6/8/2023 0 Comments Smarts dimensionsVarious Hebrew prophets and the prophet Muhammad spoke of the revelatory experiences that were the basis of their religious teachings. The Buddha spoke of the enlightenment he experienced through meditation. Just as the forms of religious practice vary, so too do the religious experiences which people claim to have had. In many forms of ritual there is both an outer (or visible) and inner (or no n-visible) aspect. In using the word “ritual” to describe such activities one does nor necessarily imply that there is a precisely specified form which the practices must take, nor does one necessarily imply that people undertake these activities simply out of habit. Sometimes they are much less elaborate and less publicly visible, as in the forms of meditation practised in Buddhism or the private prayer which is part of various religious traditions. Sometimes these practices are quite elaborate and publicly visible, as in the eucharistic liturgy of the Eastern Orthodox Church or the sacred ceremonies of Australian aboriginal religions. The form of these practices varies greatly and may include such activities as worship, preaching, prayer, meditation, confession, sacrifice, offerings, rites of passage and other sacred ceremonies. Religions typically have particular practices in which people engage. In his most recent overview, entitled The World’s Religions: Old Traditions and Modern Transformations (1989), he again used these six dimensions and added a seventh. ![]() ![]() In The Religious Experience of Mankind (1st edition 1969, 2nd edition 1976, 3rd edition 1984), Ninian Smart argued that a religion typically has six aspects or dimensions.
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