Ancient Greek Philosophical Thought - Final Exam Essay

Ancient Greek Philosophical Thought - Final Exam - Essay Example On the foundations of the same belief, Socrates argues that the souls of philosophers and intellectuals will join the souls of deities many thousand years before the arrival of the ordinary humans due to the very fact that the philosophers’ souls are far refined and sublime than those of general pu...blic, and avoid vice and evil temptations by controlling their desires and discouraging their lust. Hence, Socrates has defined and determined the path and position of soul in his philosophic ideas, which are being endorsed and asserted by the future philosophers for the last several centuries to come. Socrates has also elucidated madness in his second speech, where he argues that it is madness that urges temptation of love, friendship and even sexual desires. He is of the opinion that sexual relations between man and boy must be developed on the basis of true feelings of love, instead of mere lust and for the fulfillment of carnal desires only. Such type of insincere relationship s will break mutual respect between the mentor and pupil, and every association will seek its connection in selfishness and materialism. Hence, the great philosopher, in a terse manner, describes that the carnal desires are an essential part of human instinct, which can be controlled but could not be suppressed altogether. Here Socrates perhaps means emotions and passion equivalent to madness; it is therefore he cites the sun-god Apollo, the Seven Muses, and the harvest and fertility god Dionysus and the love-god Aphrodite, nature and form of the expressions of love are different for all the four, he submits. While explaining the concept of Eros, in his speech, Socrates submits to state that Eros or lust has direction connection with human soul. It is soul that attracts towards Eros for one way or the other. Somehow, philosophers have control to resist the advancements of sexual desires particularly in case of pederasty, where an adult male is fascinated by the beauty of a youth. Th e king of gods Zeus had also experienced madness out of the sheer and absolute beauty of the Trojan young prince Ganymede, and he had abdicated the youth for his sexual desires and love too. However, unlike performing the same act of abdicating a beautiful person for one’s purpose, the philosophers’ soul control the madness and desires, and thus turns out to be refined and sublime in nature and acts. Moreover, Socrates has also thrown light on rhetoric in his final speech, where instead of discouraging the politicians to take part in writing activities, Socrates allows them to do the same and thus read, write and deliver the speeches. However, instead of being mean and inferior, the writing and theme should be excellent and refined one. Hence, making an

Logistics and Project Planning Essay Example for Free

Logistics and Project Planning Essay The mission of elc was to provide consumers with access to the Internet at the lowest cost. Despite the excellent support and recognition from the public, elc was experiencing adversity of keeping their business profitable after the Internet Investment bubble burst. The original concept of owning many of the large stand-alone cafes with 250-500 PC terminals at each cafe was not working well. elc undertook a dramatic restructuring of the company by downsizing the cafes. Many of the large, original stand-alone elc stores will be run by franchisees. These franchised stores will become smaller stores which have 20 to 30 PCs terminals at each cafe and with no staff required except for regular maintenance. Less involvement with store operations allows elc to concentrate on activities of their core competence and outsource all the non-core activities. Their core competence was to continue building their ‘easy’ brand and applying the yield management model to the Internet cafe business. Their business goal was to open 4 new franchises per week over the next 3 years. In order to achieve the goal of growing their franchised Internet cafes business, an efficient, flexible and cost-effective logistics system is what they need for the provision of equipment to the franchisee. Since logistics is one of the non-core activities that is perceived as a bottleneck for scalability, the present logistics system of elc will be reviewed and findings of whether to outsource the logistics system will be presented to the management team. Background of easyGroup Stelios Haji-loannou, the founder of easyGroup, is the renowned Greek entrepreneur who utilized his family money to launch a serial of ventures. His first venture, Stelmar Tankers was found in 1992. The company very soon went into the public sector and was listed on New York Stock Exchange. In 1995, he found easyJet. easyJet was a no-frills, low cost airline company and later grew to become the largest no-frill airline in Europe and was listed on the London stock exchange in 2000. Building on the success of easyJet and to extend the ‘easy’ brand further, he formed the holding company easyGroup in 1998. easyInternetcafe was his first venture under the umbrella of the easyGroup. Other companies in the group included easyJet, easyCar, easyCinema, easy. com, easyMoney and easyValue, easyBus, easyPizza, easyCruise, and easyDorm. Low price and no-frill is the key elements of the ‘easy’ brand. Yield Management Model Stelios is an enthusiast of Yield Management Model and he applies the model to his business. According to Wikipedia, yield management is the process of understanding, anticipating and influencing consumer behavior in order to maximize revenue or profits from a fixed, perishable resource (such as airline seats or hotel room reservations). Stelios believes that lowering the price will increase the demands of the customers significantly. By locating all the large internet cafes in high traffic areas, elc aimed to capture the maximum revenue by providing internet services with a variety of price points at different points in time (peak hours or off peak hours). The price for Internet access varies based on demand, raising the price in dollar per hour in mid-afternoon, when stores are nearly full. That gives bargain hunters an incentive to visit in the non-peak hours, when price is dropping. The model is well suited for business with high fixed cost and perishable supply. The large numbers of computer equipments inside the Internet cafes are capital intensive for elc. The empty seats inside the cafe in a certain time period cannot generate any revenue and thus can be said to have perished. elc uses one of their capital proprietary products, CVM, to monitor how seats are occupied and react accordingly, for example by adjusting the price to offer discounts when it appears that large amount of seats are remaining empty. However, this model is not working for elc as it does for airline and hotel industries. The customers’ willingness to pay for using the internet access at theses internet cafe is impulsive and their demands are not easy to predict. The yield management model works well for airlines and hotels mainly because their customers usually plan ahead of time on their journey. Therefore, airlines and hotels are more likely to predict their customer demands and adjust the prices accordingly. They still have time to attract customers by offering last minute deals. But for internet cafes, customers do not make reservation for their usage of Internet in advance. Customer demands are thus very hard to predict. Even though the CVM can adjust the pricing based on the vacancy of the cafe, it is difficult to attract enough customers in a short period of time to fill up the empty usage of the internet access. Since Internet was still a new technology at that time, Internet access was not yet considered to be an essential product. Customers were likely to learn when to visit the cafes so that they can pay less compared to other time period.

