ABRAHAMIC FAITHS.

Christianity, Judaism, and Islam are called Abrahamic because

they trace their history back to the Hebrew patriarch Abraham (often dated in the 20 th or
21st century BCE). Judaism, Christianity, and Islam each see themselves as rooted in
Abrahamic faith, as displayed in the Hebrew Bible, the Christian Old Testament
(essentially the Hebrew Bible) and New Testament, and the Quran.
Since the 17th century, theism has been the common term in English to refer to the
central concept of God. According to the classical forms of these faiths, God is the one
and sole God (they are monotheistic as opposed to polytheistic) who both created and
sustains the cosmos. God either created the cosmos out of nothing, that is, ex nihilo, or
it has always existed but depends for its existence upon Gods conserving, creative will
(some Islamic philosophers have claimed that the cosmos has always existed as Gods
sustained creation, but the great majority of philosophers in these three traditions have
held that the cosmos had a beginning). Creation out of nothing means that God did not
use or require anything external from God in creating everything. The cosmos depends
upon Gods conserving, continuous will the way light depends on a source or a song
depends on a singer. If the source of the light goes out or the singer stops singing, the
light and song cease. Traditionally, creation is not thought of as a thing that an agent
might fashion and then abandon; the idea of God making creation and then neglecting it
the way a person might make a machine and then abandon itis utterly foreign to
theism.
In these religions, God is said to exist necessarily, not contingently. God exists in Gods
self, not as the creation of some greater being (a super-God) or force of nature. God is
also not a mode of something more fundamental, the way a wave is a mode of the sea
or a movement is a mode of the dance. The cosmos, in contrast to God, exists
contingently but not necessarilyit might not have existed at all; Gods existence is
unconditional insofar as it does not depend upon any external conditions, whereas the
cosmos is conditional. Theists hold that God is, rather, a substantial reality: a being not
explainable in terms that are more fundamental than itself. God is without parts, i.e. not
an aggregate or compilation of things. Theists describe God as holy or sacred, a reality
that is of unsurpassable greatness. God is therefore also thought of as perfectly good,
beautiful, all-powerful (omnipotent), present everywhere (omnipresent), and all-knowing
(omniscient). God is without origin and without end, and everlasting or eternal. Because
of all this, God is worthy of worship and morally sovereign (worthy of obedience).

Finally, God is manifested in human history; Gods nature and will is displayed in the
traditions sacred scriptures. Arguably, the most central attribute of God in the
Abrahamic traditions is goodness. The idea that God is not good or the fundamental
source of goodness would be akin to the idea of a square circle: an utter contradiction.
Theists in these traditions differ on some of the divine attributes. Some, for example,
claim that God knows all future events with certainty, whereas others argue that no
being (including God) can have such knowledge. Some theists believe that God
transcends both space and time altogether, while other theists hold that God pervades
the spatial world and is temporal (there is before, during, and after for God).
BAH FAITH. From the Arabic Bah, meaning glory or splendor. A monotheistic
religion that teaches the unity of all religions and has a strong humanitarian
focus. Bahs believe that Gods will has been progressively revealed through a variety
of messengers (including Abraham, Krishna, Buddha, Jesus, Muhammad, Zoroaster,
and so on), the most recent of whom is Bahullh. The Bah faith emerged out of
Shia Islam. In 1844, Siyyid `Al-Muhammad of Shiraz, Iran, claimed to be the Bb
(Arabic for the Gate) and announced the coming of a Messianic figure. His followers
were persecuted by the Islamic clergy, and the Bb himself was executed in 1850. In
1863, one of the Bbs followers, Mrz Husayn `Al Nr, declared himself to be the
messenger foretold by the Bb and took the title Bahullh. He was banished to
`Akk, an Ottoman penal colony in what is now Israel, where he remained until his
death in 1892. Bahullhs son, `Abbs Effendi (known as `Abdul-Bah or Servant of
Bah), became the next leader of the Bah community, followed by his grandson,
Shoghi Effendi. The Bah faith is now a world religion, with over five million adherents
in 247 countries and territories. Bahs are the largest religious minority in Iran and
often face persecution from the Islamic majority.
BUDDHISM. Buddhism emerged from Hinduism, tracing its origin to Gautama
Sakyamuni, who lived in northern India sometime between the 6 th and 4th centuries BCE
and came to be known as the Buddha (Enlightened One). His teaching centers on the
Four Noble Truths. These are that: (1) life is full of suffering, pain, and misery (dukka);
(2) the origin of suffering is in desire (tanha); (3) the extinction of suffering can be
brought about by the extinction of desire; and (4) the way to extinguish desire is by

