Religious Beliefs, GNO-HOL
Our religious beliefs can affect our lifestyle, our perceptions, and our way of relating to fellow human beings. Is there a higher power (or powers) that governs the universe and judges all of us? Does committing a mortal sin mean the death of a soul, or is there a chance for forgiveness? The answers to such questions differ widely across different religions.
Religious Beliefs Encyclopedia Articles By Title
gnome
gnome, in European folklore, dwarfish, subterranean goblin or earth spirit who guards mines of precious treasures......
gnosticism
gnosticism, any of various related philosophical and religious movements prominent in the Greco-Roman world in......
goblin
goblin, in Western folklore, a wandering sprite and bogeyman of sorts that is usually mischievous but often malicious.......
god and goddess
god and goddess, generic terms for the many deities of ancient and modern polytheistic religions. Such deities......
God, existence of
existence of God, in religion, the proposition that there is a supreme supernatural or preternatural being that......
God, Kingdom of
Kingdom of God, in Christianity, the spiritual realm over which God reigns as king, or the fulfillment on Earth......
godparent
godparent, in Christianity, one who stands surety for another in the rite of baptism. In the modern baptism of......
Gods and Monsters in Homer’s Odyssey
The gods are ubiquitous in Greek mythology, causing chaos as well as restoring order in human lives. In Homer’s......
gohei
gohei, in the Shintō religion of Japan, a kind of paper or cloth offering made to a god. The gohei consists of......
golem
golem, in Jewish folklore, an image endowed with life. The term is used in the Bible (Psalms 139:16) and in Talmudic......
Good Friday
Good Friday, the Friday before Easter, the day on which Christians annually observe the commemoration of the Crucifixion......
goryō
goryō, in Japanese religion, vengeful spirits of the dead. In the Heian period (ad 794–1185) goryō were generally......
govi
govi, in Vodou, a ceremonial object used in the ritual of “reclaiming” the immortal aspect of a human spirit (gwobonanj)......
grace
grace, in Christian theology, the spontaneous, unmerited gift of the divine favour in the salvation of sinners,......
grateful dead
grateful dead, in folktales of many cultures, the spirit of a deceased person who bestows benefits on the one responsible......
Great Dionysia
Great Dionysia, ancient dramatic festival in which tragedy, comedy, and satyric drama originated; it was held in......
Greek mythology
Greek mythology, body of stories concerning the gods, heroes, monsters, and rituals of the ancient Greeks and Classical......
Greek religion
Greek religion, religious beliefs and practices of the ancient Hellenes. Greek religion is not the same as Greek......
griffin
griffin, composite mythological creature with a lion’s body (winged or wingless) and a bird’s head, usually that......
Grihya-sutra
Grihya-sutra, in Hinduism, any of a number of manuals detailing the domestic (grihya) religious ceremonies performed......
gsung-’bum
gsung-’bum, the collected writings of a Tibetan or Mongolian lama. These series of works represent an indigenous......
gtor-ma
gtor-ma, sacrificial cakes used in Tibetan Buddhist ceremonies as offerings to deities. The unbaked cakes are prepared......
Guardian spirit
Guardian spirit, supernatural teacher, frequently depicted in animal form, who guides an individual in every important......
guei
guei, in indigenous Chinese religion, a troublesome spirit that roams the world causing misfortune, illness, and......
gunasthana
gunasthana, in the Indian religion Jainism, any of the 14 stages of spiritual development through which a soul......
guru
guru, in Hinduism, a personal spiritual teacher or guide. From at least the mid-1st millennium bce, when the Upanishads......
Guru
Guru, in Sikhism, any of the 10 leaders of Sikhism in northern India. The Punjabi word sikh (“learner”) is related......
Guru Purnima
Guru Purnima, a festival observed in India, Nepal, and Bhutan to honor spiritual and academic teachers and mentors.......
gwobonanj
gwobonanj, in Vodou, the immortal aspect of a human spirit, or the human life force. According to Vodou theology,......
Gāṇapatya
Gāṇapatya, member of an esoteric Hindu sect devoted to the worship of the elephant-headed Gaṇeśa (also called Gaṇapati)......
Hadith
Hadith, corpus of the sayings or traditions of the Prophet Muhammad, revered by Muslims as a major source of religious......
Hafṭarah
Hafṭarah, selective reading from Old Testament prophets recited in Jewish synagogues during the morning service......
hag
hag, in European folklore, an ugly and malicious old woman who practices witchcraft, with or without supernatural......
Haggada
Haggada, in Judaism, those parts of rabbinical, or Talmudic, literature that do not deal directly with the laws......
