AQA Hinduism RS

AQA Religious Studies - Taken from revision guide by AQA

Saguna Brahman

God with form

Nirguna Bharman + quote

• God without form

• “He moves, and he moves not. He is far, and he is near. He is within all and outside all.” Upanishads

Real name of Hinduism

Sanatana dharma - eternal truth

One but many

Upanishads - hundreds of Hindu deities, but only one supreme being

3 ways the divine exists

• everywhere, non personal - Brahman

• ‘the god within’ - Antaryami

• personal lord as a deity - Vaikuntha

Tri Murti

• Brahma (creator)

• Vishnu (preserver)

• Shiva (destroyer)

Brahma quote

“Brahma was […] the creator of all […] From him comes all life”
Upanishads

Earliest scriptures

Vedas - guides Brahma

Brahma’s consort

• Saraswati

• Goddess of music, knowledge, art and learning

Vishnu quote

“Whenevre there appears on earth decline of Righteousness […] I send myself to birth.”
Bhagavad Gita

How is vishnu normally worshipped?

• Through his avatars

• Called vaishnavites

Consort of Vishnu

• Lakshmi

• Goddess of wealth, good fortune, beauty and abundance

The three strides

• Vishnu tricks Bali

• Three steps of earth, sky and third on Bali’s head

Prahlada

• Vishnu saved Prahlada

• Prahlada devoted to Vishnu even tho dad try kill boi

• Vishnu saved the boy and rewarded his devotion

ascetic

people who live austere and simple lives

Shiva quote

“He watches over all beings and rules over their creation and descruction” Upanishads

Who are people who worship shiva?

Shaivites

Vaishnavas vs Shaivism

• Vaishnavas - ‘dualists’ - atman is separate from supreme being

• Shaivites - one reality, atman and Brahma are one.

Story of shiva as a laming post

• ethernal flaming post

• brahma can’t fly over it, vishnu cant dig under it

Shiva’s consort

• Shakti

• Parvati - reincarnation of sati, perfect example of motherhood

• Durga - fierce form

• Kali - fierce and wild - death & destruction

How many gods?

• many deities

• one supreme being

How many avatars of Vishnu?

10

Ramayana

• Story of Rama and Sita

• Rama banished, and Sita and Laksmana went w him

• Ravanna fell in love w Sita and captured her

• Bridge built w ‘rama’ written on it

• Rama killed Ravanna and Sita proved to remain chaste

• Rama and Sita returned home tg

Hanuman

• Monkey warrior god

• Shiva and Parvati’s child, adopted by Vayu

• Devotion to Rama and Sita

• Mace

Krishna

• Krishna - ‘dark’ in sanskrit

• Story of life in purunas

• Teachings in Bhagavad Gita

• Born in jail, resued and lived in forest where looked after by foster parents

• Playing flute, enternatining gopis.

• Favourite was Radha and devotion represents never ending love for his followers.

Ganesha

• Born while shiva was away

• Ganesha was guarding door, didnt let shiva in cuz didnt know, cut his head off in rage.

• Parvati insisted he be brought back to life and an elephant head is attached

• God of good luck and remover of obstacles

Cosmology

• cyclical (four yugas)

• repeatedly created material world

• heavenly planets, earthly realm and lower world

• spirit and matter. Atman is distinct from material and temp mind & body

Current Yuga and how they work

• in Iron yuga (shortest)

• The shorter the yuga, the more corrupt

• ~427,000 years kalki will come and kill off evil and evil-doers

Multiverse theory

• many universes created from Vishnu’s breath

• Every form of creation has place within these universes

• In a new creation, humans might move into a different realm

Spirit

Purusa

Matter

Prakriti

Enlightenment

gaining of true knowledge which leads to moksha

Release from the cycle of samsara

Moksha

Illusion

Maya

3 stages of matter

• creation

• maintenance

• destruction

3 qualities of a human personality

Tri-guna

• passion

• goodness

• ignorance

person’s actions explained thru the balance of these gunas

humanity is curious about the nature of creation

“The Gods are later than this world’s production. Who knows whence it first came into being?”

Atman vs Body

Never changing, eternal, conscious, alive
vs
Ever-changing, temporary, unconscious, dead

Atman is permanent

“Atman […] is never born and never dies”
Upanishads

Svetaketu story

• To understand God

• Lump of salt into water and leave it overnight

• Could not see salt, but could taste from both sides of the bowl

• The same way the salt is like Brahman

• ‘Invisible and subtle essence’

Continous cycle of birth, death and rebirth

cycle of samsara

What is karma?

All actions have consequences

Transmigration

Transferring of the atman into a different body

Reincarnation

Taking on a new body

Ultimate aim

Attain moskha

Dharma

Duty

Selflessness

to act for others, without thinking about returns

4 Personal virtues

• ahisma

• mind/sense control

• humility

• love

Ahisma

Non-violence and respect to all living things

Mind/sense control

Focus on the important, i.e. spiritual

Humility

Doing things for the right reason, not for glory.

Love

Caring with kindness and compassion

4 Aims of life

• Dharma

• Kama

• Artha

• Moksha

Kama

Enjoy pleasures of life responsibly, creating well-balanced character

Why does suffering happen?

