Chapter 4 & 5 Ancient India & Ancient China
Section 2 - The Beginnings of Hinduism
Where did Hinduism come from? Mixed with many cultures Became very complex World s oldest living religion Developed over 3,500 years ago How many people practice Hinduism? One of the world s major religions National religion of India More than 700 million people practice it Influenced many other religions
How is it different from other religions? No single founder Worshipped many gods and goddesses But believe in one spirit
What are some of the gods and goddesses? Most important Hindu gods: Brahma - the Creator Vishnu - the Preserver Shiva - the Destroyer Gods take different forms of humans and animals Each god part of a single all powerful force - Brahman
Brahma: The Creator - Created the world from a lotus flower - Created woman by cutting her from his own body - Because she would hide from him - Brahma gained three more heads so that he will always see her from every side
Vishnu: The Preserver Believed Vishnu is kind and worried about the welfare of human beings Protect humans from disaster Guided people - Balances good and evil - Job is to maintain order - If evil gets too powerful, Vishnu comes to Earth to restore balance
Shiva: The Destroyer and Re-Creator Shiva not worried about human matters He is powerful Sometimes destroys universe and creates it again His dance represents the cycles of life, death, and rebirth
Who or what is Brahman? He created Earth and everything on it
What are the basic beliefs? Share central beliefs contained in religious writings or sacred texts Sacred text - Upanishads Written in form of questions by students and answers by teachers What do Hindus believe happen when they die? Reincarnation - rebirth of the soul Believed: Person may die but is reborn in life of another living thing Good life = cycle of life ends and joins Brahman By doing this a person is following their Dharma - religious duties Ashimsa - nonviolence
Section 3 - The Beginnings of Buddhism
Who began Buddhism? Siddhartha Gautama after seeing an old man suffer Founded one of the world s major religions Studied Hindu but did not agree with ideas Began meditating - thinking deeply about sacred things After 49 days of fasting under fig tree - found answers He was called Buddha - The Enlightened One What do they believe? No gods to worship Through right thinking and self-denial a person could find answers People should follow the Middle Way - avoid too much pleasure and worrying about life
What do they believe? Avoid violence No not kill any living thing If done they would find nirvana - lasting peace and be released from reincarnation All people are equal Have priests and monks People become missionaries - person who spreads their religious beliefs to others Learn to meditate and teach at monasteries
Buddhism today Died out in India Became center of religious thought in China Part of culture in Japan, Korea, China, Tibet and Vietnam
Section 2 Confucius and His Teachings
Who was Confucius? Born 551 B.C. Called Kong Fu Zi China s first professional teacher Died in 479 B.C. - age 72 Thought he was a failure What did he teach? Teachings of earlier wise people Wanted stability and peace to the kingdom Had a philosophy - system of beliefs and values, called Confucianism He believed people should: Behave properly to one another, peace and order would return = society would succeed Respect those above and below them Show loyalty and respect within family = spread through society
What did he teach? People in power should set examples Good ruler = good people What was the impact? Major impact on Chinese government Teachings became training for civil service - group of people who carry out the work of the government Left great impact on China
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