Religion Talks
Religion is a range of social-cultural systems, including designated behaviors and practices, morals, beliefs, worldviews, texts, sanctified places, prophecies, ethics, or organizations, that generally relate humanity to supernatural, transcendental, and spiritual elements—although there is no scholarly consensus over what precisely constitutes a religion. Different religions may or may not contain various elements ranging from the divine, sacredness, faith, and a supernatural being or beings.
The origin of religious belief is an open question, with possible explanations including awareness of individual death, a sense of community, and dreams. Religions have sacred histories, narratives, and mythologies, preserved in oral traditions, sacred texts, symbols, and holy places, that may attempt to explain the origin of life, the universe, and other phenomena.
Religious practices may include rituals, sermons, commemoration or veneration (of deities or saints), sacrifices, festivals, feasts, trances, initiations, matrimonial and funerary services, meditation, prayer, music, art, dance, or public service.
There are an estimated 10,000 distinct religions worldwide, though nearly all of them have regionally based, relatively small followings. Four religions—Christianity, Islam, Hinduism, and Buddhism—account for over 77% of the world's population, and 92% of the world either follows one of those four religions or identifies as nonreligious, meaning that the remaining 9,000+ faiths account for only 8% of the population combined. The religiously unaffiliated demographic includes those who do not identify with any particular religion, atheists, and agnostics, although many in the demographic still have various religious beliefs.
Many world religions are also organized religions, most definitively including the Abrahamic religions Christianity, Islam, and Judaism, while others are arguably less so, in particular folk religions, indigenous religions, and some Eastern religions. A portion of the world's population are members of new religious movements. Scholars have indicated that global religiosity may be increasing due to religious countries having generally higher birth rates.
The study of religion comprises a wide variety of academic disciplines, including theology, philosophy of religion, comparative religion, and social scientific studies. Theories of religion offer various explanations for its origins and workings, including the ontological foundations of religious being and belief.
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YunmenSerial: BZ-02441 Aspects of Practice
Emotions, Book of Serenity, Heart Sutra, Lineage, Bodhisattva Ceremony, Aspects of... |
Oct 24 2015 |
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Hakuins' Song Not By Myself Global Warming, Five Ranks, Religion, Bell, War, Silence, Lineage, Describe,... |
Sep 05 2015 |
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A Big Headache American, Culture, Religion, Soto Zen, Passions, Practice Period, Intuition,... |
Jun 20 2015 |
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Hyakujo and the Fox Fox, Karma, Book of Serenity, Separation, causation, Attachment, Beginners,... |
Nov 01 2014 |
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Song of the Grass Roof Hut Lineage, Religion, Echo, Instruction, Doubt |
Aug 31 2014 1 |
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Upaya Chaplaincy Training Bodhisattva Vow, Silence, Beginners, Four Noble Truths, Vows, Oneness, training, Non-... |
Aug 30 2014 |
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Heart Sutra Class Birth-and-Death, Doubt, Renunciation, Funeral, Four Noble Truths, Intuition, Passions... |
Jun 05 2014 4 |
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Taking Refuge In the Three Bodies of Buddha Peace, Big Mind, Religion, Buddha Nature, Mandala, Heart Sutra, Demons, Sangha,... |
Mar 08 2014 |
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Dogen's Uji: Being Time Big Mind, Doubt, Discrimination, Darkness and Light, Demons, Continuous, Buddha... |
Feb 23 2014 |
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Building A Zen Monastery Building, Soto Zen, Priest, American, training, soto, Culture, Religion, War, Lay... |
Jan 04 2014 |
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Berkeley Zen Center in 2013Serial: BZ-02344 Saturday Lecture Work, Practice Period, New Year, Tassajara, Family Practice, Ego, Continuous,... |
Dec 14 2013 Berkeley Zen Center |
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Zazen InstructionSerial: BZ-02338 Rohatsu Zazen, Posture, Pure Existence, Discrimination, Five Ranks, Religion, Emotions,... |
Dec 02 2013 Berkeley Zen Center |
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Seijo and Her SoulSerial: BZ-02321 Lotus Sutra, Saturday Lecture Lotus Sutra, MM-35, Birth-and-Death, Absolute-and-Relative, Lotus Sutra, Religion,... |
Jul 27 2013 Berkeley Zen Center |
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Samdhinirmocana Sutra Posture, Oneness, Duality, Subject-and-Object, Mahayana, Non-violence, Heart Sutra,... |
Apr 14 2013 |
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Buddha's Birthday Buddha's Birthday, Birth-and-Death, Soto Zen, Lotus Sutra, Ego, soto, Offering,... |
Apr 06 2013 |
