Hinduism

What is Hinduism?

• Hinduism is the oldest of the major religions.
• It is the third largest religion in the world according to the number of followers
• Began in the Indus Valley over three historical periods:
• “Hindu” comes from an old name for people who lived in a part of Northern India
• Pre-Vedic Period (2500-1500 BCE):city-dwellers,matriarchal, worshipped a mother-goddess
• Vedic Period (1500-600 BCE):named for first sacred writings,focus on prayers, elements of nature and animal sacrifices
• Upanishadic Period (600-200 BCE): ancient India’s culture was unified, Vedas and Upanishads established as sacred texts, worship began in temples

Brahman, Atman and Maya

• The ultimate reality is Brahman: the only one God or Supreme Being
• It means: Good, Truth and Mercy.
• What am I? Your true self is atman;you are a part of Brahman.
• What is my life? A search to find Brahman in yourself.
• How can I know Brahman? By knowing yourself.

The Hindu Triad

• 3 Gods symbolize the cycle of existence and work together in a never-ending pattern.  Ie.  everything is made, lasts for a time and then is destroyed.
• There is an interplay of Creation (Brahma), Preservation (Vishnu) and Destruction (Shiva).

And Brahman

• CREATOR= “Brahma”
• SUSTAINER= “Vishnu”
• DESTROYER= “Shiva”

Known as the Hindu Trinity

The world is continually destroyed and recreated-- VISHNU is most often worshipped (has elements of a Saviour).

The Hindu Trinity (Brahma, Vishnu, Shiva)

Brahma: The creator

• The creator of the universe
• Most often shown with four faces, looking to the four compass points, showing that he is all-seeing and all-knowing.
• Usually dressed in white and often shown riding on a swan or peacock, or seated on a lotus.
• Is considered above worship, so there are few temples to him

Vishnu: The preserver

• Is most often shown dressed in yellow, with blue skin.
• He is often pictured with his partner, Lakshmi, riding on the back of a huge half-bird and half-man creature.
• Hindus believe that Vishnu descends to the world from time to time in human form to maintain order and save the world from danger.
• He has appeared in human form in 9 different avatars.
• Hindus wait for the 10th avatar the mighty warrior, Kalkin, will rid the world of oppression.

Shiva: The Destroyer

• is both destroyer and redeemer.
• he is the deity of cosmic dance.
• Shiva is dangerous, destructive and lethal, yet he is joyful and a creative force.
• Shiva is often shown wearing a tiger-skin loincloth and a snake collar and sometimes a necklace of skulls.
• The joyful dance is associated with the creation of the cosmos.
• The violent dance is associated with the destruction of the cosmos, so that Brahma can recreate it.

What is an avatar?

• Avatar means God’s manifestation on earth in human and other forms.
• He comes to destroy evil, fulfill the wishes of his devotees and liberate their souls.

How to become one with Brahman

• One way is YOGA- self discipline
• self- contemplation and good physical and mental health.
• OTHER WAYS- devotion to deities
• selfless actions

The sacred realitty/ Devine-Atman

• The Atman is the unchanging eternal self that is the essence of all life.
• The nature of the atman is eternal, consciousness, and blissful.
• When the atman leaves the body the latter becomes lifeless.
• Atman is your inner self--- striving to reach Brahman.

Goals of Hindusim

• Escape “Maya” by reaching Brahman by means of the four Hindu goals.
• Snakes and Ladders Activity
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1. sensuous aesthetic pleasure
2. participation in economic activity and public welfare
3. do what is ethical and moral
4. aspire to high goals
5. become one with Brahman
6. practice AHIMSA (non-violence) to persons and insect

Hindu Beliefs

All life, according to Hinduism is governed by a law of birth, death and rebirth: all life must return to the world after death.

Belief- Dharma

• Dharma stands for the ultimate moral balance of all things.
• Dharma belongs to the universe and to the individual as well.
• Hindu’s dharma is played out in all areas of life: religious, social and family.
• If a person makes a promise, the promise must be kept at all cost.

Belief- Karma

• Karma is a universal principle- the law of cause and effect.
• Every action leads to an effect, depending upon a person’s good or bad actions in mind, speech and deed.
• Karma stands for the belief that a person experiences the effects of his or her actions.

Good karma: devotion, almsgiving, compassion, faith (virtues)

Bad karma: pride, greed, vanity, stealing (vices)

Do you find this belief similar in any way to Christian beliefs?

