persia, china, india-religious notes

8/4/2019 Persia, China, India-RELIGIOUS NOTES

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What is the world’s

oldest religion?

Tribal religions, animism, shamanism,

and paganism

The natural world consist of spirits and

deities (gods).



2. Founder-Yahweh chose Abraham, a

shepherd who lived in the city of Ur in

Mesopotamia, to be the “father” of the Hebrew people.



3. Key beliefs

To the Hebrews, God was not a physical being,and no physical images were to made of him.

Yahweh was the traditional name of God for

the Jews.



4. Literature

The Torah and Talmud



5. Around 1650 BC, the descendants of

Abraham moved to Egypt, where they were

eventually forced into slavery. The Hebrews fledEgypt led by a Hebrew named Moses called the

Exodus and Jews remember this day as

Passover.

6. The Jews-Hebrews have a

Covenant (contract)

With God-the Jews-Hebrews

Are the “chosen

people of God”



7. The 10 commandments has served as a basis of

Western laws, customs, and traditions from the

time of Moses to present day

(2)You shall have no other gods before me

(5)Honor your father and mother

(6)You shall not kill (murder)

(7)You shall not commit adultery

(8)You shall not steal



8. During a 500 year period called

the Diaspora, the Jews left or were

exiled from Israel, and they spreadout around the world.



THE PERSIAN EMPIRE (2000 B. C.- 100 B. C.): -The Persian Empire was located primarily in the Middle East along the Iranian

plateau between the Caspian Sea and the Persian Gulf- Cyrus the Great

-It eventually grew to expand from the Nile River to the Indus River



-The Persian ruler Darius unified the empire:

1. He built many public roads

2. Introduced uniform weights and measures

3. *Divided the empire into provinces, which made theempire more manageable as well as promoting

trade.

4. Defeated by the Greeks at the Battle of Marathon



-Darius son Xerxes led a Persian army against the

Greeks. More successful than Darius but in the

end being held up at Thermopylae and ultimatelydefeated at Salamis by the Greek Trireme



-Darius III will fight Alexander the Great

unsuccessfully at Issus and Gaugamela



RELIGION-

Zoroastrianism-The religion taught that

there was a constant battle between twoforces GOOD & EVIL (Duality). All those

who were on the good side would go to

HEAVEN and all those who were on the

bad side would go to HELL.



-The natural barrier that separates India from the

rest of Asia are the Himalayanmountains in the North and East of India.



-The Himalayan mountain range is the

highest mountain range in the world. Mt.Everest is located here-the highest mountain

in the world (29,000 feet above sea level)



POSITIVE impact of the Himalayas on India:

1. Acts as a natural barrier or defense to help

keep enemies out

2. Contains limited natural resources-iron ore,

coal, manganese. etc.

3. Fresh water supply-source of the Ganges River

NEGATIVE impact of the Himalayas:

1. Has acted as a barrier to TRADE and

contact with other peoples to thenorth and northeast of the region.

h ti i th b t th



he exception is the y er ass between the

indu Kush Mountains in the northwest

lowed trade, invasions, and cultural diffusion from

e west and a little from the east



THREE GREAT RIVERS DOMINATE INDIA

1. Indus 2. Ganges 3. Brahmaputra



Some of these civilizations were the

Mohenjo-Daro and the Harappa -

well planned cities, temples, settledfarmers, brick houses, plumbing, and

other early city structures!

MAURYA AND THE GUPTA! G t



MAURYA AND THE GUPTA!-Gupta

empire-there was a GOLDEN AGE! Arts,

sculptures flourished, advances in medicine,

cashmere and calico were produced

Th M E i (300 B C 184 B C )



The Mauryan Empire (300 B. C. – 184 B. C.)

-First empire to unite most of India under one central

government

-it centered and developed along the Ganges riverFamous leader –Asoka (Ashoka) –in the beginning, he

promoted warfare and wanted to conquer other

lands. Then he became a Buddhist and began to

practice more peaceful ways

Asoka accomplished the following:

1. Promoted Buddhism in India and beyond; sending

missionaries

2. Tolerated other religions including Hinduism

3. Indian culture flourished

h G i (320 0 )



The Gupta Empire (320 AD-550 AD)

-“Golden Age of India”-time of great cultural and

scientific achievements

Accomplishments of the Gupta Empire:

1. Medical doctors set broken bones, surgery was

performed

2. Textiles like cashmere and calico were created3. Literature, art, and sculpture flourished



HINDUISM

world’s oldest religion. No one person founded Hinduism

There is no one sacred book like the Bible. Their holy bo

are collected in the Vedas. Polytheistic religion-many go

i i ( d )



Deities (gods)-

Brahma-the creator

Vishnu-the preserver of life Shiva-the destroyer and re creator



MAJOR BELIEFS OF HINDUISM

2. REINCARNATION

3. KARMA

4. DHARMABRAHMAN-means universal

soulUltimate goal is to reach moksha-union

with Brahman



5. Hinduism and Society-Both a

religion and a social system (castesystem)

The caste system is a system of social

stratification or ranking of people by

occupation.

