Thursday 3 April 2014

Oldest roots and link-flow of religious evidences of worldwide - part -1

Purpose is of note  , not going in deep religious believes,   only  trying to understand  the roots , the  existence   and the  flow  of religions ..... 

Hinduism and Judaism are amongst the oldest existing religions in the world, they have shared notable relationship throughout the historical and modern times.

before  establishment  of three most popular religion , we have to know  the  essence  and path of them .

Judaism's prophet Moses and   saying in Vedas finds many  similarities ... 

The trade relations of both communities can be traced back to 1000 BCE and earlier. During the cultures, Harrappa and Mohenjo-daro of Indian subcontinent and Babylonian of middle east. 

THE DECEMBER 2001 issue of National Geographic holds a tantalizing cover story, "Abraham: The Father of Three Faiths." Author Tad Szulc, in a carefully researched and illustrated essay, demonstrates how Christian, Jewish and Muslim religious traditions each deeply revere the patriarch Abraham.

Interestingly, after the death of Abraham's wife Sarah, the Torah says that Abraham took a wife named Keturah. They had children together, and the Torah says: "Abraham gave all that he had to Isaac. But to the concubine children, Abraham gave gifts. Then he sent them away... to the land of the East." (Genesis 25:1-5) The words, "Abraham gave all that he had to Isaac," indicate the Isaac alone was the spiritual inheritor of Abraham's legacy – which was the ability to continue the Jewish faith. The other children, however, did not go to the East empty-handed. According to the Zohar, the "gifts" refers to many of the mystical traditions of Abraham. Hence, the ancient eastern religions have their roots with Abraham.

similarities : among three religions ..

*One God
*Divine Assistance
*Daily Prayer
*Weekly Worship
*Fasting
*Alms giving

*Holy Places : Once in a lifetime, if financially and physically able, every Muslim is expected to make a pilgrimage to Mecca and participate in the five-day celebration surrounding that event. Among other things, Muslims recall their belief that the Angel Gabriel in 610 A.D. spoke here to Muhammad, the prophet of Islam.

But they revere other sacred places, especially Jerusalem. They believe that the Prophet himself ascended into heaven from the rock over which the Dome of the Rock, the earliest Islamic monument, now stands.

The site is also sacred to Jews, who recall its connection with the Temple. Jewish persons, of course, consider themselves the Chosen People and that God has designated today's Palestine as their home. Jerusalem is also sacred to them, as are many other locations in the Holy Land. Their liturgy suggests three pilgrimage festivals: Passover, Shavuot and Sukkot.

Christians believe that Jesus came and dwelt on this earth, for the most part in that area termed the Holy Land. Over the years, millions of Christians have come to this sacred place and are eager to visit locations where Jesus was conceived, born, grew up, taught, ate his Last Supper, sweated blood in Gethsemane, died, was buried, rose and ascended into heaven.

Disputes over these places, especially in the Holy Land, have probably caused the sharpest divisions and hateful feelings—as well as the most violent actions—among Christians, Jews and Muslims. Perhaps an appreciation of each group's reverence for the same or neighboring sacred spots could eventually dissolve the hatred and lead to peace.

*People of the Book

*Abraham : Certainly Christian and Jewish persons hold Abraham close to their hearts. In Eucharistic Prayer I for Roman Catholic Christians, worshipers hear these words: "the sacrifice of Abraham, our father in faith." Muslims, too, hold Abraham in great esteem, regarding him as a great prophet and one of God's special messengers. During the days of their pilgrimage at Mecca, Muslims observe several rituals commemorating events in the life of Abraham.

*Jesus and Mary : Muslims speak of both Jesus and Mary with reverence and respect. They believe that Allah or God gave revelations not only to Abraham and Moses, but also to Jesus and all prophets. For them Christ is not messiah, savior or divine, but one of God's holy messengers. In the Quran, Mary is the only woman's name mentioned. Moreover, Surah 19, one of the longest chapters in the Quran, carries the title "Maryam: Mary." It is said that in our times as well Muslims have a special place for Mary in their devotional lives.

*We Remain Divided 
*We Can Move Toward Harmony
*The Pope Encourages Respect for All Time Low

Who is Abraham ? 

(The Bible's internal chronology places Abraham around 2000 BCE,but the stories in Genesis cannot be related to the known history of that time and most biblical histories accordingly no longer begin with the patriarchal period.)