following the Noble Eightfold Path. The Eightfold Path consists of right understanding;
right aspirations or attitudes; right speech; right conduct; right livelihood; right effort;
mindfulness; and contemplation or composure. Early Buddhist teaching tended to be
nontheistic, underscoring instead the absence of the self (anatta) and the
impermanence of life. In its earliest forms, Buddhism did not have a
developed metaphysics (that is, a theory of the structure of reality, the nature of space,
time, and so on), but it did include belief in reincarnation, skepticism about the
substantial nature of persons existing over time, and either a denial of the existence
of Brahman or the treatment of Brahman as inconsequential. This is its clearest
departure from Hinduism. The goal of the religious life is nirvana, a transformation of
human consciousness that involves the shedding of the illusion of selfhood. Schools of
Buddhism include Theravada Buddhism, the oldest and strictest in terms of promoting
the importance of monastic life; Mahayana Buddhism, which emerged later and displays
less resistance to Hindu themes and does not place as stringent an emphasis on
monastic vocation; Pure Land Buddhism; and Zen Buddhism.
DAOISM. A Chinese philosophy articulated by Laozi in the Daodejing and by Zhuang
Zhou in the Zhuangzi that seeks harmony by means of passivity and humility. Dao
means road or way and refers to the processes of life which flow in a back and forth,
correlative pattern between yin and yang. It is used as both a noun and a
verb. Although the dao is ultimately inaccessible to human minds, the true person
(zhen ren) may seek unity with the daothrough effortless action (wu wei), accepting the
flow of reality between yin and yang. One ought not to draw moral (good vs. bad) or
aesthetic (beautiful vs. ugly) distinctions, for these human forms of ordering the world
interrupt the dao.
HINDUISM. Hinduism is so diverse that it is difficult to use the term as an umbrella
category even to designate a host of interconnected ideas and traditions. Hindu is
Persian for the name of a river that Greeks referred to as the Indos and the British as
the Indus. The name Indian is similarly derived. Hinduism names the various traditions
that have flourished in the Indian subcontinent,going back to before the second
millennium BCE. The most common feature of what is considered Hinduism is
reverence for the Vedic scriptures, a rich collection of oral material, some of it highly
philosophical, especially the Upanishads. Unlike the three monotheistic religions,
Hinduism does not look back to a singular historical figure such as Abraham.

According to one strand of Hinduism, Advaita Vedanta (a strand that has received a
great deal of attention from Western philosophers from the 19th century on), this world
of space and time is non-different in its essential nature from Brahman, the
infinite. The world appears to us to consist of discreet diverse objects because we are
ignorant, but behind the diverse objects and forms we observe in what may be called
the phenomenal or apparent world (the world of phenomena and appearances) there is
the formless, reality of Brahman. Advaita Vedanta rejects ontological duality
(Advaita comes from the Sanskrit term for non-duality), arguing that Brahman alone is
ultimately real. Advaita does not deny the existence of a diverse world of space and
time, but understands the many to be an appearance of the one Brahman. Shankara
(788820) was one of the greatest teachers of this nondualist tradition within Hinduism.
Other, theistic strands of Hinduism construe the Divine as personal, all-good, powerful,
knowing, creative, loving, and so on. Theistic elements may be seen, for example, in
the Bhagavad Gita and its teaching about the love of God. Ramanuja (11th century) and
Madhva (13th and 14th centuries) are better known theistic representatives of
Hinduism.
There are also lively polytheistic elements within Hinduism. Popular Hindu practice
includes a rich polytheism, and for this reason it has been called the religion of 330
million gods (devas). There is a strong orientation in the Hindu tradition to
understanding the multiple deities as different name and form expressions of the
infinite Brahman. This makes it difficult to characterize Hinduism as polytheistic in the
generally understood sense of the term.
Whether theirs is the non-dual or the theistic form, many Hindus believe that a trinity of
Brahma, Vishnu, and Shiva is the cardinal, supreme manifestation of Brahman. Brahma
is the creator of the world, Vishnu is the sustainer (variously manifested in the world,
e.g. as Krishna and Rama, incarnations or avatars who instruct and enlighten), and
Shiva is the lord of time and change.
Most Hindus believe in reincarnation. The soul migrates through different lives,
according to principles of karma (Sanskrit for deed or action), the moral
consequence of ones actions. Karma is often associated with (and believed to be a
chief justification for) a strict social caste system. Not all Hindus support such a system,
and some Hindu reformers in the modern era argue for its abolition. The final
consummation or enlightenment is moksha (or release) from ignorance and samsara,

