Theories and Approaches of Policy Evaluation Paper Essay

Theories and Approaches of Policy Evaluation Paper - Essay Example Proper process evaluation helps to ensure that the complete quality of a program is attained by ensuring that it is liable to multiple stakeholders such as the administrators, personnel and community among others. This evaluation helps to identify the process involved in decision making, resourced required in implementation of the technology, the unexpected inconsistencies or prospects while running the program and the legal, social and economic conditions in which the program is run. Process evaluation is a continuous monitoring process that should not interfere with the primary work of an organization. Instead, such information can be used to make the necessary amendments for top performance, especially in the preparation of financial audits (Casey, 2002). Outcome-based evaluation is a vital step when planning a project since it helps in the identification of the possible results of the technology. Outcome-based evaluation is a vital step when developing a new program or analyzing an existing one. This is because the product of the analysis provides good knowledge of the object’s target group and how it will influence the people it serves (Fasten,

INTERNATIONAL BUSINESS Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 3000 words

INTERNATIONAL BUSINESS - Essay Example This company from China which is Venetian, Macao-Resort-Hotel specifically wants to enter in the tourism Industry in Greece. Prior to its market entry in the country, there is a need to understand the whole thing about business environment especially on Greece’s tourism industry. This is to take into consideration better understanding of the line of businesses to be implemented in the tourism industry in Greece. This is also to further understand things that are necessary to be done prior to the actual market entry. In particular, there is a promising area for hotels and other related businesses in Greece’s tourism industry. This is one important idea that can be substantially considered in line with the consideration on what business to be conducted in Greece. In order to analyse this situation further, it is important to conduct some assessment and cultural evaluation, political considerations, social aspects and other related business-related environmental concerns. A. Business system and cultural conditions in Greece The first part of this report is about the analysis of the national business system and cultural conditions in Greece. This is in line with knowing the probable impacts of national business and cultural system in Greece on the future success of Venetian, Macao-Resort-Hotel in the country. ... The world has slowly been integrated by globalisation and especially it is heading forward to creating one important business culture for all. This is evident by how everyone is influenced by the effect of media that try to substantiate the impact of information technology. Information technology is an important tool everyday because it influences decision, planning and any other decision-making process (Vlahos and Ferratt, 1995). In many parts of Greece internet-based tourism services are widely spread (Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development, 2002). This is an indication that tourism industry has become sophisticated and there is a strong link between information technology and marketing system for tourism industry. In fact, travellers nowadays got to choose different packages in order to enjoy various destination of choice at the most convenient way of placing bookings online such as hotel reservation and other related travel activities. This is made possible becaus e of online convenience in conducting business online especially in Greece, a developed country where many travellers come and go to their destination of choice. This is a clear identification of the fact that there is a strong involvement of technology in conducting business in Greece particularly in its tourism industry. In 2000 tourism in Greece was regarded an important component of its economy due to its substantial contribution of 7% of the gross domestic product (Chatziathanassiou et al., 2004). This is a positive indication of a booming tourism industry in Greece in which such has provided positive outcome in creating identity for Greece as one of the most wonderful

Written by Charles Dicken Essay Example for Free

Written by Charles Dicken Essay The tension built up is temporarily lifted as a perfect and surreal atmosphere is created, The rhythmic was of the sea upon the reef was becoming audible now, and it had a pleasant sound in his ears; the water washed along the side of the canoe, and the paddle dripped between each stroke. Presently he began to doze. This perfect setting dispels all current tension, and as the men relax Evans begins to fall asleep. Although appearing to dispel tension I believe this also creates tension. The reader is drawn into a false state of security with this perfect setting and oversees the fact that the men are falling asleep on an unknown land that they are not well adapted to. This is not as clear and straight forward as the rest of the tension contributing to the build up, but still has an effect on the reader and adds to the tension build up. Between line 51 and line 56 a reminder of the hazards and consequences of the island are highlighted. A wrecked ship and the crew are described, a shipwrecked crew thinned by disease, a quarrel or so, and the needs of discipline, and at last taking to their boats never to be seen again. This shocking and disturbing story instantly creates a massive amount of strong tension; the reader will immediately relate this short story to the men currently exploring the island and believe there is little hope for them.  Sikes and Nancy was written by Charles Dickens in 1869 and this story deals with a great deal of effective tension build up and one of the most infamous criminals of all time! Extremely effective and powerful tension is created immediately in this story as it starts with a description of the infamous Fagin. Fagin is the stereotypical criminal of the time; he is aggressive, impatient and overall experienced in pick-pocketing. Fagin the receiver of stolen goods was up, bedtimes, one morning, and waited impatiently for the appearance of his new associate, Noah Claypole, otherwise Morris Bolter; who at length presented himself, and, cutting a monstrous slice of bread, commenced a voracious assault on the breakfast.  The planning of misdeeds and crime is an obvious and fairly weak source of tension here, There seemed, indeed, no great fear of anything interrupting him, as he had evidently sat down with a determination to do a deal of business. Misdeeds are highlighted between lines 43 and 47 as Fagin shows Noah the woman he is to follow. The feeling of no-good is emphasised for the reader here. Fagin pointed out a pane of glass high in the wall to Noah, and signed to him to climb up, on a piece of furniture below it, and observe the person in the adjoining room. Is that the woman? Fagin nodded yes. Tension is well-built here and is effective on the reader. The reader is aware of how much Fagin is paying Noah to do the job in hand; à ¯Ã‚ ¿Ã‚ ½1. In those days à ¯Ã‚ ¿Ã‚ ½1 was a great deal of money for a job, so suspicions arise for the reader and immediate and very effective tension is created. We begin to imagine just how important this job is, as someone so tight-fisted and intimidating as Fagin is willing to pay so much for one job.  Although not completely obvious at the start, the setting of the story itself builds very strong and effective tension. In this time that the story is set in especially, London was a grim, sinister and dangerous place to be. The shadowy labyrinth of streets, back alleys and tunnels are the perfect environment for criminals like Fagin. This setting alone creates so much potential for bad things to happen, the reader would pick up on this sooner or later and an extremely powerful sense or tension is created.

