SACRED TEXTS

The Role of Sacred Text

WALT: understand about the way different books are treated and what this shows about the believer's view of them

Sacred Texts• Each world religion has

its own special book often referred to as sacred text.

• Sacred texts are said to influence how a religious believer acts, providing advice and guidance

Guess the sacred text.

• In the following slides you will see a section of a Holy Book/Text with quotes from that book.

• Write down 1-5 in your book and guess what each text could be.

• Beside each book write down the religion that you think it belongs to.

1

The Torah The Qu’ran The Guru GranthSahib

The Bible The Vedas

Even though I walk through the Valley of the Shadow of Death, I will not fear evil for You are with me.

2

The Torah The Qu’ran The Guru GranthSahib

The Bible The Vedas

“I will deal with them according to their

conduct, and by their own standards I will

judge them”

“All things are possible to him that believeth.”

.

3

The Torah The Qu’ran The Guru GranthSahib

The Bible The Vedas

Those who believed and led a righteous life are

the best creatures

O you who believe, do not consume

each others' properties illicitly

4

The Torah The Qu’ran The Guru GranthSahib

The Bible The Vedas

A person who performs good Karma (deeds) is always held in high esteem.

5

The Torah The Qu’ran The Guru GranthSahib

The Bible The Vedas

“Born because of the karma of their past mistakes, they make more mistakes, and fall into mistakes.”

“The jewel of the soul is priceless, and yet it is being squandered like this, in

exchange for a mere shell.”

Can you explain the meaning of sacred?

dedicated to God worthy of respect

special set apart for worship

How are sacred texts treated?Treatment of the Guru Granth Sahib• The Guru Granth Sahib is given the same respect that was shown to the

human Gurus during their lifetimes. • In the Gurdwara it is put to bed in its own room every evening.• At the beginning of the day the Granthi, and any other Sikhs present, form

a procession to carry the Guru Granth Sahib to its position on the Manji Sahib (small platform on which the Guru Granth Sahib is placed) in the Diwan hall (the room where worship takes place) of the Gurdwara.

• The Guru Granth Sahib is never placed on the ground and Sikhs never turn their back on it.

• While the Guru Granth Sahib is being read the Granthi (the appointed reader of the scripture) waves a special fan, called a chauri, over the pages.

The Quran• For Muslims the Qur’an contains only the literal unchanged words of Allah.

It is a direct revelation from Allah (God) to humanity. Because the Qur’an is the word of Allah it cannot be criticised. To do so would be seen as not only irrelevant but, most importantly, it would be disrespectful.

• Also to preserve the true words of God, the Qur’an is always read and studied in Arabic. Versions of the Qur’an in other languages are not called translations because the true meaning of the words can only be found in the Arabic.

• To read the Quran one should be in a clean state. • The Qur'an is treated with immense respect by Muslims because it is the

sacred word of God. While the Qur'an is recited aloud, Muslims should behave with reverence and refrain from speaking, eating or drinking, or making distracting noise.

• When one is not reading or reciting from the Qur'an, it should be closed and stored in a clean, respectable place. Nothing should be placed on top of it, nor should it ever be placed on the floor or in a bathroom.

• The Sefer Torah • Torah scroll is a handwritten copy of the Torah, the holiest book within

Judaism. There are many rules you have to meet when writing the Torah• The Torah scroll is mainly used in the ritual of Torah reading during Jewish

services. At other times, it is stored in the holiest spot within a synagogue, the Aron Kodesh (“Holy Ark”), which is usually an ornate curtained-off cabinet or section of the synagogue built along the wall that most closely faces Jerusalem, the direction Jews face when praying.

• Torah refers to the five books of Moses which are known in Hebrew as Chameesha Choomshey Torah. These are: Bresheit (Genesis), Shemot (Exodus), Vayicra (Leviticus), Bamidbar (Numbers), and Devarim (Deuteronomy).

• Jews believe that God dictated the Torah to Moses on Mount Sinai 50 days after their exodus from Egyptian slavery. They believe that the Torah shows how God wants Jews to live. It contains 613 commandments and Jews refer to the ten best known of these as the 10 statements.

• Think about the sacred texts you have studied.

• How are sacred texts treated? Where are they kept?

• How does this show their importance to believers?

• Why do you think members of some faiths treat their sacred texts differently to members of others?

WALT: understand about the way different books are treated and what this shows about the believer's view of them

• Write an acrostic with the word Sacred to show what your understanding of the meaning of the word is.

