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Hindu - probably first used in 15th/16th c.
Geographical, cultural and religious term
900 million Hindus, esp. in India and Nepal
c. 2500 BC Indus Valley civilisation
Power of water
Female fertility deities
Male fertility deity in yoga posture or
represented by phallic symbol
c. 1900 BC Indus Valley civilisation dies out
Aryans (“noble ones”)
3 classes: warriors, priests and
herders/producers
Veda (knowledge)
Rig-Veda
Over 1000 hymns
Worshipping and nourishing gods
Gods living in sky, atmosphere, earth
Varuna, god of the sky
Indra, the storm god
Agni, god of sacrificial fire
Atman
(breath/soul)
Later parts of Rig-Veda
Brahmanas (interpretative/ritual texts,
c. 800 BC)
Upanishads (further revelations of Vedic
truths, c. 600 BC on):
upa (near), ni (down), sad (sit)
Rituals in cosmological and internal
aspects
The “One”
In Rig-Veda: Purusha, sacrificed to
create world
Brahmans (priests, from mouth)
Kshatriyas (warriors, from arms)
Vaishyas (merchants/workers,
from thighs)
Shudras (servants, from feet)
Samsara (cycle of death and rebirth)
Law of karma (action): every action has
a consequence
Goal: moksha (liberation) of atman (soul)
Knowledge of the One (Brahman) gained
through meditation, leading to moksha
6th BC c. on Instability in India, incl. Persian
and later Greek intervention, leading
to new religious movements
c. 400 BC-400 AD Major developments in
Hinduism, including…
Development of yoga (same root as “yoke”)
Attain moksha through controlling attachment
to outer world, withdrawing inward
Various forms
Emphasis on dharma
Eternal order of everything
Individual duty
Tension between dharma and goal of
moksha
Important texts:
Ramayana
Mahabharata incl. Bhagavad Gita
(Story of the Beloved One)
Arjuna
Krishna
avatar(a)
Vishnu
Shiva
Divine yogi/yogin
Creator/sustainer
Lingam (phallus?)
Devi
Creative power of primal matter
c. 400-1800 Growth of movements related
to bhakti (devotion to one’s god)
Growth of cults, esp. Vishnu, Shiva,
Devi
Writing of texts
Festivals, etc.
Vishnu and Lakshmi (goddess of beauty and
wealth)
Krishna
Rama
Shiva, as creator, sustainer, destroyer
Great yogi
Shakti as Devi, Parvati/Uma, Durga, Kali
Followers of Vishnu = Vaishnavites
Followers of Shiva = Shaivites
Tantrism
Seeking moksha through union of Shiva
and Shakti
Right-hand path: mantras, mandalas,
yogic rituals
Left-hand path: forbidden elements:
wine, meat, fish, parched grain,
sexual intercourse
Discussions of Hindu philosophy
Samkhya-Yoga school: dualism
of pure nature/matter (prakriti)
and pure spirit (purusha)
Vedanta school: Brahman as ultimate
reality. Need for jñana (correct
knowledge) of Brahman and atman
Foreign influences
13th-19th c. Muslims
18th-20th c. British
Leading to reform movements
Mohandas Gandhi (1869-1948)
1947 Indian independence
dalits
harijans (children of God)
Bharatiya Janata Party
International Society for Krishna
Consciousness (ISKCON)