Introduction | p. 10 |
Primal Beliefs from Prehistory |
Unseen forces are at work: Making sense of the world | p. 20 |
Even a rock has a spirit: Animism in early societies | p. 24 |
Special people can visit other worlds: The power of the shaman | p. 26 |
Why are we here?: Created for a purpose | p. 32 |
Why do we die?: The origin of death | p. 33 |
Eternity is now: The Dreaming | p. 34 |
Our ancestors will guide us: The spirits of the dead live on | p. 36 |
We should be good: Living in harmony | p. 38 |
Everything is connected: A lifelong bond with the gods | p. 39 |
The gods desire blood: Sacrifice and blood offerings | p. 40 |
We can build a sacred space: Symbolism made real | p. 46 |
We are in rhythm with the universe: Man and the cosmos | p. 48 |
We exist to serve the gods: The burden of observance | p. 50 |
Our rituals sustain the world: Renewing life through ritual | p. 51 |
Ancient and Classical Beliefs from 3000 BCE |
There is a hierarchy of gods and men: Beliefs for new societies | p. 56 |
The good live forever in the kingdom of Osiris: Preparing for the afterlife | p. 58 |
The triumph of good over evil depends on humankind: The battle between good and evil | p. 60 |
Accept the way of the universe: Aligning the self with the dao | p. 66 |
The Five Great Vows: Self-denial leads to spiritual liberation | p. 68 |
Virtue is not sent from heaven: Wisdom lies with the superior man | p. 72 |
A divine child is born: The assimilation of myth | p. 78 |
The oracles reveal the will of the gods: Divining the future | p. 79 |
The gods are just like us: Beliefs that mirror society | p. 80 |
Ritual links us to our past: Living the Way of the Gods | p. 82 |
The gods will die: The end of the world as we know it | p. 86 |
Hinduism from 1700 BCE |
Through sacrifice we maintain the order of the universe: A rational world | p. 92 |
The divine has a female aspect: The power of the great goddess | p. 100 |
Sit up close to your guru: Higher levels of teaching | p. 101 |
Brahman is my self within the heart: The ultimate reality | p. 102 |
We learn, we live, we withdraw, we detach: The four stages of life | p. 106 |
It may be your duty to kill: Selfless action | p. 110 |
The practice of yoga leads to spiritual liberation: Physical and mental discipline | p. 112 |
We speak to the gods through daily rituals: Devotion through puja | p. 114 |
The world is an illusion: Seeing with pure consciousness | p. 116 |
So many faiths, so many paths: God-consciousness | p. 122 |
Nonviolence is the weapon of the strong: Hinduism in the political age | p. 124 |
Buddhism from 6th Century BCE |
Finding the Middle Way: The enlightenment of Buddha | p. 130 |
There can be an end to suffering: Escape from the eternal cycle | p. 136 |
Test Buddha's words as one would the quality of gold: The personal quest for truth | p. 144 |
Religious discipline is necessary: The purpose of monastic vows | p. 145 |
Renounce killing and good will follow: Let kindness and compassion rule | p. 146 |
We cannot say what a person is: The self as constantly changing | p. 148 |
Enlightenment has many faces: Buddhas and bodhisattvas | p. 152 |
Act out your beliefs: The performance of ritual and repetition | p. 158 |
Discover your Buddha nature: Zen insights that go beyond words | p. 160 |
Judaism from 2000 BCE |
I will take you as my people, and I will be your God: God's covenant with Israel | p. 168 |
Beside me there is no other God: From monolatry to monotheism | p. 176 |
The Messiah will redeem Israel: The promise of a new age | p. 178 |
Religious law can be applied to daily life: Writing the Oral Law | p. 182 |
God is incorporeal, indivisible, and unique: Defining the indefinable | p. 184 |
God and humankind are in cosmic exile: Mysticism and the kabbalah | p. 186 |
The holy spark dwells in everyone: Man as a manifestation of God | p. 188 |
Judaism is a religion, not a nationality: Faith and the state | p. 189 |
