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.

From Religion on Wikipedia

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Title Speaker

Hyakujo and the Great Sublime Peak

Serial: BZ-02110

Extraordinariness of the Ordinary, Sesshin Day 4

Intuition, Posture, Silent Illumination, Doubt, Culture, Instruction, Religion, Heart...
Jun 26 2010
Berkeley Zen Center

End of Genjokoan - Duality and Non-duality

Serial: BZ-02109

One dharma, one action, Sesshin Day 3

Discrimination, Intuition, Doubt, Non-duality, Passions, Religion, Demons, Patience,...
Jun 25 2010
Berkeley Zen Center

Sojun Weitsman Roshi Genjokoan Class 5

Discrimination, Separation, Beginners, Daily Life, Conversation, Non-discrimination,...
Jun 17 2010

Hokyo Zammai Class

Discrimination, Diversity, Current Events, Intuition, Five Ranks, Absolute-and-...
Mar 25 2010
3

Buddhism in India and America

Lay, training, Religion, Lay Practice, Continuous, Intimacy, Precepts, Cultivation,...
Mar 20 2010

Buddhism in India in the 21st Century

Karma, causation, Right Speech, Bodhisattva Ceremony, Bodhisattva Vow, Vows, Precepts...
Feb 27 2010

Vashubandu Class

Anger, Doubt, Bodhisattva Ceremony, Religion, Subject-and-Object, Nirvana, Daily Life...
Feb 14 2010
1

Zazen

Serial: BZ-02068

Seven Factors of Awakening, Rohatsu Day 1

Practice Enlightenment, Mindfulness, Effort, Dogen, Concentration, Equanimity,...
Dec 06 2009
Berkeley Zen Center

August 28th, 2009, Serial No. 01549, Side E

Culture, Precepts, American, Religion, Soto Zen, soto, Diversity, Mindfulness, Dharma...
Aug 28 2009

August 28th, 2009, Serial No. 01549, Side F

Culture, American, Transmission, Religion, Lineage, Conversation, Priest, Zazen Mind...
Aug 28 2009

August 28th, 2009, Serial No. 01549, Side G

Dharma Transmission, Transmission, Lineage, Ordination, Soto Zen, Priest, Culture,...
Aug 28 2009

August 28th, 2009, Serial No. 01549, Side H

American, Monastic Practice, training, Transmission, Blue Cliff Record, Culture,...
Aug 28 2009

Joshu's 'Wash your Bowl'

Serial: BZ-02049

Open, unassuming mind, One-Day Sitting,

standing up from zazen

Zazen, Don't Know Mind, Renunciation, Don't Know Mind, Religion, Greed,...
Jul 18 2009
Berkeley Zen Center

The Swastika as Mandala

Serial: BZ-02046

Sesshin Day 5

Politics, Evil, Happiness, Mandala, Interview, resistance, Transmission, Hate,...
Jun 21 2009
Berkeley Zen Center

Brown Rice is Just Right

Serial: BZ-02043

Cultivating the Empty Field, Sesshin Day 2

Suzuki Roshi, Ordinary Mind, Silent Illumination, Birth-and-Death, Religion, American...
Jun 18 2009
Berkeley Zen Center

Class 5 Absorption In The Treasury Of Light

Subject-and-Object, Cultivation, Transmission, Manjushri, Lotus Sutra, Religion,...
Jun 11 2009

Present Moment Awareness

Ordinary Mind, Mindfulness, Enthusiasm, Cultivation, Passions, Practice Period,...
May 30 2009

Zazen Instruction

Serial: BZ-02031

Bansan

BCR-, Zazen, Posture, Building, Emotions, Beginners, resistance, Religion
May 15 2009
Berkeley Zen Center

Class 1 Everybody Has Their Own Light

Religion, Instruction, Describe, Culture, Politics, Continuous, Doubt, training...
May 14 2009

Who is That One?

Serial: BZ-02028

Shakyamuni and Maitreya are servants of That One, One-Day Sitting

Non-duality, Dharmakaya, Sambhogakaya, Nirmanakaya, MM-45, Big Mind, Practice Period...
May 09 2009
Berkeley Zen Center

Questions and Answers in Buddhism

Religion, Right Speech, Lotus Sutra, Buddha Mind, Vows, Teacher-and-Student, Heart...
Apr 18 2009

Perspective on Current Events

Serial: BZ-01164

2008 Market Crash, Etc., Saturday Lecture

Money, War, Enemies, Greed, Eight Aspects, Monastic Practice, Describe, Religion,...
Oct 11 2008
Berkeley Zen Center

Beginner's Sitting; Serial No. 01163

Serial: BZ-01163

Beginners' Sesshin

Zazen, Monastic Practice, Soto Zen, Religion, Don't Know Mind, Priest, soto,...
Oct 05 2008
Berkeley Zen Center

