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Hinduism
Basic Data
Christianity
Hinduism
Adherents
2 billion (32%)
900 million (15%)
Leading Person
Jesus
None
Holy Book
Bible
Veda
Clergy
Bishops, Priests
Brahmin, Guru
House of Worship
Church
Temple
Theology
Monotheistic-Trinitarian
Henotheistic
Soteriology
Passion of Christ; Baptism
Moksha
Holidays
Easter
Christmas
Pentecost
Yugaadi/Ugaadi (new year)
Vasanta Ritu (spring; new life)
Sri Ramanavami (Rama birthday)
Fasting
Lent (Advent)
Vegetarian
Terms
Important Terms
 Atman: Hindu concept of the eternal soul
 Avatar: Hindu concept of the incarnation or earthly
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manifestation of a deity
Bhagavad-Gita: Sanskrit for 'Song of the Lord'; this text is
regarded as the crowning achievement of Hindu sacred
literature
Brahma: Hindu god of creation
Brahman: Hindu concept for the spiritual oneness of all
reality
Brahmin: Priestly caste of Indian society
Important Terms
 Guru: Spiritual teacher
 Krishna: Incarnation of the Hindu god Vishnu
 Henotheism: Belief in one god without denying the existence
of others
 Moksha: release from the cycle of death and rebirth in Indian
religions; liberation
 Samsara: Sanskrit for 'the cycle of rebirth‘
 Shiva: Hindu god of destruction and rejuvenation
Important Terms
 Puja: a religious ritual performed by Hindus as an offering to
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various deities, distinguished persons, or special guests
Karma: Action, deed; usually understood as cause and effect
Dharma: behaviors that are considered to be in accord with
the natural order
Yoga: physical, mental and spiritual disciplines or practices
Upanishad: Philosophical materials in the Vedic literature
Vishnu: Hindu god of preservation and love; appears on earth
on various forms (avatars) in times of crisis
General Overview
What is Hinduism
 The term “Hindu”
 Originally the name of the Indus River (Hindus => Indus)
 Used by the English to describe the religion of people who were
not Muslim, Buddhist, Jain or Sikh
 Used primarily as a category in taking a census
 “Hinduism” includes a wide variety of practices and beliefs
 No central theological tradition
 Some practices and beliefs are contradictory
 Many core practices and beliefs have changed over time due to
reactions against other religions, or influences by other religions
What is Hinduism
 KEY: All religious paths honoring the Vedas are commonly
gathered under the term Hinduism
 Preferred label is Sanatana Dharma
 Sanatana = ageless
 Dharma = behavior, way of life (religion)
 This label emphasizes that Hinduism is not so much a
systematic set of beliefs as a way of life
Legal Definition
 In 2002/2003, the Indian Supreme Court (2002/2003)
stated that a Hindu:
 Accepts that the Vedas are the foundation of Hindu philosophy;
 Has a spirit of tolerance (truth has many sides);
 Accepts the belief that vast cosmic periods of creation,
maintenance, and dissolution continuously recur;
 Accepts belief in reincarnation;
 Recognizes that paths to truth and salvation are many;
 Recognizes that there may be numerous gods and
goddesses to worship [Henotheism];
 Does not believe in a specific set of philosophic
concepts.
A Philosophical System
 Metaphysics: Monism
 Epistemology: Natural knowledge of the Supreme
 The Supreme is one (monotheism)
 The Supreme has many forms
 Moral: Ethics are central to an orderly social life
 Theodicy:
 Suffering occurs when karma is out of balance
 The ultimate cause of suffering is people’s ignorance of the Self
(which is omniscient, omnipotent, omnipresent, perfect, and
eternal)
 Anthropology: The more a person understands the above, the
more he will realize that he is god, and god is him.
 Gandhi: Not “god is truth” but “truth is god”
Vedas
 The foundation for Hinduism are the Vedas
 Hindu “holy book”
 Consists of four parts
 Samhitas: hymns of praise in worship of deities.
 Brahmanas: directions about performances of the ritual
sacrifices to the deities.
