`R315 TOPICS FOR ASSIGNMENTS`

BY PROFESSOR DALE CANNON Email: cannodw@wou.edu

GENERAL INSTRUCTIONS: For the one page papers and the comparative paper you may use this topic assignment guide to help you identify a specific category and tradition within which you are to identify a more specific or particular topic. You are not limited to the items mentioned here; they are meant only as a guide. But should you have a doubt about your choice of topic, especially in choosing something not specifically mentioned here, by all means check it out with me as early as possible. Under the headings 'Associated topics' you will find related terms under which you will likely be able to find useful information in encyclopedias, dictionaries, and indexes of broader or more general works. You are especially encouraged to make use of the Encyclopedia of Religion (associated topics listed below are for the most part topic headings from this encyclopedia). (Don't forget to make use of the index volume, especially if there is no direct entry on the topic you choose.) An even fuller listing is found in the recommendations for further reading at the end of ch. 3 of my Six Ways of Being Religious.
For the one-page interpretations, the narrower and more specific the focus the better; i.e., focus on a specific aspect of a larger topic -- such as 'stoning Satan' on the Muslim Pilgrimage to Mecca, or repeating the 'Nembutsu' among Japanese Pure Land Buddhists. For the final paper, pick one phenomenon from each of two different religions (not two denominations of the same tradition) that exemplifies one of the Ways of Being Religious, but pick phenomena that are reasonably similar -- e.g., a mystic from each of two traditions (e.g., Rumi in Islamic Sufism and Simeon the New Theologian in Orthodox Christian Hesychasm), or a specific sacramental ritual from each of two traditions (e.g., Passover in Judaism and Tea Ceremony in Zen Buddhism). You are encouraged (but not required) to choose one from a familiar tradition and one from an unfamiliar tradition.

I. THE WAY OF SACRED RITE

[Associated topics: worship and cultic life; priesthood; ordination; pilgrimage; the sacred and the profane; symbolism; iconography; icons; religious art; religious music; religious dance; religious architecture; temple; basilica; cathedral and church; stupa; worship; puja; sacrifice; sacrament; eucharist; baptism; liturgical year; rite; life passage rite; ritual; liturgy; etc.]

    a. An elaborate ritual within a non-literate, tribal culture (e.g., Navaho sand painting used in healing; Sioux Sun Dance; Sweat Lodge Ceremony; etc.)
    b. A major expression of Christian sacramental liturgy, or of sacred art or architecture associated with it, or pilgrimage; one of the seven Sacraments; other sacramental rites; the Daily Office (a cycle of formal corporate prayers); liturgy of a holy day or holy season (e.g., Advent, Epiphany, Holy Week, Easter Vigil). (Note: not found in non-sacramental protestant traditions. Sacramental protestant traditions where it can be found include some Lutheran and some Anglican or Episcopal expressions.))
    c. A sacramental ritual from some major oriental tradition (e.g., Confucian rite of Ancestor Worship; Taoist Rite of Cosmic Renewal; Taoist funeral ceremony).
    d. The Upanayama initiation ritual for 'twice born' upper caste males in traditional Hinduism, or other life passage rituals. The rituals which fill a day of an observant orthodox Hindu of the Brahman caste, or simply one of the more important ones. One of the great Vedic fire rituals.
    e. Shingnon Buddhist fire ritual. Zen Buddhist tea ceremony [Chanoyu]. Initiation ritual into Buddhist monastic life (varies somewhat with country and sect of Buddhism).
    f. Jewish observance of Passover, Yom Kippur, or one of the other holy days. Orthodox Jewish observance of the Sabbath and synagogue worship.
    g. Muslim pilgrimage to Mecca [Hajj]. (Note: In Islam and to some extent in Judaism, sacramental tending rituals are subordinated to the way of sacred rite.) Muslim observance of the fast of Ramadan. Shi'ite Muslim observance of the 10th of Muharram (known as the Tazi'ah).

