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Brief description of world religions

Introduction

1. World religions

1.1 Christianity

1.1.1 Orthodoxy

1.2 Catholicism

1.3 Islam

1.4 Sunism

1.5 Shiism

1.6 Buddhism

1.6.1 Lamaism

1.7 Zen Buddhism

Conclusion

List of sources used

Introduction

Polytheism was replaced by monotheism (monotheism is a religion based on the belief in one and all-powerful God). Ancient Jewish monotheism is the only religious faith for its polytheistic time, the time of the early forms of religious consciousness, recognizing God as one and making the unity of God the main religious principle.

The transition to monotheism occurred gradually, as Judaism, Christianity and Islam, three strictly monotheistic religions, emerged and spread. They replace the early forms of the religious consciousness of many peoples, magical religions, which are now declared pagan (paganism is religious beliefs that do not imply the existence of a single God and include a wide variety of religious practices). The ancient beliefs of the Greeks and Romans, Egyptians and Arabs die with the adoption of Christianity and Islam by these peoples. The religions of the great civilizations of Latin America disappeared with the peoples of those civilizations, as did the religious beliefs of the Sumerians, Babylonians and others. Only Zoroastrianism and the religious beliefs of the ancient Indians and Chinese have survived to this day, which became an integral part of their later national religions.

1. World religions

1.1 Christianity

World religions - a term that is used in relation to Buddhism, Christianity, Islam, they are characterized by supranationalism, cosmopolitanism, the idea of equality of all people, propaganda activity. As they developed, in specific historical conditions, various areas of world religions acquired an ethnic coloring.

Christianity is one of the world's religions, based on faith in God the Father, the Creator of the world and man, in his Son Jesus Christ and the Holy Spirit, united in the Trinity; faith in the redemption of sins, the resurrection of the dead and life in the Kingdom of God. Christianity originated in Palestine in the 1st century AD. originally as a religion of the inhabitants of the Roman province of Judea, who expected the imminent arrival of the messiah and the end of the world. Eschatological sentiments were widespread not only in the Jewish community of the Essenes, but also among other Jews.

The emergence of Christianity is directly related to the teaching and preaching activities of Jesus of Nazareth - Jesus Christ ("Christ" - the Greek translation of the Hebrew "mashiach", messiah, anointed one). His disciples and followers began to be called Christians.

The sacred texts of Christians - the books of the Old and New Testaments (Bible - Greek "book") - Holy Scripture. Sacred Tradition of Christians - the works of the fathers of the early Christian Church, the decisions of the ecumenical councils. The Bible is the holy book of Christians, consisting of the Old Testament and the New Testament. In total, including the non-canonical books of the Old Testament, the Bible has 77 books. The Old Testament is the history of the path of the Jewish people to the promised land and the history of the great deeds of God, the history of the conclusion of a covenant, union with God. The New Testament was proclaimed by Jesus Christ. He does not cancel the Old, but completes it, fulfills all the Old Testament prophecies, so that the fullness of times will come when God will be able to carry out Judgment on sinners and the righteous and stop history. The New Testament consists of 27 books: 4 Gospels (gospel - Greek - good news), testifying to the mission of Jesus Christ and written, according to legend, by his disciples - the apostles, Acts of the Apostles, 21 Epistles of the Apostles, Revelation of John the Theologian (Apocalypse).

The Gospels are early Christian texts that contain the life of Jesus Christ and his teachings. From the Gospels it follows that Jesus Christ, the Son of God, was born of the Virgin Mary, betrothed to the carpenter Joseph. Mary conceived miraculously by the Holy Spirit. Joseph and Mary fled to Egypt from the persecution of King Herod and then returned to Galilee. Jesus Christ was baptized by John the Baptist. According to the Bible, after baptism, "Jesus was led by the Spirit into the wilderness to be tempted by the devil." Having endured all the trials, Jesus began his ministry. Preaching his teaching, Christ called the first disciples, worked miracles. He gathered around him 12 disciples - the apostles. Jesus denounced the Pharisees (Pharisees - representatives of the socio-religious movement in Judea in the 2nd century BC - 1st century AD) that they replaced the spirit of the Law with the letter of the Law and fell into hypocrisy. In Jerusalem, he was betrayed by one of his disciples Judas for 30 pieces of silver to the authorities. The Jewish court, accusing him of proclaiming himself king of the Jews, sentenced him to death. The Roman governor Pontius Pilate approved this sentence, and Jesus Christ was crucified on the cross and then buried. According to eyewitnesses, on the third day he resurrected and appeared to his disciples, who since then themselves began preaching in order to convert as many peoples as possible to Christianity. Christians believe that the day of the second coming of Jesus Christ and the Last Judgment will come, at which the righteous - true Christians - will be separated from sinners. The latter are destined to burn in hell forever.

At first, the followers of Jesus Christ were relatively few in number and were not organized. The early Christian communities did not yet know the dogma and cult of later Christianity. The communities did not have special places for worship, they did not know the sacraments. Even then it was common for all communities: faith in the mission of Jesus Christ, in the fact that his voluntary atoning sacrifice - death on the cross - abolished the sin of the first man Adam and, thereby, opened before humanity and every person the possibility of salvation and resurrection after the Last Judgment for eternal life.

The idea of original sin and the falling away of people from God calls people to repentance, liberation from original sin through baptism and return to God through faith and love; it is not for nothing that Christianity is called the religion of love. The God-Man-Savior, who atoned for the sins of mankind and saved them, founded the doctrine, following which a person gains eternal life with God in the Kingdom of Heaven. Christianity does not divide people into rich and poor, free and slaves, Hellenes and Jews, it is universal in essence, since Christ redeemed all people. Faith in Christ, following His commandments, the main of which is the commandment of love - this is the basis of Christian doctrine. Christians believe that justice is achievable in this world, and the Kingdom of God begins already here, on Earth, in the hearts of people in their actions aimed at repentance, love for one's neighbor, striving for peace. People who believe in Christ do not value the treasures of this world, they strive to lead a righteous life, to realize the talents received from the Lord as a gift. cultivate in true and not ostentatious piety.

In the first years of Christianity, there were scattered Christian communities, in which preachers stood out who did not have a spiritual dignity. Then there are three degrees of initiation that exist in Christianity to this day: deacon, presbyter (priest), bishop. There are no other degrees of initiation in Christianity.

The presbyters of the communities (elders) become their priests. Metropolitans appear - leaders of church regions, patriarchs - priests, heading large regional church associations. The priests of the Christian Church, having passed the sacrament of ordination, acquire apostolic succession for life, coming from the Apostle Peter, the first bishop of the city of Rome. The Apostle Peter received it from Jesus Christ himself, as evidenced by the Gospels. Apostolic succession is transmitted from priest to priest through ordination to the present day. In the Christian Church, only the priests of the Roman Catholic Church and some Orthodox Churches have apostolic succession, i.e., those churches that throughout the history of Christianity have observed the Tradition dating back to the time of the New Testament events.

Until the 4th century Christianity was a persecuted religion. In the IV century. Under the Roman emperor Constantine, Christianity became the state religion of the Roman Empire, it was legalized by the imperial edict of 324. A year later, in 325, under the chairmanship of Constantine, the first Ecumenical Council of Christian churches met in the city of Nicaea, which played an important role in establishing the Christian doctrine.

In the Christian communities of the first centuries there were many currents, sects, heresies. In the struggle between them, a creed and a system of rituals officially approved and accepted by the church were formed. In those days, sacraments were established - ritual actions in Christianity, in which invisible divine grace is communicated to believers in a visible way. Grace is a special divine power sent down to man by God to overcome the sinfulness inherent in man to achieve salvation. The first sacraments were baptism with water, freeing a person from original sin, and the Eucharist, during which transubstantiation occurs: bread and wine become the Body and Blood of Christ, which Christians eat, confirming their loyalty to Christ in memory of the Last Supper, where Christ himself established the Eucharistic meal and in memory of Christ's sacrifice on the cross ("do this in memory of Me"), which put an end to sacrifices and defeated Satan and death.