Terah, the tenth in descent from Noah, begat three sons," Abram " (later called Abraham), Nahor and Haran. Haran begat Lot (who was thus Abram's nephew), and died in his native city, Ur of the Chaldees. Abram married Sarai, who was barren. Terah, with Abram, Sarai, and Lot, then departed for Canaan, but settled in a place named Haran, where Terah died at the age of 205. (Genesis 11:27–32) The LORD had told Abram to leave his country and kindred and go to a land that he would show him, and promised to make of him a great nation, bless him, make his name great, bless them that bless him, and curse "him" that curses him. (Genesis 12:1–3) Abram was 75 years old when he left Haran with his wife Sarai, his nephew Lot, and the substance and souls that they had acquired, and traveled to Shechem in Canaan. (Genesis 12:4–6)

There was a severe famine in the land of Canaan, so that Abram and Lot and their households, travelled south to Egypt. On the way, Abram told his wife Sarai to say that she was his sister, so that the Egyptians would not kill him. (Genesis 12:10–13) When they entered Egypt, the princes of the Pharaoh praised Sarai's beauty to the Pharaoh, and she was taken into his palace, and Abram was given provisions: "oxen, and he-asses, and menservants, and maidservants, and she-asses, and camels". However, God afflicted Pharaoh and his household with great plagues, which he tried to find the reason for.(Genesis 12:14–17) Upon discovering that Sarai was a married woman, Pharaoh demanded that they and their household leave immediately, along with all their goods. (Genesis 12:18–20) 

** Abraham lived  his life  vary normal Human being  with all fears .

next ... further ... 

Abram and Hagar : Abram and Sarai tried to make sense of how he would become a progenitor of nations since after 10 years of living in Canaan, no child had been born from Abram's seed. Sarai then offered her Egyptian handmaiden, Hagar, for Abram to consort with so that he may have a child by her, as a wife. After Hagar found she was pregnant, she began to despise her mistress, Sarai. Therefore, Sarai mistreated Hagar, and Hagar fled away.

Abram was eighty-six years of age when Ishmael was born. (Genesis 16:4–16)

Ishmael was fourteen years old when Abraham's son Isaac was born to a different mother, Sarah. Sarah had finally borne her own child, even though she had passed her child bearing period.

Thirteen years later, when Abram was ninety-nine years of age, God declared Abram's new name: "Abraham" – "a father of many nations" (Genesis 17:5).

Sarah died, and Abraham buried her in the Cave of the Patriarchs (the "cave of Machpelah"), near Hebron which he had purchased along with the adjoining field from Ephron the Hittite. (Genesis 23:1–20) After the death of Sarah, Abraham took another wife, a concubine named Keturah, by whom he had six sons: Zimran, Jokshan, Medan, Midian, Ishbak, and Shuah. (Genesis 25:1–6) Abraham lived 175 years, ("died in a good old age"), and was buried in the cave of Machpelah by his sons Isaac and Ishmael.

Abraham in religious traditions : Abraham is given a high position of respect in three major world faiths, Judaism, Christianity and Islam. In Judaism he is the founding father of the Covenant, the special relationship between the Jewish people and God – a belief which gives the Jews a unique position as the Chosen People of God. Christianity and Islam in their beginnings challenged this special relationship, both Paul and Muhammad claiming Abraham for themselves as a "believer before the fact." In both cases the fact was the Mosaic law or its symbol, circumcision. For Paul, Abraham's faith in God made him the prototype of all believers, circumcised and uncircumcised; for Muhammad, Abraham's belief separated islam, submission to God, from the Torah. Thus Abraham, by his faith (according to Paul) or by his submission (according to Muhammad), undercut Jewish claims to an exclusive relationship with God and the Covenant.

After Abraham...Paul :  Birth name Saul of Tarsus, Although it has been popularly assumed that his name was changed when he converted from Judaism to Christianity, that is not the case. His Jewish name was "Saul"  perhaps after the biblical King Saul, a fellow Benjamite and the first king of Israel. The testimony of the book of Acts is that he inherited Roman citizenship from his father. As a Roman citizen, he also bore the Latin name of "Paul"and in Latin: Paulus.It was quite usual for the Jews of that time to have two names, one Hebrew, the other Latin or Greek.... 

Saint Paul  are the person who hold the responsibility of Christianity  after Jesus  and Mohammad  takes  same most similar  in Muslims  after registration of   Quran  in Muslim believers  .


 and here we find  divide roots  of among  these three .. 