the material cycle of death and rebirth. In non-dual forms of Hinduism, liberation is
achieved by overcoming the false dualism of Brahman and the individual self or soul
(atman) and by discovering their essential identity.
Hinduism has a legacy of inclusive spirituality. It accepts the validity and value of other
religions. The one God may be worshiped under a variety of names and forms. In
the Bhagavad Gita, Krishna declares: If any worshiper do reverence with faith to any
God whatever, I make his faith firm, and in that faith he reverences his god, and gains
his desires, for it is I who bestow them (vii. 212). Hinduism has also absorbed and, to
some extent, integrated some of the teaching and narratives of Buddhism. Although
Hinduism and Islam have sometimes been in painful conflict, there are cases of
tolerance and collaboration.
ISLAM. The second largest world religion, with over 1.5 billion followers. Islam asserts
shared roots with Judaism and Christianity, acknowledging a common, Abrahamic past.
The Quran (from Qura for to recite or to read), was, according to tradition, received
by the Prophet Muhammad from the Angel Gabriel as the literal speech and revelation
of God (in Arabic, Allah). In addition to the Quran, Islamic teaching was forged by the
sayings (hadith) of the Prophet Muhammad (570632). Islam proclaims a radical
monotheism that explicitly repudiated both the polytheism of pagan Arabia and the
Christian understanding of the Incarnation and the Trinity. Central to Islam is Gods
unity, transcendence and sovereignty, his providential control of the cosmos, the
importance for humans to live justly and compassionately, and to follow set ritual
practices of worship.
Islam in Arabic means submission, and a follower of Islam is therefore called a
Muslim, one who submits to God. The Five Pillars of Islam are witnessing that There
is no god but God and Muhammad is his messenger, praying five times a day while
facing Mecca, alms-giving, fasting during Ramadan (the ninth month of the Muslim
calendar), and making a pilgrimage to Mecca. The two largest branches of Islam are
known as Sunni and Shia; their differences began to develop early in the history of
Islam over a disagreement about who would succeed the Prophet Muhammad in the
leadership of the community. Sunnis comprise a vast majority of Muslims. Shiites put
greater stress on the continuing revelation of God beyond the Quran as revealed in the
authoritative teachings of the imam (holy successors who inherit Muhammads spiritual
abilities), the mujtahidun (doctors of the law), and other agents. Like Christianity,

Islam has proclaimed that a loving, merciful, and just God will not annihilate an
individual at death, but provide either heaven or hell.
JAINISM. Also known as Jain Dharma, Jainism is a religion that originated in India
toward the end of the Vedic period. Jains believe in a timeless history of endless
cosmic cycles. These cycles are divided into two halves: a progressive half and a
regressive half. In the third and fourth phases of each half of the cosmic cycle, there
are twenty-four Jinas (conquerors) or Tirthankaras (ford-makers). The twenty-fourth
Jina of the current cycle was Vardhamana (increasing), known as Mahavira (great
hero), a historical figure who lived near Patna in the state of Bihar and was a
contemporary of Siddhartha Guatama, the founder of Buddhism. Historians date
Mahavira as living from 497 to 425 BCE, but Jain tradition puts him a century earlier,
599 to 527 BCE. Jinas or tirthankaras such as Mahavira are religious teachers who
have conquered samsara (the cycle of death and rebirth) and can provide a crossing or
ford (hence, ford-maker) for Jains to follow them from samsara to liberation.
Jainism, like Buddhism, emerged as a shramana or ascetic tradition in response to the
ritualism of Vedic religion and the hegemonic role of the priestly Brahmin caste. Jainism
teaches that all living beings, including plants and animals, have an eternal soul
(jiva). They therefore strictly adhere to the principle of ahimsa, or non-violence, and
undertake many ascetic practices. Jains are strict vegetarians and also avoid root
vegetables. The aim of life to shed ones karma through these ascetic practices and
achieve liberation (moksha) from samsara.
By the fifth century CE, Jainism had split into two main sects: Digambara (sky-clad)
and Shvetambara (white-clad). Digambara Jainism was stricter, teaching that people
should not anything, including clothing, and that only men could
attain moksha. Shvetambara Jainism was more moderate, allowing people to wear
white robes and own a few basic possessions: an alms bowl, a broom (to sweep the
ground in front of oneself in order to avoid stepping on any living creatures), and
a mukhavastrika (a piece of cloth to hold over ones mouth to prevent one from
accidentally inhaling, and thereby killing, small insects). Today there are approximately
5 million Jains and many different branches of Jainism, but most of them are associated
with one of these two main sects.
Jains are expected to live out five basic vows: ahimsa (nonviolence), satya (truth), asteya (non-stealing), brahmacarya (celibacy),

