Which religion was founded by Guru Nanak in the 16th Century?
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Freedom_of_religion.txt Guru_Nanak.txt 16th_century.txt
Freedom of religion Guru Nanak 16th century
Freedom of religion or freedom of belief is a principle that supports the freedom of an individual or community, in public or private, to manifest religion or belief in teaching, practice, worship, and observance. It also includes the freedom to change one's religion or belief. 

Freedom of religion is considered by many people and nations to be a fundamental human right.   In a country with a state religion, freedom of religion is generally considered to mean that the government permits religious practices of other sects besides the state religion, and does not persecute believers in other faiths.

History

Historically, freedom of religion has been used to refer to the tolerance of different theological systems of belief, while freedom of worship has been defined as freedom of individual action. Each of these have existed to varying degrees. While many countries have accepted some form of religious freedom, this has also often been limited in practice through punitive taxation, repressive social legislation, and political disenfranchisement. Compare examples of individual freedom in Italy or the Muslim tradition of dhimmis, literally "protected individuals" professing an officially tolerated non-Muslim religion.

In Antiquity, a syncretic point of view often allowed communities of traders to operate under their own customs. When street mobs of separate quarters clashed in a Hellenistic or Roman city, the issue was generally perceived to be an infringement of community rights.

Cyrus the Great established the Achaemenid Empire ca. 550 BC, and initiated a general policy of permitting religious freedom throughout the empire, documenting this on the Cyrus Cylinder.  

Some of the historical exceptions have been in regions where one of the revealed religions has been in a position of power: Judaism, Zoroastrianism, Christianity and Islam. Others have been where the established order has felt threatened, as shown in the trial of Socrates in 399 BC or where the ruler has been deified, as in Rome, and refusal to offer token sacrifice was similar to refusing to take an oath of allegiance. This was the core for resentment and the persecution of early Christian communities.

Freedom of religious worship was established in the Buddhist Maurya Empire of ancient India by Ashoka the Great in the 3rd century BC, which was encapsulated in the Edicts of Ashoka.

Greek-Jewish clashes at Cyrene in 73 AD and 117 AD and in Alexandria in 115 AD provide examples of cosmopolitan cities as scenes of tumult.

Muslim world

Following a period of fighting lasting around a hundred years before 620 AD which mainly involved Arab and Jewish inhabitants of Medina (then known as Yathrib), religious freedom for Muslims, Jews and pagans were declared by Muhammad in the Constitution of Medina. The Islamic Caliphate later guaranteed religious freedom under the conditions that non-Muslim communities accept dhimmi status and their adult males pay the punitive jizya tax instead of the zakat paid by Muslim citizens. 

Religious pluralism existed in classical Islamic ethics and Sharia, as the religious laws and courts of other religions, including Christianity, Judaism and Hinduism, were usually accommodated within the Islamic legal framework, as seen in the early Caliphate, Al-Andalus, Indian subcontinent, and the Ottoman Millet system. In medieval Islamic societies, the qadi (Islamic judges) usually could not interfere in the matters of non-Muslims unless the parties voluntarily choose to be judged according to Islamic law, thus the dhimmi communities living in Islamic states usually had their own laws independent from the Sharia law, such as the Jews who would have their own Halakha courts. 

Dhimmis were allowed to operate their own courts following their own legal systems in cases that did not involve other religious groups, or capital offences or threats to public order.  Non-Muslims were allowed to engage in religious practices that was usually forbidden by Islamic law, such as the consumption of alcohol and pork, as well as religious practices which Muslims found repugnant, such as the Zoroastrian practice of incestuous "self-marriage" where a man could marry his mother, sister or daughter. According to the famous Islamic legal scholar Ibn Qayyim (1292–1350), non-Muslims had the right to engage in such religious practices even if it offended Muslims, under the conditions that such cases not be presented to Islamic Sharia courts and that these religious minorities believed that the practice in question is permissible according to their religion. 
ISIS re-established the punitive jizya tax and forbade Christians in Syria from building places of worship, ringing bells, wearing crosses or criticizing Islam, or face beheading. 

India

Ancient Jews fleeing from persecution in their homeland 2,500 years ago settled in India and never faced anti-Semitism.  Freedom of religion edicts have been found written during Ashoka the Great's reign in the 3rd century BC. Freedom to practise, preach and propagate any religion is a constitutional right in Modern India. Most major religious festivals of the main communities are included in the list of national holidays.

Although India is an 80% Hindu country, three out of the twelve presidents of India have been Muslims.

Many scholars and intellectuals believe that India's predominant religion, Hinduism, has long been a most tolerant religion.  Rajni Kothari, founder of the Centre for the Study of Developing Societies has written, "[India] is a country built on the foundations of a civilisation that is fundamentally non-religious." 

The Dalai Lama, the Tibetan leader in exile said that religious tolerance of 'Aryabhoomi,' a reference to India found in Mahabharata, has been in existence in this country from thousands of years. "Not only Hinduism, Jainism, Buddhism, Sikhism which are the native religions but also Christianity and Islam have flourished here. Religious tolerance is inherent in Indian tradition," the Dalai Lama said. 

Freedom of religion in the Indian subcontinent is exemplified by the reign of King Piyadasi (304 BC to 232 BC) (Ashoka). One of King Ashoka's main concerns was to reform governmental institutes and exercise moral principles in his attempt to create a just and humane society. Later he promoted the principles of Buddhism, and the creation of a just, understanding and fair society was held as an important principle for many ancient rulers of this time in the East.

The importance of freedom of worship in India was encapsulated in an inscription of Ashoka:

The initial entry of Islam into South Asia came in the first century after the death of the Islamic Prophet Muhammad. When around 1210 AD the Islamic Sultanates invaded India from the north-west, gradually the principle of freedom of religion deteriorated in this part of the world. They were subsequently replaced by another Islamic invader in the form of Babur. The Mughal empire was founded by the Mongol leader Babur in 1526, when he defeated Ibrahim Lodi, the last of the Delhi Sultans at the First Battle of Panipat. The word "Mughal" is the Indo-Iranian version of Mongol.

On the main Asian continent, the Mongols were tolerant of religions. People could worship as they wished freely and openly, though the formation of 2 nations i.e. Pakistan and Bangladesh has been on basis of religious intolerance.

After arrival of Europeans, Christians in zeal to convert local as per belief in conversion as service of God, have also been seen to fall into frivolous methods since their arrival. Though by and large there are hardly any reports of law and order disturbance from mobs with Christian beliefs except perhaps in the north eastern region of India. 

Freedom of religion in contemporary India is a fundamental right guaranteed under Article 25 of the nation's constitution. Accordingly, every citizen of India has a right to profess, practice and propagate their religions peacefully.  Vishwa Hindu Parishad counters this argument by saying that evangelical Christians are forcefully (or through money) converting rural, illiterate populations and they are only trying to stop this.

In September 2010, Indian state Kerala's State Election Commissioner announced that "Religious heads cannot issue calls to vote for members of a particular community or to defeat the nonbelievers".  The Catholic Church comprising Latin, Syro-Malabar and Syro-Malankara rites used to give clear directions to the faithful on exercising their franchise during elections through pastoral letters issued by bishops or council of bishops. The pastoral letter issued by Kerala Catholic Bishops' Council (KCBC) on the eve of the poll urged the faithful to shun atheists.

Even today, most Indians celebrate all religious festivals with equal enthusiasm and respect. Hindu festivals like Deepavali and Holi, Muslim festivals like Eid al-Fitr, Eid-Ul-Adha, Muharram, Christian festivals like Christmas and other festivals like Buddha Purnima, Mahavir Jayanti, Gur Purab etc. are celebrated and enjoyed by all Indians.

Europe

Religious intolerance

Most Roman Catholic kingdoms kept a tight rein on religious expression throughout the Middle Ages. Jews were alternately tolerated and persecuted, the most notable examples of the latter being the expulsion of all Jews from Spain in 1492. Some of those who remained and converted were tried as heretics in the Inquisition for allegedly practicing Judaism in secret. Despite the persecution of Jews, they were the most tolerated non-Catholic faith in Europe.

However, the latter was in part a reaction to the growing movement that became the Reformation. As early as 1380, John Wycliffe in England denied transubstantiation and began his translation of the Bible into English. He was condemned in a Papal Bull in 1410, and all his books were burned.

In 1414, Jan Hus, a Bohemian preacher of reformation, was given a safe conduct by the Holy Roman Emperor to attend the Council of Constance. Not entirely trusting in his safety, he made his will before he left. His forebodings proved accurate, and he was burned at the stake on 6 July 1415. The Council also decreed that Wycliffe's remains be disinterred and cast out. This decree was not carried out until 1429.

After the fall of the city of Granada, Spain, in 1492, the Muslim population was promised religious freedom by the Treaty of Granada, but that promise was short-lived. In 1501, Granada's Muslims were given an ultimatum to either convert to Christianity or to emigrate. The majority converted, but only superficially, continuing to dress and speak as they had before and to secretly practice Islam. The Moriscos (converts to Christianity) were ultimately expelled from Spain between 1609 (Castile) and 1614 (rest of Spain), by Philip III.

Martin Luther published his famous 95 Theses in Wittenberg on 31 October 1517. His major aim was theological, summed up in the three basic dogmas of Protestantism:
* The Bible only is infallible
* Every Christian can interpret it
* Human sins are so wrongful that no deed or merit, only God's grace, can lead to salvation.
In consequence, Luther hoped to stop the sale of indulgences and to reform the Church from within. In 1521, he was given the chance to recant at the Diet of Worms before Charles V, Holy Roman Emperor, then only 19. After he refused to recant, he was declared heretic. Partly for his own protection, he was sequestered on the Wartburg in the possessions of Frederick III, Elector of Saxony, where he translated the New Testament into German. He was excommunicated by Papal Bull in 1521.

However, the movement continued to gain ground in his absence and spread to Switzerland. Huldrych Zwingli preached reform in Zürich from 1520 to 1523. He opposed the sale of indulgences, celibacy, pilgrimages, pictures, statues, relics, altars, and organs. This culminated in outright war between the Swiss cantons that accepted Protestantism and the Catholics. The Catholics were victorious, and Zwingli was killed in battle in 1531. The Catholic cantons were magnanimous in victory.

The defiance of Papal authority proved contagious, and in 1533, when Henry VIII of England was excommunicated for his divorce and remarriage to Anne Boleyn, he promptly established a state church with bishops appointed by the crown. This was not without internal opposition, and Thomas More, who had been his Lord Chancellor, was executed in 1535 for opposition to Henry.

In 1535, the Swiss canton of Geneva became Protestant. In 1536, the Bernese imposed the reformation on the canton of Vaud by conquest. They sacked the cathedral in Lausanne and destroyed all its art and statuary. John Calvin, who had been active in Geneva was expelled in 1538 in a power struggle, but he was invited back in 1540.

The same kind of seesaw back and forth between Protestantism and Catholicism was evident in England when Mary I of England returned that country briefly to the Catholic fold in 1553 and persecuted Protestants. However, her half-sister, Elizabeth I of England was to restore the Church of England in 1558, this time permanently, and began to persecute Catholics again. The King James Bible commissioned by King James I of England and published in 1611 proved a landmark for Protestant worship, with official Catholic forms of worship being banned.

In France, although peace was made between Protestants and Catholics at the Treaty of Saint Germain in 1570, persecution continued, most notably in the Massacre of Saint Bartholomew's Day on 24 August 1572, in which thousands of Protestants throughout France were killed. A few years before, at the "Michelade" of Nîmes in 1567, Protestants had massacred the local Catholic clergy.

Early steps and attempts in the way of tolerance

The Norman Kingdom of Sicily under Roger II was characterized by its multi-ethnic nature and religious tolerance. Normans, Jews, Muslim Arabs, Byzantine Greeks, Lombards, and native Sicilians lived in harmony.   Rather than exterminate the Muslims of Sicily, Roger II's grandson Emperor Frederick II of Hohenstaufen (1215—1250) allowed them to settle on the mainland and build mosques. Not least, he enlisted them in his – Christian – army and even into his personal bodyguards.  

Bohemia (present-day Czech Republic) enjoyed religious freedom between 1436 and 1520, and became one of the most liberal countries of the Christian world during that period of time. The so-called Basel Compacts of 1436 declared the freedom of religion and peace between Catholics and Utraquists. In 1609 Emperor Rudolf II granted Bohemia greater religious liberty with his Letter of Majesty. The privileged position of the Catholic Church in the Czech kingdom was firmly established after the Battle of White Mountain in 1620. Gradually freedom of religion in Bohemian lands came to an end and Protestants fled or were expelled from the country. A devout Catholic, Emperor Ferdinand II forcibly converted Austrian and Bohemian Protestants.

In the meantime, in Germany Philip Melanchthon drafted the Augsburg Confession as a common confession for the Lutherans and the free territories. It was presented to Charles V in 1530.

In the Holy Roman Empire, Charles V agreed to tolerate Lutheranism in 1555 at the Peace of Augsburg. Each state was to take the religion of its prince, but within those states, there was not necessarily religious tolerance. Citizens of other faiths could relocate to a more hospitable environment.

