WEBVTT 00:00:07.445 --> 00:00:09.421 In all times and places in our history, 00:00:09.421 --> 00:00:10.938 human beings have wondered, 00:00:10.938 --> 00:00:12.192 "Where did we come from? 00:00:12.192 --> 00:00:14.165 What's our place in the world? 00:00:14.165 --> 00:00:16.505 What happens to us after we die?" 00:00:16.505 --> 00:00:18.568 Religions are systems of belief 00:00:18.568 --> 00:00:20.634 that have developed and evolved over time 00:00:20.634 --> 00:00:21.803 in response to these 00:00:21.803 --> 00:00:23.924 and other eternal mysteries, 00:00:23.924 --> 00:00:25.660 driven by the feeling that some questions 00:00:25.660 --> 00:00:27.834 can only be answered by faith 00:00:27.834 --> 00:00:29.214 and based on an intuition 00:00:29.214 --> 00:00:31.385 that there is something greater than ourselves, 00:00:31.385 --> 00:00:33.584 a higher power we must answer to, 00:00:33.584 --> 00:00:35.927 or some source we all spring from 00:00:35.927 --> 00:00:38.342 and to which we must return. 00:00:39.342 --> 00:00:41.695 Hinduism means the religions of India. 00:00:41.695 --> 00:00:42.910 It's not a single religion 00:00:42.910 --> 00:00:44.933 but rather a variety of related beliefs 00:00:44.933 --> 00:00:46.858 and spiritual practices. 00:00:46.858 --> 00:00:48.907 It dates back five millennia 00:00:48.907 --> 00:00:50.373 to the time of Krishna, 00:00:50.373 --> 00:00:51.850 a man of such virtue 00:00:51.850 --> 00:00:54.441 that he became known as an avatar of Vishnu, 00:00:54.441 --> 00:00:57.402 an incarnation of the god in human form. 00:00:57.402 --> 00:00:59.637 He taught that all life follows karma, 00:00:59.637 --> 00:01:01.337 the law of cause and effect, 00:01:01.337 --> 00:01:04.561 and our job is to do our duty, or dharma, 00:01:04.561 --> 00:01:06.473 according to our place in society 00:01:06.473 --> 00:01:09.048 without worrying how things turn out. 00:01:09.048 --> 00:01:12.190 When we die, we are reincarnated into a new body. 00:01:12.190 --> 00:01:13.655 If we followed our dharma 00:01:13.655 --> 00:01:15.814 and did our proper duty in our past life, 00:01:15.814 --> 00:01:17.185 we get good karma, 00:01:17.185 --> 00:01:20.352 which sends our soul upward in the social scale. 00:01:20.352 --> 00:01:21.934 Our rebirth into the next life 00:01:21.934 --> 00:01:24.888 is thus determined by what we do in this one. 00:01:24.888 --> 00:01:28.253 The wheel of rebirths is called samsara. 00:01:28.253 --> 00:01:30.199 It's possible for a very holy person 00:01:30.199 --> 00:01:32.611 to lead a life with enough good karma 00:01:32.611 --> 00:01:34.409 to escape the wheel. 00:01:34.409 --> 00:01:36.869 This escape is called moksha. 00:01:36.869 --> 00:01:39.817 Hinduism teaches that everything is one. 00:01:39.817 --> 00:01:40.765 The whole universe is 00:01:40.765 --> 00:01:43.856 one transcendent reality called Brahman, 00:01:43.856 --> 00:01:45.717 and there's just one Brahman 00:01:45.717 --> 00:01:47.260 but many gods within it, 00:01:47.260 --> 00:01:50.179 and their roles, aspects, and forms differ 00:01:50.179 --> 00:01:52.470 according to various traditions. 00:01:52.470 --> 00:01:54.387 Brahma is the creator, 00:01:54.387 --> 00:01:56.089 Vishnu is the preserver 00:01:56.089 --> 00:01:58.624 who sometimes takes on human form, 00:01:58.624 --> 00:02:00.910 and Shiva is the transformer, 00:02:00.910 --> 00:02:02.572 or Lord of the Dance. 00:02:02.572 --> 00:02:06.069 Durga is the fiercely protective divine mother. 00:02:06.069 --> 00:02:07.939 Ganesha has an elephant head 00:02:07.939 --> 00:02:11.486 and is the wise patron of success. 00:02:11.486 --> 00:02:14.717 Hinduism is the third largest religion in the world. 00:02:14.717 --> 00:02:17.075 And although most Hindus live in India, 00:02:17.075 --> 00:02:19.123 they can be found on every continent, 00:02:19.123 --> 00:02:21.288 one billion strong. 