...Hinduism Death, Dying and Destiny Ideas about what happens after death, and its connection with how life is lived on earth, is a fundamental part of all religions. Many people accept death as the end of any form of existence. However others argue that death is not the end of life. The Australian Catholic University has held this conference about Death and Dying to address some of the ultimate questions that humans have always asked themselves. This particular seminar will deal with the aspects of death, dying and destiny. The religion that will be investigated around the issue of death, dying and destiny will be Hinduism. Based on the essence of Hinduisms framework and various interpretations of scriptures the basic fundamentals of what is expected of followers in life and death are dictated what expectations are up held and performed. What happens after death, and its connection with how life is lived on earth, is fundamental to every religion. These beliefs and ideas; help people make sense of life, give support and comfort at times of loss and bereavement, and provides purpose to life (BBC; 2014). In Hinduism it is believed that any attempt to permanent happiness in this world is an illusion (maya). Hindus believe that a person’s atman (spirit) is permanent and cannot change while the physical body is permanent (About Religion; 2014). This quote from Bhagavad Gita 2:22 (As a man casts off his worn-out clothes and takes on other new ones, so does the embodied soul cast off...
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...Death Rituals and Expectations The Navajo people have a belief that the spirit of their dead would come back to the living if they were not properly buried. The death rituals and expectations for the Navajo Native Americans is a culture that is very sensitive about their dead. The Native Americans needed their dead to be buried rather quickly to make sure that their dead would not come back. The Navajo Native Americans back in the day would clean the dead body and then cover it with a coverlet. They would then put the dead on a horse and head north as far as they could go. The family would find a burial place for their dead and kill the horse so that the dead would have a new horse in the next life. Burial customs require that everything is in order and that all the rituals are followed. One of the rituals is that is a person dies in their home that their home will have to be burned with the body. The surviving family would have to be there at the burning so that they will also be purified along with the deceased (Navajo Death Rituals, 2016)....
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...Greeks’ Death Rituals Greek people have many types of rituals to be followed during a death. Firstly, we aare going to discuss about the god of death. By reference to (Britannica), According to ancient Greek religion and mythology, Thanatos is the personification god of death. Thanatos is the goddess of night and the god of sleep. He appeared to humans to bring them off to the underworld when the time assigned to them by the “Fates” had expired. Animals used to symbolize death are assimilated into vanitas paintings, a variety of early still life. Animals such as crows, cats, owls, moths, vultures and bats are related with death. It is because some because they feed on meat, others because they are nocturnal. Flowers such lilies symbolize death...
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...Vietnamese culture- beliefs and rituals of the death Vietnamese culture may be still mysterious and unknown to most people outside of the country. Nowadays, the amount of foreigners come to Vietnam is increasing day by day; some people come to travel, and some come for their business. Getting to know, Vietnamese culture is interesting and fascinating because of its varieties. Since Vietnam is an Asian country, it has a lot of differences in culture compare to the Western countries, and Vietnamese beliefs and rituals of the death is one of the most interesting topics. Death is a part of life that everyone has to accept. We all have to die. “Death and grief are normal life events, all culture have developed ways to cope with death in a respectful manner” (Carteret). Vietnam is a small country, but it has numerous traditions concerning death rites. Different parts of Vietnam have separated death beliefs and rituals. Vietnamese honor and respect their ancestors and the deceased people so they strictly pay attention to funerals and worships. To them, funeral is a big ritual in a life cycle. Every region and religion has its own definition and how the funeral should be. Funeral usually includes many processes which is made and dedicated from those who are living to the person who has died. In Vietnam, when a person is about to die and his/her family may predict, the first judgment is asking whether that person wants to weary anything; these last few words are called the will...
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...Christian Death Rituals Modern Christian death rituals have changed over time. Previous customs are being abandoned for today’s vision of praising the deceased. It can be stated that Christians are some-what celebrating the death of a loved one. A new pattern has developed drifting away from burial, moving towards cremation. Technically there is no set routine for a death, due to the fact that personal modifications and customs can change an arrangement. This new pattern is not firmly fixed (indeed, variations, improvisations and personal customizations are marks of the new rituals) but it generally includes the following characteristics: • a memorial service instead of a funeral (i.e., a service focused on remembering the deceased, often held many days after the death, with the body or the cremated remains of the deceased not present) (Thomas) • a brief, simple, highly personalized and customized service, often involving several speakers. (as opposed to the standard church funeral liturgies presided over primarily by clergy) (Thomas) • a focus on the life of the deceased (often aided by a physical display of photos and other mementos) (Thomas) • an emphasis on joy rather than sadness, a celebration of life rather than an observance of the somber reality of death. (Thomas) • a private disposition of the body, often done before the memorial service, with an increasing preference for cremation. (Thomas) Burying the dead is a corporal work of mercy because Christians...
