Who knows…

Belief is everything. Why are you here? To sing, to laugh, to cry, to love? When you die, will you crumble into dust, forgotten, or will the pearly gates swing open to welcome you home? If you are to be reborn, what will you come back as? Will you remember this life – with all its waking nightmares and triumphs? Will you eventually meet what made you – will it be a Him or a Her or somehow greater than both? Is there something in you – intangible and ethereal – that will live forever?

There are answers to these questions – baffling, wildly creative, entirely plausible. And there are groups of people, some saying this, some saying that, but none who can be Entirely, Completely, Totally Sure. Yet, we often define ourselves by which answers we believe. It only seems sensible then, to be able to choose – to know the other answers (not to mention the question) before you decide which ones you will live by. Who knows? Perhaps there is no right or wrong answer – there is only belief.

1. In Hinduism, respect is shown to Gurus by
a) Offering them food
b) Touching their feet
c) Bowing low before them

2. What is the real name of the Mormon Church?
a) The Church of the Latter-day Apostles
b) The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints
c) The Church of Eternal Life

3. Where was the Prophet Muhammad born?
a) Mecca
b) Medina
c) Jerusalem

4. The word Karma means:
a) The teachings and hence the way to nirvana
b) That our lives are conditioned by our past actions
c) That we must be Buddhists to live a good life

5. How many accounts of the creation story are there in Genesis?
a) One
b) Two
c) Three

6. Whose teachings are the basis for present-day Sikhism?
a) Siddhartha Gautama
b) Guru Nanak
c) Haile Selassie

7. Rastafarians grow their hair into dreadlocks because they believe a Biblical instruction tells them:
a) To be as lions (the dreads represent a mane)
b) That they must look as distinctive as possible
c) Not to make baldness upon their heads

8. The God of Zoroastrianism is called...
a) Ahura Mazda
b) Angra Mainyu
c) Amesha Spenta

9. The Doctrine of Complementary Forces is known as?
a) Yin and Yan
b) Yang and Ying
c) Yin and Yang

10. What are the three guiding principles of Jainism called?
a) The three stones
b) The three jewels
c) The three pillars

11. Who was the first martyr of Islam?
a) Yasir
b) Summayyah
c) Ammar

12. One of the qualities seen in the nature of Brahman is
a) The Divine Feminine
b) The Joy of Bliss
c) Jealousy

Enlightened or not quite yet there? Check your answers against the scoring table given below to see how well you've fared. If you got more than 12 right, we are downright proud of you. A thoroughly enlightened citizen of the world is what you are! If you got eight or more correct, it's still jolly good going. We're impressed. Five or less? Ho hum. We would still shake you by the hand, but can we make a little suggestion? You need to do a little more reading. These are matters of life and death, after all.