INTRODUCING WORLD RELIGIONS
Victoria Kennick Urubshurow
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INTRODUCING WORLD RELIGIONS
Victoria Kennick Urubshurow
Table of Contents List of Illustrations. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . ix Notes to Illustrations. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . xix Preface. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . xxiv Religions in Our World Today . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . xxiv A Word about Problematic Terms. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . xxv Editorial Formalities. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . xxvi Chapter enhancements . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . xxvii
Approaching Religious Traditions. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1 The Insider-Outsider Challenge . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2 Two Approaches to the Study of Religions. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3 A Religionist Primer . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6 Reductionist Warnings . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9 Three Functions of Religion in Society . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10 Roots of the Modern Study of Religions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 11 Cultural Imperialism and “World Religions”. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 15 The Fallout from Colonialism. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 16 Subtle Erasures. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 17 The East-West Diptych. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 18 Defining Religion . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 19 Drama: A Root Metaphor for World Religions. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 19 Players in the Drama of World Religions. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 20 The Religious Texture of World Religions. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 23 Meaningful Performance in World Religions. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 24
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Expressive Traditions of Oceania, America and Africa. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 31 Lived Time: Ceremonial Gardening. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 35 Lived Place: Aboriginal Dreaming. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 38 Lived Object: Maori Tatoos . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 40 Donation: Sioux Sun Dance. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 42 Restoration: Navajo Sandpainting . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 45 Enactment: Mexican Identity. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 48 Symbolization: Candomblé Dance. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 51 Transformation: Dagara Initiation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 55 Accession: Fon Divination. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 57 Transmission: The Lion King Story. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 58 Between Old and New . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 61
Zoroastrian Tradition . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 66 Part One: Zoroastrian Players. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 68 The Ultimate Principle. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 68 Imaginal Players. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 68 Exceptional Players. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 71 Historical Players . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 76 Part Two: Zoroastrian Texture . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 82 Foundational Texture . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 82 Supportive Texture. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 84 Cross-over Texture. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 85 Part Three: Zoroastrian Performance. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 86 Living a Sacred History . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 86
Judaic Tradition . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 92 ii
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Part One: Judaic Players. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 95 The Ultimate Principle. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 95 Imaginal Players. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 96 Exceptional Players. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 98 Historical Players . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 108 Part Two: Judaic Texture. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 123 Foundational Texture . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 123 Supportive Texture. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 125 Cross-over Texture. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 126 Part Three: Judaic Performance . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 128 Jewish Ritual Life. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 128 A Living Tradition. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 136
