www.dakurajsingh.com
This is an encapsulation of the various major religious beliefs that exist in human history.
No attempt is made by the website to approve or disapprove any belief.
The beliefs listed below are not in chronological order or in order of their popularity.
Also, there are many beliefs which would have existed without common knowledge and the website pays its tribute to each obscure belief that ever exisited.
Here, the website refers to the Supreme Power only as "God" which thereby includes all abstract divine formats in both masculine and feminine sentimental aspects of our highly sensitive dual humanity.
A list of scriptures of world religions will be found in the Religious Scriptures link.
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Theism
Atheism
Agnosticism
Apatheism or Pragmatic Atheism or Practical Atheism
Apathetic Agnosticisn or Pragmatic Agnosticism
Deism
Henotheism
Exceptionalism
Ignosticism or Igtheism
Therological Noncognovitism
Monotheism
Monism
Pantheism
Pandeism
Panentheism
Polytheism
Transtheism
Humanism
Asceticism
Monasticism
Eremitism
Divination
Spiritism or Spiritist Doctrine
Spiritualism
Faith Healing
Spirit Possession
Syncretism
Relativism
Folk Religion
Animism
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THEISM
A belief that God exists.
Concepts of God and the interpretations of the scriptures differ but all believe in Divine Supernatural Powers.
This belief contemplates on the nature of God and Its relationship to the universe.
Theism conceives of God as personal, present and active in the governance and organization of the world and the universe.
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ATHEISM
Belief that God does not exist.
That there is a scientific explanation for everything.
And that all spiritual revelations are hallucinations.
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AGNOSTICISM
A belief that human knowledge is insufficient to determine, and thus prove, whether God does or does not exist.
That all metaphysical claims are unknown and unknowable.
Hence, the followers neither believe nor disbelieve in the existence of God.
Followers don't mind discussing the subject of God but maintain that no conclusion can be arrived at through the limited knowledge of the people in the discussion.
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APATHEISM or PRAGMATIC ATHEISM or PRACTICAL ATHEISM
Followers act with apathy and disregard towards belief or disbelief in God.
An apatheist is someone who considers the question of the existence of God as neither meaningful nor relevant to his or her life.
They are simply not interested in any discussion on God.
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APATHETIC AGNOSTICISM or PRAGMATIC AGNOSTICISM
Followers agree with agnostics.
They go a step further and claim that if God exists, It does not appear to be concerned about the fate of humans.
So, again, there is no point in any discussion.
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DEISM
A belief that reason and observation of the natural world are sufficient to determine the existence of God.
Followers reject all abstract revelations and their surreal authorities as sources of any religious knowledge.
They find fault with organized religion since it is based on supernatural phenomena.
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HENOTHEISM
It is the belief in and worship of a single God.
Followers also accept the existence or possible existence of other God deities that may also be worshipped.
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EXCEPTIONALISM
This is a perception that a country, society, institution, movement, or time period is exceptional, unusual or extraordinary in some way and thus does not need to conform to normal rules or general principles.
Many countries of all kinds have claimed exceptionality, including the modern United States, Britain, India, Imperial Japan, Iran, Spain, the USSR, North Korea, France and Germany, ancient Rome, the Ottoman Empire and China.
As indigenous peoples explore their respective cultural heritages, their seeking to be separately classified or newly-understood may be a form of exceptionalism.
The term may be a marker for an implication that a point of view is widely misunderstood, such as the notion that Islamic jihad is misunderstood.
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IGNOSTICISM or IGTHEISM
It is a belief that too much value has been given to an undefineable word like "God".
The followers believe that if "God" cannot be defined, there is no purpose in discussing the "Concept of God".
Thus the question "Does God exist?" becomes inexplicable.
An ignostic maintains that he cannot even say whether he is a theist or an atheist until a sufficient definition of theism is put forth.
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THEOLOGICAL NONCOGNITIVISM
This belief is sometimes considered to be synonymous with ignosticism.
The belief is based on the "theory of meaning" and "anything that is not verifiable is meaningless".
For further clarification of the concept of meaningless, the followers believe that the meaning of the word "God" is as meaningless as any random statements like: "X is a four-sided triangle that exists outside of space and time, cannot be seen or measured and it actively hates blue spheres" or "colorless green ideas sleep furiously".
A theological noncognitivist claims that: "God" does not refer to anything that exists, "God" does not refer to anything that does not exist, "God" does not refer to something that may or may not exist, "God" has no literal significance, just as "Fod" has no literal significance.
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MONOTHEISM
This is a belief in the existence of one, personal and transcendent God.
A distinction may be made between "exclusive monotheism" which is a belief in a personal God, and both "inclusive monotheism" and "pluriform monotheism" which, while recognising many distinct Gods, postulate some underlying unity.
