Examine and Comment of Christian and Hindu Beliefs about Life After Death

Examine and comment on Christian and Hindu beliefs about life after death. Death is the most fateful experience of each individual's life. Whether it is the end of one's life, or the beginning of a new life, no one knows. Death for the Hindu is merely transition, simultaneously an end to a new beginning. Death for the Christian is destined and is a time of judgement that is made from their former performances in life. These are very different views from two major world religions that both question the different events that may take place after one's death. The Christian faith believes that the body is resurrected at death and the soul of an individual is immortal and continues after death. The doctrines of the church teach Christians that after one dies, they will rise before God and be judged. They believe that Christians who have been faithful throughout their life by worshipping Christ and helping other who are less fortunate. A quotation from Matthew 25: 31-46, 'One day we shall be called to account for the way we have used our gifts, our opportunities and our energies. Above all, we shall be required for the way we have behaved in relation to the poor, needy and the marginalised', supports the belief of the Christian faith and continues to teach these beliefs to mankind. This judgement that is made by God determines whether a person's soul will spend eternity in heaven

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  • Level: AS and A Level
  • Subject: Religious Studies & Philosophy
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Why did Hinduism need to reform?

Why did Hinduism need to reform? In 1828 has traditionally been regarded as beginning of a new era in the history of the British India as it underwent one of the most significant changes in its history ever. Hinduism needed to reform due to several pressures that it was facing at the current time. Firstly the mogul empire had overtaken India in the seventeenth century. Muslims fundamentally hold a monesthics belief. Their presence was particularly felt in the North of India, which is now known as Pakistan. The Muslim leaders of the Mughal Empire imposed shariah law and often attacked temples and images of Hindu deities. Many Hindu's were converted to Islam by the incentives of a lack of caste system, there was much more of an official universal doctrine and Islam was based on the ummah (brotherhood) thus highlighting the equality of all humans. Although originally when Muslims invaded they destroyed literally millions of temples of the "infidels" and applied considerable pressure to convert them to Islam however, under more liberal emperors such as Akbar. Hindus were given the freedom to practise their own faith and even held significant positions in courts. Furthermore, when the British Invaded they brought with them protestant Christianity as practised in Portugal. Along with them came the missionaries, which again imposed a monotheistic tradition. Missionaries were

  • Word count: 1348
  • Level: AS and A Level
  • Subject: Religious Studies & Philosophy
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Religion, Poverty and Wealth-Hinduism

Religion, Poverty and Wealth-Hinduism (8) Poverty is now a problem on a global scale, and Hinduism has needed, and will continue to need, to undertake an ongoing state of change and adaptation. Many of the beliefs Hindus held only a couple of centuries ago have been altered or even removed altogether. The globalisation of Hinduism, bringing it into contact with a wide range of other cultures and religions, has influenced this a lot. Hinduism, however, is full of variations itself, so what is said of Hinduism may be true for some Hindus, and false for others. Hinduism is less a religion, than a culture, and way of life. This way of life affects how they view poverty and wealth, and what there reactions to it are, as outlined below. Unlike many other societies, where the caste system is based on power or wealth, thus giving the poorest the least power, Hinduism has four set castes, which a member belongs to by birth. These groups are called varnas, and each has its own set of rules and duties to live by, known as dharma. Too much inter-varna mixing, especially intermarriage, is strongly disapproved of. The first, and highest varna is that of a Brahmin-priests, teachers, and wisemen. The next is Kshatriya-warriors, rulers, and leaders. The third is Vaishya-traders, merchants, agriculture, and other work involved with commerce. The final, and lowest varna is Sudra-manual labour

  • Word count: 1037
  • Level: AS and A Level
  • Subject: Religious Studies & Philosophy
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How Do Hindus View Suffering?

HOW DO HINDUS VIEW SUFFERING? Hinduism is an ancient religion and is a mixture of several different faiths. The religion includes the beliefs of the early inhabitants together with the beliefs of others from around the last three thousand years. Due to the diversities in the religion, it may seem that a number of Hindus may appear to be followers of a different religion - this is not so. The differing of beliefs can be seen in the view of suffering. It is one of the most vital concepts in Hindu philosophy. Suffering is "to undergo or be subjected to pain."1 Pain does not just mean physical torture. It could mean anything from struggling to make ends meet, to being mentally unstable. Suffering may be internal, like physical pain, or external, resulting from the environment around. The three major religions that is Christianity, Judaism, Islam (known as the religions of the book) have their own teaching on what it means to suffer. The idea of suffering in the Christian tradition is particularly conventional. The Old Testament book of Job depicts a righteous man who loses everything that he has, and in turn has inflicted upon him diseases. The view of suffering is found in the characters Zophar, Bildad, Eliphaz, who believe that the main reason Job is suffering in such a gruesome way is because of his actions. Job may have appeared to be a righteous man on the

  • Word count: 2610
  • Level: AS and A Level
  • Subject: Religious Studies & Philosophy
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Identify the characteristics beliefs and practises associated with Krishna And what is the significance for a devotee of Krishna.

