...Humanities 10 Fall 2012 What is Religion Anyway? The definition of religion is very subjective. Many people change their definition of religion to suite their own needs, or to justify their own beliefs. Each religion has its own take on being “religious”; I feel that it is important to have a foundation on which the term religion can be defined. To me, religion can be defined by the following three categories: the belief in a higher power that physically or mentally can have an affect on ones life and is the authority in a “religious culture”; having a set of written or oral scriptures that are passed through the generations, used to teach the people of the culture the ways and traditions of their religion and way of life; and rituals that are carried out within the Religion. A higher power must be one that the “religious culture” believes has an impact on the people and that they view as the one an only higher power. The written or oral scriptures are the center point of the teachings of the religion, detailing the past and helping to pave the future for the religion. Rituals are carried out at certain times, places and events in order to please or praise their “God” or higher power, and as celebrations in the religious culture. These rituals can be but are not limited to, song, dance, praise, worship, meditation, and acts of kindness. The primal religions believe in a “God” or higher power even though they do not identify who or what that higher power...
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...at least one thinker to the study of religion’. Freud, a psychologist and the father of psychoanalysis saw himself as part of the 19th century scientific, traditional and adopted the materialistic approach to the study of the human mind. His views on religion can only be understood from the point of view of his physiological theories, and in particular the Oedipus complex and the primal crime/horde theory. According to Freud religious belief can be explained by the Oedipus complex this is the theory that the sex drive represent the body’s subconius desire for satisfaction, when the libido for food as a baby is transferred to the child there is jealousy and hatred for the father as the respect an fear that was previously there has gone as there is now a derive to possess the mother. So god is idolised as the father figure which we project on to the world (we fear and reverse him in the Oedipus complex. Therefore the function of religious belief is that it is a neurotic illness shown by symptoms of ritualization cleaning and following strict rules and a dangerous illusion that needs to be over thrown. The primal horde theory suggests that the alpha male is killed by the jealous younger rivals for access to the females of the horde however they are then overcome by guilt that they put a totem pole for the alpha male so that he can be worshiped. Therefore explains, Freud maintained that the worship for god is due to the guilt from the primal horde theory. According to Freud’s...
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...The attributes that most primal religions and prehistoric cultures:myths, purification rites, and methods of control. All of these are explained in the Noss pdf, but not all attributes apply to the every primal religion. For example, a method of control is Shamanism. Shamanism is when spirits conjure in pr out of people by a person who is similar to spirit possession. Shamans, have a role of typical witch doctors, they could be a man or a women, Apache, Inuit and several other primal religions share this attribute. A myth is a traditional story that typically involves supernatural beings and events. Myths were a necessity, especially in primal groups, they were vital to portray the patterns of the group life. The Legend of Sedna, is a great example of an inuit myth; the story talks about a daughter named Sedna going away from her father to marry a handsome man, fulmar (bird man) and had a...
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...April Agresti Humanities – World Religion 03/24/2016 Understanding Primal, Antiquity, and India Religions There are many different types of religions around the world. Some of them are monotheistic, meaning that they only believe in one God, and some are polytheistic, meaning that they believe in more than one God, or nondualist, meaning that sacred reality cannot be numbered at all. Some examples of these religions are Australian Aboriginal groups, Native American Indians, African religions, Mesopotamian, Zoroastrianism, Greek, Celtics, Germanic, Hinduism, Jains, and Sikhs. Most of these religions have been practiced for centuries and are still practiced today. There are many similarities and many different ways of these religions. However, within these religions, we are able to compare and contrast some of their religious beliefs, their overall ideas, and how they try to satisfy their human needs. Primal definition is, “original,” the Australian Aborigines, Native American Indians, and African religions are primal religions. “Aborginigine,” means from the beginning. Aboriginal religion is best understood for a vision of the nature and how they are linked and connected with nature and everything around it. Aboriginal spiritually entails a close relationship between humans and the lands. They call the beginning of the world the “Dreaming” or “Dreamtime.” In the “Dreamtime,” aboriginal “Ancestors” rose from below the...
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...Richard Parker runs off into the jungle without a farewell. Through the way Pi speaks to the tiger and as the story develops, it becomes apparent that Martell intended Richard parker to symbolize Pi’s will to survive and his primal state. Although he is ferocious and fearsome, Richard Parker’s presence is what drives Pi’s will to live. Pi faces many issues on the...
