# What books would you include in a collection of religious books?
**URL:** https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-books-would-you-include-in-a-collection-of-religious-books/815257
**Category:** In My Humble Opinion
**Created:** [June 1, 2018, 1:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-books-would-you-include-in-a-collection-of-religious-books/815257 "2018-06-01T13:59:31Z")
**Posts on this page:** 20
**Page:** 1
### Author:  [@FlikTheBlue](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/FlikTheBlue)
#### Post date: [June 1, 2018, 1:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-books-would-you-include-in-a-collection-of-religious-books/815257/1 "2018-06-01T13:59:31Z")
Let’s say I want to put together a collection of religious or sacred books of the worlds religions. What books would you suggest I include? The Bible and Koran are the obvious ones to start with, but what other books should I include in such a collection? I’m only vaguely familiar with the Jewish tradition, for example, and not sure what I would include as a Jewish holy book that doesn’t overlap with the Bible. What about Eastern religions or pre Christian Western religions? Let’s take it from the point of view of the adherents of whatever religion is being considered, meaning would a typical believer in religion X believe that book Y is a sacred book in their religious tradition.
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### Author:  [@NAF1138](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/NAF1138)
#### Post date: [June 1, 2018, 2:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-books-would-you-include-in-a-collection-of-religious-books/815257/2 "2018-06-01T14:06:52Z")
> [@FlikTheBlue](#):
>
> Let’s say I want to put together a collection of religious or sacred books of the worlds religions. What books would you suggest I include? The Bible and Koran are the obvious ones to start with, but what other books should I include in such a collection? I’m only vaguely familiar with the Jewish tradition, for example, and not sure what I would include as a Jewish holy book that doesn’t overlap with the Bible. What about Eastern religions or pre Christian Western religions? Let’s take it from the point of view of the adherents of whatever religion is being considered, meaning would a typical believer in religion X believe that book Y is a sacred book in their religious tradition.
From a Jewish perspective you want at least the Talmud. Also, the full [Tanakh](https://www.myjewishlearning.com/article/hebrew-bible/)(the old testament for Christians, the Torah and other writings) is slightly different than either the Catholic or Protestant Old Testaments (which in turn are different from each other in both the order and specific books included). You probably want a collection of [Midrash](https://www.myjewishlearning.com/article/midrash-101/)as well, and maybe [Rashi](https://www.myjewishlearning.com/article/who-was-rashi/).
I have thoughts on non jewish books too, but I figure I will let people from those religions chime in first.
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### Author:  [@kopek](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kopek)
#### Post date: [June 1, 2018, 3:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-books-would-you-include-in-a-collection-of-religious-books/815257/3 "2018-06-01T15:15:50Z")
I would include some (all I could find) of the Apocrypha/banned books from the standard Christian Bible. I would also like to see the Sutras and Koans; I just really happen to enjoy both myself.
If we extend it to explanations of the working of basic texts and the operation of religion I would toss in
The New Rabbi by Stephen Fried. While what he writes is from the Jewish perspective, the workings and Call Process is almost identical to most of the Protestant denominations I have been around.
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### Author:  [@Projammer](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Projammer)
#### Post date: [June 1, 2018, 4:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-books-would-you-include-in-a-collection-of-religious-books/815257/4 "2018-06-01T16:13:41Z")
[Wikipedia](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Religious_text) has a compilation page with hundreds of texts broken down by religion that seems to be fairly comprehensive.
The only one that I see missing is Pastafarianism so you’ll need to add The Gospel of the “Flying Spaghetti Monster” and “The Loose Canon” to the library.
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### Author:  [@boffking](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/boffking)
#### Post date: [June 1, 2018, 5:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-books-would-you-include-in-a-collection-of-religious-books/815257/5 "2018-06-01T17:02:20Z")
A Dungeon Master’s guide. It’s the only book that teaches you how to be god.