and aparigrapha (non-possession). The way in which these principles are lived out
varies depending upon whether one is a householder or a renunciant. Jains identify
fourteen stages (gunasthanas) of the path to liberation (moksha marg). The ascetic
vows (mahavratas) are taken at the sixth stage. Only ascetics can attain
liberation. Because the world is timeless, Jains do not believe in a creator
God. However, they consider the liberated soul (arhat or kevalin) to be divine, and they
worship the Jinas.
JUDAISM. In Judaism, Gods principal manifestation was in leading the people of Israel
out of bondage in Egypt to the Promised Land (Canaan) as recounted in the book of
Exodus. This saving event is commemorated perennially in the yearly observation of
Passover. The tradition places enormous value on community life, a life displayed in the
Hebrew bible as a covenant between God and the people of Israel. The more traditional
representatives of Judaism, especially the Orthodox, adopt a strict reading of what they
take to be the historic meaning of the Hebrew scripture as secured in the early stages of
its formation. Other groups, like the Conservative and Reformed, treat scripture as
authoritative but do not depend on a specific, historically-defined interpretation of that
scripture. Although there is presently some lively disagreement about the extent to
which Judaism affirms anafterlife of individuals, historically Judaism has included an
affirmation of an afterlife.
MANICHAEAISM (a.k.a. Manichaenism). An ancient gnostic religion founded by Mani
(c. 210-276 CE) in Babylon, which was then part of the Persian Empire. Manichaeism
was a dualistic religion, positing the existence of two great cosmic forces, one good and
one evil. These forces play out their cosmic battle in human beings, pitting
the soul (composed of light) against the body (composed of dark earth). In order to
overcome the evil, material world, one must seek the good, spiritual world. Like other
gnostic religions, salvation comes through knowledge, while ignorance results in sin.
Manichaeism thrived between the third and seventh centuries CE, spreading throughout
the Roman Empire and as far east as China. Although early Christians were highly
critical of Manichaeism and deemed it a heresy, it often influenced their worldview.
In The Confessions, Augustine recounts how he entertained Manichaeism in his youth,
but later rejected it. In 382 CE, the Roman Emperor Theodosius I (who later made
Christianity the official religion of the Roman Empire) issued a decree of death for