Christian Tradition . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 141 Part One: Christian Players. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 144 The Ultimate Principle. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 144 Imaginal Players. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 144 Exceptional Players. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 146 Historical Players . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 154 Part Two: Christian Texture . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 175 Foundational Texture . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 175 Supportive Texture. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 179 Cross-over Texture. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 181 Part Three: Christian Performance. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 185 The History of Icons. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 185 Byzantine Sacred Art . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 187
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Islamic Tradition . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 196 Part One: Islamic Players. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 199 The Ultimate Principle. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 199 Imaginal Players. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 200 Exceptional Players. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 201 Historical Players . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 208 Part Two: Islamic Texture. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 225 Foundational Texture . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 225 Supportive Texture. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 229 Cross-over Texture. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 234 Part Three: Islamic Performance. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 235 Makkah: The Holy City . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 235 The Five Pillars of Islam. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 238
Bahá’í Tradition . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 249 Part One: Bahá’í Players. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 251 The Ultimate Principle. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 251 Imaginal Players. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 252 Exceptional Players. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 253 Historical Players . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 258 Part Two: Bahá’í Texture . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 264 Foundational Texture . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 264 Supportive Texture. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 267 Cross-over Texture. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 267 Part Three: Bahá’í Performance. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 268
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Life According to the Bahá’í Calendar. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 268
Jain Tradition . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 273 Part One: Jain Players. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 275 The Ultimate Principle. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 275 Imaginal Players. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 277 Exceptional Players. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 278 Historical Players . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 281 Part Two: Jain Texture . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 285 Foundational Texture . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 285 Supportive Texture. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 289 Cross-over Texture. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 291 Part Three: Jain Performance. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 292 The Ritual of Holy Death: Saṃlekhanā . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 292 Rituals of a Holy Life: Pious Action. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 296