Salma Aftab Identify the characteristics beliefs and practises associated with Krishna And what is the significance for a devotee of Krishna. Krishna is believed to be Vishnu's eight incarnations. Vishnu represents the "preserver" status in the Trimurti but is more frequently appreciated in his incarnation as Krishna. Krishna appears in many mythological stories but is most famously remembered for his part in the Bhagvad Gita. This scripture is believed to have been spoken by Krishna himself. Krishna is seen as a king and a conqueror of demons but his followers appear particularly fond of his childhood and youth. His love affair with the beautiful cowherdess, Radha is immensely popular with his followers. In many Indian temples dedicated to Krishna, his followers visit (Darshan) his images and present water for washing, drinking, clothes, flowers, incense and offer praise during their puja. Chanting and singing the Hare Krishna mantra is a very popular activity found in temples. The maha-mantra is a transcendental sound vibration which awakens love of God in the heart and mind. As with all other activities, music is considered a sacred offering to God. Murti's of Krishna are ritually installed temples, as it is believed that it is actually full of divine spirit of Krishna. Krishna's pictures often portray him as the young flute player, surrounded by cows, teasing the gopi

  • Word count: 607
  • Level: AS and A Level
  • Subject: Religious Studies & Philosophy
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Examine the ways in which the Bhagavad-Gita supports the life of duty and action rather than of renunciation.

Examine the ways in which the Bhagavad-Gita supports the life of duty and action rather than of renunciation. `In the Bhagavad Gita, the ideals of household obligation and ascetic renunciation are brought together by saying that a person can work towards liberation while still fulfilling his worldly responsibilities'[1][1]. The Bhagavad Gita explains this through Arjuna's dilemma. Krishna his charioteer and wise friend teaches him on the importance of Duty and action as well as renunciation. Arjuna is trying to work out whether it is better to follow his dharma, his duty and action which is to fight in this war that his caste duty says he should fulfil (svadharma) or renounce and not fight because of `the ideal of non violence espoused by the renounced traditions'[2][2]. This is where Krishna teaches him and guides him on which has more priority but not only that, how to fulfil his dharma without affecting the ideal of non-violence. `It is clear from the context that the Gita emphasises the importance of social duties.'[3][3] Especially in chapter two when Krishna is teaching Arjuna on all the reasons to fight, to follow his cast duty and to almost do away with the renunciation of not fighting. Krishna says "You sorrow for men who do not need your sorrow and yet speak words that in part are wise. Wise men do not sorrow for the living or the dead". Krishna

  • Word count: 1515
  • Level: AS and A Level
  • Subject: Religious Studies & Philosophy
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Examine the Hindu views on arranged marriages. To what extent can Hindu arranged marriages survive in a multi - cultural society

Examine the Hindu views on arranged marriages. To what extent can Hindu arranged marriages survive in a multi - cultural society In this essay I will examine the Hindu views on arranged marriages and how they are surviving in s multi - cultural society. I shall use secondary research to back up what I mention within this essay. An arranged marriage is a marriage in which neither the bride nor the groom has a say over the selection of their future spouses. However, in an arranged marriage, both parties give full consent to the marriage. Arranged marriages have been proven to be successful. Arranged marriages have been a traditional aspect of family life in Hinduism. According to Hinduism, a marriage between two people is seen to be a holy relationship, that is just not limited to this one life, but extends across seven or more lives during which, the couple will help each other grow as people and progress spiritually. Two souls come together and marry because their karmas are intertwined and they have to resolve many things together upon earth in order to ensure their mutual salvation. In Hinduism, man and woman represent the two halves of the divine body. There is no question of superiority or inferiority between them. When parents are in search for a partner for their child, they firstly look at the religion, language and caste. These are very important factors that

  • Word count: 2417
  • Level: AS and A Level
  • Subject: Religious Studies & Philosophy
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Abortion - Hindu view.

Many Hindus value the preservation of life and always condemn murder and suicide, but see euthanasia as an act of selfless compassion and assistance to let the victim achieve spiritual liberation. Three of the main ideas involved include Karma, Samsara, and Moksha. Karma is a concept of the rituals and sacrifices a person does during their life, and largely it is thought of as the scale on which a person's actions are measured on. There is bad Karma and good Karma for good deeds and bad acts. All you Karma eventually affects your Samsara. Samsara is the endless cycle of rebirth that Hindu's believe is affected by your Karma. If you have good karma then your next life will be better, if you have bad Karma, your next life will contain suffering and pain. To finally have such a Karma that would ultimately let you escape this cycle and reach Moksha, which is the ultimate goal of Hinduism. Moksha is the liberation of Samsara and the unification of one's soul with God. Actions and deeds taken to reach Moksha and incur good Karma are the aims of many of Hinduism's basic rituals. Many Hindus think that abortion shouldn't be accepted at all by anyone, but abortion is legal in India and in Hinduism it is left up to the individual to decide whether or not abortion is the right thing to do. However, Hinduism also teaches that abortion, like any other act of violence, thwarts a soul in

  • Word count: 2461
  • Level: AS and A Level
  • Subject: Religious Studies & Philosophy
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The concept of Atman

Atman The West regards the atman as being like the human soul, and this implies individualism. The Greek word for spirit is atmos and by looking at this, we can see that the word atman is more closely related to the notion of a spirit. In Hindu literature, the atman is the part of human existence that lives on and there are numerous illustrations given by writers that support this. One of the most famous illustrations about atman can be found in the Chandogya Upanishad. In the Chandogya Upanishad, there there are over 16 different illustrations of this vital notion of atman. It's this story of a boy where basically his dad tells him to put a big old chunk of salt in some water. The next day the dad tells him to get the water and drink from the side of it. He asks the boy what it's like and the boy replies (quite obviously) "salty" and he gets the boy to drink from different bits of the container and the middle and every time, the boy tells him that it's salty. The point of this story is showing that he can't distinguish the salt from the water, and in the same way atman evades us and becomes part of the whole world. The first recordings of the notion of atman are found in the Upanishads and it isn't really featured that much in the Vedas. In the Upanishads, the main teaching is that of Atman-Brahman synthesis. "Though it fills the whole of space, by mysterious way which

  • Word count: 811
  • Level: AS and A Level
  • Subject: Religious Studies & Philosophy
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