Manichaens. Manichaens were also persecuted

by Buddhists and Zoroastrians. Muslims, however, were tolerant of Manichaeism.
NATIVE AMERICAN TRADITIONS. Native American beliefs stem from their culture
and nature. They believe in a Creator or Great Spirit and many smaller spirits. Most of
the Native American groups have many common beliefs, but their rites and ceremonies
differ; the Lakota, for instance, have rites such as the Ghost Keeping, the Vision Quest,
and the Sun Dance while the Sioux have Keeping of the Soul, Making of Relatives, and
Throwing of the Ball. Native American spirituality includes many sacred narratives that
are based in natural elements: earth, weather, seasons, and so on,
and supernatural meaning is given to natural objects (trees, sun, moon). The Inuits
(Eskimos) believe that souls exist in every living being. Post-Columbian missionaries
attempted to civilize the Indians by introducing schools, European customs,
and Christianity. During this time, people from both sides expressed politeness and
hostility; most of the Native Americans were willing to converse but not to give up their
beliefs while others would attack the British. This rejection of Christianity was not solely
based on religion, rather many Native Americans rejected what came along with
Christianity: schooling, separation of clan and family, tax, and so on. Some were willing,
however, to talk about and learn about the Christian God. The Indians who were not
opposed to learning about Christianity were drawn to the missionaries that adopted their
culture (eating the native food, walking around barefoot, not dressing up, and acting
kindly) as opposed to the missionaries that came in lavish clothes and imposed
threats. Along with Christianity, Native Americans also were exposed to diseases such
as smallpox and measles; with no vaccinations or previous dealings with the diseases,
the diseases spread like wildfire through the different tribes in North, Central, and South
America, killing millions. The Native Americans who were able to survive the wave of
pandemics that swept through their villages then had to survive the famine, moves, and
conflict that came with the Europeans.
NEO-CONFUCIANISM. Neo-Confucianism is a broad term, with no precise Chinese
analogue, referring to the revival of Confucianism beginning in the Song dynasty (9601276), hoping to recapture the original vision of an ideal Confucian society and a return
to study of the Confucian classics. The Confucian canon was studied with new
questions in mind, in response to Buddhist intellectual domination during the Tang
period (618-906). Neo-Confucian philosophers formulated a response to some

Buddhist concerns and methods and created a new Confucian metaphysics meant to
compete with Buddhism. At the same time it drew from Buddhist ideas. Zen ideas of
enlightenment through meditation had a strong influence, as did Huayang
cosmology. Neo-Confucianism was nevertheless always this-worldly and practical. It
rejected Buddhisms search for nirvana, salvation, and afterlife in Buddhism, as well as
religious Daoisms quest for immortality. The Cheng brothers, Cheng Hao and Cheng
Yi, were among the founders of Song Neo-Confucianism, but Zhu Xi was its greatest
synthesizer. Zhu Xis writings became the basis of Confucian orthodoxy, enforced
through the civil service examination system until the examinations were abolished in
1905.
OPEN THEISM. Open theism is a developing theological movement that is gaining
credence in certain sectors of Protestantism. The view has attracted widespread
attention since the publication of The Openness of God (Clark Pinnock et al.) in 1994,
but essentially similar views were held by a number of earlier theologians and
philosophers. Like more traditional versions of Christian theism, open theism affirms
that God is the personal creator ex nihilo of all that exists other than God, and that God
is omnipotent, omniscient, and morally perfect. (The affirmation of creation ex nihilo
and of divine omnipotence clearly distinguish the view from process theism, with which
it is sometimes confused.)
Open theism distinguishes itself from much of the tradition by affirming that God is
temporally everlasting rather than timeless, and it emphasizes the continuing dynamic
interaction between God and created persons that is so prominent in the Bible. It holds
that humans are free in the libertarian sense and that much of the future is genuinely
contingent and undetermined, from which it is held to follow that even a perfect Knower
cannot have complete and detailed knowledge of that which is at present
indeterminate. This last point is clearly in disagreement with the main theological
tradition, and has led to many and sometimes vituperative attacks on the view,
especially by those of Calvinistic persuasion. Open theists claim, however, that their
view is more consonant with a piety that emphasizes a personal relationship with God
than are views that see God as all-determining and humans merely as the executors of
God foreordained plan for the world.

