Download Cultural Traditions of India

Cultural Traditions of India
Hinduism
&
Birth of Buddhism
Indian Cultural Tradition =
Hinduism/Caste System
• Diversity of gods, spirits, beliefs, practices,
rituals, and philosophies.
• Brahman – “World Soul” the final and
ultimate reality (similar to Chinese Dao)
• Only Brahman was real, not what humans
perceive with their senses = illusion.
• Final goal is to have the atman union with
Brahman (called moksha = liberation)
Vedas: Poems, hymns, prayers, & rituals.
Compiled by Brahmins.
Bagavad Gita
“O Krishna, when I see my own people . . .
eager for battle, my limbs shudder, my
mouth is dry, my body shivers, and my
hair stands on end. I can see no good in
killing my own kinsmen.” Krishna
replied, “Do not despair of your duty. If
you do not fight this just battle you will
fail in your own law and in your honor.”
From Barbara Keller, ed., The Bhagavad-Gita, 1986.
Who is Krishna?
How does Krishna respond?
According to the Venn diagram above,
which religion claims that a single force governs the universe?
Upanishads: Sacred Texts that probed inner
meaning of sacrifice described in the Vedas.
From the Katha Upanishad:
“Higher than the senses are the objects of sense.
Higher than the objects of sense is the mind;
And higher than the mind is the intellect (buddhi).
Higher than the intellect is the Great Self (tman).
Higher than the Great is the Unmanifest (avyakta).
Higher than the Unmanifest is the Person.
Higher than the Person there is nothing at all.
That is the goal. That is the highest course.”
From Sarvepalli Radhakrishnan and Charles A. Moore, eds.,
A Source Book in Indian Philosophy,
Princeton University Press, 1957.
The Four Noble Truths:
1. Ordinary life is full of suffering.
2. This suffering is caused by our desire to
satisfy ourselves.
3. The way to end suffering is to end
desire for selfish goals and to see
others as extensions of ourselves.
4. The way to end desire is to follow the
Middle Path.
What causes suffering?
How can we end suffering?
How does Buddhism Compare to Hinduism?
Theravada = Teaching of the Elders
Was a simplified and more accessible
version of Hinduism
Buddha as a teacher & model, but not
divine.
More of a philosophy than a religion.
How does Buddhism Compare to Hinduism?
Mahayana = “Great Vehicle”
Retained a view of karma
through Mahayana
version of Buddhism.
Bodhisattvas = spiritually
advanced and
developed people that
prolonged their own
entry into nirvana to
assist others through
their suffering.
Buddha himself became
something of a god.
Key Difference Between Mahayana Buddhism &
Theravada Buddhism
Mahayana Buddhism turned Buddha into a divine figure
to whom one offer devotion
The Indian Brahman (concept
of the "world soul“) is most similar
to the Buddhist Nirvana.
Not THAT Nirvana!