The Six Major Religions
Social Studies
Religions Unit
October 2011
BluePrint Skill: Grade 7 History
• Compare and contrast the tenets
of the five major world religions
(i.e., Christianity, Buddhism,
Islam, Hinduism, and Judaism).
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Christianity
Buddhism
Islam
Judaism
Hinduism
Sikhism
Christianity
• The early Hebrews who eventually
developed into the Jewish religion
became the foundation of
Christianity.
• Jesus, or the Messiah, was a Jewish
boy who disagreed with some of the
Jewish principles of his day began to
profess a new way of thinking.
• This eventually led to the beginning
of the Christian religion.
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Christianity
• Christianity started about 2000
years ago about the same time of
Jesus.
• The central point of Christian
belief is that God, the Father,
entered into human history as
the Son, Jesus of Nazereth, and
arose as the Holy Spirit.
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Christian Philosophy
• God is the Creator of the universe.
There is one God, Who is
Three PersonsFather, Son and Holy Spirit.
• Jesus is both fully man and fully
God. He was born of the Virgin Mary
Crucified, resurrected from the dead,
and ascended to the Father.
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Christian Philosophy
• Sin and Evil are realities in our
existence.
• The Bible is the Holy Book that
records God's revelation.
• All believers are promised life
everlasting.
• The leader of Christianity was
Jesus, and the followers was his
12 disciples.
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Buddhism
• Founding person of Buddhism is
Guatama, the Buddha
• The Dalai Lama is a Buddhist monk
who remains the leader of the
Tibetans.
• Buddhism is a major religion in
China, Japan, India, and Tibet.
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The Major Philosophy of Buddhism
• Love: without conditions
• Compassion: or feeling at one with
the person who is suffering
• Sympathetic Joy:Celebrate the
happiness of others, and do not
resent their good fortune.
• Impartiality: Treat everyone equally,
and do not use others for personal
gain or to win approval.
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The Major Philosophy of Buddhism
• Buddhism states that existence
is a continuing cycle of death
and rebirth called reincarnation.
• Each person's position in life is
determined by his or her
behavior in the previous life.
This is known as their "karma"
(also a Hindu belief).
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Buddhism
• Buddhism is the world's oldest
universal religion and it is the
second fastest growing
religion.
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Islam
• ISLAM is the name given to the
religion preached by the prophet
Muhammad in the 600s A. D.
• The Islamic religion started in the
area known as Palestine in the year
600AD.
• It has about 850 million followers,
most of them in the region north and
east of the Mediterranean Sea.
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Islam
• The holy book of Islam is
the "Koran." Muslims
believe its words to be
those of Allah himself,
spoken to Muhammad by an
angel.
• Allah, is the Islamic God.
• People who believe these
ideas are called Muslims.
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Islamic Philosophy
• Muslims learn that life on earth is a
period of testing and preparation for
the life to come.
• Angels record good and bad deeds.
• People should behave themselves and
help others, trusting in Allah's justice
and mercy for their reward.
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Islam
• Muslims pray five times daily in their
mosques (churches).
• While praying, they face the holy city
of Mecca (in Saudi-Arabia) and
sometimes kneel with faces to the
ground.
• All Muslims are required to make a
pilgrimage (trip to a sacred place) to
Mecca at least once in their lifetime.
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Hinduism
• HINDUISM is one of the world's
oldest religions.
• Over 2/3's of the world's Hindus live
in India; large numbers reside in
Africa also.
• Hindus believe in many gods,
numbering into the thousands. They
recognize one supreme spirit called
Brahman ("the Absolute.")
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Hindu Philosophy
• Hindus believe in many gods,
numbering into the thousands.
• They recognize one supreme spirit
called Brahman (the Absolute).
• The goal of Hindus is to someday
join with Brahman.
• Until that union takes place,
believers are in a continuous
process of rebirth called
"reincarnation."
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Hindu Philosophy
• At death, the Hindu's deeds (karma)
determine what the next life will be.
• Followers work to break this cycle-birth, death, re-birth-- (referred to by
writers as the "Wheel of Life") and
gain release.
• The Hindu's soul then merges with
Brahman in a condition of spiritual
perfection (moksha).
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Hinduism
• Hinduism has many sacred books,
the oldest being a series called the
"Vedas.“
• Traditional Hindu society was
divided into groups of four classes
(or varnas). This was known as the
"caste system."
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Judaism
• JUDAISM is a religion of just one
people: the Jews.
• JUDAISM was the first to teach
belief in only one God. Two other
important religions developed
from Judaism: Christianity and
Islam.
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Judaism
• Jews think that God will send a
Messiah (a deliverer) to unite them
and lead them in His way.
• Christians believe that Jesus was the
Messiah. The Jewish people do not
agree; they anticipate His arrival in
the future.
• Judaism teaches that death is not the
end and that there is a world to
come.
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Judaism
• The "Torah," the first five books
of the Hebrew Bible, is the most
important Jewish scripture.
• It contains the basic laws of
Judaism.
• Another important book is the
"Talmud," serving primarily as a
guide to the civil and religious
laws of Judaism.
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Judaism
• The Jewish house of worship is
called a synagogue.
• Rabbis (spiritual leaders) conduct
services, act as interpreters of
Jewish laws, and deliver sermons.
• Today there are over 18 million
followers of Judaism scattered
throughout the world. A large
number of those people live in the
Jewish nation of Israel. Over six
million live in the United States.
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Jewish Philosophy
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God is one and unique
God is the creator
God is transcendent
God is immanent.
God is lawgiver
God is personal
We have the obligation to worship
The Torah is God's law
God is judge
The Messiah will come.
