Religions of East Asia

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Religions of East Asia
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Buddhism

• Originated in South Asia 6th Century BCE

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BuddhismPrince Siddhartha Gautama

• Prince Siddhartha Gautama
• Born about 560 BC in what is now Nepal, he grew
  up in a protected environment
• Saw suffering for the first time at the age of
  29.
• He was determined to discover the cause of human
  suffering.

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BuddhismBasic Beliefs--Four Noble Truths

• 1. Life is suffering

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BuddhismBasic Beliefs--Four Noble Truths

• Life is suffering
• 2. We suffer because we crave things.

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BuddhismBasic Beliefs--Four Noble Truths

• Life is suffering
• We suffer because we crave things.
• 3. It is possible to cease our suffering

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BuddhismBasic Beliefs--Four Noble Truths

• Life is suffering.
• We suffer because we crave things.
• It is possible for suffering to cease.
• The way to end suffering is by following the
  Eightfold Path.

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Buddhisms Eightfold Path(The Middle Path)
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Buddhism Reincarnation and Nirvana
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Buddhism sects Mahayana and Theravada
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Theravada Buddhism

• Asceticism
• Reflection
• Study
• (only the monk can gain salvation)

Myanmar
Laotian Monks
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Mahayana Buddhism
--Believe that some enlightened ones
(bhodisatvas) forego salvation in order to help
others --Salvation is available to
all. --Strongest in Tibet,China,Taiwan, Japan,
Korea, and Mongolia.

• Kunming, China

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Tibetan Buddhism(Mahayana)
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Images of the Buddha
Teaching Buddha
Calling the Earth to Witness

• Dispelling Fear

Meditating Buddha
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Images of the Buddha

• The reclining posture represents complete peace
  and detachment from the world--the passage to
  Nirvana.

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The Laughing (Happy) Buddha

• According to some, he is the incarnation of a
  Buddha who will appear in the future, more
  properly called a bhodisatva.

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Confucianism

• Confucius (Kongfuzi) 551-479 BCE

Although not organized as a religion,
Confucianism has had much influence on social
philosophy and politics in East Asia. (There
are some groups that practice Confucianism as a
religion.)
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Confucianism calls for a hierarchical ordering of
society with an emphasis on daily conduct.
Maintaining harmonious relationships is most
important. --ruler-subject
--father-son --friend-friend
--husband-wife --brother-sister
The Chinese symbol for water is often associated
with Confucianism.
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Concept of Li

• The inherent pattern of human behavior.
• Especially important in the social
  context--propriety or etiquette.
• The goal is to create a just and ethical society.

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Filial Piety

• The respect and obedience that a child should
  show his father.
• For Confucianists, this extends to all of the
  five relationships.

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TaoismThe Way or The Path
--The individual should try to behave in
harmony with the Tao--the sum total of all
things. --wu-wei--passive non-resistence to
the natural forces of life. Go with the flow.

• Lao-tsu (604-517 BC)
• (Some sects have diefied Lao-tsu.)

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Harmony comes from balancing yin and yang.
Yin (feminine) --cool, dark forces --rain,
clouds, --winter, snow --north
Yang (masculine) --hot, bright forces --thunder,
earth, summer, the sun --south
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Feng Shui

• The Chinese art or practice of positioning
  objects, especially graves, buildings, and
  furniture.
• Seeks to maintain a constant and balanced flow of
  positive and negative energies (chi)

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The Vinegar Tasters
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Shintoism-- the way of the Kami
(that which inspires awe)

• -A combination of nature worship and Ancestor
  worship.
• -Japanese emperor had semi-divine
• status.

Torii Gate
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Zen Buddhism

• --The key to Nirvana is self-knowledge.
• --The way to gain self-knowledge is through
  meditation--a more individual and intuitive
  approach to enlightenment.
• --Zen was a favorite of the Samurai class.

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Islam in East Asia
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Christianity in East Asia

• In South Korea
• --35 Protestant
• --13 Roman Catholic