World religions. Рахимбергенова М.Х. - 25 стр.

no miracles except the Qur’an, the like of which no human can produce. (Soon                                       UNI T F I V E
after the Prophet’s death, however, a plethora of miracles was attributed to him
by Muslims.) The angel Gabriel brought the Qur’an down to the Prophet’s                                         OTHER RELIGIONS
“heart”. Gabriel is represented by the Qur’an as a spirit, but the Prophet could
sometimes see and hear him. According to early traditions, the Prophet’s reve-     Part I
lations occurred in a state of trance when his normal consciousness was in                                               Hinduism
abeyance. This state was accompanied by heavy sweating. The Qur’an itself
makes it clear that the revelations brought with them a sense of extraordinary          This religion originating in North India about 4,000 years ago which is su-
weight: “If we were to send this Qur’an down on a mountain, you would see it       perficially and in some of its forms polytheistic, has a concept of the supreme
split asunder out of fear of God”.                                                 spirit, Brahman, above the many divine manifestations. These include the triad
                                                                                   of chief gods: Brahma, Vishnu, and Siva (creator, preserver, and destroyer).
                                                                                   Central to Hinduism are the beliefs in reincarnation and karma: the oldest scrip-
                                                                                   tures are the Vedas. Temple worship is almost universally observed and there
                                                                                   are many festivals.
                                                                                        There are over 805 million Hindus worldwide. Women are not regarded as
                                                                                   the equals of men but should be treated with kindness and respect. Muslim in-
                                                                                   fluence in North India led to the veiling of women and the restriction of their
                                                                                   movements from about the end of the 12th century.
                                                                                        Hindu belief and ritual can vary greatly even between villages. Some dei-
                                                                                   ties achieve widespread popularity such as Krishna, Hanuman, Lakshmi and
                                                                                   Durga: others, more localized and specialized, are referred to particularly in
                                                                                   times of sickness or need. Hindus believe that all living things are part of
                                                                                   Brahman, the Supreme Being: they are sparks of divine life that transmute from
                                                                                   one body to another, sometimes descending into the form of a plant or an insect,
                                                                                   sometimes the body of a human. This is all according to its karma or past ac-
                                                                                   tions which are the cause of its sufferings or joy as it rises and falls in the end-
                                                                                   less cycle of birth and death. Humans have the opportunity, through knowledge
                                                                                   and devotion, to break the karmic chain and achieve final liberation.
                                                                                        The creative force of the universe is recognized in the god Brahma. Once
                                                                                   he has brought the cosmos into being it is sustained by Vishnu and then annihi-
                                                                                   lated by the god Siva, only to be created once more by Brahma. Vishnu and
                                                                                   Siva are, respectively, the forces of light and darkness, preservation and de-
                                                                                   struction, with Brahma as the balancing force that enables the existence and in-
                                                                                   teraction of life. The cosmos is seen as both real and an illusion, since its reality
                                                                                   is not lasting; the cosmos is itself personified as the goddess Maya.
                                                                                        Hinduism has a complex of rites and ceremonies performed within the
                                                                                   framework of the caste system under the supervision of the Brahman priests and
                                                                                   teachers. In India, caste is traditionally derived from the four classes of early
                                                                                   Hindu society: Brahmans (priests), nobles and warriors, traders and cultivators,
                                                                                   and servants. A fifth class, the untouchables, regarded as polluting in its origins,
                                                                                   remained (and still largely remains) on the edge of Hindu society. The Indian

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