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Chapter 5 Hinduism

Chapter 5 Hinduism. I. Hindu History. Unique in that there is no single founder or concrete date It is a religion of India It has grown for 4,000 years A. The Indus Valley Civilization: Harappans Reaches its height around 2300 BC Centrally Planned Cities

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Chapter 5 Hinduism

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  1. Chapter 5 Hinduism

  2. I. Hindu History • Unique in that there is no single founder or concrete date • It is a religion of India • It has grown for 4,000 years • A. The Indus Valley Civilization: Harappans • Reaches its height around 2300 BC • Centrally Planned Cities • Major cities of Harrapa and Mohenjo-Daro in modern-day Pakistan • Showed urban planning, grid system for streets • Oven-baked brick homes with wood roofs, some several stories high with at least one bathroom in every home, connected to a brick sewer • Collapsed around 1500 BC, • They disappeared, no one really knows why: floods, climate changes, or invaders

  3. B. Aryans • 1. Culture • Arrived through the Hindu Kush around 1500 BC • Settled along the Ganges Plain • War mongers • Cattle very valuable • Eventually became sacred • 2. Language and Traditions • Sanskrit • Sang hymns and epic poems • Priests developed a written form • Collected epics to form the Vedas • Aryans left no artifacts, only the Vedas • 1200-500 BC: Vedic Age

  4. B. Aryans cont. • 3. Social Structure • Rigid social system • Varnas: classes • a. Brahmans: Priests • b. Kshatriyas: warriors • c. Vaisyas: merchants, farmers, artisans • d. Sudras: unskilled workers • Pariahs: untouchables aren’t even on the caste system • Perform unclean jobs • Each varna has duties and lifestyles • Later divided further into subcategories: jati • Collectively: the Caste System • Very rigid, cannot change it

  5. C. Origins of Hindu India • 1. Concept of Duty • Each person has dharma: religious duty • 2. India’s Two Epics • Mahabharata w/ Bhagavad-Gita 100,000 verses • Outlines dharma • Ramayana • 24,000 verses • Struggle of good and evil

  6. D. Changes in Hinduism • Hinduism continued to evolve • Upanishads (religious writings by priests) • Jainism • Teachings of Mahavira • Buddhism • Teachings of Buddha • Emergence of Islam • 7-8th centuries • Still evolving today after European influences

  7. II. Hindu Beliefs • Extremely diverse religion • Difficult to identify any doctrines with universal acceptance among all denominations • Very open-minded religion • "Truth is one; sages call it by different names." • There are many paths to the top of the mountain

  8. A. Gods • Polytheistic, pantheistic, or perhaps even a monotheistic religion? • Hundreds of gods • Forces of nature • Priests: elaborate rituals and sacrifices • Three main gods • Vishnu the Preserver • Siva the Destroyer • Shakti the Mother Goddess • Brahma the Creator is often called “the One” • All other gods are other forms of Brahma

  9. A. Gods cont. • It is probably pantheistic • God is the universe and the universe is God • It has polytheistic elements • B. Universal Spirit • In every living thing • All souls apart of one eternal soul (atman: the self) • The self is identical to Brahma • Self denial and meditation (yoga) help one reunite with it • Done instead of worshiping a divine being

  10. C. Cycle of Rebirth • 1. Reincarnation (Samsara) • Karma: how one lives there life determines what they take into the next life • Good karma: reincarnated to a higher caste • Bad karma: to a lower caste • Karma creates desire for a good life • Ahisma: Nonviolence • Escape the cycle after having good karma as a Brahman priest • Reunited with Brahman Nerguna: moksha (release)

  11. D. Purpose of Life • 1. Dharma: fulfilling one's purpose or destiny • One's vocation or career • Often defined by class and family • Paying the five debts • 2. Artha: prosperity • Encouraged to make money within the bounds of dharma • 3. Kama: desire, sexuality, enjoyment • The Kama Sutra, a manual for erotic and other human pleasures (flower arranging) • 4. Moksha: enlightenment • Liberation from rebirth, enlightenment, Self-realization, or union with God • The highest purpose in life

  12. III. Hindu Practices • A. Three Paths (margas) • All are equally valid • Devotion to god or many gods • Bhaktimarga (the path of devotion) • Forms of rituals and scriptures • Many ignore this • Many seek Realization of the Self through intense meditation • Jnanamarga (the path of knowledge or philosophy) • Others focus on the fulfilling one’s social and moral duties • Karmamarga (the path of works and action)

