Religion is one of the basic institutions of any society. It is a universal system which is found in every society. Religion can be understood as a social system in which there is common faith, worship, rituals, customs and traditions. “Religion is a unified system of beliefs and practices relative to sacred thing which unite in to one single moral community. The major religions in the world are: Hinduism, Buddhism, Sikhism, Jainism, Christianity, and Islam. The basic ideas and faith of each religion differs. Various Kinds Religions: Hinduism: Hindu religion was in existence since “Indus Valley civilization”. Hinduism believes in the existence of Gods like Vishnu, Shiva, Brahma, Ganesh, Lakshmi, Saraswati, Durga etc. Hindus believe in Idol- worships. The idols are considered as Gods and temples are the places where idols are kept. The unique feature of Hinduism is the existence of caste system and worship of different Gods. Ramayana, Mahabharata and Bhagavad Gita are considered as great epics of Hindus. Hinduism does not provide for conversion, i.e.: A person is regarded as a Hindu by birth. An individual belonging to another religion can’t be converted as a “Hindu”. Even though social reformers made an attempt to make provision for conversion it has not been very successful. Buddhism: It was founded by Gautama Buddha. Buddhism mainly believes in Ahinsa or non- violence. Buddha has preached eight fold paths to curb desire. The ultimate aim of Buddhism is to enable individuals to attain ‘Nirvana, or “salvation”. Tripitakas are considered as holy text of Buddhists. Jainism: It was founded by “Mahaveer”. Jainism also believes in Ahinsa. Places of worship of Jains are Known as “Bastis” Jainism believes in celibacy taking a vow not to marry. It states that physical desires should be sacrificed. Jainism believes in attaining salvation through the performance of “Sallekhana”. Islam: It was founded by Prophet Mohammed. It belief in a single God viz: Allah. Islam does not believe in idol worship. It believes in seclusion of women. The places of worship of Muslims are known as Mosques. “Mecca” is considered to be the holy place for Muslims. Every Muslim has to observe five times prayer a day known as “Kalma”. Every Muslim has to observe fasting during the month of “Ramadan”. Christianity: It was founded by Jesus Christ. “Bible” is considered as the holy text of Christians. Christians do not believe in idol worship. The place of worship for Christians is called church. Christians believe in offering prayers and helping the poor and disabled. Sikhism: It was advocated by Guru Nanak. The holy epic of Sikhis Adi Granth. The place of worship of Sikhs are known as “Gurudwaras”. Though different religions preach different principles, every religion is characterised by certain basic features. They are as follows: Every human society has a system of religion. The role of religion has declined but “religion” as a social system continues to exist. Every religion believes in the worship of a common God. Every religion believes in the performance of certain rituals. Origin of religion is not a recent concept. It is in existence since time immemorial. Belief in life after death, fear of death contributed to the growth of religion according to anthropologists. In order to overcome the fear of Ghosts people started believing in the existence of super natural power which at a later stage resulted in the growth of religion.
Posted on: Sun, 05 Oct 2014 15:11:46 +0000
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