World Religions
This domain tests knowledge of major living traditions and the skill of comparing beliefs, practices, ethics, texts and rituals without flattening internal diversity.
Core concepts
- Judaism: covenant, Torah, Talmud (Mishnah and Gemara), Shema (Deuteronomy 6:4), synagogue, Shabbat, kosher laws, Pesach, Yom Kippur, Rosh Hashanah.
- Islam: Tawhid (unity of God), Qur'an, Sunnah and Hadith, Five Pillars (shahada, salah, zakat, sawm, hajj), Ramadan, Sunni-Shia division over succession, sharia and fiqh.
- Hinduism: Brahman, atman, karma, samsara, moksha; Vedas, Upanishads, Bhagavad Gita; bhakti, jnana and karma yoga; diverse deities and schools.
- Buddhism: Four Noble Truths, Eightfold Path, anatta (no-self), anicca (impermanence), dukkha, nirvana; Theravada, Mahayana, Zen; Pali canon and meditation.
Worked example
Compare the role of scripture in Judaism and Islam. Reasoning: both treat a revealed text as authoritative and recite it publicly. Judaism reads Torah in synagogue alongside Talmudic interpretation and debate; Islam treats the Qur'an as the literal word of God, recited in Arabic, with Hadith as a separate authoritative corpus. Evaluate: similarity lies in revelation and community; difference lies in translation, interpretive authority and law. Conclusion: compare function, not just content.
Traps
Saying Allah is a different God; reducing Hinduism to polytheism; calling Buddhism simply atheistic; treating karma as fate; saying sharia is only the Qur'an; assuming all Muslims are Arab; ignoring denominational diversity.