Hinduism 101

Hinduism 101 consists mainly of two pieces, exchanged through the Stories.com spiritual newsletter. The first part consists of a short article written by Allarius in a recent newsletter. It is an interesting introduction written by an American who is not a Hindu herself. Thus, more is the credit for stepping out of the box and trying to understand another cultural context. It does bring out however, elements that fascinate a western audience, such as the high reverence Hindus have for cows. In the second part of this article, I am reproducing a letter that I wrote in the spiritual newsletter explaining why it is such a ‘live’ religion, and I write from the point of view of a person who is a ‘born’ Hindu. This comments on the high reverence that Hindus have, not just for the cow, but for all animals and living things and the connections with nature. Allarius begins by saying that Hinduism is the world’s oldest ‘organized’ religion. In fact it is not an ‘organized’ religion at all. In the very next paragraph she correctly acknowledges that “it does not have a single founder, a specific theological system, a single system of morality, or a central religious organization.” The philosophy itself was the creation of the Aryans who migrated into India in ancient times. More recently, there have been some political forces which have organized themselves in order “ to save the religion from political attack”, but the followers of such groups are minuscule. It is a religion which has never tried to ‘convert’ people from other religions; neither has it ever attacked others to propagate it’s cause. It is known as the Sanatana dharma and is a gentle ‘way of life’ based strongly on non-violent spiritual tenets and philosophy. It is interesting to note that the Swastika is one of the ancient symbols of the Aryans and the Hindus and is used in ritual ceremonies even today. However, the Swastika that Hitler used to propagate Aryan supremacy, is the wrong adaptation of the real one. He used the symbol in a reverse form. He goofed; and the world has used Hitler's wrong Swastika ever since.

There are many esoteric aspects of this philosophy. It’s views on cosmology, cosmic cycles, creation and destruction of the universe, natural laws and energy fields; these are very close to those of modern Physics (read Frijof Capra, The Tao of Physics). But many of the things that we get to hear about it are not part of the main religious scriptures which are the Vedas,the Upanishads and the Bhagavat Gita(which is part of the epic Mahabharata, the world's longest poem). Stories, myths and legends have spawned many art, music, folk and classical dance forms like the Bharat Natyam, Kuchipudi, Manipuri or Oddisi and vocal traditions like Bhajans and Kirtans. These folk traditions and the highly evolved and stylized music, acting and dance forms are interwoven into the psyche of the people and their spirituality. So, let’s start simple and let Allarius do the talking for a while. I’ll be back later after she finishes her part.

Hinduism- by Allarius

Hello one and all! It is a truly wonderful July for me and I am happy to be alive! I can’t think how many times I count my blessings about all the wonderful things/People/events I have in my life. I think it is important to count your blessings because overall it is far too easy to concentrate on the negative things don’t you think? So this week we move on to Hinduism. This is a faith I have always been fascinated with.

Hinduism is generally regarded as the world’s oldest organized religion, dating back to somewhere between 2200-4000 BC. It is grown to become the third largest religion behind Islam and Christianity claiming about 762 million followers (about 13 percent of the world’s population). The major difference between Hinduism and Christianity or other Western religions is that it does not have a single founder, a specific theological system, a single system of morality, or a central religious organization.

Hinduism is thought to have developed from a series of invasions over thousands of years adding to the existing Indus Valley culture; but the most major influence is believed to come from a nomadic Indo-European tribe that invaded northern India around 1500 BC bringing with them their belief of Vedism. This theory has been challenged in recent years by further analysis and new findings of archeologists and cultural analysts, but no formal changes have been made as yet.

Hinduism is commonly viewed as a polytheistic religion, worshipping multiple Gods and Goddesses. However, some groups consider Hinduism primarily a monotheistic religion because Hindus recognize one Supreme God, called Brahma. Hindus believe the entire universe is seen as one divine entity who is simultaneously at one with the universe and who transcends it as well. In actuality Hinduism is a henotheistic religion, which is one that recognizes a single deity, but recognizes other gods and goddesses as manifestations or faucets of that supreme God. Besides Brahma, Hindus typically recognize Vishnu, the preserver and Shiva, the destroyer. Most Hindus are followers of either Vaishnavaism, which generally regards Vishnu as the ultimate deity; or Shivaism, which generally regards Shiva as the ultimate deity. Rural Hindus sometimes worship their own earth goddess, believing her to have the power over fertility/disease and life/death.

Hindus believe in the transmigration of souls or reincarnation, believing in the transfer of one's soul after death into another body. This is samsara, or the continuing cycle of birth, life, death, and rebirth through many lifetimes. Samsara goes hand in hand with Karma, the accumulated sum of one's good or bad deeds. It is Karma that will determine the way that an individual will live in their next life. It is possible with good deeds, pure acts, thoughts, and devotions, to be reborn at a higher level in the next life. To perform bad deeds cause a person to be born at a lower level or even as an animal. To Hindus, this system is the explanation for the unequal distribution of wealth, prestige, and suffering in the world. Eventually it is thought that one can escape karma and samsara and achieve enlightenment. This is the goal of moksha and is one of the four aims of Hinduism. The three other aims are as follows:

dharma: righteousness in religious and daily life. This is the most important of the remaining three.

artha: success in economic life; material prosperity

kama: gratification of the senses; pleasure; sensual, sexual, and mental enjoyment.

Many Hindus are easily recognizable by the mark they bear on the center of the forehead. However, many don’t know what the symbol means. It was traditionally a sign of piety and so that others would know the wearer was Hindu. It actually symbolizes the third eye, the eye that is focused inward on God. Both men and women wear the symbol although it is becoming less common in men. The color of the mark used to be black for single woman and red for married women, but recently women are moving to matching the symbol to the color of their Sari.

