Introduction to World

Religion and Belief

System
 Quarter 1 – Module 2&3:
Influence in Society and
Interconnectedness of Geography, Culture
and Religions
Introduction To world religion and belief system – Grade 12
Alternative Delivery Mode
Quarter 1 – Module 1: Title
First Edition, 2020

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 Introduction to World
Religion and Belief
System
Quarter 1 – Module 2&3:
Influence in Society and
Interconnectedness of Geography, Culture
and Religions
Introductory Message
For the facilitator:

Welcome to the Introduction to World Religion and Belief System Alternative

Delivery Mode (ADM) Module on Influence in Society and Interconnectedness of
Geography, Culture and Religions.

This module was collaboratively designed, developed and reviewed by educators

both from public and private institutions to assist you, the teacher or facilitator in
helping the learners meet the standards set by the K to 12 Curriculum while
overcoming their personal, social, and economic constraints in schooling.

This learning resource hopes to engage the learners into guided and independent
learning activities at their own pace and time. Furthermore, this also aims to help
learners acquire the needed 21st century skills while taking into consideration
their needs and circumstances.

In addition to the material in the main text, you will also see this box in the body of
the module:

Notes to the Teacher

This contains helpful tips or strategies
that will help you in guiding the learners.

As a facilitator you are expected to orient the learners on how to use this module.
You also need to keep track of the learners' progress while allowing them to
manage their own learning. Furthermore, you are expected to encourage and assist
the learners as they do the tasks included in the module.

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For the learner:

Welcome to the Introduction to World Religion and Belief System Alternative

Delivery Mode (ADM) Module on Influence in Society and Interconnectedness of
Geography, Culture and Religions.

The hand is one of the most symbolized part of the human body. It is often used to
depict skill, action and purpose. Through our hands we may learn, create and
accomplish. Hence, the hand in this learning resource signifies that you as a
learner is capable and empowered to successfully achieve the relevant
competencies and skills at your own pace and time. Your academic success lies in
your own hands!

This module was designed to provide you with fun and meaningful opportunities
for guided and independent learning at your own pace and time. You will be
enabled to process the contents of the learning resource while being an active
learner.

This module has the following parts and corresponding icons:

What I Need to Know This will give you an idea of the skills or
competencies you are expected to learn in
the module.

What I Know This part includes an activity that aims to

check what you already know about the
lesson to take. If you get all the answers
correct (100%), you may decide to skip this
module.

What’s In This is a brief drill or review to help you link

the current lesson with the previous one.

What’s New In this portion, the new lesson will be

introduced to you in various ways such as a
story, a song, a poem, a problem opener, an
activity or a situation.

What is It This section provides a brief discussion of

the lesson. This aims to help you discover
and understand new concepts and skills.

What’s More This comprises activities for independent

practice to solidify your understanding and
skills of the topic. You may check the
answers to the exercises using the Answer
Key at the end of the module.

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 What I Have Learned This includes questions or blank
sentence/paragraph to be filled in to
process what you learned from the lesson.

What I Can Do This section provides an activity which will

help you transfer your new knowledge or
skill into real life situations or concerns.

Assessment This is a task which aims to evaluate your

level of mastery in achieving the learning
competency.

Additional Activities In this portion, another activity will be given

to you to enrich your knowledge or skill of
the lesson learned. This also tends retention
of learned concepts.

Answer Key This contains answers to all activities in the

module.

At the end of this module you will also find:

References This is a list of all sources used in

developing this module.

The following are some reminders in using this module:

1. Use the module with care. Do not put unnecessary mark/s on any part of
the module. Use a separate sheet of paper in answering the exercises.
2. Don’t forget to answer What I Know before moving on to the other activities
included in the module.
3. Read the instruction carefully before doing each task.
4. Observe honesty and integrity in doing the tasks and checking your
answers.
5. Finish the task at hand before proceeding to the next.
6. Return this module to your teacher/facilitator once you are through with it.
If you encounter any difficulty in answering the tasks in this module, do not
hesitate to consult your teacher or facilitator. Always bear in mind that you are
not alone.

We hope that through this material, you will experience meaningful learning
and gain deep understanding of the relevant competencies. You can do it!

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 What I Need to Know

This module was designed and written with you in mind. It is here to help you
master the nature of Biology. The scope of this module permits it to be used in
many different learning situations. The language used recognizes the diverse
vocabulary level of students. The lessons are arranged to follow the standard
sequence of the course. But the order in which you read them can be changed to
correspond with the textbook you are now using.

