The document provides an overview of major religions in Asia, including Hinduism, Buddhism, Jainism, Sikhism, Judaism, Christianity, Islam, Zoroastrianism, Confucianism, Taoism, Legalism, Zen Buddhism, Tibetan Buddhism, Shinto, Shamanism, and Animism. It discusses the origins, founders, sacred texts, deities, beliefs, and practices of each religion.

1. Religions in Asia

2. Hinduism
Three main Gods
Brahma Vishnu Shiva
the Creator The Preserver The Destroyer!

3. One True God
Brahman
- Means Ultimate Reality
- Ultimate essence of material that cannot be realize
through senses but only through self knowledge (atm
jnana)
- Not to be confused with Hindu preists known
as “Brahmins”
All three gods were manifestation of one true God

4. Caste System
Priests and Scholars
Warriors and Brahmin
Leaders Kshatriya
Farmers, Artisans,
Vaishya Traders
Slaves
Sudra
Untouchables

5. Karma
Karma
- Moral consequences of a person’s actions
Hindus believe in a cycle of rebirth. Upon death,
the soul is transformed to a higher, or lower
category of being depending on their Karma

6. Moksha and Nirvana
Moksha
- End of the cycle of rebirth
Nirvana
- When the soul attains true peace and happiness
A person’s goal is to achieve good karma in order to
avoid reincarnation
Moksha and Nirvana are achieved when one’s
sould is completely pure and united with
Brahman

7. Buddhism

8. Origin
- Emerged In India as a protest to Hinduism
- Founded by Siddharta Gautama Buddha
- Buddha opposed the caste system

9. Siddharta Gautama
Buddha
- Son of a wealthy king in Nepal
- Forbidden to leave his kingdom by his parents
- Prophesy said he would either be a king or a sage
- Upon seeing the real world, he decided to leave his
kingdom to live a life of piety and asceticism
- Meditated under a Bodhi tree for 49 days and
experienced enlightenment

10. Division
Mahayana Buddhism Theravada Buddhism
Buddha = GOD Buddha = Teacher
Later on, Buddhism was divided into

11. Jainism

12. Vardhamana/Mahavira
- A contemporary of Buddha
- Also opposed caste system
- Also left his family
- Became a beggar
- Meditated silently for 12 years under a Sala
Tree
- Achieved “Kevala” in the 13th year

13. Jainism
Also believes in reincarnation and karma
Kevala can be attained through right conduct
It is forbidden to use force in Jainism
Peaceful action and non violence = Ahimsa
All life on earth is sacred, thus it i forbidden to
eat meat.

14. Sikhism
QuickTime™ and a
GIF decompressor
are needed to see this picture.

15. Guru Nanak
Founder of Sikhism
First Guru of sikhism
Guru - Descent of divine guidance to mankind
through the Ten Enlightened Masters
Born in Talvandi, now called Nankana Sahib
which is in Lahore, Pakistan

16. God
The God of the Sikh - niranker or formless.
God - akal or eternal.
He is the creator, sustainer and destroyer
God cannot be human and cannot be
understood by mortals.
God can be understood through his revelation,
his creations.
God is everywhere

17. Sikhism
Goal of man = destroy the cycle of rebirth and
unite with God
If a person overcomes the five cardinal vices,
he will be saved
5 cardinal vices - Sexual desire, anger, greed,
pride, hedonism
Sacred scripture - Guru Grant Sahib

18. Judaism

19. Judaism
Religion of the Jews/Israelites
First monotheistic religion
God = Yahweh
Yahweh’s teachings are in the Torah/ First
Five books of the bible
Chief Leader of Jews - Moses

20. Yahweh
Yahweh told the Jews, through Moses, that
Canaan was their promised land.
Yahweh gave them a covenant, through
moses, called the ten commandments.
Yahweh told the Jews to obey his teachings or
they would be punished
Jews do not believe that Jesus Christ is their
lord and savior.

21. Christianity

22. Jesus Christ
Founded Christianity
Believed by his followers to be the messiah
Born in bethlehem
Taught people, performed “miracles”
Crucified, resurrected after 3 days.

23. Christianity
Jesus Christ is the essence of Christianity
Holy book - Bible
Jesus is the son of God and was sent to the
world to live in suffering and poverty and to die
for the sake of mankind only to ressurect and
ascend to the Father.