Buddhist Tradition . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 299 Part One: Buddhist Players. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 302 The Ultimate Principle. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 302 Imaginal Players. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 302 Exceptional Players. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 304 Historical Players . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 315 Part Two: Buddhist Texture . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 332 Foundational Texture . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 332 Supportive Texture. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 341 Cross-over Texture. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 343 Part Three: Buddhist Performance. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 347
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Hindu Tradition . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 355 Part One: Hindu Players. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 358 The Ultimate Principle. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 358 Imaginal Players. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 361 Exceptional Players. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 366 Historical Players . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 371 Part Two: Hindu Texture. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 384 Foundational Texture . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 384 Supportive Texture. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 387 Cross-over Texture. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 394 Part Three: Hindu Performance . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 396 Encountering the Divine Through “Pilgrimage” . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 396 “Making Perfect” This Life. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 402
Sikh Tradition . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 407 Part One: Sikh Players . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 411 The Ultimate Principle. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 411 Imaginal Players. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 412 Exceptional Players. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 412 Historical Players . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 427 Part Two: Sikh Texture. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 432 Foundational Texture . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 432 Supportive Texture. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 435 Cross-over Texture. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 436 Part Three: Sikh Performance. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 438 Contemplating the Divine Name . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 438
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Chinese Traditions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 446 Part One: Daoist and Confucian Players. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 449 The Ultimate Principle. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 449 Imaginal Players. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 450 Exceptional Players. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 453 Historical Players . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 456 Part Two: The Texture of Chinese Traditions. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 474 Foundational Texture: Confucian Tradition. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 474 Supportive Texture: Confucian Tradition. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 479 Foundational Texture: Daoist Tradition . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 482 Supportive Texture: Daoist Tradition. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 486 Cross-over Texture. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 487 Part Three: Performance in Chinese Traditions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 488 Divination in the Book of Changes. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 488
Shintō Tradition . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 500 Part One: Shintō Players. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 502 The Ultimate Principle. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 502 Imaginal Players. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 503 Exceptional Players. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 505 Historical Players . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 506 Part Two: Shintō Texture . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 521 Foundational Texture . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 521 Supportive Texture. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 527 Cross-over Texture. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 528 Part Three: Shintō Performance. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 531
