What Do Different Religions Believe Happens After Death?

by | Last updated on January 24, 2024

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The sacred texts in Christianity,

Judaism and Islam talk of an afterlife

, so for followers of these faiths life after death has been promised by God. For Buddhists, belief in reincarnation is based on the tradition that the Buddha remembered his past lives when he reached enlightenment .

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What do the 5 major religions believe about life after death?

And the Disney film Soul depicts the soul of a jazz pianist separating from his earthly body to journey into the afterlife. The five great world religions —

Judaism, Christianity, Islam, Buddhism, and Hinduism

— all believe in some version of a “self”, variously named, which mostly survives death.

What do different religions do with the dead?


Some religions cremate their dead while others prefer burial

. Some faiths go through grieving rituals that last long after the funeral, while others prefer to end the observances when the funeral is complete.

What religions do not believe in afterlife?


Atheists

believe that there is no God and no life after death and that death is the cessation of the existence of the individual. Agnostics & atheists have reported having near-death experiences.

What do Buddhists believe happens after death?

Buddhists believe death is a natural part of the life cycle. They believe

that death simply leads to rebirth

. This belief in reincarnation – that a person’s spirit remains close by and seeks out a new body and new life – is a comforting and important principle.

What do different religions believe?

Religious Classification What/Who Is Divine Example Polytheism Multiple gods Belief systems of the ancient Greeks and Romans Monotheism Single god Judaism, Islam Atheism No deities Atheism Animism Nonhuman beings (animals, plants, natural world) Indigenous nature worship (Shinto)

What religions mourn for 7 days?


Jewish

. There are two periods of mourning in Judaism. The first, called “shiva,” meaning “seven,” takes place over the seven days immediately following the funeral. During shiva, the family gathers every day in a family home to mourn and pray.

How different cultures view death?

However, cultures vary in how

they conceptualize death

and what happens when a person dies. In some cultures, death is conceived to involve different conditions, including sleep, illness, and reaching a certain age. In other cultures, death is said to occur only when there is a total cessation of life.

What religions believe in eternal life?

The soul’s eternal life is a cornerstone belief of many religions, not only Christianity and Islam but also Hinduism. Yet Buddhism teaches the very opposite: the impermanence of everything, including the self.

What religion believes in different levels of heaven?


Mormons

believe that after the Judgment, there are actually three levels of heaven where people will go. They cite the Apostle Paul in the Bible, who called the different levels of heaven “glories” and compared them to the brightness of the sun, the moon, and the stars.

Do all Buddhist believe in reincarnation?

“Reincarnation” normally is understood to be the transmigration of a soul to another body after death. … There is no permanent essence of an individual self that survives death, and thus

Buddhism does not believe in reincarnation in the traditional sense

, such as the way it is understood in Hinduism.

Why are Buddhist funerals 49 days?

Buddhists believe that a person will continue the cycle of birth, life, death, and rebirth until they reach nirvana, or enlightenment. … Many Buddhists believe 49 days is

the longest length of time the intermediate state can last

. This is the key reason they perform religious ceremonies every day for 49 days.

What does the Hindu religion believe?

Hindus believe in the

doctrines of samsara (the continuous cycle of life, death, and reincarnation) and karma (the universal law of cause and effect)

. One of the key thoughts of Hinduism is “atman,” or the belief in soul. This philosophy holds that living creatures have a soul, and they’re all part of the supreme soul.

What religions dont believe in God?

  • Atheism/Agnosticism. Atheism refers to either the absence of a belief in the existence of deities or to an active belief that deities do not exist. …
  • Bahá’í …
  • Buddhism. …
  • Christianity. …
  • Confucianism. …
  • Druze. …
  • Gnosticism. …
  • Hinduism.

What religion is closest to Christianity?


Islam

shares a number of beliefs with Christianity. They share similar views on judgment, heaven, hell, spirits, angels, and a future resurrection. Jesus is acknowledged as a great prophet and respected by Muslims.

Which religion has only one God?

The three religions of

Judaism

, Christianity and Islam readily fit the definition of monotheism, which is to worship one god while denying the existence of other gods.

What do Jews say when someone dies?

Following the burial, non-family members form two lines and, as the mourners pass by them, they recite the traditional condolence: “

Hamakom y’nachem etchem b’toch sh’ar availai tziyon ee yerushalayim.”

May God comfort you among all the mourners of Zion and Jerusalem.

What culture celebrates death?


Mexico

. Perhaps one of the world’s most famous celebrations of the dead is the Mexican “Día de Los Muertos.” This is a massive event that lasts three days, beginning on October 31. According to Mexican traditions, families have the responsibility to keep the memory of loved ones present for as long as possible.

In which religion is cremation forbidden?


Islam

and Cremation

Muslims are forbidden to take part in the act of cremation in any way, including witnessing the event or even stating approval of it.

Do Christians believe in cremation?