In France, from the 1550s, many attempts to reconcile Catholics and Protestants and to establish tolerance failed because the State was too weak to enforce them. It took the victory of prince Henry IV of France, who had converted into Protestantism, and his accession to the throne, to impose religious tolerance formalized in the Edict of Nantes in 1598. It would remain in force for over 80 years until its revocation in 1685 by Louis XIV of France. Intolerance remained the norm until Louis XVI, who signed the Edict of Versailles (1787), then the constitutional text of 24 December 1789, granting civilian rights to Protestants. The French Revolution then abolished state religion and confiscated all Church property, turning intolerance against Catholics.

Early laws and legal guarantees for religious freedom

In 1558, the Transylvanian Diet Diet of Torda declared free practice of both Catholicism and Lutheranism. Calvinism, however, was prohibited. Ten years later, in 1568, the Diet extended the freedom to all religions, declaring that "It is not allowed to anybody to intimidate anybody with captivity or expelling for his religion". However, it was more than a religious tolerance; it declared the equality of the religions. The emergence in social hierarchy wasn't depend on the religion of the person thus Transylvania had also Catholic and Protestant monarchs. The lack of state religion was unique for centuries in Europe. Therefore, the Edict of Torda is considered by mostly Hungarian historians as the first legal guarantee of religious freedom in Christian Europe.

In the Union of Utrecht (20 January 1579), personal freedom of religion was declared in the struggle between the Northern Netherlands and Spain. The Union of Utrecht was an important step in the establishment of the Dutch Republic (from 1581 to 1795). Under Calvinist leadership, the Netherlands became the most tolerant country in Europe. It granted asylum to persecuted religious minorities, such as the Huguenots, the Dissenters, and the Jews who had been expelled from Spain and Portugal.  The establishment of a Jewish community in the Netherlands and New Amsterdam (present-day New York) during the Dutch Republic is an example of religious freedom. When New Amsterdam surrendered to the English in 1664, freedom of religion was guaranteed in the Articles of Capitulation. It benefitted also the Jews who had landed on Manhattan Island in 1654, fleeing Portuguese persecution in Brazil. During the 18th century, other Jewish communities were established at Newport, Rhode Island, Philadelphia, Charleston, Savannah, and Richmond. 

Intolerance of dissident forms of Protestantism also continued, as evidenced by the exodus of the Pilgrims, who sought refuge, first in the Netherlands, and ultimately in America, founding Plymouth Colony in Massachusetts in 1620. William Penn, the founder of Philadelphia, was involved in a case which had a profound effect upon future American laws and those of England. In a classic case of jury nullification, the jury refused to convict William Penn of preaching a Quaker sermon, which was illegal. Even though the jury was imprisoned for their acquittal, they stood by their decision and helped establish the freedom of religion.

Poland

Poland has a long tradition of religious freedom. The right to worship freely was a basic right given to all inhabitants of the Commonwealth throughout the 15th and early 16th century, however, complete freedom of religion was officially recognized in Poland in 1573 during the Warsaw Confederation. Poland kept religious freedom laws during an era when religious persecution was an everyday occurrence in the rest of Europe. 

The General Charter of Jewish Liberties known as the Statute of Kalisz was issued by the Duke of Greater Poland Boleslaus the Pious on 8 September 1264 in Kalisz. The statute served as the basis for the legal position of Jews in Poland and led to creation of the Yiddish-speaking autonomous Jewish nation until 1795. The statute granted exclusive jurisdiction of Jewish courts over Jewish matters and established a separate tribunal for matters involving Christians and Jews. Additionally, it guaranteed personal liberties and safety for Jews including freedom of religion, travel, and trade. The statute was ratified by subsequent Polish Kings: Casimir III of Poland in 1334, Casimir IV of Poland in 1453 and Sigismund I of Poland in 1539. The Commonwealth set a precedent by allowing Jews to become ennobled.

United States

Most of the early colonies were generally not tolerant of dissident forms of worship, with Maryland being one of the exceptions. For example, Roger Williams found it necessary to found a new colony in Rhode Island to escape persecution in the theocratically dominated colony of Massachusetts. The Puritans of the Massachusetts Bay Colony were the most active of the New England persecutors of Quakers, and the persecuting spirit was shared by Plymouth Colony and the colonies along the Connecticut river. In 1660, one of the most notable victims of the religious intolerance was English Quaker Mary Dyer, who was hanged in Boston, Massachusetts for repeatedly defying a Puritan law banning Quakers from the colony.Rogers, Horatio, 2009. [https://books.google.com/books?idL5_5yIgpa-YC&printsec
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Among%20the%20most%20pathetic%20chapters%20&ffalse Mary Dyer of Rhode Island: The Quaker Martyr That Was Hanged on Boston Common, 1 June 1660] pp.1–2. BiblioBazaar, LLC. As one of the four executed Quakers known as the Boston martyrs, the hanging of Dyer on the Boston gallows marked the beginning of the end of the Puritan theocracy and New England independence from English rule, and in 1661 King Charles II explicitly forbade Massachusetts from executing anyone for professing Quakerism. Anti-Catholic sentiment appeared in New England with the first Pilgrim and Puritan settlers.  In 1647, Massachusetts passed a law prohibiting any Jesuit Roman Catholic priests from entering territory under Puritan jurisdiction.  Any suspected person who could not clear himself was to be banished from the colony; a second offense carried a death penalty.  The Pilgrims of New England held radical Protestant disapproval of Christmas.  Christmas observance was outlawed in Boston in 1659.  The ban by the Puritans was revoked in 1681 by an English appointed governor, however it was not until the mid-19th century that celebrating Christmas became common in the Boston region.  

Freedom of religion was first applied as a principle of government in the founding of the colony of Maryland, founded by the Catholic Lord Baltimore, in 1634.  Fifteen years later (1649), the Maryland Toleration Act, drafted by Lord Baltimore, provided: "No person or persons...shall from henceforth be any waies troubled, molested or discountenanced for or in respect of his or her religion nor in the free exercise thereof." The Act allowed freedom of worship for all Trinitarian Christians in Maryland, but sentenced to death anyone who denied the divinity of Jesus. The Maryland Toleration Act was repealed during the Cromwellian Era with the assistance of Protestant assemblymen and a new law barring Catholics from openly practicing their religion was passed.  In 1657, the Catholic Lord Baltimore regained control after making a deal with the colony's Protestants, and in 1658 the Act was again passed by the colonial assembly. This time, it would last more than thirty years, until 1692  when, after Maryland's Protestant Revolution of 1689, freedom of religion was again rescinded.  In addition, in 1704, an Act was passed "to prevent the growth of Popery in this Province", preventing Catholics from holding political office. Full religious toleration would not be restored in Maryland until the American Revolution, when Maryland's Charles Carroll of Carrollton signed the American Declaration of Independence.

Rhode Island (1636), Connecticut (1636), New Jersey, and Pennsylvania (1682)—founded by Protestants Roger Williams, Thomas Hooker, and William Penn, respectively—combined the democratic form of government which had been developed by the Puritans and the Separatist Congregationalists in Massachusetts with religious freedom.     These colonies became sanctuaries for persecuted religious minorities. Catholics and later on Jews also had full citizenship and free exercise of their religions.    Williams, Hooker, Penn, and their friends were firmly convinced that freedom of conscience was the will of God. Williams gave the most profound argument: As faith is the free work of the Holy Spirit, it cannot be forced on a person. Therefore, strict separation of church and state has to be kept.  Pennsylvania was the only colony that retained unlimited religious freedom until the foundation of the United States in 1776. It was the inseparable connection between democracy, religious freedom, and the other forms of freedom which became the political and legal basis of the new nation. In particular, Baptists and Presbyterians demanded the disestablishment of state churches - Anglican and Congregationalist - and the protection of religious freedom. 

Reiterating Maryland's and the other colonies' earlier colonial legislation, the Virginia Statute for Religious Freedom, written in 1779 by Thomas Jefferson, proclaimed:
[N]o man shall be compelled to frequent or support any religious worship, place, or ministry whatsoever, nor shall be enforced, restrained, molested, or burthened in his body or goods, nor shall otherwise suffer, on account of his religious opinions or belief; but that all men shall be free to profess, and by argument to maintain, their opinions in matters of religion, and that the same shall in no wise diminish, enlarge, or affect their civil capacities.

Those sentiments also found expression in the First Amendment of the national constitution, part of the United States' Bill of Rights: "Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof..."

The United States formally considers religious freedom in its foreign relations. The International Religious Freedom Act of 1998 established the United States Commission on International Religious Freedom which investigates the records of over 200 other nations with respect to religious freedom, and makes recommendations to submit nations with egregious records to ongoing scrutiny and possible economic sanctions. Many human rights organizations have urged the United States to be still more vigorous in imposing sanctions on countries that do not permit or tolerate religious freedom.

Canada

Freedom of religion in Canada is a constitutionally protected right, allowing believers the freedom to assemble and worship without limitation or interference. Canadian law goes further, requiring that private citizens and companies provide reasonable accommodation to those, for example, with strong religious beliefs. The Canadian Human Rights Act allows an exception to reasonable accommodation with respect to religious dress, such as a Sikh turban, when there is a bona fide occupational requirement, such as a workplace requiring a hard hat. 

International

On 25 November 1981, the United Nations General Assembly passed the "Declaration on the Elimination of All Forms of Intolerance and of Discrimination Based on Religion or Belief". This declaration recognizes freedom of religion as a fundamental human right in accordance with several other instruments of international law. 

However, the most substantial binding legal instruments that guarantee the right to freedom of religion that was passed by the international community is the Convention on the Rights of the Child which states in its Article 14 : "States Parties shall respect the right of the child to freedom of thought, conscience and religion. - States Parties shall respect the rights and duties of the parents and, when applicable, legal guardians, to provide direction to the child in the exercise of his or her right in a manner consistent with the evolving capacities of the child. - Freedom to manifest one's religion or beliefs may be subject only to such limitations as are prescribed by law and are necessary to protect public safety, order, health or morals, or the fundamental rights and freedoms of others." 

Contemporary debates

Theistic, non-theistic and atheistic beliefs

In 1993, the UN's human rights committee declared that article 18 of the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights "protects theistic, non-theistic and atheistic beliefs, as well as the right not to profess any religion or belief."  The committee further stated that "the freedom to have or to adopt a religion or belief necessarily entails the freedom to choose a religion or belief, including the right to replace one's current religion or belief with another or to adopt atheistic views." Signatories to the convention are barred from "the use of threat of physical force or penal sanctions to compel believers or non-believers" to recant their beliefs or convert. Despite this, minority religions still are persecuted in many parts of the world.  

Liberal secular

Adam Smith, in his book The Wealth of Nations (using an argument first put forward by his friend and contemporary David Hume), states that in the long run it is in the best interests of society as a whole and the civil magistrate (government) in particular to allow people to freely choose their own religion, as it helps prevent civil unrest and reduces intolerance. So long as there are enough different religions and/or religious sects operating freely in a society then they are all compelled to moderate their more controversial and violent teachings, so as to be more appealing to more people and so have an easier time attracting new converts. It is this free competition amongst religious sects for converts that ensures stability and tranquillity in the long run.

Smith also points out that laws that prevent religious freedom and seek to preserve the power and belief in a particular religion will, in the long run, only serve to weaken and corrupt that religion, as its leaders and preachers become complacent, disconnected and unpractised in their ability to seek and win over new converts: 

Hinduism

Hinduism is one of the more open-minded religions when it comes to religious freedom. It respects the right of everyone to reach God in their own way. Hindus believe in different ways to preach attainment of God and religion as a philosophy and hence respect all religions as equal. One of the famous Hindu sayings about religion is: "Truth is one; sages call it by different names."

Judaism

Judaism includes multiple streams, such as Orthodox, Reform Judaism, Conservative Judaism, Reconstructionist Judaism, Jewish Renewal and Humanistic Judaism. Israel, viewed as the Jewish homeland, has been evaluated in research by the Pew organization as having "high" government restrictions on religion. The government recognizes only Orthodox Judaism in certain matters of personal status, and marriages can only be performed by religious authorities. The government provides the greatest funding to Orthodox Judaism, even though adherents represent a minority of citizens.  Jewish women, including Anat Hoffman, have been arrested at the Western Wall for praying and singing while wearing religious garments the Orthodox feel should be reserved for men. Women of the Wall have organized to promote religious freedom at the Wall.  In November 2014, a group of 60 non-Orthodox rabbinical students were told they would not be allowed to pray in the Knesset synagogue because it is reserved for Orthodox. Rabbi Joel Levy, director of the Conservative Yeshiva in Jerusalem, said that he had submitted the request on behalf of the students and saw their shock when the request was denied. He noted: "paradoxically, this decision served as an appropriate end to our conversation about religion and state in Israel." MK Dov Lipman expressed the concern that many Knesset workers are unfamiliar with non-Orthodox and American practices and would view "an egalitarian service in the synagogue as an affront." 

