinduism_earlyhinduism.html 

Sivanda, Sri Swami. Jnana Yoga. 28 July 2003  http://www.sivanandadlshq.org/teachings/jnanayoga.htm

The practice of Yoga, and its focus on increasing the body's prana through awakening of chakras, or spiritual centers within the body, is also common in Hinduism. Many also share a common belief in an earth goddess who rules over our lives. Over fifty million Hindus are said to worship a variety of the goddess.
Several Hindu traditions explain the importance of rising above the physical world. The Purusha is the pure self, "which is eternally wise, pure, free, beyond change, beyond cause," (76). The ideal self is later tainted through its relationship to the Prakriti, or the physical world. Many believe that all of human suffering comes from man's confusion between the two. When one is too comfortable in the physical world, "we, too, are like gods who forget the heights from which we came, so intent are we on the joys and sorrows of earthly life," (76). Many…...

mla

Bibliography

Put the info of the work faxed here. I could not see any author or publication information.

Sanatana dharma or Hinduism - Information Portal." Dharma.com. Found on November 17, 2007 at  http://dharma.indviews.com

eing kind to a stranger would give the person good Karma, while being cruel to an animal would be bad Karma. Karma can also cause good or bad things to happen to a person during their life on Earth.
What are the cultural and societal influences that have made Hinduism vital to the region in which it originated?

Hinduism is so important to Indian culture because it is so old, dating back 5,000 years. The most important scriptures for the Hindu religion, the hagavad Gita, or Song of the Lord, dates back to 3,000 C. It teaches that devotion to God is the highest level of worship. ecause God is everywhere around the person, anything the person does, if done with devotion to God, pleases God. This caused the religion to infuse every day life

Explain the desire for liberation from earthly existence.

The highest goal for a Hindu is for its soul…...

mla

Bibliography

Atkinson, Glennis. 2003. "Basic Hindu Beliefs." The Hutchinson Encyclopedia, 2003.

Subramuniyaswami, Satguru Sivaya. 2000. "Nine Questions: Hinduism, with its ritual and philosophical richness, naturally arouses questions from curious non-Hindus. Do you have good answers?" Hinduism Today, June 30.

Hinduism)
The notion of Dharma is a primary concept in Hinduism. Dharma, or the Dharmic conduct, can be understood as a code of conduct of a person's life, guided by the morals, principles and discipline of spirituality. Hinduism describes it as the natural laws of the universe, which if observed properly, provide followers happiness and keeps them away from suffering. Its purpose is to present to the people a way of conducting their lives to enjoy the worldly joys and happiness, while also attaining a union with the soul spiritually. In lay man terms, Dharma can be seen as playing a role in a play. If the character performs his/her duties according to the script, then the play goes well, but if he/she doesn't, then the play is a failure. Similarly, if everything in the universe follows its Dharma, then the universe operates smoothly. If not, then everything in the…...

mla

Bibliography

Narayan, R.K. The Ramayana: A shortened modern prose version of the Indian epic. New York: Penguin Books, 1995.

I. Introduction
A. Definition of life after death
B. Brief overview of different beliefs and explanations
C. Thesis statement: Despite varying beliefs, there is no concrete evidence of life after death

II. Religious beliefs
A. Christianity
1. Belief in heaven and hell
2. Resurrection of the body
B. Islam
1. Belief in an afterlife
2. Reckoning of deeds on Judgement Day
C. Hinduism
1. Concept of reincarnation
2. Karma and rebirth

III. Scientific perspectives
A. Near-death experiences
1. Accounts of individuals who claim to have seen a glimpse of the afterlife
2. Criticism of NDEs as....

I. Introduction
- Hook: Religion has long been a source of fascination for humanity, offering a system of beliefs and practices that often involve a higher power.
- Thesis statement: Through exploring the diverse perspectives and practices of different religions, one can gain insight into the complexities and significance of this concept.

II. Definition of Religion
- Explanation: Religion is a cultural system of beliefs, practices, and moral values that guides individuals in understanding their place in the world and their relationship to a higher power or the divine.
- Examples: Christianity, Islam, Buddhism, Hinduism, Judaism, etc.

III. The Role of Religion in Society
- Explanation: Religion....

I. Introduction
A. Definition of fasting
B. Brief explanation of the importance of fasting in various cultures and religions
C. Thesis statement: Fasting can have physical, mental, and spiritual benefits when done properly

II. Physical Benefits of Fasting
A. Weight loss and improved metabolism
B. Detoxification of the body
C. Improved digestive health

III. Mental Benefits of Fasting
A. Increased mental clarity and focus
B. Improved mood and emotional well-being
C. Increased self-discipline and willpower

IV. Spiritual Benefits of Fasting
A. Increased spiritual awareness and connection
B. Enhanced sense of gratitude and humility
C. Fasting as a form of spiritual growth and self-reflection

V.....

1. The concept of an afterlife in different religions and belief systems
2. Near-death experiences: are they evidence of life after death?
3. The impact of belief in an afterlife on how people live their lives
4. Scientific perspectives on the possibility of life after death
5. The role of reincarnation in various cultures and religions
6. The idea of heaven and hell in different religious traditions
7. How different cultures view death and the afterlife
8. The ethics of euthanasia and how it relates to beliefs about life after death
9. Personal experiences of individuals who claim to have communicated with the dead
10. The relationship between beliefs....