The Origin and Traits of Various Cultures - Assignment Example

History Essays History can be defined as the story of civilized humankind based on the interpretation of acknowledged primary sources. It is a summation all the physical events that ever ensued in the past. However, things might have occurred in the past that were not recorded. Therefore, history is only a detachment of the past. The significance of the events depends on their interpretation, through which they exert a pull on meaning and value. For that reason, history as a discipline is the study of the past. It is through learning history that the events of the past are legitimized by respecting the values and ideas of the people and their objective behind their actions. Therefore, history can be defined as the story of the civilization of mankind, depending on interpretation of well-established and recognized primary sources (Werner 181). Culture is the characteristics and traits of a meticulous group of people who can be defined by common behaviors, beliefs, social habits, religion, language, cuisine, art, and music. There exist numerous cultures; Western, Eastern, Latin, Middle Eastern and African cultures. The members of each culture have universal characteristics that are common. They form a society, which is an interaction between people who share a common culture. The Cultural attachment may be racial, ethnic, gender, values, beliefs, and activities. It is through culture that individuals and groups get to identify themselves; conforming to that society’s values, beliefs, and traditions. It is evident that culture involves many aspects: customs, language, norms, rules, and mores. In today’s world, the term culture seems to lose some of its usefulness because people share resources and interact globally (182). It is unlike the past where people labored and lived in small groups in the same vicinity. What is Hinduism and how was it related to the Aryan social structure of Indic Civilization? Hinduism is one of the oldest religions in the world. It exists today as a highly spirited, healthy, and vibrant group of traditions. With over a billion cohorts, it is the third leading religion. It has its origins in India (800 million followers) and extends its influence across the globe (183). Hinduism, nonetheless, is not monolithic (complete uniformity) and has no single founder, no set of teachings, no scripture, value system, and a unified code of conduct. These facts have made it hard for many scholars to define precisely “Hinduism”. Hinduism is “a family” of diverse traditions (sampradayas), each with its unique traditions, theology, rituals, and value system. Nonetheless, the unifying themes include accepting God, Dharma (law of righteousness), karma (Law of cause and effect), the Vedas and Moksha (liberation) (187). Hinduism is related to the basic Aryan structure of Indic civilization in that it is Hinduism that introduced the caste system in India. It started during the Vedic period in 1200BC when Indo-Europeans migrated from central Asia into India, Russia, Iran and other European parts. They increased trade and brought new gods and scriptures known as “Vedas” that brought Hinduism into existence. The Aryan priesthood caste was responsible for giving sacrifices, and had their teachings in the “Rigveda”. The classes (varnas), imposed partitions among the population into four distinctions; Brahmin (priests, scholars), Kshatriyas (governors, kings), Vaishyas (artisans, merchants) and Sudras (service providers and non-Aryans). And each Varna was divided into “jatis” (sub-castes), which clearly identified an individual’s occupations and status and consequently enforced marriage limitations (202). Both the Varnas and jatis determined a person’s level of purity. The caste system influenced the social structure of the Aryan society through to the modern day India. It has become one of the basic features of the long-established Hindu society. What is Buddhism and how did it attack the basic Aryan social structure of the Indic civilization? Buddhism is the conduit of practice and spiritual development resulting to the factual nature of reality (205). Buddhists have practices like meditation, which are means of transforming yourself to develop the behaviors of kindness, awareness, and wisdom. Those that follow the path of Buddhism ultimately become enlightened and join Buddhahood. According to them, an enlightened person is a being that sees the nature of realism clearly. Just as it is, that person lives naturally and fully in harmony with that vision of reality. However, some people do not view Buddhism as a religion because it does not include the idea of worshipping a God (212). Buddhism was born in the era of Brahmanism. Buddhism attacked the basic Aryan social structure simply because they were encouraging the caste system. Buddhism preached equality and Brahmanism advocated inequality through the caste system. The Buddha was the earliest teacher who showed a path to humanity and strongly opposed the caste system. Buddha’s new democratic norms and traditions, as well as a humanistic spiritual organization, demolished the restrictions of Brahmanism. Buddha’s philosophy is based on logic and reason. It held strongly onto the notion that no human being is superior to the other. Buddha said that no single person was born low or high and that someone’s nobility lies in deeds, not according to societal stratification. The Shudra in the Aryan society became undignified because of the Brahmanical laws. Consequently, they occupied a very low state in their life. Buddha, a social transformer, revolted against the Aryan society and treated them as human beings. To him, a Buddhist and a Brahmin were equal (223). The origin, principles, and worldwide view of Christianity within their historical context Christianity emerged at the Eastern end of the Mediterranean Sea in the initial decades of the Roman Empire. Most of the momentum for this religion was based on the issues of Jewish religion, which included a belief in the coming of a Messiah. As most Christians believe, Christianity was created to cleanse the Jews from unbendable rituals and corrupt leaders. It began in a remote province in Rome and appealed to the poorer classes mostly. Jesus of Nazareth, a Jewish prophet who believed he was the son of God, instigated Christianity (285). He preached in the Israel urging purification of the Jewish religion that would set free Israel and institute the Kingdom of God on earth. In his preaching, Jesus of Nazareth urged a moral system based on charity, love, and humility. He also asked the “faithful” (believers) to follow