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...A Concise Introduction to Islam: by Richard T. Nolan "ISLAM" is derived from the Arabic root salaama meaning peace, purity, submission and obedience. Islam stands for making peace by submitting to the will of God and obeying His law. Jews and Christians view Islam as the latest of the world's great religions. However, worldwide Muslims (sometimes written "Moslems") understand their universal religion as the "final religion" and the "primal religion." As "final," Islam is God's final revelation of prophetic religion, in fulfillment of all that had preceded. Moses was given the Law; David was given the Psalms; Jesus was given the Gospel. Judaism offers God's message of justice, and Christianity proclaims the love of God. To Mohammed (570-632 A.D.; spelled in a variety of ways) the God of Abraham and Jesus revealed the Qur'an (Arabic for "recital," sometimes written Koran). The Qur'an, written in Arabic, is the Sacred Scripture of Islam, the perfection of all previous divine revelations, and is to be understood literally as the direct words of God. In this sense of scriptural literalism, all Muslims may be called "fundamentalists." However, when referring to the aggressive behaviors of a few, "militants" and "extremists" are better categories. Muslims believe in all prophets of the Bible. The Qur'an itself mentions the Torah and the Gospel as scriptures revealed by God to Moses and Jesus. However, the Qur'an indicates that over time, changes were made to the actual biblical texts...
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...Sima & Sabah Religion has been successful in its response to psychology’s challenges to religious belief.’ Assess this claim (15 marks) June 2011 One of the key ways religion challenges Freud’s claims successfully is due to the fact his theory was based on Darwin’s speculations and assumptions which may have not been necessarily true. This theory was written at a time where no reliable data was available and so this meant that the idea of the primal horde was not criticised at the time. For example, not all tribes had totem animals. This suggests that Freud’s idea that guilt was handed down from generation to generation is incorrect. Therefore, one could argue that Freud was wrong to suggest that religion is based on guilt. This therefore supports the claim that religion was successful in its response to psychology’s challenges. However, many argue that Freud was immensely intelligent. His work had greatly influenced the western understanding of the mind. Therefore his assumption that religion was based on guilt was understandable to many people. Hence the reason why Freud’s strengths lie in the fact that many could relate to his ideas about religion and psychology in their own lives. This therefore goes against the statement that religion has been successful in its response to psychology. Another way in which religion successfully challenges Freud’s claims is the fact Freud suggest that guilt is passed down from generation to generation. Religion challenges this by...
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...In the first chapter of “Religion in World History” I thought this wording to one of the arguments was strong: “without religion, we are less fulfilled, or we cannot exercise our true potential; as human beings. We are flowers that never blossom, tress that never bear fruit.” This could be read and seen as ordinary to other people but, since I truly feel that without religion I’d have nothing to hold on in my weakness, anger or guilt depression would run me over. Religion, has the ability to give u inner light and self forgiveness. I also understand why there’s an argument about the fact that people suffer and they came up with religion, and a God that is greater to help them cope with their suffering. In the contrary, I still believe that it’s hard to have these inner spiritual inclinations with no God, or external power beyond us as beings. I thought that the explanation of The Magic section was interesting. Especially the part about magic not having control over God, but “has control over nature or the spirits”. It’s interesting how David Hume, “in his work on miracles” mentioned that there’s “insufficient evidence to prove” God’s existence nor his non-existence. Ending, up with to me a case that doesn’t go against any party, so all have the freedom to choose what they want to believe in with no ground evidence. Making it all dependent on faith and belief. The point where Smith’s Reading stated that “Mircea Eliade came to believe that archaic peoples are more...
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...likely survive the winter would be the one that would take care of his own needs first, or the one that would hoard resources. That prehistoric human would have been much healthier than it’s generous neighbor. Greed must have been instinctive for early humans. Although greed or self preservation may not be as respected in modern culture, it is not always a bad thing. New born babies are born greedy and selfish--they do not think of anyone but themselves and what they need or want in that moment. This is not out of hostility, but because of their instinct to thrive and survive. So as new born babies demonstrate the ancient instinct for self preservation, this trait of greed is also witnessed in distorted ways in our modern culture. For example, the economical and political structures can encourage greed, and some social systems promote selfishness with money, time, or possessions in a way that does not always benefit the individual or our...
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...In chapter 1 we see Siddhartha engaged in a philosophical struggle--a mental state he seems to thrive in. But he is only beginning to realize why he is dissatisfied and what he really wants. This confusion is apparent by a narrative pacing and diction that show build through questioning. It describes the problem--desire for something--then explores all the avenues of this problem. Does he desire truth? Identity? Oneness with the “primal source” of the Atman that may or may not “flow within his own heart?” These initial questions set up the journey Siddhartha will be taking throughout the rest of the novel. Hesse alludes to the famous banyan tree (p. 9) that was iconic to Siddhartha Gautama’s original development of the Buddhism religion....
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...Yoruba and Judaism There are a vast amount of religions recognized today. Originating in different parts of the world, and developing through different time periods, these religions revolve around distinct characteristics built upon years of tradition. One of the world’s primal religions is the Yoruba religion. Practised for more than one thousand years, this ancient religion has been the key form of worship for the people of the western regions of central Africa. Through the use of rituals, ancestors and special leaders, members of the Yoruba religion aim to establish the balance between human beings and gods. In contrast, Judaism, a religion established many years later, highlights the covenant between God and the people. Through the use of the Torah, festivals and a unique history, Jews fulfill their belief as the chosen people. While both religions possess similar aspects, significant differences exist between the two. Religions of the world are unique in the sense that every religion has a different understanding of what they believe is god. When closely examined, the Yoruba religion in comparison to Judaism, hold different beliefs on theism. Back in the earlier days, polytheistic religions (the worship of many gods) were the only religions that were known. The Yoruba faith has developed over the worship of many gods, using these different deities to communicate with the supernatural. Followers of the faith can agree that Yoruba’s early polytheistic developments are...