A case study of NPower, a leading energy supplier in United Kingdom

A case study of NPower, a leading energy supplier in United Kingdom In the past the training and development approaches were not followed by many organizations. It was believed that the managers or leaders are born not made. Activities of training the employees were considered the wastage of time and resources. However, with the passage of time it was understood by the theorists and the organizations themselves that training and development is very important for human resource building. Now training and development is one of the important functions of human resource management. Training is not considered as a cost rather it is considered as investment on the employees which ultimately become the assets of an organization (Beardwell, 2004). Different methods and techniques are available to train and develop the human resource and those methods and techniques are modernized with critical analysis and their effect on human behaviors. There is one way to train the employees is to give them theoretical knowledge about the skills and give them an understanding of theories and procedures developed by different big organizations and theorists. This type of training and development comes under cognitive approach which majorly focuses on lectures, discussion, demonstrations etc. However the case company, npower does not follow this approach as they believe more in practical training rather than verbal or written training. Npower train their employees in real time working conditions where they understand the skills and adapt them and implement them on their job in the same time. This allows more sold grasps on the concepts and techniques as bookish knowledge might be different from the practical knowledge. And this also does not allow the generation of any conflict between the bookish knowledge and its practical implementation. This type of training and development comes under behavioral methods. Npower puts the responsibilities on the employees shoulders and delegates the decision making power to their employees which give them a sense that they are the part of the organization. In this way the employees feel more responsibility on their shoulders and this enhances their leadership skills and capabilities. The company involves the employees of all levels in the decision making process as they trust the competencies of their staff. The decision making power is delegated to all levels depending upon the criticality of the decision and the risk associated with it. The strategic decisions which involve high risk are the responsibility of the top management. As designing and implementing the strategies gives a direction to all the organization and it is very important to show a right direction to the organization otherwise the whole venture will be a complete failure. After the strategically decision, comes the tactical decision which is required to be made for the proper implementation of strategies decided by the top level executives. Tactical decision is at the discretion of the managers. This is because it involves fewer risks as compared to the strategic decisions. Managers are in a better position to take such decision because they understand the strengths and weaknesses of their team members. This allows the managers to learn the analytical and managerial skills and furthermore the skill of taking strategy in to implementation phase. The next level of decisions is the operational decisions which are delegated to the low level employees. For instance an employee does not have to wait for the approval of his manager if he finds that a part of a machine is required to be changed. Such type of operational decision is taken by the employees themselves and this increases their operational skill and knowledge. In this way npower delegates the decision making power at different levels and provides a platform of learning and development of the skills of their employees. This enables the organization to build a force of skilled human resource that gives them a competitive advantage over the others in the market. Training and Development Theories and Npower Approach Competitive advantage is referred to that ability of an organization which is not possessed by the other organizations and it is a competitive advantage which leads the organization to the top positions. There are many organizations in the world who are leading the markets by gaining competitive advantage in different fields of their business activities. One of the way in which a firm can attain a competitive advantage over the competitors is by building a force of superior human resource (Beardwell, 2004). Now the question arises that how this force of superior human resource can be build. The answer lies in a very important function of human resource management i.e. training and development. It has been observed that the employees or labor working in a competitive environment of market always welcome the training and development programs which can enhance their skills and knowledge (Davis Bostrom, 1993). Now days every job holder understands that to sustain and grow in the career it is very important to polish their skills. It is not that time where one degree or diploma is sufficient for the whole life. Employees actively participate in several programs which are organized by their organization and it has been observed that in some organization employees demand from their human resource department to arrange such training and development programs. Successful organization of today has built their human resource work force over the passage of time. There is no doubt that this work force is a highly valuable asset for any organization and the only possible way to build this workforce is training and development (Barney, 1986). There are several theories available in literature which emphasize on the importance of training and development in the organization and provides different alternative methods for training and development. A discussion of four major theories of training and development is given below. Theory of reinforcement This theory emphasizes on the learning behavior of a person and suggests that the learner will repeat that behavior which is attached with a positive outcome or result. Skinner an economist of behaviorist school of thought proposed the theory of reinforcement and suggested that the training and development programs should be aligned with the organizational objectives and a positive outcome should be expected with such training and development programs. Further elaborating this concept suggested in reinforcement theory, it can be argued that there are several techniques available in human resource practices which can be associated with the training and development programs and the required suggestion by this theory can be fulfilled. Different types of rewards in the form of bonuses, salary raises, promotion and awarding of certificate after the training program can be associated with the training and development activities and these rewards will definitely gen erate a positive outcome. If this is done by an organization then according to the Skinners theory of reinforcement the trainer i.e. the employee will show more interest in the training and development programs held by the organization. Theory