Religions of the World History
Buddhism | |
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Founder |
Gautam Siddhartha Buddha (563 - 483 BC) born in Nepal (Lumbini)
|
Founded In | 528 BC |
Followed In |
China, Tibet, Korea, Mongolia, Nepal, Bhutan, Thailand, Japan, Laos, Myanmar (Burma), Sri Lanka, Cambodia, Taiwan, Indonesia, Bhutan and Vietnam
|
Sacred Text |
The Tripitaka (Collection of Buddha's teachings) also called Sutras
|
Sacred Places |
Lumbini (Nepal) where Buddha was born, Bodh Gaya (Bihar) where he received. Enlightenment and Kushinagar (UP) where he attained 'Nirvana'
|
Place Of Worship | Chaitya (temple) and Vihara (where Monks reside) |
Sects | Mahayana and Hinayana |
Confusianism | |
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Founder |
King Fu Tsu, better known as Confucius (551 - 479 BC) born in the State of Lu in China
|
Founded In | 500 BC |
Followed In | China, Taiwan, South Korea, Nauru and Vietnam |
Sacred Text | The Analects |
Sacred Places | Peking (Beijing) in China |
Place Of Worship | No Church or temple |
Christianity | |
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Founder |
Jesus Christ (5 BC to 30 AD) born in Judea, also called Jesus of Nazareth
|
Founded In | 2005 years ago |
Followed In | Spread all over the world |
|
|
Sacred Text |
Holy Bible consisting of the Old Testament (before Christ) and the New Testament (during and after Christ)
|
Sacred Places | Jerusalem where Christ lived and preached |
Place Of Worship | Church |
Important Sects | Catholics and Protestants |
Hinduism | |
---|---|
Founder | Of divine origin |
Founded In | 1500 BC |
Followed In |
Concentrated in India and Nepal and also found in Bhutan, Fiji, Gyuana, Indonesia, Mauritius, Sri Lanka, South Africa, Surinam, Trinidad and Tobago, Bali
|
Sacred Text |
The Vedas, the Upanishads, the Bhagavad Gita and the epics of the Mahabharata and the Ramayana
|
Place Of Worship | Temple |
Islam | |
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Founder | Prophet Mohammed (570 - 632 AD) born in Mecca (Saudi Arabia) |
Founded In | 622 AD |
Followed In |
West coast of Africa which includes Tanzania, Southern part of Russia and China, India, Pakistan, Bangladesh, Malaysia and Indonesia. Also parts of North Africa
|
Sacred Text | Quran (words of God), Hadis (collection of Prophet's sayings) |
Sacred Places | Makkah (Mecca) in Saudi Arabia |
Place Of Worship | Masjid (mosque) |
Important Sect | Sunnis and Shias |
Judaism (Religion of the Hebrews) | |
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Founder | Moses, bom in Egypt |
Founded In | 1300 BC |
Followed In | World wide; mainly in Israel and United States |
Sacred Text |
Hals, found particularly in the five book of the Bible; commentary on Torah known as Talmud and Midrash
|
Sacred Places | Jerusalem |
Place Of Worship | Synagogue |
Shintoism | |
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Founder |
Began with Japanese culture and developed out of tradition and ancestor worship
|
Founded In | Antiquity |
Followed In | Japan |
Sacred Text | No specific text |
Sacred Places |
Central Shrine of Ise (central Japan) and the Yasukuni Shrine in Tokyo
|
Sikhism | |
---|---|
Founder | Guru Nanak (1469 - 1539) |
Founded In | 1500 AD |
Followed In | India |
Sacred Text | Guru Granth Saheb |
Sacred Places | The Golden Temple of Amritsar |
Place Of Worship | Gurdwara |
Taoism | |
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Founder | Lao-tse, a Chinese philosopher |
Founded In | 6th century BC |
Followed In | China, Taiwan, Nauru, Brunei, Singapore and Vietman |
Sacred Text | Tao-te-Ching |
Zoroastrianism (Parsi Religion) | |
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Founder | Zoroaster, Born in Medea (modern Iran) about 660 BC |
Founded In | Around 500 BC |
Followed In |
Iran and north-west India. The Zoroastrians who fled to India during the eighth century are the ancestors of the present Parsi Community in India
|
Sacred Text | Zend Avesta |
Place Of Worship | Fire temple |
World Religions (In Figures):
Religion | Percentage of World Population |
---|---|
Christians | 33.06 |
Muslims | 20.28 |
Hindus | 13.33 |
Sikhs | 0.39 |
Jains | 0.07 |
Buddhists | 5.87 |
Jews | 0.23 |
Non-religious | 11.92 |
Atheists | 2.35 |
Chinese folk religionists | 6.27 |
Neo religionists | 1.68 |
Tribal religionists | 3.97 |
Shintoists | 0.04 |
Spiritists | 0.20 |
Bahais | 0.12 |
Confucionists | 0.10 |
Other religions | 0.02 |