Fall
Semester, 2002
Elizabeth
A. Harrison Course
Syllabus
Religion
231 is an
introductory course in the religious traditions of the East. We include a short introduction to primal
and aboriginal traditions, and examine Hinduism, Buddhism, Confucianism,
Taoism, and Shinto.
Texts:
Huston
Smith, World's Religions
Bhagavad
Gita.
Thich
Nhat Hanh, The Miracle of Mindfulness
Suzuki. Zen Mind, Beginner’s Mind
Lao
Tzu. Tao Te Ching.
Confucius.
Analects.
Office
Hours: Room 252 Phone: (703)845-6575 (office hours)
Mon. 3:30-4:30 pm (703)845-6242
(message)
Tues., 2 :30-4 :30 pm
Thurs., 6:30-7:30 pm E-mail : nvharre@nvcc.edu
Other hours by appointment.
Attendance
Policy: This course requires your active and
participatory attendance. Please plan
to be present for every class, if possible.
It is difficult, sometimes impossible, to make up what happens in this
class. At the end of the first three
weeks, students who have not attended will be administratively dropped from the
class. You may drop the course without penalty
until October 29. Missing more than
three classes will result in your being withdrawn from the course. So, please
plan accordingly. It is important that
you be here.
Course
Requirements:
Journals
---------------------------------------------------25%
Field trip and
report-------------------------------------25%
Class
presentation--------------------------------------25%
Final
examination---------------------------------------25%
Assignments:
8/26 Introductory comments. Methodology and assumptions. Texts, requirements and expectations. Video:
Campbell's "The Message of the Myth"
9/2 Labor Day Holiday. No class.
9/9 PRIMAL RELIGIONS. HS, Ch. I, IX. "The First Storytellers"
9/16 HINDUISM.
HS, Ch. II. "Religions of
India"
9/23 Read the Bhagavad Gita. Mahabarata.
9/30 Mahabarata.
10/7 BUDDHISM.
HS, Ch III. "The Hero's
Adventure"
10/14 No class. Non-instructional Day.
10/21 "Sacrifice and Bliss"
10/28 "The Masks of God".
Read Thich Nhat Hanh.
Mindfulness and meditation.*
11/4 Suzuki and Zen. FIELD TRIP Papers due. Read Suzuki.
11/11 CONFUCIANISM.
Hs, Ch. IV.
11/18 Oral Presentations. Read Analects.
11/25 TAOISM.
HS, Ch V.
12/2 Oral Presentations. Read Tao Te Ching. Journals due.
12/9 SHINTO.
Overview and review.
12/16 Examinations due.