Religious Field Research
Report on Religious Field Research
Report on Religious Field Research
As I thought about this paper, I wanted to explore a religion that I had little knowledge about so I chose Hinduism. In thinking about what little I previously knew about the Hindu religion my knowledge was very limited indeed! In this paper I will discuss what I have done in order to learn more about Hinduism. I will discuss any misconceptions I may have had and how they have changed. Also, I will try to figure out a way to minimize misconceptions.
Discuss any misconceptions you had about the religion you researched.
Prior to this class, I had not thought about religion very much. Growing up in the Midwest I had experiences with various Christian religions, those primarily being Catholic and Protestant. Occasionally, a friend or a family member would introduce me to the Jehovah’s Witness sect of religion. However, I had almost no exposure to Judaism, Hindu, Islam or any other of the more non-American based religions. They were just different religions and I considered them as foreign as the countries from which they originated! And frankly, it never concerned me that I did not know much about Hinduism, because I wasn’t interested in learning about their religion.
Through some encounters either through movies or reading, I was pretty sure that this was the primary religion of India. I believed that the religion involved the worship of animals, more specifically cows. I also believed that women were not respected as much in this culture, but I am not sure if this was religiously based or cultural issues.
In order to understand Hinduism, I participated in a few virtual worship services. It was interesting to see thousands of people in the audience. The altar was also very interesting; there was a huge screen with a picture of a woman astride a cow, there were a lot of flowers surrounding the altar. A religious leader dressed in an orange or red robe and a special hat, was
Report on Religious Field Research
As I thought about this paper, I wanted to explore a religion that I had little knowledge about so I chose Hinduism. In thinking about what little I previously knew about the Hindu religion my knowledge was very limited indeed! In this paper I will discuss what I have done in order to learn more about Hinduism. I will discuss any misconceptions I may have had and how they have changed. Also, I will try to figure out a way to minimize misconceptions.
Discuss any misconceptions you had about the religion you researched.
Prior to this class, I had not thought about religion very much. Growing up in the Midwest I had experiences with various Christian religions, those primarily being Catholic and Protestant. Occasionally, a friend or a family member would introduce me to the Jehovah’s Witness sect of religion. However, I had almost no exposure to Judaism, Hindu, Islam or any other of the more non-American based religions. They were just different religions and I considered them as foreign as the countries from which they originated! And frankly, it never concerned me that I did not know much about Hinduism, because I wasn’t interested in learning about their religion.
Through some encounters either through movies or reading, I was pretty sure that this was the primary religion of India. I believed that the religion involved the worship of animals, more specifically cows. I also believed that women were not respected as much in this culture, but I am not sure if this was religiously based or cultural issues.
In order to understand Hinduism, I participated in a few virtual worship services. It was interesting to see thousands of people in the audience. The altar was also very interesting; there was a huge screen with a picture of a woman astride a cow, there were a lot of flowers surrounding the altar. A religious leader dressed in an orange or red robe and a special hat, was
References: Thakur, P. (2012, May 23). (W. Flisrand, Interviewer)