Atenism, Bahá'í Faith, Cao Dai, Christianity, Deism, Eckankar, Hinduism, Islam, Judaism, Ravidassia, Sikhism, Tenrikyo and Zoroastrianism are all monotheistic religions.
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MONISM
Monism is a philosophical belief which argues that the variety of existing things can be explained in terms of a single reality. It is sometimes used simply to mean that all existing things go back to a source which is distinct from them, but it is commonly understood to imply not only unity of origin but also of substance and essence. Therefore, the fundamental character of the universe is unity.
Contrasting with this point of view is "metaphysical dualism", which asserts that there are two ultimately irreconcilable forces / substances / realities such as Good and Evil. "Metaphysical pluralism" asserts that there are three or more fundamental forces / substances / realities.
"Idealist phenomenalism" or "mentalistic monism" holds that only mind or spirit is real. "Neutral monism" holds that one sort of thing fundamentally exists, to which both the mental and the physical can be reduced. "Material monism" or "physicalism" or "materialism" holds that only the physical is real, and that the mental or spiritual can be reduced to the physical. "Eliminative materialism" holds that everything is physical and that mental things do not exist. "Reductive physicalism" holds that mental things do exist and are a kind of physical things.
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PANTHEISM
This is a belief that everything in nature is divine and the nature of our universe composes of an all-encompassing God.
The believers do not believe in a personal God or a God in human form or with human attributes.
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PANDEISM
Pandeism or pan-deism (from Ancient Greek: πάν pan "all" and Latin: deus meaning "God" in the sense of deism), is a term describing beliefs coherently incorporating or mixing logically reconcilable elements of pantheism and deism.
It is therefore most particularly the belief that the creator of the universe actually became the universe, and so ceased to exist as a separate and conscious entity.
Through this synergy pandeism claims to answer primary objections to deism (why would God create and then not interact with the universe?) and to pantheism (how did the universe originate and what is its purpose?).
(Website Note: God interacts with humanity which is too dumbly distracted to be aware and the purpose of the universe is to reflect the magnificence of the God within.)
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PANENTHEISM
This is a belief which goes beyond pantheism.
The followers believe that the divine God is much larger than the nature or the universe.
They believe that this eternal cosmic animating force interpenetrates every part of nature and timelessly extends beyond it.
In panentheism, God is viewed as the eternal animating force, behind the universe, and that the cosmos is only a small part of this God.
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POLYTHEISM
Polytheism is the worship or belief in multiple deities usually assembled into a pantheon, a temple of Gods (and Goddesses), each along with their own religions and rituals.
Polytheists do not always worship all the gods equally, but can be "henotheists", i.e. specializing in the worship of one particular deity, or "kathenotheists", i.e. worshiping different deities at different times.
Polytheism is a type of theism. Within theism, it contrasts with monotheism, the belief in a singular God.
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TRANSTHEISM
This belief refers to a system of thought or religious philosophy which is neither theistic nor atheistic but is beyond them.
The followers believe that Gods exist but that humans can transcend Gods and go beyond, to the "Absolute", by the means of enlightenment.
The term "transpolytheistic" would be more accurate, since it entails that the polytheistic Gods are not denied or rejected even after the development of a notion of the Absolute that transcends them.
This human "courage" to go beyond Gods, through the belief in the "Absolute", arises after one has liberated oneself from the theistic idea of Gods themselves.
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HUMANISM
Humanism is a group of philosophies and ethical perspectives which emphasize the value and agency of human beings, individually and collectively, and generally prefers individual thought (rationalism) and evidence (empiricism), over established doctrine or faith (fideism).
The word "humanist" derives from the 15th-century Italian term "umanista" describing a teacher or scholar of classical Greek and Latin literature and the ethical philosophy behind it, including the approach to the humanities.
"Religious humanism" originated and developed as more liberal religious organizations evolved in more humanistic, non-supernatural, non-mythical and non-traditional directions.
The term "humanism" slowly became increasingly associated with "philosophical naturalism", and with "secularism" and the "secularization of society".
Renaissance humanism, secular humanism, religious humanism and inclusive humanism are some of the world-views which have existed as reform models.
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ASCETICISM
This belief describes a lifestyle characterized by abstinence from various worldly pleasures, often with the aim of pursuing religious and spiritual goals. It includes practices that involve restraint with respect to actions of body, speech, and mind.
The founders and earliest practitioners of these religions lived extremely austere lifestyles, refraining from sensual pleasures and the accumulation of material wealth. They practiced asceticism not as a rejection of the enjoyment of life, or because the practices themselves are virtuous, but as an aid in the pursuit of salvation or liberation.
Asceticism is practiced by people who withdraw from the world to live an ascetic life (this includes monks who live communally in monasteries, as well as hermits who live alone). "Worldly" asceticism refers to people who live ascetic lives but do not withdraw from the world.