2008.10.04-serial.00198

Culture, Hindrances, Fox, Chanting, Enemies, Religion, Lay, zen, Describe, difficulty...
Oct 04 2008

Embodying the Lotus Sutra 

Lotus Sutra, Buddha Nature, Emptiness, Religion, Manjushri
Mar 13 2008
The Yoga Room

Find Out the Root of the Problem for Yourself

Serial: BZ-01118

Dokan and Gyoji: Let one teacher help you find your solution, Saturday Lecture

Continuous Practice, Aspects of Practice, Continuous, training, Intuition, Gaining...
Mar 01 2008
Berkeley Zen Center

Zazen, Sanshimopo, and Doshin: Foundations of Practice

Serial: BZ-01112

Shikantaza, Guidance, and Way-Seeking Mind, Saturday Lecture

Shikantaza, Zazen, Way-Seeking Mind, Ego, Continuous, Teacher-and-Student, Gaining...
Feb 02 2008
Berkeley Zen Center

Our Sphere of Practice

Serial: BZ-01103

Nonseparation of Zazen and Worldly Activity, Rohatsu Day 5

Practice, Politics, Zazen, War, SER-12, War, Diversity, Evil, Religion, Building,...
Dec 06 2007
Berkeley Zen Center

Only a Buddha and a Buddha

The Lotus Sutra says that the desire to help beings open to Buddha's wisdom is the condition for Buddha's appearing in this world.

Lotus Sutra, Soto Zen, soto, Desire, Religion
Jul 28 2007
Afternoon
No Abode Hermitage

The Five Powers of Practice and How They Interact

Serial: BZ-00986

Kid Zendo: Zen: inside and outside the circle's center, Saturday Lecture

Practice, Concentration, Mindfulness, Daily Life, Intuition, Mahayana, Instruction,...
Jul 21 2007
Berkeley Zen Center

July 2nd, 2007, Serial No. 01446

Politics, Religion, Practice Period, Enemies, Tassajara, Culture, War, training...
Jul 02 2007

May 31st, 2007, Serial No. 01055, Side A

Doubt, Mahayana, Lotus Sutra, Subject-and-Object, Buddha Nature, Non-duality, Big...
May 31 2007

May 24th, 2007, Serial No. 01054, Side A

Manjushri, Heart Sutra, Buddha Nature, Cultivation, Bodhisattva Ceremony, Ordinary...
May 24 2007

This Is It

Serial: BZ-01436A

Saturday Lecture

Mindfulness, Koan, Karma, Doubt, confusion, Big Mind, Instruction, Religion, Priest,...
May 19 2007
Berkeley Zen Center

Buddha's Birthday

Serial: BZ-01429

(and songs sung by the children), Saturday Lecture

Buddha's Birthday, Birth-and-Death, Buddha's Birthday, Renewal, Separation...
Apr 07 2007
Berkeley Zen Center

Enlightenment is the Silent Bond 

Discrimination, Religion, Desire, difficulty
Apr 01 2007
Green Gulch Farm

Attachment and Non-attachment

Serial: BZ-01428

Blue Cliff Record: Case #2 Nansen's "What is the Way?", Saturday Lecture

Attachment, Non-attachment, Nansen, Mumonkan, BCR-2, Attachment, Diversity, Ordinary...
Mar 31 2007
Berkeley Zen Center

Letter and Spirit of Rules and Regulation

Serial: BZ-01427

Dogen's Eihei Shingi, Saturday Lecture

Paramitas, Brahmaviharas, Equanimity, Passions, Hate, Religion, Buddha Nature, Ego,...
Mar 24 2007
Berkeley Zen Center

March 17th, 2007, Serial No. 01053, Side A

Subject-and-Object, Doubt, Religion, Mahayana, First Principle, Concentration, Buddha...
Mar 17 2007

Dogen's Eight Aspects of Practice

Serial: BZ-01418

Commentary by Deshimaru from "Ring of the Way", Saturday Lecture

Eight Aspects, Dogen, Deshimaru, Birth-and-Death, Karma, Karmic Consequences, Ego,...
Feb 10 2007
Berkeley Zen Center

Happiness

The pursuit of happiness vs. wanting others to be happy; happiness from absorption in activity

Teachings on Happiness for Dancing Mountains Sangha newsletter
Date: February 3, 2007...

Lovingkindness, Desire, zen meditation, Religion, Emptiness
Feb 03 2007
AM
No Abode Hermitage

Halloween and Seijiki

Serial: BZ-01393

Saturday Lecture

Seijiki, American, Offering, Religion, Evil, Demons, Six Realms, Culture, War,...
Oct 21 2006
Berkeley Zen Center

October 2nd, 2006, Serial No. 01390

Demons, Culture, Interview, resistance, Chanting, Happiness, Religion, American,...
Oct 02 2006

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