INTRODUCTION TO ASIAN RELIGIONS
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INTRODUCTION TO ASIAN RELIGIONS |
| COURSE INFORMATION | SCHEDULE OF READINGS | WWW LINKS | STUDY QUESTIONS |
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COURSE INFORMATION INSTRUCTOR: Dr. Beata Grant
COURSE DESCRIPTION The purpose of this course is to acquaint the student with some of the essential texts, ideas, beliefs and practices of the primary non-monotheistic religious traditions of South (Weeks 1-7) and Tibet/East Asia (Weeks 8-15). We will look at both traditional and modern expressions of these religions in Asia as well as the ways in which Asian religions have taken root in the West. The format of the class will be a combination of lecture and discussion of the assigned primary texts. REQUIRED TEXTS 1. Textbook: Our primary text, available for purchase at the Washington University Bookstore is Religions of Asia, ed., John Y. Fenton, et. al. Study questions for all of the assigned readings in the text will be provided, and students will be responsible for this material, which will serve as a basis for electronic email and class discussions as well as quizzes and exams. 2. Course Handouts: Every week I will distribute short selected readings of primary texts which will be used as the basis for class lectures and discussions. It is very important that you do these readings before class and that you bring them with you so that we can refer to them during class. 3. Videos and Recommended Reading: These are materials which will be placed on Reserve at the the AV Room in Olin Library. Although not required, I think you will find them both interesting and informative. GRADING The first thing to remember is that as your instructor, I really do want to give you good grades. After all, good students who get good grades make me look good too! However, I am also required by the university to demonstrate that my grading is based on clear and careful guidelines, and that good grades are truly the result of good work. The following distribution of percentage points is designed to give you a general idea of how your final grade will be determined: please note however, that, as is always the case in the humanities, the exact relationship between points, grades, standards, etc., is ultimately up to the considered judgement of the instructor. I assure you, however, that I am fully prepared to help you in every way possible not only to get a good grade, but to learn as much as you can and enjoy yourself in the process! 1. Attendance in class and weekly contributions to the electronic
discussion list. 20%
Please note that more than three unexcused absences will significantly affect your grade. By the same token, you are expected to make a minimum of one posting a week to the electronic discussion list. 2. Three Quizzes 30% The purpose of these in-class quizzes is to ensure that you are doing the required reading and are understanding what you are reading. Each quiz will be worth 10%. 3. Final Exam 25% The final exam (combination identifications and short essays) is designed to test your over-all understanding of some of the main themes, issues and names in Asian Religions. 4. Research Paper or Project. 25% This will be a paper approximately of 8-10 pages (double spaced, that is 2,000 to 2,500 words) toward the end of the semester. I will provide a list of sample topics, although you are very much encouraged to find a topic on your own. The paper may be either a critical essay based on library research, or a report based on fieldwork or interviews conducted in the St. Louis community (such as a visit to the local Hindu temple, for example). You must select your topic no later than the sixth week of class and have it approved by me. This will give you the entire semester to work on the paper. You may submit rough drafts to me for comments and corrections up until Friday, December 3rd. This will be your main opportunity to display to yourself and to me what you can do. Extra Credit will occasionally be awarded for specific tasks, for effective class participation, and for participation in visits to sites of interest. IMPORTANT:
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OF TOPICS AND READINGS
*SUBJECT TO CHANGE SO PLEASE CHECK REGULARLY Week One 8/25-8/27
Week Two 9/30-10/3
Week Three 9/6-9/10
Week Four 9/13-9/17
Week Five 9/20-9/24
Week Six 9/27-9/1
Wednesday: The Life of the Buddha
Week Seven 10/4-10/8
Week Eight 10/11-10/15
Week Nine 10/18-10/22
Friday: QUIZ 2 -- JAINISM, SIKHISM, SOUTH ASIAN BUDDHISM Week Ten 10/25-10/29
Week Eleven 11/1-11/5
Week Twelve 11/8-11/12
Week Thirteen 11/15-11/19
Week Fourteen 11/22 Monday: QUIZ 3 - EAST ASIAN RELIGIONS
Week Fifteen 11/29-12/3
Week Sixteen 12/6
12/15 FINAL EXAM
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WWW LINKS TO EXPLORE HINDUISM
Global Hindu Electronic Networks (GHEN): The Hindu Universe
Hinduism Today is a monthly, international newspaper "affirming the
SIKHISM
The Sikhism Home Page includes an overview of the Sikh religion,
Sikh Media Action and Resource Task Force (SMART) Website provides
JAINISM
Jainism: Principles, Tradition and Practices features extensive links to
Young Jains of America (YJA) Home Page includes organizational news
BUDDHISM
DharmaNet International provides extensive resources on Buddhism,
Tricycle: The Buddhist Review is the interactive forum for the Buddhist
CONFUCIANISM
The Confucian Page is an exploration of the life, wisdom, personality and
influence of Confucius
DAOISM
Taoism Information Page: A good page with e-texts of the Taost classics
plust links to sites on Taoism and the
SHINTOISM
The Tsubaki America Shinto Homepage offers information about
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DISCUSSION QUESTIONS
