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Hindus Praying
Hinduism
• Hinduism is an ancient religion
whose origins predate recorded
history.
• It has no single human founder, and
it has developed over thousands of
years.
Vedas
Hinduism’s most sacred
scriptures are the Vedas, which
means "knowledge" in Sanskrit,
the ritual language of Hinduism.
The Vedas began as an oral
tradition. Modern scholars
have speculated that they date
back as far as 6500 B.C.E.
Historians believe that the
Vedas were written down by
around 1,000 B.C.E., or earlier.
Brahman
Hinduism’s supreme
power or divine force
Brahman creates,
maintains, destroys and
recreates life in a cycle
that never ends
Everything in the world,
including each human
soul, or atman, is a part
of Brahman
Brahman
Just like a single drop of
water in a great ocean,
the human atman is
both separate from and
one with Brahman.
The ultimate goal of
human existence is to
unite the atman with
Brahman.
Multiple Gods
The Trimurti: Brahma, Vishnu, Shiva
• Trimurti are three aspects of
the supreme power
• Brahma - the
Source/Creator/Generator
• Vishnu - the
Preserver/IndwellingLife/Operator
• Shiva - the
Transformer/DestroyerRe-creator
• This on-going cycle of
creation, preservation,
destruction is at the center of
Hindu belief. There is no
real end or beginning.
Brahma, the creator
• Lord of all creation,
above human worship
and few temples to him
• Four faces, four arms
• Sits on a swan or lotus
flower
Vishnu
Responsible for
human fate
Depicted as dark
blue
Four arms-four
corners of the
world
Shiva, the destroyer
• Responsible for
destroying and recreating creation
• The god in whom all
opposites meet and are
resolved in one
Caste System
• Caste: a social
group or class
• Varna: a caste
group
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Brahmins
Kshatriyas
Vaishyas
Shudras
• Untouchables
(pariahs, dalits)
Dharma
ahimsa
• Non-violence
• Since all life forms have a soul, Hindus respect
all life forms and avoid doing harm to them.
• The reverence for life is symbolized by the
cow.
Karma
Reincarnation
• The Hindu belief that a person’s
soul is reborn into a new body
after death.
Samsara
Wheel of Life
Moksha
• Means literally “release”
• Means a liberation (freedom)
from the cycle of birth and death
because you’ve achieved uniting
the atman with Brahman
Mandala
• Mandala means "circle" in Sanskrit. Mandalas are
circular diagrams that originated with Hinduism
and are used in both Hinduism and Buddhism to
increase spiritual awareness.
• Hindu mandalas usually consist of a combination
of lines and triangles within a circle and a square,
and designs range from simple to very complex.
• Mandalas symbolize the cyclical nature of the
universe, and people often use mandalas to focus
themselves during meditation.