Hinduism

Reporter: Juvilyn Jugarap

Jay Tuayon
 Historical Background
O Hinduism was given in the 19th century
to describe the wide array of belief
systems in India.
O It was originally known as “Arya
Dharma” or the “Aryan Way.”
O May have originated from the customs
of the early peoples of the Indus valley.
 Sacred Scriptures
O Sacred texts have been passed down
throughout generations by way of
music, recitation, dance and drama.
O Sanskrit has been the language of the
earliest writings (Coogan 2005).
O Sacred writings of the Hindus are
categorized into two classes, the Shruti
and Smriti.
 Shruti
O Shruti means “that which is heard.”
O Regarded as eternal truths that were passed
orally.
O 4 collections of texts of the Vedas form the
Shruti and considered primary sources and
the most authoritative texts of the Hindu
faith.
O Other writings that form part of shruti include
the Samhitas, Brahmanas, Upanishads, and
a few Sutras.
 Vedas
O Set of beliefs based on oral texts .
O The earliest known Sanskrit
Literature from the Brahmanic
period and oldest scriptures of
Hinduism.
O Veda means “knowledge” or
“sacred lore”
 Vedas
O 4 basic Vedic Books:
O Rig – veda,
O Sama – veda,
O Yajur – veda
O Atharva – veda.
 Rig - Veda
O The most important and oldest book
that dates back to around 1500 B.C.E.
to 1200 B.C.E.
O The oldest work of literature in an Indo
– European Language.
O The oldest living religious literature of
the world (Parrinder 1971)
O Collection of over thousand hymns and
more than thousand verses.
Gods and Personification or
Goddesses Attributes

Indra Leader of the devas or

gods; the lord of Heaven;
god of rain and
thunderstorm
Agri god of fire
Messenger of the gods
Adityas Sun - gods

Mitra Deity for honesty,

friendship, contracts, and
meetings
 Gods and Personifications or
Goddesses Attributes
Varuna god of the water; god of
the law of the underwater
world
Ushas deity of dawns

Savitr solar deity

Rudra deity of wind or storm

 Gods and Personification or
Goddesses Attributes
Pushan Solar deity; god of meeting

Brihaspati Diety and religion

Dyaus Pita Sky god; father sky

Prithvi Mother earth

 Gods and Personification
goddesses and Attributes
Surya Chief solar deity;
the sun
Vayu Lord of the winds

Apas Water

Parjanya Thunder and rain

 Yajur – Veda
O Yajur – veda or the “Knowledge
of rites” is the 2nd book.
O Composed between 1200 B.C.E.
to 1000 B.C.E.,
O A compilation of materials
recited during rituals and
sacrifices to deities.
 Sama - Veda
O Sama – veda or the
“knowledge of chants”.
O Collection of verses from the
basic hymns recited by priests
during sacrifices.
 Atharva - veda
O Atharva – veda or the “knowledge given
by the sage Atharva” that date back
around 1500 B.C.E. to 1000 B.C.E.
O Contains rituals used in homes and
popular prayers to gods.
O Contains numerous spells and
incantations for medicinal purposes
and magical aids to victory in battle
among others (Parrinder 1971)
4 main parts of Vedas
OMantras
OBrahmanas
OAranyakas
OUpanishads
O Mantras are hymns and chants for
praising god.
O Brahmanas are explanations of the
Mantras with detailed descriptions of the
sacrificial ceremonies related to them.
O Aranyakas are meditations that explicate
their meaning.
O Upanishads or secret teachings
transcend rituals to elucidate the nature
of the universe and human’s
connectedness to it.
 Shmriti
O Literally means “that which has
been remembered.”
O The great epics Ramayana and
Mahabharata contains the
philosophical poem Bhagavad
Gita, are part of Shmriti.
 Shmriti
O Ramayana and Mahabharata
are national epics of India
and considered to be the
sacred texts of the masses
where they draw their values
and ideals (Brown 1975).
 Ramayana
O A sanskrit epic poem written by the poet
Valmiki consisting of 24000 verses in 7
books and 500 cantos.
O Written between 200 B.C.E and 200
C.E.
O Rama and Sita are the epitome of
perfect man and woman.
O Ravana symbolizes ambition and greed
 Mahabharata
O Composed of around 100,000
verses making it the world’s longest
poem.
O Written around 500 B.C.E
O Attributed to the author Vyasa who
is considered to be the scribe of the
Vedas.
 Mahabharata
O 4 times longer than the Ramayana, 8
times longer than the Iliad and the
Odyssey put together and 15 times longer
than the Bible.
O Along with the Bible and Quran,
Mahabharata ranks in importance among
the sacred writings.
O An epic vision of the Human conditions
(Intrigue, romance, duplicity, moral
collapse, dishonour, and lamentations).
 Bhagavad Gita
O Celebrated episode of
Mahabharata which is translated
as “the Lord’s songs”.
O Written between 2nd century
B.C.E and 3rd century C.E
O Considered as one of the holiest
books by Hindus.
 Bhagavad Gita
O Instructs any person that one may reach
god through devotion, knowledge or
selfless action (Coogan 2005)
O Considered the layman’s Upanishads
because the difficult teachings of
Upanishads are presented here in a
manner that commoners can
understand (Brown 1975)
 Beliefs and Doctrines
O Devotion to one or more gods
O Devotees can pray and offer
sacrifices so they can gain favor
from deities and assist them in
their struggle for salvation.
O Gods and goddesses can be
worshipped at their temples.
 Trimurti
O These are creation,
Preservation and destruction.
O Brahma (the creator)
O Vishnu (the preserver)
O Shiva (the destroyer)
 Brahma
O Has 4 heads and eight hands.
O His chief consort is Saraswati
the goddess of science and
wisdom.
O Brahma’s vehicle is a swan or
goose which symbolizes
Knowledge.
 Vishnu
O Known as a god of love, benevolence,
and forgiveness.
O Primary concern is humanity itself.
O As the preserver, the creation is
withdrawn to a seed whenever he
sleeps but rises again as he wakes up.
O Worship in various forms of his
incarnations or avatars.
 Vishnu
O Based on mythology, Vishnu has
appeared on earth in 9 different forms
and will come a 10th time to end the
present era or kalpa, to bring the world
to an end and recreate it.
O Depicted as having 4 arms.
O His popular manifestation is krishna
who is blue , the colors of infinity and
plays the flute.
Incarnation Form Attributes
Matsya Fish Saved humanity and
the sacred Veda
texts from Flood
Kurma turtle Helped create the
world by supporting
it on his back
Varaha boar Raised the earth out
of water with his
tusks
Incarnation Form Attributes
Narasimha Half – man, Destroyed a tyrant
half – lion king
Vamana Dwarf Subdued king Bali,
a powerful demon
Parshurama Brahmin Destroyed the
warrior class
Rama man Rescued his wife
Sita and killed the
demon Ravana
Incarnation Form Attributes
Krishna man Told the epic poem
Bhagavad Gita to
the warrior arjuna
Buddha Man The enlightened
man