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...Familial Death Rituals When a loved one or a close friend passes from our lives is initially a shock for us to comprehend. It is certainly natural to grieve and question what exactly happens after someone is deceased. Every culture has their own family death ritual that is practiced and carried on from their family for years. Some religions greatly respect the dead, and honoring them is extremely important to their family death rituals. In this essay, I will reveal my family death rituals that have traditionally been practiced over the years, and state the current death rituals that are still practiced today. The Catholic religion beliefs was all I knew while growing up, and our family respected and always made time to attended a rosary and burial service for the person that has passed. Since Mexicans are incredibly family oriented, and to be involved of a loved one or close friend funeral is an important gesture to do in life. When someone in our family passes, we usually contact all family members and set up a proper burial service for them. The funeral process includes a rosary praying service the night before the burial, praying the rosary is a Mexican tradition and it includes the well-known prayers of the Apostles Creed, the Our Father (Lord's Prayer), the Hail Mary and the Glory Be (Williams). The rosary prayer is prayed with an open casket at a church, and then family members usually say some kind words of the person and the life he or she lived. Then, the following...
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...Rachel Wong Professor Sik Fa Ren BSTC 2004 December 11, 2014 Life through Confessional Ritual Confessional Ritual dates back to an early ritual called “Patimokkha conducted by monastic Buddhists” (lecture 9, pg. 3). The ritual consists of a list of possible zui which are recited twice a month by monks at Uposatha service where all of the monastic community members assembled (lecture 9, pg. 3). Confessional ritual is comprised of four main elements: “chanting the names of different Buddhas and doing prostration”, “kneeling to recite in taking refuge in the Three Jewels on behalf of all sentient beings”, “continued kneeling and recitation of the text in the confession of zui”, and finally, “transfer merit to sentient beings to help them...
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...Rituals can be found in almost every religion present on earth. I mainly agree with the statement that “the most powerful aspect of religious rituals is their ability to bring followers of a religion closer together with one another.” Throughout my essay I will discuss the importance of rituals within the Hindu, Islam, and Jewish religion. In addition to these three religions, I will also discuss a Native American ritual to help highlight how unifying rituals can be. Giant celebrations can be the result of partaking in specific rituals. The Festival of Lights is an annual celebration and ritual practiced in Hindu that brings joy and delight to the followers of Hinduism. The ritual of Diwali symbolizes the victory of light overcoming darkness, also known as good overpowering evil. Diwali emphasizes...
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...manipulation -this force can be channeled When mana is not manipulated it is a power -helps explains why a chief has more power because they were thought to have harness , more power - it explains why a chief always wins battles -- it can be thought of as our notion of luck Diversity- Oracle – an invisible forces that are capable of answering questions Pollution – substances “mythical substances” that can be passed to other individuals * Equivalent is illness * Pregnancy * Death * Rituals and practices that are for the vulnerable * Substances that can be transmitted by either things or people Contact requires cleansing * Personified – super natural power resides in super natural people * - for example : gods – that have/ assume bodily form that assume emotion that assume have personality and qualities of human ( personification) * Zoorific- animal spirits Prayer – a petition of some kind that is used as an attack Magic – ritual .. its about strategies that people use to control super natural forces * It refers to technique( bells, formulas use with impersonal forces trying to gain control of super natural world) * It can result in healing , aid in the recovery of lost objects * The classic idea - Malinowski * All societies have developed knowledge of magic * Magic functions to reduce anxiety , it takes the functional approach * Types of magic * - imitative (voodoo doll) * - contagious...
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...When the term “ritual” is heard, images of mystical activities come to mind. However, rituals vary from something as straightforward and universal, such as brushing your teeth daily to something as sacred and intimate as a baptism in a church. It is defined as a ceremony consisting of a serious of actions performed according to a prescribed order. Generally, religious rituals root from myths, religion and ancient practices between the divine and humans. Each religion consists of their own unique rituals and practices that reenact historical events. For instance, every religion or culture has varying rituals following the death of a person, including burials and mourning. “In Judaism, life is valued above almost all else. Almost any Jewish law can be broken to save a human life.” (Rich, 2011) The Torah or Pentateuch, is the central reference of the religion. The Talmud is the most significant collection of the Jewish oral tradition interpreting the...
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...Hinduism is the primary religion found in the Indian subcontinent. This religion is indigenous to the area. The common beliefs and rituals make Hinduism differ from other commonly found religions. The belief system of followers of Hinduism is based on the belief that the soul is eternal, and is based on the follower’s ways of lives. In contrast to other types of organized religion, such as Christianity, in which those followers are required to heed to abstract rules and regulations, pre-determined for generations to come, Hinduism is based around an individual’s way of life and that follower’s individual soul. This is reflected in the culture and societal area of India. In terms of other religions, Hinduism in currently the third largest religion in practice. Another important aspect of this religion is Sanatana Dharma. This belief is that of that eternal existence of customs. Dharma has the following in its basis: natural law, duty, social welfare, health, ethics, and transcendental realization. The search for liberation is a major factor in the Hindu religion. This is based on the belief that your soul is free from the confines of your physical body. Their body is not a large contributing factor to whom they are, it is simply a vessel to get one throughout daily life. The soul, however, in the ultimate liberator because it loves on, even after their physical body deteriorates. Karma is another large basic aspect of Hinduism. This is belief of “what goes around comes...
