HINDUISM

By Ted Eby, Derek Jager, Trent Josephson, Sadie Utter, Stephanie

Wagstaff

BEGINNINGS

• Hinduism began in northern India• Diffused into southeast Asia without the caste

system of northern India• Founders are the Aryan peoples of northern

India• Basis was a prophet, fixed doctrine, single

authoritative scripture or specific institutional organization

PROMINENT FIGURES

• Brahman-– Teachers and priests

• Devi– Deity of gentleness/fright

• Shiva– Deity of creation/destruction

• Vishnu– Deity of preservation

BASIC TENETS AND COSMOLOGY

• Four Stages of Life:

– Student-• Boys go to live with teacher and girls learn from the householder, or father, taking the place of

the teacher

– Householder-• Mandatory• Marries• Have children• Household traditions/sacrifices

– Forest Dweller-• Grandchildren take over the household• Focus on nature and meaning of existence• Gives up home

– Wandering Ascetic-• ‘Dead’ in the eyes of his family• Renounces the world entirely• Abandons all identity• An object of worship when in a Hindu Temple• Liberation

CONTINUED…

• Manifestations of a single divine force that pervades the universe

• Text shows underlying unity• Worship centers on the temple• Nature is viewed as sanctity• Religious duties depend on social standing, gender, and

current stage of life• Moksha

– Union of one’s soul with brahman; ‘release’ or ‘liberation’ from Samsara

• Samsara– Cycle of birth, death, rebirth in which the soul works out Karma

CONCEPT OF GOD

• Henotheistic: devoted to one God expressed in millions of forms

• Brahman- very essence of existence and knowledge which pervades entire universe and every being.– considered highest god to exist– entire universe, all galaxies, and more

• People choose to worship one certain form of God

• Devas- celestial entities – one certain Deva may be worshiped to attain a

personal desire.

HOLY WRITINGS• Bhagavad Gita (500 BCE): greatest single statement of

Hindu beliefs; opposes evil in the world. First scripture devoted entirely to yoga.

• Ramayana & Mahabharata: epics• Upanishads: considers nature of Brahman and Samsara• Suriti: filled with stories and histories• Veda: ‘sacred knowledge’. Consists of four collections of

sacred hymns and prayers and supplementary writings• **VERY IMPORTANT**- Mimamasa-Sutra (300 BCE):

Jaimini composed this, the first authoritative text of Hinduism. turning point of Hinduism. Shift from ancient Hinduism to modern Hinduism.

SYMBOLS• Nature was sacred• Beauty/embellishment to receive deities• Mantra: From the Vedas. A sacred formula repeated in meditation.• Murtis: manifest form of the Divinity• Sri Chakra Yantra: represents Shiva (masculine) and Shakti

(feminine). Symbolic of creation and expresses non-duality• Swastika: An Arya, or noble and auspicious symbol. A symbol of

action of the Principle on Manifestation• Aum (Om)- sacred symbol that represents God• Tilaka- mark on forehead that was a sign of faith • Vibhuti- holy ash used on the forehead to represent Shiva• Ahimsa- advocated non-violence; respect for all forms of life

– Vegetarianism– Abstain from beef

PRACTICES• Pilgrimages

– People would travel very long distances in order to worship.

– Distance traveled was a sign of your faith. • Festivals• Duties

– Duties to society were often based on personal characteristics, such as your caste rank, age, gender, and place in the four stages of life.

• Devotion to Statues– Worshipers would devote their worship to a specific statue. To show

their worship, they would often bathe the statue or clothe it, to show an example of their faith.

• Yoga– Goal of Moksha– Seeking liberation through the disunion of the spirit and nature through

meditation, physical, and spiritual practices and firm belief in God.

GEOGRAPHY

• Geography played an instrumental role in the development of Hinduism

• The vast diversity of India allowed for a complex and varied religion

• Due to the isolation of India because of the Kush and Himalayan mountains with the Khyber pass being the only point of contact, Hinduism evolved into a religion that catered to the inhabitants of the sub-continent

CASTE SYSTEM (4)

• Brahmanas- teachers/priests

• Kshatriyas- warriors, kings, and administrators

• Vaishayas- farmers, merchants, herdsmen, and businessmen

• Shudras- servants and laborers

INFLUENCED BY

• Vedic religion

• Islamic invaders

• Buddhism

SECTS

• Special knowledge of sacred truth

• Mental and physical discipline

• Extraordinary devotion to the deity

• 4 Divisions in Contemporary Hinduism