A belief that people are born intocertain castes or classes

of people



POSITIVE EFFECT-

Provided Social Order

NEGATIVE EFFECT- little or

NO SOCIAL MOBILITY

OCCUPATIONALGROUPINGS CASTE

SYSTEM



THE RANKING OF THE CASTE SYSTEM

Brahmins-

priests

Kshatriyas-

nobles/warriors

Vaisyas-

merchants

S d



Sudras-

Farm

workers-Peasants

nd not even in the caste system because of their

owly status were the UNTOUCHABLES OR

ARIJANS

Al h h h l d



Although the caste system outlawed

today-people are known from what

families or “classes” you come fromsuffer from discrimination!

BUDDHISM



BUDDHISM Founded in nearby India, by Prince Siddhartha

Gautama (enlightened one) (563-487 B.C.), who

rejected wealth and searched for the meaning of human suffering.

GREW OUT OF HINDUISM- RESPONSE TO IT!



2. Key Beliefs

-Believe in Karma and

reincarnation, but one can escapethe cycle of death and rebirth

through Buddhist practices.

-Rejected the Hindu caste system



3. Literature

The three baskets, sutras,

tantras

“You will always be

getting praise and

blame,

but do not let either

affect the poise of themind:

follow the calmness, the

absence of pride.”

-Founded a Middle Way to achieve peace and



-Founded a Middle Way to achieve peace and

harmony to a perfect state of mind called nirvana.

-Rejected indulgence in sensual pleasures, and

indulgence in extreme hardship-choose the MiddleWay!

-Most Buddhists do not believe in a supreme being

like a God

-Nature worship and respect



*Cultural Diffusion Buddhism spread



*Cultural Diffusion- Buddhism spread

from India to China, Korea, Japan, and

the rest of Southeast Asia. Only a smallpercentage of East Indians today are

Buddhists.



ZEN BUDDHISM-EMPHASIS ON

MEDITATION

MANDALAS



USE OF KOANS OR RIDDLES TO MAKE ONE THINK

ABOUT IMPORTANT VALUES!

“What is the sound of one hand clapping?”

“A tree falls in the woods-and nobody is around-does

it make a sound?”

To the Zen Master- “How does one begin to see the

world in an enlightened way?”

Zen Master-First, close your eyes.



JANISM IS RELATED TO BUDDHISM-IT IS LIKE EXTREME BUDDHISM-RIGHT

CONDUCT, RIGHT FAITH, RIGHT KNOWLEDGE AND TOTAL NON-

VIOLENCE- VEGETARIANISM NO HARM TO ANY LIVING CREATURE!



HINA’S GEOGRAPHY:

*Most of China is mountains or deserts

Only the river valleys of China have rich soil

nd good climate that people need for farming.

Huang He, Yangtze, and Xi Rivers)

MAJOR CHINESE PHILOSOPHIES



MAJOR CHINESE PHILOSOPHIES

LEGALISM:

Started around the ___________ Dynasty, practiced

ruthlessly by ___________ Dynasty -Revolved around the idea that passing strict laws

governing everyone was the best way to maintain an

orderly society

Han Fei Zi (韩非子)

-Founded by Confucius (K'ung-fu-tzu) 551 BC-479



-Founded by Confucius (K ung-fu-tzu) 551 BC-479

BC

-More of a philosophy than a religion,-Emphasized

strict moral conduct

-Education should be the road for advancement in

society- civil service exams to get the best people

in government

Filial Piety this meant that children and



-Filial Piety -this meant that children and

young people must honor and love their

parents and all older family members-Rulers and government are like parents

who should be obeyed. The children are

the citizens. The ruler is the father-Everyone has a role in society and must

carry out their obligations

-“Do to other people as you would like

them to do to you”



RELATIONSHIPS!

-The only equal relationship is friendship

-Older people were superior to younger

-men were superior to women

-parents superior to children

-elder brother was superior to younger brother

-ruler superior to the subjects or people he ruled



TAOISM (pronounced as DAOISM):



(p )

-Founded by Lao Tzu (604 BC?-nobody can verify his existen

-Emphasizes a need to be close to nature, accept nature, don’t r

it-Duality always exists GoodEvil, Yin (Female)Yang(Ma

must develop balance

-Simplicity and respect for living things, acceptance and yieldi

-Started in India but flourished in China Japan Korea



-Started in India but flourished in China, Japan, Korea,

and Southeast Asia

-Nirvana, Karma, Reincarnation, “Enlightened One”,

Four Noble Truths, Eightfold Path, The Middle Way

Chinese Buddha

of good fortune



Dynasties rule China:

Dynasties-a succession of rulers from the same

family.The Chinese dynasties ruled by the “Mandate of

Heaven”. This meant the ruler’s power depended on

heaven’s, the god’s, and ancestors continued favor of his personal behavior. People must obey emperor

because the heavens say so, BUT if ruler is unjust,

ruler will LOSE Mandate of Heaven. Other rival

families will takeover to rule China. [NOT THE

COMMON PEOPLE!]

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