For most Christians today, the question of cremation is

largely left to individual discretion

. Many Christians choose cremation as an alternative to burial, while still retaining those aspects of their traditional funeral practices that allow them to honor the lives of their loved ones and glorify God.

What do Chinese do when someone dies?

While traditionally inhumation was favoured, in the present day the dead are

often cremated

rather than buried, particularly in large cities in China. According to the Chinese Ministry of Civil Affairs (MCA), of the 9.77 million deaths in 2014, 4.46 million, or 45.6%, were cremated.

What religions do not believe in souls?

Various new religious movements deriving from Adventism — including Christadelphians, Seventh-day Adventists, and

Jehovah’s Witnesses

— similarly believe that the dead do not possess a soul separate from the body and are unconscious until the resurrection.

Do Sikhs believe in heaven?


Sikhs do not believe in heaven or hell

. Heaven can be experienced by being in tune with God while still alive. Conversely, the suffering and pain caused by ego is seen as hell on earth. … The Sri Guru Granth Sahib Ji is the living Guru for Sikhs.

How many hells are there?

The Bhagavata Purana, the Vishnu Purana and the Devi Bhagavata Purana enlist and describe

28 hells

; however, they end the description by stating that there are hundreds and thousands of hells.

What are Mormon beliefs?

These key elements of the faith include

belief in God the Father, his Son Jesus Christ and the Holy Spirit

; belief in modern prophets and continuing revelation; belief that through Christ’s atonement all mankind may be saved by obedience to the laws and ordinances of Christ’s Gospel; belief in the importance of …

Does Hinduism believe in Jesus?

For Hindus,

Christ is an acharya

. His example is a light to any of us in this world who want to take up the serious practice of spiritual life. His message is no different from the message preached in another time and place by Lord Krishna and Lord Chaitanya.

What are differences between Hinduism and Buddhism?

Buddhism and

Hinduism agree on karma, dharma, moksha and reincarnation

. They are different in that Buddhism rejects the priests of Hinduism, the formal rituals, and the caste system. Buddha urged people to seek enlightenment through meditation.

What are the 3 main beliefs of Buddhism?

The Basic Teachings of Buddha which are core to Buddhism are: The Three Universal Truths;

The Four Noble Truths; and • The Noble Eightfold Path

.

Where did Buddha go after death?

According to a well-known version, many aeons ago there lived a Brahman named (in some accounts) Sumedha, who realized that life is characterized by suffering and then set out to find a state beyond death. He

retired to the mountains

, where he became a hermit, practiced meditation, and gained yogic powers.

What are the 5 Hindu beliefs?

  • Truth is eternal. …
  • Brahman is Truth and Reality. …
  • The Vedas are the ultimate authority. …
  • Everyone should strive to achieve dharma. …
  • Individual souls are immortal. …
  • The goal of the individual soul is moksha.

What is the Hindu holy bible called?


The Vedas

. These are the most ancient religious texts which define truth for Hindus. They got their present form between 1200-200 BCE and were introduced to India by the Aryans. Hindus believe that the texts were received by scholars direct from God and passed on to the next generations by word of mouth.

Does Buddhist believe in heaven?

Buddhists do believe in a form of life after death. However,

they don’t believe in heaven or hell

as most people typically understand them. The Buddhist afterlife does not involve a god sending someone to a specific realm based on whether they’re a sinner.

What do Buddhist do with their dead bodies?

Buddhist funeral rites vary, but in general, there is a funeral service with an altar to the deceased person. Prayers and meditation may take place, and the body is

cremated after the service

. Sometimes the body is cremated after a wake, so the funeral is a cremation service.

What happens to the soul in Buddhism?

Buddhism, unlike other religions, does not believe in a creator God or an eternal or everlasting soul. Anatta – Buddhists

believe that there is no permanent self or soul

. Because there is no unchanging permanent essence or soul, Buddhists sometimes talk about energy being reborn, rather than souls.

What is the oldest religion?

The word Hindu is an exonym, and while

Hinduism

has been called the oldest religion in the world, many practitioners refer to their religion as Sanātana Dharma (Sanskrit: सनातन धर्म, lit. ”the Eternal Dharma”), which refers to the idea that its origins lie beyond human history, as revealed in the Hindu texts.

What do you call a person with no religion but believes in God?


Agnostic theism

, agnostotheism or agnostitheism is the philosophical view that encompasses both theism and agnosticism. An agnostic theist believes in the existence of a God or Gods, but regards the basis of this proposition as unknown or inherently unknowable.

What is it called when you believe in God but don’t go to church?

The correct term may most likely be a

theist

or a secular-theist.

Maria Kunar
Author
Maria Kunar
Maria is a cultural enthusiast and expert on holiday traditions. With a focus on the cultural significance of celebrations, Maria has written several blogs on the history of holidays and has been featured in various cultural publications. Maria's knowledge of traditions will help you appreciate the meaning behind celebrations.