Evaluation on two theories of cognitive development

Evaluation on two theories of cognitive development This essay I will look at the similarity and the differences between Piagets and Vygotskys theories in explanation of child cognitive development. Particularly it will describe their theories on the importance of social interactions in influencing development. I will give a brief overview of the four stages of Piagets theories. Piagets and Vygotskys theories will then be evaluate, with key terms explained. I aim to show that Vygotskys theory placed far more emphasis on social interactions in childrens cognitive development than Piaget, and that their theories were informed by their own cultural influence. Cognitive development theory explains how humans obtain and construct knowledge of themselves and their planet. The theory of cognitive development was first proposed by Jean Piaget, however there are other major theoretical approaches to cognitive development, as well as those of Vygotsky. Piaget approached the subject from a biological and life perspective, while Vygotsky approached the subject from an environmental and culture perspective. I will look at the impact both theories have had on child development, I will, also look at the differences along with others, as well as the resemblance of Piagets and Vygotskys theories and evaluate them. Piagets theory focuses on intelligence and how it changes as children grow up. While, Vygotskys theory centres on the social action and he defines intelligence as the capacity to learn from teaching. We will also look at the impact both Piaget and Vygotskys theories have had on education and how they have been applied to education. Piagets theory is about child intellectual development and the gaining of knowledge. While Vygotskys main theory was how culture influence development, through language and the society. Jean Piaget was born on August 1896 and died 1980 (56 years old), he studied the development of childrens understanding, through examing and paying attention to children while he carried out his experiments. According to Piaget cognitive development occurs through the interaction of innate capacities with environmental events and progresses through a series of hierarchical, qualitative different and stages (Gross 2005). All children pass through Piaget stages in the same level without missing anyone of them, except if the child has brain damage or brain problem. Rather than trying to explain individual differences why some children are more intelligent than others Piaget was interested in how intelligence itself changes as children grow (Gross 2010). Important feature of Piagets theory was schemas, Piaget saw schema as mental structures which organise past experiment and provide a means of understanding future experiences. As we grow so our schema become increasingly complex (Gross 2005). Assimilation, Accommodation and Equilibration are the three courses of Adaptation expressed by Piagets theory. Assimilation is the process by which we incorporate new information into existing schema. For example babies will reflexively suck a nipple and other objects, such as a finger (Gross 2010). Accommodation into schemas enables children to make sense of and deal with the world. Piaget argues that children are active in exploring the world and, in general, do not need instruction or examples from others to develop their cognitive abilities. Development will take place solely through the childs own actions on the environment in a form of discovery learning where others are facilitators not teachers. Piagets Stages theory of Cognitive Development, Piaget suggests that all children develop through four stages and they all develop in the same role, these stages are Sensori-motor, Pre-operational, Concrete operational and Formal operational. The first stage was Sensori-motor stage which initially occurs from birth to two years of childs life. Infants learn about the world primarily through their sense (sensori-), and by doing (motor) (Gross 2005).An important discovery during the sensori-motor stage is the object permanence. An infant will look where an object disappears for a few moment but wont search for it. If the object doesnt reappear the infant apparently loses interest. Piagets demonstrate the limited object performance of babies between eight and twelve months. They can retrieve a hidden object only from its original hiding place, not where it was last hidden. Not until about twelve months will they search under the cushion where they last saw the object hidden (Gross 2005). The second stage was Pre-operational stage this take place between the age of two and four years. The infant begins to utilise symbols to classify objects. Objects are also personified by the infant and they are able to think about events that are not directly present. The infant is not yet able to conceptualise time. At this stage the infant will take information and adjust it to fit his ideas. The child tends to be influenced by the things seen, rather than by logical principles or operations (Gross 2010). According to Piaget pre-operational children are egocentrism that is they see the world from their own standpoint and cannot appreciate that other people might see things differently, they can not put themselves in other peoples shoes (Gross 2005). Also Piaget study of conservation is the understanding that any quantity such as fluid, numbers or lengths remains the same regardless of a visual change for example, if a fluid is transfer from a short large glass to a high slim glass a child at this stage would say that there was more liquid in the slim glass or that there was more fluid in the large glass. The third stage was Concrete Operations stage, this take place between the ages of seven to eleven years. This stage the child is now capable of performing logical operations, but only in the presence of actual objects (Gross 2010). One remaining problem for the concrete operational child is transitivity task (Gross 2005). For example, if you tell a child that Jean is taller than Pat and Pat is taller than Carol and asked whether Jean or Carol is taller, children under eleven cannot solve this problem entirely in their heads, they can only solve it using real objects such as toys. The last stage was Formal Operations stage this take place at the age of eleven to fifteen years and associates the individual with no longer requiring concrete objects to make rational judgments. The individual is capable of deductive and hypothetical reasoning and their ability of thinking is similar to that of an adult. Lev Vygotsky was born the same year as Piaget (1896, died 1934) was particularly interested in the relationship between being taught by adults and the child cognitive development. He developed his theories at around the same time as Piaget, Vygotskys theory is known as the social development theory. Vygotsky and Piaget agree that development doesnt occur in a vacuum, knowledge is constructed as a result of the childs active interaction with the environment (Gross 2010). Vygotsky outline alternative to Piagets theory. Vygotsky believed that cognitive learning was a social event, which through language and interaction with other children and adults, children would begin to learn about and challenge their surroundings. Three themes unified Vygotskys theory of social constructivism and they are: Culture, central role of language and the zone of proximal growth (Oates et al. 2005). Cultural tools are what the child inherits, these can be technological such as bicycles and other physical devices (Gross 2005). Culture tool can pass from one individual to another copied learning. Instructed learning Involves remembering the instructions of the teacher and then using these instructions to learn. Children dont need to reinvent the world anew as Piaget seemed to believe. They can benefit from the accumulated wisdom of previous generations (Gross 2005). The central role of language, as a child begins to speak, his thought processes also begin to develop. In essence, it is language which directs behaviour. Vygotsky describes three stages in the development of speech. Each of these three stages of speech has its own function. Speech Stages are Social Speech (external speech), Egocentric Speech, and Inner Speech. Social Speech (external speech) at this stage a child uses speech to direct the behaviour of others. A child uses speech to communicate feelings and emotions such as weeping when hungry and laughing when happy. Egocentric Speech In this stage, a child often talk to him or herself, regardless of someone paying attention to them. At this speech stage they think out loud, they may also talk about what they are doing as they are doing it, they reason that language must be said to direct their behaviour (slideshare.net, 29/01/11). Inner Speech is a soundless speech used by older children and adults. It allows us to direct our thinking and behaviour. Here we are able to engage in all forms of higher mental functions. In this stage one is able to count in ones head, use logical memory-inherent relationships, and inner signs (slideshare.net, 29/01/11). The zone of proximal development (ZPD) defined those functions that havent yet matured but are in the process of maturing (Vygotsky, 1978). Scaffolding refers to the kind of guidance and support adults provide children in the zone of proximal development by which children acquire their knowledge and skills (Wood Wood, 1996), although scaffolding those not actually explain how children internalise what the teacher provides (Gross 2005). Piagets and Vygotskys