What is religion?
by The Open University
To subscribe to an iTunes U course, click View in iTunes.
Course Description
‘What is religion?’ is a multi-disciplinary approach to what religion means, how it is practiced and how the people who belong to it share their faith. This learning pathway focuses on the history and practices some of the world’s major religions. It explores Buddhism, Hinduism, Islam, Judaism and Sikhism. At varying levels of detail it explores when they were founded, the role of their leaders, their texts, rituals, practices and behaviours. Christianity is de-emphasised in order to better understand other faiths.
The pathway also addresses the question of what religion is. What is this passion that drives people to worship some unknown entity? Can it help us to understand the society we live in, the culture we inherit, and the wider world we are part of? Is it about belonging to a group or is it a personal quest for self-fulfilment? It also considers whether philosophy can help us understand a God whose existence science cannot prove? Is religion just blind faith?
| Name | Description | Time | Price | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | What is religion? - video introduction | -- | -- | Free | View In iTunes |
| 2 | Studying religion | This unit will give you an opportunity to think about some of the key concepts and methods of the discipline of Religious Studies. You will meet examples of different forms of religious practice and belief, mostly from Britain and India. This study unit is just one of many that can be found on LearningSpace, part of OpenLearn, a collection of open educational resources from The Open University. Published in ePub 2.0.1 format, some feature such as audio, video and linked PDF are not supported by all ePub readers. | -- | Free | View In iTunes |
| 3 | The architecture of a mosque | The largest and most splendid mosque in India. | 3:10 | Free | View In iTunes |
| 4 | An important shrine in Delhi | The most important Sufi shrine in India in Awia near Delhi. | 5:09 | Free | View In iTunes |
| 5 | Hinduism in an Indian village | How Hindu practice has changed in a small Indian village over the last 25 years | 11:52 | Free | View In iTunes |
| 6 | Varanasi: An important religious site | Varanasi, on the Ganges, is one of the most important Hindu religious sites. | 4:33 | Free | View In iTunes |
| 7 | The evolution of Hinduism | Hinduism is an evolving religion both in India and internationally. Mathura, the reputed birthplace of Krishna, is now an international centre | 11:04 | Free | View In iTunes |
| 8 | The place of Enlightenment | Bodhgaya in northern India is famous for Buddhists and Hindus as the place where the Buddha gained enlightenment. It is a site of pilgrimage and prayer for monks and lay Buddhists from all over the world. | 10:27 | Free | View In iTunes |
| 9 | Becoming a Buddhist monk | Trainees come from all over Sri Lanka to a Theravada centre near Colombo to train as monks. For local people too it is an important cultural institution | 14:00 | Free | View In iTunes |
| 10 | Everyday Jewish life | Leslie and Irene Lancaster on the everyday life of a Jewish family. | 10:28 | Free | View In iTunes |
| 11 | Three different Sikh temples | Comparing three very different Sikh temples or Gurudwaras, beginning with the most important shrine, the Golden Temple in Amritsar | 12:08 | Free | View In iTunes |
| 12 | The importance of music in Sikhism | On the importance and complexity of music in the Sikh religion | 3:06 | Free | View In iTunes |
| 13 | Initiation into a Sikh sect | Initiation into a strict Sikh sect | 2:17 | Free | View In iTunes |
| 14 | A Sikh school | The Guru Nanak Sikh School in London | 4:00 | Free | View In iTunes |
|
15 |
Faith and Reason | Is religious belief based on blind faith or evidence? | 13:01 | Free | View In iTunes |
| Total: 15 Episodes |