Self-discipline and abstinence in some form and degree are parts of religious practice within many religious and spiritual traditions. A more dedicated ascetical lifestyle is associated particularly with monks, yogis or priests, but any individual may choose to lead an ascetic life.
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MONASTICISM
Monasticism or monkhood is a religious way of life that involves renouncing worldly pursuits to fully devote one's self to spiritual work.
Males pursuing a monastic life are generally called monks / priests/ fathers or brothers while female monastics are called nuns / priestesses / mothers or sisters.
Monasticism in Christianity provided the origins of the words "monk" and "monastery" which comprises several diverse forms of religious living.
Similar forms of religious life also exist in other faiths, most notably in Buddhism, but also Hinduism and Jainism, though the expressions differ considerably.
Bhikkhus (monks) and bhikkhunis (nuns) are expected to fulfill a variety of roles in the Buddhist community. First and foremost, they are expected to preserve the doctrine and discipline now known as Buddhism. They are also expected to provide a living example for the laity, and to serve as a "field of merit" for lay followers—providing laymen and women with the opportunity to earn merit by giving gifts and support to the bhikkhus. In return for the support of the laity, bhikkhus and bhikkhunis are expected to live an austere life focused on the study of Buddhist doctrine, the practice of meditation, and the observance of good moral character.
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EREMITISM
The word hermit comes from the Latin ĕrēmīta, the latinisation of the Greek ἐρημίτης (erēmitēs), "of the desert", which in turn comes from ἔρημος (erēmos), signifying "desert", "uninhabited", hence "desert-dweller"; adjective: "eremitic".
According to the Desert Theology of the Old Testament, it takes about forty years of solitary wandering in the desert to bring about a genuine change of heart.
Eremitism is a particular variation of monasticism. The view of eremitism holds that seclusion is hiding anonymously in society. A hermit (adjectival form: eremitic or hermitic ) is a person who lives, to some degree, in seclusion from society. In the canon law of the Episcopal Church they are referred to as "solitaries" rather than "hermits".
The early Christian Desert Fathers wove baskets to exchange for bread. In medieval times hermits were also found within or near cities where they might earn a living as a gate keeper or ferryman.
In modern colloquial usage, the term "hermit" denotes anyone living a life apart from the rest of society, or who simply does not participate in social events as much as is common, regardless of their motivation in doing so.
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DIVINATION
This belief is in the attempt to gain insight into a question or situation by way of an occultic, standardized process or ritual.
Divination can be seen as a systematic method with which to organize what appear to be disjointed, random facets of existence such that they provide insight into a problem at hand.
As compared to fortune-telling, divination has a more formal or ritualistic element and often contains a more social character, usually in a religious context.
Interpretations of omens, sortilege (casting of sticks / stones / bones / beans / coins / other items), augury (use of birds) and spontaneous (instant answer from any source) types divinations exist as forms in the belief.
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SPIRITISM or SPIRITIST DOCTRINE
This belief is defined as "a science that deals with the nature, origin and destination of spirits, and of their relations with the corporeal world."
Spiritism is a system of explanation of phenomena having in common the general belief in the survival of a spirit after death. Spiritism teaches reincarnation or rebirth into human life after death.
Spiritism is a doctrine founded upon the existence, manifestations and teachings of the spirits.
In this belief God is the Supreme Intelligence and a spirit is a real, circumscribed being, which, in certain cases, is appreciable by the senses of sight, hearing, and touch. Spirits exert an incessant action upon the moral world, and even upon the physical world; they act both upon matter and upon thought, and constitute one of the powers of nature.
Spiritism claims to be a Christian doctrine, claiming it is based on Jesus Christ's teachings, despite of having an interpretation that differs from those held by the Church. Jesus, according to Spiritism, is the greatest moral example for humankind, is deemed to have incarnated here to show us, through his example, the path that we have to take to achieve our own spiritual perfection.
Spiritism has adherents in many countries throughout the world, including Spain, United States, Canada, Japan, Germany, France, England, Argentina, Portugal and especially in American countries such as Cuba, Puerto Rico, Jamaica, and Brazil, which has among the largest proportion and greatest number of followers.
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SPIRITUALISM
Spiritualism is a name common to various religions, philosophies or other names and it refers to the opposite of materialism.
Spiritualism is similar in its basic belief as spiritism but some poeple maintain that spiritism is spiritualism (but not vice-versa) since spiritualism does not believe in reincarnation of the spirit again in a human form.
Spiritualism is currently practiced primarily through various denominational Spiritualist Churches in the United States, Canada and United Kingdom.
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FAITH HEALING
Faith healing is healing through spiritual means.
