Hinduism

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Hinduism
History and Texts
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Hinduism was born out of several cultures around
the Indus River Valley in Pakistan and
northern India around 1500 BCE. Hindu comes
from the Sanskrit word sindhu, which means
river.
India and the Indus River
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There are 700 million Hindus in India (82 of
population) Hinduism is more than a religion.
It is A way of life (guide on how to live) A
philosophy (explains moral
obligations) A social system (caste)
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Hinduism has no founder no central
authority no church no one main book no fixed
creed It is tolerant of many other beliefs. Why
would this make it difficult for other religions
to take hold in India?
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Chief Ideas of Hinduism Reincarnation atman
(persons soul) never dies samsara -
reincarnation moksha - freedom from life/death
cycle Karma - actions in life determine next
rebirth Dharma - set rules to be followed to get
to next reincarnation.
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Practices Pilgrimages on foot to bath in Ganges
River. Wash hands and feet before
prayer. Cremation on day of death
(males in
white/females in red) Burning Ghats - site of
holy cremation All life is sacred. Vegetarians.
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Originally, all the Hindu religious texts were
written in Sanskrit. Sanskrit is considered a
perfect sacred language although it is not spoken
today.
Sanskrit Text
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Sanskrit is related to other Indo-European
languages such as Greek and Latin. Look at these
similarities to Romance languages father m
other Sanskrit French Spanish
pitr pere padre
matr mere madre
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As a religion, Hinduism produced many Sanskrit
texts. The four main groups are

• the Vedas
• the Upanishads
• two epics
• and the Sutras

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The Vedas
The Vedas are the earliest texts which exist in
Hinduism. There are four of them Rig, Sama,
Yajur, and Atharva. They are collectively
referred to as Sruti, which means that which is
heard. The oldest is the Rig Veda. Originally,
the Vedas were oral literature. All 1,028 hymns
of the Rig Veda were memorized by the keepers of
the sacred knowledge. The Rig Veda is the most
important, with the others having come later and
are based upon it.
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Veda translates from Sanskrit as knowledge or
wisdom. The Vedas are considered by Hindus to
be revealed literature, having originated with
the gods whose praise they sing.
What other religions can be considered revealed?
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The Vedas represent the spiritual experiences of
the Rishis or wise men. The Rishi is only a
medium or an agent that transmits to people the
spiritual experiences which he received. Lord
Brahma, the Creator, imparted divine knowledge
to the Rishis and thus into the Vedas.
Brahma and a Rishi
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The Vedas teach the belief of one supreme God,
Brahman. Brahmans attributes are
represented by the three personified
powers of creation,
preservation, and destruction, which
under the respective
names of Brahma, Vishnu, and Shiva,
form the triad of
principal Hindu
gods.
Brahma, Vishnu, and Shiva
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Brahmas four faces represent the sacred
knowledge in the four vedas. Vishnu comes to
earth to aid people. His most famous form is
Krishna. Lord Shiva is also referred to as a
goddess in Hinduism
Creation Preservation
Destruction
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As the curator of the Indian collection of the
Metropolitan Museum of Art has written "If one
had to select a single icon to represent the
extraordinarily rich and complex cultural
heritage of India, the Shiva Nataraj might well
be the most remunerative candidate. It is such a
brilliant iconographic invention that it comes as
close to being a summation of the genius of the
Indian people as any single icon can."
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What do you notice?
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What is the meaning of the several arms? What is
the deity holding? What could they
symbolize? What is Shiva doing? What does the
circle suggest? Who/what is he dancing on? Why?
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Brahman
What other religions are based on a triune God?
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The Upanishads The Upanishads were recorded by
different authors between 1000 and 600 BCE. In
Sanskrit, Upanishad means to sit nearby. This
refers to sitting near a teacher and learning
from him or her. The Upanishads are considered
the final stage of development of the Vedas. The
Upanishads often discuss a single, complicated
subject but do so by downplaying the importance
of the gods and focusing on the importance of
Brahman, the one true God.
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The Upanishads deal with questions of ultimate
reality, like Who am I really? It is believed
that people in deep meditation reach a state of
pure consciousness, called Atman. It is
further believed that Atman, pure
consciousness, is also Brahman.
Read about the UpanishadsPages 9-13 (Extra
Credit)
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The Upanishads also profess the belief in
samsara, the idea that the soul is reborn
countless times until it reaches liberation and
is born no more. Liberation happens when the
soul is unified with Brahman.
Samsara, or reincarnation
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Since the Upanishads do not promote the
importance of the Gods in the Vedas, they were
viewed as subversive and dangerous for a long
time. They were often read in secrecy and
shared only among people who felt that the subtle
nature of the texts could be appreciated.
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(Extra Credit) Read the Katha Upanishad. Be
sure to read the short introduction. When you
read the actual Upanishad, youll meet two
characters the boy, Nachiketa, and Death, called
Yama.
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Epics There are two great Hindu
epics

