Mrs. McMichael R ELIGIONS OF S OUTH AND E AST A SIA

H INDUISM  One of the worlds oldest and largest religions.1500 B.C.  Hindu means “the people who live near the Indus River”. 1000s of yrs ago they started this religion.  Mother Ganga is sacred

H INDUISM  Hinduism is polytheistic and their teachings do not come from one man.  All gods are manifestation of BRAHMAN  Two of their main Gods are Vishnu and Shiva.

H INDUISM  Hindus believe in karma.  Karma is the belief that a person’s behavior determines their position in life.  This means that good behavior brings good karma and that bad deeds produces bad karma.

H INDUISM  Hindus also believe in reincarnation.  Reincarnation is the belief that after someone dies they will be reborn as a new person.  The Hindu religion believes that karma determines what caste system the person will return in.

C ASTE S YSTEM  The Hindus have four castes.  1. Priests  2. Nobles and Soldiers  3. Merchants and farmers  4. Laborers who serve the upper castes  The untouchables; those who are not allowed to touch or live near the other castes.

B UDDHISM  Buddhism also started in India around 500 B.C.  Siddhartha Gautama a prince, began a spiritual search to understand suffering and how to overcome it.  Siddhartha advocated the 4 Noble Truths & the “Middle Way” which was to reject the bad ways of the world.

B UDDHISM  Siddhartha became known as Buddha to his followers.  Buddha was known as “The Enlightened One.  Many Indians liked this religion because it rejected the caste system.  Buddhism spread throughout Asia to China, Japan, and other parts of East Asia by the Buddhist missionaries.

S HINTOISM  Shinto is a major religion in Japan.  Shinto believe in many nature Gods, KAMI  They also believe that not only people and animals have spirits and souls but that all living things do as well.

C ONFUCIANISM  Confucianism is a philosophical system that began in China around 500 B.C.  The founder was a philosopher named Confucius  Confucianism does not focus on the worship of any God but instead teaches a system of moral behavior.

C ONFUCIANISM  One of the major beliefs is the importance of education and how it is the path to molding moral people.  The religion teaches that society should strive to be led by moral virtue by the people rather than a forceful government.  Society can live in harmony if everyone understands their role in society and performs it with kindness.  Follow the “Golden Rule”

I SLAM  Islam is also a major religion in Asia as well.  Following India’s independence in 1947, Muslims founded the Islamic state of Pakistan in what had been the northwest part of the country.  Indonesia has the largest Muslim population in the world.

C HRISTIANITY  Christianity is also practiced in Southern and Eastern Asia.  One of the largest Christian churches in the world is located in Seoul, South Korea.  In recent years Christianity is growing in China as well. 1 million members at the Yoido church in S. Korea