Aspects of Religion

Hinduism—Rituals (Life Rituals/Worship)
Dawn and dusk are the two most important times of the day for Hindu rituals. All rituals are concerned with moving from impurity to purity. Water is a common tool used to help wash away impurity during worship. This can be used during a ritualistic bathe, for example. The intention is to purify the body. Prayer at the shrine of a Hindu god is a normal form of worship. Puja (worship) can consist of making an offering to the gods, particularly on special days set aside for the gods. The practitioners will smear sacred ash on their foreheads after making puja to show they have made their devotions to the gods.
Jainism—Divinities/God(s)
In Jainism, there is no God Creator or God Destroyer. There is only the perfect being—i.e., God the Perfect Being. Those who eliminate all their karmas and pass into a state of perfection become the gods of the Jains. Lord Mahavir, for example, is a God in Jainism because he reached the ultimate state of blissful happiness and perfection—residing in Moksha—through meditation and the ability to become fully self-realized. Thus, though born as humans, they become as Gods because they are perfect in their meditations, liberating their souls completely from the attachments of this world so that they can reach Moksha.
Buddhism—History
The history of Buddhism begins in the 5th century BC. It originated in India, based on the teachings of Siddh?rtha Gautama. Gautama was of a high class family, but he renounced his privilege and became an ascetic. He became Buddha by seeking nirvana and awakening through meditation. His followers were from all castes and after his death many sects of Buddhism spread. These include the Theravada and the Mahayana schools. Buddhism spread eastward from India into China around 50 BC and then Japan around 600 AD. Buddhism spread into the West around the 19th century when Romantic Era intellectuals saw it as a pure form of meditation that could help them attain nirvana and awakening.
Sikhism—Essential Teachings
A Sikh is a student who follows the 10 Sikh Gurus. The main three principles of the first Sikh Guru were: work hard, share, and always remember God. The essential teachings of Sikhism are that there is One God, and that all people are created equal (thus there is no separation according to caste in the Sikh religion, and all people, no matter what their race, ethnicity or gender, all have equal standing in the eyes of God). Sikhs must engage in daily devotion in order to be near to God; they should always be mindful of God in their daily lives. They also believe in religious freedom and that every person should be able to exercise worship the way he believes to be true. Morality and ethics are very important in life, which is why Sikhs hold themselves to a strict moral law. They do not engage in rituals, such as pilgrimages or processions, prayer to idols, or fasting. The main tenet of Sikhism is to serve others, to help those who are poor and in need. A Sikh is one who is expected to be a saint, a good soldier and a good scholar. The mind, body, heart and soul must all be perfectly formed.
Daoism/Confucianism—Creation Story
Daoism and Confucianism are organic Chinese philosophies. They are philosophies, not really religions, so they do not have creation stories in the manner that other religions, like Judaism, do. Daoism does have a theory, however, on the manner in which the universe was created. (Confucius never offered one but he also did not reject the traditional Chinese belief that the first Heavenly Emperor created the world in the image of heaven). Thus both shared the idea that yin and yang were once united, and when they separated the world was created, with the mountains pouring forth water. This is why images of mountains and waterfalls are so abundant in Chinese art: this is how the world was created. Water is the yin and the mountain is the yang.
Shinto—Afterlife Beliefs
In Shinto, the beliefs about the afterlife tend not to be very bright. The dead release their spiritual energy—their kami—which go to live in another world. This world is not paradise or heaven but rather simply a place where the spirits live, neither being punished nor rewarded. They can, however, return to the world of the living when their loved ones pray according to the appropriate ritualistic forms. The spirits in the afterlife also can protect the living and do so when they are memorialized by the living. When the living honor the dead, the spirits of the dead come back to give the living positive encouragement and protection. Those who live an impeccable life can become deified in death.
Zoroastrianism—Apocalyptic Account
According to Zoroaster, there will be a large, final battle between good and evil at the end of the world. Good will defeat evil. Those who have died in the past will be brought back to life, but a final judgment will take place and a purification process—by fire—will occur over the whole earth. Those who have led good lives will not be burned, but those who have led sinful lives will suffer and die again. Happiness will cover the whole earth where all God’s chosen and perfect creatures will live in peace.
Judaism—Miracles
The Old Testament is full of miracle stories, so in Judaism it is an accepted belief that miracles did occur. However, there is a current of thought in Judaism that seeks to explain miracles in natural terms—i.e., find a natural explanation for them. The common consensus is that miracles can happen and that one should believe that they can happen but that one is under no obligation to believe that miracles described as such in the Bible, the Talmud, the Midrash or other Rabbinic literature actually were miracles. Jews are taught that they should not pray for or expect miracles.
Christianity—Sacred Texts
There are two sacred texts in Christianity—the Old Testament and the New Testament. The Old Testament is the Jewish Bible, in which the coming of Christ, the Messiah, is prophesied in various places. The New Testament is the Christian Bible, in which the various writers, from Paul to John to Mark, Matthew and others, were inspired by the Holy Ghost—the third Person of the Holy Trinity—to write the Word of God in both letter form (epistles) and gospel form (accounts of the history of Christ). These texts taken together are believed to be divinely revealed.
Question 10
I do believe that learning about other religions and understanding religious diversity promotes religious tolerance. One hates and fears what one does not know or understand. When one understands the beliefs and practices of others, one can sympathize with them more. Overall, I feel that the global community views religious diversity as something that should be tolerated. Even if people have different religious beliefs, they understand that not everyone is going to share the same beliefs and thus it is better to accept that and get along than to make war over those differences. Some, of course, believe that war should be made because they are intolerant—and this is true in some Hindu and Islamic parts of the world, in Judaic and Christian parts and in Eastern parts as well. There is always a pocket of people, no matter the religion, that refuses tolerance. But for the most part, people are willing to be tolerant.