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

Sangha Jewel

American, Building, Religion, Ordination, Dana
Jun 19 2021
Berkeley Zen Center

The Four Noble Truths

Big Mind, Four Noble Truths, Religion, Precepts, Patience
May 22 2021

Buddha's Story

Global Warming, Buddha Nature, Religion, Lineage
Apr 10 2021

Hai! Here I Am

Zazen Mind, Religion, Observe, Politics, Beginners
Feb 20 2021

Hunger

Mindfulness, Four Noble Truths, Four Foundations, Lay, Bodhisattva Vow, Greed,...
Oct 03 2020

Buddha's Birthday

Birth-and-Death, Buddha's Birthday, Continuous Practice, Instruction, Religion,...
Apr 11 2020

Historical Context and the Evolution of Buddhist Understanding of Karma

Karma, causation, Mahayana, Religion, Greed, Tassajara Zen Mountain Center, Vow,...
Feb 15 2020

Beloved Community (Study Sesshin PM)

Serial: BZ-02698

Study Sesshin PM

 

Enemies, Hate, Lotus Sutra, Evil, Bodhisattva Way, Vow, Oneness, Bodhisattva Vow,...
Sep 07 2019
Berkeley Zen Center

Inspirations for Practice

Right Speech, Religion, Ego, Equanimity, Lineage, Conversation
Jul 06 2019

Daowu's Condolence Call

Serial: BZ-02687

Sesshin Day 4

 

Blue Cliff Record, Doubt, Teacher-and-Student, Birth-and-Death, Funeral, Lineage,...
Jun 22 2019

Zenki Class 3

Serial: BZ-02680

PP Class 3

 

Birth-and-Death, Blue Cliff Record, Liberation, Buddha Mind, Samsara, Religion, Heart...
May 30 2019

Shuso Way-Seeking Mind Talk

Berkeley Zen Center, training, Practice Period, Religion, Emotions, Forgiveness,...
May 13 2019

Four Focuses

Emotions, Gaining Mind, Mindfulness, Hindrances, Anger, Attachment, Buddha Ancestors...
Mar 30 2019

Three Treasures: Liberty, Equality, Fraternity

Bodhisattva Ceremony, Precepts, Sangha, Chanting, Greed, Non-violence,...
Feb 23 2019

Taking Refuge

Impermanence, Heart Sutra, Conversation, Four Foundations, resistance, Mindfulness,...
Feb 09 2019

Compassion Flexibility the Victims of Paradise

Building, Global Warming, Right Speech, Offering, American, Happiness, Religion, Ego...
Nov 17 2018

Ending Racism

Mindfulness, Bodhisattva Ceremony, Current Events, American, Happiness, Precepts,...
Aug 25 2018

Universal Cosmic Stillness

Serial: BZ-02628

 SESSHIN

 

Ordinary Mind, Samsara, Discrimination, Religion, Peace, Emotions
Aug 04 2018

Prodigal Daughter

Gaining Mind, Repentance, Religion, Ego, Instruction, Gratitude, Silence, Hindrances...
Jul 07 2018

Witness to the Rohingas

Religion, Greed, Liberation, Culture, American, Peace, Fox, Patience, resistance,...
Mar 31 2018

Ambebkar and Buddhism

Building, training, Anger, Discrimination, Liberation, Precepts, Instruction,...
Feb 24 2018

Beloved Community

Community, Non-violence, Vow, War, Hindrances, Evil, Bell, Conversation, Hate,...
Jan 20 2018

Mind Waves

Serial: BZ-02584

Day 1

 

Big Mind, Samadhi, Duality, Composure, Patience, Non-duality, Religion, Five Ranks,...
Dec 03 2017

Not Always So

Religion, Priest, Gratitude, Ordination, Teacher-and-Student, Enemies, Culture,...
Mar 18 2017

Skillful Means and Anger

Anger, Greed, Four Noble Truths, Religion, Peace, Attachment, Diversity, American,...
Mar 05 2017

Dogen's Uji: Time Being Part 3

Duality, Buddha Nature, training, Nirvana, Rinzai, Lotus Sutra, Culture, Religion,...
Feb 12 2017