Christianity

 According to the Catholic Church in the Vatican II document on religious freedom, Dignitatis Humanae, "the human person has a right to religious freedom", which is described as "immunity from coercion in civil society". This principle of religious freedom "leaves untouched traditional Catholic doctrine on the moral duty of men and societies toward the true religion." In addition, this right "is to be recognized in the constitutional law whereby society is governed and thus it is to become a civil right."

Prior to this, Pope Pius IX had written a document called the Syllabus of Errors. The Syllabus was made up of phrases and paraphrases from earlier papal documents, along with index references to them, and presented as a list of "condemned propositions". It does not explain why each particular proposition is wrong, but it cites earlier documents to which the reader can refer for the Pope's reasons for saying each proposition is false. Among the statements included in the Syllabus are: "[It is an error to say that] Every man is free to embrace and profess that religion which, guided by the light of reason, he shall consider true" (15); "[It is an error to say that] In the present day it is no longer expedient that the Catholic religion should be held as the only religion of the State, to the exclusion of all other forms of worship" (77); "[It is an error to say that] Hence it has been wisely decided by law, in some Catholic countries, that persons coming to reside therein shall enjoy the public exercise of their own peculiar worship" (78). 

Some Orthodox Christians, especially those living in democratic countries, support religious freedom for all, as evidenced by the position of the Ecumenical Patriarchate. Many Protestant Christian churches, including some Baptists, Churches of Christ, Seventh-day Adventist Church and main line churches have a commitment to religious freedoms. The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints also affirms religious freedom. 

However others, such as African scholar Makau Mutua, have argued that Christian insistence on the propagation of their faith to native cultures as an element of religious freedom has resulted in a corresponding denial of religious freedom to native traditions and led to their destruction. As he states in the book produced by the Oslo Coalition on Freedom of Religion or Belief, "Imperial religions have necessarily violated individual conscience and the communal expressions of Africans and their communities by subverting African religions."  

In their book Breaking India, Rajiv Malhotra and Aravindan Neelakandan discussed the "US Church" funding activities in India, such as the popularly advertised campaigns to "save" poor children by feeding, clothing, and educating them, with the book arguing that the funds collected were being used not so much for the purposes indicated to sponsors, but for indoctrination and conversion activities. They suggest that India is the prime target of a huge enterprise—a "network" of organizations, individuals, and churches—that, they argue, seem intensely devoted to the task of creating a separatist identity, history, and even religion for the vulnerable sections of India. They suggest that this nexus of players includes not only church groups, government bodies, and related organizations, but also private think tanks and academics. 

Joel Spring has written about the Christianization of the Roman Empire:

Christianity added new impetus to the expansion of empire. Increasing the arrogance of the imperial project, Christians insisted that the Gospels and the Church were the only valid sources of religious beliefs. Imperialists could claim that they were both civilizing the world and spreading the true religion. By the 5th century, Christianity was thought of as co-extensive with the Imperium romanum. This meant that to be human, as opposed to being a natural slave, was to be "civilized" and Christian. Historian Anthony Pagden argues, "just as the civitas; had now become coterminous with Christianity, so to be human—to be, that is, one who was 'civil', and who was able to interpret correctly the law of nature—one had now also to be Christian." After the fifteenth century, most Western colonialists rationalized the spread of empire with the belief that they were saving a barbaric and pagan world by spreading Christian civilization. 

Islam

Conversion to Islam is simple, but Muslims are forbidden to convert  from Islam to another religion. Certain Muslim-majority countries are known for their restrictions on religious freedom, highly favoring Muslim citizens over non-Muslim citizens. Other countries having the same restrictive laws tend to be more liberal when imposing them. Even other Muslim-majority countries are secular and thus do not regulate religious belief. 

Some Islamic theologians quote the Qur'an ( and , i.e., Sura Al-Kafirun) to show scriptural support for religious freedom.

, referring to the war against Pagans during the Battle of Badr in Medina, indicates that Muslims are only allowed to fight against those who intend to harm them (right of self-defense) and that if their enemies surrender, they must also stop because God does not like those who transgress limits.

In Bukhari:V9 N316, Jabir ibn 'Abdullah narrated that a Bedouin accepted Islam and then when he got a fever he demanded that Muhammad to cancel his pledge (allow him to renounce Islam). Muhammad refused to do so. The Bedouin man repeated his demand once, but Muhammad once again refused. Then, he (the Bedouin) left Medina. Muhammad said, "Madinah is like a pair of bellows (furnace): it expels its impurities and brightens and clear its good." In this narration, there was no evidence demonstrating that Muhammad ordered the execution of the Bedouin for wanting to renounce Islam.

In addition, , which is believed to be God's final revelation to Muhammad, states that Muslims are to fear God and not those who reject Islam, and  states that one is accountable only for one's own actions. Therefore, it postulates that in Islam, in the matters of practising a religion, it does not relate to a worldly punishment, but rather these actions are accountable to God in the afterlife. Thus, this supports the argument against the execution of apostates in Islam. 

However, on the other hand, some Muslims support the practice of executing apostates who leave Islam, as in Bukhari:V4 B52 N260; "The Prophet said, 'If a Muslim discards his religion, kill him.

In Iran, the constitution recognizes four religions whose status is formally protected: Zoroastrianism, Judaism, Christianity, and Islam. 
The constitution, however, also set the groundwork for the institutionalized persecution of Bahá'ís, 
who have been subjected to arrests, beatings, executions, confiscation and destruction of property, and the denial of civil rights and liberties, and the denial of access to higher education. There is no freedom of conscience in Iran, as converting from Islam to any other religion is forbidden.

In Egypt, a 16 December 2006 judgment of the Supreme Administrative Council created a clear demarcation between recognized religions – Islam, Christianity and Judaism – and all other religious beliefs;   no other religious affiliation is officially admissible.  The ruling leaves members of other religious communities, including Bahá'ís, without the ability to obtain the necessary government documents to have rights in their country, essentially denying them of all rights of citizenship. They cannot obtain ID cards, birth certificates, death certificates, marriage or divorce certificates, and passports; they also cannot be employed, educated, treated in public hospitals or vote, among other things. See Egyptian identification card controversy.

Changing religion

Among the most contentious areas of religious freedom is the right of an individual to change or abandon his or her own religion (apostasy), and the right to evangelize individuals seeking to convince others to make such a change.

Other debates have centered around restricting certain kinds of missionary activity by religions. Many Islamic states, and others such as China, severely restrict missionary activities of other religions. Greece, among European countries, has generally looked unfavorably on missionary activities of denominations others than the majority church and proselytizing is constitutionally prohibited. 

A different kind of critique of the freedom to propagate religion has come from non-Abrahamic traditions such as the African and Indian. African scholar Makau Mutua criticizes religious evangelism on the ground of cultural annihilation by what he calls "proselytizing universalist faiths" (Chapter 28: Proselytism and Cultural Integrity, page 652):

Some Indian scholars  have similarly argued that the right to propagate religion is not culturally or religiously neutral.

In Sri Lanka, there have been debates regarding a bill on religious freedom that seeks to protect indigenous religious traditions from certain kinds of missionary activities. Debates have also occurred in various states of India regarding similar laws, particularly those that restrict conversions using force, fraud or allurement.

In 2008, Christian Solidarity Worldwide, a Christian human rights non-governmental organisation which specializes in religious freedom, launched an in-depth report on the human rights abuses faced by individuals who leave Islam for another religion. The report is the product of a year long research project in six different countries. It calls on Muslim nations, the international community, the UN and the international media to resolutely address the serious violations of human rights suffered by apostates. 

Apostasy in Islam

In Islam, apostasy is called "ridda" ("turning back") and is considered to be a profound insult to God. A person born of Muslim parents that rejects Islam is called a "murtad fitri" (natural apostate), and a person that converted to Islam and later rejects the religion is called a "murtad milli" (apostate from the community). 

In Islamic law (Sharia), the consensus view is that a male apostate must be put to death unless he suffers from a mental disorder or converted under duress, for example, due to an imminent danger of being killed. A female apostate must be either executed, according to Shafi'i, Maliki, and Hanbali schools of Sunni Islamic jurisprudence (fiqh), or imprisoned until she reverts to Islam as advocated by the Sunni Hanafi school and by Shi'a scholars. 

Ideally, the one performing the execution of an apostate must be an imam. At the same time, all schools of Islamic jurisprudence agree that any Muslim can kill an apostate without punishment. 

However, while almost all scholars agree about the punishment, many disagree on the allowable time to retract the apostasy. Many scholars push this as far as allowing the apostate till he/she dies. Thus, practically making the death penalty just a theoretical statement/exercise. S. A. Rahman, a former Chief Justice of Pakistan, argues that there is no indication of the death penalty for apostasy in the Qur'an. 

Secular law

Religious practice may also conflict with secular law, creating debates on religious freedom. For instance, even though polygamy is permitted in Islam, it is prohibited in secular law in many countries. This raises the question of whether prohibiting the practice infringes on the beliefs of certain Muslims. The US and India, both constitutionally secular nations, have taken two different views of this. In India, polygamy is permitted, but only for Muslims, under Muslim Personal Law. In the US, polygamy is prohibited for all. This was a major source of conflict between the early LDS Church and the United States until the Church amended its position on practicing polygamy.

Similar issues have also arisen in the context of the religious use of psychedelic substances by Native American tribes in the United States as well as other Native practices.

In 1955, Chief Justice of California Roger J. Traynor neatly summarized the American position on how freedom of religion cannot imply freedom from law: "Although freedom of conscience and the freedom to believe are absolute, the freedom to act is not."  But with respect to the religious use of animals within secular law and those acts, the US Supreme Court decision in the case of the Church of Lukumi Babalu Aye v. City of Hialeah in 1993 upheld the right of Santeria adherents to practice ritual animal sacrifice, with Justice Anthony Kennedy stating in the decision: "religious beliefs need not be acceptable, logical, consistent or comprehensible to others in order to merit First Amendment protection" (quoted by Justice Kennedy from the opinion by Justice Burger in Thomas v. Review Board of the Indiana Employment Security Division ). 

In 2015, Kim Davis, a Kentucky county clerk, refused to abide by the Supreme Court decision in Obergefell v. Hodges legalizing same-sex marriage in the United States. When she refused to issue marriage licenses, she became embroiled in the Miller v. Davis lawsuit. Her actions caused attorney and author Roberta Kaplan to state that "Kim Davis is the clearest example of someone who wants to use a religious liberty argument to discriminate."

Children's rights

The law in Germany provides the term of "religious majority" (Religiöse Mündigkeit) with a minimum age for minors to follow their own religious beliefs even if their parents don't share those or don't approve. Children 14 and older have the unrestricted right to enter or exit any religious community. Children 12 and older cannot be compelled to change to a different belief. Children 10 and older have to be heard before their parents change their religious upbringing to a different belief.  There are similar laws in Austria  and in Switzerland. 

International Religious Freedom Day

27 October is International Religious Freedom Day, in commemoration of the execution of the Boston martyrs, a group of Quakers executed by the Puritans on Boston Common for their religious beliefs under the legislature of the Massachusetts Bay Colony between 1659–1661.  The US proclaimed 16 January Religious Freedom Day. 

Modern concerns

In its 2011 annual report, the United States Commission on International Religious Freedom designated fourteen nations as "countries of particular concern". The commission chairman commented that these are nations whose conduct marks them as the world's worst religious freedom violators and human rights abusers. The fourteen nations designated were Burma, China, Egypt, Eritrea, Iran, Iraq, Nigeria, North Korea, Pakistan, Saudi Arabia, Sudan, Turkmenistan, Uzbekistan, and Vietnam. Other nations on the commission's watchlist include Afghanistan, Belarus, Cuba, India, Indonesia, Laos, Russia, Somalia, Tajikistan, Turkey, and Venezuela.^ 
^ 

There are concerns about the restrictions on public religious dress in some European countries (including the Hijab, Kippah, and Christian cross).   Article 18 of the UN International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights limits restrictions on freedom to manifest one's religion or beliefs to those necessary to protect public safety, order, health, or morals or the fundamental rights and freedoms of others.  Freedom of religion as a legal concept is related to, but not identical with, religious toleration, separation of church and state, or secular state (laïcité).

Social hostilities and government restrictions

The Pew Research Center has performed studies on international religious freedom between 2009 and 2015, compiling global data from 16 governmental and non-governmental organizations–including the United Nations, the United States State Department, and Human Rights Watch–and representing over 99.5 percent of the world's population.   In 2009, nearly 70 percent of the world's population lived in countries classified as having heavy restrictions on freedom of religion. This concerns restrictions on religion originating from government prohibitions on free speech and religious expression as well as social hostilities undertaken by private individuals, organisations and social groups. Social hostilities were classified by the level of communal violence and religion-related terrorism.

While most countries provided for the protection of religious freedom in their constitutions or laws, only a quarter of those countries were found to fully respect these legal rights in practice. In 75 countries governments limit the efforts of religious groups to proselytise and in 178 countries religious groups must register with the government. In 2013, Pew classified 30% of countries as having restrictions that tend to target religious minorities, and 61% of countries have social hostilities that tend to target religious minorities.