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Purity and Communion in Shintō Ritual. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 531
The Challenge of Religion . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 536 A Challenge from Your Author. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 537 The Wheel of Faiths. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 542 Parting Words. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 547
Glossary. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 548 Bibliography . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 596
ISBN 978-0-980-1633-0-8
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List of Illustrations Boxes: A Spiritual Path 2.3 Preserving cultural memories 3.3 Four Zoroastrian values 4.3 The life cycle in Judaic tradition 5.3 The Christian Sacraments 6.3 The Ṣūfī path of seven valleys 7.2 The four valleys 8.4 Vows for a Jain layperson 9.4 The Noble Eightfold Path 10.2 The varṇa-āśrama-dharma 11.4 Taking hukam 12.4 Tai-ji quan 13.4 Japanese aesthetics Boxes: Culture Contrast 1.1 Culture Contrast: A debt to the European Enlightenment 2.1 Culture Contrast: The world stage in 1500 CE 3.1 Culture Contrast: Indo-European traditions 4.1 Culture Contrast: Scriptural parallels from the ancient Near East 5.2 Culture Contrast: Rivals to early Christianity: Religion in the Roman Empire 6.2 Culture Contrast: Aristotle and the medieval scholastic philosophers 7.4 Culture Contrast: Three new religions 8.1 Culture Contrast: Three views of karma 9.3 Culture Contrast: Crossing the Silk Routes: China meets India
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10.1 Culture Contrast: Who were the Āryans and Harappāns? 11.1 Culture Contrast: Religious devotion in medieval north India 12.1 Culture Contrast: The development of Chinese religions 13.1 Culture Contrast: The Japanese Shintō identity Boxes: Interpretations 2.2 Obstacles to understanding oral cultures 3.2 When did Zarathushtra live? 4.2 Biblical criticism 5.1 Search for the historical Jesus 6.1 The Qur’ān and Islamic cosmology 7.3 Progressive revelation 8.3 Three Jain principles 9.2 Advice on learning 10.4 The meaning of “cow” and “horse” 11.3 “Finding” women in history 12.2 How honest and thoughtful was Confucius? 13.2 The kokugaku way to read 14.1 Atheism and mysticism Boxes: Symbols 2.4 A weekly cycle of orishas in Candomblé 3.4 Symbols of initiation 4.4 The Pesaḥ Seder 5.4 Was Jesus ugly? 6.4 Symbols of the ḥajj
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7.1 Bahá’í symbolism 8.2 Sacred images in the Jain tradition 9.1 Māra’s challenges 10.3 The five sheathes 11.2 The Five K symbols 12.3 Yin and yang 13.3 The presence of kami in Japanese life Figures 14.1 The Wheel of Faiths: what can we learn from each other? Plates 1.1 Gaṇeśa, a Hindu deity 1.2 Shoes 1.3 Baruch Spinoza 1.4 William Shakespeare 2.1 Muriwai Hei inspects her father Hohepa’s new moko, or facial tattoo 2.2 Australian Aboriginal people with Thomas Baines 2.3 A classic moko design 2.4 Prayer 2.5 Sun Dance pledgers 2.6 Navajo sandpainting 2.7 African-Indian art 2.8 Xiuhtecuhtli, turquoise god of the Aztecs 2.9 La Malinche and Hernán Cortés (ca. 1585) 2.10 Three Candomblé priestesses of Gantios, Salvador da Bahia, Brazil
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2.11 Witch doctor 2.12 Mansa Musa, ruler of the Mali Empire 2.13 Octavio Paz 3.1 Portrait of Zarathushtra with Fravahar 3.2 Cyrus the Great 3.3 The birth of Jesus and three magi 3.4 Prophet Mani 3.5 A Zoroastrian altar in Yazd 3.6 Three Good things 3.7 Zoroastrian initiation ritual 3.8 The ‘fire of Verethraghna’ in Yazd 4.1 Prophet Elijah 4.2 Tree of Life 4.3 An early tetragrammaton 4.4 King David 4.5 Cedar tree 4.6 Jerusalem Temple 4.7 A Samaritan with Torah scroll 4.8 Shabbetai Tzevi 4.9 Moses Mendelssohn 4.10 Solomon’s Wall Jerusalem 4.11 Braided ḥallah 4.12 Passover feast 4.13 Waving the Four Species
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4.14 Wedding canopy in an American synagogue 5.1 Black Madonna 5.2 El Duomo, cathedral of Milan 5.3 The Four Evangelists 5.4 Apostle Paul 5.5 Right hand of Constantine 5.6 Onouphrios, an Egyptian hermit (ca. 400 CE) 5.7 Giotto’s Legend of Saint Francis: Institution of the crib at Greccio 5.8 Burning Jan Hus at the stake 5.9 Martin Luther 5.10 Jean Calvin 5.11 Archbishop Desmond Mpilo Tutu 5.12 Judith slaying Holofernes 5.13 Mary Magdalene, as seen through the eyes of Titian (ca. 1565) 5.14 A Russian icon of Jesus 6.1 Facing Makkah in prayer 6.2 A Christian monk greets the young Muḥammad 6.3 Prophet Muḥammad’s Night Journey 6.4 The mosque of ‘Umar in Bethlehem 6.5 Shī‘ī men pray in Iraq 6.6 Aristotle teaching a Muslim philosopher 6.7 The British Empire in 1921 6.8 Malcolm X 6.9 A ninth century page from the Qur’ān