Haggadah
Haggadah, in Judaism, the special book containing the story of the biblical Exodus as it must be retold at the......
hagiography
hagiography, the body of literature describing the lives and veneration of the Christian saints. The literature......
Hail Mary
Hail Mary, a principal prayer of the Roman Catholic Church, comprising three parts, addressed to the Virgin Mary,......
hajj
hajj, in Islam, the pilgrimage to the holy city of Mecca in Saudi Arabia, which every adult Muslim must make at......
Halakhah
Halakhah, in Judaism, the totality of laws and ordinances that have evolved since biblical times to regulate religious......
halal
halal, in Islam, any act or object sanctioned by Islamic law. Although the term may be broadly applied to virtually......
Hallel
Hallel, (Hebrew: “Praise”), Jewish liturgical designation for Psalms 113–118 (“Egyptian Hallel”) as read in synagogues......
hallelujah
hallelujah, Hebrew liturgical expression, usually rendered in English as “praise the Lord.” It appears in the Hebrew......
Halo
Halo, in art, radiant circle or disk surrounding the head of a holy person, a representation of spiritual character......
haltia
haltia, a Balto-Finnic domestic spirit who oversees the household and protects it from harm. The word haltia is......
hands, imposition of
imposition of hands, ritual act in which a priest or other religious functionary places one or both hands palms......
hanif
hanif, in the Qurʾān, the sacred scripture of Islām, an Arabic designation for true monotheists (especially Abraham)......
Hanukkah
Hanukkah, Jewish festival that begins at sundown on Kislev 25 (usually in December, according to the Gregorian......
Hanukkah, the Festival of Lights
Hanukkah falls on the eve of the 25th of the Jewish month of Kislev and lasts eight days. That lands it somewhere......
haoma
haoma, in Zoroastrianism, sacred plant and the drink made from it. The preparation of the drink from the plant......
harai
harai, in Japanese religion, any of numerous Shintō purification ceremonies. Harai rites, and similar misogi exercises......
Haruspices
Haruspices, ancient Etruscan diviners, “entrail observers” whose art consisted primarily in deducing the will of......
Harvest Home
Harvest Home, traditional English harvest festival, celebrated from antiquity and surviving to modern times in......
Hasidism
Hasidism, movement within Judaism that emphasizes religious piety and was developed in eastern Europe in the 18th-century......
Hatha Yoga
Hatha Yoga, school of Yoga that stresses mastery of the body as a way of attaining a state of spiritual perfection......
Hauhau
Hauhau, any of the radical members of the Maori Pai Marire (Maori: “Good and Peaceful”) religion, founded in 1862......
Havdala
Havdala, a ceremony in Jewish homes and in synagogues concluding the Sabbath and religious festivals. The ceremony......
hazing
hazing, form of initiation that occurs when new members enter certain social groups, most often characterized by......
Headhunting
Headhunting, practice of removing and preserving human heads. Headhunting arises in some cultures from a belief......
healing cult
healing cult, religious group or movement that places major, or even exclusive, emphasis on the treatment or prevention......
Heathenry
Heathenry, a modern Pagan, or Neo-Pagan, religion. Its followers, Heathens, are inspired by the pre-Christian religions......
heaven
heaven, in many religions, the abode of God or the gods, as well as of angels, deified humans, the blessed dead,......
Heb-Sed
Heb-Sed, one of the oldest feasts of ancient Egypt, celebrated by the king after 30 years of rule and repeated......
Hebraic law
Hebraic law, body of ancient Hebrew law codes found in various places in the Old Testament and similar to earlier......
Hebrew literature
Hebrew literature, the body of written works produced in the Hebrew language and distinct from Jewish literature,......
heka
heka, in ancient Egyptian religion, the personification of one of the attributes of the creator god Re-Atum; the......
hell
hell, in many religious traditions, the abode, usually beneath the earth, of the unredeemed dead or the spirits......
Hellenistic religion
Hellenistic religion, any of the various systems of beliefs and practices of eastern Mediterranean peoples from......
heresy
heresy, theological doctrine or system rejected as false by ecclesiastical authority. The Greek word hairesis (from......
herm
herm, in Greek religion, sacred object of stone connected with the cult of Hermes, the fertility god. According......
Hermeneutics
Hermeneutics, the study of the general principles of biblical interpretation. For both Jews and Christians throughout......
hermit
hermit, one who retires from society, primarily for religious reasons, and lives in solitude. In Christianity the......
hero
hero, in literature, broadly, the main character in a literary work; the term is also used in a specialized sense......