The countries in North and South America reportedly had some of the lowest levels of government and social restrictions on religion, while The Middle East and North Africa were the regions with the highest. Saudi Arabia, Pakistan and Iran were the countries that top the list of countries with the overall highest levels of restriction on religion. Topping the Pew government restrictions index were Saudi Arabia, Iran, Uzbekistan, China, Egypt, Burma, Maldives, Eritrea, Malaysia and Brunei.

Of the world's 25 most populous countries, Iran, Egypt, Indonesia and Pakistan had the most restrictions, while Brazil, Japan, Italy, South Africa, the UK, and the US had some of the lowest levels, as measured by Pew.

Vietnam and China were classified as having high government restrictions on religion but were in the moderate or low range when it came to social hostilities. Nigeria, Bangladesh and India were high in social hostilities but moderate in terms of government actions.

Restrictions on religion across the world increased between mid-2009 and mid-2010, according to a 2012 study by the Pew Research Center. Restrictions in each of the five major regions of the world increased—including in the Americas and sub-Saharan Africa, the two regions where overall restrictions previously had been declining. In 2010, Egypt, Nigeria, the Palestinian territories, Russia, and Yemen were added to the "very high" category of social hostilities.  The five highest social hostility scores were for Pakistan, India, Sri Lanka, Iraq, and Bangladesh.  In 2015, Pew published that social hostilities declined in 2013, but the harassment of Jews increased. Guru Nanak   (Punjabi: Gurmukhi ਗੁਰੂ ਨਾਨਕ, Punjabi: Shahmukhi , , Urdu: , Gurū Nānak) (15 April 1469 – 22 September 1539) was the founder of Sikhism and the first of the ten Sikh Gurus. His birth is celebrated world-wide as Guru Nanak Gurpurab on Kartik Pooranmashi, the full-moon day in the month of Katak, October–November.

Guru Nanak has been called "one of the greatest religious innovators of all time". He travelled far and wide teaching people the message of one God who dwells in every one of His creations and constitutes the eternal Truth.  He set up a unique spiritual, social, and political platform based on equality, fraternal love, goodness, and virtue.   

Guru Nanak's words are registered in the form of 974 poetic hymns in the holy text of Sikhism, the Guru Granth Sahib, with some of the major prayers being the Japji Sahib, the Asa di Var and the Sidh-Ghost. It is part of Sikh religious belief that the spirit of Guru Nanak's sanctity, divinity and religious authority descended upon each of the nine subsequent Gurus when the Guruship was devolved on to them. 

Family and early life

Nanak was born on 15 April 1469 at Rāi Bhoi Kī Talvaṇḍī (present day Nankana Sahib, Punjab, Pakistan) near Lahore.  His parents were Kalyan Chand Das Bedi, popularly shortened to Mehta Kalu, and Mata Tripta.  His father was the local patwari (accountant) for crop revenue in the village of Talwandi.  His parents were both Hindus and belonged to the merchant caste. 

He had one sister, Bebe Nanaki, who was five years older than he was. In 1475 she married and moved to Sultanpur. Nanak was attached to his sister and followed her to Sultanpur to live with her and her husband. At the age of around 16 years, Nanak started working under Daulat Khan Lodi, employer of Nanaki's husband. This was a formative time for Nanak, as the Puratan (traditional) Janam Sakhi suggests, and  in his numerous allusions to governmental structure in his hymns, most likely gained at this time. 

According to Sikh traditions, the birth and early years of Guru Nanak's life were marked with many events that demonstrated that Nanak had been marked by divine grace. Commentaries on his life give details of his blossoming awareness from a young age. At the age of five, Nanak is said to have voiced interest in divine subjects. At age seven, his father enrolled him at the village school as was the custom. Notable lore recounts that as a child Nanak astonished his teacher by describing the implicit symbolism of the first letter of the alphabet, resembling the mathematical version of one, as denoting the unity or oneness of God.  Other childhood accounts refer to strange and miraculous events about Nanak, such as one witnessed by Rai Bular, in which the sleeping child's head was shaded from the harsh sunlight, in one account, by the stationary shadow of a tree  or, in another, by a venomous cobra. 

On 24 September 1487 Nanak married Mata Sulakkhani, daughter of  Mūl Chand and Chando Rāṇī, in the town of Batala. The couple had two sons, Sri Chand (8 September 1494 – 13 January 1629)  and Lakhmi Chand (12 February 1497 – 9 April 1555). Sri Chand received enlightenment from Guru Nanak's teachings and went on to become the founder of the Udasi sect.  

Biographies

The earliest biographical sources on Nanak's life recognised today are the Janamsākhīs (life accounts). Bhai Gurdas, a scribe of the Gurū Granth Sahib, also wrote about Nanak's life in his vārs. Although these too were compiled some time after Nanak's time, they are less detailed than the Janamsākhīs. The Janamsākhīs recount in minute detail the circumstances of the birth of the guru.

Gyan-ratanavali is attributed to Bhai Mani Singh who wrote it with the express intention of correcting heretical accounts of Guru Nanak. Bhai Mani Singh was a Sikh of Guru Gobind Singh who was approached by some Sikhs with a request that he should prepare an authentic account of Guru Nanak’s life. Bhai Mani Singh writes : Just as swimmers fix reeds in the river so that those who do not know the way may also cross, so I shall take Bhai Gurdas’s var as my basis and in accordance with it, and with the accounts that I have heard at the court of the tenth Master, I shall relate to you whatever commentary issues from my humble mind. At the end of the Janam-sakhi there is an epilogue in which it is stated that the completed work was taken to Guru Gobind Singh for his seal of approval. Guru Sahib duly signed it and commended it as a means of acquiring knowledge of Sikh belief.

One popular Janamsākhī was allegedly written by a close companion of the Guru, Bhai Bala.  However, the writing style and language employed have left scholars, such as Max Arthur Macauliffe, certain that they were composed after his death. According to the scholars, there are good reasons to doubt the claim that the author was a close companion of Guru Nanak and accompanied him on many of his travels.

Sikhism

Rai Bular, the local landlord and Nanak's sister Bibi Nanaki were the first people who recognised divine qualities in the boy. They encouraged and supported him to study and travel. Sikh tradition states that at around 1499, at the age of 30, he had a vision. After he failed to return from his ablutions, his clothes were found on the bank of a local stream called the Kali Bein. The townspeople assumed he had drowned in the river; Daulat Khan had the river dragged, but no body was found. Three days after disappearing, Nanak reappeared, staying silent. The next day, he spoke to pronounce:
"There is neither Hindu nor Mussulman (Muslim), but only man. So whose path shall I follow? I shall follow God's path. God is neither Hindu nor Mussulman and the path which I follow is God's."
Nanak said that he had been taken to God's court. There, he was offered a cup filled with amrita (nectar) and given the command,
"This is the cup of the adoration of God's name. Drink it. I am with you. I bless you and raise you up. Whoever remembers you will enjoy my favour. Go, rejoice of my name and teach others to do so. I have bestowed the gift of my name upon you. Let this be your calling."
From this point onwards, Nanak is described in accounts as a Guru (teacher), and Sikhism was born. 

The main basic belief of Sikhism is to spread the message of kindness, and peace, instead of revenge and spite. Sikhism is one of the most recently formed religions in the world. Sikhs follow the teaching of the Guru Granth Sahib, the holy book which comprises the teaching of six of the ten gurus of Sikhism and some saints and men of devotion.
The Guru Granth Sahib is worshipped as the Supreme Authority of Sikhism and is considered the eleventh and final guru of Sikhism.  As the first guru of Sikhism, Guru Nanak contributed a total of  974 hymns to the book. 

Teachings

Nanak’s teachings can be found in the Sikh scripture Guru Granth Sahib, as a collection of verses recorded in Gurmukhi.

There are two competing theories on Guru Nanak's teachings.Arvind-Pal Singh Mandair (2013), Sikhism: A Guide for the Perplexed, Bloomsbury Academic, ISBN 978-1441102317, pages 131-134 One, according to Cole and Sambhi, is based on hagiographical Janamsakhis,  and states that Nanak's teachings and Sikhism were a revelation from God, and not a social protest movement nor any attempt to reconcile Hinduism and Islam in the 15th century.  The other states, Nanak was a Guru. According to Singha, "Sikhism does not subscribe to the theory of incarnation or the concept of prophethood. But it has a pivotal concept of Guru. He is not an incarnation of God, not even a prophet. He is an illumined soul." 

The hagiographical Janamsakhis were not written by Nanak, but by later followers without regard for historical accuracy, and contain numerous legends and myths created to show respect for Nanak.  The term revelation, clarify Cole and Sambhi, in Sikhism is not limited to the teachings of Nanak, they include all Sikh Gurus, as well as the words of past, present and future men and women, who possess divine knowledge intuitively through meditation. The Sikh revelations include the words of non-Sikh bhagats, some who lived and died before the birth of Nanak, and whose teachings are part of the Sikh scriptures.  The Adi Granth and successive Sikh Gurus repeatedly emphasized, states Mandair, that Sikhism is "not about hearing voices from God, but it is about changing the nature of the human mind, and anyone can achieve direct experience and spiritual perfection at any time". Guru Nanak emphasised that all human beings can have direct access to God without rituals or priests.

The concept of man as elaborated by Guru Nanak, states Arvind-pal Singh Mandair, refines and negates the "monotheistic concept of self/God", and "monotheism becomes almost redundant in the movement and crossings of love". The goal of man, taught the Sikh Gurus, is to end all dualities of "self and other, I and not-I", attain the "attendant balance of separation-fusion, self-other, action-inaction, attachment-detachment, in the course of daily life". 

Guru Nanak, and other Sikh Gurus emphasized Bhakti, and taught that the spiritual life and secular householder life are intertwined.  In Sikh worldview, the everyday world is part of the Infinite Reality, increased spiritual awareness leads to increased and vibrant participation in the everyday world.  Guru Nanak, states Sonali Marwaha, described living an "active, creative, and practical life" of "truthfulness, fidelity, self-control and purity" as being higher than the metaphysical truth. 

Through popular tradition, Nanak’s teaching is understood to be practised in three ways:
* Va Chakkō: Sharing with others, helping those with less who are in need
* Kirat Karō: Earning/making a living honestly, without exploitation or fraud
* Naam Japna: Meditating on God's name to control the five weaknesses of the human personality.

Guru Nanak emphasized Nam Japna (or Naam Simran), that is repetition of God's name and attributes, as a means to feel God's presence.  

Influences

Nanak was raised in a Hindu family and belonged to the Bhakti Sant tradition.  [http://www.britannica.com/topic/Sikhism Sikhism], Encyclopedia Britannica (2014), Quote: "In its earliest stage Sikhism was clearly a movement within the Hindu tradition; Nanak was raised a Hindu and eventually belonged to the Sant tradition of northern India," Scholars state that in its origins, Guru Nanak and Sikhism were influenced by the nirguni (formless God) tradition of Bhakti movement in medieval India. However, Sikhism was not simply an extension of the Bhakti movement.   Sikhism, for instance, disagreed with some views of Bhakti saints Kabir and Ravidas. 

The roots of the Sikh tradition are, states Louis Fenech, perhaps in the Sant-tradition of India whose ideology grew to become the Bhakti tradition. Furthermore, adds Fenech, "Indic mythology permeates the Sikh sacred canon, the Guru Granth Sahib and the secondary canon, the Dasam Granth and adds delicate nuance and substance to the sacred symbolic universe of the Sikhs of today and of their past ancestors". 

Journeys (Udasis)

Guru Nanak travelled extensively during his lifetime. Some modern accounts state that he visited Tibet, most of South Asia and Arabia starting in 1496, at age 27, when he left his family for a thirty year period.   These claims include Guru Nanak visiting the Mount Sumeru of Indian mythology, as well as Mecca, Baghdad, Achal Batala and Multan, in places he debated religious ideas with competing groups.  These stories became widely popular in the 19th and 20th century, and exist in many versions.

The hagiographic details is a subject of dispute, with modern scholarship questioning the details and authenticity of many claims. For example, Callewaert and Snell state that early Sikh texts do not contain these stories, and after these travel stories first appear in hagiographic accounts of Guru Nanak centuries after his death, they continue to become more sophisticated over time, with the late phase Puratan version describing four missionary journeys (udasis), which however differs from the Miharban version. Some of the stories about Guru Nanak's extensive travels first appear in the 19th-century versions of janam-sakhi in the Puratan version. Further, stories about Guru Nanak's travel to Baghdad is absent from even the early 19th-century Puratan version. These embellishments and insertion of new stories, according to Callewaert and Snell, closely parallel claims of miracles by Islamic pirs found in Sufi tazkiras of the same era, and these legends may have been written in a competition. 

Another source of dispute has been the Baghdad stone inscription in a Turkish script, which some interpret saying Baba Nanak Fakir was there in 1511-1512, other interpret it stating 1521-1522 (and that he lived in the Middle East for 11 years away from his family), while others particularly Western scholars stating that the stone inscription is from the 19th century and the stone is not a reliable evidence that Guru Nanak visited Baghdad in early 16th century.  Further, beyond the stone, no evidence or mention of Guru Nanak's journey in the Middle East has been found in any other Middle Eastern textual or epigraphical records. Claims have been asserted of additional inscriptions, but no one has been able to locate and verify them.  The Baghdad inscription remains the basis of writing by Indian scholars that Guru Nanak journeyed in the Middle East, with some claiming he visited Jerusalem, Mecca, Vatican, Azerbaijan and Sudan. 