00:02:22.010 --> 00:02:23.366 Now, let's travel west, 00:02:23.366 --> 00:02:24.978 across deserts and mountains 00:02:24.978 --> 00:02:28.253 to the fertile crescent about 4,000 years ago. 00:02:28.253 --> 00:02:30.040 Judaism began with God calling 00:02:30.040 --> 00:02:32.842 Abraham and Sarah to leave Mesopotamia 00:02:32.842 --> 00:02:35.486 and migrate to the land of Canaan. 00:02:35.486 --> 00:02:38.481 In return for their faith in the one true God, 00:02:38.481 --> 00:02:39.885 a revolutionary concept 00:02:39.885 --> 00:02:42.436 in the polytheistic world of that time, 00:02:42.436 --> 00:02:45.652 they would have land and many descendants. 00:02:45.652 --> 00:02:47.736 From this promise came the land of Israel 00:02:47.736 --> 00:02:49.436 and the chosen people, 00:02:49.436 --> 00:02:50.734 but staying in that land 00:02:50.734 --> 00:02:52.236 and keeping those people together 00:02:52.236 --> 00:02:54.356 was going to be very difficult. 00:02:54.356 --> 00:02:56.947 The Israelites were enslaved in Egypt, 00:02:56.947 --> 00:02:58.897 but God freed them with the help 00:02:58.897 --> 00:03:00.456 of the prophet Moses, 00:03:00.456 --> 00:03:02.112 who received the Ten Commandments 00:03:02.112 --> 00:03:04.532 and later hundreds more. 00:03:04.532 --> 00:03:06.296 They conquered the Promised Land, 00:03:06.296 --> 00:03:09.376 but could only keep it for a few hundred years. 00:03:09.376 --> 00:03:11.402 Israel sits at a crossroads 00:03:11.402 --> 00:03:12.771 through which many armies 00:03:12.771 --> 00:03:14.309 marched over the centuries. 00:03:14.309 --> 00:03:15.509 And in the year 70, 00:03:15.509 --> 00:03:16.912 the Romans destroyed the temple 00:03:16.912 --> 00:03:19.277 in their capital, Jerusalem. 00:03:19.277 --> 00:03:21.154 So, the religion transformed itself 00:03:21.154 --> 00:03:22.487 from a temple religion 00:03:22.487 --> 00:03:23.897 with sacrifices and priests 00:03:23.897 --> 00:03:25.970 to a religion of the book. 00:03:25.970 --> 00:03:28.263 Because of this, Judaism is a faith 00:03:28.263 --> 00:03:31.270 of symbolism, reverence, and deep meanings 00:03:31.270 --> 00:03:33.901 tied to the literature of its history. 00:03:33.901 --> 00:03:35.366 The many sacred scriptures make up 00:03:35.366 --> 00:03:37.358 the Hebrew bible, or Tanakh, 00:03:37.358 --> 00:03:39.572 and hundreds of written discussions and interpretations 00:03:39.572 --> 00:03:42.238 are contained in an expansive compendium 00:03:42.238 --> 00:03:43.458 of deeper meanings, 00:03:43.458 --> 00:03:45.061 called the Talmud. 00:03:45.061 --> 00:03:47.977 Jews find rich, symbolic meaning in daily life. 00:03:47.977 --> 00:03:49.110 At the Passover meal, 00:03:49.110 --> 00:03:50.946 every item on the menu symbolizes 00:03:50.946 --> 00:03:53.696 an aspect of the escape from slavery. 00:03:53.696 --> 00:03:55.016 The importance of growing up 00:03:55.016 --> 00:03:56.867 is emphasized when young people 00:03:56.867 --> 00:03:59.171 reach the age of bar and bat mitzvah, 00:03:59.171 --> 00:04:01.443 ceremonies during which they assume responsibility 00:04:01.443 --> 00:04:02.380 for their actions 00:04:02.380 --> 00:04:03.644 and celebrate the weaving 00:04:03.644 --> 00:04:04.692 of their own lives 00:04:04.692 --> 00:04:06.678 into the faith, history, and texts 00:04:06.678 --> 00:04:08.357 of the Jewish people. 00:04:08.357 --> 00:04:11.266 There are 14 million Jews in the world today, 00:04:11.266 --> 00:04:12.738 6 million in Israel, 00:04:12.738 --> 00:04:14.119 which became independent 00:04:14.119 --> 00:04:17.233 following the horrors of genocide in World War II, 00:04:17.233 --> 00:04:19.824 and 5 million in the United States. 