Religious text
Religious texts, also known as scripture, scriptures, holy writ, or holy books, are the texts which various religious traditions consider to be sacred, or of central importance to their religious tradition. Many religions and spiritual movements believe that their sacred texts are divinely or supernaturally revealed or inspired.
List of sacred texts of various religions
- The Akilathirattu Ammanai
- The Arul Nool
See Also Bahá'í literature Books by Bahá'u'lláh
- The Four Valleys (1857 version)
- The Seven Valleys (1860 version)
- The Hidden Words of Bahá’u’lláh (in Arabic 1857)
- The Hidden Words of Bahá’u’lláh (in Persian 1857)
- Gems of Divine Mysteries (ca 1859)
- The Book of Certitude (partly in Persian and partly in Arabic 1861)
- Summons of the Lord of Hosts (ca 1868)
- Tabernacle of Unity (ca 1870)
- The Kitáb-i-Aqdas /The Most Holy Book (Completed 1873)
- Tablets of Bahá’u’lláh Revealed After the Kitáb-i-Aqdas (written until 1892)
- Epistle to the Son of the Wolf (ca 1890)
- Gleanings from the Writings of Bahá’u’lláh (compilation chosen by Shoghi Effendi of Bahá'u'lláh's writings, 1853 to 1892)
See Also Buddhist texts
- Theravada Buddhism
- The Tipitaka or Pāli Canon
- Vinaya Pitaka
- Sutta Pitaka
- Digha Nikaya, the "long" discourses.
- Majjhima Nikaya, the "middle-length" discourses.
- Samyutta Nikaya, the "connected" discourses.
- Anguttara Nikaya, the "numerical" discourses.
- Khuddaka Nikaya, the "minor collection".
- Abhidhamma Pitaka
- East Asian Mahayana
- The Chinese Buddhist Tripiṭaka, including
- Diamond Sutra and the Heart Sutra
- Shurangama Sutra and its Shurangama Mantra
- Pure Land Buddhism
- Infinite Life Sutra
- Amitabha Sutra
- Contemplation Sutra
- other Pure Land Sutras
- Tiantai, Tendai, and Nichiren
- Shingon
- The Donghak Scripture
- The Songs of Yongdam
- The Sermons of Master Haeweol
- The Sermons of Revered Teacher Euiam[]
See Also: Biblical canon Christian biblical canons Books of the Bible
- The Bible (the Old Testament and New Testament)
- For Protestantism, this is the 66-book canon - the Jewish Tanakh of 24 books divided differently (into 39 books) and the universal 27-book New Testament.
- For Catholicism, this includes seven deuterocanonical books in the Old Testament for a total of 73 books, called the Canon of Trent (in versions of the Latin Vulgate, 3 Esdras and 4 Esdras are included in an appendix, but considered non-canonical).
- For the Eastern Orthodox Church, this includes the anagignoskomena, which consist of the Catholic deuterocanon, plus 3 Maccabees, Psalm 151, the Prayer of Manasseh, and 3 Esdras. 4 Maccabees is considered to be canonical by the Georgian Orthodox Church.[]
- The Ethiopian Orthodox Tewahedo Church (and its offspring, the Eritrean Orthodox Church) adds various additional books depending on the specific enumeration of the canon (see Ethiopian Biblical canon), but always includes 4 Esdras, the Book of Jubilees, 1 Enoch, 4 Baruch, and 1, 2, and 3 Meqabyan (no relation to the Books of Maccabees).
- Some Syriac churches accept the Letter of Baruch as scripture.
- The Bible
- Science and Health with Key to the Scriptures by Mary Baker Eddy. This textbook, along with the Bible, serves as the permanent "impersonal pastor" of the church.
- Nag Hammadi library and other Gnostic texts (not from the Bible)
- Some books of the Old Testament and New Testament
- Only the Gospel of Marcion and selected Pauline epistles accepted
- The Bible (The New World Translation of the Holy Scriptures is their preferred translation.)
- Watchtower Magazine
- Awake Magazing
- The Bible
- The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (LDS Church) uses the LDS edition of the King James Bible for English-speaking members; other versions are used in non-English speaking countries.
- The Community of Christ (RLDS) uses the Joseph Smith Translation, which it calls the Inspired Version, as well as updated modern translations.
- The Book of Mormon
- The Pearl of Great Price
- The Doctrine and Covenants
- There are significant differences in content and section numbering between the Doctrine and Covenants used by the Community of Christ (RLDS) and the LDS Church.
- Other, smaller branches of Latter Day Saints include other scriptures, such as the Book of the Law of the Lord used by the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints (Strangite) or The Word of the Lord used by Fettingite branches.
- Native American Church (Christian-leaning factions)
- See below.
- The Bible
- The writings of Ellen White are held to an elevated status, though not equal with the Bible, as she is considered to have been an inspired prophetess.
