Life of Henry

After watching the video the   Silk Road: Where East Met West  and reading Chapter 16 The Awakening by Patrick S. Bresnan introduced the importance and the background of the famous Silk Road. "From Alexander the Great to Genghis Khan, emperors and princes fought to control the Silk Road" because it was worth fighting for due to the many miles of money to be made ( Silk ,1:38-1:43). Silk Road Map In the video, I learned that "Xi'an has always been seen as the beginning of the Silk Road"( Silk ,7:45-7:47). People of the region traded, bought goods, exchanged ideas and techniques with other traveling merchant. Many of them became an influence vital source to "Western Europe such as paper, gunpowder and musical instruments"( Silk , 2:01-2:03). It was interesting that Zhang Qian would lay a foundation of the Silk Road when he traveled to find the unique and dominate "heavenly horses" that were far superior to the ones in China( Silk ,19:11-...

Confucius   After reading Chapter 13 and 14 of Awakening: An Introduction to the History of Eastern Thought by Patrick S. Bresnan is interesting how early China had two set of pathway that collide one another to set how a person would set a standard to live. Confucianism and Daoism , also known as Taoism, help set your own pathway to society and life. Confucianism focus on creating harmony in society whereas Daoism focuses on a balance in life.  ideal influential political figure during his time. Confucianism is " often characterized as a system of social and ethical philosophy rather than a religion. In fact, Confucianism built on an ancient religious foundation to establish the social values, institutions, and transcendent ideals of traditional Chinese society" (Berling 1). At the end of chapter 13, Confucius introduced a question for the readers, “is a renaissance of Confucius humanism coming into view on the horizon? Or is it, perhaps, still just beyond the...

One Pillar Pagoda  Mahayana Buddhist Temple in Hanoi, Vietnam The history of Buddhism is divided into two traditions Theravada and Mahayana. Theravada Buddhism focuses on Buddha's Eightfold paths and Five Dedications to enlightenment, while Mahayana uses newer teaching rather than solely on the original teaching. Theravada or Hinayana, can be interpreted as the "stricter" teaching to enlightenment. The word "Theravada" literally means "teaching (doctrine) of the elders" which emphasizes the depth of the strict pathways to enlightenment if someone was to follow this path (Bresnan 221). While Mahayana is a Sanskirt word that literally means "Great Vehicle" which can be interpreted as not certain people can follow this path but a broader group(Bresnan 232). Theravada Meditation Artistic expression has been an influence on the rise of Mahayana and Theravada. A great flowering of Buddhist art was accompanied by the rise of Mahayana. I...

In The Bhagavad Gita by Jack Hawley, the book reveals one noticeable theme that carries out through the story and meaning to our daily life. The theme of the book would be considered the practice that we learn in the past can help us through the harsh time in the future.  Arjuna and Krishna In the beginning of the book, Arjuna is observing the two armies in the battlefield and suddenly stops and tell Krishna(god/deity) "my arms and legs feel heavy" which reveals that Arjuna is questioning his decision on fighting his friends, family, teachers etc. (Hawley 7). Then through the next few chapter, Arjuna and Krishna go back to the basics of yoga principle teaching to help resolve Arjuna's most desire questioning of his dharma. Krishna Krishna emphasizes that "one's personal duty in life (one's sva-dharma ) should be viewed as one's responsibility to his or her highest Self, the Atma" (Hawley 17). "Krishna points out to Arjuna that hi...

Hindu Priest Beliefs help define who we are and what we want to become. Some may see as guidance how their standard of living. In Hindu culture, some see their spiritual pathways as Brahmin or Atman. Brahmin is a principle in which "God appears as the universe" while Atman is "god can be seen in all of us"(4:14-4:38). Hindu Deities In the video Hindu Spiritual Pathways , Hindu follow the Pathway to God that is best for them. There are 4 types of pathway suited for different type of lifestyle you prefer. Bhakti ideal is "to use everything you can in daily life to link to God" and Raja involves "owns reasoning and thought to find God". While Jnana uses "knowledge to link with God" such as learning from the Hindu text or understanding yourself and Karma Yoga involves finding God through "action such as seeing God through every living thing they across/encounter" (4:55-12:08). In the video Hindu Spiritual ...

Harappan Site Taking by AIS In the book " Awakening " by Patrick S. Bresnan, the author had many similar and unfamiliar details compared to the video  Indus: The Unvoiced Civilization . In the book, it emphasize the caste system of how "India is famous for its caste system" (Bresnan 13). While the video didn't mention the caste system but had information about how the people migrated to the region and how they identify themselves. Indus Valley Map The two sources treated the engineering system topic different from how one is helpful towards the region while the book highlighted the drainage system.  First of all the book emphasized the background of the engineering of the city. In the book, the "the cities, were constructed mostly of mud and fired brick" which were a high level of engineering for the time era(Bresnan 7). While the video mainly emphasizes the water systems of how resourceful they were. But the book did reveal that the ...

Hi everyone, starting today this will be my platform of blogging for Asian Humanities 320.