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The American Hinduism 2 Hinduism The American Heritage Dictionary defines religion as the belief in and reverence for a supernatural power or powers regarded as creator and governor of the universe, or a set of beliefs, values, and practices based on the teachings of a spiritual leader. It also defines philosophy as the love and pursuit of wisdom by intellectual means and moral self-discipline, and the inquiry into the nature of things based on logical reasoning rather than empirical methods. This paper will show how Hinduism fits well in to both categories, meaning that it is a philosophy and a religion for the people who practice it. Hinduism is the name given to one of the most ancient religion practices in India. Vedanta is the true name of this religion.
When British began to populate India, this ancient religion evolved into what is known today as Hinduism. Hinduism constitutes an extremely intricate religion upon which a single definition cannot be composed. The premier feature of this religion is the huge difference of beliefs and rituals among its practitioners. Most Hindus are Indians or of Indian decent. However, as Hinduism spread throughout southeast Asia and Indonesia, other ethnic groups adopted Hinduism and added their own ethnic characteristics.
The major teachings of Hinduism state that salvation is achieved through a spiritual oneness of the soul, atman, with the ultimate reality of the universe, Brahma. To achieve this goal, the soul must obtain moksha, or liberation from the samsara, the endless cycle of birth, death, and rebirth. Different sects of Hinduism teach different paths to moksha. As a result of these basic teachings, come Hindu beliefs in reincarnation, karma (material actions resulting from the consequences of previous actions), and the religious justification of the caste system.
There are several principals of Hinduism. The theme of spiritual oneness between the one ultimate reality, known as Brahma, and the soul, or atman, is mandated. In accordance, everything in the world is an illusion, merely a part of Brahma, praised as Creator (Clarke, p. 132). Brahma is considered the creator of all entities of the world, including Gods. The ultimate goal of all Hindus is to achieve pure reality through unification of the soul with Brahma. However, as mandated, each soul must first achieve liberation, or moksha, from the cycle of life known as samsara.
This prompts the Hindu theme of reincarnation. Upon death each person is reborn as an animal, human being, or heavenly body. The status of a persons next life is determined by the deeds committed in the previous life. This principle is referred to as karma. The status of lives within the life cycle prompted the establishment of the caste system. This system exhibits significant social and economic implications on the Hindu population.
It dictates choice of occupation, marriage partners, foods consumed, and other issues. Classes were originally based on an individuals natural qualities and functions evolved into rigid divisions over time. In general, strict divisions have traditionally been imposed by the Hindu community between all castes. Because a person is perceived to have been born into a caste, no transferability is permitted between members of different castes. Additionally, a non-Hindu cannot enter a caste nor is marriage permitted outside of a caste (Brown, p. 209).
The resulting segregation based on caste theology has remained persistent in India throughout history. Hindus of higher castes have traditionally feared pollution by lower caste members through such actions as closeness, consuming foods cooked by lower castes, and drinking from the same water source (Clarke, p. 128). Through political movements in the mid- 1900 s, caste barriers have been relaxed to some extent. The movement to remove discrimination against the lower castes was spearheaded by Mahatma Gandhi, who taught that the removal of this blot and curse upon Hinduism was essential to Indian independence. This relaxation has been particularly noticed in urban areas.
All Hindus are now eligible to obtain an education that has prompted equal employment opportunities. Social intermixing in urban areas between members of different castes has become more tolerated. Furthermore, discrimination based on caste status was politically declared illegal in 1950. Dharma is the moral law that Hindus follow throughout life.
Through the teachings of Gita, one can find the right way of living and the correct attitude for every situation. Dharma can be applied to every walk of life. According to Gita, the path of devotion is the easiest path to finding God. With worship and meditation people can find God. Along with worship, action is required.