of Learning Types The theory presented by Gagne emphasized on learning of intellectual skills. These are such skills which are found rare among the persons. He suggested by different learning types in his theory and each learning type contains some external and internal conditions. The five categories of learning which Gagne defined in his theory include intellectual skills, verbal information, attitudes, cognitive strategies and motor skills. Theory of Experiential Learning Experiential and cognitive types of learning are differentiated by experiential theory of learning presented by C. Rogers. According to Rogers, the wants and needs of the learner are addressed by this type of learning. Experience gives the person a maturity and increases the learning power along with the knowledge. Due to the personal involvement, the learner is able to conduct a self-evaluation test, which allows him to understand the effect of learning on his/her attitude. The case company npower seems to follow this theory as the company puts an engineer in different working conditions and allows him to understand different fields of work. This helps the employee to gain experience and that person skills grow by gaining experience with the passage of time. Theory of Social Learning Social theory presents a new view of learning i.e. social. According to the presenter of this theory, Albert Bandura, direct reinforcement cannot address all types of learning. Here by direct enforcement means the training and development programs that is organized to enhance the skills. According to this theory such programs are not address all learning types as there are some social elements which cannot be taught. Those elements are learned by the leaner from his/her surroundings. Such type of learning is called observational learning and this learning is associated with the understanding of different human behaviors. The first type of learning defined in this theory is through observation. In an organization the environment and the surroundings plays a very important role. The environment should be very professional and the surroundings should be in such a way that the people (employees) learn from them. This theory also suggests that it is not necessar y that the behavior is changed after learning something. It is expected that a persons behavior changes after learning something, but it is not in all cases. Furthermore the theory also explains about the mental states which play a vital role in learning process. If the mental status of the person is negative regarding any learning activity then he will not take part in that learning process and even if he is forced to do so, he will not gain any positivity from that process. In organizational training programs the mental state can be made positive regarding the training and development programs by associating the rewards and benefits with such programs which will motivate the employees and help to build a positive mental state. The case company also follow this theory as it allows the employees to learn from the surrounding and provides an environment where they can learn from their supervisors/managers and coworkers. Change Management and Human Resource Management For the organizations throughout the world, constant change has become a necessity for the success and growth. Due to the intense competition in the market organization find them in a continuous process of change in order to cope up with the market and customer needs (Chandler, 1992). In this way change management has become a permanent function or activity of any business. Many organizations increase their effectiveness by using change strategically. However, for an effective change in an organization it is required that proper thoughtful planning is done and the employees acceptance is taken by properly communicating the benefits of change to the employees. Human resource department should be involved form the initial phase of change process (Beardwell, 2004). Change in the organization brings the impact on the minds of the employees and the change in employees attitudes cannot be neglected in this process which should be the prime responsibility of HR department to manage and to m ake that impact on the minds of the employees positive (Buchanan Hucczynski, 1991). It has been observed in different organizations where the change has been brought by the management, that many of the people are uncomfortable with the change. So human resource management functions should be facilitating the change management in the organization and should focus on the removal of those discomforts among the employees brought by the change process. Human resource department should ensure that the reasons and benefits of the change process are properly communicated to all the employees and all the employees are clear about the change process. For effective change process implementation it is very important that employee resistance should not be there and employee resistance majorly occurs when they are not clear about the process and the benefit of the change (Buchanan Hucczynski, 1991). Simply imposing the change in the organization will not result in the effective and successful c hange implementation. Furthermore, this will impose a bad impact on the employees mind and will affect the performance of the employees as the employees will have to work in the new changed environment forcefully and it is very much understood that desired outcomes and results cannot be taken by force. Human resource should be actively involved in the change process and this will bring a real change in the organization. The case company npower, engages it employees in all the decision making process. In the case study Strategic Spare Parts Project is discussed, which is an example of the employee involvement in the business decisions and polices. So the company considers the employees thoughts and suggestions which are very important for bringing change in the organization. Npowers HRM PESTEL Analysis To identify and evaluate the external forces that can affect the organization directly or indirectly, PESTEL analysis is sued. This tool helps to examine and providing an in-depth analysis of all those forces under different heads which can potentially or currently affect the organization. PESTEL analysis is not only to evaluate the forces that can affect the whole organization; this analytical tool can also be used to identify the forces which affect the specific business units or functions of an organization. The human resource polices of the case company npower are under discussion and a PESTEL analysis is conducted of those external forces or factors which can affect the human reduce policies , practise and procedures of the company. Political Forces RWE npower is a leading organization in United Kingdome providing the energy services to the UK market. At United Kingdome there are different legislations which protect the consumer and employee rights. Furthermore there are laws which are used to maintain a fair competition in the market. So, the change in any kind of law and procedures will affect the human resource policies and practices directly. Furthermore, RWE npower is not only operating in UK, it is a German based organization and operating in different countries. So the changes in the laws and procedures