Hinduism,
quick survey
Hinduism,
quick survey
Krishna revealing his universal form to Arjuna
Hinduism:
Hinduism is a set of beliefs and traditions which have evolved over a
vast period of time. There is no central organization like a Church to control
its movements or progress.
The word Hindu is derived from the river Sindhu, or Indus,
primarily a geographical term that referred to India or to a region of India
(near the Sindhu). Hinduism entered the English language in the early
19th century to describe the beliefs and practices of those residents of India
who practice the ancient believes of India and did not practice Islam or
Christianity.
A common manner
of describing Hinduism among its adherents is as a way of life, as
"Dharma." It defies dogma and thus seeks to instead align the human body, mind,
and soul in harmony with nature.
Sanātana Dharma: Hindus themselves prefer to use the Sanskrit term
sanātana dharma for their religious tradition,
roughly perennial believe, eternal way of life
of the Hindus.
- Sanatana
means "very ancient", "eternal", "perennial",
"immemorial"...
it emphasizes the unbroken continuity of the Hindu tradition in contrast to
other dharmas.
- Dharma can be translated by
"tradition", "religion", "moral
order", "duty", "right action", "good way of life", "right believes and good
deeds"...
Dharma
is an all-important concept for Hindus. In addition to tradition and moral
order, it also signifies the path of knowledge and correct action.
The origins of Hinduism
can be traced to the Indus Valley civilization sometime between 4000 and 1200
BCE. It evolved from the Vedic religion of ancient India.
Certain beliefs and
practices that can clearly be identified as Hindu—such as the worship of sacred
trees and the mother goddess—go back to a culture known as Harappan, which
flourished around 3000 bc.
Other Hindu practices are even older.
God and gods:
Brahman: Though believed by many to be a polytheistic religion, the
basis of Hinduism is the belief in the unity of everything. This totality is
called Brahman, the Absolute, the Supreme Being, the Ultimate Reality, the
Divine... the purpose of life is to realize that we are part of God and by doing
so we can leave this plane of existance and rejoin with God. For Hindu
pantheism, the world is part of God; for Western religions, the world is a
creature of God; for Paganism, God is part of the world.
For many Hindus this God is not a person but a force, an energy, a
principle...
The different gods and goddesses of Hinduism represent various
functions or aspects or attributes of this One Supreme Divinity, they are not
separate gods and they are valid to worship, according to Hinduism. For example,
the goddesses are really the female aspects of God, because the Divine contains
both masculine and feminine attributes... all in all, it is
often stated that Hinduism claims 330 million gods and goddesses!
The gods of Hinduism do not exist as a person and they never existed,
they are the result of divinization of novels or epics heroes, like the Greek or
Roman gods... it is like making a god out of
Hamlet or Sherlock Holmes who never
existed, only in the mind of the writer... and this is recognized by most Hindu
scholars:
- So are he 33 gods of the Vedas pantheon mythology, including the
Cosmic Trinity of Agni (god of fire), Vayu, (god of air), and
Surya (god of energy or life).
- So are the Post-Vedas gods from the novels or epics Ramayana and
Mahabharata: Rama is a hero of the Ramayana who never existed, only in
the mind of the writer. Khrishna is the hero of the 18th chapter of the
Mahabharata who never existed as a person, and does not exist now as a person...
and so are the animal or planet deities... of course, a monkey or an elephant
are not God!
- So are the gods of the Puranas, including the Hindu Trinity, of
Brahma (the creator), Vishnu (the savior and protector
who incarnates 10 times), and Shiva (the
destroyer of evil, and the creator of new life)... they never existed as persons
and do not exist now, nor their wives and lovers also adored as gods, but who
also never existed, only in the mind of the writers.
For Jews, Christians and Muslims to adore other than God is an idolatry... they
are "idols", or "devils" says Psalm 96:5... do not adore idols... do not trust
your life to devils, it is a prostitution against the real God, against the one
who made the sun, and the atoms, and our hands and hearts, says the Bible
(Leviticus 20).
Reincarnation:
Fundamental to Hinduism is the belief in a
cosmic principle of ultimate reality called Brahman, and its identity with the
individual soul, or atman. All creatures go through a cycle of rebirth, or
samsara, reincarnations, which can only be broken by spiritual self-realization,
the enlightenment, after which liberation, or moksha, is attained.
This enlightenment can only be achieved by the hard Yoga.
One's progress towards enlightenment is measured by his karma. This is
the accumulation of all one's good and bad deeds and this determines the
person's next reincarnation. Selfless acts and thoughts as well as devotion to
God help one to be reborn at a higher level. Bad acts and thoughts will cause
one to be born at a lower level, as a person or even an animal.
Reincarnation is not a thrill for a Hindu, nor even a good happening
to expect, it is the worse imaginable "curse"!... the greatest fear for a Hindu
is not to die, but to reincarnate... all the ascetic sacrifices, all the yoga
and puja practices, is to avoid reincarnation... to live nude, without food of a
Jainist is to avoid the next reincarnation... the great sacrifices of a Buddhist
in a monastery for life, is to avoid reincarnation...
And the final aim of life, the ultimate dream of a Hindu is "moska", the
final union of his soul with Brahman, with no more reincarnations, the
liberation of the curse of reincarnation...