• Living in a balanced universe, if an individual disturbs this order, he or she will suffer commensurately.
• But an ethical and moral, with undisturbed dharma, will lead to happiness.
• How, then, can a Hindu hope to find redemption from wrongdoing

Belief- Samsara

• Samsara is commonly known as reincarnation.
• Samsara represents the cycle of life, death, and rebirth in which a person carries his or her own karma.
• Do you find this belief similar in any way to Christian beliefs?
• Each life cycle presents an opportunity for balance.
• Many Hindus believe that a person’s worldly status depends upon actions in a past life.
• Likewise, good thoughts and actions can liberate a person.
• Some Hindus believe that certain people meet in more than one life in order to achieve karmic balance.
• Is reincarnation an eternal process, or is there another realm?

Belief- Moksha

• Like Heaven for the Christian, Hindus strive to reach moksha, or a state of changeless bliss.

• Moksha is achieved by living a life of religious devotion and moral integrity without any interest in worldly things.

• However, it may be many lifetimes within the wheel of life before moksha is achieved.

  \n Hindu scriptures

Hindu scriptures- Vedas

• They hold the key to what is most important in life and were entrusted to Brahmins (priests).
• The Vedas are divided into four scriptures: the Rig-Veda (1028 royal songs praising gods), the Sama-Veda(hymns with instructions for chanting), the Yajur-Veda (hymns with instructions for sacrifices), and the Atharva-Veda (collection of sayings)
• All the subsequent scriptures are based upon the principles and practises found in the Vedas.
• Hindu’s most sacred scripture writings dated back to 1200 BCE.
• They are like the Bible in that they are a compilation of many texts accumulated over a period of 2000 years.
• For centuries the Vedas were only transmitted orally, through memorization and recital.
• Eventually they were transcribed into Sanskrit.
• They are believed to be of divine origin containing truth of the universe.

Upanishads

• These are teaching of holy men on the meaning of Vedas.
• They contain almost exclusively dialogues of a guru (spiritual master).
• The word literally means “to sit down before” a teacher.
• They act as a commentary to the Vedas and show a concern for salvation from repeated life cycles.
• They contain profound philosophical and spiritual truths.
• There are more than 200 Upanishads.
• See handout in Google Classroom on Hindu Scriptures

Paths of Salvation or liberation

The Three Yogas

• The ultimate goal of Hinduism is MOKSHA- but how can Hindus reach this goal?
• To answer this, Hindus turn to the Bhagavad Gita.
• In it, Krishna describes three yogas that lead to liberation.
• KNOWLEDGE
• DEVOTION
• ACTION

The Path of Knowledge

• The path of knowledge stresses the quest for spiritual knowledge and truth.
• Hindus who follow this path must study with a guru.
• One of the main goals of this type of yoga is to understand that atman and Brahman are one.
• Because the illusion (maya) of the material world is powerful and seductive, Hindus train their minds to see the world as it truly is.
• The best way to train the mind is through meditation.
• Meditation means concentrating and focussing the mind to control one’s thoughts.
• For Hindus, repeated practice in meditation allows them to go beyond their egos and detach from the world of illusions.
• Then they can see the true nature of atman.

The Path of devotion

• This yoga is important for many Hindus; they see their religious identity as tied to one preferred deity, but it does not exclude worshipping other deities.
• Hindus choose a particular deity and spend their lives worshipping that deity

The Path of good works or action

• This involves Hindus doing their dharma, or duty, to the best of their ability.
• This duty will vary for everyone-- depending on caste, job, social status, stage of life and so on.
• Hindus strive to act without passion or attachment.
• They are not to act in the hope of being rewarded with good karma.
• This path stresses discipline, ritual actions and moral choices

Caste system

In traditional Hindu society:

• each person had a certain social position in life
• all life was arranged as a hierarchy, from highest to lowes
• performing good deeds and following their assigned code of behaviour determined whether people had earned the right to be born at a higher level.
  These traditional Hindu beliefs were expressed in Hindu society’s division into castes.
  The caste system is said to have come to ancient India around 1500 BCE, with the Aryans.
  The caste system had four groups: priests, defenders of the realm, business people and farmers.
  More recently, another caste developed: Untouchables or outcasts.