As far as the major beliefs and tenets of Hinduism are concerned, they are somewhat extensive, so for the sake of keeping this newsletter manageable I found them best explained on this site. http://www.himalayanacademy.com/basics/conversion/07beliefs.html

Hindus consider cows sacred and many are also vegetarians believing all animal life sacred and holy. The question many ask is, why the cow? Why is a cow considered sacred? The answer that I was able to find is that the cow symbolically represents the sacredness of life and of all creatures. The cow gives milk, cream, yogurt, cheese, butter, ice cream, clothing, shoes, soup broths, steaks, and much more from its body. The cow in actuality is the sustainer of life to the Hindu. The cow represents the soul, the intellect, and unruly human emotions but supersedes us because the cow is very giving and takes nothing but grass and grain, becoming a symbol of abundance.

Well that about sums up this newsletter. I am, as always, just giving the barest sketch of the belief as a whole. I have included various links for anyone who may be interested in more information. Personally, I respect this religion for their ability to live their beliefs. In live their beliefs I am referring to the fact that Hindu’s live for their religion and it is an integral part of daily life. Through daily devotions, meditation, and prayer a Hindu’s beliefs are held at the core of their being. This is something I find very refreshing after being raised in a “I think about my spirituality on Sunday’ family and area of the country. I respect the Hindu’s beliefs and find it’s history and longevity intriguing. As always may your mind be open and your hearts be full! Until next time…

Allarius.

Bhaskar’s Letter to the Editor.

Your editorial piece on Hinduism was well written, as well as any religion that
can be summarized in a few paragraphs. Certain somewhat ‘popular’ views have surfaced which I’d like to comment on. The basic difference between Hinduism and the Semetic religions, is that Hinduism recognizes the truism that everybody is not the same. Different people have different stations in life and different levels of consciousness. Thus on one extreme we may have the highly evolved genetic scientist, the astronaught or the advanced yogi and on the other hand there may be an illiterate street sweeper or farm hand. Everyone has the right to reach God or the supreme consciousness, but the ways have to be different. The pure energy-form all pervading omnipresent omnipotent Advaita God may be appropriate for the evolved genetic scientist and advanced yogi, but not appropriate for the illiterate. The illiterate needs some idol or symbol to identify with and concentrate and meditate on and then transcend (actually this has nothing to do with literacy as many highly literate people are pretty low on the evolutionary scale of consciousness). Take this concept further, and you have different symbolic representations of different aspects that life replicates. Thus duality is OK and so are various forms and dynamic states that one sees in nature, life and the cosmos. We see the ‘rudra’ states of violent change and destruction and the beginnings of other benign states. Brahma (creator), Vishnu (preserver) and Shiva (destroyer) are but different aspects of the whole. Out of destruction comes creation again, as surely as the seasons change and the sun rising by itself. In our higher journey, we may ‘talk’ to Shiva, but you don’t talk to the super-consciousness. Somewhat complex, but then, have you noticed that nature and the universe is a very complex place and God doesn’t talk in terms of straight lines. That nothing in the universe and nature is ever a straight line
(except man made things).

You had a comment on the reverence that Hindu’s have for cows. Let me clarify. There is nothing religious about this. No Hindu scripture actually prevents one from having beef. It must be seen that Hindu society is a very ancient one. Everybody didn’t go to school or university thousands of years ago. Thus most of the codes of good conduct in daily life have come down in terms of ancient stories, myths and legends, The Puranas. The two major epics are the Ramayana and the Mahabharata. These stories have taught common people how to live good lives, the choices that are to be made and moral issues. The characters in these stories are Gods, goddesses, rakshashas (demons), kings and common people. If you ask a common farmer, why he did something in a particular way, he will quote you a story and explain the morality of how Sita had been abducted by Ravana the powerful demon king and the moral issues raised by this abduction and subsequent rescue by Rama. These stories have very little to do with core Hindu religious texts i.e. the Vedas and the Upanishads. It was not expected that the common people would either read or understand the scriptures. Thus myths,legends and other stories have shown the way for the multitudes. There must have been a time in history that the cow population had dwindled and needed protection. Couple this with the fact that India was primarily a rural society and the cow was used in farming, for milk and so on. It is pretty easy to realize why stories would have been spun, which placed this animal under the direct protection of the Gods. Once again, no Hindu scripture has ever prevented anyone from having beef. But stories have built into the psyche, the need to protect the cow.

Thus, most Hindu’s will not touch beef. I do. I am a Hindu, but I love my sirloin steak, my beef burgers and beef kebabs. My mother never has beef but she never did prevent me from having it.

Finally, nature and the animal world is woven into all the myths, legends and epics that were ever written. All the Gods and goddesses have their animal bahan or carriers. Durga, the wife of Shiva and representation of the feminine of the universe, travels on a lion. Saraswati, the goddess of learning travels on a swan. Kartik, the engineer of the universe travels on a peacock. Ganesha is half human and half elephant, travels on a mouse. Shiva’s bahan is a bull called Nandi. It says a lot about the inter-related web that we have with nature and the animal world and the need to protect each aspect of God’s creations. I guess, because of the simple stories, myths and legends, the very common people have been able to ‘live’ the esoteric teachings of a practical religion which does not have a central authority like the pope. The more I see unstructured things surviving and growing, I realize that this is the way of nature and the web of life. Just look at the internet. Isn’t it a web without a central authority? Now, there’s a thought.