theories have same things in common, both hold a constructive view, Piagets assimilation look like Vygotskys appropriation, however they disagree on point of influence of social interactions in childrens cognitive development. Vygotskys theory emphasise the value of language and social interaction in a childs cognitive development. Vygotsky recognised the importance that different culture can take part in a childs cognitive development. In conclusion, Piagets stage theory is useful in describing the basic process of child cognitive development. However, because development cannot take place in the social vacuum, Piagets theory is limited. Vygotskys emphasis on social interactions influence better accounts for the everyday development of childrens cognitive abilities. when you evaluate Piagets to Vygotskys you clearly note that, both theories agreed that the child must mentally construct knowledge, on the other hand, Vygotsky placed emphasis on the role of social interaction in this construction process. Vygotsky also placed emphasis on culture in shaping cognitive development. Gross, R. (2005), Psychology: The Science of Mind and Behaviour, 5th Edition, Hodder and Stoughton. Oates, J., Wood, C. and Grayson, A. (2005) Psychological development and early childhood, Oxford, Blackwell. Vygotsky, L.S (1978) mind in society, Cambridge, MA: Harvard university press Wood, D wood, H. (1996) Vygotsky, tutoring and learning. Oxford review of education, 22, 5-16. http://www.slideshare.net/guestf3585b/lev-semyonovich-vygotsky (29/01/2011)

The Ediacaran Fauna Essay -- essays research papers

Up until 1947, it was believed that the Cambrian Explosion marked the first true abundance of multicellular life. However, this was discovered to be untrue after Sir Douglas Mawson and R.C. Sprigg mistakenly came across numerous "fossil jellyfish" in the Ediacara Hills while observing what was originally believed to be sandstones belonging to the lowest strata of the Cambrian. At first, these finding were dismissed as "fortuitous inorganic markings."(AAS Biographical Memoirs.) Several years later however, other discoveries of segmented worms, worm tracks, and impressions of two other assemblages that bear no resemblance to any known organism, living or extinct, prompted the South Australian Museum and the University of Adelaide to undertake a joint investigation of the region. Further studies by M. F. Glaessner, a paleontologist at Adelaide showed that the fossils were found well below the oldest Cambrian strata and that the strata actually dated from the Precambrian era. Several thousand specimens have since been collected in the Ediacara Hills. All the fossils collected were soft-bodied animals and their tissues were strengthened by spicules-needles of calcium carbonate that functioned as their support. The Ediacaran organisms were marine animals, some crawled, some were attached to the sea floor and others would swim or just freely float. Their impressions were molded in the moving sands that washed over the mud flats and were preserved as casts in the sandstone. It is difficult to conceive how fossils of delicate soft-bodied animals could be preserved given the evidence of strong currents in the strata. However, extensive research has provided an explanation. Most of the animals settled on mud patches out of the water during calm currents. Some of these patches dried between tides and developed deep cracks. The next shifting current would then cover these cracks with a layer of sand and the lower surfaces preserved the mud in the form of perfect casts. (Glaessner 67)The nature of these soft-bodied fossils justifies the characterization of the Precambrian as the "age of the jellyfish," however the term jellyfish only refers to a number of diverse forms, which belong to the Phylum Cnideria. (Glaessner 64) Six principle forms of animals have been discovered. The first are the rounded, discoidal impressions, resembling th... ...nimals. Gregory Retallack, a paleontologist from the University of Oregon, suggests that these fossils were lichens. Retallack's argument rests on the fact that the impressions were buried five kilometers under ground. He believes the fossils should have been crushed by the weight of the overlying sediment. But Retallack observed that the fossils "were as compaction resistant as some kinds of fossil tree trunks!" Because of this, Retallack concludes that these forms weren't animals, rather lichens made up of sturdy molecules such as chitin. Further evidence of this interpretation can be found in the Ediacaran organism's growth patterns and microscopic structure. (Woodmorappe 1) Despite these controversial implications many paleontologists still believe the Ediacaran animals are in fact ancestors of the animals in the existing phyla. This controversy might not be resolved until the discovery of fossils providing more information.. (Levin 267) Charles Darwin found himself in this same situation some 150 years ago. Just as he was befuddled by the absence of the ancestors of the Cambrian anim als, we are puzzled by the absence of direct ancestors of these Ediacaran fossils.

Competency Statement III Complete Essay

To support social and emotional development and to provide positive guidance. SELF I will support each child’s social and emotional development and provide positive guidance to teach them to learn their own self-worth and self-value: By using positive reinforcement to build up each child’s self-esteem By giving pats on the back and hugs to comfort and help each child feel emotionally secure By making sure I am always pleasant and smiling at the children during times of play or teaching, making them feel of value By loving each child and never allowing partiality, I will teach them their value as individuals I believe that every person/child deserves the right to have self-esteem; I believe that this leads us to become much more stable emotionally and socially. I will achieve this by treating each child with respect; listening to each as an individual, taking their feelings seriously, and including each child as a valuable person during group times. My goal is to have a positive attitude at all times, so that I can be an example by my actions. SOCIAL I will support the social and emotional development and provide positive guidance to each child, by giving them the tools they need to develop their social psyche to become productive citizens: By using self-control at all times, I will teach each child appropriate behavior By listening to and respecting all of the children and adults in our environment, I will teach each child to listen to others By modeling  appropriate emotional skills in showing genuine concern for the well-being of others, I will teach each child empathy and forgiveness As teachers of young children, we must help each child in their social development. Part of achieving this goal is to make sure the children interact with each of the other throughout the day; I will achieve this by planning activities where the children can mingle and have different friends at each station. I will also make sure that everyone participates in whole class games and other fun activities that promote teamwork. I will make sure that I am a good example by communicating and being friendly with each child’s parent/care-giver. GUIDANCE I will support the social and emotional development and provide positive guidance by educating children in learning how to make decisions that lead to self-control and self-discipline: By giving positive encouragement for each endeavor, I will encourage them to succeed By demonstrating how to perform a skill with slow and simple directions, I will teach them that they can do anything By being alert to the needs of each child, I can ensure that each child learns to be independent I will use kind body language to direct a child towards the desired behavior I will provide assistance geared towards helping each child reach their full potential. I will work with other staff and parents to set goals for each child. I believe that persistent positive guidance will help each child reach their desired outcomes. Training up children in learning how to navigate life. CSIIIa: I support the development of a child’s positive self-concept and growing social/emotional skills by making sure they feel safe and loved. In giving value to each child’s opinion and by listening to their concerns, they will feel self-worth and be better equipped to value someone else’s opinion; then I gently guide them to understand why a rule must be followed, teaching  compliance. I use consistency in my requirements, which provides them with specific boundaries and teaches them self-control because they understand the consequence of self-actions. Knowing that they are valued helps their self-concept to bloom, and leads to self-confidence and self-worth. A child who feels accepted and loved can slowly learn the social and emotional skills they need. CSIIIb: My philosophy in guiding a young child’s positive behavior is to be a friendly positive influence, giving them lots of love and understanding. I believe that positive reinforcement leads to better behavior in a child; they desire to please the care-giver who makes them feel wanted and valued. My mother guided me this way as a child, and I have used it in my work with children with great success. In several cases where a child, in my care, has repeated challenging behavior, I learned to ignore that behavior, but give attention for good behavior; these children respond to the positive reinforcement and become my helper and learn to improve their social skills.

