|
Familiarize
Your Students with the Vocabulary
You may decide to review these after your class visit or use them
for your own reference.
Ancestor
Veneration (ancestor worship) The custom of honoring
deceased ancestors, who are still considered a part of the family
and whose spirits are believed to have the power to intervene in
the affairs of the living.
Buddhism
A religion based on the teachings of Buddha (approx. 560-480 BC).
The basis of Buddhist teachings are "the four noble truths"
that life is full of suffering (such as not being satisfied, old
age, disease, and death), that the cause of suffering is desire
and wanting things only for oneself, that there is a cure for this
suffering, and that this cure is the Eight-Fold Path. The Eight-Fold
Path is right attitude, motives, speech (not lying or gossiping),
action (not to kill or steal), effort, mindfulness, and meditation.
Caste
System A system of occupationally specific, hierarchically
ordered statuses to which members of society are assigned at birth.
Confucianism
A philosophy based on the teachings of Confucius (approx. 551-479
BC) and his followers, who stressed that everyone has a place in
society with specific duties and responsibilities. Great importance
was placed on five relationships: ruler to subject, parent to child,
elder brother to younger brother, husband to wife, and friend to
friend.
Divination
The practice that seeks to foretell the future by "reading"
signs.
Dowry
Wealth a bride's family contributes to the marriage, usually consisting
of clothing, household furnishings, and utensils.
Dynasty
A Chinese dynasty took its name from a sequence of rulers from
the same patrilineal (through the male line) family. For more than
2,000 years China was ruled by a series of dynasties.
Extended
Family A residential group consisting of two or more
families of at least two generations.
Hinduism
A complex Indian religion (nearly 4,000 years old) with elaborate
mythology, 3,000 gods, ceremonies for purification, and steps one
goes through in the life cycle.
Islam
A religion based on the teachings of the Prophet Muhammad (approx.
570-632 CE) as found in the sacred book, the Koran. The followers
of Islam are called Muslims.
Matchmaker
A person whom families consult to find proper marriage partners
for their children. The marriage is called an arranged marriage.
Monsoon
A periodic wind in South Asia, generally laden with rain.
Nomad
A wandering pastoral (herding) people.
Shamanism
A belief system in which certain individuals are believed to be
in direct contact with the spirit world through trance and to be
able to command spirits to do their bidding.
Shinto
A native religion of Japan, dating to the sixth century AD, originally
centered on belief in "kami", or spiritual forces thought to live
in all natural objects. Later it included worship of ancestors,
heroes, and the emperor. Shinto stresses harmony among divine, natural,
and human elements.
Taoism
A philosophy formulated by Lao Tzu (either third or sixth century
BC) in which the aim of life is to conform to nature's way. Yin
(female, wet, dark, cool) and Yang (male, dry, bright, hot) and
the five elements (fire, water, earth, wood, metal) interact to
bring harmony.
Terracing
A raised embankment leveled on top with a ridge to hold water (commonly
used in wet-rice farming).
Wet-Rice
Cultivation Common method of growing rice in Asia by
flooding fields with water. Later, when the crops mature, the fields
are drained. Usually involves animal plow cultivation and the use
of fertilizers.
|