The module is divided into three Topics, namely:

 Origin of World Religion
 Historical Foundation
 Geographical Concept

After going through this module, you are expected to:

 Discuss how laws and social norms vary by region and localities;
 Explain the geography of faith;
 Analyse the major role in establishing three monotheistic religions;
 Define the four great religions; and
 Rationalize the major differences between Dhramic religion and Abrahamic
religion.

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 What I Know

1. The prophet and patriarch played a major role in the establishment of the
three monotheistic (belief that there is one God) religions: namely Judaism,
Christianity and Islam. ____________
 
2. The Buddhist people regard Abraham as the ancestor of the Israel trough his
descendants Isaac and Jacob. ____________
 
3. The existence of humankind for so long a time has resulted in the formation
of religion and belief system. ____________
 
4. The “Sikhs” religion teaches salvation by perfection through successive lives,
and non injury to living creatures, and is noted for its ascetics. ____________
 
5. The Christians consider Abraham’s son Ishmael as the ancestor of the Arabs.
____________
 
6. Majority of Muslims in Iraq and Iran associate themselves with the Shi’a sect.
____________
 
7. Buddhism is not widely held in India rather in the neighboring countries
located in South Asia, East Asia, and Southeast Asia. ____________
 
8. What geographical features of this arid land could have influenced the
growth, evolution, and expansion of these religions from the time of the
Hindus. ____________
 
9. Even Buddhist consider dharma an important religious site. ____________
 
10. Korea’s population is concentrated primarily in the eastern and southern
parts where agricultural activities flourish. ____________
 
11. The supremacy of China on the eastern front can be explained by the role of
its environment and geography. ____________
 
12. By the time of Buddhism, Confucian teachings had become the state
religion.
 
13. Majority of Indians are Hindus. ____________
 
14. Dharma served as the guiding principle to abandon and withdraw from the
disorder brought about by incessant struggle for power, wealth, and
prestige. ____________
 
15. Dharmic religions do not compel their adherents to profess their devotions
to be a believer or a practitioner. ____________

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7
 Origin of the World Religion
Similar to living organisms, religions are born in history and they gradually develop
into living traditions and effect the lives of the followers, Belief systems originate I certain
localities within the context of culture and even geography. From basic forms, religious
continually evolved into complicated system filled with rites and practices that made
recruitment of members necessary. Quite unfortunately, other religious also decline as in the
case of Zoroastrianism (One of the world's oldest continuously practiced religions. It is a
multi-tendency faith centered on a dualistic cosmology of good and evil) that once flourished
in South Asia but is now only confine to Iran, India, and Central Asia. They may give driving
force to establish new movements within religious groups such as in the case of Buddhism.
The may also contribute to the foundation of other religions, such as those with Christianity
that borrowed fro Judaism, and themes Islam borrowed from Christianity and Judaism. This
lesson will deal with origin of religions along with the geographical context and cultural that
have impacted the establishment of world religions and belief systems.

Needpix.com

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 What’s In

Good day dear students, before we proceed on the new topic, let us have a
short review of what you have learned from the previous one. Kindly write your
answer on the space provided.

In your own understanding, what is Zoroastrinism?

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Notes to the Teacher

This part of the module will help us to have a wider
understanding on the historical development of arts from the pre-
colonial period to present time. This will also give an insight on a
clear understanding of contemporary arts and how it affect the
lives of people in the society. Various contemporary art forms
were discussed to guide the students to differentiate
contemporary arts from the modern art.
Also, the national artist award was presented to determine
the significant contributions of our artist in the societal issues.

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 What’s New

Scholars hold the view that religion is universal and can be found in all known
contemporary societies (Ember & Ember 1997).Various theories have been formulated to
explain the origin of religion. Even prehistoric (very old) humans, such as Neanderthals and
Cro-Magnons, have practiced a set of belief systems in one way or another.Other forms of
this beliefs are as follows:

 burying their dead

 painting on the walls of caves
 carving images from stones

Because of the existence humankind, religion and beliefs were formed. It is known
that many religious may have been unrecorded in the past. Some of it may have died down
already
 
THE PATRIARCH ABRAHAM
The patriarch and prophet played a major role in the establishment monotheistic
religions. What is Monotheistic religion? It is a religion believing that there is one God.
Three Monotheistic religions

 The Jewish people regard Abraham as the ancestor of the Israel trough his descendants
Isaac and Jacob.  
 The Muslims consider Abraham’s son Ishmael as the ancestor of the Arabs.
 The Christian view Abraham as “father in faith” as narrated in the bible and the ancestor
of Jesus Christ.