Nonviolence: Martin Luther King, Jr. and Tich Nhat Hanh

Upon engaging the text of Martin Luther King, Jr. ‘s anti-war speech â€Å"Beyond Vietnam: A Time to Break Silence,† one recognizes an undeniable continuity between King's thinking and that of his contemporary Thich Nhat Hanh. It is important to note, however, that King's reflections in this discourse are not entirely beholden to his Buddhist counterpart. The overarching concepts of â€Å"interbeing† and interrelation which drive the speech were evident in King's work and philosophy well before his correspondence with Nhat Hahn. The similarities regarding each man's approach to these notions should be expected given their respective spiritual vocations. Therefore, although King's reflections in this address – which encompass the broader considerations of nonviolence and exhibit a direct rebuke of the war effort – mirror almost identically those made in writings by Nhat Hanh, it is unclear how directly the latter may have influenced the former. Regardless, this speech does reflect elements of Nhat Hanh's nonviolent vision and does so specifically through considering the concept of mutuality in relation to addressing the roots of war, its effects and how to end it. In his address, King makes clear that humanity's failures and the origins of violence stem from the propagation of illusions and artificial perceptions. In particular, King asserts that â€Å"the war in Vietnam is but a symptom of a far deeper malady within the American spirit†¦ ,† whereby Americans suffer from false â€Å"comfort, complacency [and] a morbid fear of communism†¦ † (King). This assertion is clearly reflective of Nhat Hanh's observation that â€Å"thinking is at the base of everything [and that]†¦. ur thoughts can be misleading and create confusion, despair, anger or hatred,† and that â€Å"a civilization in which we kill and exploit others for our own aggrandizement is sick† (Nhat Hanh 68; 120). The societal illness both men perceive is rooted in a proliferation of fear and ignorance, or as King so forcefully asserts, â€Å"legions of half-truths, prejudices, and false facts† (King 14). The influence of these fallacies manifests itself most directly through manufactured notions about our enemies. By reducing our enemies to concepts that we can thoughtlessly abhor, we take no serious deliberation concerning our inherent reciprocity to them, and thus fail to realize the true extent our similarities. Though King had expressed similar sentiments previous to this speech, such as in his sermon â€Å"Loving your Enemies,† one cannot ignore the presence of a comparable position advocated by Nhat Hanh in his 1965 letter to King entitled â€Å"In Search of the Enemy of Man. † In that letter, Nhat Hanh professes that â€Å"[our] enemies are not man†¦ hey are intolerance, fanaticism, dictatorship, cupidity, hatred and [the]discrimination which lie in the heart of man† (Nhat Hanh). Nevertheless, it is clear that King recognizes this point, going so far as to declare: â€Å"We can no longer afford to worship the god of hate or bow before the altar of retaliation†¦ we must not engage in negative anti-communism [but]†¦ with positive action seek to remove those conditions of poverty, insecurity and injustice which are the fertile soil in which the seed of communism [as social strife] grows and develops† (King). As a result of this revelation, part of King's speech calls for peace through an attempt to understand the enemy and the effects war has had on the Vietnamese people. This call for mindfulness clearly resonates with Nhat Hanh's belief that â€Å"[a]ny nonviolent action requires a thorough understanding of the situation and the psychology of the people,† enemy and self alike (Nhat Hanh 40). King exhibits this understanding when stating that the Vietnamese â€Å"must see Americans as strange liberators† and begins a chronological account of the effects an American presence has had in Vietnam since 1945 (King). Speaking of the National Liberation Front, or what he deems in an ironic manner as â€Å"that strangely anonymous group we call VC or Communists†¦ ,† King asks â€Å"[w]hat must they think of us in America when they realize that we permitted the repression and cruelty of Diem which helped to bring them into being as a resistance group [in the first place]†¦ † (King). In essence, King is imploring Americans to put their view of â€Å"the enemy† into context, noting that U. S. actions have done little but imbed a â€Å"deep but understandable mistrust† in its enemies (King). Again, almost all of these deliberations are present in Nhat Hanh's work. Nhat Hanh's statement that â€Å"[e]very escalation of the war, every new contingent of U. S. troops†¦ wins new recruits to the Vietcong† reflects each man's belief that the U. S. is undermining is own efforts in Vietnam because it has implanted soldiers there that â€Å"[know] and [care] little about [Vietnamese] customs and practices and [who are] involved in destroying Vietnamese people and property† (Nhat Hanh 50-51). Moreover, King's optimistic position that the United States has the capability to transcend its obtuseness, reorganize its priorities and lead the cause for a peaceful end to war is a sentiment most certainly shared by Nhat Hanh. To this end, each man's suggestions for ending the war are strikingly similar. In Love in Action Nhat Hanh offers five components that he deems necessary toward a U. S. solution to the war: 1) A cessation of bombing in the north and south. 2) A limitation of all military operations by the U. S and South Vietnamese. 3) A clear demonstration of U. S. intent to withdraw from the country. 4) A declaration of American neutrality and support of a popular government. 5) Extensive aid in the reconstruction effort. (Nhat Hanh 55). Likewise, King calls for an end to all bombing, unilateral ceasefire, curtailing military buildup, an acceptance of the NLF's role in a future Vietnamese government, and a definitive U. S. withdrawal date. The proposals in King's address are almost identical as both men call for material support as well as ideological understanding by America toward its enemies. In addition to these provisions, King demands that the American public take into account the effects war has had on our own soldiers and that they take active steps toward ending it. King calls for a movement away from a † ‘thing oriented' society to a ‘person-oriented' society† where the â€Å"business of burning human beings with napalm, of filling our nation's homes with orphans and widows, of injecting poisonous drugs of hate into veins of people, of sending men home†¦ physically and psychologically deranged†¦ † is deemed unacceptable and impermissible (King). This too echoes portions of Nhat Hanh's nonviolent vision, such as evidenced by his observation during the first Gulf War that â€Å"[s]oldiers live in hell day and night, even before they go into the battlefield, and even after they return home† (Nhat Hanh 75). Hoping that the American public can grasp these realities, King demands that â€Å"we must all protest† in order to awaken others to the fact that â€Å"the American course in Vietnam is an dishonorable and unjust one† (King). Again, although King's attitudes here are not surprising given his own previous writings in nonviolence, when referencing the afore mentioned letter from Nhat Hanh to King, one cannot help but wonder whether the former's description of a fellow monk's self-immolation aimed at â€Å"[calling] the attention of the world [to]†¦. he suffering caused by this unnecessary war† in turn caused King to declare – in reference to anti-war protest – that â€Å"these are the times for real choices and not false ones† (Nhat Hanh; King). On the whole, though it is clear that King's â€Å"Riverside Address† reflects both the large and small aspects of Thich Nhat Hanh's nonviolent vision, whether these parallels were intentio nal or not is unclear. By their very nature, philosophies of nonviolence concern themselves with discipline and awareness of the self, as well as with understanding and empathy for the other. As a result, it is not surprising that King and Nhat Hahn, two practitioners of such philosophies, would both express their concerns about Vietnam around the same theme of humanity's interrelated nature. Therefore, it is not so much important whether one's work or ideas may have influenced the other's as it is that both recognize a common bond between human beings and the supreme need to eliminate the conditions which threaten that inherent relationship.