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6.10 Whirling dervishes from Turkey 6.11 Shahādah 6.12a and b Muslim prayer postures 6.13 The Ka’bah at Makkah 7.1 Ring stone symbol 7.2 Bahá’u’llah’s exile 7.3 Photograph of ‘Abdu’l-Bahá 7.4 Upper terrace of Bahá’í Gardens in Haifa, Israel 7.5 Revelation writing 7.6 The Greatest Name 7.7 Bahá’í nine-pointed star 8.1 The Thousand-hooded Pārśvanātha 8.2 Queen Triśalā’s dream-visions 8.3 The Nandyāvarta 8.4 Jain nuns meditating in Vṛndāvana 8.5 The sacred syllable AUṂ 8.6 Mahāvīra 8.7 A Jain symbol 9.1 Tārā icon cartoon 9.2 “The earth is my witness.” 9.3 Śāriputra 9.4 Gautama’s Parinirvāṇa 9.5 Aśoka Maurya 9.6 Guan-yin, the Chinese Avalokiteśvara
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9.7 Bodhidharma 9.8 Shingon maṇḍala 9.9 Milarepa 9.10 Two peace activists 9.11 Nuns in Yangon, Myanmar 9.12 OṂ MAṆI PADME HŪM 9.13 The fasting mahaśramaṇa 9.14 MU! 10.1 Khyber Pass 10.2 Ardhanārīśvara, the Half-woman Lord 10.3 Goddess Kālī 10.4 A modern renunciate (Kathmandu, Nepal) 10.5 The seven cakras 10.6 Madhva 10.7 Hanumān, servant of Rāma 10.8 Ānandamāyī Mā 10.9 AUṂ, the cosmic sound 10.10 Viṣṇu sleeps on the serpent of eternity 10.11 Kaśyapa’s pose 10.12 Lord Rāma and his companions 10.13 Bāla (baby) Krṣṇa with his mother 10.14 Krṣṇa and the gopīs in Vṛndāvana, on the banks of the Yamunā 11.1 Emperor Aurangzeb’s grave 11.2 Gurū Nānak
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11.3 The Golden Temple (Harimandir Sāhib) 11.4 Emperor Jahāṇgīr preferring a Ṣūfī shaykh to kings 11.5 The Sikh Gurūs 11.6 Gurū Nānak on a journey 11.7 Gurū Arjan dictates Gurū Granth Sāhib to Bhāī Gurdās Bhallā 11.8 Sikh elder reciting gurbāṇī from Gurū Granth Sāhib 12.1 The Jade Emperor 12.2 Reverence to Zao-jun, Lord of the Hearth 12.3 Confucius, Lao-zi, and Gautama (Buddha) 12.4 Baby Lao-zi 12.5 Confucius 12.6 Ticket to Daoist temple in Beijing 12.7 Mao postage stamp 12.8 Restored Confucian tablet 12.9 Ba Gua 12.10 Mencius, the second great Confucian 12.11 Lao-zi 12.12 Gathering the qi of Heaven 13.1 Inari fox 13.2 Japan, a straw culture 13.3 Murasaki Shikibu, the world’s first novelist 13.4 Fumi-e object 13.5 Motoöri Norinaga self-portrait 13.6 Husband-and-wife rocks near Ise
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13.7 Amaterasu emerges from the cave 13.8 Samurai with sword 13.9 Ablution pavillion 14.1 Cover of the Ashram Bhajanavali 14.2 Albertinelli’s The Visitation (1503) 14.3 Religious symbols Tables 0.1 Religions in our world today 2.1 Overview of chapter contents 2.2 Where are they now? 3.1 Amesha Spentas (Holy Immortals) 3.2 Comparison of terms in Zarathushtra’s Gāthās and the Ṛg Veda 3.3 The Avesta 4.1 Attacks on Europe’s Jews during the Middle Ages 6.1 Hierophany and the ḥajj 7.1 Three Religions of the 1800s 7.2 The Bahá’í Calendar 8.1 Living beings according to Jain cosmology 8.2 Jain iconography 8.3 The five main Jain vows 9.1 Realms of saṃsāra 10.1 Viṣṇu’s avatāras 10.2 Depictions of Śiva 10.3 Depictions of Śakti (Devī)
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10.4 The varṇa-āśrama-dharma 10.5 Six Hindu sacred sciences 10.6 Patañjali’s Eight Limbs of Yoga 11.1 Sikh Gurūs: contexts and contributions 12.1 Opening line of the Dao De Jing in English translation 12.2 Verse 4 of the Dao De Jing in English translation 12.3 Symbolism of yin and yang 12.4 Evolution of the eight trigrams in the Book of Changes 12.5 Reading from a sample coin toss 13.1 Japanese New Religions: a sample
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Notes to Illustrations Images retrieved from Wikipedia Commons -- here abbreviated as “WC” --(http://commons. wikimedia.org/), the free media repository of Wikipedia (http://www.wikipedia.org/) are available under the GNU Free Documentation License. The date in parentheses following “WC” indicates when the Image was retrieved from the Web. Then follows the name of the Image (which accords with the file name) as posted on Wikimedia Commons. For example, to retrieve the Image called, “MaoriMoko.png” one should type “http://commons.wikimedia.org/ MaoriMoko.png” into the web address bar, or “MaoriMoko.png” into the search bar made available on any Wikipedia Commons page, and follow the appropriate link. Further information about each image is/was provided on the Wikimedia Commons site. The copyright status of each image from Wikipedia Commons is marked with their recommended tags: {{PD-old}} for works out of copyright where the author has been dead for over 70 years; {{PD-Art}} or {{PD-old}} for photos of old paintings and art out of copyright; {{PD-ineligible}} for trivial work; {{PD-self}} if the uploader and creator releases the rights; {{PD-user|user}} if another user released her or his rights. Some restrictions (noted