Hinduism

1. Hinduism The Worlds Third Largest Religion

2. Hinduism Review • Which is the symbol of Hinduism? • Who was the prophet of Hinduism? • Jesus, Buddha, Mohammed, Krishna • When was Hinduism formed? • 1963 AD, 3000 BC, 100000 BC, 1844 AD • How might we recognize a Hindi?

3. Principles of Hinduism • http://www.eaglespace.com/hindub.html • From: Hinduism Today, April 1993 • The universe exists in endless cycles of creation, preservation and destruction. There is no absolute end to the world. • There is but one true and absolute Self, Supreme Being. God is pure Love. • Man is free to choose his form of worship, for all paths lead ultimately to God. Sin is only of the mind; Soul is pure. • There is no intrinsic evil. All is good. All is God. • Virtuous conduct and light belief are the foundation of religious life. Liberation requires knowledge and personal attainment. • Doctrines tend to be subtle, complex and even paradoxical. Freedom to worship and to believe in a variety of ways is predominant. • The goals of enlightenment and liberation are to be found in this life, within man himself. • The path to saintliness is through self-discipline, purification, concentration, and contemplation. Value is placed on ascetic ideals, individual sadhana, and yoga. • Worship is individualistic, highly ritualistic and meditative, centering around the temple and home shrine all days of the week.

4. Nine Beliefs of Hinduism(http://www.himalayanacademy.com/basics/conversion/07beliefs.html) • Hindus believe in the divinity of the Vedas, the world's most ancient scripture, and venerate the Agamas as equally revealed. These primordial hymns are God's word and the bedrock of Sanatana Dharma, the eternal religion which has neither beginning nor end. • Hindus believe in a one, all-pervasive Supreme Being who is both immanent and transcendent, both Creator and Unmanifest Reality. • Hindus believe that the universe undergoes endless cycles of creation, preservation and dissolution. • Hindus believe in karma, the law of cause and effect by which each individual creates his own destiny by his thoughts, words and deeds. • Hindus believe that the soul reincarnates, evolving through many births until all karmas have been resolved, and moksha, spiritual knowledge and liberation from the cycle of rebirth, is attained. Not a single soul will be eternally deprived of this destiny. • Hindus believe that divine beings exist in unseen worlds and that temple worship, rituals, sacraments as well as personal devotionals create a communion with these devas and Gods. • Hindus believe that a spiritually awakened master, or satguru, is essential to know the Transcendent Absolute, as are personal discipline, good conduct, purification, pilgrimage, self-inquiry and meditation. • Hindus believe that all life is sacred, to be loved and revered, and therefore practice ahimsa, "noninjury." • Hindus believe that no particular religion teaches the only way to salvation above all others, but that all genuine religious paths are facets of God's Pure Love and Light, deserving tolerance and understanding.

5. Sacred Texts of the Religionhttp://www.sacred-texts.com/hin/ • There are four Vedas, the Rig Veda, Sama Veda, Yajur Veda and Atharva Veda. The Vedas are the primary texts of Hinduism. They also had a vast influence on Buddhism, Jainism, and Sikhism. The Rig Veda, the oldest of the four Vedas, was composed about 1500 B.C., and written down about 600 B.C. The Vedas contain hymns, incantations, and rituals from ancient India. Along with the Book of the Dead, the Enuma Elish, the I Ching, and the Avesta, they are among the most ancient religious texts still in existence. Besides their spiritual value, they also give a unique view of everyday life in India four thousand years ago. The Vedas are also the most ancient extensive texts in an Indo-European language, and as such are invaluable in the study of comparative linguistics. • The Upanishads, • The Laws of Manu, • The Dharma Sutras, • The Institutes of Vishnu • The Yoga Sutras of Patanjali • The Mahabharata and Ramayana • Longest poems in any language. • The Bhagavad Gita, usually considered part of the sixth book of the Mahabharata (dating from about 400 or 300 B.C.), is a central text of Hinduism, a philosphical dialog between the god Krishna and the warrior Arjuna. This is one of the most popular of all Hindu scriptures. The Gita discusses selflessness, duty, devotion, and meditation, integrating many different threads of Hindu philosophy.

6. Hindu Gods • Brahman • The creator • Arose out of the egg of the universe • Does not contain opposites. • Cut women from his own body • Created 3 other heads so that he could always watch her • Hindu Trinity (Trimurti) • Brahma • Vishnu • Preserver • Shiva • Destroyer

7. Virtues Review • What was the virtue that we studied last week? • Can you provide one example of how you used that virtue last week? • Can you define the virtue from last week?

8. Caring • “Pay Homage to God … and be good to your parents and relatives, the orphans and the needy and the neighbors who are your relatives and the neighbors who are your strangers and the friends by your side.” • Al-Qur’an, 4:36

9. What is Caring? • Giving love and attention to people and all things that matter to you.. • Pay attention to the person and and take an interest in what is happening to them. • Caring for an animal means taking care of it and watching over it. • Being careful with something means that you treat it gently and respectfully. • Caring about yourself means that you treat yourself with the respect and concern that you deserve as a child of God.

10. Why Practice Caring? • Caring makes the world a better place. • You take care of people and animals when they are hurt or sick not because it is your job but because it is the right thing to do. • Without caring we would do things for others only because we expected something in return. • When you don’t care about yourself others get the impression that you don’t matter very much. • They might begin to be careless with you.

11. How Do You Practice Caring? • With people. • How are you doing? • How has your day been? • How can I help you? • With pets or objects? • Handle things with control and gentleness. • With a job. • Do your job with enthusiasm and excellence. • With yourself. • Wear clean cloths. • Bath or shower. • Take time to eat, exercise, and rest.

12. Signs of Success • Treat yourself and others with care. • Let people know that what they say is important by looking them in the eyes, • Handle things carefully. • Be gentle or loving with anything or anyone placed in your care. • Treat your body with respect. • Work with enthusiasm and excellence.

13. You Might Need More Practice if You Find Yourself • Acting as in you don’t care or as if nothing matters. • Ignoring other peoples needs. • Give less than your best to a job.Treat things carelessly. • Ignore your own needs. • Let things placed in your care fend for themselves. • Pets

14. Affirmation I care for others and myself. I pay loving attention to people and things I care about. I give my best to every job.

15. Home Work on Hinduism • Do word search puzzle • Try to read a little about the Hindu writings online.

16. Home Work on Virtues • Think about your answers to these questions for next week. It is ok to talk about them with your parents or other family members. • What would caring look like if .. • You are doing a chore for your family? • You notice that one of your friend looks sad? • You come in from playing outside and start talking to your mother? • It is your job to take care of the family pet? • You feel upset about something that is hard to talk about? • Your sister lends you something that she really like?