The Apostle Paul, who started as one of Christianity's most zealous enemies, was hand-picked by Jesus Christ to become the gospel's most ardent messengerPaul had a brilliant mind, a commanding knowledge of philosophy and religion, and could debate with the most educated scholars of his day. At the same time, his clear, understandable explanation of the gospel made his letters to early churches the foundation of Christian theology. 
Before his conversion, Paul approved of the stoning of Stephen (Acts 7:58), and was a merciless persecutor of the early church.Tradition portrays Paul as a physically small man, but he endured enormous physical hardships on his missionary journeys. His perseverance in the face of danger and persecution has inspired countless missionaries since. Paul traveled tirelessly through the ancient world, taking the message of salvation to the Gentiles. Paul towers as one of the all-time giants of Christianity.Of the 27 books in the New Testament, Paul is credited as the author of 13 of them. While he was proud of his Jewish heritage, Paul saw that the gospel was for the Gentiles as well. Paul was martyred for his faith in Christ by the Romans, about 64 or 65 A.D.

After his conversion, Paul began to preach that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God. His leadership, influence, and legacy led to the formation of communities dominated by Gentile groups that worshiped Jesus, adhered to the "Judaic moral code", but relaxed or abandoned the ritual and dietary teachings of the Law of Moses. He taught that these laws and rituals had either been fulfilled in the life of Christ or were symbolic precursors of Christ, though the exact relationship between Paul the Apostle and Judaism is still disputed. Paul taught of the life and works of Jesus Christ and his teaching of a New Covenant established through Jesus' death and resurrection. The Bible does not record Paul's death.

Paul was likely born between the years of 5 BC and 5 AD , His was a devout Jewish family in the city of Tarsus.he did Last visit to Jerusalem and arrested,Paul exercised his right as a Roman citizen to "appeal unto Caesar" His final days spent in Rome. Also, Paul wrote his letter to the church at Rome before he had visited Rome. However, Paul would have played an important role in the life of the early church at Rome.Neither the Bible nor other sources say how or when Paul died, but Ignatius, probably around 110, writes that Paul was martyred.Christian tradition holds that Paul was beheaded in Rome during the reign of Nero around the mid-60s at Tre Fontane Abbey (English: Three Fountains Abbey).By comparison, tradition states that Peter, who was not a Roman citizen, was given the more painful death of being crucified upside-down. In June 2009, Pope Benedict XVI announced excavation results concerning the tomb of Paul at the Basilica of Saint Paul Outside the Walls

After Abraham...  Islamic prophet Muhammad : Muhammad was born in Mecca and lived there for roughly the first 52 years of his life (c. 570–622). This period is generally divided into two phases, before and after declaring his prophetic visions. His father, Abdullah , died almost six months before Muhammad was born.According to Islamic tradition, soon after Muhammad's birth he was sent to live with a Bedouin family in the desert, as desert life was considered healthier for infants. Muhammad stayed with his foster-mother, Halimah bint Abi Dhuayb, and her husband until he was two years old.At the age of six, Muhammad lost his biological mother Amina to illness and he became orphaned. For the next two years, he was under the guardianship of his paternal grandfather Abd al-Muttalib, of the Banu Hashim clan, but when Muhammad was eight, his grandfather also died. He then came under the care of his uncle Abu Talib, the new leader of Banu Hashim.According to Islamic historian William Montgomery Watt there was a general disregard by guardians in taking care of weaker members of the tribes in Mecca during the 6th century, "Muhammad's guardians saw that he did not starve to death, but it was hard for them to do more for him, especially as the fortunes of the clan of Hashim seem to have been declining at that time."At the age of six, Muhammad lost his biological mother Amina to illness and he became orphaned. For the next two years, he was under the guardianship of his paternal grandfather Abd al-Muttalib, of the Banu Hashim clan, but when Muhammad was eight, his grandfather also died. He then came under the care of his uncle Abu Talib, the new leader of Banu Hashim. According to Islamic historian William Montgomery Watt there was a general disregard by guardians in taking care of weaker members of the tribes in Mecca during the 6th century, "Muhammad's guardians saw that he did not starve to death, but it was hard for them to do more for him, especially as the fortunes of the clan of Hashim seem to have been declining at that time."

Muhammad adopted the practice of praying alone for several weeks every year in a cave on Mount Hira near Mecca. Upon receiving his first revelations, he was deeply distressed. After returning home, Muhammad was consoled and reassured by Khadijah and her Christian cousin, Waraqah ibn Nawfal. He also feared that others would dismiss his claims as being possessed.

