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The use of symbols of worship is a common phenomenon in virtually all religions. Usually, the symbols are used of symbolize a certain concealed meaning. This is evidenced even in the world’s most popular religion, Christianity, which uses a variety of symbols to symbolize certain meanings. This paper is an in-depth exploration of the symbols used in Tibetan Buddhism and Christianity and their respective meanings.
Tibetan Buddhism symbols normally vary depending on the culture in which they are found. However, there are some common symbols that will be found in virtually every Buddhist temple. Some of the symbols of Tibetan Buddhism include the stupa, the wheel and the lotus. Reflecting on the aforementioned symbols is an integral part of the rituals performed by Tibetan Buddhists (Beer, 2003, p. 43).
Another common symbol is the bell whose primary function is driving out of evil spirits. It is normally harmonized with the dorje, a symbol that symbolizes the compassion associated with men.
The bell symbolizes the wisdom characteristic of women in this case. The dorje is also used as a symbol for Buddha hood invincibleness, and also as a meditation tool. Another important symbol in Buddhism in the incense that is burnt as an offering when making special requests to Buddha. Buddhism also uses a number of locations symbols. One such location is Mt. Kailash which is seen as a temple in the Buddism religion (Fainstein, 2008, p. 1).
The most common religion in the world, Christianity, also has its symbols. Although most Christian symbols are still in use today, they were mainly used during the early days when the Christian religion was being established. For instance, water has always been used as a symbol in Christianity. In most cases, it is used as a symbol for purity or cleansing.
This can be confirmed by the Christian ritual of Baptism in which Christians are baptized using water to signify cleansing of sins. Fire is also used in Christianity to represent light and the holy spirit. The ritual involving fire is performed by the use of candles.
Most of the Christian symbols are direct derivations from the bible (Gray, 2003, p. 1). Another symbol is that of a fish which in Greek is seen as an acronym for the name of Jesus Christ, worshipped by Christians. There is also the dove which is mainly used by Christians as a symbol of the Holy Spirit and a lamb which is taken as the sacrifice that God made in giving his son Jesus Christ to die for sins of Christians.
The crucifix and the cross have been used by Christians since ancient times for protection against evil spirits. The cross signifies the crucifixion of Jesus and thus with the cross, Christians believe that it has the power to protect them from evil spirits. Another common symbol is the number 666 which signifies the antichrist and the end of the world (Guy, 2000, p. 1).
As evidenced in the discussion above, symbols are an inseparable part of all religions. Believers of specific religion s give importance to certain events in the history of their religion and come up with a symbol that reminds them of such events. Thus symbols are used to signify major events and values of various religions.
This fact has been proven in the discussion of the symbols for Christianity. The symbols are mostly derived from the Bible, the book containing major events in the history of Christianity. In Tibetan Buddhism, the symbols also come from past events and beliefs of the Buddhists.
Reference List
Beer, R. (2003). The Handbook of Tibetan Buddhist Symbols. California. Wadsworth Publishing.
Fainstein, L. (2008). Buddhist Symbols. Web.
Gray, D. (2003). Christian Symbols. Web.
Guy, A. (2000). Christian Symbols. Web.
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