Sacred text

Many religions and spiritual movements hold certain written texts (or series of spoken legends not traditionally written down) to be sacred. Often believing that their sacred texts (or scriptures) are wholly divine or partially inspired in origin, the faithful use titles like Word of God to denote the holy writings. Even non-believers often capitalise the names of sacred scriptures as a mark of respect or of tradition.

Although ancient civilizations have produced handmade texts for many millennia, the first printed scripture for wide distribution for the masses was The Diamond Sutra, a Buddhist scripture, printed in 868 AD.

Sacred texts for various religions and religious sects:

• Baha'i: The Kitab-i-Iqan, plus many other writings including ones from other faiths
• Buddhism: The Tipitaka and sutras
• Christianity: The Christian Bible
• Church of Christ, Scientist: The Christian Bible, Science and Health with Key to the Scriptures
• Confucianism: The Analects of Confucius
• Finnish mythology: Kalevala
• Hawaiian mythology: Kumulipo
• Hinduism: Shruti and Smriti
• Islam: The Koran
• Judaism: The Jewish Bible (Tanakh = Torah, Nevi'im, Ketuvim), the Talmud
• Mandaeanism: The Ginza Rba
• Mormonism: The Christian Bible, Book of Mormon, Pearl of Great Price, Doctrine and Covenants
• Maori mythology: The Wharewananga
• Neopaganism: The Charge of the Goddess
• Norse mythology: The Eddas
• Old Slavic religion: possibly The Book of Veles
• Rastafarianism - Holy Piby translation of the Christian Bible, Kebra Negast
• Scientology - various writings of L. Ron Hubbard
• Sikhism: The Guru Granth Sahib
• Taoism: The Tao-te-ching
• Welsh mythology: The Mabinogion
• Yoruba mythology: The itan
• Zoroastrianism: The Zend-Avesta
• Various New Age religions may regard any of the several texts as sacred:
  • A Course in Miracles (ACIM)
  • Conversations With God

Attitudes to sacred texts differ. Some religions make written texts widely freely available, while others hold that sacred secrets must remain hidden from all but the loyal and the initiate. Most religions promulgate policies defining the limits of the sacred texts and controlling or forbidding changes and additions. Translations of texts may receive official blessing, but an original sacred language often has de facto, absolute or exclusive paramouncy. Some religions make texts available gratis or in subsidised form; others require payment and the strict observance of copyright.

References to scriptures profit from standardisation: the Guru Granth Sahib always appears with standardised page numbering, the Abrahamic religions and their offshoots appear to favour chapter and verse pointers.