Soteriology (/soʊˌtɪriˈɒlədʒi/;Ancient Greek:σωτηρίαsōtēría "salvation" fromσωτήρsōtḗr "savior, preserver" andλόγοςlógos "study" or "word"[1]) is the study ofreligious doctrines ofsalvation. Salvation theory occupies a place of special significance in many religions.[2] In the academic field ofreligious studies, soteriology is understood by scholars as representing a key theme in a number of different religions and is often studied in acomparative context; that is, comparing various ideas about what salvation is and how it is obtained.
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Buddhism is devoted primarily toawakening or enlightenment (bodhi),Nirvāṇa ("blowing out"), andliberation (vimokṣa) fromall causes of suffering (duḥkha) due to the existence ofsentient beings insaṃsāra (the cycle of compulsorybirth, death, and rebirth) through thethreefold trainings (ethical conduct,meditative absorption, andwisdom).Classical Indian Buddhism emphasized the importance of the individual'sself-cultivation (through numerous spiritual practices like keepingethical precepts,Buddhist meditation, andworship) in the process of liberation from thedefilements which keep us bound to the cycle of rebirth. According to thestandard Buddhist scholastic understanding, liberation arises when the properelements (dhārmata) are cultivated and when the mind has been purified of itsattachment tofetters andhindrances that produce unwholesome mental factors (various calleddefilements,poisons, orfluxes).[3]
However, thePure Land traditions ofMahāyāna Buddhism generally focus on saving "other power" of the celestial BuddhaAmitābha.[4] The Pure Land tradition relies on theBuddha's power or blessings (adhiṣṭhāna) to achieve rebirth in aBuddha's "Pure Land", asuperior divine realm where one can easily train for fullBuddhahood by meeting the Buddha.[5] Birth in the Pure Land is accomplished through the practice ofmindfulness of the Buddha, which is calledniànfó and entails reciting the name of the celestial BuddhaAmitābha with a mind offaith, which links us to the Buddha's power.[6] At the moment of death, the Buddha then transports us to the Pure Land. TheChinese and othermainland Pure Land traditions teach a synergistic soteriology in which one's own self-power links us to the Buddha's other power (which is still the main or "dominant condition" for salvation). This is called the doctrine of sympathetic resonance or "stimulus-response" (ganying).[7] TheJapanese Pure Land traditions meanwhile, teach that we must rely solely on other-power and abandon all self-powered efforts (which are useless and ego-centered).[8]
The doctrine of salvation inChristianity, also called "deliverance" or "redemption", focuses on the saving ofhuman beings fromsin and its consequences.[9][10] Variant views on salvation are among the main lines dividing the variousChristian denominations, being a point of disagreement betweenEastern Orthodoxy,Roman Catholicism, andProtestantism; in the history of theProtestant Reformation, theCalvinist–Arminian debate has been particularly influential. These lines include conflicting definitions ofdepravity,predestination,atonement, and most pointedly,justification. Christian soteriology ranges from exclusive salvation[11]: p.123 touniversal reconciliation concepts.[12]
Christology plays a key role in debates about soteriology. In theCatholic tradition, theRoman Catholic Church claims soteriological authority.[13] In hisNinety-five Theses (1517), the Protestant ReformerMartin Luther rejected thesoteriological authority of the Roman Catholic Church. Against this backdrop, the role of Christ's divinity takes so central a place in thetheology of Søren Kierkegaard that it provides the basis for the proposition of Christ's power to save, and so in this way of thinking Christology precedes soteriology. In the debates over theancient authorities of the Early Church, Christ's divinity and power over salvation are interconnected theological concepts.[14][15]
More than a century after the establishment of the Garden, the school in whichEpicurus taught philosophy, some people in theGreco-Roman world regarded Epicurus as their "Savior" (Koine Greek:Σωτήρ,Sōtḗr). The most prominent soul saved by Epicurus was the Roman EmpressPompeia Plotina.[citation needed]Lucretius, author ofDe Rerum Natura, also depicts the salvific power of philosophy, and of his Scholarch Epicurus, by employing literary devices like the "Broken Jar parable" (where the Scholarch is credited with helping mortals to easily enjoy pleasure), poetry, and imagery.[citation needed]
The salvation of Epicurus has no otherworldly connotations whatsoever. Judging from his Principal Doctrines andLetter to Menoeceus, he salves his disciples from supernatural fears and excessive desires for what is not natural and gives his disciples clear ethical guidelines that lead to happiness. Lucretius says Epicurus has set the boundaries for the limits of nature. His followers in Roman times developed Epicurus into a cultural hero and revered him as the founding figure of his School, and as the first to have developed a fully naturalistic cosmology that emancipated mortals from all fear-based superstition.[citation needed]
