With few exceptions, the world's religions are anchored in their sacred texts-core writings that express the ideals and vision of the faiths, forming a basis for belief and action.With few exceptions, the world's religions are anchored in their sacred texts-core writings that express the ideals and vision of the faiths, forming a basis for belief and action. Humanity's library of sacred writings is a huge canon that includes many of the most influential books ever written. In addition to the Hebrew and Christian bibles and the Quran of Islam, major sacred writings include the Hindu Vedas, the Buddhist Sutras, Daoism's Daodejing, and the Analects of Confucius, as well as the beloved texts of religions such as Zoroastrianism and Jainism, and modern faiths such as Baha'i. These are texts that people live by and, at times, are willing to die for.

In these 36 lectures, Professor Hardy takes you deeply into the body of sacred writings that have played a fundamental role in human culture and history. Discussing a broad range of texts, the course examines the scriptures of seven major religions, as well as nine lesser known or smaller faiths, including texts from the ancient Egyptian and Mayan societies. In addition to studying the scriptures of the Judeo-Christian and Islamic worlds, you'll discover religious texts from vastly differing cultures around the world. These richly insightful lectures highlight a global legacy of faith, thought, and spirituality.

Inhoud

CH1. Reading Other People's Scriptures
CH2. Hinduism and the Vedas
CH3. What Is Heard-Upanishads
CH4. What Is Remembered-Epics
CH5. Laws of Manu and Bhagavad Gita
CH6. Related Traditions-Sikh Scriptures
CH7. Judaism-People of the Book
CH8. Five Books of Torah
CH9. Prophets and Writings
CH10. Apocrypha and Dead Sea Scrolls
CH11. Oral Torah-Mishnah and Talmud
CH12. Related Traditions-Zoroastrian Scriptures
CH13. The Three Baskets of Buddhism
CH14. Vinaya and Jataka
CH15. Theravada Sutras
CH16. Mahayana Sutras
CH17. Pure Land Buddhism and Zen
CH18. Tibetan Vajrayana
CH19. Related Traditions-Jain Scriptures
CH20. Five Confucian Classics
CH21. Four Books of Neo-Confucianism
CH22. Daoism and the Daodejing
CH23. The Three Caverns of Daoist Scriptures
CH24. Related Traditions-Shinto and Tenrikyo
CH25. Christian Testaments Old and New
CH26. Gospels and Acts
CH27. Letters and Apocalypse
CH28. Apocryphal Gospels
CH29. Related Traditions-Mormon Scriptures
CH30. Islam and Scriptural Recitation
CH31. Holy Qur'an
CH32. Hadith and Sufism
CH33. Related Traditions-Baha'i Scriptures
CH34. Abandoned Scriptures-Egyptian and Mayan
CH35. Secular Scripture-U.S. Constitution
CH36. Heavenly Books, Earthly Connections