in any country will affect the internal human resource policy of the organization. For a clearer understanding lets consider an example of a law in United Kingdome where the minimum wage rate of a labour is 3.59 pounds per hour. If at any time UK government increases it to 4 pounds per hour or more then HR polices of the company will be affected directly and immediately. Economic Forces Economic factors which can affect the HR policies of the case company can involve the change in inflation rate and the global economic condition (Beardwell, 2004). The change in inflation rate will force the company to follow the laws which suggests the organization to increase the salaries and other benefits according to the inflation rate. On the other hand the economic condition of the country as well as the world also affects the businesses (Kelly, 1999). In the recent global economic recession several organizations were forces to reduce their workforce and a downsizing trend was scene in many big multinationals. Due to globalization where the organizations have to expand in different location across the globe the economic forces and their impact also changes (Rioux, Bernthal, Wellins, 2008). For instance the economic condition in Europe will be much different as compared to economic condition in Asia. So, globalization gave birth to the need of managing several economic factors at different geographical locations. Social Forces Several social factors are there which affect the npowers human resource strategies and polices. To provide the employees and labours with a safe and healthy environment is necessary for every organization operating in United Kingdome. There are several legislations that ensure that each employee or labour is fully insured. So, changes in such legislations and laws immediately affect the human resource policies of the organization operating in United Kingdome. In social factors there is also a factor of globalization that affects the organizational HRM policies. As due to globalization the world is becoming a smaller place to operate. Several organizations are operating worldwide which include several cultural and geographical differences. The organization has to manage those cultural and geographical differences. It is not possible for a multinational cooperation such as npower to maintain a static HRM policy for all it business units across the globe. Each geographic al location has its own norms, believes and culture which have to be recognized by the organization. The human resource policies and procedures should support and correspond to the local employees and market needs (Rioux, Bernthal, Wellins, 2008). For the case company which is operating in different geographical locations the human resources management has to be a strategic function rather than simply an administrative function. The company has to consider the local requirements of the labour and employees and haver to focus on utilizing the exiting local talent in order to save the operational and administrative cost of the organization. Technological Forces Technology is changing very fast. It is very important for an organization operating in competitive business world to automate the human resource function (Beardwell, 2004). The manual working and the procedures are now obsolete as it wastes a lot of time and resources. To be quick and dynamic organization must have to automate their processes. Npowers human resource policies and practices will be affected with the change in the technologies. With the introduction of new technology the demand of the employees and the market increase and if the organization does not match up with the new technology then it will face a problem to retain the experienced and skilled workforce. Environmental Forces The health and safety act of United Kingdom puts a binding on the organization to provide healthy and safe environment to the employees. Environmental forces include mostly the weather changes. Human resource polices are indirectly affected by the environmental changes. Due to the change in weather it is quite possible that the employees have to be provided with different protective suits or air-conditioned plants etc. Legislative Forces The government of United Kingdome have passed different laws and regulations and currently there are several laws and regulations which are to be considered by the case company while designing any human resource policy. United Kingdoms Legal Environment Through law the stability and security of the people is ensured and justice is provided according to it to the accused. Just like criminal and social laws there are also the business laws and legislations which are implemented by the state to ensure that the right of different stakeholders are protected. At United Kingdome several laws are there which protect the rights of employees, right of consumers and also there are laws which are to maintain the fair competition in the market and ensure that no organization manipulates the market. A fair and healthy competition is good for the industry as well as for the consumers, but to ensure this atmosphere in the business market the government has taken several steps towards this by implementing certain legislations. As discussed in the PESTEL analysis of npower, the legislative factors also plays and important factor and can affect the human resource policies of the company. Here, different legislation or acts implemented by the government of United Kingdome. For protecting the consumer rights the first legislation under discussion is the consumer Credit Act. It was implemented in 1974 by the UK government and according to this all such business who want to provide credit facility to their customers will have to take approval from Director General of fair trading. For the organization like case company it is not possible to work only on cash, so the organization have to give credit facilities to the corporate clients such as British Telecom, Wembley Stadium and Ford. The enterprise that is found to mislead the customer regarding the price through its promotions can be held accountable under the consumer protection act which was implemented in 1987. Under this act all the organization have to pre sent the actual price of the product or service and if there are any other charges or taxes with the price those should also be presented to the customer in the promotions. The equal pay act which was implemented in 1970, suggests the organization to equally pay the candidates without any discrimination of gender. Another act implemented in 1974 suggests the organization to provide the employees a safe and healthy working environment. The minimum wage act implemented by the UK government in 1998, bound all the enterprises not to pay less than 3.59 pounds per hour. Office of Trading (OFT) is responsible for maintain a healthy competition in the market and to ensure that no organization can create its monopoly. The fair trading act was implemented in 1973 under which Office of Trading can recommend that business to MMC (Monopolies Mergers Commission which is found to be chagrin high prices form the consumer or performing such activities which are against the interest of public. Office of Trading can also set the price ceiling in order to eliminate the monopolistic behaviour of the organizations.

