The purpose of this term paper is to study a religion I am not familiar with. The religion can not be a from the USA. This narrows the options for my term paper. The paper must inform on historical parts of the religion. It also needs to present two problems the religion is going through.
Tibetan Buddhism is the religion I chose for my term paper topic. The religion has always spurred my interest me. The simplicity of the Tibetan monk’s life is amazing. They have no need for material possessions. They live off of what the earth offers them. I find that hard to understand, but very interesting.
China took over Tibet in 1959. Tibet was closed to outside visitors. The Tibetan Buddhist were severely brutalized. Their religion was repressed due to the communist regime that had taken over their home. This is one of the problems I will be discussing in my term paper.
Gender and identity are an issue that I plan on covering in my term paper. I am very curious to see what the gender roles are in this religion. They could be the same as what I am used to in the US, or they may be very different.
The most difficult part of this term paper for me will be finding the information I want to write about. I want to find information on gender and identity but I am not sure if it will be what I am looking for. It will also be difficult to be non bias. I was raised in a Christian home and I will find it hard to understand the Tibetan Buddhists.
Christianity is the religion I am most familiar with. I went to a private Christian school in elementary school. We went to church every morning at that school to learn about the bible. I also went three times a week with my grandparents to a Southern
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Baptist Church. Later in life I became the youth minister for the same church I attended as a child. I had no choice in the religion I belonged to. It was given to me. It was almost forced upon me.
The Dialogue Decalogue is very important in this type of term paper. There can be no bias. The reader does not want my opinion on Tibetan Buddhism. They want me to stick to the facts. Though the one part of this I find difficult is the part where I have to understand the religion completely.
Yu, Han. “Memorial on Buddhism”. Making of the Modern World 12: Classical & Medieval Tradition. Trans. Richard F. Burton. Ed. Janet Smarr. La Jolla: University Readers, 2012. 111-112. Print.
Buddhism and Buddhist philosophy can have a substantial amount of unfamiliar terminology and specific meanings for words we think we know the definition to. In order to ensure comprehension and clarity a few terms need to be defined. Buddhism as a spiritual movement is the following of the teachings of a fifth century B.C. E. Indian spiritual leader named known as Siddhartha Gautama, Shakyamuni, or --in the case of this essay-- the Buddha. Tibetan Buddhism will be defined in a similar manner. Tibetan Buddhism is in the course of this essay will focus on one of the six schools of thought in the Tibetan Buddhist cannon. The “Oral Tradition” or the Kagyu School is the monastic linage that arrives in Kauai in the twentieth century.
Wood head, Linda, Kawanami, Hiroko, Partridge, Christopher, (2009), Religions in the Modern World 2nd edition, Routledge, London
My research paper studies the three most significant and commonly known Western Religions: Judaism, Christianity, and Islam in terms of their religious beliefs regarding the place and the role of women in society. Religion is the cardinal force that binds a race or a religious group together, and it equips it with a sense of identity. It does this by providing a code of life, governing all aspects of life, and determining convictions of its followers
My inspiration and therefore case for my History and Culture essay was the documentary I have seen 2 months ago. Documentary’s name is Tibet in Song. This documentary was released in 2009 by former Tibetan prisoner and musician Ngawang Choephel – he was in prison because of making that document.
Tibetan Buddhism is very distinct, both culturally and ideologically, from other forms of Buddhism and has adapted many of the pre-Buddhist Tibetan beliefs, such as, local deities and rituals into its religious, spiritual and cultural identity. The 13th century biography of Korepa (also known as Lorepa) and the 19/20th century biography of Shungseb Jetsun are both written by yogins (people who practice tantric yoga) . Despite the large chronological gap, both have lived very similar ascetic lives and have both used their lives and teaching to influence the understanding of Tibetan Buddhism to the general lay community but also the ideology and theology of Tibetan Buddhism. In this essay, I am going to evaluate what we can learn about the nature and beliefs of Tibetan Buddhism from the biographical accounts of the lives of yogins such as Korepa and Shungsep Jetsun and how this has influenced the knowledge of Tibetan Buddhists about the understanding of their religion.