Believers assert that the healing of a person can be brought about by religious faith through prayer and/or rituals that, according to adherents, stimulate a divine presence and power toward correcting disease and disability.
Followers conduct notably overt and ritualistic practices of communal prayer and gestures that are claimed to solicit divine intervention in initiating spiritual and literal healing.
This belief is also called supernatural healing, divine healing, and miracle healing.
Unlike faith healing, advocates of spiritual healing make no attempt to seek divine intervention, instead believing in divine energy.
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SPIRIT POSSESSION
A paranormal / supernatural belief that spirits can take possession of living beings and inanimate objects, altering their health and behaviour.
The concept of spiritual possession exists in many religions, including Christianity, Buddhism, Haitian Vodou, Wicca, and Southeast Asian and African traditions.
Many physiological, sociological and psychological explanations are given by rationalists for this phenomena.
Various paranormal cures for and attitudes prevail towards people possessed by spirits.
Spirit possession is cross-culturally more common among women than men.
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SYNCRETISM
Syncretism involves the merger and analogizing of several originally discrete traditions, especially in the theology and mythology of religion, thus asserting an underlying unity and allowing for an inclusive approach to other faiths.
It derives from modern Latin syncretismus, drawing on Greek συγκρητισμός (synkretismos), meaning "Cretan federation". The Cretans compromised and reconciled their differences and came together in alliance when faced with external dangers. "And that is their so-called Syncretism".
In modern secular society, religious innovators sometimes create new religions syncretically as a mechanism to reduce inter-religious tension and enmity, often with the effect of offending the original religions in question.
Greek "Hellenistic" culture in the age that followed Alexander the Great itself showed syncretist features, essentially blending of Mesopotamian, Persian, Anatolian, Egyptian (and eventually Etruscan–Roman) elements within an Hellenic formula. The Egyptian God Amun developed as the Hellenized Zeus Ammon after Alexander the Great went into the desert to seek out Amun's oracle at Siwa.
Some scholars hold that Judaism refined its concept of monotheism and adopted features such as its eschatology (death and judgement), angelology and demonology through contacts with Zoroastrianism.
Social conversion to Christianity happened all over Europe. It became even more effective when missionaries concurred with established cultural traditions and interlaced them into a fundamentally Christian synthesis.
The mystical tradition in Islam, known as Sufism appears somewhat syncretic in nature.
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RELATIVISM
Relativism is the concept that points of view have no absolute truth or validity, having only relative, subjective value according to differences in perception and consideration.
The term is often used to refer to the context of moral principle where, in a relativistic mode of thought, principles and ethics are regarded as applicable in only limited context. There are many forms of relativism which vary in their degree of controversy.
An "emic" or insider account of behavior is a description of a society in terms that are meaningful to the participant's own culture, whereas, an "etic" or outsider account is a description of a society by an observer, in terms that can be applied to other cultures; that is, an etic account is culturally neutral.
"Deconstruction" of anything is often termed a relativist perspective because of the ways it locates the meaning of a subject in its appropriation and reading, implying that there is no "true" reading of a subject and no "true" subject apart from its reading.
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FOLK RELIGION
This is a combination of ethnic folk cultures and theological forms of official religions. Often, folk cultures already have a religious base and official religions inspire new cultures. Hence this belief system is often an another format of syncretism.
This belief incorportaes traditional surreal systems, worship of ethnic saints, shrines and amulets and "popular" rituals generally associated with the "poor" or "conquered" people of a culture.
Chinese folk religion, Folk Christianity, Folk Hinduism, and Folk Islam are examples of folk religion associated with major religions.
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ANIMISM
Animism (from Latin animus, "soul, life") is the religious worldview that natural physical entities — including animals, plants, and often even inanimate objects or phenomena — possess a spiritual essence. Specifically, animism is used in the anthropology of religion as a term for the religion of indigenous tribal people, especially prior to the development and/or infiltration of civilization and organized religion.
Although each tribe is unique in its specific mythologies and rituals, the term animism is often used to describe the most common, foundational thread of indigenous tribespeoples' spiritual or "supernatural" perspectives.
Animism encompasses the beliefs that there is no separation between the spiritual and physical (or material) world, and souls or spirits exist, not only in humans, but also in all other animals, plants, rocks, geographic features such as mountains or rivers, or other entities of the natural environment, including thunder, wind, and shadows.
Animism shares similarities to totemism but differs in its focus on individual spirit beings which help to perpetuate life, whereas totemism more typically holds that there is a primary source, such as the land itself or the ancestors, who provide the basis to life. Certain indigenous religious groups such as the Australian Aborigines are more typically totemic, whereas others like the Inuit are more typically animistic in their worldview.
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(To be continued...)
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Courtesy: http://en.wikipedia.org/
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On To Religious Scriptures
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Back To "World Religions"
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