1. BRAHMINS: this is the priestly caste. Their role is to study and teach in matters of faith, especially the Vedas. They lead most key rituals.
2. KSHATRIYAS: this is the warrior caste. Their role is to protect the people and run a fair government.
3. VAISHYAS: this caste consists of producers-- traders, merchants, artists, and business people.
4. SUDRAS: this is the lowest caste. Their main purpose is to serve the three higher castes. This group includes unskilled workers, servants, and anyone doing menial work.
5. UNTOUCHABLES: also called “outcastes”, people in this group are considered outsiders: they may NOT interact in any way with members of the four castes. Traditionally, they do the dirtiest work in society and live apart, in small communities (ashrams) However, this situation is changing. The best way for a person to move to a higher caste in the next life is to act according to one’s caste in this life. Acting above one’s caste in this life is seen as ignoring dharma and generates bad karma, so it hurts a person’s chances of being promoted in the next life. The belief is that people are born into the lower castes based on the karma of their previous life. Caste System Today In India Today in India, discrimination based on caste or occupation is ILLEGAL. Many Hindu teachers now argue that the Hindu sacred writings never intended the social and occupational discrimination of the caste system. In Canada, caste is no longer important for many Hindu families

Hindu Worship

• Worship is publicly done in a Mandir or Temple, although not required.
• Worship is lead by guru/priest:  each morning the guru/priest rings bells, prepares the deities and offers fresh flowers, incense, and food on behalf of the devotees.
• In the evening, devotees sing hymns
• Deities are treated like royalty; given ritual baths, adorned with special clothing and jewelry and taken on procession on special occasions.
• During prayers, worshippers bow to them.
• Hindus also worship daily in their homes

Hindu Mandir

Mandir: The hindu temple

• A Mandir is a holy place of gathering, and worship like a church, synagogue and mosque.
• Every atom of a mandir radiates the divinity of the Supreme, for the mandir is a living form of the Divine.
• Each temple is dedicated to a particular god, although representations of other gods are allowed.
• Mandir actually means “dwelling”.
• At the heart of the temple rests a shrine to the chosen deity.
• Hindus believe that although an image cannot contain God,a deeper understanding can be achieved by meditating on a representation of Krishna, Vishnu, Brahma, or other deities.
• Temple Pujas are performed at dawn, noon, dusk, and midnight.
• Traditionally, the outside walls of a mandir are decorated with sculptured representations of an array of mythic and worldly happenings
• Unlike the members of many other religions, Hindus may maintain their spiritual devotion without visiting their house of worship.
• Many worship their chosen deity at their family shrine.
• The mandir serves an essential role in the spiritual life of a Hindu.
• It is a place where the world is left behind for a while, a place of ritual,devotion and cleansing.
• “Mandirs preserve the cleanliness of the soul and keep it from becoming diseased.  Some diseases cannot be seen, only experienced.  Our scriptures have shown mandirs to be the medicine for such diseases.” - Pramukh Swami Maharaj

Mandir Nurtures

• Our heritage
• Family Values
• Spiritual Values
• Art and Architecture
• Festivals
• Environment
• Traditions
• Humanitarian Values
• Mind, Body and Soul

Mandir Teaches…

• Love and respect for parent
• Respect for all faiths
• Faith in God, Guru, and Scriptures
• Team Work
• Tolerance
• Unity in Diversity
• Devotion, Dedication and Sacrifice

Mandir Listens to…

• Our Sorrows
• Our Emotions
• Our Prayers
• Young &
• Old

Mandir Symbolizes

• Mysticism
• Victory
• Gentleness
• Inspiration
• Strength
• Immorality
• Purity
• Meditation
• Peace
• Enlightenment
• Divinity and Saintlines

Mandir Gives

• Peace of Mind
• Internal Happiness
• Wisdom and Understanding
• Inspiration and Motivation
• Stability and Satisfaction
• Answers to Life’s Question

Mandir Removes

• Addictions
• Vices
• Egotism
• Superstitions
• Misconceptions
• Greed and Lust

Mandir Breathes

• Children and Youth Activities
• Weekly Assemblies
• Seminars
• Women Activities
• Language Classes
• Sports and Recreation

Family Shrine

• Almost all Hindus keep a shrine in their home, regardless of their caste or economic status.
• These shrines, dedicated to a particular god, vary in size.
• Some families can afford to put aside an entire room while others can devote only a corner of the bedroom.
• The sacred space, like the shrine of a temple, is tended to religiously.
• Family members worship collectively or individually.
• On a table or shelf rests a photograph of the chosen deity.
• The fragrance of fresh flowers, and fruit mixes with incense and perfumes in the air.
• A bell, which is rung for prayer, stands nearby.
• An oil lamp, lit during worship, sits beside the scripture from which prayers are read.
• Other symbols, gods, and gurus may also appear in the shrine.
• Puja is the most common form of Hindu worship which involves sounds, light, washing, food scent and prayers.