Grandma and Grandpa - My Grandfather, A Man of Respect :: Personal Narrative Profile

My Grandfather – A Man of Respect Winds scratch his hands and his sharp bones deeply assert their lineaments. He stands like a trembling leaf on the branch of an evergreen, and will not fall. (Emmanuel di Pasquale, "Old Man Timochenko") This stanza from Emmanuel di Pasquale's poem "Old Man Timochenko" portrays my grandfather well. My grandfather is a man of respect because he never gave up on life, not even when his friends and family were burned alive on a train traveling from East Punjab to West Punjab during the partition of India and Pakistan in 1947. He immediately understood that emigration from this Hindu dominant country to a Muslim state was important for his family's safety, faith, and future. My grandfather was nineteen years old when he moved from India's Punjab to Pakistan's Punjab; he was able to escape and obtain border passes from high authorities because his father was a wealthy landlord. After three days, he arrived in the city of Lahore with his mother, three brothers, and one sister, but they were shocked when they saw small houses overburdened with people like fish in a tuna can. The biggest misfortune struck when they found out that they were not going to be fully compensated for all the property they had left behind. During this entire incident, my grandfather did not shed a single tear because he knew that this migration was his family's choice, and they had to pay a price for a better life. Throughout his life he valued one thing the most: respect. In fact, he thought of it as a reversible equation; you give respect and you get respect, and that is what he me throughout his lifetime. My grandfather always taught me to respect people regardless of their religion, status, and color. He said that these are man-made boundaries and differences, and in order to socialize in this world, one must learn to accept people in all forms. For example, on the day of Eid-ul-Fitar, a religious day observed by Muslims, my grandfather would embrace his servants, wish them a happy and prosperous year ahead, and give them presents.

The Management of 21st Century: Hong Kong Essay -- essays research pap

Hong Kong is the most suitable place for business. It is characterized by its high degree of internationalization, business friendly environment, rule of law, free trade and free flow of information, open and fair competition. Therefore, the business management is a very important part in the business. The management of Hong Kong includes the external environment and the internal environment. The external environment includes the economic environment, labour market and social environment. In the economic environment, Hong Kong has faced the Asian financial turmoil in 1997. But now, the overall economic condition progressively improved. Later, China will be a member of the World Trade Organization (WTO). Hong Kong will gain a lot of business opportunity in different trades, such as banking, insurance, telecommunication. Those businesses need the new management for their future. For example, they must plan the new organization ¡Ã‚ ¦s goals, or they estimate the demand of human resources in the future. However, this phenomenon will disappear very soon when China would be a member of WTO after two years. It is because Hong Kong may not be the intermediate between China and the world since China will open their market for the world. Therefore, the Hong Kong companies may plan how to reduce the labour supply within an organization at that time. In the labour market, manpower is Hong Kong ¡Ã‚ ¦s most treasured asset. Because of much labour supply, it does no...