- The Five Classics
- The Four Books
- The Thirteen Classics
- The Mabinogion
- Lebor Gabála Érenn (The Book of Invasions)
- Rasa'il al-hikmah (Epistles of Wisdom)
- Old Kingdom
- First Intermediate Period & Middle Kingdom
- Second Intermediate Period
- Hermetica, Kybalion, Emerald Tablet and associated writings
- Itihāsas
- Mahābhārata (including the Bhagavad Gita)
- Ramayana
- Puranas (List)
- Tantras
- Sutras (List)
- Stotras
- Ashtavakra Gita
- Gherand Samhita
- Gita Govinda
- Hatha Yoga Pradipika
- Yoga Vasistha
- In Vedanta (Uttar Mimamsa)
- In Yoga
- In Samkhya
- Samkhya Sutras of Kapila
- In Nyaya
- Nyāya Sūtras of Gautama
- In Vaisheshika
- Vaisheshika Sutras of Kanada
- In Vaishnavism
- Vaikhanasa Samhitas
- Pancaratra Samhitas
- In Saktism
- Sakta Tantras
- 64 Bhairavagamas
- 28 Shaiva Agamas
- Shiva Sutras of Vasugupta
- Vijnana Bhairava Tantra
- Pashupata Sutras of Lakulish
- Panchartha-bhashya of Kaundinya (a commentary on the Pashupata Sutras)
- Ganakarika
- Ratnatika of Bhasarvajna
- Krishna-karnamrita
- Chaitanya Bhagavata
- Chaitanya Charitamrita
- Prema-bhakti-candrika
- Hari-bhakti-vilasa
- In Lingayatism
- Siddhanta Shikhamani
- Vachana sahitya
- Mantra Gopya
- Shoonya Sampadane
- 28 Agamas
- Karana Hasuge
- Basava Purana
- In Kabir Panth
- poems of Kabir
- In Dadu Panth
- poems of Dadu
- Quran (also referred to as Template:Not a typo)
- Hadith/Sunnah (Sunnah, which consists of what Muhammad did, believed, implied, or tacitly approved, was noted down by his companions in Hadith.)
- 11 Angas
- Secondary
- 12 Upangas, 4 Mula-sutras, 6 Cheda-sutras, 2 Culika-sutras, 10 Prakirnakas
- Secondary
- Karmaprabhrita, also called Satkhandagama
- Kashayaprabhrita
- Nonsectarian/Nonspecific
- Jina Vijaya
- Tattvartha Sutra
- GandhaHasti Mahabhashya (authoritative and oldest commentary on the Tattvartha Sutra)
- Rabbinical Judaism
- See also: Rabbinic literature
- The Tanakh i.e. Hebrew Bible
- The Talmud
- The Tanakh, i.e. the Hebrew Bible
- The Tanakh with several jewish apocrypha
- The Satanic Bible (primary text)
- The Satanic Rituals (contains additional rituals)
- The Ginza Rba
- Book of the Zodiac
- Qolusta, Canonical Prayerbook
- Book of John the Baptizer
- Diwan Abatur, Purgatories
- 1012 Questions
- Coronation of Shislam Rba
- Baptism of Hibil Ziwa
- Haran Gawaita
- The Evangelion (Greek, Coptic: Ευαγγελιον, meaning roughly "good news"). Also known as the Gospel of Mani and The Living Gospel
- the Treasure of Life
- the Pragmateia (Coptic: πραγματεία)
- the Book of Mysteries
- the Book of Giants
- the Epistles
- the Psalms and Prayers. A Coptic Manichaean Psalter, discovered in Egypt in the early 1900s, was edited and published by Charles Allberry from Manichaean manuscripts in the Chester Beatty collection and in the Berlin Academy, 1938-9.
- The Shabuhragan
- The Arzhang
- The Kephalaia (Κεφαλαια), "Discourses", found in Coptic translation.
- The Bible (among Christian-leaning factions only)
Various New Age religions may regard any of the following texts as inspired:
- The Gospel of the Flying Spaghetti Monster
- The Bible (Ethiopian Orthodox canon)
- the Holy Piby
- the Kebra Negast
- The speeches and writings of Haile Selassie I (including his autobiography My Life and Ethiopia's Progress)
- Royal Parchment Scroll of Black Supremacy
- See also: Samaritan religious texts
- The Samaritan Torah
- The Kojiki
- The Rikkokushi, which includes the Nihon Shoki and the Shoku Nihongi
- The Fudoki
- The Jinnō Shōtōki
- The Kujiki
- Main article: Sikh scriptures
- The Spirits Book
- The Book on Mediums
- The Gospel According to Spiritism
- Heaven and Hell
- The Genesis According to Spiritism
- The New Church
- The Bible (several books omitted)
- The works of Emanuel Swedenborg (not considered equal to the Bible)
- The General Church
- The Bible (several books omitted)
- The works of Emanuel Swedenborg (considered equal to the Bible)
- The Ofudesaki
- The Mikagura-uta
- The Osashizu
- Holy Books of Thelema especially The Book of the Law
- Divine Principle
- The Bible as illuminated by more recent revelation
- Yazidi Black Book
- Yazidi Book of Revelation
- The true core texts of the Yazidi religion that exist today are the hymns, known as qawls.
- Primary religious texts, that is, the Avesta collection:
- The Yasna, the primary liturgical collection, includes the Gathas.
- The Visperad, a collection of supplements to the Yasna.
- The Yashts, hymns in honor of the divinities.
- The Vendidad, describes the various forms of evil spirits and ways to confound them.
- shorter texts and prayers, the Yashts the five Nyaishes ("worship, praise"), the Sirozeh and the Afringans (blessings).
- There are some 60 secondary religious texts, none of which are considered scripture. The most important of these are:
- The Denkard (middle Persian, 'Acts of Religion'),
- The Bundahishn, (middle Persian, 'Primordial Creation')
- The Menog-i Khrad, (middle Persian, 'Spirit of Wisdom')
- The Arda Viraf Namak (middle Persian, 'The Book of Arda Viraf')
- The Sad-dar (modern Persian, 'Hundred Doors', or 'Hundred Chapters')
- The Rivayats, 15th-18th century correspondence on religious issues
- For general use by the laity:
- The Zend (lit. commentaries), various commentaries on and translations of the Avesta.
- The Khordeh Avesta, a collection of everyday prayers from the Avesta.