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### Author:  [@Darren\_Garrison](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Darren_Garrison)
#### Post date: [June 1, 2018, 5:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-books-would-you-include-in-a-collection-of-religious-books/815257/6 "2018-06-01T17:11:36Z")
Once in Punta Gorda Florida (home of Mohammed Atta) I swiped a MMPB copy of the Ghagavad Gita from a motel room (yes, it was there in the place of the Gideon Bible or Book of Mormon.) It had a section of color illustration pages, including a painting of a cow-headed man posed a moment before slaughtering a terrified human-headed cow. ([High rez mostly B&W version](https://i.pinimg.com/originals/55/c5/98/55c598ce1386e8b1357c9a8facb3c7c0.jpg), [low rez color version](http://iskconbirmingham.org/wp-content/uploads/2011/11/The-Laws-of-Nature-Pic.jpg).) You should try for a copy of that.
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### Author:  [@kopek](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kopek)
#### Post date: [June 1, 2018, 5:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-books-would-you-include-in-a-collection-of-religious-books/815257/7 "2018-06-01T17:29:07Z")
> [@boffking](#):
>
> A Dungeon Master’s guide. It’s the only book that teaches you how to be god.
I thought that was _The Art of the Deal_?
Well, someone was bound to say it
😃
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### Author:  [@ZipperJJ](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ZipperJJ)
#### Post date: [June 1, 2018, 5:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-books-would-you-include-in-a-collection-of-religious-books/815257/8 "2018-06-01T17:45:22Z")
It’s not a sacred book but it’s near mandatory for all Lutherans (a sect of Christianity) to be familiar with [Luther’s Small Catechism](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Luther%27s_Small_Catechism).
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### Author:  [@GargoyleWB](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/GargoyleWB)
#### Post date: [June 1, 2018, 6:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-books-would-you-include-in-a-collection-of-religious-books/815257/9 "2018-06-01T18:32:28Z")
The ones on my shelf:
Principia Discordia
The Tao of Pooh
The Silmarillion
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### Author:  [@GreenWyvern](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/GreenWyvern)
#### Post date: [June 1, 2018, 6:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-books-would-you-include-in-a-collection-of-religious-books/815257/10 "2018-06-01T18:36:05Z")
I assume that you would only want the main texts, not obscure and subsidiary texts, otherwise you could easily fill a library.
It’s debatable whether you should include the Nordic Sagas, the Iliad and Odyssey, and other collections of myths from around the world, since they are not narrowly ‘religious’ in our sense of the word, but probably they should be included.
Hindu
The four Vedas (but not for casual reading, they are very obscure)
Upanishads
Bhagavad Gita
Ramayana
Mahabharata
Yoga Sutras of Patanjali
Yoga Vasistha
Daoist
Dao De Jing (Tao Te Ching)
Zhuangzi
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### Author:  [@Shodan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Shodan)
#### Post date: [June 1, 2018, 6:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-books-would-you-include-in-a-collection-of-religious-books/815257/11 "2018-06-01T18:46:28Z")
_The Book of Mormon_ (no, not the stage play) plus _Doctrines and Covenants_ and maybe _The Pearl of Great Price_ for the LDS church. _Science and Health with Key to the Scriptures_ for Christian Science. _Teachings of the Buddha_.
I have been trying to read thru the various base documents for the major religions over the last few years, at least for those religions that have such a thing. I am trying to work up the nerve to tackle the _Bhagavad Gita_ next.
Regards,
Shodan
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### Author:  [@ThisSpaceForRent](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ThisSpaceForRent)
#### Post date: [June 1, 2018, 6:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-books-would-you-include-in-a-collection-of-religious-books/815257/12 "2018-06-01T18:50:43Z")
I found this book quite fascinating.
> **[Waveland Press - Extraordinary Groups - An Examination of Unconventional...](https://www.waveland.com/browse.php?t=681)**
>
> Publisher of college textbooks.
Lost my copy…need to replace it.