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What is Sikhism?
• A 500 year old, monotheistic religion of
Northwest India, followed by some 20 million
• Seeks to make religion a uniting rather than
dividing force
• All people – male and female, Brahmin and
Shudra, Hindu and Muslim – are united as
brothers and sisters in devotion to the one God:
"there is no Muslim, there is no Hindu; all are equal
human beings because they are the children of
the same Father, God.“ – Guru Nanak
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THE FOUNDER OF THE FAITH:
• Guru Nanak (1469-1538)
• Hindu by birth and upbringing
• Influenced by the Bhakti and Sant tradition
of medieval northwest India
• A disciple of both Hindu and Muslim
mystics
• Composing and singing devotional songs
(kirtan)
• Drew his own disciples (“sikhs”) following a
mystical realization in 1499 - Sikhs are
disciples of the gurus and of the ultimate
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(wahe) guru, God
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Nanak’s teaching
• Preached a unifying message that
overcame religious differences, uniting
both Hindu and Muslim in common
devotion to the same God
• Recognized that behind all human names
and forms for God, is one True God (Sat
Nam – the “true name”)
• Rejected meaningless ritual, images and
idols of gods in favor of simple, heartfelt
devotion
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Beliefs
• One God (whom people call by many names)
– Sat Nam (“true name”), Waheguru (“great
guru”)
• Equality of all human beings (reject caste
distinctions)
• Karma and reincarnation
• Reject asceticism (no monastic life in
Sikhism)
• The spirit of the guru (Nanak) continued for
200 years through a succession of ten
human gurus…
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Development of the faith
• 2nd guru (Angad Dev) developed written
form of Punjabi language for recording
hymns
• 3rd guru (Amar Das) instituted the
community kitchen (Langar) to feed all in
need
• 4th guru (Ram Das) built the Sikh holy city
of Amritsar (in Punjab)
• 5th guru (Arjun Dev) built the Golden
Temple in Amritsar as the center of the Sikh
world; also compiled hymns of the earlier
gurus, creating the Sikh holy book: Adi
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Granth
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Martyrdom and defense
• 5th guru was martyred, 6th guru (Har
Gobind) began a tradition of training Sikhs
in martial arts to protect those persecuted
for their religion (Sikh, Hindu or otherwise)
• 7th guru (Har Rai) best known for opening
hospitals and offering free medical
treatment to those in need
• 8th guru (Har Krishan) was just a child but
continued caring for the sick (died at age 8)
• 9th guru (Tegh Bahadur) worked to combat
religious persecution, ultimately became
the 2nd Sikh martyr
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The 10th Guru – Gobind Singh
• Wrote hymns and completed the
compilation of the Adi Granth
• In 1699, Initiated the Sikh Khalsa
(“brotherhood”) as a military defense
force
• Declared the end of the line of human
gurus, transferring guruship to the Khalsa
community and the holy book, now
known as “Guru Granth Sahib”
• Died 1708
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The Khalsa
• Today, the Khalsa is simply the
community of the faithful
• Amrit ceremony as baptism and
initiation into the Khalsa (male
and female, must be at least
16 years of age)
• Khalsa members take a new last name:
Singh (“lion”) for men, Kaur (“princess”)
for women
• Khalsa members wear the “Five K’s” as
symbols of their faith…
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The Five K’s
• Kesh: Long, uncut hair (both men and women)
– Men wear a turban to cover their hair
• Kangha: a comb to keep the hair clean and
presentable
• Kara: a steel bracelet worn on the right wrist as a
reminder to think of God and do one’s duty
• Kachh: undergarments as a reminder of chastity
(outside of marriage) and purity
• Kirpan: a defensive sword symbolic of God’s power
and the Sikh duty to protect the weak and persecuted
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Other Sikh symbols
• The Khanda: the double edged sword
represents God’s power, the circle is for
continuity, the two outer swords for
spiritual and political balance
• “Ek-Onkar” meaning “one God”
• The Golden Temple: a place of worship,
pilgrimage, and seat of worldwide Sikh
leadership; open on four sides for access
by all people; surrounded by a pool of
water for purification rites
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The Gurdwara –
the Sikh temple
• “Door to the Guru,” housing and
honoring the Guru Granth Sahib
• A “Granthi” (priest) is caretaker of the Gurdwara and
the holy book as well as spiritual leader of the
community
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The Gurdwara –
the Sikh temple
• Contains a kitchen and dining hall (for Langar)
and prayer hall for singing of Kirtan (hymns) from
the holy book
• Open daily (in India) with continuous
reading and singing from holy book,
serving food to all who come
• Following worship, all partake in the
Langar, sitting (on the floor) and eating
a meal together (equality)
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Sikh holy days and ceremonies
• Vaisakhi: April 13th, anniversary of
founding of the Khalsa
• Guru Nanak’s birthday (November)
• Baby naming
• Amrit/Baptism (Initiation into Khalsa)
• Marriage (Anand Karaj): takes place in the
Gurdwara with the community
before the Guru Granth
• Death: cremation of body
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The Sikh way of life
• Mediation and personal prayer morning
and evening
• Honest and hard work
• Charity
• Service to humanity, God, and guru
• Strong family values
• Strong identity with the Sikh community
• Khalsa members abstain from smoking,
drinking and illicite drugs
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Sikhism on the Web:
• The Sikhism Home Page: http://www.sikhs.org/topics.htm
• The SikhNetwork: a virtual worldwide Sikh community
(includes areas for on-line discussion and live chats with
Sikhs from around the world) http://www.sikhnet.com
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How much have you learned?
• Let’s take a
Chalkboard
Challenge
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