It is said that the traces of famous religious personalities originate in Abraham’s sons
with different wives through their descendants. The significance of Abraham in these three

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religions lies in the fact that the prophet or patriarch appears as an element figure for a belief
system of monotheistic.
 
THE INDIAN MOSAIC
The many conquerors that came to India were gradually absorbed into the natiIndian
religions. With great movements of various people in the past came their customs, arts,
languages, literature, beliefs, and many more facets of their culture. The Harappan
civilization, the Aryan influence;, the local dynasties, and the Muslim conquest all had their
fair share in building the intricate Indian mosaic. As a result, variety and complexity
characterize Indian Culture.
Religion is an essential part of the Indian tradition. Four great religions originated in
India are:

 Hinduism – perfectly reflects Indian heterogeneity (diverse) with its eclectic, diversified,
and assorted ways of religious expression. No founder, no one sacred book.
 Buddhism – Center its attention on the figure of the Buddha. He is not a God but a human
who discovered how to terminate the sufferings in order to escape the painful and
continuous cycle of birth.
 Jainism - The Jain religion teaches salvation by perfection through successive lives, and
non injury to living creatures, and is noted for its ascetics.
 Sikhism - is a faith whose followers are called "Sikhs". The word Sikh means Student or
Discipline. Their holy book is the Sri Guru Granth Sahib Ji.
 

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 What is It

GEOGRAPHY OF FAITH
The Western Frontier
West Asia is home of three great religions, namely, Judaism, Christianism and Islam.
Countries closest to the eastern part of the Mediterranean Sea north Arabian Sea and south
of Turkey, sometimes called the Levant. Nuemerous religious cataclysms in their existence
as nation-states. These include Lebanon, Jordan Israel, Syria, and Palestine. Gaining
independence in 1944. Lebanon has undergone a protracted civil war from 1975 to 1990
between Christians and Muslims. During that time, while the Christians controlled wealth and
power, majority of Muslims felt discriminated. Around 250, 000 lives were lost as a result of
the conflict.

 1917- Many Jews migrated from Europe to their ancient homeland, Palestine.
 1948-Israel was established after driving away then Palestinian.
 

 Arabian Peninsula-Most largest peninsula, consist of countries that are predominantly

Islamic in character. These countries include Saudi Arabia, Qatar, Bahrain, Kuwait,
United Arab Emirates, Yemen, and Oman.
 Majority of Muslims in Iraq and Iran associate themselves with the Shi’a sect.
 Majority of Muslis in Saudi Arabia belong to the Sunni branch.
 What geographical features of this arid land could have influenced the growth, evolution,
and expansion of these religions from the time of the Christ.
 
The Indian Subcontinent
 More than 400 years ago, a civilization emerged along the Indus River that developed a
unique and exceptional culture long before the drawn of the Christian era.
 Because sweltering heat is one major features of India’s ecological setting, it is no wonder
that Hindus revere the sun (Surya) and fire (Agni), Water also plays a major role in the
Indian psyche as evidence by Hindus venerating a god of water and celestial oceans
(Varna).
 South Asian countries-Pakistan and Bangladesh depend mightily on the rivers Indus.
 Even Buddhist consider Varanasi an important religious site. During the olden days, there
was once a deer park in Samath which is now a residential area in Varanasi. Here,
Siddahart Gautama gave his first sermon about the principles of Buddhism. Ir is
presently marked by the Dhamek Stupa Shrine. Buddha met his first disciple at this
place.
 Buddhism is not widely held in India rather in the neighboring countries located in South
Asia, East Asia, and Southeast Asia.
 
