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Hindu Beliefs
1. Spiritual Belief:
Hinduism is a theistic religion. Hindus believe in one God who pervades the whole world. This Supreme Being is known as Brahman who
is formless and has infinite qualities. He cannot be defined or comprehended. Realising the difficulty the common person would face in
worshipping such a phenomenon ancient Indian seers, known as Rishis, gave him a male and female forms giving them names and qualities.
This has created the many gods of Hinduism we see today. Hindus are free to worship a god or goddess of their choice.
2. How We Pray – House of worship, rituals and practices:
Most Hindus follow Kathenotheism i.e. worship (Puja) of one god while not rejecting the existence of other gods or the worship of
one God or Goddess at a time. Every Hindu household has a Murti (i.e. an image) or a photo of their favourite god or goddess
(Ishta-devata meaning desired God) whom they worship. A simple form of worship is standing in front of the image with folded hands after
taking a bath and reciting a devotional verse i.e. a prayer. On religious days people go to temples where an elaborate worship is carried out at
sunrise, noon, sunset and midnight. During worship a devotional food offering is made to the god that is later shared among devotees. In the
temple the image is dressed in fresh appropriate clothes.
A short worship has five steps. They are: applying sandalwood paste to the God’s forehead, offering him a flower, waving a lighted lamp and an
incense stick in front of the image and placing in front of the image a food offering.
An elaborate worship has sixteen steps which involve welcome, ceremonial bathing the image etc.
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3. Dietary Laws:
Hindu scriptures say food is truly a form of the Supreme Being and tell us not to criticise food. Therefore Hindus treat food with respect and
not waste it. Before eating the served food it is symbolically offered to the Lord with a prayer. Food is eaten slowly and without discussions
and arguments.
Generally speaking the Hindu diet is mostly vegetarian with milk and milk products. Those Hindus who eat meat do not eat beef because
cow is sacred to all Hindus. Some Hindus have restrictions on who prepares their food and how it is stored. Hindus also fast on particular
religiously important days when some may eat plant foods or may not eat at all. Hindus consider fasting as a ritual meant to purify body and
mind and also develop detachment.
4. Holy Books and Sacred Stories:
Hindu sacred books fall in two categories: Shruti (that which is heard) and Smruti (that which is remembered). The Shruti are ancient texts which are
considered most authoritative. They have no author and are central to Hinduism. They include the four Vedas Rig, Sama, Yuajur and Atharva, and
their embedded texts the Samhitas, the Brahmanas, the Aranyakas, and the early Upanishads. The central ideas of the Upanishads have continued to
influence Hinduism’s thoughts and traditions.
The Smruti texts are books written by a particular author and are considered less authoritative than the Shruti. The Smruti literature is vast and
includes the 125000 verse long epic Mahabharata (story of the great war), the epic Ramayana (story of Lord Rama), books of philosophy and sciences,
poetic literature etc. Embedded into the Mahabharata is Bhagavadgita (the Song of the Lord) a 730 verse poem revered by Hindus as much as
the Shruti. Some even consider it as the holiest book of Hinduism. There is not a Hindu who does not know or recognise one verse of this book.
Hundreds of commentaries have been written on it.
5. Religious observations:
Hinduism being an ancient religion most Hindu holidays are based on cycles of nature to mark change of seasons, to celebrate the harvest etc.
Other holidays are dedicated to a particular God or Goddess. Furthermore religious holidays also differ from state to state.
These religious holidays may include rituals such as worship, processions, music, feasts and feeding the poor. The holidays likely to be
celebrated by most Hindus are: Holi, Deepavali, Dasara or Dassera, Shivaratri, ram navami, Krishna janmashtami, Ganesha Chaturthi, Navaratri
etc.
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Hindu Beliefs Continued...
6. Life Cycle Rituals:
Every Hindu undergoes during their life samskaras or rites of passage or sacraments from conception to death. These are carried out for the smooth
passage of a person’s soul to another world. The hymns chanted during the samskara ceremony invoke blessings from Gods to keep away hostile
spirits that can beset our lives.
From birth to death Hindus live their lives with appreciation of oneness with God and consider life as a gift from God. Therefore Hindus believe life
should be respected and lived according to God’s wishes. A Hindu’s life is guided by righteousness and law of karma.
The number of samskaras varies from 8-16 between various scriptures though nowadays people follow sixteen samskaras. They are: Garbhadan
(conception), Punsavan (engendering male issue), Seemantonayan (doing mother’s hair), Jatakarma (birth ceremony), Namakarana (naming the
child), Nishkramana (going outside with the child), Annaprashana (feeding solid food to the newborn), Chudakarana (cutting or trimming the
child’s hair), Karna-vedha (piercing the ears), Upanayana ((sacred thread investiture and beginning of studies), Samavartana (completion of studies),
Vivaha (marriage ceremony), Grihasthashrama (sacraments relating to house-holders), Vanaprasthashrama (renunciation of house-holder’s life),
Sannyasashrama (leading the life of a monk) and Antyeshti (last rites of the dead).
7. Death and the Afterlife:
Hindus believe in rebirth and reincarnation. They believe that life and death are part of the concept of samsara which is a continuous process
in which the soul is reborn again and again according to the law of Karma, the law of action and reaction. Hindus believe that Karma i.e. deed
in the present life will affect their future life. A good deed today will mean a good birth in the next life.
Hindus believe that though the physical body has a limited span of life the Atman or the soul is part of the Supreme Being and is therefore
immortal and beyond any suffering and not subjected to pleasures or pains. However nature of the Atman changes when it begins to identify
with emotions and desires of the body. It is then called a Jeeva becomes subject to the law of karma. Death is therefore a natural process in
the existence of a jeeva. The jeeva after leaving its previous body adjusts and returns to the earth to continue its journey.
The ultimate goal for Hindus is to escape samsara and attaining moksha, the state of salvation. Once moksha is attained, the soul will be
absorbed into Brahman, the ultimate reality.
When a Hindu is approaching death relatives and friends gather and chant appropriate hymns and when death seems imminent a small
amount of water from the Ganges River should be placed in the dying person’s mouth. If this is not possible before death, then these actions
should take place immediately following the death.
As far as possible the funeral should take place within 24 hours. Adult Hindus are cremated. The cremation is the final purification rite which
will return the five basic components from which the body was formed to their proper places in the environment. The cremation process
breaks the bond between the gross body and the Atman.
There are no Hindu laws against organ and tissue donation, hence it is acceptable to Hindus.
Links:
The following websites may be of use to get additional information about Hinduism.
hinduwebsite.com,
iskoneducationalservices.org,
bbc.co.uk/religion/religions/Hinduism
hindupedia.com
hinduism.about.com
religioustolerance.com
hinduismtoday.com
hinduismfacts.org
Hinduism.co.za
patheos.com
en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hinduism
religionfacts.com/Hinduism
reference.com
hinduheritage.org.au
ancientindia.co.uk
hindujagruti.org
hindumythologyforgennext.blogspot.com
As told by Dilip Chirmuley
Information collected as part of The Golden Rule Interfaith Exhibition 2016 held at the Adelaide City Library 7 September - 9 October 2016,
for further information visit www.abrahaminstitute.com.au