Soteriology is discussed inHinduism through its principle ofmoksha, also callednirvana orkaivalya. "In India", wroteMircea Eliade, "metaphysical knowledge always has a soteriological purpose."[16]Moksha refers to freedom fromsaṃsāra, the cycle of death and rebirth. Soteriology is one of the four primary aims of human life (purusarthas), alongsidedharma (duty),artha (wealth), andkama (pleasure). Rooted in the belief that existence is marked by suffering caused by ignorance, desire, and karma, moksha is seen as the ultimate liberation, often described in terms of nirvana (cessation), apunar-janma (non-return), or kaivalya (isolation). InIndian philosophy, different traditions such asVedanta,Samkhya, andYoga offer varied paths to moksha through knowledge, meditation, ethical action, or devotion (bhakti), but all regard it as the final resolution to human suffering and bondage.[17]
Muslims believe that everyone is responsible for their own actions. So even though Muslims believe thatAdam andHawwa (Eve), the parents of humanity, committed a sin by eating from the forbidden tree and thus disobeyed God, they believe that humankind is not responsible for such an action. They believe that God (Allah) is fair and just and one should request forgiveness from him to avoid being punished for not doing what God asked of them and for listening to Satan.[18] Muslims believe that they, as well as everyone else, are vulnerable to making mistakes and thus they need to seek repentance repeatedly at all times.
Muhammad said, "By Allah, I seek the forgiveness of Allah and I turn to Him in repentance more than seventy times each day." (Narrated by al-Bukhaari, no. 6307) God wants his servants to repent and forgives them, he rejoices over it, as Muhammad said: "When a person repents, Allah rejoices more than one of you who found his camel after he lost it in the desert." (Agreed upon. Narrated by al-Bukhaari, no. 6309) Islamic tradition has generally held that it is relatively straightforward to enterJannah (Paradise). In the Quran, God says: "If you avoid the great sins you have been forbidden, We shall wipe out your minor misdeeds and let you through the entrance of honor [Paradise]."[19]
However, by direct implication of these tenets and beliefs, Man's nature is spiritually and morally flawed such that he needs salvation from himself. Finding appreciation, forgiveness, and joy in Allah is the only (or best) practice to be saved from this terrible fate of corruption and meaninglessness.al-Tahreem 66:8
The focus onfanāʾ inSufi thought, sometimes let to a dismissal on both paradise and hell as means of salvation, which often went hand in hand with a rejection of the present world.[20][21] The prospect of paradise and fear of hell would distract the Muslim too much from devotion to God.[22] Instead, one should throw away both worlds (al-takhalli min al-kawnayn) and focus solely on the reality behind them.[23]
These Sufis considered the true meaning of hell to be separation from and heavenly bliss to be the union with God.[22] An example of the typical Sufistic exclamation can be seen fromRabia of Basra[20]:
"O Lord, if I worship You out of fear of hell, burn me in hell, andif I worship You in the hope of paradise, forbid it to me. However, if I worship You for Your own sake, do not deprive me of Your eternal beauty!"[24]
Another radical rejection of paradise and hell can be found byBayazid Bastami. He describes paradise as yet another veil, occupying people with temporal bliss rather than God.[25] In his ownmystical ascension, remniscient ofMuhammad's Journey through the heavens, he describes the visions of paradise as nothing but another worldly distraction; the true goal of his quest is meeting God.[26] By doing so, he also makes critical remarks about the inhabitants of the paradise, stating that "those who are in paradise are not in God" and "let them be fooled", because, once in paradise, they will realize that they are veiled from the greatest pleassure, which is meeting God.[26] As such, he also dismisses hell's punishment as meaningless and even threats hell, if hell should torment the damned too harshly, he would reveal to them that "paradise is a game for children", easing their suffering by alleviating their disappointment of not having entered heaven.[27]
Similarly, al-Shibli responded then asked about hell, that "fire and hell are but sugar in comparison with being separated [from God]." Al-Niffari proclaimed that entering hell would be the ultimate test for the Sufi, because once entered, "the Fire would be extinghuished", but paradise would be populated only by "slaves". Once in hell, all worldly and intellectual properties will be burned until only union with God remains.[27]
InJainism, the soteriological concept ismoksha, which is the finalgunasthana. The Jain theory explainsmoksha differently from the similar term found in Hinduism.[28]Moksha is a blissful state of existence of a soul, completely free from the karmic bondage, free fromsaṃsāra, the cycle of birth and death. It is the highest state of existence of a soul, even higher than the gods living in the heavens. In the state of moksha, a soul enjoys infinite bliss, infinite knowledge and infinite perception. This state is achieved through realisation of self and achieving a completely desireless and unattached state.