Private Hindu Worship

• Private daily worship is done in a home shrine.
• Begin day with some kind of ritual, chanting “om” and “mantras”(religious phrases) at beginning and ending of prayers
• One room in home is decorated with an altar, flowers, incense, pictures of deity, bells, prayer beads and food.
• Puja is the most common form of Hindu worship which involves sounds, light, washing, food scent and prayers.

Rites of passage

Birth

• Even before a baby is born, Hindus perform rituals and recite prayers to protect the fetus from illness or harmful spirits.
• The mother eats only healthy foods to ensure the newborn’s well being.
• The father performs a ceremony immediately after the birth, where he dips a gold pen into a jar of honey and writes the sacred Sanskrit symbol, OM, onto the infant’s tongue.
• The symbol which stands for truth, is written in hope that the child will be honest and speak only the truth, which is sweet as honey.
• After a little more than a week, the baby’s name is formally given.
• Usually the name of a favourite god or goddess is chosen and whispered into the child’s ear.
• Within the first few years of her life, a Hindu girl has an ear-piercing ceremony.
• Both boys and girls have their hair cut, symbolic renewal and shedding of wrongdoing in past lives.

The Ceremony of the Sacred Thread

• is an ancient rite of passage into adolescence reserved for male members of the three upper castes, the Brahmins, Shatriyas, and Vaishyas.
• Like a Jewish bar mitzvah, it represents a rebirth or initiation into the religious ceremony.
• In the presence of a guru, the young man shaves his head and dons a saffron robe.
• Taking up a simple walking stick, he renounces all material possession and then receives the sacred thread.
• The unadorned Thread is symbolic of the interconnectedness of all things.
• It consists of 7 strands, each of which represent a different virtue or quality.  They are as follows:

1. Power of Speech
2. Memory
3. Intelligence
4. Forgiveness
5. Steadfastness
6. Prosperity
7. Good Reputation

• The boy promises to embody these qualities, and for the rest of his life he wears the sacred thread as a symbol of his coming-of-age.
• The ceremony concludes with a fire sacrifice, the most common form of ritual in Hinduism.
• Nowadays, only young men seeking to become priests or ascetics live with a guru.

Marriage

• Most Hindu marriages are arranged by the parents, although the children must also be happy with their chosen partner.
• Hindus almost always marry within the same caste, although in modern times there are increasing exceptions.
• A wedding is one of the most colourful and important ceremonies in all of Hinduism.
• Some Hindu weddings last as long as three days.
• The ceremony centers around a sacred fire, a manifestation of the god, Agni.
• Family and friends surround the couple as a priest chants Sanskrit verses.
• Next, he leads the bride and groom around the flames which burn in a brick firepit.  Bells are sounded, and many offerings are made to the fire, including clarified butter, grains and flowers.
• Each time the couple completes their circuit, the bride stands on one of the bricks.  This affirms her strength and loyalty.
• Finally, the bride and groom take seven steps around the flames.
• These steps are the most significant action in a Hindu wedding.
• Now the couple is bonded for life, their union sanctified.

Death

• Cremation, or the burning of the corpses, has been a Hindu custom.
• Like the marriage ceremony, the rite of passage into death centers around a sacred fire.
• The funeral begins when the body is wrapped in cloth and carried away on a stretcher.
• Family and friends leave their village for the cremation grounds, they recite prayers to the chosen deity of the deceased.
• Traditionally, the eldest son lights the wood of the funeral pyre with a flame lit in a nearby temple.
• Prayers and offerings are made in the belief that the deceased is going through a process of rebirth, cleansed by the fire into new life.
• The ritual also protects the relatives from evil spirits.
• The ceremony concludes when the ashes are thrown into a river.
• Hindus want their remains to be left in the River Ganges, believing that its waters will help purify their soul.

Daily dutie

• Besides daily worship, most Hindus attend to four other religious duties.

1. **Worshipping God:**Hindus must devote part of their day to worship. This ensures spiritual contact.
2. Reciting Scripture: by reciting from sacred text, the faithful learn the lessons of worldly and religious life.
3. Honouring parents and elders: Hindus are very loyal family members.  Parents and elders are honoured for their wisdom and self-sacrifice.
4. Helping the Poor: Even the less fortunate try to obey this commandment.  Guests, in particular, are given special attention in a Hindu home.
5. Feeding animals: Because Hindus consider all life a sacred part of one God, animals are respected and cared for.