In the first centuries of Christianity, after the Council of Nicaea, there were sharp dogmatic disputes between various churches, communities and groups. The struggle centered around the interpretation of the three main dogmas: the trinity of God (Trinity), incarnation and redemption.

The Council of Nicaea condemned the teaching of the Alexandrian Presbyter Arius, who asserted that God the Son is not consubstantial with God the Father. The Council established an understanding of the dogma, according to which God exists as a unity of three persons (hypostases), where the Son, eternally born from the Father, consubstantial with the Father, is true God and an independent person. Subsequently, the doctrine of the Holy Spirit, the third hypostasis of the divine Trinity, was added here. Trinity - in Christianity, the dogma of God the Father, God the Son and God the Holy Spirit, one in three persons. This is the main tenet of Christianity.

At the second - Constantinople - Council (381) not only the Arian heresy was condemned, but also numerous other heresies that did not share the Nicene Creed. The creed is a short set of dogmas that form the basis of the dogma of any religion.

At the beginning of the 5th century, a particularly sharp dispute flared up around the dogma of the incarnation. Part of the clergy, headed by Patriarch Nestorius of Constantinople, rejected the prevailing idea of the birth of Christ from the Mother of God. The woman, the Nestorians argued, gave birth to man, not God. And only at the instigation of the Holy Spirit did the deity move into him and he became an instrument of salvation. At the third - Ephesus - Ecumenical Council (431) 6 rules for the defense of the dogma of the Incarnation were approved, according to which two natures - divine and human - merged in Jesus Christ. Fourth - the Council of Chalcedon approved the dogma of the incarnation, according to which Christ must be considered as true God and true man. Eternally born of the Father according to divinity, he was born of Mary, a virgin according to humanity.

Only in the middle of the 6th century was the dispute about how to depict Jesus Christ resolved. At the fifth - Constantinople - Ecumenical Council (553) it was decided to depict the Son of God in human form, and not in the form of a lamb. By the 8th-9th centuries, there are disputes between iconoclasts and iconodules, after which the veneration of icons was established.

Subsequently, five more sacraments were added to the first two sacraments of Christianity: chrismation, priesthood, repentance, marriage, unction, which visibly appear as confirmation, ordination, confession, wedding, sacrament of the sick.

Initially, Christianity was not a single religious movement. Spreading through the numerous provinces of the Roman Empire, it adapted to the conditions of each country, to the prevailing social relations and local traditions.

The consequence of the decentralization of the Roman state was the emergence of the first four autocephalous (independent) churches: Constantinople, Antioch, Alexandria, Jerusalem. Soon the Cypriot and Georgian churches separated from the Church of Antioch. These independent Christian churches were headed by patriarchs with apostolic succession. Orthodox churches were originally called the churches of the eastern branch of Christian communities, the separation of which from the western branch was facilitated by the division of the Roman Empire into Eastern and Western in 395. A struggle for influence unfolded between the western (led by the Roman bishop - the Pope of Rome) and the eastern churches which ended in their formal break in 1054 and the final division of Christianity into Orthodoxy and Catholicism.

1.1.1 Orthodoxy

Orthodoxy is one of the main directions of Christianity, which does not have a single center and is represented by several independent churches. At present, Orthodoxy is represented by a number of autocephalous (independent) churches: Constantinople, Alexandria, Antioch, Jerusalem, Russian, Georgian, Serbian, Bulgarian, Cypriot, Greek, Polish, Romanian, Czech, Slovak, American and others.

The formation of Orthodox churches began in the first centuries of the emergence of Christianity and dominated the eastern part of the Roman Empire - Byzantium. Since 1589, a patriarch was elected in Russia and the Russian church became independent from Byzantium. At present it is one of the Orthodox churches.

A distinctive feature of Orthodoxy is that since the time of the first seven ecumenical councils it has not added a single dogma to its doctrine. It also did not abandon any, as was the case in Protestantism (Protestantism is a collection of numerous Christian churches, sects and denominations that differ significantly in doctrine and activity from the main Christian churches). This is what the Orthodox Church considers the main of its merits.

Traditionally, the Ecumenical Patriarchate of Constantinople is considered central in the Orthodox world, recognizing as its task the preservation of the unity of the Eastern Churches in doctrine and fidelity to the decisions of the Fathers of the seven Ecumenical Councils (4th-8th centuries). Orthodoxy denies the primacy of the Pope in relation to bishops who are outside the jurisdiction of Rome. According to the Orthodox tradition, any local Church that has preserved apostolic succession and purity of faith is a Church in the full and true sense of the word; this Orthodoxy calls into question the right of Protestants to call their Christian communities Churches.

Orthodoxy gravitates toward traditionalism and temple piety. It pays little attention to the purposeful organization of its activities, missionary work and social service, the disclosure of human creative powers and the protection of social justice. Much more importance is attached to activities within the structure of the Church. Monasticism is considered the best part of the Orthodox people of God.

Orthodox philosophical thought of the 19th-20th centuries developed very freely in relation to dogmatics and is distinguished by a high level and original approaches to questions of knowledge of God, metaphysics, anthropology, cosmology, etc.

world religion christianity islam buddhism

1.2 Catholicism

Catholicism is one of the main Christian churches, the most numerous and rigidly centralized. It is distributed mainly in Western Europe, Latin America and the United States, but a few Catholic communities exist around the world.

Catholicism has a single church organization headed by the Pope and centered in the Vatican, a theocratic state located on the territory of the city of Rome. Catholicism (Roman Catholic Church) embraces all Christian communities that are in full unity with Rome, having a common doctrine, sacraments and ritual tradition, morality and way of life with it. A Catholic, one who belongs to a community under the jurisdiction of Rome, believes that Rome is the center of universal Christianity, that the Pope is the vicar of Jesus Christ and the heir to the see and office of the Apostle Peter, having the authority of primacy over all the bishops in the world.

The mission of the Catholic Church is to actively spread the action of the saving grace of Christ to all spheres of human activity, and for this, to engage in an open dialogue with secular culture. Catholicism is characterized by Christian missionary universalism - no earthly barriers matter for the transmission of the gospel message to those who need it. Catholics are conservative in relation to their own tradition, they consider their spiritual experience to be growing in history and are not inclined to transform their tradition in a revolutionary way. Catholics are characterized by a high level of organization, discipline and personal responsibility necessary for the implementation of a large number of different Christian missions.

Catholics are convinced that the duty of the Church is to defend the freedom and dignity of man and social justice against all the forces of this world. Religious and philosophical thought in Catholicism every century brought to the world many great names and results, the same can be said about achievements in liturgical music, temple construction, sculpture and painting - all this is the creation of great musicians overshadowed by divine grace (Mozart, Bach, Handel, Schubert), architects and sculptors (Michelangelo, Donizetti), painters (Leonardo, El Greco, Raphael).

Protestantism emerged in the 16th century as a vast movement in Western Christianity that spread throughout the world and continues to this day. Coming out against the authoritarianism and traditionalism of the Roman Catholic Church, it raised the question of what to consider true Christianity and how to re-create a genuine holy Church in the conditions of the modern world, having examples of the Apostolic Communities in the Holy Scriptures.

Lutheranism and Calvinism in continental Europe and Anglicanism in Britain were the first achievements of Protestantism, but general dissatisfaction with its results constantly led to the emergence of new reform movements - Puritanism, Presbyterianism, Methodists, Baptists, Pentecostals, etc.

The main task of the Reformation was to formulate a religious concept that would be vital and socially significant in the changed social conditions.