The Five Hijabs

Evil, Religion, Hate, Building, Attachment
Jan 21 2017

Beyond Consciousness

Serial: BZ-02517

Rohatsu Day 4

 

Karma, Intuition, Anger, Composure, Precepts, Religion, Big Mind, Building
Dec 07 2016

Original Buddhism and Beyond Consciousness

Karma, Fox, Posture, Aspects of Practice, Soto Zen, Religion, Mindfulness, Subject-...
Nov 19 2016
Berkeley Zen Center

Naturalness

training, Vow, Practice Period, Posture, Aspects of Practice, Intuition, Precepts,...
Nov 05 2016

Yunmen's Medicine and Sickness Heal Each Other

Serial: BZ-02469

Class Blue Cliff Record 67

 

BCR-67, Cultivation, Heart Sutra, Birth-and-Death, Darkness and Light, Light-and-...
Mar 28 2016

The State of the Dysfunction

War, Composure, Separation, Non-attachment, Oneness, Attachment, Religion, Peace,...
Mar 12 2016

Blue Cliff Record Case 53

Serial: BZ-02460

Class

BCR-53, Buddha Nature, Don't Know Mind, Composure, Heart Sutra, Doubt, Intimacy...
Feb 27 2016

Medicine and Science Mutual Cure

Serial: BZ-02454

 Blue Cliff Record Case 87

 

BCR-87, Anger, Duality, Manjushri, Peace, Forgiveness, War, Blue Cliff Record,...
Jan 16 2016

What is the World: An Appropriate Response

Teacher-and-Student, Blue Cliff Record, Book of Serenity, Dharma Transmission,...
Jan 09 2016

Bodhisattva Ceremony

Religion, Repentance, Karma, Bodhisattva Ceremony, Precepts, Vow, Chanting, Greed,...
Nov 21 2015

Yunmen

Serial: BZ-02441

Aspects of Practice

 

Emotions, Book of Serenity, Heart Sutra, Lineage, Bodhisattva Ceremony, Aspects of...
Oct 24 2015

Hakuins' Song Not By Myself

Global Warming, Five Ranks, Religion, Bell, War, Silence, Lineage, Separation,...
Sep 05 2015

A Big Headache

American, Culture, Religion, Soto Zen, Passions, Practice Period, Intuition,...
Jun 20 2015

Hyakujo and the Fox

Fox, Karma, Book of Serenity, Separation, causation, Attachment, Beginners,...
Nov 01 2014

Song of the Grass Roof Hut

Lineage, Religion, Instruction, Doubt
Aug 31 2014
1

Upaya Chaplaincy Training

Bodhisattva Vow, Silence, Beginners, Four Noble Truths, Vow, Oneness, training, Non-...
Aug 30 2014

Heart Sutra Class

Birth-and-Death, Doubt, Renunciation, Funeral, Four Noble Truths, Intuition, Passions...
Jun 05 2014
4

Taking Refuge In the Three Bodies of Buddha

Peace, Big Mind, Religion, Buddha Nature, Mandala, Heart Sutra, Demons, Sangha,...
Mar 08 2014

Dogen's Uji: Being Time

Big Mind, Doubt, Discrimination, Darkness and Light, Demons, Continuous Practice,...
Feb 23 2014

Building A Zen Monastery

Building, Soto Zen, Priest, American, training, Culture, Religion, War, Lay
Jan 04 2014

Berkeley Zen Center in 2013

Serial: BZ-02344

Saturday Lecture

Work, Practice Period, New Year, Tassajara Zen Mountain Center, Family Practice, Ego...
Dec 14 2013
Berkeley Zen Center

Zazen Instruction

Serial: BZ-02338

Rohatsu

Zazen, Posture, Pure Existence, Discrimination, Five Ranks, Religion, Emotions,...
Dec 02 2013
Berkeley Zen Center

Seijo and Her Soul

Serial: 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

Samdhinirmocana Sutra

Posture, Oneness, Duality, Subject-and-Object, Mahayana, Non-violence, Heart Sutra,...
Apr 14 2013

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