Bringing Minds to Gods - Research Paper Example

?Bringing Minds to Gods Religion has played a very important role in the evolution of human societies. It functions not only as an avenue for the expression of a system of beliefs such as ghosts, magic, and rituals to influence certain events. Religion also functions in the establishment of a relationship with supernatural beings which people worship. In some religion though, the belief in an abstract being or a god is absent but adheres to the concept of faith and or reward system when full uprightness is being practiced. Accordingly, religious anthropologists believe that all societies exhibit the said characteristics and therefore concluded that religion is universal; although, it is differently understood and expressed. One famous symbolic anthropologist by the name of Clifford Geertz even defined religion as “(1) a system of symbols which acts to (2) establish powerful, pervasive, and long-lasting moods and motivations in men by (3) formulating conceptions of a general order of existence and (4) clothing these conceptions with such an aura of factuality that (5) the moods and motivations seem uniquely realistic" (Geertz 1966). An integral part in the system of religion is the belief of sin. In a general and more modern sense, sin is anything that violates a certain moral standard or code of conduct. Anything that is offensive, an avoidance of good, or the act of doing wrong is considered a “sin”. In Christianity, sin does not only mean those actions that are tangible but it also encompasses feelings of enmity, internal thoughts, and other motivations that lead to ill-doing, shame, or immorality. In a religious perspective, when a person commits sins, his relationship with his supernatural being is tainted and he therefore must do sacrificial acts to restore the connection. This act of achieving a certain kind of spiritual cleansing, more commonly understood as the concepts of expiation and/or the atonement of sins have since become so interrelated hand in hand with the notion of sin. And religions have, to a good extent, institutionalized certain practices and ritual to ensure the reparation of relationship between man and his deity. Among the many established religions in the world today, this paper shall focus on the discussion of the similarities and differences of the concept of atonement and/or spiritual cleansing between Hinduism and Confucianism. To define, atonement is the process by which a person removes obstacles to his reconciliation with God. In doing so, he “re-establishes or strengthens his relations to the holy divine”. As the etymology of the name suggests, to “atone” is to “set at one” (Encyclopedia Britannica, May 2011). Hinduism Present among the various religions in the world in the act of expiation of sins are prayer, repentance, fasting, and offering (animal or crops). In Hinduism, the ultimate goal in life is to be in union with the Brahman, the supreme and absolute universal Spirit of the universe. To be one with the Brahman, one must constantly purify himself through the practice of atonement or “Prayaschitta”, a ritual performed to eliminate the effects of bad deeds. In the Hindu lexicon, “praya” means austerity and “chitta” means a firm resolution. Hence, to do prayschitta, one must undergo or render a certain form of sacrifice to cleanse him from the wrong doings he has committed. This includes extreme fasting which could last as long as a month, chanting of Mantras, or giving away of gifts or going away on a pilgrimage. History has it that the act of prayaschitta among Hindus is not necessarily according to the Brahmans but it goes back to law books of Sanskrit. The severity of the penance is said to be dependent upon the weight of the violation committed. In some documented acts of atonement, there were instances of drinking boiled liquor for the sin committed in drinking too much of the same intoxicating beverage. This kind of ritual is considered to be light as the sin committed is not severe. Severe ones are those that include murder, theft of a King from another King, or adulterous acts with another caste. Violations of theft would include the ritual of burying the person in a cow’s dung until it becomes fermented and giving the same dirt for the person to eat to fully cleanse him of his sins1. Though this kind of extreme ritual is still present in the modern era, it’s already starting to diminish as people are adjusting to a “newer” and more humane process of expiating their sins such as going on a long pilgrimage. Atonement via pilgrimage often begins with a long journey to these holy places. As the ritual begins, the pilgrim must reflect upon the sins he committed and when he does, he is said to receive Siva’s fluid clemency. The pilgrims are then taken to different wells or water holes; each time a guide embarks on splashing out or pouring of water over the pilgrim’s head to symbolize sanctification. In the Hindu culture, the existence of water is of primary importance vis-a-vis atonement of their sins. Since India is blessed with many natural waterways such as rivers and seas, water is regarded as an integral symbol in the restoration of relationship between the divine being and the person who has committed any sin. Water has a special symbolic significance in any atonement ritual as it is believed “to have spirituality cleansing power” (Latuk 1996). Pilgrimage sites or holy places have remarkably been found in areas where natural water flows. Further, part of the whole ritual process of Hindu’s is also offering sacrificial elements called “puja”. This would include fruits, flowers, sometimes animals which are being offered to a deity. These sacrifices are said to please the divine being and will cancel the sins committed by the devotee. Other forms of rituals that would help the Hindu restore his relationship with the diving being would include