Lutheranism is one of the main currents in Protestantism, based on the teachings of the German priest and monk Luther. The essence of the teaching is that the content of the dogma is entirely given in the Holy Scriptures, therefore there is no need for the Holy Tradition; only God forgives a person his sins, therefore there is no need for the clergy, but there is a "priesthood of all the faithful" in the church community; a person has lost his original righteousness in the fall, is doomed to live in the slavery of sin, is not able to do good, but is saved by faith in Christ - he is justified only by faith without pious deeds; there is no cooperation of man in the matter of salvation - only God decides and does everything, and not the will of man; the human mind, due to its extreme sinfulness, is not capable of discovering God, comprehending the truth, or knowing God. Hence the negative attitude to philosophical searches and creativity, to the freedom of the human spirit. In the sacraments, Lutherans recognize the real presence of Christ. There are various currents in Lutheranism, in particular, many Lutherans believe that the role of a person's personal efforts in his salvation is significant. Over time, the Lutherans came to the conclusion that critical biblical studies are needed, which revealed the irreducibility of the versatility of the biblical content to the Lutheran doctrine. Lutheranism - the church of the North German principalities - is now widespread in Europe and the USA. Accepts the authority of the Nicene Creed. It retains the episcopate, a special ordination to the priesthood, and two sacraments: baptism and the Eucharist. Calvinism is one of the main Protestant traditions associated with the activities of the French reformer Calvin. Having accepted the basic provisions of Lutheranism, Calvin modified them as follows: God is absolutely omnipotent and is the root cause of everything that happens in the world; his justice and mercy are not as important as His predestining will. After the fall, a person is evil by nature and, having plunged into the kingdom of evil, can have neither salvation, nor the will to salvation, nor good deeds, nor faith in God and spiritual bliss. The merits of Christ, who died on the cross, open to man the possibility of gaining faith and grace, as well as the justification of his pious deeds. God predestines to salvation or to destruction, and His decision is immutable, so saving grace, once received, can never be lost. Faith in God is equivalent to faith in the immutability of grace that saves eternity. The Bible contains all that is necessary for the fulfillment of our duty to God, its authority is certified by the testimony of the Holy Spirit. Sacraments Calvinists interpret symbolically - as evidence of grace. The state, from the point of view of the Calvinists, must be theocratically subordinate to the Church. Calvinism is currently a Swiss Reformed Church. In Calvinism there is no obligatory creed, the only source of doctrine is the Bible. Baptism and the Eucharist are not sacraments, but symbolic rites. Anglicanism is the Protestant Church of England. The English king was declared its head. Soon the Anglican liturgy and its own creed (“39 articles”) were approved. Anglicanism combines the Catholic doctrine of the saving power of the Church with the Protestant doctrine of salvation by personal faith. In terms of cult and organizational principles, the Anglican Church is closer to the Catholic Church. The external ritual side of Catholicism in the Anglican Church was hardly reformed. The king appoints the bishops, the head of the Anglican Church is the Archbishop of Canterbury. Priests can be married, and recently women have been admitted to the priesthood.

1.3 Islam

Islam (translated from Arabic as “submission”, “giving oneself to God”) is one of the world religions, the basis of which is faith in Allah and obedience to him. There are Muslim communities in more than 120 countries. Islam is recognized as the state religion in 28 countries. Islam originated in the 7th century. AD on the Arabian Peninsula among the Arab tribes who professed polytheistic tribal beliefs. The most influential was the Quraysh tribe, they owned the most ancient sanctuary of the Kaaba, which later became a common Muslim one. It was in Mecca. The emergence of Islam is associated with the activities of the prophet Muhammad (c. 570-632). In contrast to the polytheism of pagan religions, Muhammad proclaimed that there is only one great God - Allah (al-Illah - formerly the tribal God of the Meccan Quraysh) and that everyone should be obedient to his will. It was a call to rally the Arabs. All the faithful must rally around the teachings of the holy prophet, on the basis of the cult of the one and only Allah. Muhammad called on the Arabs to believe in one God and serve him in anticipation of the end of the world, the day of judgment and the establishment of the kingdom of God - the kingdom of justice and peace for the righteous. Muhammad was familiar, like other enlightened Arabs, with different peoples and religions, including Judaism and Christianity. Not surprisingly, much of Muhammad's teaching was borrowed from the Old and New Testaments.

The Quran is the holy book of Muslims, according to legend, written down by the prophet Muhammad directly from the words of Allah. According to legend, the text of the Koran was transmitted to the prophet by Allah himself through the mediation of the angel Jabrail (biblical Gabriel). Muslim theologians explain the numerous coincidences of the texts of the Bible and the Koran by the fact that Allah had previously passed on his sacred commandments to the prophets, but these commandments were distorted by Jews and Christians. Only Muhammad was able to convey them in their original and true form. The word Quran itself means “reading aloud”. Muhammad's first sermons were written down by his scribes and formed the basis of the Qur'an. It consists of 114 suras (chapters), which deal with all aspects of life, including justice, morality, ritual prescriptions.

In Islam, monotheism is carried out most consistently. Allah is the only God, faceless, supreme and omnipotent, wise, the creator of all things and its supreme judge. Above God there is no moral law according to which he can act. Allah is absolute will. There are no other gods next to him, nor any independent beings. Allah at any moment can change the world as he wants. The content of what Allah requires of people is set forth in the law given in his revelation. Islam is the religion of the book and the law, the whole life of believers is completely subordinate to the law. There are, besides angels, as if embodying the idea of goodness (led by Jabrail, Michael, Israfail and Azrael), demons and genies, evil spirits, led by the devil Iblis, whom Allah cursed. In Islam there is a doctrine of heaven and hell, of rewarding a person in the afterlife for his deeds. At the Last Judgment, Allah himself will interrogate the living and the dead, and they, with a book in which their deeds are recorded, will wait in fear for his decision. The unbelievers will go to hell, the righteous - to paradise, Muhammad's intercession can mitigate the fate of sinners.

The main duties of a Muslim are the following five pillars of faith.

1. Confession: "There is no God but Allah, and Muhammad is his prophet." To become a Muslim, it is enough to solemnly pronounce this phrase and perform other duties.

2. Prayer. Mandatory daily five-fold ritual. Those who do not pray five times a day are infidels. On Fridays and on holidays, solemn services are performed, which are led by imams. Before prayer, the faithful are obliged to perform ablution, a rite of purification (small washing of hands, feet and face, and large, in case of serious impurity, a complete washing of the whole body). If there is no water, sand replaces it.

3. Post. The main one is Ramadan (Ramadan), it lasts a month during which, from dawn to dusk, the faithful do not have the right to eat, drink, or smoke.

4. Alms. Obligatory alms - zakat (sunset) - is perceived as a cleansing ritual for the wealthy (a few percent of annual income) and additional - sadaka - voluntary alms.

5. Hajj. Pilgrimage. Another of the pillars of faith, difficult for many. It is believed that every healthy Muslim should once in a lifetime visit the holy places in Mecca and bow to the Kaaba. Every year, several tens of thousands of believers arrive in Mecca on the days of the great sacrifice to Allah. The pilgrims who performed the rite receive an honorary name - hoja.

To these five, one more, sixth, pillar of faith is often added - a holy war against the infidels (jihad or ghazavat). Sometimes war against infidels is regarded as a sacred commandment. Participation in it frees from all sins and provides a place in paradise for the fallen on the battlefield. The place of worship, sermons and prayers is the mosque. It is also a meeting place for the faithful in all important occasions of life, a kind of cultural center. Current affairs are resolved here, alms and donations are collected, etc. An important function of the mosque is to organize the education of children. Education in Islamic countries is religious. Islam is characterized by unconditional obedience to the religious law, which sanctions all areas of a Muslim's life. The system of Muslim law - Sharia (Arab. Sharia - a direct, correct path) - a single system of laws that regulates the entire personal life and social life of the followers of Islam. Sharia began to take shape in the 8th century. and included such norms that regulate state, property, family and marriage, civil, domestic and other relations between Muslims. At first, all the actions of Muslims were divided into two types - forbidden and approved. By the time of the final formation of Sharia, all actions were divided into five categories:

- farz - actions, the implementation of which was considered mandatory;

- sunnat - implementation is desirable;

- muhob - voluntary actions;

- makruk - undesirable actions;

- Harom - strictly prohibited activities.

