Yin Yang

The ancient Chinese subscribe to a concept called Yin Yang which is a belief that there exist two complementary forces in the universe. One is Yang which represents everything positive or masculine and the other is Yin which is characterized as negative or feminine. One is not better than the other. Instead they are both necessary and a balance of both is highly desirable.
You will notice that in Yang (represented by the white tadpole) lies the seed of Yin (represented by the black dot) and vice-versa. In the study of Chinese medicine, we are well when the Yin and Yang of our body is in a state of balance. But when the body body goes out of balance or when when there is too much Yin or Yang, we fall sick. The aim is to keep the body in balance. This is the basic Yin Yang concept. This is why watermelon is consumed in Summer while double boiled soup is taken in winter. Watermelon has a cooling effect and it serves to cool the body during the hot summer months. In Winter, the hot double boiled soup provide balance by warming the body. Here goes. Yin is soft while Yang is hard. Yin is stillness while Yang is movement. The sun is yang while the moon is yin. Female is Yin while Man is Yang. Mountain is Yin while the river is Yang. Intuitive is Yin while Logical is Yang. Winter is Yin while Summer is Yang and so on. 

Jainism

Jainism is an ancient Indian religion that emphasizes non-violence and the ascetic life. It began in the sixth century BCE, the same time Buddhism was developing. Jains derive their name from the jinas, spiritual conquerors who have achieved liberation and perfection. Included among these are the 24 spiritual leaders called "ford-makers" or tirthankaras. The last of the tirthankaras was Mahavira (599-527 BC), a contemporary of the Buddha and the man generally considered the founder of Jainism and he founded it in 550 BC. Most Jinas live in India, over 4 million Jinas. Spiritual leaders are monks. Jainism contains many elements that are somewhat similar to parts of Hinduism and Buddhism.

Cross

The cross is one of the earliest and most widely used Christian symbol. In the most broad sense it symbolizes the religion of Christianity (and so appears at the top and left of this page). More specifically, it represents and memorializes Christ's death. A great variety of crosses has developed, some with specific symbolic meaning and others that have simply become culturally associated with certain groups.                                                                                                                  =========================================================================

	The simplest and most common Christian cross is the Latin cross. It may not have come into use until the 2nd or 3rd century. The empty cross, usually favored by Protestants, reminds Christians of the resurrection, while the crucifix, with the body of Jesus on it, favored by Catholic and Orthodox churches, is a reminder of Christ's sacrifice.
	The Greek cross, with arms of equal length, is the most ancient cross.
	The cross of Calvary or Graded Cross has three steps leading up to it, which can represent the hill of calvary or faith, hope, and love.
	The Celtic cross is distinguished by the circle around the cross bar and intricate designs throughout.
	The Russian Orthodox cross consists of three bars, the lowest bar low and slanted. The top bar represents the "INRI" sign placed over Jesus' head. The meaning of the slanted bar is not known for sure, but probably represents St. Andrew's cross (which looks like an X). St. Andrew is believed to have introduced Christianity to Russia. The crosses in the above right picture sit atop the domes of the Kremlin. Note that they have a slightly different lower bar.
	The papal cross is the official symbol of the papacy, and may be used only by the Pope. The three bars of the cross most likely represent the three realms of the Pope's authority: the church, the world, and heaven.
	The baptismal cross has eight points, symbolizing regeneration (see Numbers). It is formed by combining the Greek cross with the Greek letter chi (X), the first letter of "Christ" in Greek.
	The budded cross is a common form of the cross. Its trefoils represent the Trinity.
	The conqueror's or victor's cross is the Greek cross with the first and last letters of "Jesus" and "Christ" on top, and the Greek word for conquerer, nika, on the bottom. The lines over the top letters indicate that they are abbreviations.
	In the early years of the 4th century, Armenia became the first country to accept Christianity1. It is not surprising then that the Armenian Cross mirrors some of the designs favoured in those days: vines and floral swirls. The winged Armenian Cross has a busy design where the lower shaft is usually just slightly longer than the arms and top, and each member is always seen with the distinctive double tips. An alternative name is the Siroun Cross. Siroun (pronounced "see-roon") is a girl's name in Armenian and means lovely. On the original stone crosses (Khachkar) we invariably see intricate carving, like the interlacing pattern seen in Celtic knots. Apart from the distinctive 'wings', Armenian Cross designs are quite individual.
	An inverted cross is the cross of St. Peter, who, according to tradition, was crucified upside down because he felt unworthy to die the same way as Christ. As Catholics believe the pope to be a successor of St. Peter, the inverted cross is frequently used in connection with the papacy, such as on the papal throne and in papal tombs. It also symbolizes humility because of the story of Peter. The inverted cross has more recently been appropriated by Satanists as a symbol meant to oppose or invert Christianity.