Novel claims about his travels, as well as claims such as Guru Nanak's body vanishing after his death, are also found in later versions and these are similar to the miracle stories in Sufi literature about their pirs. Other direct and indirect borrowings in the Sikh janam-sakhis relating to legends around Guru Nanak's journeys are from Hindu epics and Puranas and Buddhist Jataka stories.  

Succession

Nanak appointed Bhai Lehna as the successor Guru, renaming him as Guru Angad, meaning "one’s very own" or "part of you". Shortly after proclaiming Bhai Lehna as his successor, Guru Nanak died on 22 September 1539 in Kartarpur, at the age of 70. The 16th century begins with the Julian year 1501 and ends with either the Julian or the Gregorian year 1600 (depending on the reckoning used; the Gregorian calendar introduced a lapse of 10 days in October 1582). 

It is regarded by historians as the century in which the rise of the West occurred.
During the 16th century, Spain and Portugal explored the world's seas and opened world-wide oceanic trade routes. Large parts of the New World became Spanish and Portuguese colonies, and while the Portuguese became the masters of Asia's and Africa's Indian Ocean trade, the Spanish opened trade across the Pacific Ocean, linking the Americas with Asia.

This era of colonialism established mercantilism as the leading school of economic thought, where the economic system was viewed as a zero-sum game in which any gain by one party required a loss by another.   The mercantilist doctrine encouraged the many intra-European wars of the period and arguably fueled European expansion and imperialism throughout the world until the 19th century or early 20th century.

In Europe, the Protestant Reformation gave a major blow to the authority of the papacy and the Roman Catholic Church. European politics became dominated by religious conflicts, with the groundwork for the epochal Thirty Years' War being laid towards the end of the century. In Italy, Luca Pacioli published the first work ever on accounting and Galileo Galilei made the first thermometer. In United Kingdom, the Italian Alberico Gentili wrote the first book on public international law and divided secularism from canon law and Roman Catholic theology.

In the Middle East, the Ottoman Empire continued to expand, with the Sultan taking the title of Caliph, while dealing with a resurgent Persia. Iran and Iraq were caught by major popularity of the once-obscure Shiite sect of Islam under the rule of the Safavid dynasty of warrior-mystics, providing grounds for a Persia independent of the majority-Sunni Muslim world.

China evacuated the coastal areas, because of Japanese piracy. Japan was suffering a severe civil war at the time.

Mughal Emperor Akbar extended the power of the Mughal Empire to cover most of the South Asian sub continent. His rule significantly influenced arts, and culture in the region.

Copernicus proposed the heliocentric universe, which was met with strong resistance, and Tycho Brahe refuted the theory of celestial spheres through observational measurement of the 1572 appearance of a Milky Way supernova. These events directly challenged the long-held notion of an immutable universe supported by Ptolemy and Aristotle, and led to major revolutions in astronomy and science.

Events

Undated

* Polybius' "The Histories" translated into Italian, English, German and French. 
* Mississippian culture disappears.
* Medallion rug, variant Star Ushak style, Anatolia (modern Turkey), is made. It is now kept at The Saint Louis Art Museum.

1500s

* 1500: Charles V, Holy Roman Emperor and King of Spain was born.
* 1500: Guru Nanak the beginning and spreading of the 5th largest Religion in the World Sikhism.
* 1500: Spanish navigator Vicente Yáñez Pinzón encounters Brazil but is prevented from claiming it by the Treaty of Tordesillas.
* 1500: Portuguese navigator Pedro Álvares Cabral claims Brazil for Portugal.
* 1500: The Ottoman fleet of Kemal Reis defeats the Venetians at the Second Battle of Lepanto.
* 1501: Michelangelo returns to his native Florence to begin work on the statue David.
* 1501: Safavid dynasty reunified Iran and ruled over it until 1736. Safavids adopt a Shia branch of Islam. 
* 1502: First reported African slaves in The New World
* 1503: Foundation of the Sultanate of Sennar by Amara Dunqas, in what is modern Sudan
* 1503: Spain defeats France at the Battle of Cerignola. Considered to be the first battle in history won by gunpowder small arms.
* 1503: Leonardo da Vinci begins painting the Mona Lisa and completes it three years later.
* 1503: Nostradamus was born on either December 14, or December 21.
* 1504: A period of drought, with famine in all of Spain.
* 1504: Death of Isabella I of Castile, Joanna of Castille became the Queen.
* 1505: Zhengde Emperor ascended the throne of Ming Dynasty.
* 1505: King Sultan Trenggono built the first Moslem kingdom in Java, called Demak, in Indonesia . Many other small kingdoms were established in other islands to fight against Portuguese. Each kingdom introduced local language as a way of communication and unity.
* 1506: Leonardo da Vinci completes the Mona Lisa.
* 1506: King Afonso I of Kongo wins the battle of Mbanza Kongo, resulting in Catholicism becoming Kongo's state religion.
* 1506: At least two thousand converted Jews are massacred in a Lisbon riot, Portugal.
* 1506: Christopher Columbus dies in Valladolid, Spain.
* 1506: Poland is invaded by Tatars from the Crimean Khanate.
* 1507: The first recorded epidemic of smallpox in the New World on the island of Hispaniola. It devastates the native Taíno population. 
* 1507: Afonso de Albuquerque conquered Hormuz and Muscat, among other bases in the Persian Gulf, taking control of the region at the entrance of the Gulf.
* 1508–1512: Michelangelo paints the Sistine Chapel ceiling.
* 1509: The Battle of Diu marks the beginning of Portuguese dominance of the Spice trade and the Indian Ocean.
* 1509:  The Portuguese king sends Diogo Lopes de Sequeira to find Malacca, the eastern terminus of Asian trade. After initially receiving Sequeira, Sultan Mahmud Syah captures and/or kills several of his men and attempts an assault on the four Portuguese ships, which escape.  The Javanese fleet is also destroyed in Malacca.

1510s

* 1509–10: The 'great plague' in various parts of Tudor England.
* 1511: Afonso de Albuquerque of Portugal conquers Malacca, the capital of the Sultanate of Malacca in present-day Malaysia.
* 1512: Copernicus writes Commentariolus, and proclaims the sun the center of the solar system.
* 1512: The southern part (historical core) of the Kingdom of Navarre is invaded by Castile and Aragon.
* 1512: The first Portuguese exploratory expedition was sent eastward from Malacca (in present-day Malaysia) to search for the 'Spice Islands' (Maluku) led by Francisco Serrão. Serrao is shipwrecked but struggles on to Hitu (northern Ambon) and wins the favour of the local rulers. 
* 1513: Machiavelli writes The Prince, a treatise about political philosophy
* 1513: The Portuguese mariner Jorge Álvares lands at Macau, China, during the Ming Dynasty.
* 1513: Henry VIII defeats the French at the Battle of the Spurs.
* 1513: The Battle of Flodden Field in which invading Scots are defeated by Henry VIII's forces.
* 1513: Sultan Selim I ("The Grim") orders the massacre of Shia Muslims in Anatolia (present-day Turkey).
* 1513: Vasco Núñez de Balboa, in service of Spain arrives at the Pacific Ocean (which he called Mar del Sur) across the Isthmus of Panama. He was the first European to do so.
* 1514: The Battle of Orsha halts Muscovy's expansion into Eastern Europe.
* 1514: Dózsa rebellion (peasant revolt) in Hungary.
* 1514: The Battle of Chaldiran, the Ottoman Empire gains decisive victory against Safavid dynasty.
* 1515: The Ottoman Empire wrests Eastern Anatolia from the Safavids after the Battle of Chaldiran.
* 1516–1517: The Ottomans defeat the Mamluks and gain control of Egypt, Arabia, and the Levant.
* 1517: The Sweating sickness epidemic in Tudor England. 
* 1517: The Protestant Reformation begins when Martin Luther posts his 95 Theses in Saxony.
* 1518: Mir Chakar Khan Rind leaves Baluchistan and settled in Punjab.
* 1518: Leo Africanus, also known as al-Hasan ibn Muhammad al-Wazzan al-Fasi, Arabic:حسن ابن محمد الوزان الفاسي), an Andalusian Berber diplomat who is best known for his book Descrittione dell’Africa (Description of Africa) describing the geography of North Africa, is captured by Spanish pirates; he will be taken to Rome and presented to Pope Leo X.
* 1518: The Dancing Plague of 1518 begins in Strasbourg, lasting for about one month.
* 1519: Leonardo da Vinci dies of natural causes on May 2.
*1519: Wang Yangming, the Chinese philosopher and governor of Jiangxi province, describes his intent to use the firepower of the fo-lang-ji, a breech-loading Portuguese culverin, in order to suppress the rebellion of Prince Zhu Chen-hao.
* 1519: Barbary pirates led by Hayreddin Barbarossa a Turk appointed to ruling position in Algiers by the Ottoman Empire, raid Provence and Toulon in southern France.
* 1519: Charles I of Spain becomes Emperor of Holy Roman Empire as Charles V, Holy Roman Emperor (ruled until 1556).
* 1519–1522: Spanish expedition commanded by Magellan and Elcano first to circle Earth
* 1519–1521: Hernán Cortés leads the Spanish conquest of Mexico.

1520s

* 1520–1566: The reign of Suleiman the Magnificent marks the zenith of the Ottoman Empire.
* 1520: The first European diplomatic mission to Ethiopia, sent by the Portuguese, arrives at Massawa 9 April, and reaches the imperial encampment of Emperor Dawit II in Shewa 9 October.
* 1520: The Yousafzais defeat Dilazaks at the battle of Katlang to found the Yousafzai dynasty in Pakhtunkhwa in modern-day Pakistan and Afghanistan.
* 1520: The Portuguese established a trading post in the village of Lamakera on the eastern side of Solor (in present-day Indonesia) as a transit harbour between Maluku and Malacca.
* 1520: Sultan Ali Mughayat Shah of Aceh begins an expansionist campaign capturing Daya on the west Sumatran coast (in present-day Indonesia), and the pepper and gold producing lands on the east coast.
* 1521: Belgrade (in present-day Serbia) is captured by the Ottoman Empire.
* 1521: After building fortifications at Tuen Mun, the Portuguese attempt to invade Ming Dynasty China, but are expelled by Chinese naval forces.
* 1521: Philippines encountered by Ferdinand Magellan. He was later killed in battle in central Philippines in the same year.
* 1521: Jiajing Emperor ascended the throne of Ming Dynasty, China.
* 1521: November, Ferdinand Magellan's expedition reaches Maluku (in present-day Indonesia) and after trade with Ternate returns to Europe with a load of cloves.
* 1521: Pati Unus led invasion of Malacca (in present-day Malaysia) against the Portuguese occupation. Pati Unus was killed in this battle, and was succeeded by his brother, king Trenggana. 
* 1522: Rhodes falls to the Ottoman Turks of Suleiman the Magnificent. 
* 1522: The Portuguese ally themselves with the rulers of Ternate (in present-day Indonesia) and begin construction of a fort.
* 1522: August, Luso Sundanese Treaty signed between Portugal and Sunda Kingdom granted Portuguese permit to build fortress in Sunda Kelapa
* 1523: Sweden gains independence from the Kalmar Union.
* 1523: The cacao bean was introduced to Spain by Hernán Cortés
* 1524–1525: German Peasants' War in the Holy Roman Empire.
* 1524 – Giovanni da Verrazzano is the first European to explore the Atlantic coast of North America between South Carolina and Newfoundland.
* 1524 - Ismail I, the founder of Safavid dynasty, dies and Tahmasp I becomes king.
* 1525: Spain and Germany defeat France at the Battle of Pavia, Francis I of France is captured.
* 1526: The Ottomans defeat the Kingdom of Hungary at the Battle of Mohács.
* 1526: Mughal Empire, founded by Babur, rules India until 1857.
* 1527: Sack of Rome, which is considered the end of the Italian Renaissance.