According to Sharia, food standards are established, playing musical instruments, decorating the house with art paintings, marrying non-Christians, if the latter do not convert to Islam, etc. are prohibited.

According to Sharia, Muslim holidays are the holiday "Eid al-Adha" (Kurban Bayram) and "Eid al-Fitra" (Eid al-Fitr): the Great Feast of Sacrifice and the Small Feast of Breaking the Fast. Mavlud (Maulid) (Mohammed's birthday), Miraj (Mohammed's ascension to heaven) and Friday (day of public prayer) are also celebrated.

1.4 Sunism

As a result of internal contradictions in Islam in the 2nd half of the 7th century. Three schools emerged: Kharijites, Sunnis and Shiites. The last two are the main directions in Islam to this day.

Sunnism is the largest direction in Islam, almost 90% of Muslims are Sunnis. Unlike other trends, no particular currents or sects have arisen in Sunnism. Only in modern times did the Wahhabis appear as a religious and political movement.

The division of Islam into Sunnism and Shiism occurred as a result of the political struggle for the throne of the Arab Caliphate. Sunnism, which relies on the Koran and Sunnah (Sunnah - the sacred tradition of Islam, set out in stories - hadiths - about the actions and sayings of the Prophet Muhammad), was the official religion of the caliphate. The followers of Sunnism recognized the legitimacy of the power of the first four caliphs, and the Shiites considered the fourth caliph, Ali (d. 661), cousin and son-in-law of Muhammad, to be the only legitimate head of the Muslims. The slogan of the Shiites was the principle of hereditary spiritual authority, i.e. granting the throne of caliphs to the descendants of Ali (Imamate).

In Sunnism, there are 4 schools of religious and legal persuasion (madhhab) and a mystical current - Sufism.

1.5 Shiism

The followers of Shiism, the Imamis, recognize 12 Imams from among the direct descendants of Ali. According to the teachings of the Imamis, at the end of the ninth century. the twelfth imam, Mohammed bin al-Hassan, mysteriously disappeared. Shiites worship this "hidden imam". Like the Sunnis, they recognize the sanctity of the Qur'an, and in the Sunnah they recognize only those hadiths, the authors of which are Ali and his followers. At the same time, Shiites have their own scriptures - akhbars, which include hadiths associated with the name of Ali.

In the VII-IX centuries. Shiism broke up into several branches: Kaysanites, Zaidis, Imamis.

1.6 Buddhism

Buddhism is one of the world's religions, whose creed, created by the Buddha, believes that life is evil and suffering, and calls to overcome attachment to the world and embark on the "path of salvation." It arose in the middle of the 1st millennium BC. in India, but, having flourished there, it became entrenched in the consciousness and practice of the peoples of some regions: Asia (the Far East, other regions). Now all over the world there is a very large number of followers of Buddhism. Buddhism originated in India as a counterweight to caste Brahmanism. Its founder is the Buddha Shakyamuni was the son of a prince from the Shakya tribe. After a carefree life in the palace, the young prince Siddhartha Gautama acutely felt the frailty and hopelessness of life, the horror of an endless series of reincarnations of the soul. The ethical interpretation of sacred texts, as well as traditional Brahminical thinking, did not satisfy him, because they did not make it possible to understand the meaning of human existence and come to terms with the idea of karma. The insight that came to Gautama allowed him to become a Buddha (Enlightened One). It was the Buddha who managed to clearly and convincingly express the expectations of society: life is suffering, one can be saved from suffering, there is a way of salvation. This path was found and described by the Buddha. The Buddha himself, and then his disciples and followers, used the conceptual apparatus and language carefully developed in the sacred texts of Brahmanism - Sanskrit, as well as the Pali language. Their thoughts generally fit into the ideological background of Brahmanism with its teachings on karma, nirvana, etc. However, the emphasis shifted from the collective to the individual: a person could break out of the circle of rebirths by individual effort, realizing and formulating his own, personal righteous path, and, influencing fate, change karma.

In the opportunity to accept the teachings of the Buddha and choose the path to salvation, all people were equal. Class, ethnic, caste differences were explained as secondary and, accordingly, could be changed in the process of moral improvement. But the main goal of a Buddhist is to break out of the chain of rebirth and merge with the Absolute (there is no personified God in Buddhism). The ideas of original Buddhism contributed to its spread. In the III century. BC. Ashoka, the largest ruler of India, declared himself the patron of Buddhist monasticism - the sangha - and the defender of the ethical norms of Buddhism - dharma, and thereby strengthened his power and Buddhism. At the Council held under the control of the state in Pataliputra, the process of canonization of the teachings began. The notion of the "three jewels" of Buddhism was established: the teacher - the Buddha, the teaching - the dharma, the keeper of the truth - the sangha. It is the Sangha that becomes the institution that points and facilitates the path to nirvana, interprets the teaching. The key is the role of the teacher, mentor - the bodhisattva. The relative indifference of early Buddhism to ritual made it easier to adapt to local conditions, to master local cults.

The teachings of Buddhism are set forth in a number of canonical collections, the central place among which is occupied by the Buddhist canon - “Tipitaka” (in the Pali language), or “Tripitaka” (Sanskrit, which means “Three Baskets”) - this is a collection of Buddhist religious canonical literature, considered revelations the Buddha himself as presented by his disciples. According to Buddhism, life in all its manifestations is an expression of various combinations or streams of non-material particles - dharmas. Combinations of dharmas determine the existence of a person, animal, plant, stone, etc. After the disintegration of the corresponding combination, death occurs, but the dharmas do not disappear without a trace, but form a new combination; this explains the rebirth of the individual in accordance with the law of karma - retribution depending on the behavior in a previous life. The endless chain of rebirths can be interrupted, everyone should strive for this. The cessation of rebirth means the attainment of nirvana. But the achievement of nirvana is possible only with a very virtuous life.

The basis of the teaching is the “four noble truths” that were revealed to the Buddha at the moment of enlightenment:

1. Life is suffering.

2. The cause of all suffering is ignorance, material desires.

3. Suffering can be extinguished by getting rid of desires, for which you need:

4. lead a virtuous life according to the laws of "right conduct" and "right knowledge."

“Right conduct” is living according to the following principles: don't kill or harm anyone, don't steal, don't lie, don't commit adultery, etc. Monasticism requires asceticism. “Right knowledge” means self-deepening and inner contemplation - meditation.

The Buddhist pantheon unites many gods of both Indian origin and those who came from the beliefs of non-Indian peoples who adopted Buddhism. Worship of God does not play a big role in Buddhism.

The foundations of the philosophy of Buddhism are Hinayana and Mahayana. Two tendencies of early Buddhism, evolving in the course of its spread, took shape by the beginning of our era in two directions: the "narrow" path of salvation - Hinayana and the "wide" path of salvation - Mahayana. Hinayana is closer to early Buddhism. In it, the path to salvation ran through membership in the sangha, through the monastic state, the role of teachers was great and the role of rituals was small, the pantheon was less significant and complex. Mahayana is more like an ordinary religion: it makes the concept of nirvana accessible not to a narrow circle of monks, but to ordinary religious consciousness, and moves away from an exclusively negative attitude towards the world of rebirths. On the chariot of salvation now many can fit. Deities play a large role in the Mahayana, they can be prayed for, asking for help and intercession. Along with the great Buddha, many other Buddhas appeared, which became objects of worship, their images arose. There was an idea of heaven and hell. If in the III-I centuries. BC. Buddhism spread outside India only in the form of the Hinayana in the south and southeast direction, then from the turn of our era, its movement begins to the north, northwest and northeast in the form of the Mahayana. Buddhism also penetrated the Far East, where it found a second life.