ROMAN CATHOLICISM. Roman Catholicism is the style of Christianity found in the

Roman Catholic Church (RCC). While this has much in common with other styles of
Christianity (such as Protestantism and Eastern Orthodoxy), it also has distinctive
features, many of which pertain to the relationship between material and spiritual things
or more precisely, between created and divine realities. Thus in Roman Catholicism,
the human will must cooperate with divine grace in salvation, rather than simply being
acted upon. Furthermore, grace is primarily bestowed not directly upon the human soul
but mediated through the material means of the sacraments; similarly, grace is found
directly incorporated into exemplary Christians (saints) whose examples and even
bodies are venerated after death. Moreover, the Christian Church per se exists not as a
disembodied or abstract entity but is found embodied in the RCC, where the bishops
and the pope are heirs of the teaching of Christ (taking up the role of the apostles) and
are mediators of the sacramental grace (since they, assisted by the priests, celebrate
the Eucharist). This relation of created and divine things is often justified by reference
to the union of the divine and human in the Incarnation, and is taken to imply a positive
view of Gods presence in the material world. All of these factors foster among Roman
Catholics a sense of reliance upon the RCC and upon Christian tradition that is not
often found in Protestantism.
Furthermore, Roman Catholicism as a style of Christianity is tied to history of the RCC,
which (though present throughout the world) has developed primarily in Western
Europe. Many of the differences between the RCC and Eastern Orthodoxy can be
attributed to this history. Thus, Latin rather than Greek has traditionally been associated
with Roman Catholicism (though the RCC claims both heritages); Italian politics and art
have shaped the papacy; and the circumstances of Western social history have
influenced the structures, values, and expectations of the RCC. For example, the long
reliance upon monasteries for priestly and episcopal training may have contributed to
the RCCs insistence upon priestly celibacy; and the isolation of the papacy from the
other four prominent archbishops of ancient Christianity (all in the Eastern
Mediterranean) may have advanced the papacys singular authority in the RCC.
The doctrines of Roman Catholicism are elaborated primarily on the basis of two
outstanding Latin theologians and saints: Augustine, a fourth/fifth-century North African
bishop; and Thomas Aquinas, a thirteenth-century Italian friar. However, neither

theologian is followed completely, and many others have a significant voice. An

extensive presentation of the teachings of the RCC can be found in the Catechism of
the Catholic Church.
SHINTOISM. Shintoism or Shinto, from the Sino-Japanese shin (gods) and t (way
or dao) refers to the indigenous religion that existed in Japan before the introduction of
Buddhism and has coexisted with Buddhism to the present. It originated in prehistoric
animism and polytheism and encompassed the worship of spirits representing different
phenomena of nature and ancestors of clans. Eventually local religious cults were
integrated with mythology. The Sun Goddess Amaterasu, as the putative ancestor of
the imperial family, emerged as the most important deity for the purposes of political
legitimization. Yet Shinto is primarily concerned with nature. All great works of nature
waterfalls, huge trees, unusual rocks, and so on are kami or sacred
beings. Kami does not mean god or divinity on the Western sense, but suggests
awesomeness and special powers. Emperors themselves came to be regarded
as kami, but the distinction between humans and divinities was not clearly
drawn. Shinto lacks any clear moral code that came later with Buddhism. The stress
in Shinto is not so much ethics or morality as much as ritual purity, which is caused by
physical dirtiness, disease, menstruation, childbirth, wounds, and contact with
death. Such defilement must be overcome by exorcism and cleansing ceremonies.
SIKHISM. A monotheistic religion that emerged in the Punjab region of India in the
1600s, based on the teachings of Guru Nanak (1469-1538) and the nine Gurus who
followed him. Following the execution of the ninth Guru, Tegh Bahadur, by the Mughals
in Delhi, the Sikh community or Panth became further solidified and militarized by the
tenth Guru, Gobind Rai (a.k.a. Gobind Singh, meaning lion). In 1699, Gobind Singh
established the Khalsa, a community of initiated (amritdhari) Sikhs who would defend
the Guru and the Sikh Panth. Members of the Khalsa keep the five Ks: kesh (uncut
hair), kangha (a steel comb in ones hair), kach (knee-length pants), kara (a steel
bracelet on ones right wrist), and kirpan (a sword or dagger at ones side). After the
death of Gobind Singh in 1708, Adi Guru (literally, the original or first
Guru), the Guru Granth Sahib, a collection prayers and hymns, was established as the
eleventh and final Guru. Today, the Guru Granth Sahib remains the sacred scripture of
the Sikhs and plays a key role in their worship practices.