Bad karma

Why attain moksha?

There will be no suffering

Should we relieve suffering from others?

Yes, it is our duty.

Should Hindus deliberately cause harm to others?

No

Four stages of life

• student stage (Brahmacharya)

• householder stage (Grihastha)

• retirement stage (Vanaprastha)

• world-renouncer stage (Sannyasa)

Four stages issues

• Contemporary lifestyles make this difficult, but considered good guidelines

• Traditionally only men, but now both men and women

Bharmacharya

Student stage
- sacred thread ceremony
- go to school and learn

Grihastha

Householder stage
- Hindu marries and takes family responsibility
- Practice Artha and Kama

Vanaprastha

Retirement stage
- First grandchild, carry on family
- (may choose to) focus on spiritual
- some prefer to remain here till death

Sannyasa

World renouncer
- give up comforts of life, spending life in prayer/meditation
- sannyasin travels w begging bowl, stick, prayer beads
- no home or income of own

Sanatana Dharma

• duties that link eternal soul to God

• guide on how to be a good person (hindu)

BAPS Swaminarayan Sanstha UK

• example of one Hindu group

• Neasden Temple, London

• Live by Shikshapatri - rules by founder

• live according to dharma

• never commit murder

• honest dealings

• dont eat garlic

Where Worship?

• home shrine

• temple

Quote on selflessness

“Be friendly and compassionate, released from ego selfishness, patient, hate not any being, the same in pain an happiness”
Bhagavad Gita

Quote on discipline

“The discipline who stays content with thoughts and mind on Me intent, […] is dear to Me.”
Bhagavad Gita

Varnashrama dharma

• everyone had a role

• four social classes

• used to be able to move between them

• but over time became hereditary and a ‘caste system’ developed

• Not very prominent today

• It is illegal to treat outcastes/lower classes unfairly

Varnas

• Brahmins (priests)

• Kshatriyas (warriors)

• Vaishas (businessmen)

• Shudras (employees)

PRACTICES

PRACTICES

Why worship?

• To attain moskha

Story of Gajendra

• King turned into Gajendra the elephant as punishment

• Crocodile attacked and ab to eat blud

• Vishnu heard Gajendra reciing mantras learned in previous life

• Vishnu swept down as a eagle and saved him and took him to vaikuntha

Human effort is a way to attain moskha, how?

• Good conduct

• Knowledge

• Detachment

• Devotion to God

Quote to practicing yoga

“With upright body, head and neck, lead the mind and its powers into thy heart.”
Upanishads

Quote to finding god in the heart

“When a man knows God, he is free”
Upanishads

Quote on chanting mantras and meditating

“There are two ways on contemplation of Brahman: in sound and in silence.”
Upanishads

What are temples trying to do?

• Create a kind of heaven on earth

• Worshippers find truth within themselves to worship within the space of heart (antaryami)

What is a statue/image in the image of god called?

A murti

Roadside shrines

Sacred spaces found along many roadsides

Quote encouraging devotion to God

“I cherish […] the love that makes the offering”
Bhagavad Gita

Quote offering promise of moshha to those who show steadfast loving devotion

“Bear Me in mind [… and …] I promise you will come to Me / for you are dear to Me”
Bhagavad Gita

Puja

• worship happening in temple/shine/open air

• usually involved aarti

Aarti

• main worship ceremony

• aarti lamp passed round the deity with prayers and songs

• flame is handed round so worshipers can recieve blessings

Bhajan/Kirtan

• Devotional songs/hymns

Japa

• way of chanting mantras, involves countring thru different names of the deity

Darshan

• viewing with respect a holy image and recieving blessing

• touch feet/steps, ask for blessings

Havan

• Fire sacrifice to god Agni

• fire is lit with wood and ghee

• prayers are said while fire burns

• rice offered

4 types of festivals

• key event in life of deity

• birth, life/achievenment of saint

• seasonal festivals

• joyful celebrations on family relationships and human life

Diwali

• triumph of light over darkness and truth over falsity

• around new year

• Ramayana

• Diwas are lit

Holi

• Prahlada’s victory over Holika

• old clothes and smother in bright colours and powders

• Normal behaviour standards are forgotten and people have fun

Story of Prahlada and Holika

• Father was a demon king

• Father tried to kill him cuz he believed Vishnu to be the most powerful god

• Summoned Holika to carry son into fire thinking she would live and prahlada dies

• Vishnu uno reverses

• Vishnu saved bro

Swastika

• ancient HINDU symbol of sun and prosperity

• opposite of Nazi symbol

• every direction - god is present in every place and form

• branches point out of centrem symbolising humans r too dumb to understand Brahman

OM

• Background sound of the universe

Personal deities

“…” powers are easier to understand than those of a supreme formless being

Guru etomology

• “Gu” - darkness

• “Ru” - light

• Guru leads people from spiritual darkness to light, i.e. enlightenment

Pearl & Diver to symbolise enlightenment and gurus

“The pearl is found in the oyster and the oyster is in the sea. The diver brings it up. No one else has the power to do this.”
Guru Kabir

Sadhu

• Hindu teacher and wandering holy man

Sannayasin

• world renouncer