Action is the way of surviving but it should not bind the person, instead this action must free the person. Therefore action and work must be treated like worship and must be done in the most perfect way and to the best of ones ability. Yet, one must work and offer the fruits of this work to God. The Gita teaches that we should live a detached life, whatever we do is only Gods work done through us. This detachment does not mean we run away from the responsibility, instead it means that we do our best and be free from our objects of desire. We should reject all worldly things in order to achieve spirituality.
Therefore, our work should not contain selfish interest, as it should be offered as a service to others and its fruits to God. This is the main theme of the teachings of Gita that apply to every aspect of life. According to this view, a student should look for knowledge and perform the academic tasks not to earn grades or a degree hoping for a better life or a good salary. A student doing that is acting with selfish interest for the purpose of a reward. Instead, a student should be detached from such benefit when performing academic duties.
These duties should be performed with God in mind and to be useful in life through action, also they are performed to benefit the society and humanity. Following the Dharma of a student will make that student detached from worldly desires in addition it will eliminate stress from a students life. This attitude will help students overcome anxiety before tests and eliminate the pressure of academic work. The general attitude will be that a student does the work because of wanting to do it rather than having to do it.
This will make students attend classes with enthusiasm and homework will not be a burden anymore. This should not be interpreted as laziness. A person must still perform the work and to his / her best ability, only the fruit is rejected but the work itself is welcomed. The teachings of Gita and the use of the Dharma in the academic life will enhance the academic experience. In addition, it will enhance each students abilities, as it will give more freedom to pursue the knowledge instead of worrying about the grades.
When Hinduism originated as a religion it was mainly concerned with sacrifices for ancestors. Sacrifices were supposed to be a means of survival. As the Indian philosophies evolved, Hindus developed the concept of reincarnation. The essence of that concept lied in the belief that no one is able to remain in the afterworld forever and eventually should return to the cycle of life, death and rebirth. As transcendent as the concept of reincarnation was, it did not provide Hindus with an ultimate salvation from suffering. Thus every living thing must eventually suffer and die.
Such views resulted in further development of Hindu religion, Hindu philosophers such as Manu questioned the concepts of Vedas and laid the foundation for a philosophy that transformed Hinduism from a simple ancestral religion to a set of very complex religious and philosophical beliefs. Following the age of Vedas people of Hinduism looked for happiness through the way of action. The way of action could be very well considered an example of cultural transcendence. The main doctrine of such philosophy told that one must do all the tasks presented to him / her by the place in society and social status; and the result of such rightful life would be the rebirth into a better social position. With time the way of action philosophy became less satisfactory for its followers, since it seemed to lack the total liberation from the infinite cycle of death and rebirth.
As Hindu religion became more complicated and people began to look for total liberation from the circle of death and rebirth the segment of Hinduism known as the way of devotion came into existence. Followers of the way of devotion based their beliefs on the myths about gods such as Shiva, Vishnu and Krishna. These gods were believed to be a manifestation of ultimate reality. Believers in the way of devotion were supposed to worship their god through sacrifices and rituals devoting their lives to the belief and were expected to be saved from the realm of maya by the manifestation of ultimate reality to which they entrusted their lives.
The essence of the way of devotion was a mythical transcendence, because it was heavily based on the myth about the encounters between mortal humans and divine beings that described the main doctrines of this part of Hinduism to its pursuers. Following the age of Vedas, texts known as Upanishads came into existence. Unlike the Vedas, Upanishads did not talk about the rules of sacrifices and did not contain hymns to gods. Instead, those texts concentrated on the essence of reality and on the supreme being ruling the cosmos-the Brahman. The Upanishads contained one hundred and eight writings. The main theme of these writings was reality.
But it was not the reality which we perceive, because everything we see and know is an illusion, but the reality that is real, that does not change; the reality that has answers to every question, including the one about suffering. In addition, Upanishads spoke of relationship between the world in which Hindus live, the Brahman, and the ultimate reality. In Upanishads Brahman was identified as the only true and absolute reality. The Brahman is everywhere, it is everything, but at the same time no one is aware of its being. The Upanishads used metaphors to draw the picture of Brahman existence. Philosophy portrayed in Upanishads implies that one can gain liberation by discovering the true Self.