* 1527: Protestant Reformation begins in Sweden.
* 1527: The last ruler of Majapahit falls from power. This state (located in present-day Indonesia) was finally extinguished at the hands of the Demak. A large number of courtiers, artisans, priests, and members of the royalty moved east to the island of Bali; however, the power and the seat of government transferred to Demak under the leadership of Pangeran, later Sultan Fatah.
* 1527: June 22, The Javanese Prince Fatahillah of the Cirebon Sultanate successfully defeated the Portuguese armed forces at the site of the Sunda Kelapa Harbor. The city was then renamed Jayakarta, meaning "a glorious victory." This eventful day came to be acknowledged as Jakarta's Founding Anniversary, and Fatahillah Park was named after the heroic prince.
* 1529: The Austrians defeat the Ottoman Empire at the Siege of Vienna.
* 1529: Treaty of Zaragoza defined the antimeridian of Tordesillas attributing the Moluccas to Portugal and Philippines to Spain.
* 1529: Imam Ahmad Gragn defeats the Ethiopian Emperor Dawit II in the Battle of Shimbra Kure, the opening clash of the Ethiopian–Adal War

1530s

* 1531–32: The Church of England breaks away from the Roman Catholic Church and recognizes King Henry VIII as the head of the Church.
* 1531: The Inca Civil War is fought between the two brothers, Atahualpa and Huáscar.
* 1532: Francisco Pizarro leads the Spanish conquest of the Inca Empire.
* 1533: Anne Boleyn becomes Queen of England.
* 1533: Elizabeth Tudor is born.
* 1534: Jacques Cartier claims Quebec for France.
* 1534: The Ottomans capture Baghdad.
* 1534: Affair of the Placards – Francis becomes more active in repression of French Protestants.
* 1535: The Münster Rebellion, an attempt of radical, millennialist, Anabaptists to establish a theocracy ends in bloodshed.
* 1535: The Portuguese in Ternate depose Sultan Tabariji (or Tabarija) and send him to Portuguese Goa where he converts to Christianity and bequeaths his Portuguese godfather Jordao de Freitas the island of Ambon. 
* 1536: Katherine of Aragon dies in Kimbolton Castle, in England.
* 1536:  In England, Anne Boleyn is beheaded for adultery and treason.
* 1536:   Establishment of the Inquisition in Portugal
* 1536:   Foundation of Buenos Aires (in present-day Argentina) by Pedro de Mendoza
* 1537: Portuguese establishes Recife in Pernambuco, north-east of Brazil.
* 1537:   William Tyndale's partial translation of the Bible into English is published, which would eventually be incorporated into the King James Bible.
* 1538: Gonzalo Jiménez de Quesada founds Bogotá.
* 1538: Spanish–Venetian fleet is defeated by the Ottoman Turks at the Battle of Preveza.
* 1539: Hernando de Soto explores inland North America.

1540s

*1540: Sher Shah Suri founds Suri dynasty in South Asia, an ethnic Pashtun (Pathan) of the house of Sur, who supplanted the Mughal dynasty as rulers of North India during the reign of the relatively ineffectual second Mughal emperor Humayun. Sher Shah decisively defeats Central Asian invader Humayun in the Battle of Bilgram (May 17, 1540).
*1541: Pedro de Valdivia founds Santiago de Chile.
*1541: An Algerian military campaign by Charles V of Spain (Habsburg) is unsuccessful.
*1541: Amazon River is encountered and explored by Francisco de Orellana.
*1541: Capture of Buda and the absorption of the major part of Hungary by the Ottoman Empire.
*1541: Sahib I Giray of Crimea invades Russia.
*1542: War resumes between Francis I of France and Emperor Charles V. This time Henry VIII is allied with the Emperor, while James V of Scotland and Sultan Suleiman I are allied with the French.
*1542: Spanish explorer Ruy López de Villalobos named the island of Samar and Leyte Las Islas Filipinas honoring Philip II of Spain and became the official name of the archipelago.
*1543: Ethiopian/Portuguese troops decisively defeat the Adal-Ottoman Muslim army at the Battle of Wayna Daga; Imam Ahmad Gragn killed.
* 1543: Copernicus publishes his theory that the Earth and the other planets revolve around the Sun

*1543: The Nanban trade period begins after Portuguese traders make contact with Japan.
*1544: The French defeat an Imperial–Spanish army at the Battle of Ceresole.
*1544: Battle of the Shirts in Scotland. The Frasers and Macdonalds of Clan Ranald fight over a disputed chiefship; reportedly, 5 Frasers and 8 Macdonalds survive.
*1545: Songhai forces sack the Malian capital of Niani
*1545: The Council of Trent meets for the first time in Trent (in northern Italy).
*1546: Michelangelo Buonarroti is made chief architect of St. Peter's Basilica.
*1546: Francis Xavier works among the peoples of Ambon, Ternate and Morotai (Moro) laying the foundations for a permanent mission. (to 1547)
*1547: Henry VIII dies in the Palace of Whitehall on 28 January at the age of 55.
*1547: Edward VI becomes King of England and Ireland on 28 January and is crowned on 20 February at the age of 9.
*1547: Emperor Charles V decisively dismantles the Schmalkaldic League at the Battle of Mühlberg.
*1547: Grand Prince Ivan the Terrible is crowned tsar of (All)Russia, thenceforth becoming the first Russian tsar.
*1548: Battle of Uedahara: Firearms are used for the first time on the battlefield in Japan, and Takeda Shingen is defeated by Murakami Yoshikiyo.
* 1548 Askia Daoud, who reigned from 1548 to 1583, establishes public libraries in Timbuktu (in present-day Mali). 
*1548: The Ming Dynasty government of China issues a decree banning all foreign trade and closes down all seaports along the coast; these Hai jin laws came during the Wokou wars with Japanese pirates.
*1549: Tomé de Souza establishes Salvador in Bahia, north-east of Brazil.
*1549: Arya Penangsang with the support of his teacher, Sunan Kudus, avenged the death of Raden Kikin by sending an envoy named Rangkud to kill Sunan Prawoto by Keris Kyai Satan Kober (in present-day Indonesia).

1550s

* 1550: The architect Mimar Sinan builds the Süleymaniye Mosque in Istanbul.
* 1550: Mongols led by Altan Khan invade China and besiege Beijing.
* 1550–1551: Valladolid debate concerning the human rights of the Indigenous people of the Americas
* 1551: Fifth outbreak of sweating sickness in England. John Caius of Shrewsbury writes the first full contemporary account of the symptoms of the disease.
* 1551: North African pirates enslave the entire population of the Maltese island Gozo, between 5,000 and 6,000, sending them to Libya.
* 1552: Russia conquers the Khanate of Kazan in central Asia.
* 1553: Mary Tudor becomes the first queen regnant of England and restores the Church of England under Papal authority.
* 1553: Portuguese found a settlement at Macau.
* 1554: Portuguese missionaries José de Anchieta and Manuel da Nóbrega establishes São Paulo, southeast Brazil. 
* 1554: Princess Elizabeth is imprisoned in the Tower of London upon the orders of Mary I for suspicion of being involved in the Wyatt rebellion.
* 1555: The Muscovy Company is the first major English joint stock trading company.
* 1556: Publication in Venice of Delle Navigiationi et Viaggi (terzo volume) by Giovanni Battista Ramusio, secretary of Council of Ten, with plan La Terra de Hochelaga, an illustration of the Hochelaga. 
* 1556: The Shaanxi earthquake in China is history's deadliest known earthquake during the Ming dynasty.
* 1556: Georgius Agricola, the "Father of Mineralogy", publishes his De re metallica.
* 1556: Akbar the Great defeats the Sultan of Bengal at the Second battle of Panipat
* 1556: Russia conquers the Astrakhan Khanate.
* 1556–1605: During his reign, Akbar expands the Mughal Empire in a series of conquests (in the Indian subcontinent).
* 1556: Mir Chakar Khan Rind captured Delhi with Emperor Humayun.
* 1556: Pomponio Algerio, radical theologian, is executed by boiling in oil as part of the Roman inquisition.
* 1557: Habsburg Spain declares bankruptcy. Philip II of Spain  had to declare four state bankruptcies in 1557, 1560, 1575 and 1596.
* 1557: The Portuguese settle in Macau (on the western side of the Pearl River Delta across from present-day Hong Kong).
* 1557: The Ottomans capture Massawa, all but isolating Ethiopia from the rest of the world.
* 1558 Elizabeth Tudor becomes Queen Elizabeth I at age 25.
* 1558–1603: The Elizabethan era is considered the height of the English Renaissance.
* 1558–1583: Livonian War between Poland, Grand Principality of Lithuania, Sweden, Denmark and Russia.
* 1558: After 200 years, the Kingdom of England loses Calais to France.
* 1559: With the Peace of Cateau Cambrésis, the Italian Wars conclude.
* 1559: Sultan Khairun of Ternate (in present-day Indonesia) protests the Portuguese's Christianisation activities in his lands. Hostilities between Ternate and the Portuguese.

1560s

* 1560: Ottoman navy defeats the Spanish fleet at the Battle of Djerba.
* 1560: Elizabeth Bathory is born in Nyirbator, Hungary.
* 1560: By winning the Battle of Okehazama, Oda Nobunaga becomes one of the pre-eminent warlords of Japan
* 1561: Sir Francis Bacon is born in London.
* 1561: Guido de Bres draws up the Belgic Confession of Protestant faith.
* 1562: Mughal leader Akbar reconciles the Muslim and Hindu factions by marrying into the powerful Rajput Hindu caste.
* 1562–98: French Wars of Religion between Catholics and Huguenots.
* 1562: Massacre of Wassy and Battle of Dreux in the French Wars of Religion.
* 1562: Portuguese Dominican priests build a palm-trunk fortress which Javanese Muslims burned down the following year. The fort was rebuilt from more durable materials and the Dominicans commenced the Christianisation of the local population.
* 1563: Plague outbreak claimed 80,000 people in Elizabethan England. In London alone, over 20,000 people died of the disease.
* 1564: Galileo Galilei born on February 15
* 1564: William Shakespeare baptized 26 April
* 1565: Battle of Talikota fought between the Hindu kingdom of Vijayanagar and the Deccan sultanates.
* 1565: Mir Chakar Khan Rind died age of 97.
* 1565: Estácio de Sá establishes Rio de Janeiro in Brazil.
* 1565: The Hospitallers, a Crusading Order, defeat the Ottoman Empire at the Siege of Malta (1565).
* 1565: Miguel López de Legazpi establishes in Cebu the first Spanish settlement in the Philippines starting a period of Spanish colonization that would last over three hundred years.
* 1565: Spanish navigator Andres de Urdaneta discovers the maritime route from Asia to the Americas across the Pacific Ocean, also known as the tornaviaje.
* 1566 Suleiman the Magnificent, ruler of the Ottoman Empire, dies on September 7.
* 1566–1648: Eighty Years' War between Spain and the Netherlands.
* 1567: After 45 years' reign, Jiajing Emperor died in the Forbidden City, Longqing Emperor ascended the throne of Ming Dynasty.
* 1567: Mary, Queen of Scots, is imprisoned by Elizabeth I.
* 1568: The Transylvanian Diet, under the patronage of the prince John Sigismund Zápolya, the former King of Hungary, inspired by the teachings of Ferenc Dávid, the founder of the Unitarian Church of Transylvania, promulgates the Edict of Torda, the first law of Freedom of religion and of conscience in the World.
* 1568–1571: Morisco Revolt in Spain.
* 1568–1600: The Azuchi-Momoyama period in Japan.
* 1568: Hadiwijaya sent his adopted son and son in-law Sutawijaya, who would later become the first ruler of the Mataram dynasty of Indonesia, to kill Aryo Penangsang.
* 1569: Rising of the North in England.
* 1569: The Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth is created with the Union of Lublin which lasts until 1795.
* 1569: Peace treaty signed by Sultan Khairun of Ternate and Governor Lopez De Mesquita of Portuguese.

1570s

* 1570: Ivan the Terrible, tsar of Russia, orders the massacre of inhabitants of Novgorod.
* 1570: Pope Pius V issues Regnans in Excelsis, a papal bull excommunicating all who obeyed Elizabeth I and calling on all Roman Catholics to rebel against her. 
* 1570: Sultan Hairun of Ternate (in present-day Indonesia) is killed by the Portuguese. The reign of Sultan Baabullah.
* 1571: Pope Pius V completes the Holy League as a united front against the Ottoman Turks.
* 1571: The Spanish-led Holy League navy destroys the Ottoman Empire navy at the Battle of Lepanto.
* 1571: Crimean Tatars attack and sack Moscow, burning everything but the Kremlin.
* 1571: American Indians kill Spanish missionaries in what would later be Jamestown, Virginia.
* 1571: Spanish conquistador Miguel López de Legazpi establishes Manila, Philippines as the capital of the Spanish East Indies. 
* 1572: Brielle is taken from Habsburg Spain by Protestant Watergeuzen in the Capture of Brielle, in the Eighty Years' War.
* 1572: Spanish conquistadores apprehend the last Inca leader Tupak Amaru at Vilcabamba, Peru, and execute him in Cuzco.
* 1572: Catherine de' Medici instigates the St. Bartholomew's Day massacre which takes the lives of Protestant leader Gaspard de Coligny and thousands of Huguenots. The violence spreads from Paris to other cities and the countryside.
* 1572:  First edition of the epic The Lusiads of Luís Vaz de Camões, three years after the author returned from the East. 
* 1572: The 9 years old Taizi, Zhu Yijun ascended the throne of Ming Dynasty, known as Wanli Emperor.
* 1573: After heavy losses on both sides the Siege of Haarlem ends in a Spanish victory.
* 1574: in the Eighty Years' War the capital of Zeeland, Middelburg declares for the Protestants.
* 1574: After a siege of 4 months the Siege of Leiden ends in a comprehensive Dutch rebel victory.
* 1575: Oda Nobunaga finally captures Nagashima fortress.
* 1575: Following a five-year war, the Ternateans under Sultan Baabullah defeated the Portuguese.
* 1576: Tahmasp I, Safavid king, died.
* 1576: Sack of Antwerp by badly paid Spanish soldiers.
* 1577–80: Francis Drake circles the world.
* 1577: Ki Ageng Pemanahan built his palace in Pasargede or Kotagede.
* 1578: King Sebastian of Portugal is killed at the Battle of Alcazarquivir.
* 1578:The Portuguese establish a fort on Tidore but the main centre for Portuguese activities in Maluku becomes Ambon.
* 1579: The Union of Utrecht unifies the northern Netherlands, a foundation for the later Dutch Republic.
* 1579: The Union of Arras unifies the southern Netherlands, a foundation for the later states of the Spanish Netherlands, the Austrian Netherlands and Belgium
* 1579: The British navigator Sir Francis Drake passes through Maluku and transit in Ternate on his circumnavigation of the world. The Portuguese establish a fort on Tidore but the main centre for Portuguese activities in Maluku becomes Ambon. 

