Buddhism, Christianity, and Islam are a few of the "universal" or "universalizing" religions. Strayer frames the universalizing religions in terms of the spread of different cultures and ideas throughout the world. Religions are integral to social and political power and control, and thus have a transformative effect on society as well as on the individuals within that society. The nature of universalizing religion is such that they can be all-pervasive, permeating almost every dimension of life including political, economic, and social institutions. However, universalizing religions are distinct in that they actively seek new followers; they believe their message is indeed universal and contains universal truths embedded within it.
Although universalizing religions use different methods of spreading their faiths, they share in common the desire to influence human thought and even public discourse. Of the universalizing religions, Christianity and Islam have historically revealed the most aggressive evangelical tendencies but Hinduism and Buddhism have at times engaged in colonial activities and proselytism too, which is why Buddhism penetrated into the farthest reaches of East, Southeast, and Central Asia from its initial hub in India, and why Hindu kingdoms flourished for some time in Southeast Asia.
When universalizing religions engage in colonial activities, they actively and permanently transform their target cultures and communities, in addition to individuals. As Premawardhana...
Conversion is occasionally forced, as during periods of crusades by Christians and Muslims or the colonial enterprises of European Christian nations in the Americas and the Muslim Ottoman Empire throughout North Africa and the Middle East. Kong shows how Christianity has continually been able to reinvent itself, repackaging itself and changing its evangelical methods to remain relevant. Universalizing religions need to update themselves in order to attract followers from each generation.
In addition to their practice of colonialism and cultural transformation, there are specific doctrinal elements to universalizing religions that give them their "universal" characteristics or universal appeal. For one, religions that appeal to the desire of all humans to be free from fear and suffering are bound to have universal appeal. All of the universalizing religions promise that ascription to the faith will offer the practitioner liberation of some sort. The type of liberation and the way it is presented to the individual is different for each of these faiths. For the Christian, liberation comes only in death. For the Buddhist, the opposite is true -- liberation comes from cultivating Buddha-nature now. As Strayer points out, Buddhism had a strong popular appeal throughout East Asia in part because the religion was able to integrate itself well with existing religions and worldviews. When a religion can…
Universal religions have grandiose political and social schemes. Unlike smaller-scale spiritual faiths, universal religions are those that seek to expand their locus of power and control over larger areas, such as through proselytizing or linking with political rulers. Universal religions also extended deeper into more areas of individual, family and community lives. For example, universal religions propagated specific social norms, morals, and ethics, and became one of the fundamental means
In fact, Hindus consider their religion not as a form of religion per se, but spirituality in general. Selvanayagam (2005) discussed the Hindu concept of spirituality, which takes into account all possible ways or manner in which enlightenment can be achieved. In India, wherein the Hindu religion is the dominant and an integral part of people's lives, Hinduism is considered more than a religion -- it is also a political
A key celebration in the village invites a festive dance in which the performers fall into a stupor and try to stab themselves with knives (Heinrich, 2005 p. 78). Rituals in life are pertinent events for religious display and artistic expression. Events of puberty, marriage life and burial offer opportunities for Balinese to express their notions regarding statuses, society and the afterlife. The Balinese denomination organizes their faith in a
Dharma is related to "karma," another basic Buddhist principle that governs reincarnation and rebirth. Karma is the idea that a person must perform moral deeds throughout his life to attain a higher level of reincarnation and rebirth. Karma governs these moral deeds, and a person must "pay" in the next life if they do not act morally and spiritually in this life. Thus, karma governs more than one life,
business culture and expansion trends that exist for American companies in India. The paper focuses on answering the following questions: 1. What are the major elements and dimensions of culture in this region? 2. How are these elements and dimensions integrated by local conducting business in the nation? 3. How do both of the above items compare with U.S. culture and business? 4. What are the implications for U.S.
Religious Traditions Global religions have blended practices with traditional or indigenous practices. Mainstream religious practices have elements of spiritual, religious, and cultural beliefs and practices adopted from native religious practices. For example, as Buddhism spread it adopted the customs and practices of local deities (Warren, 2012). This implies that to understand the different forms of religions requires the consideration of religious elements, which are manifested as seven dimensions of religious