There are many different religions in the world. Seven of the most important are: Christianity, Judaism, Islam, Buddhism, Hinduism and Sikhism. These religions have now spread far beyond the places where they began and there are followers of them all over the world.
A religion is a collection of beliefs that help people understand the world and the events that take place in it. Most religious people believe in one God, or several gods. In religions such as Judaism, Christianity and Islam, people worship one god. In others, such as Hinduism and the Japanese religion Shinto, people worship many gods.
People have worshipped gods since ancient times. They have always believed that the world was created by some unseen being or beings. Many of the ancient beliefs centered around natural elements such as the sun and rain which were so necessary for life. People felt that they needed to worship sun and rain gods and make them offerings so that their crops would grow.
Religions of the world today are different from one another, but also similar in many ways. People follow set rituals and celebrate special holy days. They go to a place of worship such as a church, a synagogue, a mosque or a temple to pray, and most religions have priests who conduct religious worship and preach to the people.
JUDAISM
Judaism is the religion of the Jewish people. They believe in one God who created Heaven and Earth. God has a covenant (an agreement) with everyone who leads a good life. Their holy book is the Hebrew Bible (the Old Testament of the Christian Bible). The most important part is the Torah, which contains God’s laws. The Bible, along with many Jewish festivals, commemorates events in the history of Israel, from where the Jews originally came.
Traditionally, Jews are not allowed to work on Saturday, the Sabbath. The word Sabbath comes from the Hebrew sabat, meaning “rest”. Saturday is the main day of worship, when Jews go to the synagogue for a service conducted by a rabbi.
SIKHISM
Most Sikhs live in the Punjab, India. Their holy city is Amritsar. Sikhs follow the teachings of ten leaders called gurus (guru is the Punjabi word for “holy man”). They all lived between 1469 and 1708. The first guru and founder of Sikhism was Guru Nanak who was born a Hindu. Guru Nanak believed that ceremonies and rituals divided people of different religions and that it was how people behaved and what they believed in that mattered. The gurus who came after him were all chosen to carry on his work.
Sikhs believe in one God who created the Universe. Their place of worship is called a gurdwara, which means “God’s house”. There are no priests in Sikhism. Readers, called granthi, conduct services and read from the Guru Granth Sahib in the gurdwara, but any member of the congregation can speak at a service. Sikhs live all over the world today and their day of worship follows the traditions of the country they live in.
HINDUISM
Hinduism is one of the oldest religions in the world. It began more than 4000 years ago in India.
Hindus believe in a set of ideas called the dharma, the truth. All living things have souls that are reborn many times, in both animal and human form. The actions (karma) of people in this life will decide their fate in the next.
Hindus believe that Shiva is found in frightening places, but he is sometimes seen as a loving god, too. Two of his other titles are “Lord of Dance” and “Lord of the Beasts”. His wife Parvati is the goddess of happy marriage.
The Hindu religion has many gods who are all different appearances of the supreme spirit, Brahman. The three most important gods are Brahma the Creator, Vishnu the Preserver and Shiva the Destroyer.
A Hindu place of worship is called a mandir, although it is often referred to as a temple. There are mandirs all over the world, wherever groups of Hindus have settled. Many are elaborately decorated with carvings and sculptures. Each mandir has its own priests who carry out ceremonies and look after the sacred images of the gods.
To Hindus, the River Ganges, which flows through northern India and Bangladesh, is a holy river. They believe that bathing in the river will wash away their earthly sins. Millions of Hindus make pilgrimages to the holy city of Varanasi, (also known as Benares).Varanasi is one of the oldest cities in India. It has special steps called ghats along the river bank from which people can bathe in the Ganges. They take a little of the water back home with them as a blessing.
BUDDHISM
Buddhists do not worship a god but follow the teachings of an Indian prince, Siddhartha Gautama (c. 563-483 BC). Siddhartha lived a life of luxury in his father’s palace but he saw suffering around him and wanted to find an answer to it. He left his home and spent six years studying and talking to holy men. One day he sat under a fig tree and resolved to stay there until he had found the answer. After 49 days he had reached a state of wisdom in which he could understand human suffering and see how people could live in peace and harmony together. He had achieved nirvana, or enlightenment (the name Buddha means “the enlightened one”). He spent the rest of his life travelling and teaching people how to live happier and better lives.
Buddha taught four “noble” truths. First: life is full of suffering. Second: this suffering is caused by greed. Third: suffering would end if we stopped desiring material things. Fourth: there is a path to a state of peace.
The golden stupa at Yangon in Burma. A stupa is a sacred structure containing holy texts and relics. Stupas in India are said to contain parts of Buddha’s body.
At first there were no statues of Buddha. But Hindus had statues of their gods and so those of Buddha became popular. (Buddhists today keep small statues in their homes for inspiration.) The Amida Buddha in Ushiku City, Japan, is the world’s tallest statue. It is 120 metres high and contains rooms for meditation and learning. Buddha is also shown sitting or reclining, as with famous statue at Polonnaruwa, Sri Lanka.
