History Section 02 Independent Notes 9/12/16

101-111, 71-77

• Pg. 71
• Caste System
• The Caste System is attributed to the Gods in the Rig Veda
• Priesthood
• Brahmins were expected to memorize every syllable and tone of the Vedas so that their rituals would please the gods
• They conducted old and new rituals
• When agriculture became more important to society, they began conducting rituals to purify the land
• Medicine
• They knew formulas and spells that were effective against disease and calamities
• The Untouchables
• Those outside of the caste system, or those who improperly conducted rituals became the untouchables
• They were considered impure and became responsible for slaughtering animals and dressing skins
• Women
• Women are portrayed in Aryan epics as being forceful and able to achieve their goals by using feminine ploys to cajole men, or by direct action
• Brahmanism
• Aryans recognized many gods of other early Indo-European societies such as the Persians and Greeks
• Ushas was the goddess of dawn, 
• who was a gentle deity who welcomed the birds, 
• gave delight to human beings, 
• and warded off evil spirits
• Sins were considered as ways to upset the balance of nature
• Priests made animal sacrifices to gods as a way for common people to interact with the divine
• These rituals helped to establish and strengthen people's relationships with the divine
• The priests had a monopoly, as they were the only one's who held the knowledge to conduct rituals
• It was stated that a perfect ritual, forces a God to grant one wish
• Upanishads
• Recorded speculations on the mystical meanings of sacrifice rituals, and man's relationship with the universe
• Documented the shift from the mystical view of the early Vedic age, into the age of philosophy
• Asceticism
• Shunning one's self out into nature, in order to collect wisdom
• Those who practiced this began performing rituals through disciplined meditation, utilizing symbols, rather than physical sacrifices
• Samsara
• The belief that the universe repeats in cycles of reincarnation, that was believed by the Aryans
• Pg. 72-73
• Karma
• The tally of good and bad deeds that determined the status of one's next life in Samsara
• Brahman
• The idea that Samsara is an illusion, that reality is an illusion, and that the only way to escape the illusion was moksha, which is by fully realizing the true reality
• Pg. 74
• The idea of Karma, helped to facilitate workers who were content with the ability to control their own destiny, who would work without stirring up trouble
• The universe and the soul were believed to be made up of the same material
• Jainism
• Started by a wandering religious man during the time in which India's cities and written language returned
• It asserts that everything has a soul, and the weight of a soul is determined by its karma, and that the more good karma you have, the lighter you become
• The goal is to become as light as possible, so that your soul can float upon the vast universe in eternal bliss  
• Pg. 75-77
• The Jains believed that due to karma, causing violence, causes harm to one's self.
• Enlightenment = Perfect Insight Into The Processes of the Universe
• Buddha spoke to the people in their common language, rather than in Sanskrit
• Buddhism ignored the caste system.
• Buddhism is about letting go of attachments and desires in order to become one with the universe and to no longer suffer.
•  Buddhism was more of a philosophy until Mahayanna introduced bodhisattvas, which were essentially ascended masters of Buddhism.
• Buddhism is an all-inclusive religion.
• Buddhists and Jains both rejected animal sacrifice and the caste system, while Brahminism embraced both animal sacrifice and the caste system.
• Hinduism allowed for the pursuance of personal/material gains, starting a family, and the worship of personal Gods, in the path to becoming one with the universe. 
• In other words, it let you do almost whatever you want.

• Pg.102
• During the same period in which Indian sages and mystics were developing religious speculation about karma, souls, and ultimate reality... 
• Chinese thinkers were arguing about the ideal forms of social and political organization and man's connection to nature.
• Pg.103
• In the Confucian tradition, studying texts came to be valued over speculation, meditation, and mystical identification with deities
• Confucius encouraged men who came to study with him to master rituals, that we know today as Confucian classics
• Mencius's philosophy for leadership and politics appears to be strongly connected with the concepts laid out in the mandate of heaven
• Xunzi believed that ritual, was key to teaching people how to place moral principles, above one's own interests
• Pg.104-105
• Confucius had declined to discuss gods, portents, and anomalies and had spoken of sacrificing as if the spirits were present
• Xunzi argued explicitly that heaven does not intervene in human affairs
• Xunzi did not propose abandoning traditional rituals
• Xunzi believed rituals.... 
• Had positive effects on those who practiced and observed them
• Allowed people to express feelings and satisfy desires in an orderly manner 
• Specified ways to perform rites based on social rank and religious conditions
• Help to sustain the social hierarchy
• Pg.106
• Xunzi believed rituals...
• Shaped people's sense of duty, while creating social differentiation 
• Repaying ancestors was seen as a sacred duty, as one could never have existed without the existence of those before them

• Pg. 108 Zhuangzi's Story About Death
• Zhuangzi Outlines Creation to Death As The Following Process...
• In the amorphous realm, something changes and life energy appears...
• Life energy then takes form, changes form, and life begins....
• Another change occurs..and then death
• Pg. 110-111 Xunzi's View of Rituals / Divine Animals/ Astrology/ Divination/ Astral Gods/ Exorcism
• Animals that were considered divine include...
• Dragons
• Phoneixes 
• The popular religion of the time was..
• Astrology
• The View of Illness Presented By Divination Was....
• Illness is due to the presence of unsatisfied spirits or malevolent demons, best dealt with through performing exorcisms or offering sacrifices to the astral god Taiyi