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### Author:  [@GreenWyvern](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/GreenWyvern)
#### Post date: [June 1, 2018, 7:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-books-would-you-include-in-a-collection-of-religious-books/815257/13 "2018-06-01T19:16:36Z")
> [@Shodan](#):
>
> I am trying to work up the nerve to tackle the _Bhagavad Gita_ next.
It’s a pleasure to read, but be sure to get a good translation. NOT the Hare Krishna version.
The Penguin Classics translation by Juan Mascaro is good, and so is Mascaro’s translation of the main Upanishads. They are both slim, readable books, translated into natural, clear English.
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### Author:  [@Ulfreida](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ulfreida)
#### Post date: [June 1, 2018, 7:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-books-would-you-include-in-a-collection-of-religious-books/815257/14 "2018-06-01T19:23:46Z")
Catholic, my list would include:
Augustine’s Confessions
Thomas Aquinas
Teresa of Avila
St. John of the Cross
The Cloud of Unknowing
The Imitation of Christ
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### Author:  [@mbh](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/mbh)
#### Post date: [June 1, 2018, 7:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-books-would-you-include-in-a-collection-of-religious-books/815257/15 "2018-06-01T19:43:10Z")
“The Star-Folk: A Fable” by Carl Sagan. The Big Bang and evolution, told in the style of a child’s fairy tale. From his book, _The Cosmic Connection._
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### Author:  [@dalej42](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/dalej42)
#### Post date: [June 1, 2018, 7:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-books-would-you-include-in-a-collection-of-religious-books/815257/16 "2018-06-01T19:48:20Z")
It’s not really a sacred book, but for the Episcopal Church in the United States, you’d want to include [The 1979 Book of Common Prayer](http://justus.anglican.org/resources/bcp/formatted_1979.htm)
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### Author:  [@Shodan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Shodan)
#### Post date: [June 1, 2018, 7:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-books-would-you-include-in-a-collection-of-religious-books/815257/17 "2018-06-01T19:54:42Z")
> [@GreenWyvern](#):
>
> It’s a pleasure to read, but be sure to get a good translation. NOT the Hare Krishna version.
>
> The Penguin Classics translation by Juan Mascaro is good, and so is Mascaro’s translation of the main Upanishads. They are both slim, readable books, translated into natural, clear English.
Thanks!
Regards,
Shodan
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### Author:  [@kanicbird](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kanicbird)
#### Post date: [June 1, 2018, 7:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-books-would-you-include-in-a-collection-of-religious-books/815257/18 "2018-06-01T19:55:08Z")
lolcat bible
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### Author:  [@DavidwithanR](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DavidwithanR)
#### Post date: [June 1, 2018, 8:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-books-would-you-include-in-a-collection-of-religious-books/815257/19 "2018-06-01T20:02:07Z")
> [@dalej42](#):
>
> It’s not really a sacred book, but for the Episcopal Church in the United States, you’d want to include [The 1979 Book of Common Prayer](http://justus.anglican.org/resources/bcp/formatted_1979.htm)
But if you go to that level, you fill a library. The main point was finding the minimum number of most important books to represent each religion. Considering Christianity worldwide over the centuries, the 1979 BCP is a very UNimportant book. (Some little case could be made, if you had a special interest in Church of England matters, to include the original from the 1500s, or the 1600s example that was in use for such a long time - but the OP didn’t express a special interest in the Church of England so I’d leave out all of them.)
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### Author:  [@senoy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/senoy)
#### Post date: [June 1, 2018, 8:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-books-would-you-include-in-a-collection-of-religious-books/815257/20 "2018-06-01T20:44:26Z")
I think the question is, “What is the Bible for every major world religion?” I think you probably need to start with what you consider a major world religion and go on from there. The ‘traditional 7’ are Christianity, Islam, Judaism, Buddhism, Hinduism, Shintoism and Taoism/Confucianism/Chinese Traditional (It’s difficult to tell where one ends and another begins). If you go by numbers though, ‘Juche’ (the official North Korean national religion) and Sikhism both outnumber Judaism and Shintoism.
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