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REL Midterm
Introduction to Religion
121
Religious Studies
Undergraduate 3
03/02/2014

Additional Religious Studies Flashcards

 


 

Cards

Term
agnosticism
Definition
The position that holds that the existence of God cannot be proven.
Term
animism
Definition
A worldview common among oral religions (religions with no written scriptures) that sees all elements of nature as being filled with spirit or spirits.
Term
atheism
Definition
The position that holds that there is no God or gods.
Term
deconstruction
Definition
A technique, pioneered by Jacques Derrida, that sets aside ordinary categories of analysis and makes us, instead, of unexpected perspectives on cultural elements; it can be used for finding hidden values in text, film, art work, cultural practice, or religious phenomenon.
Term
dualism
Definition
The belief that reality is made of two different principles (spirit and matter); the belief in two gods (good and evil) in conflict.
Term
immanent
Definition
Existing and operating within nature.
Term
monotheism
Definition
The belief in one God.
Term
nontheism
Definition
A position unconcerned with the supernatural, not asserting or denying the existence of any deity.
Term
pantheism
Definition
The belief that everything in the universe is divine.
Term
polytheism
Definition
The belief in many gods.
Term
post-structuralism
Definition
Approach rejecting the search for universal structures and focused on individual elements in cultural phenomena.
Term
structuralism
Definition
Looks for universal structures underlying language, religion, mythology and other human activities.
Term
transcendent
Definition
Not limited by the physical world.
Term
calumet
Definition
A long-stemmed sacred pipe used primarily by many native peoples of North America; it is smoked as a token of peace.
Term
divination
Definition
A foretelling of the future or a discovery of the unknown by magical means.
Term
holistic
Definition
Organic, integrated; indicating a complete system, greater than the sum of its parts; here, refers to a culture whose various elements may all have religious meaning.
Term
libation
Definition
The act of pouring a liquid as an offering to a god.
Term
shaman
Definition
A human being who contacts and attempts to manipulate the power of spirits for the tribe or group.
Term
sympathetic magic
Definition
An attempt to influence the outcome of an event through an action that has apparent similarity to the desired result — for example, throwing water into the air to produce rain, or burning an enemy's fingernail clippings to bring sickness to that enemy.
Term
taboo
Definition
A strong social prohibition.
Term
totem
Definition
Animal (or image of animals) that is considered to be related by blood to a family or clan and is its guardian symbol.
Term
ahimsa
Definition
The term meaning non-harm or nonviolence.
Term
ashram
Definition
A spiritual community.
Term
Atman
Definition
The spiritual essence of all individual human beings.
Term
avatar
Definition
An earthly embodiment of a deity.
Term
Bhagavad Gita
Definition
A spiritual classic in Hinduism that is a conversation between Arjuna and Krishna preserved in the Mahabharata.
Term
bhakti yoga
Definition
The spiritual discipline of devotion to a deity or guru.
Term
bhakti
Definition
Devotion to a deity or guru.
Term
Brahma
Definition
God of creation.
Term
Brahman
Definition
The spiritual essence of the universe.
Term
brahmin
Definition
Member of the priestly caste in Hinduism.
Term
caste
Definition
One of the major social classes sanctioned by Hinduism.
Term
Devi
Definition
"Goddess"; the Divine Feminine, also called the Great Mother.
Term
dhyana
Definition
Meditation or the experience of the mind focused only on the object of concentration.
Term
Durga
Definition
"Awe-inspiring,""distant"; a goddess that is a form of Devi.
Term
guru
Definition
Spiritual leader.
Term
hatha yoga
Definition
The spiritual discipline of postures and bodily exercises.
Term
jnana yoga
Definition
The spiritual discipline of knowledge and insight.
Term
Kali
Definition
A form of Devi; a goddess associated with destruction and rebirth.
Term
karma yoga
Definition
The spiritual discipline of selfless action.
Term
karma
Definition
The moral law of cause and effect that determines the direction of rebirth.
Term
Krishna
Definition
A god associated with divine playfulness; a form of Vishnu.
Term
kundalini yoga
Definition
The spiritual discipline of moving energy up through the chakras.
Term
mantra
Definition
A short sacred phrase, often chanted or used in meditation.
Term
maya
Definition
illusion
Term
moksha
Definition
"Liberation" from personal limitation, egotism, and rebirth.
Term
puja
Definition
Offerings and ritual in honor of deity.
Term
raja yoga
Definition
The "royal" discipline of meditation.
Term
Rama
Definition
A god and mythical king; a form of Vishnu.
Term
samadhi
Definition
A state of complete inner peace resulting from meditation.
Term
samsara
Definition
The everyday world of change and suffering, leading to rebirth.
Term
sannyasin
Definition
A wandering holy man.
Term
Shiva
Definition
A god associated with destruction and rebirth.
Term
Trimurti
Definition
Three forms of the divine
Term
Upanishads
Definition
Written meditations on the spiritual essence of the universe and the self.
Term
Vedas
Definition
Four collections of ancient prayers and rituals included in Hindu sacred scripture.
Term
Vishnu
Definition
A god associated with preservation and love.
Term
yoga
Definition
A spiritual discipline; a method for perfecting one's union with the divine.
Term
Amitabha Buddha
Definition
The Buddha of the Western Paradise, a bliss-body Buddha in Mahayana.
Term
anatta
Definition