1580s

* 1580: Drake's royal reception after his attacks on Spanish possessions influences Philip II of Spain to build up the Spanish Armada. English ships in Spanish harbours are impounded.
* 1580: Spain unifies with Portugal under Philip II. The struggle for the throne of Portugal ends the Portuguese Empire. The Spanish and Portuguese crowns are united for 60 years, i.e. until 1640.
* 1582: Oda Nobunaga is assassinated by his general, Akechi Mitsuhide.
* 1582: Pope Gregory XIII issues the Gregorian calendar. The last day of the Julian calendar was Thursday, 4 October 1582 and this was followed by the first day of the Gregorian calendar, Friday, 15 October 1582
* 1582: Yermak Timofeyevich conquers the Siberia Khanate on behalf of the Stroganovs.
* 1583: Death of Sultan Baabullah of Ternate.
* 1584–85: After the Siege of Antwerp, many of its merchants flee to Amsterdam. According to Luc-Normand Tellier, "At its peak, between 1510 and 1557, Antwerp concentrated about 40% of the world trade...It is estimated that the port of Antwerp was earning the Spanish crown seven times more revenues than the Americas." 
* 1584 : Ki Ageng Pemanahan died. Sultan Pajang raised Sutawijaya, son of Ki Ageng Pemanahan as the new ruler in Mataram, titled "Loring Ngabehi Market" (because his home in the north of the market).
* 1585 : Colony at Roanoke founded in North America
* 1585–1604: The Anglo-Spanish War is fought on both sides of the Atlantic.
* 1587 - The reign of Abbas I marks the zenith of the Safavid dynasty.
* 1587 : troops that would invade Pajang Sultanate of Mataram storm ravaged the eruption of Mount Merapi. Sutawijaya and his men survived.
* 1588 : Mataram into the kingdom with Sutawijaya as Sultan, titled "Senapati Ingalaga Sayidin Panatagama" means the warlord and cleric Manager Religious Life.
* 1588: England repulses the Spanish Armada.
* 1589: Spain repulses the English Armada.

1590s

* 1590: Siege of Odawara  the Go-Hojo clan surrendered to Toyotomi Hideyoshi, and Japan was unified (1590).
* 1591: Gazi Giray leads a huge Tatar expedition against Moscow.
* 1591: In Mali, Moroccan forces of the Sultan Ahmad al-Mansur led by Judar Pasha defeat the Songhai Empire at the Battle of Tondibi.
* 1592–1593: John Stow reports 10,675 plague deaths in London, a city of approximately 200,000 people.
* 1592–1598: Korea, with the help of Ming Dynasty China, repels two Japanese invasions.
* 1593–1606: The Long War between the Habsburg monarchy and the Ottoman Turks.
* 1595: First Dutch expedition to Indonesia sets sail for the East Indies with two hundred and forty-nine men and sixty-four cannons led by Cornelis de Houtman. 
* 1596: Birth of René Descartes.
* 1596: June, de Houtman’s expedition reaches Banten the main pepper port of West Java where they clash with both the Portuguese and Indonesians. It then sails east along the north coast of Java losing twelve crew to a Javanese attack at Sidayu and killing a local ruler in Madura.
* 1597: de Houtman’s expedition returns to the Netherlands with enough spices to make a considerable profit.
* 1598: The Edict of Nantes ends the French Wars of Religion.
* 1598: Abbas I moved Safavids capital from Qazvin to Isfahan in 1598.
* 1598–1613: Russia descends into anarchy during the Time of Troubles.
* 1598: The Portuguese require an armada of 90 ships to put down a Solorese uprising. (to 1599)
* 1598: More Dutch fleets leave for Indonesia and most are profitable.
* 1599: The Mali Empire is defeated at the Battle of Jenné
* 1599: The van Neck expedition returns to Europe. The expedition makes a 400 per cent profit. (to 1600)
* 1599: March, Leaving Europe the previous year, a fleet of eight ships under Jacob van Neck was the first Dutch fleet to reach the ‘Spice Islands’ of Maluku.
* 1600: Giordano Bruno is burned at the stake for heresy in Rome.
* 1600: Battle of Sekigahara in Japan. End of the Warring States period and beginning of the Edo period.
* 1600: The Portuguese win a major naval battle in the bay of Ambon.  Later in the year, the Dutch join forces with the local Hituese in an anti-Portuguese alliance, in return for which the Dutch would have the sole right to purchase spices from Hitu.
* 1600: Elizabeth I grants a charter to the British East India Company beginning the English advance in Asia.

Significant people

*Manuel I, King of Portugal. Ruler of the first global empire. He also used the motto Manuel Rex Orbis est, meaning Manuel King of the Globe(1469-1521).
*Abbas I, the strongest king of Safavid dynasty (1571-1629).
*Ahmad ibn Ibrihim al-Ghazi, Somali Imam and general (1507 – 1543).
*Akbar the Great, third Mughal emperor, who led the Mughal Empire to its zenith (1542 – 1605)
*Alberico Gentili, the "Father of international law", considered to be one of the greatest lawyers of all time (1552 – 1608)
*Andrea Amati, (c. 1520 – c. 1578) was the earliest maker of violins whose instruments still survive today.
*Anne Boleyn, second wife of King Henry VIII. She was the first Queen of England to be executed, and the mother of Queen Elizabeth I. (c. 1501 - 1536)
*John Calvin, theologian, and reformer. Founder of Calvinism (1509 – 1564).
*Charles V, Holy Roman Emperor and the first to reign as King of Spain. Involved in almost constant conflict with France and the Ottoman Empire while promoting the Spanish colonization of the Americas (1500 – 1558).
*Cuauhtémoc, the last Tlatoani of the Aztec, led the native resistance against the Conquistadores (1502 – 1525).
*Edward VI of England, notable for further differentiating Anglicanism from the practices of the Roman Catholic Church (1537 – 1553).
*Elizabeth I of England, Queen of England (1533 – 1603). 
*Francis I of France, considered the first Renaissance monarch of his Kingdom (1494 – 1547).
*Lady Jane Grey, Queen regnant of England and Ireland. Notably deposed by popular revolt (1537 – 1554).
*Gustav I of Sweden, restored Swedish sovereignty and introduced Protestantism in Sweden (1496–1560).
*György Dózsa, leader of the peasants' revolt in Hungary (1470 – 1514)
*Henry IV of France and Navarre, ended the French Wars of Religion and reunited the kingdom under his command (1553 – 1610).
*Henry VIII of England, founder of Anglicanism (1491 – 1547).
*Toyotomi Hideyoshi, daimyo of the Sengoku period of Japanese civil war. Second ruler of the Azuchi-Momoyama period (1536 – 1598).
*Ignatius of Loyola, founder of the Society of Jesus (1491 – 1556).
*Ismail I (1487-1524) reunified Persia, established Safavid dynasty and declared Shia Islam as the state religion.
*Ivan IV of Russia, first Russian tsar (1533–1584).
*St. John of the Cross, Spanish mystic (1542 – 1591).
*John Knox (c. 1510 – 1572) was a Scottish clergyman and leader of the Protestant Reformation who is considered the founder of the Presbyterian denomination.
*Martin Luther, German religious reformer (1483 – 1546).
*Michael the Brave, ruler of Walachia, national symbol of Romanians for uniting the three provinces under his rule in 1600 (1558 – 1601)
*Michel Nostradamus, French astrologer and doctor, author of Les Propheties, a book of world prophecies (1503 – 1566).
*Mary I of England. Attempted to counter the Protestant Reformation in her domains. Nicknamed Bloody Mary for her Religious persecution (1516 – 1558).
*Mary, Queen of Scots, First female head of the House of Stuart (1542 – 1587).
*Manus O'Donnell, King of Tír Chonaill in Ulster. Irish Renaissance prince (died 1564).
*Oda Nobunaga, daimyo of the Sengoku period of Japanese civil war. First ruler of the Azuchi-Momoyama period (1534 – 1582).
*Johan van Oldenbarnevelt, Dutch politician and Grand Pensionary, played a pivotal role in organizing the Dutch revolt against Spain (1542 – 1619).
*Paracelsus (11 November or 17 December 1493 in Einsiedeln, Switzerland – 24 September 1541 in Salzburg, Austria), Renaissance physician, botanist, alchemist, astrologer, and general occultist.
*Philip II of Spain. It was first said of his empire that "the sun did not set". Strong defender of Catholicism and self-proclaimed leader of Counter-Reformation (1527 – 1598).
*Giovanni Battista Ramusio (20 July 1485 – 10 July 1557), diplomat and secretary of council of Ten of Venice Italy, author of Delle Navigationi et Viaggi. Third volume (terzo volume) containing plan "La Terra de Hochelaga" showing the village of Hochelaga.
*Matteo Ricci, Italian Jesuit who traveled to Macau, China in 1582, and died in Beijing, (1552 – 1610)
*Ruy López de Segura (c. 1530 – c. 1580), Spanish bishop and chess player.
*Sigismund III Vasa, the first and only monarch of the Polish–Swedish union; his long reign in the Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth coincided with the apex of the Commonwealth's prestige, power and economic influence (1566 – 1632).
*Suleiman the Magnificent, Sultan of the Ottoman Empire. Conqueror and legal reformer (1494 – 1566).
*St. Teresa of Ávila, Spanish mystic (1515 - 1582).
*Andreas Vesalius, anatomist, physician, and author of one of the most influential books on human anatomy, De humani corporis fabrica (On the Workings of the Human Body).(1514–1564)
*Wanli Emperor, Emperor of China during the Ming Dynasty, aided Korea in the Imjin War, (1563 – 1620)
*William the Silent, William I of Orange-Nassau, main leader of the Dutch revolt against the Spanish (1533–1584).
*Yi Sun-sin, Korean admiral, respected as one of the greatest admirals in world history. (1545 – 1598).
*Zygmunt I the Old, King of Poland, established a conscription army and the bureaucracy needed to finance it (1467 – 1548).

Exploration

*Vasco Núñez de Balboa (c. 1475 – 1519) – Spanish explorer.  The first European to cross the Isthmus of Panama and view the Pacific ocean from American shores.
*Gaspar (1450–1501) and Miguel Corte-Real (1448–1502). Portuguese explorers. Among the first modern explorers (with João Fernandes Lavrador) in the coasts of the far Northeast of Northern America, including the Labrador peninsula. They also rediscovered Greenland (1499-1501/1502). 
*Pedro Álvares Cabral (c. 1467 – 1520), Portuguese navigator. The first European to arrive in Brazil, on 22 April 1500. Led the first expedition that united Europe, Africa, America, and Asia.
*Afonso de Albuquerque (c. 1467 – 1520), Portuguese explorer and statesman. Earlier geostrategist and explorer of the Indian ocean. Leading builder of the Portuguese empire in Asia and the Far East.
*António de Abreu (c. 1480 – c. 1514) and Francisco Serrão (died 1521) - Portuguese explorers. Led the first European fleet into the edges of the Pacific ocean, in 1511-1512, through Indonesia, reaching the Banda Sea and the Moluccas.
*João de Lisboa (c.1470–1525) - Portuguese explorer, pilot, cosmographer and cartographer. Explored the Río de La Plata and the San Matias Gulf.
*Jacques Cartier (1491–1557) – French explorer. Discovered Canada.
*Francisco Vásquez de Coronado (c. 1510 – 1554) – Spanish explorer.  Searched for the Seven Cities of Gold and discovered the Grand Canyon in the process.
*Hernán Cortés, Spanish Conquistador (1485 – 1547).
*Álvar Núñez Cabeza de Vaca(c. 1488/1490 – c. 1557/1558)., Spanish explorer. Crossed North America through the US south, southwest, and Mexico 
*Andrés de Urdaneta (c. 1498 – 1568) was a Spanish Basque navigator, friar and circumnavigator. In 1565 he discovered the maritime path from Asia to the Americas across the Pacific.
*Sir Francis Drake (c. 1540 – 1596) – English explorer.  The first English captain to sail around the world and survive.
*Juan Sebastián Elcano (1476–1526) – Spanish Basque explorer. Completed the first circumnavigation of the globe in a single expedition after its captain, Magellan, was killed.
*Vasco da Gama (c. 1469 – 1524), Portuguese navigator. Discovered the ocean route to Asia around the Cape of Good Hope. Explored and crossed the Atlantic and Indian oceans.
*Juan Ponce de León (c. 1460 – 1521) – Spanish explorer.  He explored Florida while attempting to locate a Fountain of Youth.
*Ferdinand Magellan, Portuguese navigator who sailed around the world (1480 – 1521). Explored and crossed the Pacific ocean.
* Francisco de Orellana (1511–1546) – Spanish explorer in 1541–42 sails the length of the Amazon River.
*Francisco Pizarro (c. 1475 – 1541) – Spanish explorer and conquistador.  Conquered the Inca Empire.
*Hernando de Soto (c. 1496 – 1542) – Spanish explorer.  Explored Florida, mainly northwest Florida, and discovered the Mississippi River.
*Fernão Mendes Pinto (c. 1509 – 8 July 1583) - Portuguese. Explored Asia and the Indies. Reached Japan in 1542-43.
*Yermak Timofeyevich (c. 1532 – 1585) - Russian cossack ataman. Conquered the Khanate of Siberia.
*Luis Váez de Torres (c. 1565 – 1607) Spanish or Portuguese navigator. Explored the Pacific for the Spanish crown and crossed the strait that bears his name in northern Australia.
*Giovanni da Verrazzano (c. 1485 – 1528) – Italian explorer for France. Explored the northeast coast of America, from about present-day South Carolina to Newfoundland.

