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Hinduism
Notes
Overview
 third most popular religion in the world with about 900 million followers
 those who follow this faith are known as Hindus
 about 80% of the population of India is Hindu
 over 3,000 years old, although some elements of the faith are much older
 no founder, single teacher, or prophets
 Hindus believe in the universal soul called Brahman
 Hindus believe that there are many deities, such as Krishna, Shiva, and Rama
 Hindus believe that existence is a cycle of birth, death, and rebirth governed by Karma
Mohandas Gandhi
 Mahatma – “great soul”
 when he died, Gandhi weighed less than 100 pounds and his material possessions amounted
to less than $2.00
 however, he drove the British from India without warfare, and he elevated the status of the
“untouchables” and renamed them “God’s people”
 Gandhi’s strategy of nonviolence inspired Martin Luther King Jr. to base his crusade for civil
rights for blacks in the United States on civil disobedience
What People Want
 pleasure – do not suppress desire; seek in intelligently (smart people do not steal cheat, lie, or
succumb to addictions while immersing themselves in pleasure)
 success – wealth, power, and fame (problems arise: success is competitive and changes
hands; desire breeds success spawns greed; success centers on the self and no one likes to be
alone; success does not follow us upon death)
 service – doing one’s duty brings about self-respect and admiration from our peers (we want
to be remembered, but memories do not last)
What People Really Want
 pleasure, success, and service provide temporary pleasure
 people who realize this begin to want more (that is, infinite life, knowledge, and joy)
 this liberation from death, ignorance, frustration, futility, and boredom is called moksha
 moksha gives us limitless being, consciousness, and bliss
 at the center of each person is limitless being, consciousness, and bliss (Atman)
 to find Atman (infinite self) is to know Brahman (God)
 Atman is hidden by distractions, false assumptions, and self-regarding instincts (ex: a lamp
my be so covered with dust that no light can escape)
 the Hindu finds Atman or uncovers the light
The Ways to God
 jnana yoga or knowledge (reflective) – three steps – learning: introduced to the concept of an
infinite self; thinking: realizes that there is an infinite self; separation: the infinite self
witnesses the finite self
 bhakti yoga or love (emotional) – love God for the sake of loving God; adore God with every
element of one’s being (strongly identifies with the way Jesus Christ led his life)
 karma yoga or work (active) – the more one works for ones’ self, the more greater the ego
and the distance from God, the less one works for one’s self the lesser the ego and the
distance from God; therefore work for God and one will meet Him
 raja yoga or psychophysical exercise (experimental) – four layers to the individual (physical
body, conscious mind, subconscious mind, Being Itself); to reach Being Itself, the yogi must
control desire, cultivate proper habits, learn yogic posture and breathing, turn concentration
inward, calm the mind, merge with God)
Origins
 Hinduism developed from the religious practices of those who lived near the River Indus in
modern Pakistan
the Nature of God
 Hindus believe in the universal soul (Brahman), as the sole reality who is present in all things
 Brahman has no form an is eternal
 Brahman is creator, preserver, and transformer of everything
 Brahman appears in the human spirit at Atman, or the soul
monotheistic
 it is often believed that Hindus worship many gods, but in fact, many Hindus would claim to
believe in one eternal God (Brahman) which is indefinable
 Hindus recognize the other gods as different aspects of Brahman
Expressions of Brahman
 the gods of the Hindu faith represent different expressions Brahman
 different Hindu communities may have their own divinities whom they worship, but these are
simply different ways of approaching the Ultimate
 Hindus recognize three principal gods:
-Brahma (creates the universe)
-Vishnu (preserves the universe)
-Shiva (destroys the universe)
karma
 Hindus believe that the soul passes through a cycle of successive lives and its next
incarnation is always dependent on how the previous life was lived
Hindu worship
 involves images (murtis), prayers (mantras), digrams of the universe (yantras)
 Hindu worship is primarily an individual act rather a communal one
 the majority of Hindu homes have a shrine, where offerings are made and prayers are said
 family members often worship together
 rituals should be preformed three times daily
temple worship
 a priest may read, or more usually recite, the Vedas to the assembled worshippers, but any
“twice-born” Hindu can perform the reading of the mantras