The Encyclopedia of World Religions

martyrdom S 279

members of a fighting caste with its own code of conduct, like the chivalry of Europe’s medi eval knights or the bushido of Japan’s samurai. Sometimes particular skills of combat, called martial arts, are perceived to have value as spiri tual training or as a means of exercising spiritual insight as well. This has especially been the case with certain arts of swordsmanship, archery, or hand-to-hand engagement developed in India and east Asia. Among the martial arts best known in the West are Chinese kung-fu, Okinawan karate, Korean taekwando, and Japanese judo (wres tling), kendo (swordsmanship), kyudo (archery), and the modern general method called Aikido. These terms, ending in do (in Chinese, tao ), meaning “way,” suggest that these arts, like budo or bushido, the way of the warrior, are seen as indicating an entire way of life as well as a par ticular skill. According to tradition, the spiritual source of the east Asian martial arts was the Shaolin monas tery in China, where the monk BODHIDHARMA , who also had brought the Chan (Zen) school from India to China, devised fighting skills to afford his monks exercise and defense. Combining both Taoist and Buddhist (chiefly Zen) themes, they emphasize the activation of chi (in Japanese, ki ), the life force or spiritual energy that with training can be pro jected and directed through spontaneous action. The warrior is then one who has realized the full potential of his inner life, who acts in accordance with nature, and who has the ability to live in the present moment with total awareness. Thus, he is able to act immediately and spontaneously with precision to achieve the goal, whether hitting the target with an arrow or felling a foe with a single blow of the sword. martyrdom Giving up one’s life instead of renouncing one’s religion. The word “martyr” comes from a Greek word meaning “witness.” A martyr’s death “witnesses” to her or his reli gion. Martyrs inspire those who remain behind. They also provide them with examples to imitate. Religions may teach that martyrs receive special

the event and its obviously special meaning for the couple. The act of joining in marriage may be symbolized in various interesting ways: by tying a sacred string between the two in Hinduism, dip ping hands together in a bowl of water in Burmese Buddhism, exchanging rings in Christianity, and in Judaism eating together in a place of seclusion. The regulation of mating and procreation for the good of society as a whole is probably among the oldest functions of human religion. Issues such as appropriate conditions for divorce or annulment of a marriage, interracial marriages, interreligious marriages, and same-sex marriages, although not new, have been the subject of much religious debate in the 20th and 21st centuries. Marriage, family, and the moral issues surrounding them remain a central concern of all religion. See also FAMILY AND RELIGION , THE . Mars The second most important Roman god. Mars was the second god in a very ancient triad of Italian gods: J UPITER , Mars, and Quirinus (a god of the common people). He was a god of war. He was also a god of agriculture, at least in the sense that he protected fields. The Romans worshipped Mars especially in March and October. These months began and ended the seasons for fighting and planting. When the Romans encountered the Greeks, they identified Mars with Ares. Mars had his own high priest ( f lamen ). At some of his festivals ancient priests known as the Salii danced in antique armor. Mars also enjoyed a particular kind of SACRIFICE . It was a sacrifice of a pig, a sheep, and a bull. When the Romans declared war, one of the two consuls (highest political lead ers) shook his sacred spears and cried out, “Mars, stay awake.” According to Roman mythology, Mars was the father of Romulus, the founder of Rome. The month March gets its name from him.

martial arts and religion Fighting techniques viewed as spiritual practices. In many societies the way of the warrior has been seen as having a religious significance. Sometimes warriors are