extreme Yoga, meditation, and the intimate study of the Holy Scriptures. When penance rendered is successfully completed, the pilgrim’s karma is believed to be altered, with the pilgrim expectant of favorable circumstances such as good health, good fortune, etc. The Hindu’s perception of the quality of his moral life greatly revolves in their notion of “karma”. The effects of karma in the Hindu’s life are a result of his relationship with the Divine. According to Steven Huyler, “the relationship with the Divine is believed to be reciprocal. Health and good fortune are the natural products of a symbiotic relationship with the Gods. Misfortune and calamity are the result of imbalance, of inappropriate behavior and misguided thoughts and actions.” When a Hindu accumulates good actions, he earns merits and will therefore ensure him a speedy forgiveness of his sins as well as a secure place in the place of God when he dies. Hence, the devotee is expected to dedicate intense ritual sacrifices along with a consistent effort to do good should he desire a balance in his karmic equilibrium. Confucianism Confucianism, on the other hand, has a similar concept of cleansing of the soul or atonement but greatly differs in its approach. To begin, Confucianism is only recently considered a religion although a lot of debates still exist within and among the academe. But long before, it was regarded as a collection of value systems by which the moral conduct is the primary focus. For Confucius and the rest of the believers of this denomination, the focus is not upon the relationship between man and his divine being but instead between man and his fellow. An individual’s way of treating his neighbors greatly matter in the greater scheme of things. For the Confucians, to be spiritually clean means observing the highest regard to live the ideal moral life. By moral life, one should make a conscious effort to seek what is right by aligning one’s affections with what is righteous. When righteousness is deeply assimilated into the person’s character, his heart becomes pure, sincere, and rectified. Thus, the person is able to reflect to others what he cultivated inside. Accordingly, if our thoughts and desires are not meaningful and morally upright, our actions will consequentially mirror this negativity. And this is how the whole community is affected or influenced by an individual’s inner self. This explains why the documented rituals for the Chinese’ acts of penance does not follow a particular process to achieve spiritual cleansing. As abovementioned, Confucianism is about a high standard of moral uprightness, hence, it follows a certain principle called “li” but does not strictly impose upon the individual the nitty-gritty details and step-by-step process on how to do it. “Li”, according to Confucius, is defined as the train of thought that consists of the norms and proper social behavior. It includes ideals such as filial submission, righteousness, good faith, and even embodies the proper conduct between the interaction of both animate and inanimate objects such as nature and even material objects. It even extends to the proper way of drinking ceremonial tea or proper way of governing a community or a society. All these must strictly be observed and practiced. By doing so, the person is making himself teachable and perfectible. To be able to function normally and ideally in a society, one must embody in himself the concept of li. For a person to fully embody the li principle, he must observe the two aspects that govern the idea: the performative and scholastic. In the performative, the person must be able to fully execute the li ideals in his everyday living. Meaning, he must be able to perfectly carry out the instructions and the processes by which he interacts with his neighbors, the circumstances he is in, or even the objects surrounding him. This, in turn, becomes some sort of ritual that a devotee must carry out. It has become the person’s ritual in a sense that he must constantly be cautious of the processes, continuously checking and counterchecking his actions until he reaches perfection. For a devotee to become perfectible, he must also observe the second aspect of li which is the scholastic part, or the schooling of the mind. This is the part where the devotee is supposed to understand the reason or the rationale as to why and how the performative aspects of li are carried out the way they are ought to be carried out. When the Confucian is able to master the canons of li, he makes himself capable of perfectly executing the li in all social matters. Unlike Hinduism, Confucianism does not see the relevance between the external self and the internal self. It finds the relationship between the man and his supernatural being irrelevant in the pursuit of moral uprightness. It sees the self as something that responds to “inner self-reflection with outer virtues”. Confucianism emphasizes on the importance of cultivating ones inner self with righteousness so as to reflect this righteousness externally. It even goes to say that the inner self can be perfected by subjecting oneself to practice and seek what is pure and righteous. When this happens, a chain or domino effect happens from individual to individual, which then spreads to the community, to the society, and finally to the rest of the country. Therefore, spiritual cleansing is achieved without necessarily calling on a God or a divine being to do the cleansing or to repair a broken relationship. The concept of atonement in both religions is expressed differently though they have the same concept of “sacrifice” to achieve full moral uprightness. For both Hinduism and Confucianism, moral perfection is the ultimate goal and this is achieved by the pious practice of strict values in the daily life. References: Britannica. Encyclop?dia Britannica Online. Encyclop?dia Britannica, 2011. Web. 28 May. 2011. Read More