"No self"; the doctrine that there is no soul or permanent essence in people and things.
Term
anichcha
Definition
This term means impermanence, constant change.
Term
arhat
Definition
In Theravada, a person who has practiced monastic disciplines and reached nirvana, the ideal.
Term
bodhi
Definition
enlightenment
Term
bodhisattva
Definition
"Enlightenment being"; in Mahayana, a person of deep compassion, especially one who does not enter nirvana, but is constantly reborn to help others; a heavenly being of compassion.
Term
Dharma
Definition
The totality of Buddhist teaching.
Term
dhyana
Definition
"Meditation"; focusing of the mind; sometimes, stages of trance.
Term
dukkha
Definition
This term means sorrow, misery, suffering.
Term
Guanyin
Definition
A popular bodhisattva of compassion in Mahayana.
Term
karuna
Definition
Compassion, empathy.
Term
koan
Definition
In Zen Buddhism, a question that cannot be answered logically; a technique used to test consciousness and bring awakening.
Term
lama
Definition
A Tibetan Buddhist teacher; a title of honor often given to all Tibetan monks.
Term
Maitreya
Definition
A Buddha (or bodhisattva) expected to appear on earth in the future.
Term
mandala
Definition
A circular design containing deities, geometrical forms, symbols and so on that represent totality, the self, or the universe.
Term
mudra
Definition
A symbolic hand gesture.
Term
nirvana
Definition
The release from suffering and rebirth that brings inner peace.
Term
samadhi
Definition
A state of deep awareness, the result of intensive meditation.
Term
samasara
Definition
Constant rebirth and the attendant suffering; the everyday world of change.
Term
Sangha
Definition
The community of monks and nuns; lowercased, this term refers to an individual monastic community.
Term
satori
Definition
In Zen, the enlightened awareness.
Term
shunyata
Definition
The Mahayana notion of emptiness, meaning that the universe is empty of permanent reality.
Term
stupa
Definition
A shrine, usually in the shape of a dome, used to mark Buddhist relics of sacred sites.
Term
sutra
Definition
A sacred text, especially one said to record the words of the Buddha.
Term
tathata
Definition
"Thatness," or "thusness," "suchness"; the uniqueness of each changing moment of reality.
Term
trikaya
Definition
The three "bodies" of the Buddha—the Dharmakaya (cosmic Buddha nature), the Nirmanakaya (historical Buddhas), and the Sambhogakaya (celestial Buddhas).
Term
Tripitaka
Definition
The three "baskets," or collections, of Buddhist texts.
Term
vajra
Definition
The "diamond" scepter used in Tibetan and other types of Buddhist ritual, symbolizing compassion.
Term
Adi Granth
Definition
"Original collection"; the primary scripture of the Sikhs.
Term
ajiva
Definition
matter without soul or life
Term
Digambara
Definition
Clothed in sky
Term
gurdwara
Definition
a sikh temple
Term
hylozoism
Definition
The belief that all physical matter has life and feeling.
Term
Japji
Definition
A poem by Guru Nanak that begins the Adi Granth; the poem is recited daily by pious Sikhs.
Term
jina
Definition
"Conqueror"; the Jain term for a perfected person who will not be reborn.
Term
jiva
Definition
Spirit, soul, which enlivens matter.
Term
puja
Definition
In Jainism, ritual in honor of the tirthankara.
Term
sallekhana
Definition
"Holy Death"; death by self-starvation, valued in Jainism as a noble end of a long life of virtue and detachment.
Term
Shvetambara
Definition
"Clothed in white"; a member of the Jain sect in which monks and nuns where white clothing.
Term
Sikh
Definition
"Disciple"; a follower of the Sikh religion.
Term
Sthanakavasi
Definition
"Building person"; a member of the Jain sect, that rejects the use of statues and temples.
Term
Terapanthi
Definition
A member of the newest Jain sect.
Term
Tirthankara
Definition
"Crossing maker"; in Jainism, one of the twenty-four ideal human beings of the past, Mahavira being the most recent.
Term
Analects
Definition
The book of sayings of Confucius.
Term
Dao (Tao)
Definition
The mysterious origin of the universe that is present and visible in everything.
Term
Daodejing (Tao Te Ching)
Definition
The classic scripture of Daoism.
Term
Five Classics
Definition
The classical literature of the time preceding Confucius, including poetry, history, and divination.
Term
Four Books
Definition
The major Confucian books, which include sayings of Confucius and Mencius.
Term
junzi
Definition
"Noble person," the refined human ideal of Confucianism.
Term
Laozi (Lao Tzu)
Definition
The legendary founder of Daoism.
Term
Legalists
Definition
The strictest of Chinese philosophical schools, which advocated strong laws and punishments.
Term
li
Definition
Appropriate action, ritual, propriety, etiquette.
Term
Mohists
Definition
A Chinese school of philosophy that taught universal love.
Term
qi (chi)
Definition
The life force.
Term
ren
Definition
Empathy, consideration for others, humaneness; a Confucian virtue.
Term
shu
Definition
Reciprocity; a Confucian virtue.
Term
wen
Definition
Cultural refinement; a Confucian virtue.
Term
wu wei
Definition
"No action," "no strain"; doing only what comes spontaneously and naturally; effortlessness.
Term
xiao (hsiao)
Definition
Family devotion, filial piety; a Confucian virtue.
Term
yang
Definition
The active aspect of reality that expresses itself in speech, light, and heat.
Term
Yijing (Yi Jing, I Ching)
Definition
An ancient Confucian book of divination, one of the Five Classics, still in use today.
Term
yin
Definition
The receptive aspect of the universe that expresses itself in silence, darkness, coolness, and rest.
Term
Zhuangzi (Chuang Tzu)
Definition
Author of a book of whimsical stories that express themes of early Daoist thought.
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