Tuesday, January 8

1.  The four Hindu Vedas are Rig-Veda, Sama-Veda, Yajur-Veda, and the Atharva-Veda. The Rig-Veda is the largest Veda. It has 1028 hymns that are composed in 10 books called a Mandala. These books are mostly devoted to the praise of the gods. However, they also contain references to the struggle between the early Vedic peoples and their enemies, the Dasa. The Sama-Veda is meant to be chanted or sung. There are 1,549 hymns. All but 75 of its verses were taken directly from the Rig-Veda. The Yajur-Veda is devoted to the worship of the gods. It is composed of 1,875 hymns. The Atharva-Veda has 730 hymns and contains the "procedure for everyday life".  
2. An indulgence was a payment to the church to ensure that your dead loved ones who were being held in purgatory were sent to heaven and given forgiveness. Martin Luther opposed this act as it was wrong for the church to charge money on something that they really couldn't fix. http://courses.wcupa.edu/jones/his101/web/37luther.htm
3.  The Hajj is the Islamic pilgrimage to Mecca. This year, the Hajj is expected to start on August ninth. Performing the Hajj is one of the five pillars of Islam and every Muslim who is physically and financially capable is required to make the journey to Mecca at least once in their life. The pilgrimage begins two months and ten days after Ramadan.