Religion Pakistan

Religion is a set of beliefs concerning the cause, nature, and purpose of life and the universe, especially when considered as the creation of a supernatural agency, or human beings’ relation to that which they regard as holy, sacred, spiritual, or divine. Many religions have narratives, symbols, traditions and sacred histories that are intended to give meaning to life. They tend to derive morality, ethics, religious laws or a preferred lifestyle from their ideas about the cosmos and human nature.The word religion is sometimes used interchangeably with faith or belief system, but religion differs from private belief in that it has a public aspect. Most religions have organized behaviors, including congregations for prayer, priestly hierarchies, holy places, and/or scriptures. The development of religion has taken different forms in different cultures. Some religions place greater emphasis on belief, while others emphasize practice. Some religions focus on the subjective experi ence of the religious individual, while others consider the activities of the community to be most important.Some religions claim to be universal, believing their laws and cosmology to be binding for everyone, while others are intended to be practiced only by one, localized group. Religion often makes use of meditation, music and art. In many places it has been associated with public institutions such as education, the family, government, and political power. Types of Religions Religion defines who you are, what you are, and your views about the world around you. You must understand, a religion is much more than deity worshiping. Religion is the philosophy of life and a belief system.There are as many as four thousand and two religions in this world. Surprisingly, people know only a handful of religion. The four largest religious groups by population, estimated to account for between 5 and 6 billion people, are Christianity, Islam, Buddhism and Hinduism. Four largest religions| Adhe rents[citation needed]|   % of world population| Article| World population| 6. 8 billion| Figures taken from individual articles:| Christianity| 1. 9 billion – 2. 1 billion| 29% – 32%| Christianity by country| Islam| 1. 3 billion – 1. 57 billion| 19% – 21%| Islam by country| Buddhism| 500 million – 1. billion| 7% – 21%| Buddhism by country| Hinduism| 950 million – 1 billion| 14% – 20%| Hinduism by country| Total| 4. 65 billion – 6. 17 billion| 68. 38% – 90. 73%| | Christianity is one of the oldest religions of the world and has a large number of followers. It is estimated that Christianity has over two billion followers around the globe. Christianity practices a few beliefs and traditions of other religions. Like the Judaism and Islam, Christianity as a religion believes in the concept of one God. Hence, Islam, Judaism and Christianity are known as â€Å"ethical monotheism†.Judaism is older than Christian ity and this religion is the oldest of Abrahamic religions. Judaism is based on laws and principles of the Hebrew bible known as Tanakh. The Old Testament of Bible describes the struggles of the Hebrews or the Jews. After Moses frees them from the Egyptian captivity, they wander for almost forty years before they reached Jerusalem, the â€Å"Promised Land†. Today there are 14 million Jews in the world. Islam has 1. 3 billion religious followers. It is one of the fastest growing religions in the world. Followers of Islam religion worship Allah and consider Muhammad as their prophet.Like the Christians and the Jews, Muslims believe in one God. Hence, it is one of the three â€Å"monotheistic† religions of the world. Quran is their holy book and this religion follows strict religious discipline and customs. The life of a Muslim is guided by the Five Pillars or the five principles such as Shahadah (faith), Sala (ritual prayer), Zakah (alms tax), Sawm (Ramadan fasting) and Hajj (pilgrimage to Mecca). Islam is an Arabic term and means surrendering to the will of God. You could say Islam is a system of belief that gives importance to family life, way of dressing, cleanliness and ethics.It also stresses on the importance of religious rituals and observances. There are many religions that follow their own system of beliefs, rituals and traditions. These religions are classified as prophetic religion, revealed religion, sacramental and mystical religion. Hinduism is considered to be one of the most tolerant religions in the world. The ultimate aim of any Hindu is to attain moksha from the cycle of rebirth. Historians believe over the centuries Hinduism had adopted many spiritual traditions and practices, which are seen even today in the homes of many Hindus.It is not easy to generalize the beliefs of Hinduism because the practices vary widely among the believers of this religion. Religion in Pakistan The Badshahi Masjid in Lahore, Pakistan, was built durin g the Mughal Empire Islam is the state religion in Pakistan, which is practised by about 95-97% of the 174,578,558 people of the nation. The remaining 3-5% practice Christianity, Hinduism and other religions. Muslims are divided into two major sects, the majority of them practice Sunni Islam while the Shias are a minority who estimate 5-20% depending on the source.Nearly all Pakistani Sunni Muslims belong to the Hanafi Islamic law school. The majority of Pakistani Shia Muslims belong to the Twelver (Ithna Asharia) branch with significant minority groups who practice Ismailism, which is composed of Nizari (Aga Khanis), Mustaali, Dawoodi Bohra, Sulaymani, and others. The religion of Islam was first introduced in the territory that is now called Pakistan Umayyad dynasty in the early-8th century led by Muhammad bin Qasim against Raja Dahir, the Hindu ruler of Sindh. The Umayyad Muslims conquered the northwestern part of the Indus Valley, from Kashmir to the Arabian Sea.The arrival of th e Arab Muslims to the provinces of Sindh and Punjab, along with subsequent Muslim dynasties, set the stage for the religious boundaries of South Asia that would lead to the development of the modern state of Pakistan in 1947 as well as forming the foundation for Islamic rule which quickly spread across much of South Asia. Following the rule of various Islamic empires, including the Ghaznavids, the Ghurids, and the Delhi Sultanate, the Mughals controlled the region of Pakistan from 1526 until 1739.Muslim technocrats, bureaucrats, soldiers, traders, scientists, architects, teachers, theologians and Sufis flocked from the rest of the Muslim world to the Indian subcontinent during the Mughal era. The Mughal Empire declined in the early 18th century after the Afsharids and the Afghan Durrani Empire from the west came to take over what is now Pakistan. Constitution of Pakistan on religion The constitution of Pakistan establishes Islam as the state religion, and provides all its citizens t he right to profess, practice and propagate their religion subject to law, public order, and morality.The constitution limits the political rights of Pakistan's non-Muslims, and only Muslims are allowed to become the President or the Prime Minister. Moreover, only Muslims are allowed to serve as judges in the Federal Shariat Court, which has the power to strike down any law deemed un-Islamic. List of religions in Pakistan Based on information collected from the Library of Congress, Pew Research Center, CIA World Factbook, Oxford University, University of Pennsylvania, U. S. State Department and others, the following is a list of all the religions that are practised in Pakistan.The percentages are estimations depending on the source. * Islam * Sunni Muslims: 80-95% * Shia Muslims: 5-20% * Ahmadi Muslims: approximately 2. 3% or 4 million * Other religions * Christians: approx. 1. 6% or 2,800,000 people * Hindus: approx. 1. 