Draw from the past, live in the present, work for the future: Progressive Judaism | p. 190 |
If you will it, it is no dream: The origins of modern political Zionism | p. 196 |
Where was God during the Holocaust?: A challenge to the covenant | p. 198 |
Women can be rabbis: Gender and the covenant | p. 199 |
Christianity from 1st Century CE |
Jesus is the beginning of the end: Jesus's message to the world | p. 204 |
God has sent us his Son: Jesus's divine identity | p. 208 |
The blood of the martyrs is the seed of the Church: Dying for the message | p. 209 |
The body may die but the soul will live on: Immortality in Christianity | p. 210 |
God is three and God is one: A divine trinity | p. 212 |
God's grace never fails: Augustine and free will | p. 220 |
In the world, but not of the world: Serving God on behalf of others | p. 222 |
There is no salvation outside the Church: Entering into the faith | p. 224 |
This is my body, this is my blood: The mystery of the Eucharist | p. 228 |
God's word needs no go-betweens: The Protestant Reformation | p. 230 |
God is hidden in the heart: Mystical experience in Christianity | p. 238 |
The body needs saving as well as the soul: Social holiness and evangelicalism | p. 239 |
Scientific advances do not disprove the Bible: The challenge of modernity | p. 240 |
We can influence God: Why prayer works | p. 246 |
Islam from 610 CE |
Muhammad is God's final messenger: The Prophet and the origins of Islam | p. 252 |
The Qur'an was sent down from heaven: God reveals his word and his will | p. 254 |
The Five Pillars of Islam: The central professions of faith | p. 262 |
The imam is God's chosen leader: The emergence of Shi'a Islam | p. 270 |
God guides us with shari'a: The pathway to harmonious living | p. 272 |
We can think about God, but we cannot comprehend him: Theological speculation' in Islam | p. 276 |
Jihad is our religious duty: Striving in the way of God | p. 278 |
The world is one stage of the journey to God: The ultimate reward for the righteous | p. 279 |
God is unequaled: The unity of divinity is necessary | p. 280 |
Arab, water pot, and angels are all ourselves: Sufism and the mystic tradition | p. 282 |
The latter days have brought forth a new prophet: The origins of Ahmadiyya | p. 284 |
Islam must shed the influence of the West: The rise of Islamic revivalism | p. 286 |
Islam can be a modern religion: The compatibility of faith | p. 291 |
Modern Religions from 15th Century |
We must live as saint-soldiers: The Sikh code of conduct | p. 296 |
All may enter our gateway to God: Class systems and faith | p. 302 |
Messages to and from home: The African roots of Santeria | p. 304 |
Ask yourself: "What would Jesus do?": Following the example of Christ | p. 306 |
We shall know him through his messengers: The revelation of Baha'i | p. 308 |
Brush away the dust of sin: Tenrikyo and the Joyous Life | p. 310 |
These gifts must be meant for us: Cargo cults of the Pacific islands | p. 311 |
The end of the world is nigh: Awaiting the Day of Judgment | p. 312 |
The lion of Judah has arisen: Ras Tafari is our savior | p. 314 |
All religions are equal: Cao Dài aims to unify all faiths | p. 316 |
We have forgotten our true nature: Clearing the mind with Scientology | p. 317 |
Find a sinless world through marriage: Purging sin in the Unification Church | p. 318 |
Spirits rest between lives in Summerland: Wicca and the Otherworld | p. 319 |
Negative thoughts are just raindrops in an ocean of bliss: Finding inner peace through meditation | p. 320 |
What's true for me is the truth: A faith open to all beliefs | p. 321 |
Chanting Hare Krishna cleanses the heart: Devotion to the Sweet Lord | p. 322 |
Through qigong we access cosmic energy: Life-energy cultivation in Falun Dafa | p. 323 |
Directory | p. 324 |
Glossary | p. 340 |
Index | p. 344 |
Acknowledgments | p. 351 |