Hi I’m Elliott. This is Mental Floss on YouTube. Today I’m going to talk about some
misconceptions about various major religions. It's gunna be a lot of fun.
Misconception #1: Muslims are usually Arab. According to the Muslim Journal, there are
around 1.2 billion Muslims and only 15% of them are Arab. In fact, there are more Indian
subcontinent Muslims (30%) and Sub-Saharan African Muslims (20%) than there are Arab
Muslims.
Misconception #2: The Quran says you will receive 72 virgins in heaven.
The Quran does extensively describe heaven. And there’s no mention of seventy-two ANYTHING
there. As for the virgin part, it’s a confusing translation issue. The Arabic word "Abkarun"
appears in the description of heaven. This could be translated to mean either virgins
or angels. And even Muslims debate the true meaning of the word. In fact, German linguist
Christoph Luxenberg argues that much of the Quran is in Syriac, making the term mean food
and drink.
Misconception #3: To Muslims, “jihad” means “holy war.”
The Arabic word translates to “struggle” or “resisting.” But, in the Islamic faith,
“jihad” actually means “religious duty.”
Misconception #4: The Buddha is a deity. Buddhists don’t view the Buddha as a deity
or god. In fact, in Buddhism there’s not really a place for a god like figure. Often,
people view the Buddha as a god because that makes more sense in the context of western
religions. But it’s a little more complicated than that. So, Gautama Buddha, who may have
lived between the sixth and fourth century BCE, is considered the founder of Buddhism.
But, he’s not considered a savior, god, or creator. Instead, he’s more of a teacher
or guide to Buddhists. Though it’s worth noting that different branches of Buddhism
may view him differently.
He’s also not the only Buddha. In the branch of Theravada Buddhism, anyone who is enlightened,
without a teacher, can be a buddha. And in Mahayana Buddhism, a buddha is anyone with
absolute wisdom.
Speaking of which... Misconception #5: The Laughing Buddha is Siddhartha
Gautama. Many westerners don’t know that the Laughing
Buddha (also known as Budai or Hotei) is not the Buddha that I was just talking about.
First of all, the two look nothing alike. The Laughing Buddha represents enlightenment.
And in many Asian cultures, he represents luck, happiness, and wealth.
Misconception #6: Mormons believe in polygamy. People who practice are effectively excommunicated
from the Mormon church. According to the Gordon B. Hinckley, the president of The Church of
Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints during the late nineties and 2000s, “This Church has
nothing whatever to do with those practicing polygamy. They are not members of this Church....
If any of our members are found to be practicing plural marriage, they are excommunicated,
the most serious penalty the Church can impose. Not only are those so involved in direct violation
of the civil law, they are in violation of the law of this Church.”
Misconception #7: The Star of David has a long history in Judaism.
Historically, the Star of David has been used in many different religions. Like, in Hinduism,
the star has been used as a symbol of Shiva and Shakti -- or male and female. And it has
even been used in Mormonism to represent heaven and earth. We don’t know for sure when Judaism
adopted the symbol, but one of the first times was probably in 1354 CE when Jewish people
in Prague put it on a red flag. But, it really took off during the 19th century when Jewish
people started using it to distinguish their communities from others. It was probably an
attempt to create a religious symbol similar to the Christian cross.
Misconception #8: A Hindu woman wearing a red bindi is married.
Traditionally, a red dot, or bindi, on the forehead meant that a woman was married. But
nowadays, it’s more of a fashion accessory than anything. Married and unmarried women
wear red bindis in addition to bindis of pretty much every color.
Misconception #9: People who practice Judaism call God “Yahweh.”
First of all, it’s worth noting that the Hebrew language does not contain any vowels,
so this word is represented by four letters: either YHVH or YHWH. This means that the vowels
were added in much later and the original pronunciation has been lost. Because of this,
the word is generally not spoken out loud, just like how many Jewish people don’t write
or say the word “God.”
Misconception #10: There’s no technology in Amish societies.
Actually, the Amish distinguish between using technology and owning it. So, in many cases,
it’s considered okay for an Amish person to ride in a car, as long as they’re not
driving. They’re also allowed to go to work and use a computer with the Internet. But,
they generally are against personally OWNING things like computers and cars because they
can bring the temptation of sin.
Thanks for watching Misconceptions on Mental Floss on YouTube. If you have a topic for
an upcoming Misconceptions episode that you’d like to see, leave it in comments. And we'll
check it out. See you next week!