Kalki Horse Yet to come to

earth
 Shiva
O Destroyer, god of death
destruction and disease.
O Also a god of dance, vegetable,
animal and human reproduction.
O Described as having a constantly
erect penis and sexually alert at
all times.
 Yoga
O Derived from the root word yuj
which translates as “to yoke” or
“to join”.
O Developed by the sage Patanjali
who lived in the 2nd century B.C.E.
O Patanjali considered as the
“father of modern yoga”.
 4 Yoga Practices
Jnana Yoga (The Way of The path of knowledge,
Knowledge) wisdom, introspection, and
contemplation.
Bhakti Yoga (The Way The path of devotion,
of Love) emotion, love, compassion
and service to God and
others.
 4 Yogas Practices
Karma Yoga (The Way of The path of action, service to
Work) others, mindfulness and
remembering the levels of our
being while fulfilling our
actions or Karma in the world.
Raja Yoga (The Way of The path of meditation that
Meditation) directly deals with the
encountering and
transcending thoughts of the
mind
O For hindus, there are four
desirable goals of life or
purushartha.
O These are dharma (appropriate
behavior), artha (the pursuit of
legitimate worldly success), kama
(the pursuit of legitimate pleasure),
and moksha (release from rebirth)
Worship and
Observances
 Month Name of Significance
Festival
January Lohri Celebrated in the Punjab,
this marks the end of
winter.

February Pongal – A feast held in south

Sankranti India to celebrate the rice
harvest.

March Holi The national celebration

of spring and the new
year.
Month Name of Significance
Festival
March Shivaratri A national honoring of Shiva;
worshippers fast during the day
and an all – night vigil is held at
Shiva temples.
April Sri Vaishnavas An honoring of Vishnu and his
consort Sri, celebrated in
Madras at the beginning of the
hot season; Images of Vishnu
are taken from the temples to
the seashore
May Rathyatra The birthday of lord Jagannath,
celebrated with chariots in Puri
Months Name of Significance
festivals
August Janmashtami The birthday of Krishna,
celebrated nationally;
worshippers fast during
the day and break the
fast in the evening,
following a special puja,
or worship
Septembe Dusserah A celebration of the
triumph of good over evi,
in honor of Durga or
 Months Name of Significance
Festival
September Ganesh The birthday of
Chaturthi Ganesh, celebrated
nationally throughout
India; Huge Images of
Ganesh are paraded
October Diwali A national celebration
in honor of Rama and
his consort