II. THE WAY OF RIGHT ACTION

[Associated topics: prophet (moral); teacher (moral); leader (moral); saint; martyr; social movements; religious communities; religious ethics; moral teachings; law (moral); religious law or commandment; duty and obligation (religious and moral); virtue or virtues (religious and moral); the way (Tao or Dao in Chinese, Do in Japanese); merit (religious and moral); repentance; etc.]

    a. An example from the Christian tradition (e.g., Mother Teresa, Dorothy Day, Martin Luther King, Jr., Quaker peace witness, Mennonite way of life, Seventh Day Adventist way of life).
    b. Mormon way of life and efforts to advance to higher levels of priesthood. Jehovah's Witness way of life.
    c. Muslim emphasis on submitting all of life to the will of God.
    d. Orthodox Jewish observance of bringing life into accordance with Torah [halakah] and the commandments [mitzvot]. Reform Jewish efforts to bring about social justice.
    e. Karma yoga [the so-called path to salvation through the detached performance of one's duty] from the Hindu tradition (or a specific expressions of the dharma [duty] of caste [varna] and stage of life [ashrama]). Gandhi's "satyagraha." Jain and Hindu practice of non-violence [ahimsa]. Hindu pilgrimage.
    f. Confucian observance of appropriate decorum or ritual propriety [li] in all things. Taoist concern to harmonize one's life with the Tao of nature [wu wei].
    g. Buddhist teaching of compassion [karuna]. Buddhist social activism (e.g., Sarvodaya). Buddhist rule of life [vinaya]. The Buddhist community -- primarily monastic [samgha]. The Japanese Buddhist social prophet Nichiren, or any one of the several religious tradiitons stemming from him. Zen Buddhist practice of one of the traditional arts (e.g., calligraphy, landscape painting, flower arranging, gardening) or one of the martial arts (e.g., swordfighting, archery) as a spiritual discipline. (Note: these arts incorporate elements of the way of mystical quest and possibly elements of the way of sacred rite.)

III. THE WAY OF DEVOTION

[Associated topics: devotion (religious); faith (devotional); bhakti/bhaktism; pietism; praise (spontaneous); religious emotions and affections; devotee; pastor; preacher; shepherd (of souls); pastoral guidance; grace; consolation; reliance upon divine assistance; conversion (as a cathartic emotional experience); etc.]

    a. A specific expression or major figure of Protestant evangelical piety; medieval moderna devotio; the Pietist movement; the First and Second Great Awakenings in America; Revivalism; popular Christian religiosity
    b. A specific expression or major figure of Hindu Bhaktism; divinities such as Krishna, Vishnu, Kali, or Shiva; Vaishnavism, Shaivism, or Shaktism.
    c. A specific expression or major figure of Pure Land Buddhism, as in Jodo Shinshu or Jodoshu and figures such as Shinran, Honen, or Rennyo; bodhisattvas such as Kuan Yin (Kannon in Japanese) or Avalokiteshvara; buddhas such as Amitabha (Amida in Japanese).
    d. Popular Islamic devotional piety, often associated with sufism (though sufism strictly speaking is more an expression of the Way of Mystical Quest). Devotionalism to the Imams and other saints in Shi'a Islam.
    e. A specific expression of devotional piety in Hasidic Judaism. Some forms of it can be found in classical, mainstream Judaism.