 The Brahmanas explain the symbolic correspondences between the
microcosm of the ritual process and the “real world” in which rituals are
performed.
 Aranyakas: meditations by recluses
 Upanishads: teaching from highly realized spiritual masters;
they explain the personal transformation that results from
psychic participation in the ritual process.
Basic Beliefs
Concept of God
 Nirguna Brahman - God
without attributes
 Saguna Brahman - God with
attributes
 Saguna Brahman can be
worshipped in any shape or
form, human or otherwise
Hindu “Trinity”
 The Supreme God
(Brahma)
 Paramatma=The Supreme
Soul
 Three aspects, roles or
powers of the same divine
being
 Brahma - the Creator
 Vishnu/Krishna - the
Preserver & Protector
 Shiva - the Destroyer
Soteriology
 Hinduism teaches the cycle of life: birth, life, death,
rebirth (reincarnation)
 All life is created by the Supreme God (Brahama)
 Every living thing has soul, called by Hindus, ATMA.
 Deeds (Karma) in this life determine life form in the
next life.
 One can go through the cycle of birth and rebirth up to 84
million times as the belief is that there are 84 millions
species on earth.
 Reincarnation: eternal soul traverses through different
bodies till it finds liberation (moksha)
Karma
 Karma - the law of cause
and effect; “you reap what
you sow”
 Bad karma is weighed
against good karma
Moksha
 The ultimate goal of existence is to achieve moksha
 Moksha is the release of your atma to become part of the
paramatma, or great soul of the universe.
 Analogy: This is understood if we think of an eye-dropper of
water squeezed out into the Atlantic thus ceasing to be a
separate entity, but being absorbed into the ocean
Four Goals of Human Life
 Kama – fulfillment of desires
 Artha – accumulation of
wealth
 Dharma – performance of
social and religious duties
 Moksha – freedom from want
Four Paths to Moksha
 KarmaYoga - Path of
righteous action
 BhaktiYoga - Path of selfless
devotion
 Jnana Yoga - Path of rational
inquiry
 RajaYoga - Path of
renunciation
Temple Worship
 Temples provide an
atmosphere conducive for
spiritual progress
 Centers of social and
cultural activities
 Provide a place for
collective worship and
prayers
Six Philosophical Schools
 Sankhya - Sage Kapila
 Yoga - Sage Patanjali
 Mimamsa - SageJaimini
 Vedanta – Sage Vyasa
 Nyaya - Sage Gautama
 Vaisheshika - Sage Kanada
Brief History
History of Hinduism
 Originated between 4000 and 2000 BC
 No single founder
 Vedas: the oldest scriptures of Hinduism
 Veda means “to know”
 Rig,Yajur, Sama and Atharva Veda
 Upanishads explain the philosophical ideas in story and dialogue
form
Veda Vyasa
 1500 BC
 classified the Vedas into the four
traditional collections
 composed the 18 Puranas
 composed his great poetic work,
the Mahabharata in a period of
two and a half years
Sankara
 Advaitha philosophy
 7th century AD
 traveled all over India having
public debates with other
philosophers
 true happiness can be
attained by removing
avidya(ignorance) and maya
(self deception)
Ramanuja
 10th Century AD
 Vishistadvaitha
 wanted everybody
irrespective of social
standing to enjoy the
eternal bliss of Lord
Narayana
 Bhakti - complete
surrender to the Lord
Madhva
 Dwaitha philosophy
 12th Century AD
 the world is not an illusion.
 solitary study of the
scriptures, performing
one's duty without selfinterest, practical acts of
devotion
Vivekananda
 First Hindu leader to visit
America
 Famous address at the World
Parliament of Religions in
Chicago on September 11,1893
 Spent three years preaching the
Vedanta philosophy in America
and England
 Founded the Ramakrishna
Mission
Contemporary Hindu Leaders in America
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David Frawley
Satguru Sivaya
Subramuniyaswami
Mahesh Yogi
Satchidananda
Mata Amritanandamayi