Examine and comment on Islamic and Hindu beliefs about life after death Essay

Life after death is often a highly charged, debateable topic. Through this essay I will examine the argument that there must be an afterlife to explain morality in this world and refer to The Qur’an for Islam and Bhagavad Gita for Hinduism. This will allow me to conclude that an afterlife can justify morality, as human beings our life’s conduct is dependant on the belief of a good hereafter. Both religions very foundation rely on the fact that there is an after life, as deeds in this life will be accountable within the next. Although Islam and Hinduism both believe in an after life they teach radically different things about what it is. The Islamic belief is based on a linear time line, meaning that each person will live on this earth once and after that be judged by God. â€Å"The good and the bad deeds of every person will be weighed.† (Qur’an 7:8). This view differs with the Hindu belief as their belief is that to attain Mokhsa (release from the cycle of life) â€Å"everyone has to be reborn somewhere or the other to undergo some experience, until the Absolute Being is realised as identical with oneself.† by Swami Krishnananda. The individual must continue to transmigrate between souls to diminish all bad karma in the various lives they had been in to attain complete salvation. Belief in â€Å"al- akhirah† (life after death) is so crucial to the Islamic faith that any doubts about it amounts to the denial of Allah (God). This view is shared by the Muslim minority. According to Islamic belief, we have no means of knowing death as a revisiting experience, but Allah (God) has given humanity answers to every question regarding death. The first rhetorical question the Muslim is faced with in the Qur’an is â€Å"who will give life to the dead bones?† Islam declares that the Lord will. In the Qur’an, Allah deepens man’s way of thinking by asking them to reflect on how the rain revives dead earth. â€Å"It is Allah Who sends fourth the winds, so that they rise up the clouds, and drive to a land that is dead, and revive the earth therewith after its death†¦Ã¢â‚¬  (Qur’an 35:9) According to Islam life on this earth is temporary; it is a preparatory stage for the akhirah (life after death) which will be infinite. Life on this earth is meaningless if good actions are not rewarded and bad conduct not punished. In order for an afterlife to exist, there must be some omnipotent being driving this idea forward. I will now be referring to Kant’s idea of the universe being satisfied, wrong has to be punished and good rewarded even if this takes place after death .The moral philosopher, Immanuel Kant argued that morality was the â€Å"categorical imperative†. †¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ if there is moral law, there must therefore be a law giver.† Modern society in alliance with Islamic and Kantian Views state that â€Å"justice must be served†. An example of this would be if a person commits an offence against humanity he/she has to be imprisoned. We’re then faced with situations where our justice system has failed to act with fairness and impartiality in accordance with what is morally right, this is when the idea of â€Å"justice in the afterlife† in religion comes into place. The current Laws are passed by parliament. The followers of Islam believe the One who determines the rules in this life and delivers the verdict in the after life is the almighty Lord. If we refer back to Kant, that once we die there is an afterlife for the universe to be morally satisfied that good is rewarded and evil is punished, there must be a God who can bring about some sort of Justice. â€Å"He is who controls the heavens and the earth†¦Ã¢â‚¬  (Holy Qur’an 27:60.) To deny God as the moral law Giver is to deny the only reasonable foundation for the law of morality in both the religions, as in Islam the fundamental belief that the almighty God is the basis of all foundation of all belief within that faith, similarly in the contrasting religion the soul of the individual wishes to have some sort of conclusion in Islam the hereafter and in Hinduism salvation to become one with the creator Brahma. However the factor that differs the two religions is that the concept of the soul, within the religions. In Islam the soul has its own identity of the individual it was given to at the moment of conception it has no relation to its creator other then the fact that the lord was the one who blessed life into it and the soul will be obedient to its creator to the day of judgement. The concept in Hinduism contradicts this idea as it feels the soul is God in itself as it has to go through a process which will enable the spiritual self to become God himself over the process of time. If justice is not done on earth therefore there must be an after life. The concept of free will argues that humanity has been given guidelines by God. It is up to individuals whether they follow them or not. Some may then argue that God does not care about people as He allows suffering to take place. This is where justice in the hereafter is satisfied, and so that is why there is morality in this world. â€Å"For Muslims not to care about life after death is a serious failing†. Muslims are certain that people die. Doubts have been expressed by non Muslims regarding life after death. They question how Allah (God) can raise men and women after death, but Islam teaches that God can make human beings out of nothing so it is not difficult for Him to raise them again. â€Å"O mankind! If you are in any doubt about the resurrection, then verily, we have created you (i.e. Adam).† (Qur’an 22:5) The Qur’an goes on further to say that: â€Å"Does man think that we shall not assemble his bones? Yes, surely we are able to restore the very shape of his fingertips.† (Qur’an 75: 3-4). The Hindu Holy Scriptures such as the Upanishads and the Vedas clearly speak of a God that is associated with classical theism. Although over centuries we have come to know Hinduism as a faith with many gods it primarily has one God. â€Å"By one supreme Ruler is the universe pervaded. Even every world in the whole circle of nature, He is the True God†¦ (- Yajurveda XLI) .Similar ideas are expressed in the Upanishads â€Å"Know Me alone as the creator of all – I am the cause; I am the support of all that exists in the universe. May ye never turn away from me May ye never accept any other God in my place, nor worship Him. â€Å" What we can analyse from these quotes that for God to bring man to his former self is not an impossible task as he has created us he can kill us and restore our very lives. According to Islam when a person dies on earth he/she will not be restored to life until the day of resurrection. From the time a person dies until resurrection, they remain in a suspended state in Arabic known as â€Å"Barzakh†. The dead could be in this state of waiting for thousands of years before being brought back to life. The prophet Mohammed has said â€Å"that death is only the beginning of the resurrection.