IV. THE WAY OF SHAMANIC MEDIATION

[Associated topics: shamanism; shaman; prophecy; power; healing; spiritualism; spirits; exorcism; possession; demons; spirit helpers; glossolalia; ecstasy (religious); trance (shamanic); visions; visionary meditations; miracles; psychic powers; divination; geomancy; mediums; necromancy; etc.]

    a. Pentecostal or Charismatic Christian phenomena and the expression of "supernatural gifts of the spirit." Various cults of saints.
    b. An example of a specific expression of native American shamanism as in healing or securing game; the plains Indian vision quest. An example of shamanism from some other non-literate tradition, e.g., African, Siberian.
    d. A practice of the American Spiritualist Church.
    e. Tibetan Buddhist Shamanism (as in guiding the dead in their passage to a new birth; or in 'materializations' of Buddhist divinities). Mahasiddhas. Japanese Buddhist shamanism (as in the Shugendo tradition of mountain ascetics, and the figure of En no Gyoja).
    f. Chinese Taoist (or folk religious) divination, geomancy [feng shui], or necromancy (communication with the dead).
    g. An expression of shamanism among the wali of African Islam, or other parts of the Islamic world.
    h. Shamanic expressions among the tzaddiks of Jewish Hasidism.

IV. THE WAY OF MYSTICAL QUEST

[Associated topics: mystic; spiritual master or guide; mysticism; mystical union; enlightenment; consciousness, states of; attention; meditation; contemplation; monasticism; spiritual direction; spirituality; esoteric teaching; contemplative prayer; asceticism; ascetic; hermit; psychological exercises/practices; spiritual disciplines; yoga (esp. raja or kundalini yoga); etc.]

    a. A representative expression of orthodox Christian mysticism (e.g., any of the great hesychasts of Eastern monasticism such as Symeon the New Theologian, or any of the great Western mystics such as St. Bernard, or some specific practice such as the 'Jesus prayer' or the 'Exercises' of Ignatius). Alternatively, a specific form of Christian monastic practice.
    b. Theravada monastic Buddhism (and vipassana meditation). Zen Buddhist zazen (especially in Soto Zen). Other forms in Tibetan Buddhism or Yogacara Buddhism. Alternatively, a specific form of Buddhist monastic practice.
    c. Some form of Dhyana Yoga (e.g., raja or kundalini yoga) from the Hindu tradition. A specific form of Hindu monastic practice [ashram], forest hermit practice, or sannyasin practice (life as a 'renouncer').
    d. An expression of Taoist yoga, such as tai ch'i chuan.
    e. An expression of one of the Islamic Sufi traditions, or one of the great sufi mystics.
    f. An expression of the Jewish tradition of Kabalah, or one of the great Jewish mystics.

V. THE WAY OF REASONED INQUIRY

[Associated topics: wisdom; gnosis; sage; study; theology; philosophical theology; religious philosophy; scholasticism; insight; teacher (theological or philosophical vs. moral); teachings; doctrine; commentary (especially scriptural); world view; intellectual, theory; first principles; reason, argument, and proof; etc.]

    a. Traditional Jewish Talmudic study, or one of the great talmudic scholars, Jewish theologians, or Jewish philosophers.
    b. Augustinian (or Neo-Platonic) Christian philosophy (as in Augustine, Eriugena, or Anselm), or Thomistic high medieval Scholasticism (as in Thomas Aquinas or Duns Scotus), or a specific figure thereof. Christian theology as a life activity (Protestant or Roman Catholic), or a specific theologian or philosopher.
    c. An expression of Islamic philosophy [falsafah], theology [kalaam], or law [fiqh or shari'ah].
    d. An expression of one of the many forms of Hindu Jnana Yoga (the path of salvation through intellectual realization). (Non-dual Vedanta is only one of several 'schools' [darshana] of traditional philosophy.)
    e. An expression of one of the Buddhist wisdom [prajna and prajna paramita] traditions (e.g., Madhyamika Buddhism, Yogacara Buddhism; Rinzai Zen [with its emphasis on solving koans]; Dge-lugs-pa [also transliterated Gelukpa] Tibetan Buddhism). A specific Buddhist philosopher such as Nagarjuna. A specific Buddhist concept or doctrine, such as sunyata (emptiness).
    f. Confucian pursuit of sagehood (the ideal of the ch'un tzu or jun-zi [the ideal or truly human person], especially as exemplified in so called Neo-Confucianism).

Western Oregon University

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Last Modified 4/1/98