istoryworld
Events relating to religion
Chinese priests record on oracle bones the result of their divination, thus providing the earliest examples of Chinese characters
The god of the Hebrews, announcing to Moses 'I Am Who I Am', acquires his name - YHWH, meaning 'He Who Is'
Stone tablets, engraved by Moses to signify God's covenant with his people, are placed in a sacred chest - the ark of the covenant
The Jews write down the Torah, the earliest part of the text subsequently known to Christians as the Old Testament
The Israelites, settled in Canaan, become the first people in history to decide that their god is the only god
The Olmecs raise large clay platforms, probably with temples at the top, beginning the long American tradition of sacred pyramids
Burial mounds feature in the Ohio valley, built first in the Adena culture and then by Hopewell tribes
Solomon, the king of Israel, builds the first Temple in Jerusalem
The Greek city states make a habit of consulting the oracle at Delphi, hoping mainly for reassurance
Isis, who is able to restore her husband Osiris after he has been chopped into pieces, becomes one of the most popular deities in Egypt
Hindu hermits live in groups described as ashramas
The Jews, taken into captivity in Babylon, form the first community of the Diaspora
The synagogue, as a simple place of Jewish worship, develops during the Babylonian captivity
The Iranian prophet Zoroaster teaches that there is one god, Ahura Mazda
The optimistic concept of the Messiah is part of the Jewish response to captivity in Babylon
Croesus builds a spectacular temple at Ephesus in honour of Artemis, or Diana
Returning to Jerusalem, the Jews begin to rebuild the Temple
The Chinese I Jing, or 'Classic of Changes', is compiled as a book of divination
Darius I adopts Zoroastrianism as the religion of the Persian empire
The Magi, possibly converting from an earlier Iranian religion, become the priests of Zoroastrianism
The Upanishads, written over a long period from oral tradition, are the mystical texts of early Hinduism
Vardhamana, an Indian prince, leaves home to live as a beggar - at the start of the Jain religion
The Greek historian Herodotus visits Egypt and provides, among many other details, an account of the process of mummification
Siddartha Gautama, a prince in Nepal, leaves home to become a wandering ascetic
Gautama Buddha preaches his first sermon, at Sarnath, setting out the Four Noble Truths and the Eightfold Path