1.6.1 Lamaism

The name of this special branch of Buddhism comes from the word "lama" - the name of a monk or priest - the main figure in the Tibetan version of Buddhism. This version of Buddhism developed in the 7th-14th centuries. AD in Tibet on the basis of Mahayana and Tantrism - the divinatory practice of local tribes. Lamaism is still the main religion of the Tibetans, divided into a number of sects or schools. By the 17th century spread among the Mongols, Buryats, Tuvans and Kalmyks.

In Lamaism, which recognizes all the basic tenets of Buddhism, a special role in salvation is attributed to lamas, without whose help an ordinary believer can neither reach nirvana nor go to heaven. The canonical basis of Lamaism is the collections of holy texts - Kanjur and Danjur. Lamaism is characterized by magnificent worship and theatrical mysteries, many everyday rituals, magic tricks and spells directed against evil forces and spirits. The main virtue is unconditional obedience to lamas. "Ten black sins" - murder, theft, adultery, lies, slander, slander, idle talk, greed, malice, false views.

The central spiritual administration of the Lamaists of Russia is carried out by the Khambo Lama from his residence in the territory of Buryatia.

1.7 Zen Buddhism

Zen Buddhism is a Chinese form of Mahayana (early Buddhism) that spread to China from the 1st century BC. AD In the VI-VII centuries. there is a disintegration of Zen or Chan - (Chinese "chan" from the Sanskrit "dhyana" - meditation) Buddhism into the northern and southern branches. The northern one will soon die out completely, and the southern one will form the basis of Chinese (Chan) and Japanese (Zen) Buddhism.

Having perceived such concepts of Buddhist philosophy as nirvana, karma, rebirth as central categories, the Zen followers placed the main emphasis on extra-logical means (the method of sudden insight - satori). For this, in addition to meditation itself, paradoxical tasks, dialogues, breathing and gymnastic exercises were actively used. Enlightenment, it was believed, could also be achieved by abnormal (unworthy) behavior: loud laughter, a sharp hail, etc. In Zen Buddhism, canonical Buddhist values are actually rejected: for example, nirvana, insight can be achieved only when a person lives without a goal and without a direction of activity. Here Zen converges with Taoism.

At present, Zen Buddhism is widespread in Korea, Vietnam, Japan, among the peoples of other countries.

Conclusion

All world religions are united by cosmopolitanism, their leading principle. In the face of God or world law, everyone is equal. The main thing for a believer is not his social status or ethnicity, but selfless service to God or world necessity. Buddhism, Christianity and Islam understand this service in almost the same way, as keeping the commandments as evidence of fidelity to God. The latter are also very similar: do not kill, do not steal, do not commit adultery, do not lie, do not backbite, etc. All world religions for the purpose of observing the commandments and serving God (in Buddhism - the world's necessity, the Absolute) recognize the immortality and eternal bliss of the spiritual substance of the individual. This is the restoration of the lost sacred unity of man and the “higher reality”, which appears as the meaning of human existence.

List of sources used

1. Lobazova O.F. Religious studies: a textbook for universities / Ed. Zhukova V.I. - 3rd ed. - M .: Dashkov and K, 2007 (Gift of the Educational and Methodological Association of the Ministry of Education of the Russian Federation).

2.Radugin A.A. Introduction to Religious Studies: Theory, History and Modern Religions: A Course of Lectures: Textbook for Universities. - M.: Center, 2004 (Marked by the Ministry of Education and Science of the Russian Federation).

3. Yablokov I.N. Fundamentals of Religious Studies: Textbook for universities. - M.: Higher School, 2005 (Marked by the Ministry of Education and Science of the Russian Federation).

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Buddhism

Buddhism is one of the oldest religions in the world, originating in India. Thanks to its founder Siddhartha Gautama, known to us as the Great Buddha, people all over the planet are still striving to find solace in the true understanding of the words "awakened" or "enlightened".

Buddhist philosophy is based on the teachings of "noble truths". There are only four of them. The first explains the existence of suffering, the second talks about its causes, the third calls for liberation, and the fourth teaches how to come to it.

The tenets of Buddhism and the very understanding of life can be called a river or a stream of non-material particles. It is their combination that determines the existence of what exists on Earth and in the Universe.

The laws of karma bring rebirth behind them and therefore, it is worth respecting what deeds a person performed in a past life. The ideal of Buddhism can safely be called moral. Its essence is dressed in the motto " Do no harm. Nobody!».

And the main goal is to achieve the state of Nirvana - that is, complete peace and tranquility.

Brahmanism

This religion also has its roots in India. It was developed thanks to Vedism. What is she teaching about? The most important thing is the realization of the divine principle of everything vital and tangible, called revelations about Brahman.

And also about the Atman - a unique and personal spirit. Experts in the Vedas played an invaluable role in the development of Brahminism as a free flow. In the religious system, the original role was assigned to them.

The main idea was based on the belief and propaganda that people are unique and it is impossible to find a second identical one. That is, from childhood, a person has his own unique strength, mission and task.

Brahminists were distinguished by complex and cult rites. And rituals occupied the main part of their lives and were strictly controlled.

Taoism

This religion was revealed to the masses thanks to China and its founder, the sage Lao Tzu. Thanks to the philosophy that resulted in the work of the founder's life - "Tao Te Ching", religion is dedicated to 2 concepts.

The word "Tao", which can be interpreted as a tool or method, and the letters "De", which means grace, prompted the thinker to deeply rethink the model of this world.

According to his thoughts, it can be concluded that the universe is controlled by an even more powerful force. The essence of its occurrence is full of secrets and mysteries, and at the same time, its influence leads life to harmony.

The main goal of religion is to bring man closer to immortality. According to the adherents of the Taoist, it is this that helps the individual to reveal the full power of religious contemplation of the naked beauty of the world. And breathing and gymnastic trainings, alchemy, hygiene of soul and body help to achieve such a state of eternal life.

Jainism

Jainism is a religion that originated in the Indian subcontinent. Vardahaman is the great founder of religion. And it is thanks to his vision that Jains are convinced that no one created our world. He has existed forever and will continue on his way no matter what.

What's important? The most valuable and true is the desire for self-improvement of one's own soul, strengthening its strength. The teaching says that it is precisely because of such work on oneself that the soul is liberated from everything worldly.

Also, religion is not free from the belief in the transmigration of souls. Jains believe that the success of living this life is directly related to how you behaved in the previous one.

It is worth mentioning that the practice of asceticism is very significant in understanding religion as such. The ultimate goal of the individual is to break the cycle of rebirth. That is, to reach Nirvana and find harmony. And this can only be done by an ascetic.

Hinduism

Hinduism is a whole system of beliefs or laws of the Hindus. It differs in that it does not carry certain and well-established dogmas. The characteristic features or signs of the followers of Hinduism is the authoritarian recognition of the Vedic teachings and, consequently, the brahminical foundation of the worldview.

I want to note that only the person who can boast of at least one Indian parent has the right to profess Hinduism.

The main idea of the faith that is confessed is following certain guidelines of deliverance. Karma, as an act and samsara, as the wheel of being, must be overcome by an individual for complete and true liberation.

Islam

I could not fail to mention this world religion, which originated in Arabia. The Prophet Muhammad, who spoke in Mecca, is considered its founder. According to his convictions, as well as thanks to his statements, after his death, work was created. In the future, it became the holy book of Islam and to this day bears the famous name - the Quran.

What is the point? The main teaching is as follows: There is no god but Allah". And the angels and other entities of the higher worlds are not free, but in complete submission to Him.

Also, Muslims are convinced that their religion is the most correct, since Muhammad is the last prophet whom God sent to Earth. The knowledge and wisdom of previous religions, in the opinion of Muslims, are not reliable due to the fact that people have repeatedly rewritten and deformed sacred knowledge.

Judaism

This is the earliest religion that originated in Palestine. It became widespread mainly among the Jews. Belief in the one God, as well as the immortality of the soul and the afterlife, is closely related to the perception of the Jewish people as the personification of the Messiah and the bearer of Divine revelation.