Hesychasm
Hesychasm, in Eastern Christianity, type of monastic life in which practitioners seek divine quietness (Greek hēsychia)......
hex sign
hex sign, emblem painted on a barn, especially in Pennsylvania Dutch country, an agricultural region in southeastern......
hierophant
hierophant, (“displayer of holy things”), in ancient Greece, chief of the Eleusinian cult, the best-known of the......
hieros gamos
hieros gamos, (Greek: “sacred marriage”), sexual relations of fertility deities in myths and rituals, characteristic......
High God
High God, in anthropology and the history of religion, a type of supreme deity found among many nonliterate peoples......
high place
high place, Israelite or Canaanite open-air shrine usually erected on an elevated site. Prior to the conquest of......
high priest
high priest, in Judaism, the chief religious functionary in the Temple of Jerusalem, whose unique privilege was......
hijiri
hijiri, (Japanese: “holy man”), in Japanese religion, a man of great personal magnetism and spiritual power, as......
Hilaria
Hilaria, in Roman religion, day of merriment and rejoicing in the Cybele-Attis cult and in the Isis-Osiris cult,......
himoragi
himoragi, in Japanese Shintō tradition, sacred areas or ritual precincts marked off by rocks, tree branches, and......
Hindu calendar
Hindu calendar, dating system used in India from about 1000 bce and still used to establish dates of the Hindu......
Hindu Holidays
Colored powders coat revelers from head to toe at the vibrant springtime Holi festival. For the autumn Diwali festival,......
Hindu temple
Hindu temple, sacred space in Hinduism for devotional worship of Hindu deities. Temples are considered to be homes......
Hinduism
Hinduism, major world religion originating on the Indian subcontinent and comprising several and varied systems......
- Introduction
- Beliefs, Practices, & History
- Rituals, Beliefs, Traditions
- Karma, Samsara, Moksha
- Origins, Beliefs, Practices
- Prehistoric, Beliefs, Rituals
- Vedic, Upanishads, Dharma
- Southeast Asia, Pacific, Religion
- Islam, 11th-19th Century
- Reforms, Revivalism, Colonialism
- Struggle, Independence, India
- Global Reach, Beliefs, Practices
- Rigveda, Vedic, Dharma
- Brahmanas, Aranyakas, Vedas
- Beliefs, Gods, Dharma
- Upanishads, Vedas, Brahman
- Sutras, Shastras, Smritis
- Ramayana, Dharma, Bhakti
- Bhagavadgita, Dharma, Karma
- Cosmology, Dharma, Brahman
- Vaishnavism, Shaivism
- Shaivism, Shiva, Devotion
- Upanishads, Vedas, Bhagavad Gita
- Tantra, Rituals, Deities
- Tantra, Rituals, Practices
- Tantra, Rituals, Magic
- Vernacular Literatures
- Beliefs, Rituals, Practices
- Deities, Beliefs, Rituals
- Pilgrimage, Rituals, Beliefs
- Daily Offerings
- Sacred Times, Festivals
- Caste System, Dharma, Varna
- Yoga, Dharma, Vedas
- Arts, Rituals, Beliefs
- Beliefs, Practices, & History
hippogriff
hippogriff, a legendary animal that has the foreparts of a winged griffin and the body and hindquarters of a horse.......
historical criticism
historical criticism, in the study of biblical literature, method of criticism of the Hebrew Bible (Old Testament)......
Hito-no-michi
Hito-no-michi, (Japanese: “Way of Man”), Japanese religious sect founded by Miki Tokuharu (1871–1938); it was revived......
hitogami
hitogami, (Japanese: “man-god”), a way of distinguishing certain characteristics of Japanese religion by focusing......
Hogmanay
Hogmanay, New Year’s festival in Scotland and parts of northern England. The name is also used for the dole of......
Holi
Holi, Hindu spring festival celebrated in India and Nepal on the full-moon day of Phalguna (February–March). Participants......
Holi: Festival of Colors
Every spring, people across India and around the world celebrate the Hindu festival Holi, throwing colored water......
Holy Cross, Exaltation of the
Exaltation of the Holy Cross, liturgical feast celebrated on September 14 to honour the cross on which Jesus Christ......
holy days of obligation
holy days of obligation, in the Roman Catholic Church, religious feast days on which Catholics must attend mass......
Holy Family, Feast of the
Feast of the Holy Family, Roman Catholic religious festival falling on the first Sunday after Christmas. Although......
Holy Innocents, Feast of the
Feast of the Holy Innocents, Christian feast in remembrance of the massacre of young children in Bethlehem by King......
holy order
holy order, any of several grades in the ordained ministry of some of the Christian churches, comprising at various......
Holy Saturday
Holy Saturday, Christian religious observance that falls on the day before Easter Sunday and commemorates the final......
Holy Trinity, Feast of the
Feast of the Holy Trinity, Christian feast in honour of the Trinity, celebrated in Western liturgical churches......