Ethics And Morality In Hinduism And Judaism: Devon Kilburn Alexander Yared Matthew Arbesfeld

Ethics and Morality in Hinduism and Judaism Devon Kilburn Alexander Yared Matthew Arbesfeld

Fall 2009 AP World History

Introduction to Ethics and Morals What are ethics? • Ethics is a branch of philosophy that seeks to address the questions of right and wrong. • A central aspect of ethics is "the good life", or the life worth living. • It is believed that through obedient religious conduct one can achieve the best life possible. What are morals? • Morals are often considered synonymous with ethics. • Whereas ethics are usually strict written codes, morals are arbitrarily and subjectively created by society.

Hinduism: Beginnings and Significance • Date of origin unknown, believed to be anywhere from 3,500 to 7,000 years old. • No single founder. • Began in India and spread across South East Asia when Ashoka Maurya converted to Hinduism. • Vedas—book of Hindu law. • Mahabharata—epic poem explaining Hindu origins, beliefs, rituals, etc. • Three major gods—Brahma the Creator, Vishnu the Protector, Shiva the Destroyer. • Diwali—a four day festival of lights. Each day is dedicated to different story about a Hindu deity. • Hinduism now comprises 13% of world population: equivalent to 837 million followers.

Judaism: Beginnings and Significance • Believed to be founded about 4,000 years ago by Abraham in Jerusalem. • Spread far and wide after being forcibly removed by Romans. “Great Diaspora” • Torah—holy scroll on which Yahweh’s teachings are written. Also known as the “Old Testament” • Haftara—Book of Prophets. Read from when Torah reading was banned. • Monotheistic—belief in one God named Adonai. • Hannukah—Festival of Lights that commemorates the Maccabean revolt. • 14 million followers.

Ethical and Moral Differences

Ethical and Moral Differences

Ethical and Moral Similarities • The Jewish ten commandments and the Hindu Vedas both establish a code of law by which all citizens must abide. • Both religions celebrate festivals of light, Judaism has Hanukkah, and Hindus celebrate Diwali. • The Jewish Yom Kippur mirrors the Hindu belief of renouncing evil and separating one’s self from their mistakes to achieve purity.

Ethical and Moral Similarities • Both are tolerant of other religions, Hinduism says that there is no one path to the Gods’ love. • Both stress non-violence and appreciation of fellow man • Both believe that we have a moral obligation to uphold the truth, and that lying is a sin.

Conclusion • Written codes in Hinduism and Judaism often preach different ethical and moral values. • The disparities between the religions are mostly a result of the dissimilar regions where they developed. • Surprising, there are a number of ethical similarities between the two religions.

Bibliography "Judaism.about.com." Judaism.about.com. About.com, 18 Oct. 2009. Web. 18 Oct. 2009. . Bhaskarananda, Swami. "Hinduism in a Nutshell." Vedanta-Seattle. The Vedanta Society of Western Washington, 2009. Web. 19 Oct. 2009. . Cohen, Marsha B. Jewish Ethics Resource Site. N.p., n.d. Web. 19 Oct. 2009. . Das, Subhamoy. Hinduism.about.com. About.com, n.d. Web. 18 Oct. 2009. . Stearns, Peter N, et al. World Civilizations: The Global Experience. N.p.: Addison-Welsley Inc., 2003. Print.