The sacred books of Judaism include the Torah, a huge number of works of the prophets and interpretations that are collected in the Talmud.

Christianity

It is one of the three most powerful religions in the world. Originated in Palestine, and then spread to the Roman Empire and throughout Europe. She won the hearts of many believers living on planet Earth.

The belief that God sent his son Jesus Christ to Earth, who lived righteously, suffered and died like an ordinary person, is at the heart of the religion.

The main book of religion is the Bible. It preaches the doctrine of the three hypostases of one God: Father, Son and Holy Spirit. Especially Christians relate to the idea of the first sin and the second coming of Christ to Earth.

Polytheism

Polytheism is the belief in many gods. It can be called a certain system of beliefs, a whole worldview or a ground for disagreement. Religion is based on the belief in several deities that are collected in a pantheon of goddesses and, of course, gods.

Polytheism refers to a type of theism and opposes monotheism, that is, belief in one, one God. And at the same time, he also disagrees with the judgments of atheism, where the existence of any higher forces is completely denied.

In fact, such a term was introduced by Philo of Alexandria because it became necessary to create some kind of difference between polytheism and paganism. Since at that time all those who did not profess Judaism were called pagans.

Jediism

More of a philosophical trend than a religion, I couldn't help but mention it! The Jedi believe in the Force, an all-encompassing energy field created by all living beings that surrounds and penetrates all living things, and work to develop their own, much like the Jedi Knights from the movie "". In Jediism there are no cult actions and dogmas, and about half a million followers of this trend have already been registered, especially in America and Great Britain.

And the Jedi Code says:

There are no emotions - there is peace.
There is no ignorance - there is knowledge.
There is no passion - there is serenity.
There is no chaos - there is harmony.
There is no death - there is Power.

So most likely, the Jedi direction in many ways resembles Buddhism.

In conclusion, I will say that, in my opinion, the central idea of all religions is the same: the existence of a higher Power and subtle, invisible worlds, as well as the spiritual perfection of man. All religions in my opinion come from ancient esoteric knowledge. So, it will be joyful when each person believes in what he likes best, and also provides the same freedom to others. After all, the first thing you need to do is stay human!

On this philosophical note, I put an end to it.

See you on the blog, bye bye!

Hello dear students!

Today we have a rather complicated topic. In elementary school, it is studied as part of the course "Fundamentals of Religious Culture and Secular Ethics" and it is quite possible that the teacher will ask you to prepare a report or message for the class on the topic "Major World Religions".

Today I propose to consider them in more detail and give them a brief description in order to have a little idea of what the believing people breathe. I will try to write in simple words so that everything is clear to everyone. Well, if it is still not clear, then you can always ask a question in the comments.

Lesson plan:

What is religion?

There were many of them, and each saint was responsible for his own sphere.

Some gods were called upon to make it rain.
To others - to help in the fight against enemies.
The third was asked for help in trouble and illness.

This is how religion was born - faith in a supernatural helper called God, and the ability to turn to him through prayers.

Time passed, people's beliefs changed, matured and united into groups. Today there are many religious movements, the supporters of which may be hundreds, and may be billions of people.

Each religious belief includes:

norms of morality and ethics;
behavior rules;
a set of rituals and ceremonies, with the help of which they turn to shrines, asking for help in pressing matters.

There are three major religions in the world today. All other beliefs are just offshoots from them with their small subtleties. The most important life postulates are preserved in any religion.

The oldest religion is Buddhism

A Buddhist religious movement arose in the 6th century BC in India.

History connects the emergence of Buddhism with the name of Siddhartha Gautama.

According to an ancient legend, at the age of 29, he left his luxurious home when he saw the “truth of life”:

old age in the form of a decrepit old man caught in the eye;
illness through a seriously ill person;
death from a collision with a funeral procession.

In search of truth, he reflected and meditated, realizing the inevitability of putting up with the obligatory moments in life. As a result, he found the meaning of the existence of everything that surrounds us, and as the Buddhists say, he became enlightened, therefore he was called the Buddha.

Found in the depths of his consciousness the truth about the fate of man, the Buddha began to share with others - this is how the sacred book Tipitaka appeared.

It lists all the main religious ideas of Buddhism:

suffering in life is inevitable; to get rid of them, you need to renounce earthly desires, striving to achieve nirvana - the highest state of the soul;
a person himself determines his future fate by his actions, being reborn in another life into a new living being, who you will be later depends on how you behave in this life;
right behavior is kindness and the ability to sympathize with others;
the right way of life is honesty;
right speech is the absence of falsehood;
right action - do not harm anything living, do not steal and do not have bad habits;
proper training is the realization that everything can be achieved if you make an effort.

Today, Buddhism is supported in different countries by more than 500 million people.

Buddhists in Asia, the Far East, Laos, Thailand, Sri Lanka and Cambodia devote all their free time to meditation in monasteries, trying to reach this highest state and free themselves from the shackles of life.

The Buddhist headquarters is located in Bangkok. Representatives of this religion choose divine statues as shrines, to which they lay flowers.

Cultural scientists believe that without understanding Buddhism, it is impossible to understand the great culture of the eastern peoples of India, China, Tibet and Mongolia. Buddhism is also present in Russia, you can chat with its fans in Kalmykia or Buryatia.

It is interesting! The name of the Buddhist canons "Tipitaka" means "triple basket", which is usually interpreted as "three baskets of the law." Scientists believe that perhaps the sacred texts of the rules, written in ancient times on palm leaves, were kept in wicker baskets.

christian religion

The birthplace of Christianity is Palestine, the former east of the Roman Empire.

A religious movement that appeared in the 1st century turned to all the humiliated who were looking for justice with a proposal to turn to God for help in the hope of getting rid of everything bad. The emergence of the Christian religion is associated with the sermons of Jesus Christ, whose birth was predicted to the Virgin Mary.

When he was 30 years old, the messenger of God went out to people to preach the holy word, conveying to the people the ideas of diligence, peace and brotherhood, condemning wealth and extolling the spiritual over the material. The Hebrew name of Jesus is Yeshua, which translates as “savior”, who was destined to suffer for the sins of all Christians.

The basis of the Christian religion is belief in angels and demons, the afterlife, the Last Judgment and the end of the world.

The holy book of the Christian religion is the Bible, which contains all the main ten rules - the commandments, their observance for every believing Christian is the goal in life.

The most important of these is to love God as yourself. There are also rules not to steal and not to lie, to work and honor parents.

In 1054, the Christian church split into Orthodox (east) and Catholics (west), and later, in the 16th century, Protestants appeared.

Most of the Orthodox live in Russia, Belarus, Greece, Moldova, they are among Canadians and Americans. Catholicism is widespread in Portugal, France, Spain, Italy, Germany.

Today there are about 2 billion believers in the Christian religion.

This is the largest religion in the world in terms of the number of followers and geography - in every country there is, even a small, Christian community.

All Christians, both Orthodox and Catholics, attend church churches, undergo baptism and atone for their sins through prayer and fasting.

The youngest religion is Islam

The youngest world religion in terms of age appeared among the Arabs of the Arabian Peninsula in the 7th century and is translated as “submission”.

But young does not mean that there are few believers in it - today there are about 1.5 billion people from almost 120 countries of the world among the followers of Islam. The ideas of Islam were brought to the people by Muhammad, born in Mecca, who declared that he was the chosen one of Allah (the god of the Islamists) to put his sermons into practice.

The holy scripture of Muslims - this is the name of those who have chosen Islam as their religion - the Koran, where all the sermons of Muhammad were included.

An Islamic shrine is a mosque where believers come to pray 5 times a day. Many researchers believe that young Islam took its entire foundation from the Christian Bible, adding Arabic traditions: here, too, there is God's terrible judgment and demons, paradise and Satan.