And the main problem of Hinduism, what makes me cry, is that after so many
sacrifices, this final union with Brahman is like a drop of water falling into
the ocean, there is no more identity of any individual, there is no more
"person", it is the nihilism, to become nothingness, unrecognizable by anybody,
not even by himself, because there is no more "self", no more consciousness of
being... not heaven, not paradise... "nothingness", "to disappear as a person",
like a speck in the universe.
On top of it, Reincarnation is one of the main reasons for the infamous
"caste system" in India.
Hindu Ways of Salvation from Reincarnation:
Yoga
Why do New Agers practice yoga? Why are they so devoted to meditation? It
may come as some surprise that these practices are central to the Hindu search
for salvation!
Four primary ways of salvation in Hinduism, four possible paths for
enlightenment to moksha, or salvation:
1- Karma Yoga, the way of good works.
2- Jnana Yoga, the way of knowledge.
3- Bhakti Yoga, the way of devotion. This is the way most
favored by the common people of India; it satisfies the longing for a more
emotional and personal approach to religion.
In the way of devotion, the focus is one obtaining the mercy and help of a
god in finding release from the cycle of reincarnation. Some Hindus conceive of
ultimate salvation as absorption into the one divine reality, with all loss of
individual existence. Others conceive of it as heavenly existence in adoration
of the personal God.
4- Raja Yoga, the way of contemplation
or meditation: It is called the "royal road", and it is the one used by most
Hindu and Buddhist Cults... "meditation", or better, "contemplation", with the 8
steps of Raja Yoga.
Scriptures:
For Hinduism there is not revelation of God, of
the Absolute, in sharp contrast with Judaism, Christianity and Islam.
Hindu scripture, based on the insights of Hindu sages and seers, serves
primarily as a guidebook. But ultimately truth comes through direct
consciousness of the divine or the ultimate reality. In other religions this
ultimate reality is known as God. Hindus refer to it by many names, but the most
common name is Brahman.
Vedas: Though the various Hindu
traditions and sects each rely on their own set of scriptures, they all revere
the ancient Vedas, which were brought to India by Aryan invaders after 1200 BC.
The early portions of the Vedas describe a number of
deities who for the most part are personifications of natural phenomena, such as
storms and fire. Prayers and sacrifices were offered to these gods.
Upanishads: The later portions of the Vedas,
called the Upanishads, reflect a significant development in Hinduism's concept
of the divine. Many of the Upanishads, instead of speaking of a multitude of
gods, refer to an ultimate reality beyond our comprehension called Brahman.
Though Brahman is impersonal in nature, it is sometimes referred to in personal
terms by the name Isvara. They explored the search
for knowledge that would allow mankind to escape the cycle of reincarnation.
Puranas: The theology of the Puranas mainly centers round the
Trinity,--Brahma, Vishnu and Siva,--as also the incarnations of Vishnu and the
Saktis of the Trinity,--Lakshmi, Sarasvati and Durga,--and the two sons
of Siva.
Ramayana and Mahabharata: Major sources of classical mythology are
the Ramayana, with god Rama, and Mahabharata, which includes in
the 18th chapter the Bhagavad-Gita (Song of the Lord),
"the Gita", with the god Krishna, the most popular religious text of
Hinduism.
Caste System:
Hindus follow a strict caste system which determines the standing of
each person. It is associated with reincarnation.
According to Hindu teaching, there are four basic castes or social classes (and
thousands of sub-groups within the castes). Each has its own rules and
obligations pertaining to nearly every facet of life. At the top are the
Brahmins or priests. Second in rank are the Kshatriyas or warriors and rulers.
Third are the Vaisyas or merchants and farmers. Below these are the Shudras or
laboring class. Salvation is possible only for the top three castes, who are
called the "twice born." Outside the caste system are the untouchables or
outcastes. Though outlawed in India in the late 1940s, many in the countryside
are still considered outcastes.
The caste one is born into is the result of the
karma (deeds) from their previous life.
The doctrine of
Reincarnation is a major factor of this infamous "caste system", and the
Untouchable has no hope of bettering his lot, because his miserable destiny has
been predetermined by a former existence.
To do good to one of the lower classes, according to Reincarnation, would
only interfere with the divine cosmic law of karmic punishment.
If you are born an Untouchable,
no other class will even "touch" you; if you are born a shoemaker in India you
will die as a shoemaker, no other class will accept you, no hope of improving
your life... it is the greatest prejudice and discrimination system of the
history of humanity.
Branches, Traditions and Organization:
The major branches of Hinduism are
Vaishnavism and
Shaivism,
Shaktism,
and Smartism,
each of which includes many different traditions and sects.
In fact there are are thousands of branches or denominations, cults
and sects... Hinduism is a federation of religions, or a religious anarchy in
action... it is the jungle of religions and sects...
The
organization, varies in nature from region to region. There is no official
creed, no structural church, no world authority nor organization... they
have produce an enormous variety of religious systems, beliefs and practices...
in India religion permeates every aspect of the individual and social life, with
one of the most ritualistic systems of religion, though Hindu worship is
primarily at home, and their beautiful temples are not for weekly congregational
services; they may have 2 or 3 services a year. They are there to remind people
that the gods live and are to be served.
Pilgrimages and Festivals:
They are very important and as many
festivals as
gods!... Hinduism has been described as a religion of fasts, feasts and festivals. They
provide a reminder of religious values as well as occasions for great joy and celebration,
some of them attended by millions. Look at
Hindu
Festivals Calendar - Hinduism Art
Political Force:
In the 20th century Hinduism has blended with Indian nationalism to become a
potent political force.
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