6%or 2,443,614 people * Baha'is: 79,000 * Sikhs: 20,000 * Zoro astrian/Parsis: 20,000 * Buddhist: Unknown * Jews: Unknown * | Islam The Faisal Mosque in Islamabad, which is the largest mosque of Pakistan and is also one of the largest in the world, was built by King Faisal of Saudi Arabia.Islam is the state religion of Pakistan, and about 95-97% of Pakistanis are Muslims. The Muslims are divided into 2 sects, Sunni Islam and Shia Islam. The Shia Islam in Pakistan is practised by 5-20% of the Muslims and the remaining larger number of Muslims practice Sunni Islam. There are a number of Islamic law schools called Madhab (schools of jurisprudence), which are called fiqh or ‘Maktab-e-Fikr' in Urdu. Nearly all Pakistani Sunni Muslims belong to the Hanafi Islamic school of thought while small number belong to the Hanbali school.The majority of Pakistani Shia Muslims belong to the Twelver (Ithna Asharia) branch, with significant minority who adhere to Ismailism branch that is composed of Nizari (Aga Khanis), Mustaali, Dawoodi Bohra, Sulaymani, a nd others. Islam to some extent syncretized with pre-Islamic influences, resulting in a religion with some traditions distinct from those of the Arab world. Two Sufis whose shrines receive much national attention are Ali Hajweri in Lahore (ca. 11th century) and Shahbaz Qalander in Sehwan, Sindh (ca. 12th century).Although members of Ahmadiyya (also derogatorily known as Qadiani) are considered to be Muslims, the government of Pakistan does not consider this group followers of Islam. The Pakistani parliament has declared Ahmadis to be non-Muslims. In 1974, the government of Pakistan amended its constitution to define a Muslim â€Å"as a person who believes in finality of Prophet Muhammad†. Ahmadis believe in Muhammad as the best and the last law bearing prophet and Mirza Ghulam Ahmad as the Christ of Muslims who was prophesized to come in the latter days and unite the Muslims.Consequently they were declared non-Muslims by a tribunal, the records of which have not been released to date. In 1984, Ordinance XX was enacted, which made it a crime for Ahmadis to call themselves Muslims or adherents of Islam, to â€Å"pose as Muslims†, to call their places of worship Masjid, or to proselytize, punishable by a prison term. According to the last Pakistan census, Ahmadis made up 0. 25% of the population, which is highly disputed due to the already existing state treatment of Ahmadis in Pakistan.The website adherents. comcited a report according to which the Ahmadiyya Muslim community was represented by 2,000,000 (1. 42%) adherents in 1995. Several other news report however claim adherents amounting to about 4 million, which is difficult to verify. [edit] Christianity Main article: Christianity in Pakistan Saint Patrick's Cathedral, Karachi. Christians make up 1. 6% of Pakistan's population, about 2. 8 million people out of a total population. [1] They are the second largest religious minority community in Pakistan.Majority of the Pakistani Christian communi ties belong to converts from the low caste Hindus from Punjab region, from the British colonial era. The community is geographically spread throughout the Punjab province, whilst its presence in the rest of the provinces is mostly confined to the urban centers. There is a Roman Catholic community in Karachi which was established by Goan and Tamilian migrants when Karachi's infrastructure was being developed by the British during colonial administration between World War I and World War II. [edit] Judaism Main article: Jews and Judaism in PakistanJews (Urdu: pronounced â€Å"Yehudi†) are a very small religious group in Pakistan. Various estimates suggest that there were about 2,500 Jews living in Karachi at the beginning of the 20th century, and a smaller community of a few hundred lived in Peshawar. There were synagogues in both cities; while the Karachi synagogue was burnt down. [citation needed] The one in Peshawar still exists but has fallen into disuse. Nearly all Pakist ani Jews have emigrated. [citation needed] [edit] Hinduism Main article: Hinduism in Pakistan Shri Swaminarayan Mandir, KarachiHinduism has an ancient history in Pakistan, the Rig Veda was believed to have been composed in the Punjab region. [citation needed] Hindus today are a much reduced community numbering around 3 million or about 1. 6%. [1] According to the last census 93% of Hindus live in Sindh, 5% in Punjab and nearly 2% in Balochistan. [citation needed] [edit] Sikhism Main article: Sikhism in Pakistan Nankana Sahib Gurdwara in Punjab, Pakistan The number of Sikhs remaining in Pakistan today is very small; estimates vary, but the number is thought to be on the order of 20,000. 7] The shrine of Guru Nanak Dev is located in Nankana Sahib near the city of Lahore where many Sikhs from abroad make pilgrimage to this and other shrines. [edit] Buddhism Main article: Buddhism in Pakistan Like Hinduism, Buddhism has an ancient history in Pakistan. There are no established Buddhist c ommunities and numbers are very few. [edit] Zoroastrianism Further information: Parsi people Before the independence of Pakistan in 1947, major urban centres in what is now Pakistan were home to a thriving Parsi business community.Karachi had the most prominent population of Parsis in Pakistan and were mostly Gujarati-speaking. After independence, majority of Pakistan's Parsi populace migrated to India, notably Bombay; however a number of Parsis still remain in Pakistan and have entered Pakistani public life as social workers, business folk, and diplomats. The most prominent Parsis of Pakistan today include Ardeshir Cowasjee, Byram Dinshawji Avari, Jamsheed Marker, as well as the late Minocher Bhandara. [edit] Baha'i Main article: Baha'i Faith in Pakistan The Baha'i Faith in Pakistan begins previous to its independence when it was part of India.The roots of the religion in the region go back to the first days of the Babi religion in 1844,[22] with Shaykh Sa'id Hindi who was from Mul tan. [23] During Baha'u'llah's lifetime, as founder of the religion, he encouraged some of his followers to move to the area that is current-day Pakistan. [24] In 1921 the Baha'is of Karachi elected their first Baha'i Local Spiritual Assembly. [23] By 1956 Baha'i local assemblies spread across many cities,[25] and in 1957, East and West Pakistan elected a separate National Baha'i Assembly from India and later East Pakistan became Bangladesh with its own national assembly. 26] Waves of refugees arrived in 1979 due to the Soviet Union invasion of Afghanistan and the Iranian Revolution in Iran. [27][28] The Baha'is in Pakistan have the right to hold public meetings, establish academic centers, teach their faith, and elect their administrative councils. [29] However, the government prohibits Baha'is from travelling to Israel for Baha'i pilgrimage. [30] Recent estimates are over 79,000[18] though Baha'is claimed less than half that number. [31] [edit] Kalash Religion This is the religion of the Kalash people living in a remote part of Chitral.Adherents of the Kalash religion number around 3,000 and inhabit three remote valleys in Chitral; Bumboret, Rumbur and Birir. Their religion is unique but shares some common ground with Vedic and Pre-Zoroastrian religions. [edit] Atheism Main article: Atheism There may also be some atheists and agnostics in Pakistan, particularly in the affluent areas of the larger cities. Some were born in secular families while others in religious ones. According to the 1998 census, people who did not state their religion accounted for 0. 5% of the population, but social pressures against claiming no religion was strong. 