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...start to see that something is not quite right in this environment of hope. It is the following of an annual ritual. This is the 77th celebration, which means that they are archaic in some way and rooted in traditions of superstitions that seem to involve crops and human sacrifice. The thoughtless following of rituals in “The Lottery”, is appalling, but not as much as the mindless rituals observed by the modern society. Shirley Jackson’s story, “The Lottery”, is set in a small New England town. The inhabitants are gathered in the the small town square. Its June 27th, on a beautiful summer day. They are in a convivial mood for a yearly ritual, “The Lottery”. Mr. Summers, who seem to be in charge of the the assembly brings forth a black box with hundreds of slips of paper inside. Names of all family members in the town are collected. Bill Hutchinson draws a slip of paper with a dark spot meaning that his family has been chosen. The drawing continues in the second round for each individual family member to draw; regardless of age. After the drawing is over, Tessie Hutchinson is picked, she had the slip with a dark spot, meaning she would be stoned. Each villager, in keeping with tradition, obtains a stone and Tessie is surrounded. She is stoned to death while she bemoans the unfairness of the situation. This story shows the way people just tend to go along with certain rituals without question because it part of tradition. No one in the square knows why or...
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...There are different cultural practices of people across the world that varies in one way or the other. According to Crapo (2013), a careful study of these cultures reveals that although there are some fundamental differences in the practices, sometimes it is common to find some similarities. In this study, I will focus on comparing the rites of passage between two communities in different countries. Each culture has its own rites of passage and its unique ways of celebrating such events. Some of these practices may have been restructured due to globalization and modernization that is turning the world into a global village. However, many communities still maintain their traditional heritage, preferring to continue with these practices despite the changes brought about by globalization. In this study, I will compare and contrast the cultural rites of passage among the Egyptians and that of the Hindus. I will be confirming even although these two cultures differ in their rites of passage practices, they also share a number of cultural values. Hindus have been able to maintain their cultural practices despite the changes that are taking place in the global world. Although they have embraced modernization, they have been able to maintain most of their cultural practices not only in their home country in India, but also in various other parts of the world where they live (Rinehart, 2004). On the other hand, the Egyptians have maintained their heritage within their country. Most of...
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...Tohono O'odham Religion and Rituals Himdag is a Tohono O'odham word that translates to "way of life". The eight elements of religion are found throughout the Tohono O'odham past and present cultural beliefs. The Tohono O'odham believe that they were created by a God named I'itoi. I'itoi once created a people whom were known as the Hohokam or the ancient ones. The Hohokam turned on I'itoi and attempted to kill him four times. After the fourth attempt on I'itoi's life he found refuge in the underworld. From the underworld he brought forth the wuskam, roughly translated as the ones who came out. The wuskam were the Tohono O'odham brought to this world to eradicate the Hohokam and inhabit their land. The Tohono O'odham like many Native American tribes were converted to some sort of Christianity. The denomination adopted by the Tohono O'odham was Catholicism. The catholic faith was brought to the O'odham first by the Jesuit missionaries and further enhanced by the Franciscan missionaries. The catholic religion has since been integrated with the Tohono O'odham himdag. The Tohono O'odham have found a comfortable middle between religion and spirituality. There are many aspects in O'odham himdag that coincide with the catholic religion. Author Donald Bahr speaks about the similarity of the creation stories of the O'odham and the Christian biblical stories. He dissects the myth of a flood in both creation stories, as well as a parting of a body of water such as that of the story of...
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...Enrolled in Department of English Tribhuvan University Contact Information: Bhadrabash, Kathmandu Email: bantipd78@gmail.com Contact no: 977 9849447364, 9810009182 Dance In Fire In late 1980s, a person named Chandra committed suicide by hanging himself from peepal tree nearby his house. It was an "ill-timed," "unnatural" or "bad omen" death. Consequently, his family and other close relatives frequently encountered problems of dealing with his spirit; they were uncertain that the appropriate performance of the morgue rituals would be effective in altering his bad spirit (kacho bayu) into good spirit (pako bayu). -—an expert in dealing with spirit was consulted by Chandra‟s brother. As many suspected, the incineration and morgue rituals had failed to alter his spirit into forefather soul and Bayu Utarnu ritual should be carried out to sooth his upset spirit. The Bayu Utarnu for Chandra‟s ghost began under the headship of a prominent spirit consultant. It comprised, nightly ritual during which the religious expert, using heavy mantras and chants, convinced the Bayu to possess intimate male allies, who performed as a spirit agent.. After this, the ritual reached its climax, the ceremony known as ‘khali khane’. On the chosen night, the possessed agent performed dance on burning coals of holy fire, thereby altering the ghost into a Pako bayu who would no longer invite ill luck to his family and relatives. Through choosen agent‟s body, Chandra‟s bayu willingly gave an account of his suicide...
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