† 1 Islam states that time only exists for those living on earth. Once a man dies he leaves the time zone and a thousand years becomes the blinking of an eye. Although Islam rejects the notion of the transmigration of souls through various lives like Hinduism, it does state that the soul of each child came into existence ,before the physical birth from the mother’s womb. An example of this is were God made a covenant with Adam and extracted all his descendants from him and God foretold the religion of Islam so that the disbelievers of the faith were left in no doubt that God would resurrect humankind once more on the day of Judgement. 2 Although Muslims are given the day and month of this fateful day they are not however given the year as all the signs leading up to this day must be fulfilled. 3 â€Å"The sun will only be a mile away from the earth therefore mankind will be standing in its own perspiration† according to a companion of the Prophet. This has been taken from the Sahih Bukhari (collections of sayings of the Prophet Muhammad. Then the individual will be punished according to how bad the sin was that they committed. The worse the sin, the more severe the punishment will be. 4 On this day accounting of deeds will begin and each and every person will be given a book that will detail all the good and bad they have done in life. Although certain deeds in life will act as a â€Å"backup† to save you from punishment Muslims over the world go to the pilgrimage of Hajj so that their sins can be purged. Hajj is a purification of the soul from sins and a means to gain the Mercy of Allah. â€Å"Keep on doing Hajj and ‘Umrah, for they eliminate poverty and sin just as the bellows eliminate impurities from iron and gold and silver.† (Sahih Bukhari). In Islam, the foundation for a good afterlife is to have faith in the almighty lord and to try to lead a sin free life. Such is the driving force behind the concept in Hinduism be lovingly devoted to whichever Hindu god you are devoted to and similarly be dedicated to various religious ceremonies and rites. There are different aspects of Hinduism that determine how they lead their lives and what actions they do in order to affect their afterlife. There is also the factor of the burial procedure that could affect your outcome in the afterlife. The reasoning behind Hindu cremation is that they believe that the human personality is made up of five elements; four of which belong to the body which comes from this world, fire, earth, air, water. By cremating the body, the elements are returned to their respective area, while the soul continues in the afterlife. After death Muslims are buried, because even after death the soul can still feel pain so disposing of the body in any other means is a sin. When a Hindu devotee dies their soul leaves the body and goes to another world and returns again after spending some time there. Where a person is reborn is determined by their â€Å"karma†, the effects of a person’s actions that determine their destiny in the next incarnation. Hindus try to do virtuous acts of conduct so that they will increase their good karma and be reborn higher up in the caste system. This is done in numerous ways. Their initial aim is to worship Brahman (supreme Lord) by thinking about him and reading his Holy books. The Vedas, Smritis, Ramayan and Bhagavad Gita; Their life should involve praying and making offerings to the various Gods that take form from Brahman originally. There is no specific God that you can worship, whichever you choose is acceptable as it leads to essentially to Brahman. Hinduism believes in the existence of not one hell and heaven but in the existence of many sun filled heavens and many demonic worlds. 5 In the ultimate sense the purpose of these worlds is to neither punish nor reward the souls, but to remind them of the true purpose of their existence to lead an adequate life according to the Hindu Holy scripture The Vedas. The process of being born, to grow, die and be reborn again is known as samsara. It is the aim of every Hindu to be freed from this cycle in order to be in the presence of God, or become one with God. Karma is in itself a system of reward and punishment. The idea of reincarnation is not strictly limited to Hinduism. The idea of reincarnation is also becoming more popular in the West. This concept of reincarnation is summarily described in following verse of the Bhagavad-Gita. â€Å"Just as a man discards worn out clothes and puts on new clothes, the soul discards worn out bodies and wears new ones.† (2:22) The Hindu concept of reincarnation directly challenges the Islamic and western notion of one life, one heaven, one hell and the final day of judgement. According to the following quote Islam contradicts the belief of transmigration there is the belief that once our hearts stop beating this is the end of our worldly life but the argument of the non-believers is that bring back our forefathers. â€Å"There is not but our worldly life; we die and live (i.e. some people die and others live, replacing them) and nothing destroys us except time.† (Quran, 45:24-26) Although Islam does primarily reject the notion of reincarnation in the form of another being, there is an exception to this. Islam is split in to 72 various sets and there is one set that does believe in reincarnation, the Druze. The Druze belong to an eleventh century offshoot of Shia Islam, which originated in Egypt. The similarity with this sect and Hinduism is that it also believes in the transmigration of souls, although this sect calls itself Muslims it denies the Day of Resurrection and the idea of heaven and Hell. Similarly they believe the body is to return to the elements and the universe is eternal and always will be. The physical body of the ones departed and the burial procedure for Muslims is just the earth accepting what was already its own â€Å"To Allah we belong and to Him is our return.