7] There is slight of atheism in the country. Pakistan's laws, which stipulate the death penalty for blaspheming, institutionalize such discrimination. Subsequently, most atheists and agnostics keep their views private and choose to portray themselves publicly as indifferent Muslims rather than non-Muslims. Islam in Pakistan From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia Jump to: navigation, search Islam in Pakistan Category| History| Islamic conquest  Ã‚ · Arab settlement Islamic rule  Ã‚ · Mughal Empire Hindu conversion  Ã‚ · Sectarian dispute| Architecture| Mughal  Ã‚ · Indo-Islamic  Ã‚ · Indo-Saracenic|Major figures| Mohammad bin Qasim  Ã‚ · Baba Fareed Khwaja Sheikh Pak  Ã‚ · Bulleh Shah Sir Syed Ahmed Khan  Ã‚ · Allama Iqbal Bahadur Yar Jung| Schools of law| Hanafi  Ã‚ · Shia  Ã‚ · Shafi`i  Ã‚ · Maliki  Ã‚ · Hanbali| Schools of thought| Shia  Ã‚ · Barelvi  Ã‚ · Deobandi  Ã‚ · Ahle Hadith Sufism  Ã‚ · Ahmadiyya| Mosques in Pakistan| List of Mosques -List of mosques in Lahore Faisal Mosque  Ã‚ · Badshahi Mosque| Political organisations and movements| Pakistan Muslim League Jamiat Ulema-e-Islam  Ã‚ · Jamiat Ulema-e-Pakistan  Ã‚ · Jamaat-e-Islami  Ã‚ · Tehrik-e-Jafaria Pakistan  Ã‚ · Jamiat Ahle Hadith  Ã‚ · Tablighi Jamaat| Culture| MusicQawwali  Ã‚ · Hamd    · Nasheed  Ã‚ · Naat  Ã‚ · Ghazal Literature Urdu  Ã‚ · Punjabi  Ã‚ · Pashto  Ã‚ · Sindhi| Other topics| Shi'a Islam in Pakistan Ahle Sunnat Movement in South Asia Indian Muslim nationalism (Pakistani) Muslim chronicles for Indian historyThis box: view  Ã¢â‚¬ ¢Ã‚  talk  Ã¢â‚¬ ¢Ã‚  edit| Part of a series on Islam by country| Islam in Africa[show] Algeria  Ã‚ · Angola  Ã‚ · Benin  Ã‚ · Botswana  Ã‚ · Burkina  Faso  Ã‚ · Burundi  Ã‚ · Cameroon  Ã‚ · Cape  Verde  Ã‚ · Central  African  Republic  Ã‚ · Chad  Ã‚ · Comoros  Ã‚ · Democratic  Republic of the  Congo  Ã‚ · Republic of the Congo  Ã‚ · Cote  d'Ivoire (Ivory  Coast)  Ã‚ · Djibouti  Ã‚ · Egypt  Ã‚ · Equatorial  Guinea  Ã‚ ·Eritrea  Ã‚ · Ethiopia  Ã‚ · Gabon  Ã‚ · The Gambia  Ã‚ · Ghana  Ã‚ · Guinea  Ã‚ · Guinea-Bissau  Ã‚ · Kenya  Ã‚ · Lesotho  Ã‚ · Liberia  Ã‚ · Libya  Ã‚ · Madagascar  Ã‚ · Malawi  Ã‚ · Mali  Ã‚ · Mauritania  Ã‚ · Ma uritius  Ã‚ · Morocco  Ã‚ · Mozambique  Ã‚ · Namibia  Ã‚ · Niger  Ã‚ · Nigeria  Ã‚ · Rwanda  Ã‚ · Sao  Tome and  Principe  Ã‚ · 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Arabia  Ã‚ · Syria  Ã‚ · Turkey  Ã‚ · UAE  Ã‚ · Yemen| Islam in Europe[show] Western EuropeAndorra  Ã‚ · Belgium  Ã‚ · France  Ã‚ · Ireland  Ã‚ · Italy  Ã‚ · Luxembourg  Ã‚ · Malta  Ã‚ · Monaco  Ã‚ · Netherlands  Ã‚ · Portugal  Ã‚ · San  Marino  Ã‚ · Spain  Ã‚ · United Kingdom (England, Northern Ireland, Scotland, Wales) Scandinavia Denmark  Ã‚ · Iceland  Ã‚ · Finland  Ã‚ · Norway  Ã‚ · Sweden Central Europe Austria  Ã‚ · Croatia  Ã‚ · Czech  Republic  Ã‚ · Germany  Ã‚ · Hungary  Ã‚ · Liechtenstein  Ã‚ · Poland  Ã‚ · Slovakia  Ã‚ · Slovenia  Ã‚ · Switzerland Eastern Europe Armenia  Ã‚ · Azerbaijan  Ã‚ · Belarus  Ã‚ · Estonia  Ã‚ · Georgia  Ã‚ · Kazakhstan  Ã‚ · Latvia  Ã‚ · Lithuania  Ã‚ · Moldova  Ã‚ · Russia  Ã‚ · Ukraine  Ã‚ · USSR Southeastern EuropeAlbania  Ã‚ · Bosnia  Ã‚ · Bulgaria  Ã‚ · Cyprus  Ã‚ · Greece  Ã‚ · Macedonia  Ã‚ · Montenegro  Ã‚ · Romania  Ã‚ · Serbia  Ã‚ · Turkey  Ã‚ ·| Islam in Americas[show] Northern America Canada  Ã‚ · Mexico  Ã‚ · United States  Ã‚ · Central America Belize  Ã‚ · Costa Rica  Ã‚ · El Salvador  Ã‚ · Guatemala  Ã‚ · Honduras  Ã‚ · Nicaragua  Ã‚ · Panama  Ã‚ · Southern America Argentina  Ã‚ · Bolivia  Ã‚ · Brazil  Ã‚ · Chile  Ã‚ · Colombia  Ã‚ · Dominica  Ã‚ · Ecuador  Ã‚ · Guyana  Ã‚ · Paraguay  Ã‚ · Peru  Ã‚ · Suriname  Ã‚ · Uruguay  Ã‚ · Venezuela CaribbeanAntigua and Barbuda  Ã‚ · Bahamas  Ã‚ · Barbados  Ã‚ · Cuba  Ã‚ · Dominican Republic  Ã‚ · Grenada  Ã‚ · Haiti  Ã‚ · Jamaica  Ã‚ · Saint Kitts and Nevis  Ã‚ · Saint Lucia  Ã‚ · Saint Vincent and the Grenadines  Ã‚ · Trinidad and Tobago  Ã‚ ·| Islam in Oceania[show] Australia Australia  Ã‚ · Norfolk  Island  Ã‚ · Christmas  Island  Ã‚ · Cocos  (Keeling)  Islands Melanesia East  Timor  Ã‚ · Fiji  Ã‚ · New  Caledonia  Ã‚ · Papua New Guinea  Ã‚ · Solomon  Islands  Ã‚ · Vanuatu Micronesia Guam  Ã‚ · Kiribati  Ã‚ · Marshall  Islands  Ã‚ · Northern  Mariana  Islands  Ã‚ · Federated  States of  Micronesia  Ã‚ · Nauru  Ã‚ · Palau PolynesiaAmerican  Samoa  Ã‚ · Cook  Islands  Ã‚ · French  Polynesia  Ã‚ · New  Zealand  Ã‚ · Niue  Ã‚ · Pitcairn  Ã‚ · Samoa  Ã‚ · Tokelau  Ã‚ · Tonga  Ã‚ · Tuvalu  Ã‚ · Wallis and Futuna| This box: view  Ã¢â‚¬ ¢Ã‚  talk  Ã¢â‚¬ ¢Ã‚  edit| Islam is the official religion of the Islamic Republic of Pakistan, which has a population of about 174,578,558. [1] The overwhelming majority (95-97%) of the Pakistani people are Muslims while the remaining 3-5% are Christian, Hindu, and others. [2][3] Pakistan has the second largest Muslim population in the world after Indonesia. Sunnis are the majority while the Shias make up between 10-20%[4][3][5][2] of the total Muslim population of the country.Pakistan has the second largest number of Shias after Iran, which numbers between 17 million to as high as 30 million according to Vali Nasr. [6] Contents[hide] * 1 Umayyad invasion of Sindh and the arrival of Islam * 2 Islam and the Pakistan Movement * 3 Politicized Islam * 4 Muslim sects in Pakistan * 5 Laws and customs * 6 Media and pilgrimages * 7 Islamic education * 8 See also * 9 Further reading * 10 References * 11 External links| [edit] Umayyad invasion of Sindh and the arrival of Islam Main article: Muslim conquest in the Indian subcontinentThe Badshahi Masjid, literally the ‘Royal Mosque', was built in 1674 by Aurangzeb. It is one of Lahore's best known landmarks, and epitomizes the beauty and grandeur of the Mughal era. Islam arrived in the area now known as Pakistan in 711 CE, when th e Umayyad dynasty sent a Muslim Arab army led by Muhammad bin Qasim against the ruler of Sindh, Raja Dahir, this was due to the fact that Raja Dahir had given refuge to numerous Zoroastrian Princes who had fled the Islamic conquest of Iran. Mohummad Bin Qasim's army was defeated in his first thee attempts.The Muslim army conquered the northwestern part of Indus Valley from Kashmir to the Arabian Sea. The arrival of the Arab Muslims to the provinces of Sindh and Punjab, along with subsequent Muslim dynasties, set the stage for the religious boundaries of South Asia that would lead to the development of the modern state of Pakistan as well as forming the foundation for Islamic rule which quickly spread across much of South Asia. Following the rule of various Islamic empires, including the Ghaznavid Empire, the Ghorid kingdom, and the Delhi Sultanate, the Mughals controlled the region from 1526 until 1739.Muslim technocrats, bureaucrats, soldiers, traders, scientists, architects, teach ers, theologians and Sufis flocked from the rest of the Muslim world to Islamic Sultanate and Mughal Empire in South Asia and in the land that became Pakistan. [edit] Islam and the Pakistan Movement The Muslim poet-philosopher Sir Allama Muhammad Iqbal first proposed the idea of a Muslim state in northwestern South Asia in his address to the Muslim League at Allahabad in 1930. His proposal referred to the four provinces of Punjab, Sindh, Balochistan, and the NorthWest Frontier — essentially what would became Pakistan.Iqbal's idea gave concrete form to two distinct nations in the South Asia based on religion (Islam and Hinduism) and with different historical backgrounds, social customs, cultures, and social mores. Islam was thus the basis for the creation and the unification of a separate state. Allama Muhammad Iqbal in 1937, in a letter to Jinnah wrote, After a long and careful study of Islamic Law I have come to the conclusion that if this system of Law is properly understoo d and applied, at last the right to subsistence is secured to every body.But the enforcement and development of the Shariat of Islam is impossible in this country without a free Muslim state or states. This has been my honest conviction for many years and I still believe this to be the only way to solve the problem of bread for Muslims as well as to secure a peaceful India. [7] But just three days