24. Islam

25. Muhammad
One of the prophets of islam
Used to visit a cave to meditate
Realized the mysteries of faith, concerning
good and evil.
Allah is the only one who should be
recognized, praised and thanked.
All of Muhammad’s intuitions, experiences
were recorded by his spouse, Khadija, and his
followers. This became the Sunnah/Hadith

26. Islam
Literally means Peace or surrender
Followers are called Muslims
Sacred Scripture - Qur’an/Koran
The doctrine of Islam is based on five pillars
Muslims believe In Jesus Christ as a prophet

27. Five Pillars
1. Shahada - There is one God, Allah, and
Muhammad is his messenger.
2. Salat - Pray five times a day
3. Zakat - Being charitable
4. Sawn - The Ramadan
5. Hajj - Pilgrimage to Mecca, at least once in
a life of a Muslim.

28. Zoroastrianism

29. Zoroastrianism
Founded by Zoroaster/ Zarathustra
Sacred Book - Zend Avesta
There are 2 forces; Good and Bad.
God of goodness: Ahura Mazda
God of evil: Angra Mainyu/ Ahriman
THERE IS ONE WAY TO FIGHT EVIL,
DOING GOOD

30. Confucianism

31. Confucianism
Founded By Confucius (chinese- Kong fu-tzu,
Kongfuzi, meaning - Master Kung)
Confucius wanted to find solutions to solve
society’s problems.
Everyone should have good virtues like:
1. Jen - Benevolence
2. Yi - Righteousness, Right conduct
3. Li - Ritual, Propriety
Teachings of Confucius are contained in Five
Classics

32. Five Classics
1. Classic of Changes - originally used for
divination
2. Book of History - collection of speeches and
discussions
3. Classic of Odes - odes and folk songs
4. Classic of Rites - discussion of principles of
conduct and description of courtly and private
ceremonials
5. Spring and Autumn Annals - Chronicle of
the state of Lu

33. Taoism

34. Taoism
Founded by Lao Tze/ Laozi/ Lao Zi/ Lao Tzu
According to some accounts, Lao Zi did not
exist. He was made up by Taoist scholars to
have a founder for Taoism.
Sacred Scripture - Dao De Jing/ Tao Te Ching
Taoists believe that nature has its own course
and path and humans should just go with the
flow

35. Taoism
The purpose of Taoism is to attain balance in
the world. It is symbolized by the yin yang
Yin - represents females: soft and calm
Yang - represents males: hard and energetic
Taoists believe that immortality can be obtained
by meditating, dieting, yoga, and alchemy
Taoists believe that nature is inhabited by Gods
They regard Buddha as one of their Gods

36. Legalism

37. Legalism
Confucianism and Taoism failed to end the
chaos during the Zhou Dynasty thus Legalism
emerged.
It is the anti-thesis of Confucianism
Focused on strengthening state and widening
its power.
Came from the ideas of Shang yang and Han
Feizi

38. Legalism
State is the most important
Strict laws and heavy punishment are
necessary
Adopted as a state religion by Qin Dynasty
Shi Huang Di embraced legalism and ordered
to burn all confucian books and execution of
confucian scholars

39. Zen Buddhism
Japanese sect of Buddhism
Came from an Indian monk: Bodhidharma.
Later it spread to Japan
Emphasis of zen is the attainment of
enlightenment through meditation and self
discipline. These characteristics appealed to
the Samurai.

40. Tibetan
Buddhism/Lamaism
from the word “lamas” meaning the superior
Lamas refers to Tibetan monks
Tibet is a theocracy, Dalai Lama is the spiritual
and political leader. Every time a Dalai Lama
dies, Tibetans search for the next Dalai Lama
who is believed to be the reincarnation of the
previous.

41. Shinto

42. Shinto
Indigenous religion of Japan
In Japanese, it means kami no michi or way of
the gods
In shinto, kami or sacred spirits are
worshipped
kami inhabit nature
kami can also refer to dead emperors, leaders,
samurai and ancestors

43. Shinto
Ameterasu, the sun-goddess, is whom the
shintoists worship and regard her as their
progenitor
Untill the end of WWII, the emperor of Japan
was worshipped as a god
Buddha was also regarded as a kami

44. Shamanism

45. Shamanism
Religion of the ancient Mongols and particularly
during the time of Genghis Khan
Shaman - Expert who serves intermediaries
between humans and gods. They cure the sick
and exorcise the evil spirits
god of the ancient Mongols - Tengri; symbolizes
blue sky
They also worship guardian spirits, or spirits that
inhabit nature
Upon the death of Genghis Khan, He was
regarded as Tengri

46. Animism

47. Animism
Anima - soul spirit
The world is inhabited by spirits living in
stones, trees, rivers, mountaine and other
objects of nature
There are good and bad spirits
Philippines - anito and diwata
Myanmar - nat
Phi - Laos

48. Animism
Prayers and offerings to these spirits will bless
the people.
Earthquakes, storms, volcanic eruptions, and
other calamities are the result of the anger of
the spirits
In addition to natural spirits, Ancestral spirits
are also worshipped