after pertinent images) were retained by authors who granted permission under the licensing terms of GFDL, cc-by-sa-2.5 (http:// creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/2.5/), Creative Commons Attribution ShareAlike 2.0 or Creative Commons Attribution 2.0 (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/2.0/), and so forth. For example, the status of Wikimedia Commons Image labeled below as “Jesus on cross to step on.jpg {{PD-user|Chris 73}} (cc-by-sa-2.0)” could be more fully described as: “This Wikipedia (http://www.wikipedia.org/) and Wikimedia Commons (http://commons.wikimedia. org/) image is from the user Chris 73 and is freely available at http://commons.wikimedia.org/ wiki/Jesus_on_cross_to_step_on.jpg under the creative commons cc-by-sa 2.5 (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/2.5/) license.” Rights to images not retrieved through Wikimedia Commons [WC] that were lent courtesy of individuals here named have not been released into the public domain. Such images may be subject to copyright restrictions. On the allowability of using faithful reproductions of public domain images see Bridgeman Art Library v. Corel Corp. 1.1 Gaṇeśa, a Hindu deity. Photo: Louisa Gould; 1.2 Shoes. Photo: Victoria K. Urubshurow; 1.3 Baruch Spinoza. WC (2/10/08) BaruchSpinoza.jpg {{PD-old}}; 1.4 William Shakespeare {{PD-old}} From: postcard; 2.1 Muriwai Hei inspects her father Hohepa’s new moko, or facial tattoo. Photo: ©Aaron Smale/IKON; 2.2 Thomas Baines with Australian Aboriginal people. WC (2/10/08) Thomas Baines, Thomas Baines with Aborigines near the mouth of the Victoria River, N.T, 1857.jpg {{PD-Art}}; 2.3 A classic moko design. WC (2/10/08) MaoriMoko.png {{PD-old}}; 2.4 Prayer For strength and visions {{PD-old}} From: Library of Congress cph3a47146r; 2.5 Sun Dance pledgers Sun Dance Pledgers Cheyenne {{PD-old}} From: Library of Congress cph3c06280; 2.6 Navajo sandpainting. WC (2/10/08) Navajo sandpainting.jpg {{PD-old}}; 2.7 African-Indian art WC (2/21/08) GenovaArtigiano africano.jpg. Image created by Rinina25 & Twice25. License: cc-by-sa-2.5; 2.8 Xiuhtecuhtli, turquoise god of the Aztecs. (2/9/08) WC Máscara de Xiuhtecuhtli Cultura AztezaMixteca Ars Summum.JPG {{PD-user|Manuel de Corselas}}; 2.9 La Malinche and Hernán
Notes to Illustrations
Cortes WC (2/21/08) {{PD-old}}; 2.10 Three Candomblé priestesses of Gantios, Salvador da Bahia, Brazil. Photo: Joseph M. Murphy; 2.11 Witch doctor Witch Doctor {{PD-old}} Library of Congress cph3a38873r; 2.12 Mansa Musa, ruler of the Mali Empire WC (2/20/08) Mansa Musa.jpg {{PD-old}}; 2.13 Octavio Paz. WC (2/10/08) Paz0.jpg {{PD-user|Pintorpereza}}; 3.1 Portrait of Zarathushtra with Fravahar {{PD-old}} From: Union Press, Mumbai postcard; 3.2 Cyrus the Great {{PD-old}}; 3.3 The birth of Jesus and three magi {{PD-Art}} From: Mirrors of the Soul: The Ancient Icons of Karelia (2005) La Casa di Matriona, Milan, Italy, ISBN 1904785042; 3.4 Prophet Mani. WC (2/10/08) Mani.jpg {{PD-Art}}; 3.5 A Zoroastrian altar in Yazd. Photo: Bahman Moradian; 3.6 Three Good things. WC (2/10/08) AvestanZoroastrianCreed.jpeg {{PD-user|Khirad}}. Calligraphy by Kurt Singer; 3.7 Zoroastrian initiation ritual. Photo courtesy of Behram Panthaki; 3.8 The ‘fire of Verethraghna’ in Yazd. Photo: Bahman Moradian; 4.1 Prophet Elijah {{PD-Art}} From: Mirrors of the Soul: The Ancient Icons of Karelia (2005) La Casa di Matriona, Milan, Italy, ISBN 1904785042; 4.2 Tree of Life. WC (2/10/08) Tree of Life, Medieval.jpg {{PD-old}}; 4.3 An early tetragrammaton. WC (2/10/08) JHWH.gif {{PD-user|Brave heart}}; 4.4 King David. WC (2/20/08) Dithering algorithms.png Permission GFDL {{PD-self}}; 4.5 Cedar tree {{PD-old}} From: Frank G. Carpenter (1925), The Holy Land and Syria, New York: Doubleday, Page and Co; 4.6 Jerusalem Temple. WC (2/10/08) Jerusalem Ugglan 1.jpg {{PD-old}}; 4.7 A Samaritan with Torah scroll {{PD-old}} From: Frank G. Carpenter (1925), The Holy Land and Syria, New York: Doubleday, Page and Co; 4.8 Shabbetai Tzevi WC (2/20/08) Shabbatai1.jpg {{PD-old}}; 4.9 Moses Mendelssohn {{PD-old}} From: G. T. Bettany (1891), The World’s Religions, NY: The Christian Literature Co; 4.10 Solomon’s Wall Jerusalem. WC (2/14/08) Gerome Western Wall.jpg {{PD-Art}} Artist Jean-Léon Gérôme (1824-1904); 4.11 Braided ḥallah. WC (2/10/08) Challah Braiding.jpg {{PD-user|Yoninah}}; 4.12 Passover feast. {{PD-old}} From: G. T. Bettany (1891), The World’s Religions, NY: The Christian Literature Co.; 4.13 Waving the Four Species. WC (2/10/08) Fourspecies.jpg {{PD-user|Kgyt}}; 4.14 Wedding canopy in an American synagogue. WC (2/14/08) Chupah looks good.jpg {{PD-user|Bachrach44}}; 5.1 Black Madonna {{PD-Art}} From: Dar cypryjskiej Prawoslawnej cerkwi postcard; 5.2 El Duomo, cathedral of Milan {{PD-old}} From postcard; 5.3 The Four Evangelists WC (2/21/08) Karolingischer