To do so is to follow the way of knowledge. Ignorance of Brahman was understood to be the cause for the endless cycle of birth, life and death. After gaining the truth, the knowledge of Atman, one is freed from the life in ignorance, and, therefore, freed from constant rebirth. The way to find Atman was to engage in deep meditation. A follower of the way of knowledge was to look inside and peel off layer by layer: any needs, senses, feelings, emotions, thoughts, and the awareness of the world, because all of that is an illusion which prevents one from seeing the true Self- the Atman. Many yogis who follows the way of knowledge seem to find inner peace and understanding of life.
Transcendence offered by the philosophy of Upanishads seems to be real enough to follow the path which leads to it. That is why the philosophy of the way of knowledge was so widely accepted in the days of its emergence and later became a base for many other philosophies of India. One would think that Christianity and Hinduism would have nothing in common, but in some ways there are some similarities between the two. In this comparison that I am making one can find these similarities and differences. To define Hinduism is very nearly impossible, it is not so much a religion as a religion-social system. Although Hinduism contains a whole farrago of theologies, philosophies, and sacrificial systems, nevertheless its one dominant note is that of caste.
Elaborate tissues of ancient religion-social laws were created and were indestructible. Hindu s tried to build a wall of law around the faith so that none could stray from it. The main part of the wall was naturally the caste distinctions, and these therefore received the most careful attention of the lawmakers. The superiority of the Brahmans and the inferiority of the laborer were declared to be ordered in heaven according to divine plans for the prosperity of the world. The cast system was with a man like his breath, was with him instantly from birth to death.
Indeed, unlike his breath, it was suppose to follow him into the grave. These laws that regulate the caste are saved for there is no other unifying element in all Hinduism. Also Christians often form castes or endogamous bodies analogous to castes. This is done to form a more or less separate community. There are two major sections in Hinduism and at least fifty-seven sub sections, each are seeking to attain salvation with the aid of its own gods and ceremonies. Christianity, which is even more intensively divided, is at least united by its recognition of Jesus.
Hinduism has no such common doctrine. Christians and Hindu s are also alike because of temples and churches. Both of these places are used to worship their gods and are also very sacred. Hinduism, despite the fact that it has never been united on any creed or rite, has rarely if ever led to bloodshed. Unlike the Christians, who again and again have resorted even to wholesome slaughter in order to extirpate all heresy, the Hindu s have rarely persecuted divergence of faith. They have been wise enough to see that each man has a right to worship as he sees himself fit, and that no man is justified in seeking to force his doctrine on his neighbor.
No matter how many evils that have been debited against Hinduism, it is very tolerant. Hindu s through assimilating some Christian ideas, often regard missionary propaganda as an attack on their national genius and time-honored institutions. In this they take offense at what they regard as the disrespectful utterances of Christian missionary literature. Hindu s are averse to the organization, the reliance on authorities, considering these obstacles to be harmful to cooperation. Hindu s subscribe that missionaries should confine their activities to humanitarian service. Since independence, many influential people, who often find in Hinduism what might be attractive in Christianity, have indeed viewed conversion with disfavor.
As one knows Christianity and Hinduism are different. There are only a few similarities that can be found between the two faiths. Religion plays a very important aspect of people s lives. Hinduism goes farther then Christianity, because Christianity only lays out the rules for people to live by and Hinduism makes its followers think and analyze their faith, thus making it a philosophy just as it is a religion.
Bibliography Zimmer, Heinrich, Robert. Philosophies Of India. New York: Pantheon Books, 1951. Brown, W. Norman, Hinduism. Encyclopedia Americana, 1995.
Clarke, Peter B. , The Worlds Religions: Understanding the Living Faiths. Marshall Editions Developments Limited, 1993. Farquhar, J. N. , The Crown of Hinduism. New Delhi: Oriental Books Reprint Corporation, 1971.
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