Week 1 Religions of Asia, pp. 1-17 1. What are some of the major obstacles to understanding religions other than our own? What is the problem with trying to understand a religion purely by describing it from the outside? What are the problems with trying to describe it from inside, that is, “focusing solely on the meaning each religion has for its adherents” (p. 1) ? 2. The authors argue for a cross-cultural definition of religion. What do they mean by this and why do they believe it is the most useful kind of definition to work with? 3. Religion, is, very generally speaking, a means of satisying certain basic human needs. There are, according to the author’s “no uniquely religious emotions…rituals, forms of social organization [or] concepts.” What then distinguishes religious from non-religious ways of satisfying people’s needs? 4. Why do the authors choose to use the term “sacred reality” or “sacred ultimacy” when describing what appears to be a common denominator among all religions: that is, the belief in the existence of a transhuman dimension to life? Can this term be defined? Why or why not? What is the problem with using the word “God” or at least, the “Transcendent”? 5. What do the authors mean when they say that “the idea of a sacred reality is something like the fundamental human capacity to speak language that we had as infants, before we learned any particular language… yet the deep structure does not make one language necessarily similar to any other.” p. 6 ? 6. All religious traditions assume a basic religious need (or problem) and posit a means for its satisfaction (or solution) although they often differ significantly in their diagnosis of the problem as well as the solution they offer. The satisfaction or resolution offered by most religious traditions often involves a process or path of transformation. Describe in your own words the four stages into which this process can be divided: diagnoses of disorder, symbolic distancing, liminality, and restoration or rebirth. 7. The authors give examples of different types of rituals and teachings which reflect this idea of the process of transformation, including the Hindu sacred thread ceremony and the Buddhist eightfold path. Can you provide examples from your own experience of such rituals of transformation and explain how they fit into the four-fold scheme offered by the authors? 8. Another common cross-cultural characteristic of religious traditions around the world include the acknowledgement of sacred places. What is it that makes a place sacred? 9. Most religious traditions also have religious specialists – be they monks, priests, shamans or prophets. What is the primary role of these people within a religious tradition? 10. Yet another shared concern of all religious traditions is the question of life after death and how this affects our life in the world in the here and now. Do all these traditions agree on what comes after death? Can you give an example of how a particular religious tradition’s belief in what happens after life affects their attitude towards how one should act in this life? 11. What do the authors mean when they say that “religions are social” (p. 12) and that “religion is distinguishable from culture but not separable from it” (p. 15)? 12. What is a myth? What is a symbol? What is the role of myth and symbol in the construction of a religious world? What do the authors mean when they say that “the system of symbols developed by religious traditions vary dramatically. Meaning is a matter of internal interaction; that is, within each system, ideas or beliefs have meaning only in relation to one another. The parts of the system usually cannot be readily transferred to another system, and indeed, many religious systems are incompatible.” What does this tell us about the possible dangers of the New Age spiritual shopping market attitude towards world religions? Week 2 Religions of Asia, pp. 21-39. 1. What are some of the characteristics of India’s climate and geography that have influenced the forms taken by Hinduism? How, for instance might climate help explain why water seem to play such an important role in many Hindu rituals? 2. What do the authors mean when they write that “Hinduism is the religion of tranquility of self and society”? According to the authors, traditionally who or what do most Hindus blame for their problems and discontents and how do they feel these problems are best solved? 3. What are some of the basic characteristics of the early Indus civilization
as far as can be told by archeological excavations of its two major cities,
Harappa and Mohenjo-Daro? What appears to have been the primary means
of social control? What generalizations can be made about the religion
of these early people?
5. Who were the Aryas and where did they come from? In what ways did their lifestyle and languages differ from that of the peoples of the Indus valley? 6. What are the Vedas and what were they used for? What does the word “Veda” mean? In what language were they composed and how were they handed down? What are the names of the four “books” of the Vedas? 7. According to the early Vedic worldview, why is the breath so important? How is it interpreted religiously? What was the early Vedic understanding of the universe -- where it came from and how it was constructed? Did they have any notions of an underworld? 9. Explain in your own words the meaning of the term rita? What is the relationship between rita and the gods? How does this relationship differ from the idea of the relationship between God and his creation in Semitic religions? What were some of the early Vedic ideas about how the world began? What is the conclusion reached by the author of hymn 10.129 of the Rig Veda, “A Hymn of Creation? 10. What is the meaning of the word “deva” Who or what are the devas of the Vedas? What do they authors mean when they say that the combined and cooperative authority of the gods Indra and Varuna is the nearest we get to an idea of a monotheistic God in early Vedic religion? What are the basic characteristics of these two gods? What, according to the authors, appears to be their primary religious functions? 11. Much of early religion, in India and elsewhere, is concerned with providing its adherents with a measure of inner security in a dangerous and unpredictable world before the advent of science. According to the authors, the worship of the Vedic gods is directed at which three types of insecurity? What were the primary concerns of the early Vedic peoples? Did they view the world as a “vale of suffering” which one could do no better than leave? 12. What was the role of ritual in early Vedic religion? What was the significance of the Srauta ritual? How did the way the gods were viewed change over time? Why did the rituals continue to be important even as the belief in the power of the gods begin to wane? What does this have to do with the emergence of the conception of Brahman.? 13. During the early period, the Vedic rituals were handed down in families, but by 800 BCE, we see the rise of professional guilds for the training of priests. How did this contribute to a differentiation of gender roles in India religion and society? 14. What aspects of early Vedic religious tradition survive to
this very day?
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