00:04:20.408 --> 00:04:23.806 But now let's go back 2500 years and return to India 00:04:23.806 --> 00:04:25.116 where Buddhism began 00:04:25.116 --> 00:04:27.883 with a young prince named Siddhartha. 00:04:27.883 --> 00:04:29.137 On the night he was conceived, 00:04:29.137 --> 00:04:30.696 his mother, Queen Maya, 00:04:30.696 --> 00:04:32.886 is said to have been visited in her sleep 00:04:32.886 --> 00:04:35.809 by a white elephant who entered her side. 00:04:35.809 --> 00:04:37.806 Ten months later, Prince Siddartha was born 00:04:37.806 --> 00:04:39.558 into a life of luxury. 00:04:39.558 --> 00:04:41.974 Venturing forth from his sheltered existence 00:04:41.974 --> 00:04:43.088 as a young man, 00:04:43.088 --> 00:04:44.516 he witnessed the human suffering 00:04:44.516 --> 00:04:45.926 that had been hidden from him 00:04:45.926 --> 00:04:49.310 and immediately set out to investigate its sources. 00:04:49.310 --> 00:04:51.502 Why must people endure suffering? 00:04:51.502 --> 00:04:54.605 Must we reincarnate through hundreds of lives? 00:04:54.605 --> 00:04:56.019 At first he thought the problem 00:04:56.019 --> 00:04:58.055 was attachment to material things, 00:04:58.055 --> 00:04:59.943 so he gave up his possessions. 00:04:59.943 --> 00:05:01.669 He became a wandering beggar, 00:05:01.669 --> 00:05:04.994 which he discovered certainly made him no happier. 00:05:04.994 --> 00:05:07.693 Then he overheard a music teacher telling a student, 00:05:07.693 --> 00:05:09.947 "Don't tighten the string too much, it will break. 00:05:09.947 --> 00:05:11.657 But don't let it go too slack, 00:05:11.657 --> 00:05:13.584 or it will not sound." 00:05:13.584 --> 00:05:14.752 In a flash, he realized 00:05:14.752 --> 00:05:16.916 that looking for answers at the extremes 00:05:16.916 --> 00:05:18.343 was a mistake. 00:05:18.343 --> 00:05:20.847 The middle way between luxury and poverty 00:05:20.847 --> 00:05:22.133 seemed wisest. 00:05:22.133 --> 00:05:24.419 And while meditating under a bodhi tree, 00:05:24.419 --> 00:05:26.588 the rest of the answer came to him. 00:05:26.588 --> 00:05:29.344 All of life abounds with suffering. 00:05:29.344 --> 00:05:31.209 It's caused by selfish craving 00:05:31.209 --> 00:05:34.556 for one's own fulfillment at the expense of others. 00:05:34.556 --> 00:05:36.058 Following an eight-step plan 00:05:36.058 --> 00:05:38.224 can teach us to reduce that craving, 00:05:38.224 --> 00:05:40.641 and thus reduce the suffering. 00:05:40.641 --> 00:05:43.799 On that day, Siddhartha became the Buddha, 00:05:43.799 --> 00:05:45.307 the enlightened one. 00:05:45.307 --> 00:05:47.681 Not the only one, but the first one. 00:05:47.681 --> 00:05:49.152 The Buddhist plan is called 00:05:49.152 --> 00:05:50.414 the Eightfold Path, 00:05:50.414 --> 00:05:51.916 and though it is not easy to follow, 00:05:51.916 --> 00:05:52.991 it has pointed the way 00:05:52.991 --> 00:05:55.060 for millions to enlightenment, 00:05:55.060 --> 00:05:57.144 which is what Buddhahood means, 00:05:57.144 --> 00:05:58.285 a state of compassion, 00:05:58.285 --> 00:05:59.080 insight, 00:05:59.080 --> 00:05:59.934 peace, 00:05:59.934 --> 00:06:01.807 and steadfastness. 00:06:01.807 --> 00:06:03.989 From the time he got up from under that tree 00:06:03.989 --> 00:06:06.097 to the moment of his death as an old man, 00:06:06.097 --> 00:06:08.251 the Buddha taught people how to become enlightened: 00:06:08.251 --> 00:06:09.008 right speech, 00:06:09.008 --> 00:06:09.805 right goals, 00:06:09.805 --> 00:06:11.939 a mind focused on what is real, 00:06:11.939 --> 00:06:14.688 and a heart focused on loving others. 00:06:14.688 --> 00:06:17.181 Many Buddhists believe in God or gods, 00:06:17.181 --> 00:06:20.269 but actions are more important than beliefs. 