† (Chapter 2, verses 153-156.) This then leads to the point that they do not belief in the message of the prophets of Islam. The Druze sect is not accepted by other major sects of Islam, they suffer from isolation of followers of the same religion. Although there are exceptions, Islam predominately feels a strong and solid approach to the one Supreme Lord and the Day of Judgement. After examining both religions and their beliefs it seems that both religions have the belief in life after death but a very different approach. There are several cases where Muslims have turned to other religions for the answer to the afterlife.6 Having examined and commented on beliefs on life after death in Islam and Hinduism, thus relating back to the first point of morality, that must exist and be justified in the first place for us human beings to first rationalise that there must be an afterlife. When this is understood then the ideas of different religious views on the afterlife can be understood. Islam’s belief ties in with the western notion of the standard hell and heaven and you are judged according to your deeds in your life that you have committed. You are resurrected but in the form you died in. Muslims are then weighed for deeds, dependant on that you either go to hell or heaven. You are faced with many obstacles on the way and even though you have primarily been good all your life you still will be punished for the sin. There are also many large signs before the fateful day. For majority of Muslims the belief in the afterlife determines the way they lead their lives whilst alive. For Hindus however the belief is that you are reincarnated as something else, either in higher caste or lower depending on the good/bad karma. You go through various lives and cycles to balance this karma until you become god (moksha). â€Å"I am the Self, seated in the hearts of all beings; I am the beginning, the middle and also the end of all beings.† (10.20 Gita) The Hindu’s teachings also lay on the principle of morality as they are to be reunited with Mother Nature. In the Hindu religion, righteousness and to be without sin is of more importance, these are the factors whether one goes to Heaven or Hell. The Hindu’s teach, â€Å"As it does and as it acts, so it becomes: The doer of good becomes good, and the doer of evil becomes evil.† (Upanishad (4,4,5)) This quote explains that Hinduism has a concept of morality. Previously I have touched on the lifestyles of both religions Hinduism and Islam. Although they both believe in different outcomes, already while alive they develop a moral attitude in the back of their minds. This life will determine heaven/hell or higher /lower caste depending on what your religious belief is. What we can examine from this is that reward is something we all strive for, so the idea of a better life in the hereafter encourages good conduct in both faiths. Ultimately no matter what religion you have faith in it seems we rely in a better life in the hereafter. Hindu and Islamic beliefs about life after death seek to explain morality on this Earth. Our actions in this life will determine our post life existence, whether we go to heaven, hell, or are reincarnated. Both religions agree with Kant’s theory that the Universe needs to be satisfied. Worshippers are thus encouraged to strive to maintain their good conduct in this life. Without such explanations Kant explains, morality would be irrelevant. 2932 Notes 1) A story is told in the Qur’an, about a man who doubted Allah’s ability to resurrect a village. Allah caused him to die for a hundred years and when he was resurrected, questioned him as to how long he had â€Å"slept†. He replied â€Å"A day or part of a day†. Then God said â€Å"Look your food has rotted, look at your crops and the dead bones of your animals look how we adjust them and cover them with flesh!† (Qur’an 2:259) 2) â€Å"When your Lord drew forth from the loins of the children of Adam, their descendants and made them testify concerning them. (Saying): ‘Am I not your Lord’ they said, ‘Yes, we testify to it.’ (This) in case you say on the Day of Judgement, ‘We were unaware of this’. Or in case you say, ‘It was our ancestors who made partners (with Allah) and we are only their descendants. Will you then destroy us for what those liars did?†[8] 3) The length of the day of judgement will be equivalent to fifty thousand years of this world and this quote can be found in verses (70: 4) Holy Quran. The Sunni Islamic belief is that: â€Å"On Friday the tenth of Muharram Angel Israfeel will blow a trumpet the sound will be so fearful that the entire universe will self-destruct†. (The day of judgement by the Sunni foundation) 3) â€Å"And verily, Hell is the promised abode for them all. It has seven gates: to each of those gates is a specific class of sinners assigned.† [al Hijr, 15: 43-44] Murderers: â€Å"And whoever kills a believer intentionally – his recompense is Hell to abide therein forever, and the wrath and the curse of Allah is upon him, and He has prepared for him a great punishment.† [an-Nisa, 4: 93] â€Å"Verily, of the inmates of the Fire, the one with the easiest punishment will be one who will have a pair of sandals and straps of fire. His brain will boil from them as a kettle boils. He does not see that anyone is suffering a punishment more severe than him, while he is the one with the easiest punishment.† [Sahih al-Bukhari and Muslim] http://www.shariahprogram.ca/articles/hell-devil-description.shtml 4) Then believers and disbelievers will go to the bridge lying over the fire from hell â€Å"the bridge will be of one single hair and be sharp as a sword.† The journey will be of no difficulty to those who lived their life according to Islam. 5) Indralok is the standard heaven to which those who please the Gods through their activities go. The standard hell is Yamalok. 6One example is the 11-month-old Muslim boy from India. He has now been named Balaji, another name for monkey-faced Lord Hanuman. â€Å"He is reported to have a 4in ‘tail’ caused by genetic mutations during the development of the foetus. Iqbal Qureshi, the child’s maternal grandfather, is taking Balaji from temple to temple where people offer money to see the boy. Mr Qureshi says the baby has nine spots on his body like Lord Hanuman and showed them to journalists, reports Indian newspaper The Tribune.† What this quote shows is that there are differences of opinion within a religion as even genetic mutations such as this one have altered the decision in believing in the Day of Judgement for a Muslim man. (http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/fr/607381/posts)