• the Mahabharata
• the Ramayana
• The Mahabharata is the worlds longest epic. It
  was written sometime between 200 BCE and 200 CE.
  It is still memorized and recited in villages
  across India.

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The introduction to the Mahabharata contains the
words "This is a holy textbook of morality, the
best textbook for practical life as well as a
textbook of redemption Whoever has heard this
story once will never find anything worth
listening to again What is not found here is
not to be found anywhere in the world."
Arjuna receives weapons for the battle
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The Mahabharata is the story of a
dispute between two branches of a
family, the Pandavas and the
Kauravas. Each want to rule the kingdom.
The story is meant to provide a guide for
living a righteous and correct life.
Arjuna in battle
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Sutras Sutras were some of the last sacred texts
to be produced through Hinduism. They are
commentaries that pertain to the rules of ritual,
law, custom, and behavior. Two of the more
famous sutras deal with

• yoga
• eroticism (sexual desire)

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In Hindu belief, sexual activity is a proper goal
of married couples. The Kama Sutra is a
commentary on this and other aspects of
eroticism. Furthermore, the Kama Sutra is a
metaphor for warfare and even a business guide
for courtesans.
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The previous Hindu texts all exemplify the
inseparability between religion and literature.
For Hindus, language is sacred. An example of
this is the Hindu prayer word Om. The
pronunciation of the word is a religious act.
Read about Om and then well try it!
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As you recall, Sanskrit
is considered a perfect
sacred language. When Sanskrit was
spoken and the sacred texts
recited, every syllable, every
accent, and every pause had to
be correct otherwise, when the
text
was recited, the sacred
power of the words would
be lost.
Sri Swamiji performs the Festival of Lights
ceremony
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To review

• Sanskrit was the language of these texts.
• The Vedas were the first texts, concerned with
  the gods and with ceremony.
• The Upanishads completed the Vedas but
  downplay the gods of the Vedas.
• Epics reinforced the values of the other
  sacred texts.
• The Sutras are the latest and some of the
  final Hindu religious texts.

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QUIZ
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• What river system did Hinduism begin in?
• What was the original and now extinct language
  of Hinduism?
• Describe how Hinduism is different from
  Christianity.
• What is the name of the earliest group of Hindu
  texts? What is the most important one?
• What are the chief ideas of Hinduism?
• What is the source of the wisdom in the Vedas?

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7. Who is the creator god that imparted wisdom
to the Rishis or wise men? 8. What are the
three persons of the one Hindu God? 9. What
texts are considered the final stage of
development of the Vedas? 10. What is Atman? 11.
Why were the Upanishads considered secret
and dangerous texts?
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12. What is the most famous and worlds longest
Hindu epic? 13. What is the basic story of that
epic? The Ramayana? 14. What is the term for the
Hindu commentaries on rituals, laws, and
behaviors? 15. What subjects do two of the more
famous commentaries deal with? 16. Why did
the speakers of the religious texts have
to say the words correctly?
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17. What sutra does this image refer to?
The End