• S• A• C• R• E• D

WALT: understand about the main teachings in a sacred text and the

ways it is represented

The Ten Commandments

• The ten commandments form a moral code for most Christians to live by.

• They provide guidance and structure which Christians can base their lives around. PLAY

Example:

Thou shall not covet.

• What are the most important teachings of the ten commandments?

• How do the teachings of the text affect the way that members of this religion live their lives?

• Does the text provide guidance for people to overcome the problems in their lives?

Who/where do you go to for advice?

“Any one who claims to be in the light, but

hates his brother is still in the darkness.” 1 John

2:9

‘’Forgive those who have trespassed

against us...’’

‘’Blessed are the poor for their reward

in heaven is great’’

For “everyone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved.”

Re-read the ten commandments then in your books show how you can express the main message or teaching of the text in an

artistic form.

WALT: understand about how a sacred text is used in worship

GURU GRANTH SAHIB

A Gurdwara service• Sikhs do not have ordained

priests and any Sikh can lead the prayers and recite the scriptures to the congregation.

• Each Gurdwara has a Granthi who organises the daily services and reads from the Guru Granth Sahib.

• A Granthi is not a priest but is the reader/custodian of the Adi Granth.

• A Granthi must be fluent in reading Gurmukhi and must be properly trained in all aspects of looking after the Guru Granth Sahib.

• The Guru Granth Sahib is given the highest status in the Gurdwara. • It must be on a platform that is higher than the congregation, and it must have a canopy hanging over head. It should be

decorated with beautiful "rumallas" (embroidered cloths to cover and protect it), and a Sikh should be in attendance of the Guru at all times.

• During a service a person with a whisk or fan called a Chaur waves it over the Guru Granth Sahib.

• At night the Guru Granth Sahib is kept in a separate room (left photo). In that room there is a bed. Sometimes, when there is more than one Guru Granth Sahib in a Gurdwara, there is more than one bed in that room.

• At the start of the day’s worship the Guru Granth Sahib is carried in procession to the main hall (top photo).

Rules for particular ceremoniesKirtanThe morning service begins with the singing of Asa Di Var, a hymn written by Guru

Nanak, founder of Sikhism.Other hymns from the Guru Granth Sahib are then sung, accompanied by instruments.

This hymn-singing is called Kirtan and is an essential part of Sikh worship.SermonA sermon or talk, usually based on a theme from Sikh history, comes next. This is

followed by the singing of Anand Sahib, a hymn written by Guru Amar Das, the Third Guru.

ArdasThe congregation then stands with eyes closed facing the Guru Granth Sahib for

prayer (Ardas). During the prayer the word Waheguru (Punjabi for 'praise to the Guru') is often repeated.

HukamAfter the prayer, the Guru Granth Sahib is opened at a random page and the hymn found at the top of the left-hand page (Vak or Hukam) is read. The text is considered to be a relevant lesson for the day.

PLAY

Write a short presentation which you could give to younger children explaining the way that the Guru Granth Sahib is used in the worship of the Sikh faith.

You will need to think about:

• Where the text is placed, and when it is used.

• Are there any preparations to make before using the text?

• What language is the text written in?

• Is there a part of the worship where the text is explained to the worshippers?

• Can you give examples of the kind of readings from the text?

• What type of writing is used in the text? (poems, stories, rules etc.)

WALT: understand the meaning to believers of the messages in the sacred

book

• Discuss with your partner:

• Which of the Ten Commandments are religious and which ones are about how we should live our life?

A little bit more about...

• The Ten Commandments are important because it helps shape the basic moral laws of many nations.

• The Ten Commandments told people not to steal, murder, or tell lies about others. It told people to avoid jealousy and to honour their parents.

• The Ten Commandments also helped develop a belief in the "rule of law." This is the idea that laws should apply to everyone equally.

• Also the Ten commandments are basic in our life. The Ten Commandments tell us what is wrong and why not to do them. If you do them, then you are sinners.

WALT: the meaning to believers of the messages in the sacred

book Working in pairs choose five of the Ten

Commandments write down how it effects the believers life today. Is it easy to keep to the rule,

if so why? If not, then what is it that makes it difficult to adhere to?

WALT: the meaning to believers of the messages in the sacred

book

Work in groups to plan and present a short play showing how one or two of the

commandments that you have written about affects the life of modern believers.