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The principal religions of Asia are: Brahmanism, Buddhism, Confucianism, Taoism, Zorastrianism, Mohammedanism, Judaism and

Christianity

Asian Religion. Period 3. Ashley Stanol.

confucianism

The dates usually accepted for Confucius are 551-479 B. C. He was a wise man who

spent his life as a teacher who tried to reform the government of his time. He

insisted that he was not an innovator, but only sought to return to the wisdom of the

ancients and his interpretation of that wisdom is given in the Analects. He taught the

way of the true gentleman, respect for family ties, the importance of ritual and music

in developing moral character

Taoism

Taoism is based on the Tao Te Ching, dating from about the sixth century B. C. and

attributed to an imaginary Lao-tse. Tao cannot be translated satisfactorily but can be

understood in the context of the Tao Te Ching; it is interpreted to mean: the Way,course, method, order, norm, right conduct, reason, providence, the moral order, the

physical order. It is like water, seeking the lowest place, yet penetrating the hardest

substance. It is the way to be followed by those who achieve without striving; it is

unassertive,

inconspicuous,

lowly,

incomplete. Taoism teaches the way of harmonywith nature, and has been the inspiration for much of the landscape painting of China.

In its organized, cultic form, Taoism deteriorated in later years into a form of magic,

seeking good fortune and long life, but even today the Tao Te Chingis an important

element in Chinese and Japanese thought, especially in relation to Zen.

Islam

When studying or teaching Hinduism or Buddhism, the Westerner soon becomes

aware of the rather wide differences of perspective and meaning between the Judeo-

Christian and the Hindu-Buddhist ways of viewing the nature of man and mansrelation to his world. The avatara of Hinduism is not the prophet of Judaism nor the

Christ of Christianity; karma is not easily equated with destiny or divine will; tantric

yoga differs noticeably from Sunday School exercises. The nature of the teachingsand practices of Hinduism and Buddhism reminds the Westerner of the danger of

trying to force new and strange ideas into familiar patterns. Rarely, and then only in

contemporary writings, do Hindus or Buddhists refer to Christianity or Judaism,

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arousing defensive feelings which lead us to suggest that they would not have said

what they did if they understood our religion better. But the situation is quite differentwhen we come to Islam, for there the differences are not great, and may be missed,

and there the references to Judaism and Christianity are frequent, and not always

complimentary. Thus, although it should be easier to teach Western students about

Islam than about Hinduism or Buddhism, for there is much in common, the burden ofour neighborhood quarrels -- not always impartially recorded -- and the subtle

differences of interpretation make Islam the most difficult religion to present fairly.

Buddhism

The Buddha was a Hindu prince who rejected the Hindu scriptures, rituals, austerities,caste, and the Hindu teachings concerning creation and the Self, but remained close to

Hinduism in his acceptance of the belief that existence continues through many lives

and is controlled by the law of karma. The Buddha means The Enlightened One; he is

the man who found the path by which all men may free themselves from suffering anddespair. He rejected useless speculations which go beyond human experience, such as

speculations about creation, God, and the nature of the future life, and urged a pattern

of conduct and meditation leading to enlightenment, to freedom from sorrow. Thatenlightenment brings the recognition that all is change, that change ends in sorrow,

that there is no soul, that man is only a combination of elements controlled by karma,

and that when man is free from the illusory attachment to this world he becomes free

from rebirth --what happens then is beyond our powers to know.

Hinduism

The people of India would never refer to their religious faith and practices as

Hinduism except as a concession to Western thought, for the Western label implies a

pattern of beliefs and practices which is alien to their way of life. It is used here in thesense of the religion of the people of India, as distinguished from the Buddhists,

Christians, Muslims and others who diverge from the predominant religious trends of

the subcontinent. The attitude of the Hindus toward what seems to them an attempt tooversimplify and to impose Western religious categories and concepts on their

religion should be borne in mind when evaluating books about the religion of India.