BELIEF SYSTEMS
river upon death.
Animism
 is the belief that all living and
nonliving things in nature have a
spirit.
 was the belief system of many early
civilizations.
 in early civilizations was often
combined with ancestor worship.
 Dates back to earliest humans and
still exist. It can be practiced by
anyone who believes in spirituality,
but does not proscribe to an
organized religion. Animist gods and
beliefs often explain natural earthly
things. The presence of holy men or
women, visions, trances, dancing,
sacred items and places are often
characteristic of animist societies.
Animist exists in traditional African,
Asian, American and Aboriginal
cultures.
Hinduism
 has no single founder, but originated
from the mixing of Harappan and
Aryan cultures in ancient India
around 1500 BCE.
 Hindus believe in one unifying spirit,
Brahman.
 Brahman can manifest in many
polytheistic, forms or in one,
Monotheistic.
 Hinduism is based on the concept of
reincarnation (Spirits return to earth
many times in different forms trying
to become one with brahman). The
soul moves up or down depending on
their behavior in life.
 A person moves closer to Brahman by
obeying the law of Karma is the sum
of all your good deeds involve
following your Dharma, or duties
dependent on your position, gender
and occupation.
 Hindus believe the Ganges River is
sacred and often wish to be cremated
and have their ashes sprinkled in the
 Over the centuries Hindu beliefs were
recorded into a number of sacred text
including the Vedas and Upanishads.
 The Ramayana is a Hindu creation
story
 The caste system separated Indian
society into distinct social classes
social classes in which everyone knew
their place and believed that if they
followed the dharma of their caste,
they would be reincarnated into a
better caste.
Brahmin
Kshatriya
Vaisya
Sudra
Untouchables
Buddhism
 Buddhism was founded by Siddhartha
Gautama in Northern India around
560 BCE
 Gautama was born into a wealthy
Hindu family, but renounced his
wealth to seek spiritual
enlightenment
 Buddhism spread through cultural
diffusion to eastern Asia, including
China, Thailand, Korean and Japan.
 In other areas, Buddhism was adapted
and took on new forms.
 Sacred Buddhist Text: Buddha did not
record his teachings but after he died,
his followers collected the them into
the Tripitaka.
 Today’s Tibetan Buddhist are led by
the Dalai Lama, who advocates for
freedom from China.
4 Noble Truths
 All life is suffering.
 Suffering is caused by desire for
things that are illusions.
 The way to eliminate desire.
 Following the eightfold path will help
people to overcome desire.
Eightfold path
 Right View
 Right Intentions
 Rightfulness
 Right Speech
 Right Action
 Right Livelihood
 Right Effort
 Right Concentration
Judaism
 Originated in the Middle East
around 100 BCE. According to
Jewish tradition, God chose the
Hebrews and helped them to
escape slavery in Egypt. Judaism
was one of the first monotheistic
religion.
 The Torah is a sacred scripture
recording laws and events in
Jewish history.
 The old testament of the Bible
includes the Torah.
 Jews were discriminated against in
the Roman Empire and eventually
kicked out of their homeland,
Israel, in what is known as the
Diaspora
eventually became the official
religion of the Roman Empire.
 Catholicism, Protestantism, Greek
Orthodox, Genuine Christianity.
Islam
 Originated in the Middle East
around 622 CE with the Prophet,
Muhammad.
 Muhammad was born in Mecca
and traveled to Medina in a
journey called hejira, that became
the founding of Islam
 Muslim worshippers follow
scriptures called Quran, or Koran.
The collection of Islamic laws is
also known as the Sharia.
 Spread of Islam- IN the 150 years
following the death of Muhammad,
Islam spread through trade,
missionaries and conquest into
Asia and Africa

Christianity

 Originated from Judaism about

30CE
 Christians believe that Jesus was a
Messiah, or savior sent by God to
bring eternal life to anyone who
would follow him. Jesus accepted
the Ten Commandments and alsp
preached equality of man before
God.
 The Sacred text of Christianity is
the Bible. The Romans, threatened
by the Jewish leaders, allowed
Jesus to be Crucified, Christianity