According to the Muslim Quran, a person lives to pass all the trials of life, serving Allah and preparing for the afterlife. The most serious sins in Islam are gambling and drunkenness, as well as usury (this is when they lend and demand to return it in a larger amount, charging interest).

Also, true Muslims never eat pork. Muslims are especially attentive to fasting in the month of Ramadan, when even a crumb of food is not allowed during daylight hours.

Islam has a religious law called Sharia, the court of which sometimes does not fit into the conditions of modern times - for serious sins and violation of the Koran, Muslims are stoned to death, for minor offenses they are beaten with sticks. Such punishments are still preserved in some areas of Islamic states.

What unites the three world religions

No matter how the three religions, which we have characterized today, are named, no matter how they differ in rituals, shrines and faith, all of them, taken together, establish human moral standards and rules of conduct, prohibiting pain and harm to all living things, resorting to cheating, behaving disrespectfully towards others.

Any of the world religions teaches tolerance, calls to be merciful and treat people with kindness.

Sharing good, no one becomes a beggar,

Everything will come back a hundredfold.

Who makes our world brighter and cleaner,

He himself will become rich from kindness.

That's all for today. I say goodbye to you with wishes to be kinder to each other.

Success in your studies!

Evgenia Klimkovich.

abstract

World religions (Buddhism, Christianity, Islam), their brief description

INTRODUCTION

... There is a God, there is a world, they live forever,

And the life of people is instantaneous, and miserable,

But a person contains everything in himself,

Who loves the world and believes in God.

By the end of the second millennium of modern civilization, all five billion people living on earth believe. Some believe in God, others believe that He does not exist; still others believe in progress, justice, reason. Faith is the most important part of a person's worldview, his life position, conviction, ethical and moral rule, norm and custom, according to which - more precisely, within which - he lives: acts, thinks and feels.

Faith is a universal property of human nature. Observing and comprehending the surrounding world and himself in it, a person realized that he was surrounded not by chaos, but by an ordered universe that obeys the so-called laws of nature. To communicate with the invisible world, a person resorts to the help of an “intermediary” - an object, a symbol, endowed with a special property - to serve as a container of invisible power. So, the ancient Greeks worshiped a rough, knotted log, personifying one of the goddesses. The ancient Egyptians honored the powerful goddess Bastet in the form of a cat. A modern African tribe, discovered relatively recently, worshiped the propeller of an airplane that once fell from the sky on their lands.

Faith takes many different forms, and these forms are called religion. Religion (from lat. religion- connection) is the worldview and behavior of people based on the belief in the existence of one or many gods. The idea of the existence of God is the central point of the religious worldview. In Hinduism, for example, there are thousands of gods, in Judaism - one, but both religions are based on faith. Religious consciousness proceeds from the belief that, along with the real world, there is another - a higher, supernatural, sacred world. And this suggests that the external diversity and diversity of cults, rituals, philosophies of numerous religious systems are based on some common worldview ideas.

There have been and still are many different religions. They are divided by belief in many gods - polytheism, and by faith in one God - monotheism. Differ also tribal religions , national(for example, Confucianism in China) and world religions, common in different countries and uniting a huge number of believers. The world religions are traditionally Buddhism ,Christianity and Islam. According to the latest data, there are about 1,400 million Christians in the modern world, about 900 million adherents of Islam, and about 300 million Buddhists. In total, this is almost half of the inhabitants of the Earth.

I will try to give a brief description of these religions in my work.

Buddhism is the oldest of the world religions, which received its name from the name, or rather from the honorary title, of its founder Buddha, which means “ enlightened". Buddha Shakyamuni ( sage from the Shakya tribe) lived in India in the 5th-4th centuries. BC e. Other world religions - Christianity and Islam - appeared later (respectively five and twelve centuries later).

If we try to imagine this religion as if "from a bird's eye view", we will see a colorful patchwork of directions, schools, sects, subsects, religious parties and organizations.

Buddhism absorbed many diverse traditions of the peoples of those countries that fell into its sphere of influence, and also determined the way of life and thoughts of millions of people in these countries. Most adherents of Buddhism now live in South, Southeast, Central and East Asia: Sri Lanka, India, Nepal, Bhutan, China, Mongolia, Korea, Vietnam, Japan, Cambodia, Myanmar (formerly Burma), Thailand and Laos. In Russia, Buddhism is traditionally practiced by Buryats, Kalmyks and Tuvans.

Buddhism was and remains a religion that takes on different forms depending on where it spreads. Chinese Buddhism is a religion that speaks to believers in the language of Chinese culture and national ideas about the most important values of life. Japanese Buddhism is a synthesis of Buddhist ideas, Shinto mythology, Japanese culture, etc.

Buddhists themselves count the time of the existence of their religion from the death of the Buddha, but among them there is no consensus about the years of his life. According to the tradition of the oldest Buddhist school - Theravada, the Buddha lived from b24 to 544 BC. e. According to the scientific version, the life of the founder of Buddhism is from 566 to 486 BC. e. In some branches of Buddhism, later dates are adhered to: 488-368. BC e. The birthplace of Buddhism is India (more precisely, the Ganges valley). The society of ancient India was divided into varnas (estates): Brahmins (the highest class of spiritual mentors and priests), Kshatriyas (warriors), Vaishyas (merchants) and Shudras (serving all other classes). Buddhism for the first time addressed a person not as a representative of any class, clan, tribe or a certain gender, but as a person (unlike the followers of Brahmanism, the Buddha believed that women, along with men, are capable of achieving the highest spiritual perfection). For Buddhism, only personal merit was important in a person. So, the word “brahmin” Buddha calls any noble and wise person, regardless of his origin.

The biography of Buddha reflects the fate of a real person framed by myths and legends, which over time almost completely pushed aside the historical figure of the founder of Buddhism. More than 25 centuries ago, in one of the small states in the north-east of India, the son of Siddhartha was born to King Shuddhodana and his wife Maya. His family name was Gautama. The prince lived in luxury, knowing no worries, eventually started a family and, probably, would have succeeded his father on the throne, if fate had not decreed otherwise.

Having learned that there are diseases, old age and death in the world, the prince decided to save people from suffering and went in search of a recipe for universal happiness. In the area of Gaya (it is still called Bodh-Gaya today), he achieved Enlightenment, and the way to save humanity was opened to him. It happened when Siddhartha was 35 years old. In the city of Benares, he read his first sermon and, as Buddhists say, “turned the wheel of Dharma” (as the teachings of the Buddha are sometimes called). He traveled with sermons in cities and villages, he had students and followers who were going to listen to the instructions of the Teacher, whom they began to call the Buddha. At the age of 80, the Buddha passed away. But the disciples, even after the death of the Teacher, continued to preach his teaching throughout India. They created monastic communities where this teaching was preserved and developed. These are the facts of the real biography of Buddha - the man who became the founder of a new religion.

Mythological biography is much more complicated. According to legends, the future Buddha was reborn a total of 550 times (83 times he was a saint, 58 - a king, 24 - a monk, 18 - a monkey, 13 - a merchant, 12 - a chicken, 8 - a goose, 6 - an elephant; in addition, a fish, rat, carpenter, blacksmith, frog, hare, etc.). So it was until the gods decided that the time had come for him, having been born in the guise of a man, to save the world, mired in the darkness of ignorance. The birth of the Buddha in a kshatriya family was his last birth. That is why he was called Siddhartha (one who reached the goal). The boy was born with thirty-two signs of a “great husband” (golden skin, wheel sign on the foot, wide heels, light circle of hair between the eyebrows, long fingers, long earlobes, etc.). The wandering ascetic astrologer predicted that a great future awaited him in one of two areas: either he would become a powerful ruler capable of establishing righteous order on earth, or he would be a great hermit. Mother Maya did not take part in the upbringing of Siddhartha - she died (and according to some legends, she went to heaven so as not to die from admiration for her son) shortly after his birth. The boy was raised by his aunt. The prince grew up in an atmosphere of luxury and prosperity. The father did everything possible to prevent the prediction from coming true: he surrounded his son with wonderful things, beautiful and carefree people, created an atmosphere of eternal celebration so that he would never know about the sorrows of this world. Siddhartha grew up, got married at the age of 16, and had a son, Rahula. But his father's efforts were in vain. With the help of his servant, the prince managed to sneak out of the palace three times. For the first time, he met a patient and realized that beauty is not eternal and that there are ailments that disfigure a person in the world. The second time he saw the old man and realized that youth is not eternal. For the third time he watched the funeral procession, which showed him the fragility of human life.