00:06:20.269 --> 00:06:21.808 There are nearly a billion Buddhists 00:06:21.808 --> 00:06:23.117 in the world today, 00:06:23.117 --> 00:06:27.057 mostly in East, Southeast, and South Asia. 00:06:27.948 --> 00:06:31.221 2,000 years ago in Judaism's Promised Land, 00:06:31.221 --> 00:06:33.237 Christianity was born. 00:06:33.237 --> 00:06:36.439 Just as Hindus called Krishna "God in Human Form," 00:06:36.439 --> 00:06:38.609 Christians say the same thing about Jesus, 00:06:38.609 --> 00:06:40.361 and Christianity grew out of Judaism 00:06:40.361 --> 00:06:43.463 just as Buddhism grew out of Hinduism. 00:06:43.463 --> 00:06:45.946 The angel Gabriel was sent by the God of Abraham 00:06:45.946 --> 00:06:47.860 to ask a young woman named Mary 00:06:47.860 --> 00:06:50.195 to become the mother of his son. 00:06:50.195 --> 00:06:51.694 The son was Jesus, 00:06:51.694 --> 00:06:53.214 raised as a carpenter 00:06:53.214 --> 00:06:55.136 by Mary and her husband Joseph, 00:06:55.136 --> 00:06:56.859 until he turned 30, 00:06:56.859 --> 00:06:58.644 when he began his public career 00:06:58.644 --> 00:07:00.808 as the living word of God. 00:07:00.808 --> 00:07:02.816 Less interested in religiousness 00:07:02.816 --> 00:07:04.060 than in justice and mercy, 00:07:04.060 --> 00:07:06.612 Jesus healed the sick in order to draw crowds 00:07:06.612 --> 00:07:09.608 and then taught them about his heavenly father -- 00:07:09.608 --> 00:07:12.524 affectionate, forgiving, and attentive. 00:07:12.524 --> 00:07:14.737 Then, he would invite everyone to a common table 00:07:14.737 --> 00:07:17.489 to illustrate his Kingdom of God, 00:07:17.489 --> 00:07:21.576 outcasts, sinners, and saints all eating together. 00:07:21.576 --> 00:07:22.612 He had only three years 00:07:22.612 --> 00:07:24.381 before his unconventional wisdom 00:07:24.381 --> 00:07:25.659 got him into trouble. 00:07:25.659 --> 00:07:26.860 His enemies had him arrested, 00:07:26.860 --> 00:07:28.635 and he was executed by Rome 00:07:28.635 --> 00:07:29.840 in the standard means 00:07:29.840 --> 00:07:32.511 by which rabble-rousers were put to death, 00:07:32.511 --> 00:07:34.114 crucifixion. 00:07:34.114 --> 00:07:36.197 But shortly after he was buried, 00:07:36.197 --> 00:07:38.194 women found his tomb empty 00:07:38.194 --> 00:07:39.520 and quickly spread word, 00:07:39.520 --> 00:07:42.553 convinced that he had been raised from the dead. 00:07:42.553 --> 00:07:43.940 The first Christians described 00:07:43.940 --> 00:07:46.023 his resurrected appearances, 00:07:46.023 --> 00:07:49.118 inspiring confidence that his message was true. 00:07:49.118 --> 00:07:53.307 The message: love one another as I have loved you. 00:07:53.307 --> 00:07:55.350 Christians celebrate the birth of Jesus 00:07:55.350 --> 00:07:57.443 in December at Christmas, 00:07:57.443 --> 00:07:59.706 and his suffering, death, and resurrection 00:07:59.706 --> 00:08:01.915 during Holy Week in the spring. 00:08:01.915 --> 00:08:03.246 In the ceremony of baptism, 00:08:03.246 --> 00:08:04.686 a washing away of sin 00:08:04.686 --> 00:08:06.961 and welcoming into the Christian community, 00:08:06.961 --> 00:08:08.787 recall Jesus's own baptism 00:08:08.787 --> 00:08:10.958 when he left his life as a carpenter. 00:08:10.958 --> 00:08:12.430 In the rite of Communion, 00:08:12.430 --> 00:08:14.461 Christians eat the bread and drink the wine 00:08:14.461 --> 00:08:17.127 blessed as the body and blood of Jesus, 00:08:17.127 --> 00:08:19.593 recalling Jesus's last supper. 00:08:19.593 --> 00:08:22.017 There are two billion Christians worldwide, 00:08:22.017 --> 00:08:25.821 representing almost a third of the world's people. 00:08:27.081 --> 00:08:29.568 Islam began 1400 years ago 00:08:29.568 --> 00:08:31.359 with a man of great virtue, 00:08:31.359 --> 00:08:33.028 meditating in a mountain cave 00:08:33.028 --> 00:08:34.743 in the Arabian desert. 