AQA GCSE Religious Studies A key terms

Travelling seven times between Safa and Marwah, recalling Hajira’s search for water.

The prescribed Muslim prayer performed five times each day, using set recitations and movements to worship Allah.

God’s work of saving people from sin and bringing them into life with him.

Calming meditation that develops concentration and tranquillity by maintaining attention on a focus, such as breathing.

A family in which two parents of the same sex raise children together.

Marriage between two people of the same sex.

People in a same-sex relationship who raise children together.

A relationship between two people of the same sex.

The continuing cycle of birth, death and rebirth.

The arising or origin of suffering; the Second Noble Truth explains its causes, especially craving.

Eternal law or duties understood to apply universally, rather than depending on a person’s social class or stage of life.

The belief that human life is sacred because it is given by God.

The belief that marriage is sacred and should be treated with special respect, particularly because it involves a commitment made before God.

The congregation gathered for Sikh worship and community life.

The Buddhist community; the term can refer specifically to monks and nuns or more broadly to Buddhists.

The Jewish council of chief priests, elders and scribes which handed Jesus over to Pilate.

The third stage of Sikh spiritual development: effort, in which the Guru's teachings shape the mind and virtues are put into practice.

The goddess of learning, wisdom and music, and the consort of Brahma.

The adversary of God. Jesus’ rebuke of Peter as ‘Satan’ identifies Peter’s objection as opposition to God’s purposes.

‘True Name’: the Mool Mantra’s expression of God’s enduring truth.

The ‘true congregation’: a gathering whose company helps people focus on God and develop spiritually.

The quality of goodness, purity, harmony and clarity.

Fasting, particularly the obligatory fast during Ramadan.

A descendant of Hashim, the Prophet Muhammad's great-grandfather. The share of Khums reserved for sayyids supports eligible members of this family.

The view that the world can be explained through natural processes and scientific laws without supernatural explanations.

A teacher or expert in the religious law. In Mark 2:16, the critics are scribes associated with the Pharisees.

Sacred writings regarded as authoritative within a religion, such as the Bible in Christianity or the Qur’an in Islam.