Upanishads The basis of Hindu creed and philosophy that form the final portion of the Veda.

 

Old Testament The Christian name of holy book for the Hebrew Bible. Some books of the Old Testament regarded as sacred by the Jews are not accepted as such by Christians; among Christians there are differences between Roman Catholics and Protestants about the inclusion of some books, the order of the books, and the original sources used in translating them.

 

 

 

Five Classics Five works traditionally attributed to Confucius that form the basic texts of Confucianism. They are the Spring and Autumn Annals, a history of Confucius's native district; the I Ching (or Book of Changes ), a system of divining the future; the Book of Rites , which outlines ceremonies and describes the ideal government; the Book of History ; and the Book of Songs , a collection of poetry.

 

Qur'an The primary holy book of Islam. This holy book is made up of 114 suras, or chapters, which contain impassioned appeals for belief in God, encouragement to lead a moral life, portrayals of damnation and beatitude, stories of Islamic prophets, and rules governing the social and religious life of Muslims. Believers maintain that this holy book contains the verbatim word of God, is the primary source of every Muslim’s reliance and practice, revealed to the prophet Muhammad through the Angel Gabriel in Arabic only. The prophecies contained in this holy book continue to be fulfilled in every age.

 

New Testament This holy book is the second portion of the Christian Bible, which contains 27 books that form the basis of Christian belief. These books include the sayings of Jesus, the story of his life and work, the death and resurrection of Jesus now celebrated as Easter, the teachings and writings of the apostles, and instruction for converting nonbelievers and for performing baptisms, blessings, and other rituals.

 

Talmud A compilation of Jewish oral law and rabbinical teachings that is separate from the scriptures of the Hebrew Bible, or Old Testament.

 

Veda This holy book is the sacred scripture of Hinduism. The Rig-Veda , the Sama-Veda , and the Yajur-Veda are books of hymns; the Atharva-Veda compiles magic spells.