Confucianism:
- Stressing the importance of correct behaviour, loyalty and obedience to hierarchy, Confucianism is a system of ethics devised by the Chinese scholar K'ung Fu-tzu (Latinised to Confucius) in sixth century BC China.
- Confucianism, the way of life propagated by Confucius in the 6th–5th century bce and followed by the Chinese people for more than two millennia.
- The main idea of Confucianism is the importance of having a good moral character, which can then affect the world around that person through the idea of “cosmic harmony.” If the emperor has moral perfection, his rule will be peaceful and benevolent
- Analects
- 6.1 million followers
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Hinduism:
- Hinduism has no one founder but is instead a fusion of various beliefs. Around 1500 B.C., the Indo-Aryan people migrated to the Indus Valley, and their language and culture blended with that of the indigenous people living in the region.
- somewhere between 2300 B.C. and 1500 B.C.
- Hindus believe in the doctrines of samsara (the continuous cycle of life, death, and reincarnation) and karma (the universal law of cause and effect). One of the key thoughts of Hinduism is “atman,” or the belief in soul. This philosophy holds that living creatures have a soul, and they're all part of the supreme soul
- The revealed texts constitute the Veda, divided into four sections: the Rig Veda, the Yajur Veda, the Sama Veda, and the Atharva Veda. The Vedas are hymns that are also accompanied in the total Veda by Brahmanas (ritual texts) Aranyakas (“forest” or “wilderness” texts), and Upanishads (philosophical texts).
- India - 78.9%
Nepal - 80.6%
Mauritius - 48.4% (next closest is Christianity at 32.8%)
- 1.1 billion followers
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Buddhism:
- Siddhartha Gautama
- When Gautama passed away around 483 B.C., his followers began to organize a religious movement. Buddha's teachings became the foundation for what would develop into Buddhism. In the 3rd century B.C., Ashoka the Great, the Mauryan Indian emperor, made Buddhism the state religion of India.
- The basic doctrines of early Buddhism, which remain common to all Buddhism, include the four noble truths : existence is suffering (dukhka); suffering has a cause, namely craving and attachment (trishna); there is a cessation of suffering, which is nirvana; and there is a path to the cessation of suffering
- There are 3 major essential holy Buddhist texts: The Tripitaka, Mahayana Sutras and the Tibetan Book of the Dead. Many pieces of writing from the Buddha have been put together in the form of a collection of important Buddhist texts called sutras.
- Buddhism is still strong today in Bhutan, Cambodia, Japan, Korea, Laos, Burma, Nepal, Sri Lanka, Thailand, Tibet, and Vietnam.
- 535 million followers
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Judaism:
- Abraham
- Modern Judaism evolved from ancient Israelite religion around 500 BCE, and is considered one of the oldest monotheistic religions.
- The three main beliefs at the center of Judaism are Monotheism, Identity, and covenant (an agreement between God and his people). The most important teachings of Judaism is that there is one God, who wants people to do what is just and compassionate.
- the Torah, the Talmud, and the Haggadah.
- North America = 44%
North Africa region = 41%
- 15 million followers