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The State of the World According to SojunSerial: BZ-02285 Saturday Lecture Religion, New Year, Greed, Four Noble Truths, Evil, War, Peace, Enemies, Manjushri,... |
Jan 05 2013 Berkeley Zen Center |
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Sandokai Lecture SixSerial: BZ-02284 Couplet 12, Rohatsu Day 7 Diversity, Absolute-and-Relative, Tassajara, Oneness, Daily Life, resistance, Nirvana... |
Dec 08 2012 Berkeley Zen Center |
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My Three Weeks in EuropeSerial: BZ-02265 Zen in Europe, Saturday Lecture Kobun Chino, Vanya Palmers, Culture, Building, Religion, Priest, Tassajara, American... |
Sep 15 2012 Berkeley Zen Center |
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Raihai Tokuzui Vinaya, Buddha Nature, causation, Karma, Precepts, Culture, soto, Soto Zen, Religion... |
Sep 02 2012 3 |
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The Bodhisattva's Mind of No AbodeThe Bodhisattva’s Mind of No Abode Religion, Zendo, Chanting, Posture, Attachment |
Sep 01 2012 Afternoon No Abode Hermitage |
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Ryokan's Waka Poems Offering, Attachment, Lay, Greed, Precepts, Repentance, Sangha, Discrimination,... |
Aug 04 2012 |
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2012.08.02-serial.00146 Offering, Observe, Don't Know Mind, Religion, Buddha Nature, Impermanence,... |
Aug 02 2012 |
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When Dharma fills Body and MindWhen Dharma Fills Body and Mind Thich Nhat Hanh, Nirvana, Religion, Bodhisattva Vow |
Jul 13 2012 Morning No Abode Hermitage |
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Genjo Koan - Section 10B-Part-3Serial: BZ-02250 Transformation at the Base, Sesshin Day 5] Live life one moment at a time
Suffering, Birth-and-Death, Intuition, Emotions, Dragons, Passions, Religion... |
Jun 24 2012 Berkeley Zen Center |
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Dogen Zenji's Fukanzazengi Subject-and-Object, Dharma Transmission, Non-duality, Duality, Instruction, Religion... |
Mar 10 2012 |
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Seijiki and HalloweenSerial: BZ-02211 Feeding the Hungry Ghosts, Saturday Lecture Hungry Ghosts, Seijiki, Demons, Current Events, Evil, Culture, Religion, Practice... |
Oct 29 2011 Berkeley Zen Center |
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Zenki and Shoji Birth-and-Death, Karma, Samsara, Nirvana, confusion, Fasting, Daily Life,... |
Sep 04 2011 3 |
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Suzuki Roshi's Eko LectureSerial: BZ-02186 Encoragement of Practice, Sesshin Day 2 Chanting, Eko, Offering, Echo, Offering, Funeral, Chanting, Religion, Priest,... |
Jun 16 2011 Berkeley Zen Center |
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How Life Is Like Playing In A Bluegrass Band Practice Period, Ego, Silence, Observe, Conversation, Culture, Religion |
Apr 30 2011 |
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Genjo Koan Lotus Sutra, Transmission, Fundraising, Anger, Enemies, Happiness, Separation,... |
Feb 12 2011 |
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Death and Dying: How Is It With You Death-and-Dying, Four Noble Truths, Karmic Consequences, Karma, Mahayana, Bodhisattva... |
Feb 05 2011 |
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Lineage Precept Vein - Not One, Not Two Transmission, Precepts, Intuition, Monastic Practice, Dharma Transmission, Lineage,... |
Jan 15 2011 |
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Komyo - Master HongzhiSerial: BZ-02147 Light, Rohatsu Day 5 Koun Ejô, Sandokai, Transmission of Light, Komyozo Zammai, Discrimination, Silent... |
Dec 09 2010 Berkeley Zen Center |
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Resuming Big Mind Part TwoSerial: BZ-02144 Trikaya, Rohatsu Day 2 Trikaya, Sambhogakaya, Dharmakaya, Nirmanakaya, Monkey Mind, Pure Existence, Buddha... |
Dec 06 2010 Berkeley Zen Center |
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Intersection of Zen and ClowningSerial: EB-00230 Being a child in an orphanage; learning to meditate; sitting with negative tendencies; five fears outlined by Buddha; Kinhin, Demons, Zendo, Religion, Bell |
Aug 25 2010 |
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Ryokan's Big Bird Discrimination, Building, Passions, Culture, Dragons, Enemies, Happiness,... |
Aug 14 2010 |
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2010.08.12-serial.00134 Breath, Bell, Interview, Repentance, Religion, Attachment, Describe, Precepts... |
Aug 12 2010 |
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2010.08.12-serial.00135 Silence, Interview, Religion, Emotions, Dragons, Posture, Compassion |
Aug 12 2010 |
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2010.08.09-serial.00128 Religion, Emotions, Vows |
Aug 09 2010 |
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2010.08.07-serial.00125 Birth-and-Death, Intimacy, Echo, Demons, Patience, Samsara, Religion, training,... |
Aug 07 2010 |
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Mumonkan Case 12Serial: BZ-02117 Zuigan Calls "Master", Saturday Lecture Birth-and-Death, Buddha Nature, MM-12, Birth-and-Death, Fox, Ego, Concentration,... |
Jul 24 2010 Berkeley Zen Center |
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Hokyo Zammai Class Five Ranks, Ego, Transmission, Discrimination, Religion, Samsara, Echo, Beginners,... |
Jul 01 2010 5 |