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+#REDIRECT [[Belief#Belief systems]]
-{{Otheruses4|a philosophical term|a closely related term|Life stance}}
-==Belief systems==
+{{R with history}} {{R to section}}
-[[Religion]] and [[philosophy]] are often integral to a culture.
-===Religion===
-Also see: [[List of religions]]
-'''Religion''' is commonly understood as a group of [[belief]]s or attitudes concerning an object (real or imagined), person (real or imagined), or system of thought considered to be [[supernatural]], [[sacred]], or [[divine]], and the [[moral code]]s, practices, values, institutions, and rituals associated with such belief or system of thought.
-Islam predominates in the Middle East. The primary religion throughout Latin America is [[Catholicism|Roman Catholicism]]; with [[Protestantism]] dominant in North America. Modern Europeans are less religious.
-===Present day adherents===
-The following statistics show the number of adherents in all known approaches, both religious and irreligious worldwide. '''Christianity, Islam, Hinduism and Buddhism''' are the largest world religions today. Approximately 75% of humanity belongs to one of these 4 religions. Christianity is the religion with the largest number of professed religious adherents, followed by Islam. The third-largest group of approximately 1 billion people adhere to irreligious approaches which include [[Humanism]], [[Atheism]], [[Rationalism]], and [[Agnosticism]]. Hinduism with 900 million adherents is the third largest religion followed by 19 smaller groups of religious adherents. These figures are necessarily approximate: note that the figures in the following table total nearly 7 billion people, yet the world population was only 6.1 billion (2005). [http://www.adherents.com/Religions_By_Adherents.html].
-[[Image:Mahakumbh.jpg|thumb|250px|The largest religious gathering of humans on Earth[http://www.newscientist.com/article.ns?id=dn360]. About 70 million [[Hindu]]s from around the world participated in '''[[Kumbh Mela]]''' in the [[Hinduism|Hindu]] holy city of [[Prayaga]], [[India]], which is also known as Allahabad.]]
-# [[Christianity]] 2.1 billion
-# [[Islam]] 1.3 billion
-# [[Secular]]/[[Irreligious]]/[[Agnostic]]/[[Atheist]] 1.1 billion
-# [[Hinduism]] 900 million
-# [[Chinese folk religion]] 394 million
-# [[Buddhism]] 376 million, not including Chinese folk Religion (see also [[Buddhism by country]])
-# Primal indigenous ("[[Paganism|Pagan]]") 300 million
-# African traditional and [[diasporic]] 100 million
-# [[Sikhism]] 23 million
-# [[Juche]] 19 million
-# [[Spiritism]] 15 million
-# [[Judaism]] 14 million
-# [[Bahá'í Faith]] 7 million
-# [[Jainism]] 4.2 million
-# [[Shinto]] 4 million (see below)
-# [[Cao Dai]] 4 million
-# [[Zoroastrianism]] 2.6 million
-# [[Tenrikyo]] 2 million
-# [[Neo-Paganism]] 1 million
-# [[Unitarian Universalism]] 800,000
-# [[Rastafari movement]] 600,000
-# [[Scientology]] 500,000
-* In its [[Yoga]] stream, [[Hinduism]] is even more widespread all over the world with 20 [[million]] practitioners in the [[United States]] alone [http://www.atimes.com/atimes/South_Asia/HA28Df03.html]. There are more than 100 million who practise Hinduism in Yoga form worldwide. After including them, Hinduism has around 1.4 [[billion]] followers worldwide.
-* Christianity encompasses many different denomiations but the statistics in the source for this document consider them all together for the purposes of analysis.
-* Shinto is a special case due to shrine-reporting versus self-reporting. Since the 17th century, there have been laws in Japan requiring registration with Shinto shrines. Because of this, 75-90% of all Japanese are listed on shrine rolls, greatly inflating the apparent number of adherents. When asked in polls, only about 3.3% of Japanese people identify themselves as "Shinto."[http://www.adherents.com/Religions_By_Adherents.html#Shinto] However, many who do not consider themselves "Shintoists" still practice Shinto rituals.
-In ranking religious denominations, the [[Roman Catholic Church]] is the largest single denomination within Christianity, [[Sunni Islam]] within Islam, and [[Vaishnavism]] within Hinduism. It is difficult to say whether there are more Roman Catholics or Sunnis, as the numbers are roughly equal, and exact counts are impossible, because some members though legally accepted in those denominations may have renounced their faith or have [[religious conversion|converted]] quickly.
-[[Image:Konchog-wangdu.jpeg|thumb|250px|[[Buddhist]] monk Geshe Konchog Wangdu reads [[Mahayana]] [[sutras]] from an old woodblock copy of the Tibetan Kanjur.]]
-===Abrahamic religions===
-The Middle East is the birthplace and [[spiritual]] center of the [[Abrahamic religions]] [[Judaism]], [[Christianity]], and [[Islam]], all [[monotheistic]].
