Short Essay 1 Question 2

AFRICAN RELIGION
(Batswana)

African religion has no founder and they believe in different Gods that are in
charge of our daily lives. They communicate with Gods through prayer, song,
dance, sacrifice, dedication and blessings. They believe there are 2 worlds, one
on earth which we live in and the other which the Gods live in. They follow no
written scriptures and they practice the oral tradition where sacred stories or
tales of wisdom are passed and shared from generation to generation. They do
not have specific ritual but do perform rituals and ceremonies on occasion.
African religion was discovered more than 4000 years ago in Africa. It consists of
various other types such as San, Khoisan and Zulu.
There are three main characteristics for African Religion is as follows:
1. Supreme Being which refers to God, Creator and Upholder.
2. Realm of spirits which refers to ancestral spirits, nature spirits and
deities.
3. Unified community which refers life been communal, life entailing
maintenance and dynamic relationships with extended family, ritual play,
family rituals, traditional healers and diviners.
The above three characteristics can used by Batswana as follows:
1. Supreme Being Divinity (Modimo) is originally seen as an impersonal
active creative process.
2. Realm of spirits The Batswana has a variety of demigods and ancestors
linking living people to the divinity.
3. Unified communities The Batswana have a constant interaction between
people, divinity, facilitated by ancestors. People may be partly divine but
also human.
The above gives us an understanding of African Religion and how the Batswana
makes use of the three main characteristics of African Religion. African religion is
also applicable to the San, Khoisan and Zulu but in this case it will not be
discussed.

Short Essay 2 Question 2

HINDUISM
(Shruti & Smriti)

There is no founder on Hinduism but they do believe in different Gods and

Goddesses in different forms of the Braham, the world of the soul or God. They
believe in Reincarnation and Karma. They use various scriptures of the Vedas and
the Bhagavad Gita. They celebrate Divali and Holi. Hinduism was discovered
more than 4500 years ago in Israel.
They believe in the sacred texts known as the Shruti which means what is
heard and the Smriti which means That which is remembered. This will now
be discussed in detail.
The Shruti is the entire history of Hinduism; it begins with the early texts known
and with some Upanishads reaching into modern times. It has no author and is
believed to be a divine recording of cosmic sounds of truth which were heard
by the rishis.
It can be defined as follows:
1. Rig-veda (knowledge of hymns of praise)
2. Antharava-veda (knowledge of magic formulas)
3. Sama-veda (knowledge of melodies)
4. Yajur-veda (knowledge of sacrificial formulas)
The Smriti denotes the non-shruti text generally and is secondary in authority to
the Shruti text.
It can be defined as follows:
1. Dharma Shastra (the laws)2.
2. Mahakavya (the epics of Mhabharata and Ramayana)
3. Purana (secondary scriptures that mainly focus on Vishnu and Shiva
4. Sutra (proverbs)
5. Agama (the philosophies mantra, tantra)
6. Dyasana (the other philosophies vendata)
There are different opinions about the validity and importance of each. Some
stress that the Shruti foundation is and Smriti making the truth available is
important. These sacred texts are the central canon of Hinduism and is therefore
considered as the Hindu law and is highly followed, respected and of equal
extreme importance to the Hindu people.

Long Essay 1 Question 3

ISLAM

The word Islam means to submitte or surrender and a Muslim is therefore

someone who submittes or surrenders to the will of Allah in order to attain
peace. They believe there is no God but Allah and The Prophet Muhammed is his
messanger.
Islam was founded by The Prophet Muhammed born in 570CE. Muhammed was
born in sacred Mecca and lost his father and mother at an early age. Muhammed
was then raised by his uncle Abu Talib and married a wealthy widow named
Khadija. He had two sons who both died in infancy and four daughters.
Muslims believe in God, the last day on judgement, the angels and the holy book
known as the Quran. The word Quran means recitation and also known as a
sacred book of guidance. The Quran is made up of verses which are known as
Ayats and chapters known as Surahs. The Quran is made up of 114 chapters in
total. It is believed that the Quran was verbally revealed to angel Jibril (Gabriel)
by Allah and was later revealed by Jibril (Gabriel) to the prophet Muhammed at
the age of 40 on the night of power. They also believe secondary in the Hadith
which refers to the traditions, sayings or actions of Muhammed and his
companions which is used as a basis of the Muslims believe in the Islamic law.
Islam originates from Saudia Arabia along the Arabian Peninsula where there
were many Gods that were worshipped, there were many temples but the main
place of worship was the Kaaba.
Muslims believe and live by the simple 5 pillars of Islam which are:
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.

A declaration of faith also known as the Shahadah

To perform the 5 daily prayers known as Salat
To give charity also known as Zakat
To fast during the month of Ramadaan also known as Saum
To perform a sacred journey to the holy ground of the Mecca also known as
Hajj

They believe in the pillars to faith which are as follows:

1.
2.
3.
4.
5.

They
They
They
They
They

believe
believe
believe
believe
believe

in
in
in
in
in

God
the angels of Allah also known as Malaeka
Allahs prophets
the day of judgement also know as Yawn al-Qiyama
destiny and the divine creed also known as Qadawal-Qada

Muslims also believe in the law of Shariah which they live according to. They
believe that God also known as Allah is the best planner regardless of what we
plan his plan always prevails. They believe in the oneness to mankind and to the
message.
There are two branches of Muslims which are Sunni and Shite. Sunni is the first
branch and they acknowledge the authority of Sunna. They accept the first 4
caliphs (Abu Bakr, Umar, Uthmaan and Ali) as the rightful successors of
Muhammed and are known as Sunnite. Shite is the second branch and they
believe that the only heirs of the fourth caliph (Ali) are legitimate successors of
Muhammed. The difference between the two does not stem spiritually but
politically.
Islam celebrates two major festivals known as Eid ul-Fitr which is the festival
where fast is broken and Eid ul Adha which is the feast of sacrifice. These
festivals are shared with family, friends and the community. Meals are shared;
visits are made to homes of family and friends in the Islamic community.
Islam follows a simple way of life and practice which have been passed on
generation to generation. We are born in a natural state of goodness islamically
and are pure until we reach puberty. Our parents have a great duty to sustain,
nurture and educate us on Islamia. From their teachings we learn to obey,
respect and honour our parents and elders. From this we become a part of the
Muslim community also known as the ummah regardless of race or nationality
we are brothers and sisters in Islam especially in prayer at the masjied. We learn
what is permissible to eat also known as halaal and those that are prohibited that
are known as haraam. We are taught dress modestly and where the scarf also
known as the hijab or the veil also known as the niqab but this still remains a
choice we have to make. We are motivated to complete school and study further.
We make a choice to get married which is also known as nikaah which is not a
sacrament but an agreement of both parties. Polygamy is allowed but is not
practiced by all Muslim men. As we grow older there comes a time when we will
die as in any other religion.
From the above I believe that Islam is simple and can be easily practiced. It is not
something that has been forced onto us from generation to practice. We are born
and as we grow it becomes a way of our daily lives. We practice Islam daily
without even realising what we are doing. It is a beautiful religion which guides
us to be better people not only Islamically but also individually, in our family, in
our ummah and in the world in order for us to enter heaven also known as
Jannah after death.