  13. B. Other Practices • 1. Ayurveda • The system of healing that follows 5,000 years of Hindu traditions • Finding popularity in the west • 2. Hatha Yoga • The purpose is to locate and activate centers of energy to raise spiritual power • Improves the body and clears the mind • 3. Kundalini Yoga • Attempts to tap the dormant cosmic and psychic powers in the body (coiled like a snake) • Can result in the union of divine energy and an extreme sense of bliss, awareness, and peace • Emphasized in Tantric Hinduism

  14. B. Other Practices cont. • 4. Namaste: The Significance of a Yogic Greeting • A simple greeting straight from the heart • It recognizes the equality and sacredness of all • 5. Puja (Pooja) • Usually done after getting ready in the morning, but before eating • Relating to the domain of the divine • Looking at an image, lighting candles or incense, or offering flowers • 6. The Sadhu (Holy Man) • Those who leave their home for spiritual and physical disciplines • Many live as hermits or in monasteries

  15. IV. Hindu Sects • A. Vaishnavism • Vishnu is worshiped as the supreme god • Also the incarnations of Krishna or Rama • Vishnu is in everything and all things make up Vishnu • Even other gods • People have a personal relationship with Vishnu • Six Qualities of God: all knowledge, all power, supreme majesty, supreme strength, unlimited energy and total self-sufficiency • The largest denomination • They often mark their foreheads with a large U, Y, or T for Vishnu, and a red dot for Lakshmi (another female form of god)

  16. B. Shaivism • Worships Siva as the supreme god • In a similar manner of the Vaishnavists • Strong in southern India and among the Tamils of Sri Lanka • The oldest Hindu denomination

  17. C. Jainism • Mahavira emphasized ahisma • Developed in the 7th century AD • Jainism: extreme nonviolence • Sweep before they walk to not kill bugs • Won’t farm, plowing could kill • Not actually Hinduism, but similar in many aspects

  18. D. Others • 1. Shaktism • Worships the Hindu Divine Mother • Shakti or Devi • Similar to Shaivism, but emphasize the female aspects of god • 2. Smartism • Those who adhere to the Vedas and the Shastras (religious writings by scholars) • A newly coined term • 3. Six Philosophical Schools • Yoga • Purva Mimamsa (Mimamsa) • Uttara Mimamsa (Vedanta) • Nyaya • Vaisheshika • Samkhya

  19. V. Hindu Facts • A. Holidays • It is said Hindus have a celebration for every day of the year • That may be too low • Estimated to have over 1,000 festivals • 1. Holi • Festival of colors and spring (February-March) • Most attend a public bonfire, spray friends and family with colored powders and water, and generally go a bit wild in the streets. • 2. Mahashivaratri • Night sacred to Shiva (February-March) • A day of mediating, fasting, and singing of mantras • Legend states Siva had to stay up all night after drinking poison or to protect a hunter from a lion eating him • 3. Diwali • Festival of lights and Laksmi (September-October) • Five day celebration of New Year’s Eve • Lots of lights and gambling is encouraged

  20. B. Other Facts • Date founded : Earliest forms date to 1500 BC or earlier • Place founded: India • Founder: None • Adherents : 900 million • Size rank: Third largest in the world • Main location: India, also United Kingdom and United States • Major sects: Saivism, Vaisnavism, Saktism • Sacred texts: Vedas, Upanishads, Sutras, Bhagavad Gita • Original language: Sanskrit • Spiritual leader: Guru or sage • Place of worship: Temple or home shrine • Ultimate reality: Brahman • Human nature: In bondage to ignorance and illusion, but able to escape • Purpose of life: To attain liberation (moksa) from the cycle of reincarnation • How to live: Order life according to the dharma • Afterlife: If karma unresolved, soul is born into a new body; if karma resolved, attain moksa (liberation)

  21. B. Other Facts cont. • Cows are sacred • A source of food • A symbol of life • Must never be killed • Jainism influenced this development • Pilgrimages • Many journey to shrines • Millions travel to the Ganges to wash and bathe to purify themselves

  22. C. Hindu Symbols • 1. Aum (Om) • Greatest of the mantras • Three sounds a-u-m • Threefold symbolism • The three worlds - earth, atmosphere, and heaven • The three major Hindu gods - Brahma, Vishnu, and Siva • 2. Bindi • Symbolizes female energy and the third eye • Also shows marital status • Today it is more of a fashion accessory • 3. Linga • Phallic symbol that represents creative power and fertility

  23. C. Hindu Symbols cont. • 4. Lotus • Beauty and non-attachment • 5. Pratik • Symbol of the Ananda Marga ("path of bliss") • 6. Swastika • Sanskrit for all is well • A charm to bring good fortune

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