Sikhism drew upon the teachings of the two main religions in the Punjab region,
Hinduism and Islam, but understands itself to be a separate and distinct religion. The
central teaching of Sikhism is the oneness of God: theMul Mantra, from Guru Nanaks
first composition, begins with Ek Onkar There is one God. This God, who has
many names but is most commonly referred to as Waheguru (a.k.a. Vahiguru, meaning
Wonderful Lord in the Gurmukhi language), is the formless and genderless creator of
the universe who is the eternal truth (ad sach).
Sikhs believe in reincarnation and seek to overcome the painful cycle of death and
rebirth (chaurasi) by following the teachings of the Sikh Gurus. Ultimately, it is only
Gods grace which may allow one to attain mukti(liberation), but one should strive to
become more Guru-oriented (gursikh) and less self-oriented (manmukh). The name
Sikh itself means disciple or learner. Sikhs stress the importance of nam (the
Name), dan (giving), andisnan (keeping clean). They believe in the equality of all
people and reject the hierarchy intrinsic to the caste system, offering langar, a free
meal, to all who come to their houses of worship, which are known
as gurudwaras(literally, Gate of the Guru). Sikhs view religious diversity as a gift from
God, understanding different forms of worship and religious traditions as contextual
articulations of the one universal truth. In the Dasam Granth, Guru Gobind Singh wrote,
Recognize all human kind, whether Muslim or Hindu as one. The same God is the
Creator and Nourisher of all. Recognize no distinction among them. The temple and
the mosque are the same. So are Hindu worship and Muslim prayer. Human beings
are all one. Today, there are about 20 million Sikhs in the world, most of whom live in
the Pubjab region of India.
SPIRITUAL/ SPIRITUALITY. That which has to do with matters of the spirit, often
conceived of in opposition to the physical or material world. Spirituality emphasizes the
connection between ones own inner spirit and the divine. Spiritual practices include
prayer, meditation, and so on. Traditionally, the spiritual was contrasted with the
secular, but today it is often contrasted with religion: e.g., Im spiritual but not
religious. This use of the term highlights the personal, non-dogmatic nature of
spirituality. Many religious practitioners, however, cultivate a deep spirituality within a
particular religious tradition.
WICCA. An earth-based religion, Wicca involves working with the powers and spirits of
the world to produce white magick. They worship both a Lord and a Lady (the God and

the Goddess) and many lesser deities, including Diana, Brigid, Apollo, and many more
who represent different aspects of the Lord and Lady. The Wiccan creed, ending And it
harm none, do as you will, provides a basis for the practice of magick; this is also
referred to as karma. Wicca has no official doctrines that all must follow, but all
practitioners subscribe to some variation of the Wiccan creed:
Bide The Wiccan Law Ye Must
In Perfect Love, In Perfect Trust
Eight Words The Wiccan Rede Fulfill:
An Ye Harm None, Do As Ye Will.
And Ever Mind The Rule Of Three:
What Ye Send Out, Comes Back To Thee.
Follow This With Mind And Heart,
And Merry Ye Meet, And Merry Ye Part.
Wiccans have eight holidays, or Sabbats, that center around the changing of the
seasons: Imbolc (February 2), Ostara (March 21, the Spring Equinox), Beltane (May 1),
Mid-summer (June 22, the Summer Solstice), Lammas (August 1), Mabon (September
21, the Autumn Equinox), Samhain (October 31), and Yule (December 22, the Winter
Solstice).
When a person wants to begin practicing Wicca, he or she is expected to study the
tradition solitarily and after a few years, if desired, seek out an experienced witch to
further the students knowledge. Witches (referring to both men and women) can
practice alone or in groups, called covens. Within a coven, the most experienced witch,
known as the high priestess, leads the worship services. Because there is no doctrine
or required beliefs or practices, each coven or witch practices differently. A typical

worship or spellcasting will begin with creating a sacred circle and inviting in deities from
the four directions (North, South, East, and West) to be a part of the service. Then,
prayers, thanks, or petitions are said to the Lord and Lady. Sometimes there is
anointing of oil (different oils have different meanings). If it is a worship ritual, some kind
of sweet cake and drink (such as juice or water) is consumed inside the circle in
celebration of the deities. If it is a spellcasting ritual, the spell is performed using herbs,
candles, string, oils, fire, or anything else for which that the specific spell calls. At the
end, the deities are thanked for being present and the sacred circle is broken.
Spells that are cast are thought out carefully beforehand. The witch considers whether
the spell honors the Wiccan creed and whether it will harm anyone indirectly (if a spell is
cast for rain, then somewhere else in the world will be deprived of the rain). The day is
carefully chosen: if the witch is casting a good luck spell, then it is important to cast it
when the moon is waxing (growing bigger so the good luck grows). The spell, then,
requires different objects that have different meaning. With the good luck spell, for
example, the witch, in the sacred circle, would light a candle that represents him or her
(perhaps a blue candle representing the depth of the self), saying This is me. Then
the witch would light a black candle (representing bad luck), saying This bad luck is
draining from me; then light a grey candle (representing neutrality), saying The bad
luck is neutral; and finally light an orange candle (representing energy), saying This
energy is coming to me to work through better luck. Once the candles have burned
down, the circle is broken and the spell is complete.
Some witches keep an herb garden for their own personal growth or to use in rituals
and so they plant the herbs that will help them. For example, basil is used in love and
prosperity spells, chamomile is used for relaxation, dill is used for protection,
peppermint for purification, and so on. Keeping an herb garden, for witches, requires
tending to it and thanking the Mother Earth for the growth and health of the plants. Of
course, just like most things in Wicca, an herb garden is not required to be a witch. The
herbs, along with oils, candles, stones, and anything else needed for rituals can be
found almost anywhere: plant stores, convenience stores, and, of course, Witchcraft
stores.