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...Topical current Medieval Jerusalem Religion heart of Christianity, Judaism, Islam Lack of water desert Conflict wars Crusades十字军东征 Book about Discover different recipes in their home Italian their culture complicated background Their background are mixed The importance of sharing food Show friendship and trust sign of community Breaking bread share ideas more than physical meaning Also cultural and community Element working together similar Work together to cook and to make peace Israel Change hand diversity Why different languages appear Mother tongue your first language Anecdotal : story one example, not scientific Culinary cuisine Private odyssey journey filter through the prism Consciousness in turn Freshmen fifteen ice cream bar at midnight TED Talk Paleolithic nostalgia Legumes foraging Legume vegetable (in French) a certain kind of vegetable (in English) Foraging don’t go to supermarket Paleo virile live primal Chronciallly ill Abandon more like ancestors A lot of meat Don’t contain grains Improve health and live longer Eat meat found in plants vitamin c Digest plants matter the meat myth Lean small Inherent bias Two dental calculus Inside tubers fad diet bananas a farmers food latex Whicj are oliveoil model diet acess svocade olives chinkens eggs broccoli Carrot human inventions Paleo diet manymany carible Plural essentialmoredern seasonal Organs toxin s benefit sort of diet forgiors No onr coreect...
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...Carl Jung has a very broad interpretation of 'religion' and to understand it, one must first examine the concepts Jung puts forward to explain his theory- the collective unconscious and archetypes, as frameworks within the collective unconscious, and how they relate to the process of individuation, the process by which the conscious individual 'harmonises' their psyche (mind). Jung accounts for religion as an expression of the collective unconscious of the species (though Jung may not have agreed with speciation) - religion helps the individuation process. within Jung's concept of the psyche, a three tier system - the personal conscious, the personal unconscious (repressed memories) and the collective unconscious (the blueprint that 'religious' images emerge from, conditioned by the archetypes). The expression of this psyche is the 'libido' (desire), the 'life-force' or energy that is focused through the archetypes. The archetypes are 'conceptual' frames that are shared by the entire species, they are 'functional dispositions' that innately generate images; the archetypes date back to pre-man evolutionary stages. Some examples of these archetypes are the persona - which manifests in dreams as images of masked parties, or suits of armour, the persona represents the 'outward facing' part of the psyche, the extrovert, which interacts with people; the shadow - this generates 'wilderness' or 'woodland' type images, and represents the 'dark', withdrawn 'inwards facing' part of the...
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...2. To what did the Latin religio refer? 3. Taoism and Confucianism are nontheistic religions, that is, religions for which belief in God or gods is nonessential. While gods are not alien to either Taoism or Confucianism, belief gods is not central to either tradition. What are a couple of other religions that can be called nontheistic religions? 4. What is Paul Tillich's definition for religion, and why do Hopfe and Woodward consider its development too broad? Theories of the Origin of Religions, pp. 5-9 5. Explain E. B. Tylor's theory concerning the origin and evolution of religion. What is animism, and to what, "ultimately" and "finally," did Tylor think it evolved? 6. To what does the term "mana" refer? 7. Explain Max Müller's theory concerning the origin and evolution of religion. 8. How does Wilhelm Schmidt's theory differ most from those of Müller and Tylor (hint : the answer has something to do with which came first, monotheism or polytheism)? 9. Explain Sir James Frazer's theory concerning the origin and evolution of religion. 10. According to Ludwig Feuerbach, who created whom? 11. For Karl Marx religion consisted of the idea of heaven, so what did Marx mean when he wrote that religion, or the idea of heaven, "is the opium [a pain killer] of the [oppressed] people"? 12. Sigmund Freud argues that "the younger males" who "joined together in killing" their father experienced enough...
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...funerary administrations, marital administrations, reflection, supplication, music, craftsmanship, move, open administration, or different parts of human culture. Religions have holy histories and accounts, which might be safeguarded in holy sacred writings, and images and blessed spots, that point generally to give an importance to life. Religions may contain representative stories, which are some of the time said by adherents to be valid, that have the side motivation behind clarifying the root of life, the Universe and different things. Generally, confidence, notwithstanding reason, has been viewed as a wellspring of religious beliefs. There are an expected 10,000 particular religions worldwide. About 84% of the total populace is partnered with one of the five biggest religions, in particular Christianity, Islam, Hinduism, Buddhism or types of society...
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