-'''Judaism''' has about 15 million followers as of 2006.<ref name = "followers">{{
-cite news
-|url=http://www.jewishvirtuallibrary.org/jsource/Judaism/jewpop.html
-|publisher=Jewish Virtual Library
-|title=The Jewish Population of the World
-|date=April 12, 2006
-}}</ref>
-It is one of, if not the first, recorded [[Monotheism|monotheistic]] faiths and one of the oldest religious [[traditions]] still practiced today. The values and history of the Jewish people are a major part of the foundation of other [[Abrahamic religion]]s such as [[Christianity]], [[Islam]], as well as [[Samaritan]]ism and the [[Bahá'í Faith]].
-Christianity was the dominant feature in shaping European culture for at least the last 1700 years. Modern philosophical thought has very much been influenced by Christian philosophers such as St. Thomas Aquinas and Erasmus. European colonization and [[missionary|missionaries]] have spread it.
-As the Islam originated in 6th century [[Arabia]], the early forms of Muslim culture were predominantly [[Arab]]. However, with the rapid expansion of the [[Islamic empire]]s, Muslims came into contact with, and assimilated much from, the [[Persia]]n, [[Turkic peoples|Turkish]], [[Mongol people|Mongol]], [[India]]n, [[Malay people|Malay]] and [[Indonesia]]n cultures. Also see [[Muslim culture]].
-===Religion in Africa===
-Africans profess a wide variety of religious beliefs, with [[Christianity]] and [[Islam]] being the most widespread. Approximately 46.3% of all Africans are Christians and another 40.5% are Muslims. Roughly 11.8 percent of Africans primarily follow indigenous [[African religions]]. A small number of Africans are Hindu, or have beliefs [[African Jew|from the Judaic tradition]], such as the [[Beta Israel]] and [[Lemba]] tribes. (figures calculated from [http://library.stanford.edu/africa/religion.html])
-The indigenous African religions tend to revolve around [[animism]] and [[ancestor worship]]. A common thread in traditional belief systems was the division of the [[spiritual world]] into "helpful" and "harmful". Helpful [[Spiritual being|spirits]] are usually deemed to include ancestor spirits that help their descendants, and powerful spirits that protect entire communities from natural disaster or attacks from enemies; whereas harmful spirits include the [[soul]]s of murdered victims who were buried without the proper [[Funeral|funeral rites]], and spirits used by hostile spirit [[Medium (spirituality)|mediums]] to cause illness among their enemies. While the effect of these early forms of worship continues to have a profound influence, belief systems have evolved as they interact with other religions.
-===”American Dream”===
-The [[American Dream]], a faith, held by many in the United States, that, through hard work, courage, and self-determination, regardless of social class, a person can [[social mobility|gain a better life]].<ref>Boritt, Gabor S. ''Lincoln and the Economics of the American Dream''. Page 1. December 1994. University of Illinois Press. ISBN 0-252-06445-3.</ref> This belief is rooted in the belief that the country is a "[[city upon a hill]], a light unto the nations,"<ref>[[Ronald Reagan]]. [http://www.reagan.utexas.edu/archives/speeches/1989/011489a.htm "Final Radio Address to the Nation"]. January 14, 1989. ''URL accessed June 3, 2006.''</ref> which were values held by many early European settlers and maintained by subsequent generations.
-===Australian aboriginal===
-The [[indigenous peoples]] of [[Australia]] can be classified into hundreds of language groups and clans. For this reason it is incorrect to classify any attribute as universal to them as a whole. However, almost all the belief systems found seem to be what can be considered a [[polytheism|polytheistic]], [[animism|animistic]] [[religion]]. Many similarities between the groups may be seen:
-*The Australian Aboriginal culture is based on nature in every aspect. Most of their mythological heroes are animals common in Australia, the most prominent being the [[Rainbow Serpent]].
-*Another similarity is the so-called "[[Dreamtime (mythology)|Dreamtime]]". It is often thought of as the time in which the world was created, but correctly describes the process of the world being called into being.
-*Walkabout is a word which has been coined to describe the pilgrimages that Aboriginal people must make to their "sacred places to conduct ceremonies. Walkabout is the enactment of great journeys, or sections of them, that the 'ancestral beings' took long ago in the "Dreamtime".
-===Eastern religion and philosophy===
-====Philosophy====
-{{main|Eastern philosophy}}
-Asian philosophical traditions originated in India and China and cover a large spectrum of philosophical thoughts and writings. [[Indian philosophy]] includes [[Hindu philosophy]] and [[Buddhist philosophy]]. They include elements of nonmaterial pursuits, whereas another school of thought from India, [[Carvaka]], preached the enjoyment of material world.
-[[Taoism]] was founded by Chinese philosopher [[Lao Zi]], who lived 605-520 B.C. [[Buddhism]] was founded by [[Siddhartha Gautama]], who lived 563-483 B.C.
