Hinduism

Hindu

comes from the Sanskrit word "Sindhu", for river. The Indus River got its name from Sindhu. Hinduism started in India between c.2300 BCE - 1500 BCE. There is no one founder of Hinduism.

caste systems

divided ancient Indian society into classes based on a person's birth, wealth or occupation. \*Your caste or class was based on your parents'caste. You had to live your entire life in that caste. You were NOT....allowed to marry outside of that caste. If you did, your parents would disown you because you didn't follow your \*dharma or duty of your caste.

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Brahman

Universal force that is in all things. Brahman cannot be destroyed.\*One aspect of Hinduism that is                              similar to monotheistic religions. -Hindus believe that all the Hindu Gods are an extension of Brahman-Brahman has no image (is similar to the Holy Spirit in Christianity)

Brahma

Creator

Shiva

Destroyer

Vishnu

Preserver

Brahmins

highest caste (priests, teachers and scholars)

Untouchables/Dalits

lowest caste; social outcasts who held unpleasant, dirty jobs

Karma

good and bad actions that affect a person's soul and future existence (similar to the expression: "what goes around, comes around" )

Reincarnation

Process of rebirth. You could be reborn into another human, animal or insect in the next life. Reincarnation ends when Hindus reach "moksha".

Atman

Soul or spirit of a person. Hindus believe all souls (atman) are immortal (never die) and are reborn into another body (human, animal or insect) in the next life based on their karma and dharma in their previous life.

Dharma

a person's duties; right behavior

Moksha

being one with Brahma- painful rebirth cycle(reincarnation) and suffering ends- goal of Hindus- similar to Heaven and Paradise for Christians and Muslims

The Vedas

Holy books of Hinduism. These are the most ancient religious texts which define truth for Hindus. They got their present form between 1200-200 BCE and were introduced to India by the Aryans. Hindus believe that the texts were received by scholars direct from God and passed on to the next generations by word of mouth.

Mandir

Hindu temple

Pandit

Hindu Teacher

Denominations

1)Vaishnavism - Mainly worship the God Vishnu,  the Preserver, 2)Shaivism  Mainly worship the God Shiva, the Destroyer

Holidays

*****Diwali — Festival of Lights is a major holiday that is also celebrated by Buddhists, and Sikhs

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* Dussehra — This is the important tenth day of Navratri.
* Ganesha Chaturthi — celebration the birth of Ganesha, son of Shiva
* Holi — Festival of Colors
* Navratri — Nine Nights

Food Laws

The respect for cows is part of Hindu belief, and most Hindus avoid meat sourced from cows as **cows are treated as a motherly giving animal, considered as another member of the family**.