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Breeana Martinez

Mrs. Perez

World Religion- Block A

December 12, 2017

Hinduism

Hinduism is a religion that emphasizes freedom from the material world through ridding

of desires and the elimination of personal identity. A little over one billion people are currently

practicing Hinduism worldwide. One who follows Hinduism is called a Hindu. Hindus believe in

over 300 million gods and goddesses. Although Hindus believe in so many gods they have three

main principal gods which are Brahma, who created the universe, Vishnu, who preserves the

universe, and Shiva, who destroys the universe. Hinduism originates in India and was founded

sometime between 1000 and 1500 BCE. There is no known founder of this faith but, it was

brought to India by the Aryan Indo-Europeans tribes.

​Hinduism focuses on connection between all living beings. This is then reflected in the

Hindu teachings on reincarnation and dharma. Reincarnation is the belief one soul will then go

on to live many different lives. Dhmara is a moral law that determines one’s conduct and is one

of the four ends of life.They believe in a divine spirit who’s characteristics are expressed through

many gods and goddesses. Karma is the universal law of cause and effect, through this and

moving to the top of the caste system, Hindus are able to reach samsara or, the final death.
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Puja is the Hindu name for worship, it consists of ​murtis (images), mantras (prayers) and

diagrams of the universe (mandalas). Hindus’ mutri ​contain images of the family's chosen deity.

Daily worship is often a more casual form of the elaborate puja that is performed in the temple.

This daily worship is performed by the ladies of the household, early in the mornings. Children

may also be taught their tradition by also attending these morning worships. The leaders are

Hinduism are called Brahmins and are the highest class of the caste system.

The sacred writing are ​Vedas, the early sacred literature of Hinduism, which literally

means knowledge. This is a prodigious body of literature, originally orally passed down. They

are a set of hymns and other religious documents composed and written in India between 1500

BCE and 1000 BCE. The Upanishads are a continued version of the Vedic teachings and were

written between 800 and 400 B.C.E. They elaborate on how the soul ,Atman, can be united with

the ultimate truth, Brahman, through contemplation and mediation. The Puranas are post-Vedic

writing consisting of a complete narrative of the history of the Universe from creation to

destruction, genealogies of the kings, heroes, and demigods.

Hinduism being the oldest religion has more symbols than all other religions. The most

popular of these symbols is the the Om or Aum which consists of three sanskrit letters, which

stands for Brahman, the almighty. A lotus flower is also often used as a sign of culture and

politeness. Many Indian women also wear bindis to symbolize they are married and to act as a

third eye as a way to open themselves up to the world around them. Symbols are extremely

important and add to the many different cultural aspects of Hinduism.

There are great many days of observations celebrated amongst Hindus. ​Diwali is the

festival of Lights is a major holiday which is also celebrated by Buddhists, Jains and Sikhs. It
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extends over 5 days and celebrates the victory of good over evil. ​Hinduism's nine most holy

days, Navratri represents a lot more than just prayers and abstinence from food. It stands for

favor and festivity and celebrated all over north India, and every Hindu community worldwide,

these nine days are solely dedicated to Maa Durga. Being that culture plays a key role in

Hinduism these festivals and days of observation are respected very highly.

The Hindu view of social order is that people are different and because of this different

people will fit well into different parts of society.​ ​The Aryan group developed the caste system,

which ranked society according to class. First the Brahmins which are the priests, Second

Kshatriyas are soldiers, the king-warrior class, Lastly Vaishyas are merchants, farmers, Sutras

laborers and craftspeople. Harijahns aren’t even truly a part of the system for they are the

outcasts or "untouchables”. Untouchables were thought to be descended from the Harappan

aboriginal people who are extremely poor and discriminated against. The caste system is a way

in which Hindus move there way up through the system each time they are reincarnated until

they finally reach moskha. The roles of women in Hindu society is now changing, as they are

throughout the world. Increasingly, the life pattern of females resembles the stages of life for

males. An ancient code says that women must be honored and adorned by their fathers, brothers,

husbands and brothers-in-law who desired their own welfare. Even in the old ​Vedic world​,

women were needed in order for the rituals to work, even though they had no official role to play

in them.

Polytheistic religions have traditionally been among the world's most religiously tolerant

faith. The linkage of religion, the national government, and nationalism led to a degeneration of

the separation of church and state in India and a decrease in the level of religious tolerance in
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that country. There are 700 million in India that practice Hinduism, this makes up 70 percent of

India’s population.

Hinduism is the 3rd largest religion in the world, following Christianity and Islam. The

most interesting thing I learned about Hinduism is they believes in only one god, but in many

forms. Through this followers choose which form they want to follow. It is one of the few

religions that does not consider pursuing a life of wealth a sin. Lakshmi, the goddess of wealth of

both the material and spiritual essence of it, makes that fact evident. Men and women deities are

worshipped with equal reverence in Hinduism. Since in Hinduism, god is considered both male

and female, each sex is thought to be equal and have the same amount of power.

I learned that Hinduism has had so much history being that it is the oldest known

religion. I also discovered that Hindus believe in one god but that only god takes on the form of

many gods. Through learning more about Hinduism I am able to better understand and be open

to other people’s cultural and religious backgrounds.

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Work Cited

Alf Hiltebeitel . Ed. Lindsay Jones . Vol. 6. 2nd ed. Detroit: Macmillan Reference USA, 2005.

Monastery, Kauai's Hindu. “Nine Beliefs of Hinduism.” ​Basics of Hinduism​, Kauai's Hindu

Monastery, 9 Dec. 2017, www.himalayanacademy.com/readlearn/basics/nine-beliefs.

Narayanan, Vasudha, et al. “Hinduism.” ​Encyclopædia Britannica​, Encyclopædia Britannica,

Inc., 18 Oct. 2017, www.britannica.com/topic/Hinduism.

“Religions - Hinduism: Worship.” ​BBC​, BBC, 27 Sept. 2005,

www.bbc.co.uk/religion/religions/hinduism/worship/worship.shtml​.

“Roots of Hinduism (Article).” ​Khan Academy​, Khan Academy, 12 Nov. 2015,

www.khanacademy.org/humanities/art-asia/beginners-guide-asian-culture/hindu-art-culture/a/roo

ts-of-hinduism​.