In contemporaryJudaism, redemption (Hebrewge'ulah) isGod's gathering in the people ofIsrael from their various exiles.[29] This includes thefinal redemption from thepresent exile.[30] Judaism does not posit a need forpersonal salvation in a way analogous to Christianity; Jews do not believe inoriginal sin.[31] Instead, Judaism places greater value on individual morality as defined in theLaw and embodied in theTorah—the teaching given toMoses by God onMount Sinai and sometimes understood to be summarized by theDecalogue (Biblical Hebrew עֲשֶׂרֶת הַדְּבָרִים,ʿĂsereṯ haDəḇārīm, lit. 'The Ten Words'). Thetannaitic sageHillel the Elder taught that the Law could be further compressed into the single maxim popularly known as theGolden Rule: "That which is hateful to you, do not do unto your fellow".[32]
In Judaism, salvation is closely related to the idea ofredemption, or rescue from the states and circumstances that destroy the value of human existence. God, as the creator of the universe, is the source of all salvation for humanity (provided an individual honors God by observing God's precepts). So, redemption and/or salvation depends on the individual. Furthermore, Judaism stresses that one's salvation cannot be obtained through anyone else, invoking a deity, or believing in any outside power or influence.[32]
Some passages in Jewish religious texts assert that anafterlife exists for neither the good nor evil. For example, the writer of theBook of Ecclesiastes tells the reader: "The dead know nothing. They have no reward and even the memory of them is lost."[33] For many centuries, rabbis and Jewish laypeople have often wrestled with such passages.
In themystery religions of theGreco-Roman world, salvation was less worldly and communal, and more a mystical belief concerned with the continued survival of the individual soul after death.[34] Some savior gods associated with this theme aredying-and-rising gods, often associated with the seasonal cycle, such asOsiris,Tammus,Adonis, andDionysus. A complex of soteriological beliefs was also a feature of the cult ofCybele andAttis.[35]
The similarity of themes andarchetypes to religions found in antiquity to later Christianity has been pointed out by many authors, including theFathers of the early Christian church. One view[citation needed] is that early Christianity borrowed these myths and motifs from contemporary Hellenistic mystery religions, which possessed ideas such as life-death-rebirth deities and sexual relations between gods and human beings. WhileChrist myth theory is not accepted by mainstream historians, proponents attempt to establish causal connections to the cults ofMithras, Dionysus, and Osiris among others.[36][37]
Sikhism advocates the pursuit of salvation through disciplined, personal meditation on theNaam Japo (name) and message of God, meant to bring one into union with God. But a person's state of mind has to be detached from this world, with the understanding that this world is a temporary abode and their soul has to remain untouched by pain, pleasure, greed, emotional attachment, praise, slander, and above all, egotistical pride. Thus their thoughts and deeds becomenirmal or pure, and they merge with God or attain union with God, just as a drop of water falling from the skies merges with the ocean.[38][39]
Becoming an enlightened person is what is considered salvation in manyTaoist beliefs.
SomeTaoist immortals were thought of as deceased humans whose souls achieved a superior physical form.[40] Enlightened people were sometimes calledzhenren and thought to be the living embodiment of thesupernatural characteristics of the faith.[41][37]
Shinto andTenrikyo similarly emphasize working for a good life by cultivating virtue or virtuous behavior.[citation needed]
In an age[timeframe?] that still saw salvation as primarilycollective - based on the religion of the family, clan, or state - rather than the emerging province of the individual[clarification needed] (as popularized by Buddhism and the mystery religions such asMithraism).Hellenistic ruler cults from about 300 BCE sometimes promoted the revering of a king as the savior of his people. Prominent examples includedPtolemy I Soter of Egypt and the SeleucidsAntiochus I Soter andDemetrius I Soter. In the Egyptian context, the deification of a ruler was built on traditionalpharaonic religious ideas.[citation needed]