Visual artists

* Michelangelo Buonarroti, Italian painter and sculptor (1475 – 1564).
* Bronzino (1503 – 1572), Italian painter
* Pieter Bruegel the Elder, (c. 1525 – September 9, 1569)
* Jan Brueghel the Elder (1568 – 1625)
* Caravaggio, Italian artist (1571 – 1610)
* Lucas Cranach the Elder (1472–1553)
* Lucas Cranach the Younger (1515–1586)
* Albrecht Dürer, German artist, (1471 – 1528)
* Rosso Fiorentino (1494 – 1540), Italian painter
* Domenico Fontana (1543 – 1607), Italian architect
* El Greco (1541 – 1614) was a painter, sculptor, and architect of the Spanish Renaissance
* Hans Holbein the Younger, German artist, (1497 – 1543)
* Andrea Palladio (1508 – 1580), Italian architect 
* Parmigianino (1503– 1540), Italian painter
* Pontormo (1494 – 1557), Italian painter.
* Raphael, Italian painter, (1483 – 1520)
* Andrea del Sarto (1486–1530), Italian painter.
* Titian, Italian painter, (c. 1485 – 1576)
* Giorgio Vasari (1511 – 1574), Italian painter, architect, writer and historian.
* Paolo Veronese, Italian painter, (1528 – April 19, 1588)
* Leonardo da Vinci famous artist and inventor and scientist (1452 – 1519).
* Qiu Ying, Chinese painter who belonged to the Wu School and used gongbi brush style (1494 – 1552)
* Tintoretto (Italian painter, real name Jacopo Comin; September 29, 1518 – May 31, 1594)
* Mimar Sinan (1489–1588) was a civil engineer and chief architect of the Ottoman Empire
* Juan de Herrera, Spanish architect (1530-1597)

Musicians and composers

* Andrea Amati (c. 1520 – c. 1578)
* Felice Anerio (c. 1560 – 1614)
* Adriano Banchieri (c. 1557 – 1634)
* Giovanni Bassano (c. 1558 – 1617)
* William Brade (1560–1630)
* John Bull (c. 1562 – 1628)
* Antonio de Cabezón (c. 1510 – 1566)
* Giulio Caccini (c. 1545 – 1618)
* Dario Castello (c. 1560 – c. 1640)
* Emilio de' Cavalieri (c. 1550 – March 11, 1602)
* Jacques Champion (before 1555 – 1642)
* Manuel Rodrigues Coelho (c. 1555 – c. 1635)
* John Dowland (1563–1626)
* Giles Farnaby (1565–1640)
* Alfonso Fontanelli (1557–1622)
* Hans Leo Hassler (1562–1612)
* Sebastian Aguilera de Heredia (1565–1627)
* Giovanni Gabrieli (1557–1612)
* Joseph Lupo
* Peter Lupo (c. 1535 – 1608)
* Thomas Lupo (c. 1571 – c. 1627)
* Ascanio Mayone (1565–1627)
* Cristóbal de Morales (c. 1500 – 1553)
* Giovanni Bernardino Nanino (c. 1560 – 1623)
* Johannes Nucius (c. 1556 – 1620)
* Claudio Merulo (1533–1604)
* Giovanni Pierluigi da Palestrina, (1525–1594)
* Jacopo Peri (1561–1633)
* Peter Philips (c. 1560 – 1628)
* Hieronymus Praetorius (1560–1629)
* Cipriano de Rore (1516–1565) 
* Paolo Quagliati (c. 1555 – 1628)
* Francisco de Salinas (1513–1590)
* Jan Pieterszoon Sweelinck (1562–1621)
* Jean Titelouze (1563–1633)
* Lodovico Grossi da Viadana (1564–1627)
* Tomás Luis de Victoria (1548–1611)

Literature

* Juan Martínez de Jáuregui y Aguilar, Spanish poet and painter, (1483 – 1541)
* Mateo Alemán, Spanish novelist and writer (1547 – 1615?)
* Ludovico Ariosto, Italian poet, (1474 – 1533) 
* Bâkî, Ottoman Turkish poet. He was known as "Sultan of poets" (1526 – 1600)
* Luís de Camões, Portuguese poet (c. 1524 –1580).
* Baldassare Castiglione, Italian author (1478 – 1529)
* Miguel de Cervantes, Spanish author (1547 – 1616)
* John Donne, English metaphysical poet (1572 – 1631)
* Alonso de Ercilla, Spanish poet (1533-1594)
* Luis de Góngora, Spanish poet (1561 - 1627)
* Thomas Heywood, English dramatist (c, early 1570s – 1641)
* Malaye Jaziri, Kurdish poet and mystic (1570 – 1640)
* Ben Jonson, English dramatist (c.1572 – 1637)
* Jan Kochanowski, Polish poet (1530 – 1584)
* Fuzûlî, Azerbaijani poet (1483 – 1556)
* Thomas Kyd, English dramatist (1558 – 1594)
* Luis de León, Spanish poet (1527 - 1591)
* Thomas Lodge, English dramatist (1558 – 1625)
* Niccolò Machiavelli, Italian author (1469 – 1527)
* Christopher Marlowe, English poet and dramatist (1564 – 1593).
* Michel de Montaigne, French essayist (1533 – 1592).
*Thomas More, English politician and author (1478 – 1535).
* Miyamoto Musashi, famous warrior in Japan, author of The Book of Five Rings, a treaty on strategy and martial combat. (1584 – 1645)
* François Rabelais, French author (c. 1493 – 1553).
* Mikołaj Rej, Polish writer (1505 – 1569).
* Pierre de Ronsard, French poet. Called the 'Prince of poets' of his generation. (1524 – 1585).
* William Shakespeare, English playwright (1564 – 1616).
* Edmund Spenser, English poet (c. 1552 – 1599)
* Gian Giorgio Trissino, Italian humanist, poet, dramatist, diplomat, and grammarian (1478 – 1550)
* Garcilaso de la Vega, Spanish poet (1501 - 1536)
* Lope de Vega, Spanish dramatist (1562 – 1635).
* Benedetto Varchi, Italian humanist, a historian and poet (1502/1503 - 1565)
* Sharaf Khan Bidlisi, Kurdish politician, historian and poet (1543-1603)

Science and philosophy

*Mulla Sadra, (1571-1641), the single most important and influential philosopher in the Muslim world in the last four hundred years who introduced Transcendent Theosophy or al-hikmah al-muta'liyah
*Sir Francis Bacon, (1561 – 1626) was an English philosopher, statesman, and essayist.
*Pietro Bembo (1470 – 1547), Italian scholar, poet, literary theorist and a cardinal.
*Tycho Brahe, (1546 – 1601), Danish astronomer.
*Giordano Bruno, Italian philosopher and astronomer/astrologer (1548 – 1600).
*Tommaso Campanella (1568 – 1639), Italian philosopher, theologian, astrologer, and poet.
*Demetrios Chalkokondyles,  (1423 – 1511), Greek humanist, scholar.
*Nicolaus Copernicus, (1473 – 1543) astronomer, developed the heliocentric (Sun-centered) theory using scientific methods.
*Desiderius Erasmus Roterodamus (sometimes known as Desiderius Erasmus of Rotterdam) (October 27, 1466/1469, Rotterdam– July 12, 1536 Basel was a Dutch Renaissance humanist and Catholic Christian theologian.
*Galileo Galilei (1564Drake (1978, p.1). The date of Galileo's birth is given according to the Julian calendar, which was then in force throughout the whole of Christendom. In 1582 it was replaced in Italy and several other Catholic countries with the Gregorian calendar. Unless otherwise indicated, dates in this article are given according to the Gregorian calendar. – 1642) was a Tuscan (Italian) physicist, mathematician, astronomer, and philosopher who played a major role in the scientific revolution.
*Konrad Gessner (1516 – 1565) was a Swiss naturalist, bibliographer, Botanist, His three-volume Historiae animalium (1551–1558) is considered the beginning of modern zoology
*William Gilbert, also known as Gilberd, (1544 – 1603) was an English physician and a natural philosopher.
*Francesco Guicciardini, (1483 – 1540) Italian historian and statesman. 
*Johannes Kepler, (1571 - 1630), German mathematician, astronomer, and philosopher who played a major role in the scientific revolution.
*Niccolò Machiavelli (1469 – 1527), Italian historian, politician, diplomat, philosopher, humanist, and writer.
*Gerardus Mercator (5 March 1512 – 2 December 1594), famous cartographer.
*Michael Servetus (1509 or 1511 – 27 October 1553), Spanish theologian, physician, cartographer, and Renaissance humanist.
*Francisco Suarez (1548 – 1617), Spanish philosopher and theologian.
*Andreas Vesalius (Brussels, December 31, 1514 – Zakynthos, October 15, 1564) was an anatomist, physician, and author of one of the most influential books on human anatomy, De humani corporis fabrica (On the Workings of the Human Body). Vesalius is often referred to as the founder of modern human anatomy.
*Edward Wright, (baptized 1561; died 1615), English mathematician and cartographer who determined the mathematical basis of the Mercator projection and produced the first maps in England according to this method

Inventions, discoveries, introductions

Related article: List of 16th century inventions.
* The Columbian Exchange introduces many plants, animals and diseases to the Old and New Worlds.
* Introduction of the spinning wheel revolutionizes textile production in Europe.
* The letter J is introduced into the English alphabet.
* 1500: First portable watch is created by Peter Henlein of Germany.
* 1513: Juan Ponce de León sights Florida and Vasco Núñez de Balboa sights the eastern edge of the Pacific Ocean.
* 1519–22: Ferdinand Magellan and Juan Sebastián Elcano lead the first circumnavigation of the World.
* 1519–1540: In America, Hernando de Soto expeditions map the Gulf of Mexico coastline and bays.
* 1525: Modern square root symbol (√)
* 1540: Francisco Vásquez de Coronado sights the Grand Canyon.
* 1541–42: Francisco de Orellana sails the length of the Amazon River.
* 1543: Copernicus publishes his theory that the Earth and the other planets revolve around the Sun
* 1545: Theory of complex numbers is first developed by Gerolamo Cardamo of Italy.
* 1558: Camera obscura is first used in Europe by Giambattista della Porta of Italy.
* 1559–1562: Spanish settlements in Alabama/Florida and Georgia confirm dangers of hurricanes and local native warring tribes.
* 1565: Spanish settlers outside New Spain (Mexico) colonize Florida's coastline at St. Augustine.
* 1565: Invention of the graphite pencil (in a wooden holder) by Conrad Gesner. Modernized in 1812.
* 1568: Gerardus Mercator creates the first Mercator projection map.
* 1572: Supernova SN 1572 is observed by Tycho Brahe in the Milky Way.
* 1582: Gregorian calendar is introduced in Europe by Pope Gregory XIII and adopted by catholic countries.
* c. 1583: Galileo Galilei of Pisa, Italy identifies the constant swing of a pendulum, leading to development of reliable timekeepers.
* 1585: earliest known reference to the 'sailing carriage' in China.
* 1589: William Lee invents the stocking frame.
* 1591: First flush toilet is introduced by Sir John Harrington of England, the design published under the title 'The Metamorphosis of Ajax'.
* 1593: Galileo Galilei invents a thermometer.
* 1596: William Barents discovers Spitsbergen.
* 1597: Opera in Florence by Jacopo Peri.
Sikh faith Sikhi Sikhsim Sikh Brahmins Sikhism Other Observations Sikh religion Sikhism The Sikh Religion The Ten Gurus Sikism Baptized Sikh Sikkhi Ten gurus Sikha Dharma
sikh brahmins ten gurus sikhism other observations baptized sikh sikhi sikhism sikkhi sikh faith sikh religion sikhsim sikha dharma sikism
sikhism
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Sikhism
 which religion was founded by Gourin and Buguin in the Ssank center. 

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