Mantra

Mandala- symbolic circle diagram that may represent the universe or even the self

\n Hindu Symbols

Om or Aum	This symbol is the most widely used in all Indian religions,is the principal symbol of HinduismIt is both a visual and oral representation of Brahman or God.Hindus repeat the word Om in order to transcend their individual thoughts and merge with God.Om is comprised of three independent letters “a”, “u” and “m”.  The “a” represents the beginning, “u” meaning progress and “m” stands for dissolution.Om reflects the power responsible for the creation, development and destruction of the universe. \n \n \n
Sri Yantra	is commonly used as a visual focal point for meditation.It originated with the Sakti cult, the votaries or worshippers of the Divine Mother.The design itself represents the form of the goddess.This symbol represents spiritual evolution.The triangles stand for the many aspects of God, which when focused upon, merge into one.When this occurs, consciousness of unity appears in the circles.
The Swastika	is an ancient symbol of auspiciousness, good fortune and protection.Besides being used as a symbol for Vishnu, it also represents the eternal wheel of life which rotates upon an unchanging center, God.In India, it is not uncommon to find swastikas marked on buildings and animals.Some Hindus believe it protects them from evil spirits and natural disasters
The Lotus Flower	The Lotus bud, which is born in water, and unfolds itself into a beautiful flower, symbolizes the birth of the universe, manifesting itself in all its glory.It is also a symbol of the sun, which rises in the navel of Vishnu.The lotus is the seat of Brahma as well.
The Cow	The cow is the offspring of the celestial cow, which was created by Lord Krishna from his own body.Another Hindu myth says the cow was born of the churning of the ocean.Another, the Earth often approaches God in the form of a cow.

Hindu Festivals

Diwali

• Diwali means “a row of lights” celebrates the Hindu New Year.
• Because Hindus follow the lunar calendar, this holiday can fall in either October or November.
• It is also known as “The Festival of Lights”, people decorate their streets and doorways with small clay lamps called divas.
• All this is done in anticipation of the coming of Lakshmi, the godess of prosperity and good fortune.
• Diwali lasts for 5 days.
• The faithful carefully clean their homes and businesses, while decorating their floors with colourful floor paintings made of rice flour.
• Everyone wears his or her finest clothes and jewelry and in the spirit of generosity, offers sweets and gifts to friends and neighbours.
• For some Hindus, Diwali commemorates the homecoming of Rama and Sita after their long years in exile.  When the royal couple returned, their city was alight with lamps

Holi

• is the Hindu spring festival, celebrating the equinox and the coming of Lord Krishna, who played with the colours of life.
• In northern India, Holi is also a time to gather the winter harvest.
• Festival begins in the evening when the bonfire is light.
• All night the faithful sing and dance and pray around the bonfires.
• When dawn arrives, the fires are extinguished with water.
• Now water becomes the center of the festival.
• Coloured with special dyes, people throw the water at each other in a playful spirit.
• These antics last for three days, during which people spend leisure time together, eating special holiday foods and sweets

Navaratri

• A hindu festival celebrated for nine nights and ten days

Maha Shivratri

• Maha Shivaratri is a Hindu festival celebrated annually in honour of the deity Shiva, between February and March. According to the Hindu calendar, the festival is observed on the fourteenth day of the dark half of the lunar month of Phalguna or Magha

Mahatma Ghandi

Indian lawyer, politician, social activist, and writer who became the leader of the nationalist movement against the British rule of India

Additional definitions

Puja: Hindu worship ceremony

Deities: images of the God in many forms

Vedas: early sacred scriptures of Hinduism

Sanskrit: the language of ancient India

Upanishads: sacred scriptures, the final dialogues ending the Vedas

Dharma: one’s personal code of conduct relating to family and society; one’s duty

Guru: wise teacher

Brahman: the supreme cosmic force

Atman: the true self

Maya: illusion

Ahimsa: the principle of non-violence

Caste: a traditional Hindu social level or class

Untouchables: in the traditional Hindu social levels, the lowest outsider class

Ascetic: someone who practices severe self-discipline or abstains from physical pleasures for religious purposes.

Ramayana: a Hindu epic about Prince Rama and Sita

Bhagavad Gita: a sacred Hindu story about Prince Arjuna and Krishna

Avatar: a deity who has descended into the world in earthly form

Yoga: Hindu path to liberation

Ascetic: someone who practices severe self-discipline or abstains from physical pleasures for religious purposes.

Ramayana: a Hindu epic about Prince Rama and Sita

Murti: an image of a Hindu deity

Mandir: a Hindu Temple

Mantra: sacred sounds, words, or phrases, repeated in ritual

Moksha: Freedom or liberation from samsara, or the cycle of rebirth

Karma: the law of cause and effect, of one’s actions having an impact on one’s future life

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