Today there are about 400 million Buddhists in the world, many of whom live in the Far East. Some Buddhists dedicate their lives to becoming monks and nuns so that they can give other people the dharma, Buddha’s teachings. Buddhist monks and nuns live simple lives in monasteries. They carry out ceremonies in the temples and monasteries, where people come to meditate and pay their respects to Buddha. Buddha’s teachings were written down about 300 years after his death and these are the sacred texts that Buddhists study.
Buddhism has two main branches: the Theravada and the Mahayana. They have different festivals, but all Buddhists celebrate Buddha’s birth, enlightenment and death, the three most important dates in their year.
CHRISTIANITY
Christians believe in one God who sent his son Jesus Christ to Earth to save people from sin by sacrificing his own life. The name Christ is from a Greek word meaning “the anointed one”. The Christian holy book, the Bible, contains both the Old Testament or Hebrew Bible and the New Testament, which describes the life and work of Jesus and his disciples.
Jesus was born 2000 years ago in Judaea, then part of the Roman Empire. He spent his life teaching people about love and forgiveness. He had many followers, but he made enemies among the Jewish priests.
The priests persuaded the Roman governor to condemn Jesus to death by crucifixion. But his followers, especially St. Paul, preached the message of Christianity throughout the Roman Empire. The Romans condemned Christianity for many years, but it eventually became the official religion of the empire under the Emperor Constantine (c. AD 274-337).
After the fall of the Roman Empire, Christianity continued to spread in new empires that grew up in Europe. More people became converted to Christianity.
Over the centuries, missionaries travelled around the world in order to convert others to Christianity. Today, there are more than one billion Christians worldwide.
Christians take part in two sacraments, actions that affirm a relationship with God. The first is Mass or Holy Communion: sharing bread and wine that has been blessed. People are welcomed into the faith by baptism, the second sacrament, a sign of washing away sin. Children and babies have water sprinkled on their heads.
There are three main branches of Christianity—Roman Catholic, Protestant and Eastern Orthodox. All three follow the same basic principles, but there are some differences. In the Roman Catholic Church, the Pope (from the Latin papa, a word for father) has supreme authority. Orthodox followers believe that their bishops are supreme. Protestants believe that the Bible is the only authority. Christian festivals take place throughout the year, but the two most important are Christmas, which celebrates the birth of Jesus, and Easter, which celebrates the Christian belief that Jesus rose from the dead and ascended into Heaven.
ISLAM
Islam means “submitting to the will of God”. The followers of Islam are called Muslims. The founder of Islam was the Prophet Muhammad, who was born in Makkah, Arabia, in AD 570. He was making a pilgrimage to Mount Hira, near Makkah, when the angel Gabriel came to him and told him that there is only one God, who is called Allah and that he, Muhammad, should become the prophet of Allah and teach God’s will.
Prophet Muhammad began to preach but at first people refused to believe what he told them. Pilgrimages to Makkah brought money into the city and people did not want this to change. In AD 622, Prophet Muhammad and his followers were forced to flee from Makkah to the town of Yathrib, later re-named Medina, “the City of the Prophet”. This flight, called the hijra, marked the start of the Islamic calendar.
Prophet Muhammad continued to preach in Medina. He said that Allah had told him that people should live peacefully together, rather than fighting between tribes. The words of Allah, which Prophet Muhammad passed on to the people, were written down in a holy book called the Qur’an (Koran), which all Muslims must follow.
To Muslims, Islam is a way of life, supported by five rules or “pillars”. Firstly, there is no God except Allah; Prophet Muhammad is His messenger. Secondly, a prayer to Allah is to be made five times a day. Thirdly, alms should be given to the poor at least once a year. Fourthly, Muslims should fast between dawn and dusk, especially during the month of Ramadan. Finally, Muslims should make a pilgrimage once in their lives to Makkah.
Muslims worship in mosques and they are called to prayer five times a day, at times set down in the Qur’an.
A Muslim religious leader is called an Imam. During prayers in the mosque, worshippers stand in straight rows behind the Imam. The men and boys stand together while the women and girls stand separately from them. Everyone watches the Imam and follows what he does.
Friday is an important day for Muslims. They gather in the mosque to listen to a talk by the Imam at an event called salat-ul-jumu’ah. This occasion also gives Muslims a chance to get to know each other, particularly in places where there is not a large Muslim community.
There are two main religious festivals in Islam. The first is Eid Al-Fitir, the festival of successfully fasting in the month of Ramadan. Ramadan is a period of fasting and prayer which lasts for a month and marks the time when Prophet Muhammad was visited by the angel Gabriel. All Muslims over the age of 12 should fast between dawn and dusk during Ramadan. As soon as the new moon appears at the end of Ramadan, everybody celebrates with Eid Al-Fitir, which lasts for three days. People dress up in their best clothes and give each other presents. Prayers are said in the mosques.
The second festival is Eid Al-Adha, the Festival of Sacrifices, which is celebrated at the end of the hajj or pilgrimage. All Muslims are expected to make a pilgrimage to Makkah at least once in their lives if they are well enough and can afford the journey. The events of the hajj take a few days but pilgrims may stay in Arabia for two or three weeks and visit Prophet Muhammad’s mosque in Medina and other sacred places. About two million people from all over the world make the pilgrimage each year. Muslims mark the end of the hajj with prayers and thanks in the mosque.
The Islamic calendar is based on the cycles of the moon, so Muslim festivals fall on different days each year.
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