00:08:34.743 --> 00:08:36.997 The man was Muhammad. 00:08:36.997 --> 00:08:39.249 He was visited by a divine messenger, 00:08:39.249 --> 00:08:41.162 again the angel Gabriel, 00:08:41.162 --> 00:08:43.335 in Arabic, Jibril, 00:08:43.335 --> 00:08:46.002 delivering to him the words of Allah, 00:08:46.002 --> 00:08:48.028 the one God of Abraham. 00:08:48.028 --> 00:08:49.212 In the next few years, 00:08:49.212 --> 00:08:50.849 more and more messages came, 00:08:50.849 --> 00:08:53.108 and he memorized and taught them. 00:08:53.108 --> 00:08:55.814 The verses he recited were full of wise sayings, 00:08:55.814 --> 00:08:56.846 beautiful rhymes, 00:08:56.846 --> 00:08:58.981 and mysterious metaphors. 00:08:58.981 --> 00:09:01.764 But Muhammad was a merchant, not a poet. 00:09:01.764 --> 00:09:03.321 Many agreed the verses 00:09:03.321 --> 00:09:05.015 were indeed the words of God, 00:09:05.015 --> 00:09:08.011 and these believers became the first Muslims. 00:09:08.011 --> 00:09:11.016 The word Muslim means one who surrenders, 00:09:11.016 --> 00:09:14.334 meaning a person who submits to the will of God. 00:09:14.334 --> 00:09:16.368 A Muslim's five most important duties 00:09:16.368 --> 00:09:18.516 are called the Five Pillars: 00:09:18.516 --> 00:09:21.626 Shahada, Muslims declare publicly, 00:09:21.626 --> 00:09:24.681 there is no other God but Allah, 00:09:24.681 --> 00:09:27.502 and Muhammad is his final prophet; 00:09:27.502 --> 00:09:31.436 Salat, they pray five times a day facing Mecca; 00:09:31.436 --> 00:09:34.050 Zakat, every Muslim is required 00:09:34.050 --> 00:09:37.852 to give 2 or 3% of their net worth to the poor; 00:09:37.852 --> 00:09:41.163 Sawm, they fast during daylight hours 00:09:41.163 --> 00:09:43.001 for the lunar month of Ramadan 00:09:43.001 --> 00:09:44.551 to strengthen their willpower 00:09:44.551 --> 00:09:46.598 and their reliance on God; 00:09:46.598 --> 00:09:49.510 and Hajj, once in a lifetime, 00:09:49.510 --> 00:09:51.605 every Muslim who is able must make a pilgrimage 00:09:51.605 --> 00:09:53.499 to the holy city of Mecca, 00:09:53.499 --> 00:09:54.440 rehearsing for the time 00:09:54.440 --> 00:09:55.941 when they will stand before God 00:09:55.941 --> 00:09:58.061 to be judged worthy or unworthy 00:09:58.061 --> 00:10:00.388 of eternal life with Him. 00:10:00.388 --> 00:10:01.522 The words of God, 00:10:01.522 --> 00:10:04.340 revealed to the prophet over 23 years, 00:10:04.340 --> 00:10:06.161 are collected in the Quran, 00:10:06.161 --> 00:10:09.995 which literally translates into "the recitation." 00:10:09.995 --> 00:10:12.355 Muslims believe it to be the only holy book 00:10:12.355 --> 00:10:14.244 free of human corruption. 00:10:14.244 --> 00:10:15.745 It's also considered by many 00:10:15.745 --> 00:10:17.157 to be the finest work of literature 00:10:17.157 --> 00:10:19.315 in the Arabic language. 00:10:19.315 --> 00:10:21.662 Islam is the world's second largest religion, 00:10:21.662 --> 00:10:25.714 practiced by over one and a half billion Muslims around the globe. 00:10:27.020 --> 00:10:28.973 Religion has been an aspect of culture 00:10:28.973 --> 00:10:30.803 for as long as it has existed, 00:10:30.803 --> 00:10:34.137 and there are countless variations of its practice. 00:10:34.137 --> 00:10:35.572 But common to all religions 00:10:35.572 --> 00:10:37.720 is an appeal for meaning 00:10:37.720 --> 00:10:38.861 beyond the empty vanities 00:10:38.861 --> 00:10:41.634 and lowly realities of existence, 00:10:41.634 --> 00:10:42.732 beyond sin, 00:10:42.732 --> 00:10:43.564 suffering, 00:10:43.564 --> 00:10:45.665 and death, 00:10:45.665 --> 00:10:47.248 beyond fear, 00:10:47.248 --> 00:10:49.376 and beyond ourselves.