Siddhartha decided to look for a way out of the trap sickness - old age - death. According to some versions, he also met a hermit, which made him think about the possibility of overcoming the suffering of this world, leading a solitary and contemplative lifestyle. When the prince decided on a great renunciation, he was 29 years old. After six years of ascetic practice and another unsuccessful attempt to achieve higher insight through fasting, he became convinced that the path of self-torture would not lead to the truth. Then, having regained his strength, he found a secluded place on the bank of the river, sat down under a tree (which from now on is called the Bodhi tree, that is, the “tree of Enlightenment”) and plunged into contemplation. Before the inner gaze of Siddhartha, his own past lives, the past, future and present lives of all living beings passed, and then the highest truth, Dharma, was revealed. From that moment on, he became a Buddha - Enlightened, or Awakened - and decided to teach the Dharma to all people who seek the truth, regardless of their origin, class, language, gender, age, character, temperament and mental abilities.

The Buddha spent 45 years spreading his teachings in India. According to Buddhist sources, he won adherents from all walks of life. Shortly before his death, the Buddha told his beloved disciple Ananda that he could extend his life for a whole century, and then Ananda bitterly regretted that he had not thought to ask him about it. The reason for the death of the Buddha was a meal at the poor blacksmith Chunda, during which the Buddha, knowing that the poor man was going to regale his guests with stale meat, asked to give all the meat to him. The Buddha died in the town of Kushinagara, and his body was cremated according to custom, and the ashes were divided among eight followers, six of whom represented different communities. His ashes were buried in eight different places, and subsequently memorial tombstones were erected over these burials - stupas. According to legend, one of the disciples pulled out the tooth of the Buddha from the funeral pyre, which became the main relic of the Buddhists. Now he is in a temple in the city of Kandy on the island of Sri Lanka.

What religions are in the world. Three major religions of the world - beliefs with centuries of history

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Brief description of world religions

Introduction

1. World religions

1.1 Christianity

1.1.1 Orthodoxy

1.2 Catholicism

1.3 Islam

1.4 Sunism

1.5 Shiism

1.6 Buddhism

1.6.1 Lamaism

1.7 Zen Buddhism

Conclusion

List of sources used

Introduction

1. World religions

1.1 Christianity

The emergence of Christianity is directly related to the teaching and preaching activities of Jesus of Nazareth - Jesus Christ ("Christ" - the Greek translation of the Hebrew "mashiach", messiah, anointed one). His disciples and followers began to be called Christians.

In the first centuries of Christianity, after the Council of Nicaea, there were sharp dogmatic disputes between various churches, communities and groups. The struggle centered around the interpretation of the three main dogmas: the trinity of God (Trinity), incarnation and redemption.

At the second - Constantinople - Council (381) not only the Arian heresy was condemned, but also numerous other heresies that did not share the Nicene Creed. The creed is a short set of dogmas that form the basis of the dogma of any religion.

Subsequently, five more sacraments were added to the first two sacraments of Christianity: chrismation, priesthood, repentance, marriage, unction, which visibly appear as confirmation, ordination, confession, wedding, sacrament of the sick.

Initially, Christianity was not a single religious movement. Spreading through the numerous provinces of the Roman Empire, it adapted to the conditions of each country, to the prevailing social relations and local traditions.

1.1.1 Orthodoxy

Orthodox philosophical thought of the 19th-20th centuries developed very freely in relation to dogmatics and is distinguished by a high level and original approaches to questions of knowledge of God, metaphysics, anthropology, cosmology, etc.

world religion christianity islam buddhism

1.2 Catholicism

Catholicism is one of the main Christian churches, the most numerous and rigidly centralized. It is distributed mainly in Western Europe, Latin America and the United States, but a few Catholic communities exist around the world.

Lutheranism and Calvinism in continental Europe and Anglicanism in Britain were the first achievements of Protestantism, but general dissatisfaction with its results constantly led to the emergence of new reform movements - Puritanism, Presbyterianism, Methodists, Baptists, Pentecostals, etc.

The main task of the Reformation was to formulate a religious concept that would be vital and socially significant in the changed social conditions.

1.3 Islam

The main duties of a Muslim are the following five pillars of faith.

1. Confession: "There is no God but Allah, and Muhammad is his prophet." To become a Muslim, it is enough to solemnly pronounce this phrase and perform other duties.

3. Post. The main one is Ramadan (Ramadan), it lasts a month during which, from dawn to dusk, the faithful do not have the right to eat, drink, or smoke.

4. Alms. Obligatory alms - zakat (sunset) - is perceived as a cleansing ritual for the wealthy (a few percent of annual income) and additional - sadaka - voluntary alms.

- farz - actions, the implementation of which was considered mandatory;

- sunnat - implementation is desirable;

- muhob - voluntary actions;

- makruk - undesirable actions;

- Harom - strictly prohibited activities.

According to Sharia, food standards are established, playing musical instruments, decorating the house with art paintings, marrying non-Christians, if the latter do not convert to Islam, etc. are prohibited.

1.4 Sunism

As a result of internal contradictions in Islam in the 2nd half of the 7th century. Three schools emerged: Kharijites, Sunnis and Shiites. The last two are the main directions in Islam to this day.

Sunnism is the largest direction in Islam, almost 90% of Muslims are Sunnis. Unlike other trends, no particular currents or sects have arisen in Sunnism. Only in modern times did the Wahhabis appear as a religious and political movement.

In Sunnism, there are 4 schools of religious and legal persuasion (madhhab) and a mystical current - Sufism.

1.5 Shiism

In the VII-IX centuries. Shiism broke up into several branches: Kaysanites, Zaidis, Imamis.

1.6 Buddhism

The basis of the teaching is the “four noble truths” that were revealed to the Buddha at the moment of enlightenment:

1. Life is suffering.

2. The cause of all suffering is ignorance, material desires.

3. Suffering can be extinguished by getting rid of desires, for which you need:

4. lead a virtuous life according to the laws of "right conduct" and "right knowledge."

“Right conduct” is living according to the following principles: don't kill or harm anyone, don't steal, don't lie, don't commit adultery, etc. Monasticism requires asceticism. “Right knowledge” means self-deepening and inner contemplation - meditation.

The Buddhist pantheon unites many gods of both Indian origin and those who came from the beliefs of non-Indian peoples who adopted Buddhism. Worship of God does not play a big role in Buddhism.

1.6.1 Lamaism

The central spiritual administration of the Lamaists of Russia is carried out by the Khambo Lama from his residence in the territory of Buryatia.

1.7 Zen Buddhism

At present, Zen Buddhism is widespread in Korea, Vietnam, Japan, among the peoples of other countries.

Conclusion

List of sources used

1. Lobazova O.F. Religious studies: a textbook for universities / Ed. Zhukova V.I. - 3rd ed. - M .: Dashkov and K, 2007 (Gift of the Educational and Methodological Association of the Ministry of Education of the Russian Federation).

2.Radugin A.A. Introduction to Religious Studies: Theory, History and Modern Religions: A Course of Lectures: Textbook for Universities. - M.: Center, 2004 (Marked by the Ministry of Education and Science of the Russian Federation).

3. Yablokov I.N. Fundamentals of Religious Studies: Textbook for universities. - M.: Higher School, 2005 (Marked by the Ministry of Education and Science of the Russian Federation).

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