-During the [[20th century]], in the two most populous countries of Asia, two dramatically different political philosophies took shape. [[Gandhi]] gave a new meaning to [[Ahimsa]], and  redefined the concepts of [[nonviolence]] and [[nonresistance]]. During the same period, [[Mao Zedong]]’s [[Communism|communist]] [[Maoism|philosophy]] was crystallized.
-====Religions====
-[[Image:Buddha image - white stone.jpg|left|thumb|A stone image of the [[Gautam Buddha|Buddha]].]]
-[[Hinduism]], [[Buddhism]], [[Jainism]] and [[Sikhism]] originated in India, a country of [[South Asia]]. In [[East Asia]], particularly in [[China]] and [[Japan]], [[Confucianism]], [[Taoism]], [[Zen|Zen Buddhism]] and [[Shinto]] took shape. Other religions of Asia include [[Bahá'í Faith]], [[Shamanism]] practiced in [[Siberia]] and [[Animism]], practiced in the eastern parts of the [[South Asia|Indian subcontinent]].
-Today 30% of [[Muslims]] live in the [[South Asia]]n region of [[Pakistan]], [[India]] and [[Bangladesh]]. The world's largest single Muslim community (within the bounds of one nation) is in [[Indonesia]]. There are also significant Muslim populations in the [[Philippines]], [[China]], [[Central Asia]], [[Iran]], and [[Russia]].
-In the [[Philippines]] and [[East Timor]], [[Roman Catholicism]] is the predominant religion; it was introduced by the [[Spain|Spaniard]]s and the [[Portugal|Portuguese]], respectively. In [[Armenia]], [[Eastern Orthodoxy]] is the predominant religion.  Various [[Christian]] sects have adherents in portions of the [[Middle East]].
-A large majority of people in the world who practice a religious faith practice one founded in Asia.
-Religions founded in Asia and with a majority of their contemporary adherents in Asia include:
-*[[Bahá'í Faith]]: slightly more than half of all adherents are in Asia
-*[[Bön]]: [[Tibet]]
-*[[Buddhism]]: [[Cambodia]], [[China]], [[Japan]], [[Korea]], [[Laos]], [[Malaysia]], [[Mongolia]], [[Myanmar]], [[Singapore]], [[Sri Lanka]], [[Thailand]], [[Vietnam]], parts of northern, eastern, and western [[India]], and parts of central and eastern [[Russia]] (Siberia).
-**[[Mahayana Buddhism]]: China, Japan, Korea, Malaysia, Singapore, Vietnam.
-**[[Theravada Buddhism]]: Cambodia, parts of China, Laos, mainly northern parts of Malaysia, Myanmar, Sri Lanka, Thailand, as well as parts of [[Vietnam]].
-**[[Vajrayana Buddhism]]: Parts of China, [[Mongolia]], parts of northern and eastern [[India]], parts of central, eastern [[Russia]] and [[Siberia]].
-*[[Hinduism]]: [[India]], [[Nepal]], [[Bangladesh]], [[Sri Lanka]], [[Pakistan]], [[Malaysia]], [[Singapore]], [[Bali]].
-*[[Islam]]: [[Central Asia|Central]], [[South Asia|South]], and [[Southwest Asia]], [[Maritime Southeast Asia]]
-**[[Shia Islam]]: largely to specific [[Iran]], [[Azerbaijan]], parts of [[Iraq]], [[Bahrain]], parts of [[Afghanistan]], parts of [[India]], parts of [[Pakistan]].
-**[[Sunni Islam]]: dominant in the rest of the regions mentioned above.
-*[[Jainism]]: [[India]]
-*[[Qadianism|Qadiani]]: Pakistan, Bangladesh, India.
-*[[Shinto]]: [[Japan]]
-*[[Sikhism]]: India, Malaysia, Hong Kong.
-*[[Daoism]]: [[China]], [[Korea]], [[Vietnam]], [[Singapore]], and [[Republic of China|Taiwan]]
-*[[Zoroastrianism]]: Iran, India, Pakistan.
-*[[Shamanism]]: [[Siberia]]
-*[[Animism]]: Eastern [[India]], [[Philippines]], [[Japan]], [[Laos]], [[Myanmar]], [[Thailand]],  and [[Indonesia]]
-*[[Yezidi]] : Iraq, Iran, Syria, Turkey.
-*[[Zikri]]: Pakistan, Iran.
-Religions founded in Asia that have the majority of their contemporary adherents in other regions include:
-*[[Christianity]] ([[Lebanon]], [[Syria]], [[Palestinian territories|Palestine]], [[Armenia]], [[Georgia (country)|Georgia]], [[South Korea]], [[Singapore]], [[Malaysia]], [[Indonesia]], [[East Timor]], [[Pakistan]], [[India]] and the [[Philippines]])
-*[[Judaism]] (slightly fewer than half of its adherents reside in Asia; [[Israel]], [[Iran]], [[India]], [[Syria]].)
-[[Category:Cultural geography]]
-[[Category:Religion]]
-[[Category:Philosophical terminology]]
-[[pt:Sistema de crenças]]