Meanings In Religion (Part 1 of 4)

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1. Age of Enlightenment – Wikipedia, The, or simply The Enlightenment, is a term used to describe a time in Western philosophy and cultural life, centered upon the eighteenth century, in which reason was advocated as the primary source and legitimacy for authority.[1]

• Developing more or less simultaneously in Germany, France, Great Britain, the Netherlands, Italy, Spain, and Portugal, and buoyed by the North American colonists' successful rebellion against Great Britain in the American War of Independence, the culmination of the movement spread through much of Europe, including the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth, Russia and Scandinavia, along with Latin America and instigating the Haitian Revolution. It has been argued that the signatories of the American Declaration of Independence, the United States Bill of Rights, the French Declaration of the Rights of Man and of the Citizen, and the Polish-Lithuanian Constitution of May 3, 1791, were motivated by "Enlightenment" principles.

2. Ātman (Buddhism) - Wikipedia (Sanskrit: आत्मन्) or Atta (Pāli) literally means "self", but is sometimes translated as "soul" or "ego". The word derives from the Indo-European root *ēt-men (breath) and is cognate with the Old English æthm and German Atem.[1] In Buddhism, the belief in the existence of an unchanging ātman is the prime consequence of ignorance, which is itself the cause of all misery and the foundation of saṃsāra. The early[citation needed] scriptures do, however, see an enlightened being as one whose changing, empirical self is highly developed.

3. Ātman (Hinduism) - Wikipedia (IAST: Ātman, sanskrit: आत्मन्) is a philosophical term used within Hinduism and Vedanta to identify the soul. It is one's true self (hence generally translated into English as 'Self') beyond identification with the phenomenal reality of worldly existence.

4. Falun Gong - Wikipedia The teachings of Falun Gong were introduced to the public by Li Hongzhi in Changchun, China, in 1992. Falun Gong is also known as Falun Dafa (Great Law of the Law Wheel). The teachings cover a wide-range of topics ranging from spiritual, scientific and moral to metaphysical. Falun Gong became the fastest growing qigong school in Chinese history.

• The teachings of Falun Gong are based on the principles of zhen 眞, shan 善 and ren 忍 (which translate approximately as 'truthfulness, benevolence (or compassion), and forbearance')[1] articulated in the two main books Falun Gong[2] and Zhuan Falun.[3] Falun Gong is an introductory book that discusses qigong, introduces the principles, and provides illustrations and explanations of the exercises. Zhuan Falun is considered the central and most comprehensive exposition on the teachings of Falun Gong. According to the book Falun Gong, "Falun Buddha Fa is a great, high-level cultivation way of the Buddha School, in which assimilation to the supreme nature of the universe, Zhen-Shan-Ren, is the foundation of cultivation practice.

5. Gnosticism - Wikipedia (Greek: γνῶσις gnōsis, knowledge) refers to diverse, syncretistic religious movements in antiquity consisting of various belief systems generally united in the teaching that humans are divine souls trapped in a material world created by an imperfect god, the demiurge; this being is frequently identified with the Abrahamic god, (as opposed to the Gospel according to the Hebrews) and is contrasted with a superior entity, referred to by several terms including Pleroma and Godhead.[1] Depictions of the demiurge—the term originates with Plato's Timaeus[2]—vary from being as an embodiment of evil, to being merely imperfect and as benevolent as its inadequacy permits. Gnosticism was a dualistic religion, influenced by and influencing Hellenic philosophy, Judaism (see Notzrim), and Christianity;[3] however, by contrast, later strands of the movement, such as the Valentinians, held a monistic world-view.[4] This, along with the varying treatments of the demiurge, may be seen as indicative of the variety of positions held within the category.

6. Illuminism - Wikipedia is a belief system whereby a believer makes a claim that he has been illuminated or experienced enlightenment of a spiritual nature.

• It is an archaic term deriving from the French illuminer. The term has been used in modern times primarily with respect to and by secret societies, for the most part, orders that have modeled their practices after the mystery cults of the Hellenic world, which flourished around the Mediterranean coast and Near East at the period when the Roman Empire dominated the region and its cultures. The word Illuminism, when used as a proper noun, refers specifically to the form of enlightenment or illumination that is a part of advancement in the ranks of various secret societies that claim a common origin with the Illuminati. As such it is an important concept within Discordianism as well.