Ancient Christian Symbol (Fish)

The fish was an early symbol of Christian faith that endures today on bumper stickers and businesses as a sign of Christian faith. The fish is thought to have been chosen by the early Christians for several reasons:

• the Greek word for fish (ICHTUS), works nicely as an acrostic for "Jesus Christ, God's Son, Savior"
• the fish would not be an obvious Christian symbol to persecutors
• Jesus' ministry is associated with fish: he chose several fishermen to be his disciples and declared he would make them "fishers of men."

It is said that during the persecution of the early church, a Christian meeting someone new would draw a single arc in the sand. If the other person was a Christian, he or she would complete the drawing of a fish with a second arc. If the second person was not a Christian, the ambiguity of the half-symbol would not reveal the first person as a Christian. Today, when Christians (in the West) do not need to worry about persecution, the Christian fish symbol often has "Jesus" written inside or includes a cross symbol. And of course, there have been many spoofs and variations of the popular Christian symbol, such as the famous "Darwin fish" (with legs).

Sikhism

Sikhism was originated in India. The religion is over 500 years old. It was founded by Guru Nanak. He was born in 1469 to a Hindu family near the city of Lahore (now a part of Pakistan), The young Nanak enjoyed the company of holy men and engaged them in long discussions about the nature of God. Around the year 1500, Nanak had a revelation from God; and shortly thereafter, he uttered the words:  There is No Hindu, There is No Muslim.  Guru Nanak has been documented to have traveled across India and the Middle East to spread his message. There are 10 Gurus in Sikhism. Last Guru was Gubind Singh. After his death Gurus period was overed.                                                                                                             Sikhism is world's 5-th largest religion. It has more than 26 million followers worldwide. Even Sikhs have been fought during 2 World wars.  83,000 Sikh soldiers died during the war.

Taoism (Yin-Yang)

Taoism is derived from the Chinese word Tao ("The Way"), which is pronounced "dao.”  is based on the teachings of the Tao Te Ching. Taoism was founded by philosopher Lao Tzu (or 'Old Sage' -- born Li Erh). It isn't really a religion in the Western sense of the word. It is more of a mystical philosophy built on a set of ethical principals for everyday living. Taoism along with Buddhism and Confucianism, became the three great religions of China. Taoism currently has about 20 million followers, and is primarily centered in Taiwan. There are many symbols in Taoism but perhaps Yin-Yang dyagram is the most important Taoist symbol related to the Tao. Yin is the black side with the white dot on it and yang is the white side with the black dot on it. Yin is characterized as slow, soft, yielding, diffuse, cold, wet, and passive; and is associated with water, earth, the moon, femininity and nighttime. Yang, by contrast, is fast, hard, solid, focused, hot, dry, and aggressive; and is associated with fire, sky, the sun, masculinity and daytime. The black and white halves of the Yin-Yang symbol are similar to the two sides of a coin.

Religion in China (Buddhism in China)

China is a country with a great diversity of religious beliefs. The main religions are Buddhism, Taoism, Islam, Catholicism and Protestantism. Accoring to incomplete statistics, there are over 100 million followers of varios religious faiths, more than 85,000 sites for religious activities, some 300,000 clergy and over 3,000 religious organizations throughout China. In addition, there are 74 religious schools an colleges run by religious organizations for training clericel personal. In their different ways most Chinese have shown themselves to be concerned primarily with the human person and society. In a predominantly rural country, this has manifested itself in a concern for the land and its prosperity. Thus religious practice has been closely linked with the question of the ownership of the land.                                                                                               Buddhism is the only foreign religion that has been widely accepted in China. It has a story of 2,000 years in China. It first entered China in the second century AD and by the Tang dynasty was the most dynamic and influential of all religions. China has 13,000-some Buddhist temples and about  200,000 Buddhist monks and nuns. Among them are 120,000 lamas and nuns, more than 1,700 Living Buddhas, and  3,000-some temples of Tibetan Buddhism and nearly 10,000 Bhisku and senior monks and more than 1,600 temples of Pali Buddhism. Buddha in East Asia is almost always shown smiling or laughing, hence his nickname in Chinese, the Laughing Buddha. And also he is shown as fat Buddha.