Woodhead Linda, Kawanami Hiroko, Partridge Christopher, (2009), Religions in the Modern world, Traditions and Transformations, Judaism, Christianity, Routledge, Oxon.
Rinpoche, Samdhong. Uncompromising Truth for a Compromised World: Tibetan Buddhism in Today’s World; forward by 14th Dalai Lama. (Tibet: World Wisdom, 2006), 264.
Moral obligations are expressed by three principles: nonviolence, truth, and genuine democracy (Shonu). Politically, Tibet is governed by the Chinese Communist Party where a president is the elected official. In other parts of Tibet centered in Dharamsala (Mathou), India deputies, ministers, and a chairman like a Prime Minister are chosen as a counsel to be the authoritative figures. This is due to not all the country recognizing and legitimizing China’s rule. Most of Tibet lies in an area recognized now as the Tibet Autonomous Region (TAR) (Mathou). In TAR, China specifically said that “the Tibet Autonomous region is part of the territory or the People’s Republic of China and reiterates that it does not allow Tibetans to engage in anti-China political activities…”. This quote is an example of the Tibetans lack of political power (Mathou). Both countries strive to have peace and harmony within their citizen populations by having high moral standards. The government funds up to eight years of schooling. Very basic subjects, like math and science, are taught with most students dropping out before intermediate courses begin. Unlike the United States of America, trade skills are more heavily encouraged. (Shonu) For those who follow Buddhist traditions there is no specific stigma towards homosexual relations. Homosexual relations appear to no be an issue in areas in Tibet with less Chinese influence. Intolerance to
When I was eight, I was baptized a member of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. I am a Mormon: I know it, I live it, and I love it. As part of our beliefs, we participate in daily scripture study. For me, this includes both the Bible and the Book of Mormon. I have spent countless hours of my life completely engrossed in the reading and studying of these books.
In this essay, we will talk about the global locations of this religion, the origins and history, even if much contested, the main tenets and beliefs, the deity of this religion, and finally the future of this religion.
The older I got, with a more open mind, and higher maturity stand point, I became fully acquaintance with the Lord my freshman year of college. I standing regularly attending mass at Lifestream Journey Church in Norman, Oklahoma. There I was surrounded by a distinct college aged community who came predominately as a release of their burdens and dedicate their time to worshipping God. Growing up Catholic, I was really shocked and felt out of place going to a contemporary Non-Denominational Christian service. Soon, I began associating myself as a Non-Dem Christian as well believing that I did not find a need to separate myself any longer from different believers of
There are many knowledgeable books that introduce religions as well as specific religious traditions. However, students are naturally introduced to abstract methodological issues such as observer bias, rather than the religions themselves. If religions of the world are not approached with purpose and method, then students are likely to gain “stereotypes… of misinformation supplied by certain sectors of the media” (Chryssides & Geaves, 2014). Thus, in order to see how religion is lived in day to day life, one must “walk a mile in [the] moccasins [of religious people]” as Smart (1998) says. Therefore this essay will attempt to answer why it is important to study religion off campus and how this may challenge traditional understandings of religion.
Religion is big part of human life. Every area of the world has some kind of religion or belief system. Religion is defined as “a personal set or institutionalized system of religious attitudes, beliefs, and practices” (“Religion” Def.2). With such a large amount of religions today, religion is widely variegated, usually with divisions in each one. Despite the large amount of religions, I will only be covering only three religions: Christianity, Islam, and Buddhism.
Tibet, with its isolated, harsh geographical location and history of political and social remoteness would seem an unlikely place to provide a “cradle for creative art” (Bailey 22). Yet it is in this desolate section of the world that one of the most intriguing artistic cultures has been cultivating over hundreds of centuries. One facet of what makes Tibetan art so unique and interesting is its interdependency on its religious beliefs.