Religion

Religion is another catch-all "word of convenience" that confusingly combines different things into one name. As a result, most people assume that other religions (as in, not their own religion) are similar to their own religion (but different enough to be heretical).

Much confusion lies below the surface - for example, is Confucianism a religion? (Indonesian law deems it so.) Is Buddhism a religion if it does not worship gods? Is Stoicism is a philosophy, not a religion, when the ancient Greeks believed in gods? Daoism is often differentiated into two types: philosophical Daoism ("Daojia") and religious Daosim ("Daojiao") - is it a philosophy or a religion?

By creating the word, "religion," people sought to label what others believed and practiced into a same "category" of what they themselves believed and practiced. In this way, people try to make sense of the world, for better or for worse.

Generally, we can divide the world religions into two main categories:

• Theism: worshipping god(s)
• Cultivation: training the spirit

Theism

Theism is any kind of worship of a god or gods. "Gods" refer to any kind of metaphysical beings, usually of the more powerful sort - but can range from minor spirits, to local nature deities, to major powers. The key word in theism is following - people follow their god's commands, without thought, hoping to gain rewards.

Monotheism
Due to the influence of Abrahamic religions, the West tends to divide theism into monotheism (one god) and polytheism (many gods), but this is more an issue of nomenclature and self-supporting-bias (due to the perception that monotheism is superior); after all, Abrahamic religions like Christianity in fact have entire pantheons of metaphysical beings, both good and evil, and even half-breed mixes with humans - they just choose to not call these "gods." A theism with only one metaphysical being in the whole cosmology - a true monotheism - is exceedingly rare.

That said, self-designated monotheism is quite common today, including many Abrahamic religions (Christianity and Islam foremost), but also Dharmic religions like Sikhism and some branches of Hinduism (which can be interpreted in a monotheistic way). Even in Japan, as the native Shinto religion became largely ritualistic and devoid of substance, new sects called Sect Shinto emerged in the 19th century, which are for the most part pseudo-monotheistic (as in, they mainly worship one supreme god) versions of Shinto.

Strict monotheism is generally characterized by intolerance - after all, its default belief is that only their god is correct, and all others are heretical. Many wars and conquests were waged with monotheism as a trigger (before) or as a justification (after). Some wars were between slightly different sects of the same monotheistic religion.

Polytheism
Many gods was the default religion in ancient times; even the Abrahamic religions started out as polytheism (e.g. God had a wife named Asherah), until 2nd Temple Judaism changed that, removing all their other gods, and persecuting Jews who still worshipped them.

Generally in polytheism, whether Greek, Norse, Egyptian, etc., gods represented various aspects like war, love, the sea, the hearth, death, and so forth. In that sense, polytheism was not generally intolerant, as worshippers of one goddess of love often considered another people's goddess of love as another incarnation or avatar of the same; for example, the Greek Aphrodite was considered the same as Egypt's Isis when the two cultures interacted with each other (and people often took up worship of the exotic version as well).

Cultivation

Other religions often do not worship gods at all; instead, they engage in training of the self. Cultivation refers to various systems designed to train an adept's abilities, in order to elevate themselves spiritually. The key word in cultivation is growth - people train the body, breath, and mind in order to evolve, so naturally those who have trained longer and harder have attained greater skill. We could call these adepts "artisans of the metaphysical."

This sort of "religion" is represented by some sects of Buddhism, Daoism, and others; some religions like Hinduism often combine theism with cultivation (e.g. the Shaivist sects); esoteric sects of Abrahamic faiths can involve some cultivation as well, e.g. Jewish Kabbalah and Muslim Sufism and even Quakerism.

Although called "religion," the training aspects often do not involve gods at all, and thus these parts are often extracted for non-religious public consumption: from Hinduism we get yoga, from Daoism we get taijiquan ("tai-chi"), and from Buddhism we get mindfulness meditation; all these have been scientifically researched and shown to have various benefits toward physical and mental health.

Because cultivative religions often do not involve worship of gods, some prefer to call these philosophies instead.

In general, cultivation can be divided into various levels:

• Physical
• Emotional
• Mental
• Spiritual

This division is generally cross-cultural, and can be seen in similar form in China, India, Greece, etc.

Religion is a very interesting subject, and there is much that can be learned from it, but humankind needs to take care to avoid its destructive tendencies borne from intolerance.

Hell

Hell, a horrible afterlife destination for the wicked, is a nearly universal belief, with specific names varying by culture: the Greeks called it Hades and Tarterus, the Norse Hel, the Indians Naraka, the Chinese Diyu, the Israelites Sheol, the Muslims Jahannam. Generally hell is depicted as a dark, gloomy, and fiery place, with various monstrous inhabitants within. Interestingly, different religions have different conditions on whether one will go to hell (or heaven).

In the case of Murgatroyd the Murderer, the result is simple: nearly every religion will deem his post-death abode to be hell - that is simple enough.

The case of Murgatroyd the Murderer who later in life repents and follows the holy path - is more interesting - what will his afterlife destination be?

In Christianity, the effect is like giving Murgatroyd a "free card" - his prior accumulated sin (despite its horrendousness) is forgiven and cleared away, and Murgatroyd goes to heaven along with the faithful for eternity - he does not have to "pay" for his sins. For Abrahamic religions, fealty is more important than one's actions, which results in this effect.

In Buddhism (and many Dharmic religions like Hinduism or Jainism, although it depends on the sect), there is no "free card" for Murgatroyd - his karma (actions) are his own, and he is responsible for them; thus, he will spend an unfathomably long time in hell to "pay" for his sins. On the other hand, his later following of the holy path is still good - it does not clear away his prior sins, but it does mean that after he finally "pays off" his time in hell, a better rebirth will be waiting for him.

What of the case of Bob the Virtuous Atheist? Different religions again have different viewpoints on where he will go after death.

In both Christianity and Islam, Bob's good deeds do not help him at all, and he goes straight to hell for eternity - because again, in these religions fealty (to the correct god) is the guiding principle, with actions just a helpful accessory or symptom.

In Buddhism (and many Dharmic religions), Bob's good deeds may land him in heaven in his next incarnation. Unlike Abrahamic religions, although one's existence in heaven is unimaginably long, it is not eternal, and heavenly beings also are subject to death and reincarnation; thus, heaven is not the ultimate objective in Buddhism (or Hinduism), although it is a nice place to be in. Also unlike Abrahamic faiths, fealty to a specific faith is irrelevant - virtue is virtue, and there is more than one path to heaven.