RELIGION

CHARACTERISTICS

 Sacred, holy
 Fear, Happiness
 Rituals
 Moral implications
THREE ASPECTS OF RELIGION
 Rituals- Religious behaviour
 Belief- Faith
 Organisation- Mechanism

FUNCTIONS OF RELIGION
 Integration
 Discipline
 Cohesive function
 Social wellbeing
 Means of Control
 Moral Standards
MAGIC

 Belief in supernatural powers

 To control this power
 To manipulate supernatural power
 Exorcists performs rituals
 Black magic and white magic
BLACK MAGIC

 Uses magic power

 For evil purpose

WHITE MAGIC
 Uses magic for wellbeing
DIFFERENCES BETWEEN RELIGION AND
MAGIC
 Religion- Superior power by prayer
 Magic – To gain superior power

 Religion – public
 Magic- Secret

 Religion- Respected
 Magic- Feared

 Religion- Practices prayers

 Magic- The charms
MAGIC AND SCIENCE

Magic
 Pseudo science (false science)
 Wrong assumption
 Deals with supernatural

Science
 Cause and effect relationship
 Empirical proof
 Absorved facts
 Deals with Natural
 Observation, experiment
THEORIES OF ORIGIN OF RELIGION

 Emerged from idea of soul

 All objects inhabited by spirits
 All activities carried by spirits
 Soul after death transmigrates
 These spirits worship
MAGIC BY J.G.FRAZER

 To control nature
 Powers to control nature superioe
 Evolution in sequence
 Magic stage, religious stage, scientific stage

NATURALISM BY MAX MULLER

 Nature surprising
 The surprise led to worship
TOTEMISIM BY EMILY DURKHEIM

 Belief – descended from totem

 Totem – objects
 Collective representations
 Totem – treated as sacred
 Collective consciousness
 Ceremonies, rituals, find people
FETISHISM

 Revered object – has power

 Worship of fetishes
 A leaf or a stone
 Among pre-literate people

SUPERSTITION
 Irrational belief – Omen, sorcery etc
 Followed by many
 Becomes religious practice
PROMINENT RELIGIONS

CHRISTIANITY
 Christ as prophet
 Mono-theistic
 Faith in Jesus, service, loving neighbours
 10 commandments
HINDUISM
 Dates back to 6000 years
 Poly-theistic (several gods)
 Dharma, Kama, Artha, Moksha
 Moksha (Salvation)
 Four Ashrams of life
ISLAM
 7th century – Prophet Mohammad
 Mono-theistic ( one god)
 Surrender to will of god – Allah
 Quran - Revelation of god
BUDDHISM
 6th century B.C
 By notable truths
 Suffering, cause of suffering (desire) can be removed
 Nirvana – removes cause of suffering
 8 fold path
JAINISM
 24 thirthankars
 Rishab dev – first thirthankar
 24th thirthankar – Mahavir
 Jain – derived from “Jin”
 3 gems – right path, right knowledge, right conquest
 Jain belief in soul, karma, cycle of birth and death
SIKHISM
 Gurunanak teachings
 Guru Gobind Singh
IDEALOGY OF RELIGION
 Belief and rituals
 Supernatural – god, heaven, hell
 Mode of worship, holy text, philosophy
 Victory of good over evil

MODERN SOCIETY
 Values of nationality
 Secularism
 Religion undergone changes
 Causes of strife
 Communal violence
 International Terrorism
 Notorious activities