Buchmaler um 820 001.jpg {{PD-Art (Yorck Project)}}; 5.4 Apostle Paul {{PD-Art}} From: postcard; 5.5 Right hand of Constantine. WC (2/10/08) Hand Constantine Musei Capitolini MC786.jpg {{PD-Art}}; 5.6 Onouphrios, an Egyptian hermit (ca. 400 CE) {{PD-Art}} From: Dar wierzacych Prawoslawnej cerkwi Cypru postcard; 5.7 Giotto’s Legend of Saint Francis: Institution of the crib at Greccio WC (2/21/08) {{PD-Art}}; 5.8 Burning Jan Hus at the stake WC (2/21/08) Burning of jan hus at the stake at council of constance.jpg {{PD-Art}}; 5.9 Martin Luther WC (2/21/08) Martin Luther coloured drawing.jpg {{PD-old}}; 5.10 Jean Calvin WC (2/21/08) Jean Calvin.png {{PD-Art}}; 5.11 Archbishop Desmond Mpilo Tutu WC (2/21/08) GFDL Self-published by user: Elya (Elke Wetzig); 5.12 Judith slaying Holofernes. WC (2/10/08) GENTILESCHI Judith.jpg {{PD-Art}}. 5.13 Mary Magdalene, as seen through the eyes of Titian (ca. 1565) WC (2/20/08) Tizian 009.jpg {{PD-Art (Yorck Project)}}; 5.14 A Russian icon of Jesus {{PD-Art}} From: Mirrors of the Soul: The Ancient Icons of Karelia
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(2005) La Casa di Matriona, Milan, Italy, ISBN 1904785042; 6.1 Facing Makkah in prayer. WC (2/13/08) Nomad prayer.jpg {{PD-old}}; 6.2 A Christian monk greets the young Muḥammad. WC (2/13/08) Muammad-as-youth-meeting-monk-bahira-compendium-persia1315-edin-550.jpg {{PD-Art}}.NOTE: “Muammad”(sic); 6.3 Prophet Muḥammad’s Night Journey. WC (2/13/08) Muhammad 16.jpg {{PD-Art}}; 6.4 The mosque of ‘Umar in Bethlehem WC (2/21/08) BethlehemOmarMosque.jpg {{PD-user|Zero0000}}; 6.5 Shī’ī men pray in Iraq. Photo: Howard LaFranchi III; 6.6 Aristotle teaching a Muslim philosopher. WC (2/13/08) Arabic aristotle.jpg {{PD-Art}}; 6.7 The British Empire in 1921. WC (2/10/08) British Empire 1921.png {{PD-user|Nickshanks}}; 6.8 Malcolm X. WC (2/13/08) Malcolm X NYWTS 2a.jpg {{PD-author|New York World-Telegram and the Sun}}. 6.9 A ninth century page from the Qur’ān. WC (2/14/08) Kufi.jpg {{PD-old}}. 6.10 Whirling dervishes from Turkey. WC (2/13/08) Whirling Dervishes.jpg {{PD-user|A.Garnet2}} (cc-by-sa-2.0) Photo: Tomas Maltby; 6.11 Shahādah. WC (2/13/08) Shahada.svg {{PD-user|Eyrian}}; 6.12a-b Muslim prayer postures {{PD-old}} From: G. T. Bettany (1891), The World’s Religions, NY: The Christian Literature Co; 6.13 The Ka’bah at Makkah. WC (2/10/08) Mecca skyline.jpg {{PDuser|yelm}}; 7.1 Ring stone symbol. WC (2/20/08) Ringstone.jpg {{PD-ineligible}}; 7.2 Bahá’u’llah’s exile. WC (2/14/08) Map iran ottoman empire banishment.png {{PDuser|Jeff3000}} Permission: GFDL,cc-by-sa-2.5; 7.3 Photograph of ‘Abdu’l-Bahá. Photo courtesy of U.S. Bahai National Center; 7.4 Upper terrace of Bahá’í Gardens in Haifa, Israel. WC (2/14/08) Bahai Gardens Upper Terrace.jpg {{PD-user|Mipago}}. Photo: Michael Paul Gollmer, 2003; 7.5 Revelation writing. WC (2/22/08) Revelation-writing.jpg {{PD-old}}; 7.6 The Greatest Name. WC (2/22/08) Greatestname2.jpg {{PD-ineligible}}; 7.7 Bahá’í ninepointed star. (2/14/08) WC Baha’i star.png {{PD-user|QuartierLatin1968}}; 8.1 The Thousand-hooded Pārśvanātha. Photo: Louisa Gould; 8.2 Queen Triśalā’s dream-visions. WC (2/14/08) Kalpa sutra-Jina’s mother dreams c1465.jpg {{PD-old}}; 8.3 The Nandyāvarta. Photo: Louisa Gould; 8.4 Jain nuns meditating in Vṛndāvana WC (2/22/08) License: cc-bysa-2.0. Photo: Claude Renault from Reykjavik, Iceland; 8.5 The sacred syllable AUṂ. WC (2/14/08) A U M.svg {{PD-ineligible}}; 8.6 Mahāvīra. WC (2/9/08) Mahavira.jpg {{PDArt}}; 8.7 A Jain symbol. WC (2/14/08) Jain hand.svg {{PD-user|Elembis}}; 9.1 Tārā icon cartoon {{PD-Art}}; 9.2 “The earth is my witness.” Photo: Kathy Hyndman; 9.3 Śāriputra. {{PD-Art}} Detail from a Tibetan thangka at the Tibetan Buddhist Learning Center, Washington, NJ, USA; 9.4 Gautama’s Parinirvāṇa. WC (2/14/08) Statue of lying Buddha china.jpg {{PD-user|Gveret Tered}}{{GFDL|month=May|year=2007}}; 9.5 Aśoka Maurya. WC (2/14/08) Ashoka2.jpg {{PD-old}}; 9.6 Guan-yin, the Chinese Avalokiteśvara. WC (2/14/08) Liao Dynasty - Guan Yin statue.jpg {{PD-user|Iamunknown}} (cc-by-sa-2.0) Photo: Rebecca Arnett; 9.7 Bodhidharma. WC (2/14/08) BodhidharmaYoshitoshi1887.jpg {{PD-old}} Artist: Yoshitoshi, 1887. Template cannot be used for photographs or film; 9.8 Shingon maṇḍala. WC (2/14/08) Mandala1 detail.jpg {{PD-old}}; 9.9 Milarepa. WC (2/14/08) Milarepa statue.jpg {{PD-user|Sarah Lionheart}} (cc-by-sa-2.0) Photo: Sarah Lionheart; 9.10 Two peace activists. Photo: Victoria K. Urubshurow; 9.11 Nuns in Yangon, Myanmar. (2/14/08) WC YangonNuns. jpg {{PD-user|Doron}}; 9.12 OṂ MAṆI PADME HŪM. Photo: Victoria K. Urubshurow; 9.13