Some witches find it easier to practice with some kind of animal, as they believe animals
are powerful spirits. The common animal is the cat, but other animals are kept as
well. These pets, along with small children and other animals are the only beings
(besides the deities, of course) that can enter the sacred circle without destroying the
ritual. All animals that aid in rituals or spiritual advancement are known as familiars (but
they can be cats, frogs, birds, dogs, and so on). Even wild animals can be familiars; for
example, if a witch is casting a spell or performing a ritual outside, any animal may
wander up and come and go within the circle acting as a spirit aide. Contrary to popular
belief, Wiccans do not perform any kind of animal sacrifice as they respect every
lifeform and the sacrifice would go against their creed of And it harm none, do as you
will.
ZEN BUDDHISM. A branch of Mahyna Buddhism that developed in China
as Chan beginning in the seventh century CE. It later spread to Vietnam (where it is
known as Thin Buddhism), Korea, and Japan. Zen Buddhism stresses a form of sitting
meditation known as zazen and other practices in order to cultivate experiential wisdom,
believing that excessive focus on texts and theoretical knowledge can deter one from
experientially realizing bodhi(enlightenment or awakening). Chinese and Vietnamese
Zen are much gentler compared to the shocking Japanese Rinzai. Within Japanese
Zen, the two main schools are Soto and Rinzai. Soto Zen is a calm version of
Japanese Zen where practitioners spend most of their time in sitting meditation and wait
to realize enlightenment. In Soto Zen, the meditator does not focus on anything, so if a
thought arises, they are to acknowledge it and let it fade away. Rinzai Zen, on the other
hand, is the school that the West has adopted. Rinzai has a strong focus on
the koan (a statement or question-and-answer that does not make any logical sense,
such as What is the Buddha? The rooster crows at daybreak.) and the awakening
stick (a flat wooden rod that is used on meditators as a reminder to stay focused or to
encourage sudden enlightenment). The Rinzai meditator focuses on breathing and
the koan in hopes of attaining satori, or sudden enlightenment. Zen, as a whole, is a
very individualistic tradition, meaning that it is up to the individual to decide how to
practice Zen and there are no set rules on how to practice; the individual or the school
can pick and choose which, if any, Buddhist doctrines to accept. Zen does, however,
emphasize the importance of questioning everything, otherwise the follower is no better

than a parrot who repeats words without knowing the significance. Zen prides itself on
being illogical, and the use of the koan and the awakening stick are examples of nonrational ways of reaching enlightenment.
ZOROASTRIANISM. The main religion in Persia (now Iran) prior to the advent of Islam,
founded by Zarathustra (Greek, Zoroaster). Most scholars believe Zarathustra was
born around 570 BCE, although some date his birth as far back as the 15 th century
BCE. His sayings are preserved in the Gths, which are part of the Avesta (Book of
the Law). Zoroastrianism teaches a mixture of monotheism and dualism. Ahura
Mazdah is the supreme deity, but he has an evil and slightly less powerful opponent,
Aura Mainyu. Zoroastrians interpret the world in terms of a cosmic battle between good
and evil at present, but believe that Ahura Mazdah (good) will ultimately triumph over
Aura Mainyu (evil). Human beings have free will, and their actions determine their
eternal destiny. Zoroastrianism influenced Judaism, Mithraism, Gnosticism,
and Manichaeism. After the fall of the Sassanid Empire in 651 CE, many Zoroastrians
migrated to India. Today, the majority of Zoroastrians live in India, where they are
known as Parsis. The small remnant of believers in Iran are known as Garbars.