his lessons closely and abandon the worldly concerns. His followers believed that an ultimate “Judgment day” was near, on which God would compensate the righteous with immortality, and condemn the transgressors to perpetual hell. These are the principles along which Christianity is based upon, and its teachings are in a book called the “Bible”. By 4th AD, over twenty percent of the residents in the Roman Empire were Christian (287). It has spread up to Ethiopia and the Middle East. With its appeal to the underprivileged, Christianity reflected social grumbles in an empire that was characterized by inequality. It answered spiritual and cultural needs of the poor, giving people a promise of rewards after passing away. With Christianity now worldwide, it is highly recognized as a strong religion with over a billion followers. It is viewed as a holy religion, providing its followers with the blueprint of how to live a holy life that will guarantee eternal life in heaven. The origin, principles and worldwide view of Islam within its historical context Islam is a monotheistic creed that developed in the Middle East in the 7th century CE (233). It originated from the Arabian Peninsula and had well over two billion followers worldwide. Its Deity is Allah and its teachings are in a book commonly referred to as “Quran”. Islam is a word that means “submission” or “surrender”, founded on the teachings of Prophet Muhammad in expression of submitting to the will of Allah, the Sustainer and creator of the world. The Quran contains teachings of Prophet Muhammad that were divulged to him by Allah. The date of formation was when Muhammad migrated to Medina, considered the start of the Islamic calendar. Central to Islam is the belief that “Allah is the one and true God with no equal”. Islam had two divisions within their tradition; the Sunni and Shi’a (238). One of the unifying factors is the Five Pillars of Islam, which constituted the fundamental principles of Islam. These five practices include ritual prayer, a ritual profession of faith, the zakat (charity), the Hajj (journey to Mecca) and fasting. Another thing that defined Islam is the primacy of sacred places like Jerusalem, Mecca, and Medina. Muslims gathered around mosques to pay reverence to Allah, and they still do to date (243). They also go to the mosque five times a day to talk to Allah. With the emerging cases of terrorism, Islam has been badly recognized globally. Due to the strong devotion of Islamists to their religion, they believe that losing their life fighting for their religion is justified. The above explains why they have engaged in “Jihad” movements, targeting Christians and other religions by instigating attacks through terror-related gangs like ISIS and ISIL. These groups have by far damaged the notion that people held in Islam. How the Shinto religion, the Chinese writing system, and the Asian art reflects the Far East Asian perception of reality The Shinto religion is a folk religion of Japan. It means “the way of the gods”. This religion is closely linked to Buddhism; they are closely identified. The practitioners of this religion, just like the Buddhists, do have special forms of practices like meditation that enables them to discover the nature of reality. The Shinto practitioners practice meditation so as to enable the transformation in someone to discover kindness, wisdom and knowledge (413). The above explains how the Shinto religion depicts the Asian perception of reality. Central to them is the concept of purity of the inner and outer selves. Shinto means “the way of the kami (deities). The Shinto has no revelatory book from which their doctrines emanate. The Chinese system of writing developed more than four thousand years ago when the Shang dynasty was in power. It consists of the ideograms for every syllable, each representing a word and not a sound. Traditionally, they were written in columns that were read from right to left and top to bottom. The eve first Chinese writing is the oracle bone script used from 1500 to 1000 BCE (403). It was engraved in bones, tortoise shells. As the lone and oldest writing system in East Asia, the Chinese writing system formed the foundation for many other writing systems. Some of them are still in use while some faded into disuse and obscurity. They are called the Sinitic family of scripts, and they are in the writing systems of Japan, Korea, Khitan, Jurchen and Vietnam. These writings alongside the Asian arts reflect the Asian perception of reality. Asian art can be seen in building's design, poetry, and paintings. Asian Art is a reflection of the Asian discernment of realism. What are the essential concepts of Confucian philosophy and why were they important for Far East Civilization? Confucianism is a way of life that was taught by Confucius in the 5th-6th century BC. It is perhaps the best-understood humanism that neither slights nor denies heaven. It has been greatly followed by the Chinese for over two millennia (383). Humaneness is the main major Confucianism principle. Humaneness is one’s character in concurrence with ritual norms, filial piety, reciprocity, and loyalty to one’s nature. Confucius viewed heaven as a positive force in the universe, though he was not a skeptic. Confucius developed the concepts of society, education and government, which he hoped to put into practice in his political career. Confucius saw himself a transmitter who tried to recover the meaning of the past. He sought to understand why some rituals like ancestral cults, mourning ceremonies and reverence for heaven had stuck for so long. Confucius had mastery in six arts-music, rituals, archery, calligraphy, arithmetic, and charioteering. These enabled him to start a radiant career as a teacher. Due to his extensive knowledge, he was alienated from the ruling family because they had no interest in his policies. Confucius left the country to look for another country to render his services. It is his expanding number of students that spread his mission and visions. As a result, his visions, missions and concepts extended wide and far, its influence reaching as far as Japan, Korea, and Vietnam. It is through his actions that education is now treasured in the Far East. Arithmetic is now appreciated and the forms of governance in many East Asia countries (376). Through the efforts exerted by Confucius, the Far East Civilization is at a better positioning because they have clearly embraced the ideologies and concepts of Confucianism. Work Cited Werner, Karel. The Religious Traditions of Asia. Religion, History, and Culture. Journal of the Royal Asiatic Society 13.03 (2003): 180-414. Read More