The Eastern End

  China’s population is concentrated primarily in the eastern and southern parts where

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 agricultural activities flourish.
 Deserts (such as the Gobi and Taklamakan) and plateus dominate the northern and
western territory of china that served as natural barriers from foreign invaders from that
front, as such, the great Chinese civilization developed entirely on its own without
interference from outside forces.
 Chinese culture practically influenced all other countries at its outskirts, including Japan
and Korea.
 The supremacy of China on the eastern front can be explained by the role of its
environment and geography.
 Two streams that made China the center of culture were Huang He and Yangtze.
 Public officials and bureaucrats who were also scholars, philosophers, and teachers
gained prominence because of their interest in politics and government.
 Confucius, the main person behind this emerging philosophy, did not intend to start a new
religion but rather expound on the nature of order and stability in the society.
 Second millennium- death of Confucius . (479 B.C.E.))
 By the time of Han Dynasty, Confucian teachings had become the state religion.
 In Korea, it began to be disseminated extensively around the 15th century.
 In Japan, it was accepted by the majority during the 18th and 19th centuries.
 Daosim emerged in response in response to the widespread of Zhou Dynasty.

 Daoism served as the guiding principle to abandon and withdraw from the disorder
brought about by incessant struggle for power, wealth, and prestige.
 The common people began to oppose the rising authoritarian rule and the rigidity of the
moralists who were Confucian supporters.
 Daoist followers aspired for autonomy in the midst of social adversities and for conformity
to social patterns with the aim of attaining social harmony.
 Korea experienced a great deal of exposure to Chinese culture with the Han and Tang
Dynasties maintaining close ties tithe the Koreans.
 Three kingdoms that were being influenced by China- Goguryeo, Silla, and Baekje. Korea
also adopted Buddhism and Confucianism from the mainland.
 
ON THE CONCEPT OF DHARMA

 Majority of Indians are Hindus.

 The concept of dharma is integrated in religions that emerged in India, including Hinduism,
Buddhism, Jainism, and Sikhism.
 In Hinduism, dharma could mean duty, righteousness, and ethics. In all humanity thisis
common and evident in virtues such as peacefulness, emphaty, and kindness.
 For Buddhism, it means cosmic law and order, or the teachings of the Buddha and the
truth of the way things are.
 As the Buddha himself explained, “ This Dharma that I have attained is profound hard to
see and hard to understand, peaceful and sublime, unattainable to mere reasoning,
subtle, to be experienced by the wise.”
 Dharmic religions do not compel their adherents to profess their devotions to be a believer
or a practitioner.
 For the followers of dharmic religion, meditational and yoga rituals lead to right behaviour
and ultimate understanding of the universe

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 The final spiritual truth is beyond all delusions of the physical world where pain and
sufferings exist because of extreme attachment to people and material things.
 Hindus and Buddhists share similarities on some of the basic tenets, such as ideas
concerning enlightenment and liberation.
 

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 What’s More

Activity 1.1 Critical Thinking

1. How important is the role of Abraham in the development of monotheistic religions ?

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2. How did geography affect religious events and development?

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 ______________________

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3. What are the major points of differences between dharmic religions and Abrahamic
religions?

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 What I Have Learned

1. The basic characteristics of living things include movement, metabolism,

growth, response, and reproduction.
2. Metabolism is the sum of all chemical activities essential to life. Ingestion,
digestion, respiration, and excretion are metabolic activities that occur in all
organisms.
3. Life span is the maximum length of time a particular organism can be
expected to live.
4. A living thing reacts to a stimulus, which is a change in the environment,
by producing a response.
5. Reproduction is the process by which organisms produce offspring.
6. Asexual reproduction requires only one parent while sexual reproduction
requires two parents.
7. Living things need energy for metabolism. The primary source of energy for
all living things is the sun.
8. Oxygen in the air or dissolved in water is used by all organisms during
respiration.
9. Carbon dioxide is used by plants to make food.
10. Homeostasis is the ability of an organism to keep conditions constant inside
its body when the outside environment changes.

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 What I Can Do

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Assessment

Multiple Choice. Choose the letter of the best answer. Write the chosen letter on a
separate sheet of paper.
1. Which is NOT one of the basic characteristics of life?
a. air
b. response
c. metabolism
d. reproduction

2. Life activities such as ingestion and digestion are parts of the process of
a. growth
b. response
c. metabolism
d. respiration

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 Additional Activities

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 Answer Key

Assessment What I Know

1. World View
2. Monism 1. D
3. Polytheism 2. A
4. Monotheism 3. A
5. Atheism 4. C
6. Agrotheism 5. A
7. To breath 6. A
8. Theology 7. A
9. Spirituality 8. A
10. Philosophy of 9. A
religion 10. A

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References

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