Buddhism, Confucianism, Taoism - Essay Example

Religion and Theology Religion and Theology I. Identification b) Shiva is a Hindu god. He is one of the top most respected and superior gods among the Hindu society. Within the Shaivism among the Hindu, he holds as the supreme god of yogis and falls amongst the five principal forms of god among the Hindu. After the death of his wife Sati, he resorted to Parvati who is always by his side as a divine consort. Parvati is said to serve as both a mother and a loving wife to Shiva. Lord Shiva did not just marry Parvati as soon as his wife passed on, but made sure that she suited the acceptance. Moreover, she pestered Lord Shiva just to win his love and affection. All this happened as Shiva was at a cave trying to meditate on the loss of his lovely wife. Parvati did most things to win the heart of Lord Shiva, but all went in vain until one day she decided that she would go for a penance into the forest just to win the heart of Lord Shiva. She was devoted and determined to becoming loved by Lord Shiva, who always saw her as a dark skinned lady. Lord Brahma came over to her and answered her prayer. When she went back to Lord Shiva, she was accepted and loved. Later, they conducted a marriage ceremony which was in a ritualistic manner. That was the way goddess Parvati became the consort of Lord Shiva. Shiva’s side to show a symbol of love and affection always depicts Parvati. The patience and calmness in goddess Parvati is said to be the best combination for Lord Shiva’s angry personality. Lord Shiva acts as the lord of the dances among the Hindu. Shiva’s main role is to destroy then later on restore besides saving humanity. Shiva is also depicted as a householder and an ascetic yogi. In addition, Shiva is also Lord of dance (Nataraja). Lord Shiva for a very long time has been known as a destroyer. At the far end lies the floor plan of the Cathedral Chartres. Cathedral Chartres is a medieval Catholic church located in Chartres, France. c) The circular piece of sculpture in Shiva-Lord of the dance refers to the field of dance that he takes over the entire world/ universe (Fisher, 2014). The circular sculpture also helps in identifying the dance in which it dances with the whole world. d) The floor plan of The Chartres Cathedral has a red arrow, which is linear, this shows that the Christians believe in one-way life. That is, human beings only live once. Contrary to the Hindu Culture where they believe there is life after death and life is regarded as continuous or forever. III. Argumentation a) Buddhism is not a religion; it practices atheism. It rejects the fact that God exists. To them the person they are worshiping as their god has mysterious stories surrounding his birth. Buddha is portrayed that after his death he came back to life and got several birth cases to save the souls of the lost persons. The question is how could a god be born and raised in a luxurious manner so that in his future life he could save the soul of the suffering? That was a question worth answering that the people who worshiped Buddha ought to have asked themselves (Fisher, 2014). The savior was raised in cosmetics, luxury life under umbrellas, perfumes. Worst of all Buddha was, at the same time, surrounded by dancing girls trained in martial arts to fight. Buddha was also married to a wife who bore a baby. They deny the being of the creator –God. They purport that Buddha himself left his wife and a son to go and save the suffering soul. He shaved his head. What I wonder is why the savior shaved his head and got married? I, therefore, highly dispute the fact they believe in Buddha as their god. (Fisher, 2014) b) Confucianism is a religion. That is my side of argument looking at the way they hold their belief. It is right they believe in the supernatural being. They do not relate earthly wealth with God. They say that the best way to separate from immorality is getting away from them and meditating. That is done through keeping one’s mind cool and getting to quiet places. Desire for either power or success together with money is never compatible with their rules of the Tao. Which I would say that is so religious. They further say that such things are only got from the superior being. Mortality as needed by most persons is not easily achieved (Fisher, 2014). One has to nurture some features that would at least help them acquire it. Spiritual growth, meditation, strength and some physical energy are some of the cultures that must be inculcated in them that want to have it given to them. c) Taoism could both be given the consideration of being a philosophy and religion. As a religion, it is based on Tao Te Ching’s teaching. It also gives emphasis to a spiritual harmony that occurs within an individual. Moreover, individuals Confucianism always gives more focus on social duties. As a religion, it also gives more emphasis to the rituals that point out at attaining immortality (LaFave, 2004). d) From a different perspective, Taoism can also regard as philosophy. The reasons behind this are that it is both complex and simple. Its simplicity lies in the fact when the experience is allowed in oneself. Its complexity lies when there are trials made in understanding it. Understanding both western and eastern traditions differ gives us the ability to compare and contrast them. The westerns have a way in which they believe things should be done. They do think of their ways as superior than those of the eastern people. In terms of the faith they have, they think that their savior is Jesus through God (LaFave, 2004). In contrast, the eastern people also have their own way of doing things. They have their own gods and they have their own ways of worshiping their creator. The western people also see that those of the east are not pure and that it is only theirs that is pure. Those with eastern traditions do however, not accept the same fact. Therefore, this spiritual warfare of who is who finally makes them have different views about their creator and super being (Fisher, 2014). d) Tradition and culture are a “people” way of life. One cannot come from nowhere to pin down your religion. That is essentially impossible. The approach that the western consumerists use and have about the eastern culture and tradition is quite alarming. The misunderstanding that has occurred between the eastern and western traditions has brought a great rift between them. The east believes we are one with God whereas the west believes He is the one who is responsible for all creation. One group has to accept the other so there can be understanding/respect in terms of their religious views of the supernatural being. (LaFave, 2004). IV. Application 1. Confucius’ response to the woman’s argument of carrying the loaded gun to a children’s soccer game would be totally different. They would argue that the woman was in the wrong by doing that which was not right. The woman was supposed to meditate first before taking any action. As this would help her out not to cause the blunder she did. (Fisher, 2014) 2. Buddha would accept it as the right thing to do. They believe that once an individual has died they will be raised to life and see their loved ones. They would also support that the woman died in the right manner as she never committed sin at all at the time of her death. (Fisher, 2014) References Fisher, M (2014). Living Religions, 9th Edition, Pearson Education, Inc. Text. LaFave, S (2004). Comparing Eastern and Western Religion. Retrieved on June 8, 2015 from http://instruct.westvalley.edu/lafave/east_west.html Read More