Shi'a tradition maintains that Muhammad was neither surprised nor frightened at the appearance of Gabriel but rather Muhammad welcomed him as if he was expecting.The initial revelation was followed by a pause of three years (a period known as fatra) during which Muhammad felt depressed and further gave himself to prayers and spiritual practices.Sahih Bukhari narrates Muhammad describing his revelations as "sometimes it is (revealed) like the ringing of a bell". Aisha reported, "I saw the Prophet being inspired Divinely on a very cold day and noticed the sweat dropping from his forehead (as the Inspiration was over)".

Tradition records at great length the persecution and ill-treatment towards Muhammad and his followers..In 615, some of Muhammad's followers emigrated to the Ethiopian Aksumite Empire and founded a small colony under the protection of the Christian Ethiopian emperor Aṣḥama ibn Abjar .Muhammad desperately hoping for an accommodation with his tribe, either from fear or in the hope of succeeding more readily in this way, pronounced a verse acknowledging the existence of three Meccan goddesses considered to be the daughters of Allah, and appealing for their intercession. Muhammad later retracted the verses at the behest of Gabriel, claiming that the verses were whispered by the devil himself.This episode known as "The Story of the Cranes".is also known as "Satanic Verses". Some scholars argued against the historic authenticity of these verses on various grounds.While this incident received widespread acceptance by early Muslims, strong objections to it were raised starting from the 10th century, on theological grounds. The objections continued on this point until rejection of these verses eventually became the only acceptable orthodox Muslim position.In 617, the leaders of Makhzum and Banu Abd-Shams, two important Quraysh clans, declared a public boycott against Banu Hashim, their commercial rival, to pressure it into withdrawing its protection of Muhammad. The boycott lasted three years but eventually collapsed as it failed in its objective. During this, Muhammad was only able to preach during the holy pilgrimage months in which all hostilities between Arabs were suspended.

In 632, at the end of the tenth year after the migration to Medina, Muhammad carried through his first truly Islamic pilgrimage, thereby teaching his followers the rites of the annual Great Pilgrimage, known as Hajj. After completing the pilgrimage, Muhammad delivered a famous speech, known as The Farewell Sermon, at Mount Arafat east of Mecca. In this sermon, Muhammad advised his followers not to follow certain pre-Islamic customs. He declared that an Arab has no superiority over a non-Arab, nor a non-Arab has any superiority over an Arab. Also a white has no superiority over black, nor a black has any superiority over white except by piety and good action.

 Muhammad asked his male followers to "be good to women, for they are powerless captives (awan) in your households. You took them in God's trust, and legitimated your sexual relations
 with the Word of God, so come to your senses people, and hear my words ..." He told them that they were entitled to discipline their wives but should do so with kindness. He addressed the issue of inheritance by forbidding false claims of paternity or of a client relationship to the deceased, and forbade his followers to leave their wealth to a testamentary heir. He also upheld the sacredness of four lunar months in each year.

According to Sunni tafsir , the following Quranic verse was delivered during this event: "Today I have perfected your religion, and completed my favours for you and chosen Islam as a religion for you" (Quran 5:3). According to Shia tafsir, it refers to the appointment of Ali ibn Abi Talib at the pond of Khumm as Muhammad's successor, this occurring a few days later when Muslims were returning from Mecca to Medina.

A few months after the farewell pilgrimage, Muhammad fell ill and suffered for several days with fever, head pain, and weakness. He died on Monday, 8 June 632, in Medina, at the age of 62 or 63, in the house of his wife Aisha. With his head resting on Aisha's lap, he asked her to dispose of his last worldly goods (seven coins), then murmured his final words: Rather, God on High and paradise.—Muhammad

Following the attestation to the oneness of God, the belief in Muhammad's prophethood is the main aspect of the Islamic faith . Every Muslim proclaims in the  Shahadah  that "I testify that there is no god but God, and I testify that Muhammad is a Messenger of God".

Muhammad united the tribes of Arabia into a single Arab Muslim religious polity in the last years of his life. With Muhammad's death, disagreement broke out over who would succeed him as leader of the Muslim community.  

Umar ibn al-Khattab , a prominent companion of Muhammad, nominated  Abu Bakr , Muhammad's friend and collaborator. Others added their support and Abu Bakr was made the first caliph .This choice was disputed by some of Muhammad's companions, who held that Ali ibn Abi Talib, his cousin and son-in-law, had been designated the successor by Muhammad at Ghadir Khumm. 

(Cont.. for part 2)
(source of material is  different site of net )

Little effort  to see  Human  as Human , above of Religion BoundariesLittle effort to see Human as Human , above of Religion Boundari

No comments:

Post a Comment