before the creation of Pakistan, Mohammad Ali Jinnah made a different commitment. A commitment to secularism in Pakistan.In his inaugural address he said, You will find that in the course of time Hindus would cease to be Hindus and Muslims would cease to be Muslims, not in the religious sense, because that is the personal faith of each individual, but in the political sense as citizens of the State. This statement of Jinnah is an object of great controversy since then and this vision of a Pakistan in which Islamic law would not be applied, contrary to Iqbal's perception, was questioned sho rtly after independence. [edit] Politicized IslamFaisal Mosque in Islamabad, which is the largest mosque of Pakistan and is also one of the largest in the world, was built by King Faisal of Saudi Arabia. From the outset, politics and religion have been intertwined both conceptually and practically in Islam. Because Prophet Muhammad established a government in Medina, precedents of governance and taxation exist. Through the history of Islam, from the Ummayyad (661-750) and Abbasid empires (750-1258) to the Mughals (1526- 1858), Safavis (1501–1722) and the Ottomans (1300-1923), religion and statehood have been treated as one.Indeed, one of the beliefs of Islam is that the purpose of the state is to provide an environment where Muslims can properly practice their religion. If a leader fails in this, the people have a right to depose him. In March 1949, the first constituent assembly passed Objectives Resolution, which declared that the state of Pakistan will be submitted to the sovereignty of God. In 1950, thirty one Ulema passed a demand draft, called Twenty Two Points of Ulema. This drafted demanded preparation of constitution according to Objectives Resolution. It also demanded changes in the law according to Shariah.In 1977, the government of Zulfiqar Ali Bhutto outlawed alcohol and drugs and changed the weekend from Sunday to Friday, but no substantive Islamic reform program was implemented prior to General Zia-ul-Haq's Islamization program. Starting in February 1979, new penal measures based on Islamic principles of justice went into effect. These carried considerably greater implications for women than for men. A welfare and taxation system based on Zakat and a profit-and-loss banking system were also established in accordance with Islamic prohibitions against usury but were inadequate. edit] Muslim sects in Pakistan Further information: Sectarian violence in Pakistan  and  Shi'a Islam in Pakistan Data Durbar in Lahore, Pakistan is the tomb of A li Hajweri, eleventh century Sufi. People come each year to pay their respects, to say prayers and worship. The large complex also includes Jamia Hajweri, or Hajweri Mosque. According to the CIA World Factbook and Oxford Centre for Islamic Studies, 95-97% of the total population of Pakistan is Muslim. [3] The majority of the Pakistani Muslims are Sunnis, while Shias are estimated 10-20%. 8] [4] [3] [5] [2] The Muslims belong to different schools which are called Madhahib (singular: Madhhab) i. e. , schools of jurisprudence (also ‘Maktab-e-Fikr' (School of Thought) in Urdu). The Hanafi school of Sunnis includes the Barelvi and Deobandi schools. Although the vast majority of Pakistani Shi'a Muslims belong to Ithna ‘ashariyah school, there are significant minorities: Nizari Ismailis (Agha Khanis) and the smaller Mustaali Dawoodi Bohra and Sulaimani Bohra branches. The Salafi sect is represented by the Ahle Hadith movement in Pakistan.Many people on the Makran coast of Baloc histan follow the Zikri sect of Islam. The two subsects of Sunni Hanafi school, Barelvis and Deobandis, have their own Masjids. The Shi'a Ithna ‘ashariyah school has its own Masjids commonly termed as Hussainias (Imambargahs). Mustaali Dawoodi Bohra and Sulaimani Bohra also have their own Masjids, while the Nizari Ismailis pray in Jama'at Khanas. The Ahmadiyya community, a minority group is also present. Ahmadis have been declared non-Muslims by the Government of Pakistan.In 1974, the government of Pakistan amended Constitution of Pakistan to define a Muslim â€Å"as a person who believes in finality of Prophet Muhammad†. [9] For this reason, Ahmadis are persecuted on behalf of their beliefs. Ahmadis believe in Muhammad as the best and the last law bearing prophet and Mirza Ghulam Ahmad as the Christ of Muslims who was prophesied to come in the latter days and unite the Muslims. Consequently they were declared non-Muslims by a tribunal, the records of which have not bee n released to date.According to the last Pakistan census, Ahmadis made up 0. 25% of the population. However the website adherents. com[10] proposes that the Ahmadiyya Muslim community made up 1. 42% of the population; which is likely to be a less biased source. The Economist puts the figure of Ahmadiyya adherents to 4 million. The Ahmadis claim their community is even larger. Sufism has a strong tradition in Pakistan. The Muslim Sufi missionaries played a pivotal role in converting the millions of native people to Islam.As in other areas where Sufis introduced it, Islam to some extent syncretized with pre-Islamic influences, resulting in a religion with some traditions distinct from those of the Arab world. The Naqshbandiya, Qadiriya, Chishtiya and Suhrawardiyya silsas have a a large following in Pakistan. Sufis whose shrines receive much national attention are Data Ganj Baksh (Ali Hajweri) in Lahore (ca. 11th century), Baha-ud-din Zakariya in Multan and Shahbaz Qalander in Sehwan ( ca. 12th century) and Shah Abdul Latif Bhitai in Bhit, Sindh and Rehman Baba in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Province. edit] Laws and customs There is no law in Pakistan enforcing hijab and wearing of Hijab by Pakistani women is fairly uncommon. However, the practice of wearing Hijab among younger women in urban centers is slowly growing due to media influence from the Middle East and Persian Gulf countries. The episodes of sectarian violence have significantly decreased in frequency over the years due to the conflictual engagement of the Islamic militant organizations with the state's armed forces and intelligence agencies. [edit] Media and pilgrimagesMedia and pilgrimages has influenced Pakistani Muslims to learn more about Islam as a result the local heterodox beliefs and practices are being replaced with orthodox beliefs from Quran and Sunnah. The inexpensive travel, simpler visa rules and direct air travel to Saudi Arabia has resulted in large number Pakistani Muslims going to Medina and Mecca for Haj and Umrah. This has helped to increase Pan-Islamic identity of Pakistani Muslims. The Muslim print media has always existed in Pakistan which included newspapers, books and magazines.The Muslim satellite channels are widely available and are watched by Pakistani population. [edit] Islamic education The Study of Islam as a subject is compulsory for all Muslim students up to Matriculation or O'levels in all schools in Pakistan. Islamic education to the masses is also propagated mainly by Islamic schools and literature. Islamic schools (or Madrassas) mostly cater to the youth from impoverished social backgrounds and those learning to be Islamic clerics. More casual and even research oriented material is available in the form of books.While the most prominent of these schools are being monitored, the latter are being ‘moderated' by both the government and some of the scholars, thereby also removing in the process the various material present in it that is used by An ti-Islam/Anti-Sunni writers. Oldest and universally accepted titles such as the Sahih Bukhari have been revised into ‘summarised' editions and some of the old, complete titles, translated to Urdu, the national language, are not available for purchase now. These changes are also a herald to new outbreaks of religious controversy in the region.