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The fasting mahaśramaṇa. {{PD-Art}}; 9.14 MU! WC (2/14/08) Wu (negative).png {{PDineligible}}; 10.1 Khyber Pass {{PD-reason|no attribution or copyright notice}}From: postcard; 10.2 Ardhanārīśvara, the Half-woman Lord {{PD-reason|no attribution or copyright notice}}From: postcard; 10.3 Goddess Kālī {{PD-reason|no attribution or copyright notice}} From: postcard; 10.4 A modern renunciate (Kathmandu, Nepal). WC (2/14/08) Baba in Kathmandu.jpg {{PD-user|Wen-Yan King }} (cc-by-sa-2.0); 10.5 The seven cakras. WC (2/14/08) Chakras.jpg {{PD-user|Immanuel Giel}}; 10.6 Madhva. WC (2/14/08) Shri Madhvacharya.jpg {{PD-old}}; 10.7 Hanumān, servant of Rāma Photo: Victoria K. Urubshurow; 10.8 Ānandamāyī Mā. WC (2/14/08) Sri Anandamoyi Ma.jpg {{PD-OLD-50}}; 10.9 AUṂ, the cosmic sound. WC (2/14/08) DevanagariAum.svg {{PD-self}}{{PD-user|Amakukha}}; 10.10 Viṣṇu sleeps on the serpent of eternity. Photo courtesy of Vrinda Arangetram; 10.11 Kaśyapa’s pose. Photo courtesy of John Schumacher; 10.12 Lord Rāma and his companions. WC (2/14/08) Lord Ram.jpg {{PD-Art}}; 10.13 Bāla (baby) Krṣṇa with his mother. WC (2/14/08) Ravi Varma-Yashoda adorning Krsna.jpg {{PD-Art}}; 10.14 Krṣṇa and the gopīs in Vṛndāvana, on the banks of the Yamunā. WC (2/14/08) Indischer Maler um 1760 65 001.jpg {{PD-Art (Yorck Project)}}; 11.1 Emperor Aurangzeb’s grave. Photo: Victoria K. Urubshurow; 11.2 Gurū Nānak {{PD-reason|no attribution or copyright notice}} From: postcard; 11.3 The Golden Temple (Harimandir Sāhib). WC (2/22/08) Harmandir Sahib 1.jpg. Photograph taken by Srini G. GDFL (cc-by-sa-2.5,2.0,2.1); 11.4 Emperor Jahāṇgīr preferring a Ṣūfī shaykh to kings. WC (2/10/08) Bichitr - Jahangir preferring a sufi sheikh to kings.jpg {{PD-Art}}; 11.5 The Sikh Gurūs. Photo courtesy of Naridner Singh Kapany; 11.6 Gurū Nānak on a journey. WC (2/10/08) GuruNanakwalking.jpg {{PD-user|NiyaraKhalsa}}; 11.7 Gurū Arjan dictates Gurū Granth Sāhib to Bhāī Gurdās Bhallā. WC (2/10/08) Dictation of the Guru Granth Saheb.jpg {{PD-Art}}; 11.8 Sikh elder reciting gurbāṇī from Gurū Granth Sāhib. Photo: Joginder Kaur, courtesy of Gobind Sadan; 12.1 The Jade Emperor. WC (2/14/08) Jade Emperor.jpg {{PD-Art}}{{PD-ART-LIFE-70}}; 12.2 Reverence to Zao-jun, Lord of the Hearth. {{PD-old}} From: G. T. Bettany (1891), The World’s Religions, NY: The Christian Literature Co; 12.3 Confucius, Lao-zi, and Gautama (Buddha). WC (2/10/08) Confucius Laozi Buddha.jpg {{PD-Art}}; 12.4 Baby Lao-zi. WC (2/14/08) Baby Laozi Qingyanggong Chengdu.jpg {{PD-Art}}; 12.5 Confucius. {{PD-old}} From: G. T. Bettany (1891), The World’s Religions, NY: The Christian Literature Co; 12.6 Ticket to Daoist temple in Beijing. Photo: Vance Hyndman; 12.7 Mao postage stamp. Photo: Victoria K. Urubshurow; 12.8 Restored Confucian tablet. Photo: Vance Hyndman; 12.9 Ba Gua. WC (2/10/08) Ba Gua pósN. png {{PD-user|TarcísioTS}}; 12.10 Mencius, the second great Confucian. WC (2/9/08) Mencius2.jpg {{PD-Art}}; 12.11 Lao-zi. WC (2/14/08) Lao Tzu - Project Gutenberg eText 15250. jpg {{PD-Art}}; 12.12 Gathering the qi of Heaven. Photo courtesy of Nian-zu Li; 13.1 Inari fox. Photo: David Baasch; 13.2 Japan, a straw culture. Photo: David Baasch; 13.3 Murasaki Shikibu, the world’s first novelist. WC (2/10/08) Murasaki Shikibu.jpg {{PD-Art}}. Template cannot be used for photographs or film; 13.4 Fumi-e object. WC (2/14/08) Jesus on cross to step on.jpg {{PD-user|Chris 73}} (cc-by-sa 2.5); 13.5 Motoöri Norinaga self-portrait. WC (2/10/08) Motoori Norinaga self portrait.jpg {{PD-Art}}; 13.6 Husband-and-wife rocks near
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Ise. WC (2/14/08) Meotoiwa wedded rocks.jpg {{PD-user|Zeimusu}}; 13.7 Amaterasu emerges from the cave. WC (2/14/08) Amaterasu cave crop.jpg {{PD-Art}}. Template cannot be used for photographs or film; 13.8 Samurai with sword. WC (2/10/08) Samurai.jpg {{PDArt}}; 13.9 Ablution pavillion. Photo: David Baasch; 14.1 Cover of the Ashram Bhajanavali. From: book cover; 14.2 The Visitation. WC (2/10/08) The Visitation (Albertinelli).jpg {{PDArt}}; 14.3 Religious Symbols. WC (2/22/08) License: Freeware, see “http://artlibre.org/licence/lal/en/”.
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Preface Religions in Our World Today Our world now has around 6.1 billion people on it. Of those almost 85 percent are thought to be religious in some way or other. Table 0.1 shows members of various world religions in terms of their demographic visibility on the planet. Here the religions are named more or less according to current designations in demographic listings. The world religions are listed in descending order of total adherents. Table 0.1 Religions in our world today *
Religions
Daily increase
Total population
% world population
% yearly increase
Christian
69,000
2 billion
33
1.4
Muslim (Islamic)
68,000
1.2 billion
19.6
Hindu
37,000
811 million
13.4
1.7
Chinese folk
10,700
384.8 million
6.4
1.0
Buddhist
10,600
360 million
5.9
1.1
Tribal ethnic
8,200
228.4 million
3.8
1.3
New Religions - Asia
2,800
102.4 million
1.7
1.0
Sikh
1,100
23.3 million