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Explain the importance of pilgrimage to Hindus
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Hinduism and its attachment to the divine
Hindus connect to the divine in a myriad of ways with a myriad of supernatural beings, and gods. They believe they can see and be seen by the divine, this phenomenon is more formerly known as Darshan; with the ultimate goal of being connected with their God. This interconnectedness with the divine is often considered the most meaningful experience a Hindu may experience in their spirituality journey. To seek Darshan one may look to a temple, or sacred site for an up close and personal experience, in a temple a spiritual divine is to be treated as a royal guest would, they worship the god and hold an offering. In a temple there are sixteen different offerings available bestow to the god (127) after the offering the god
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The sense of a physical object is very important to people, as their religion is extremely imagistic they believe that through physical imagery they may access their god, and it becomes easier to be seen. Hinduism unlike other religions does not possess a main book or any one specific founder (137) “there are as many Hinduisms as there are Hindus” this simple quote although perhaps a bit of an overstatement speaks volumes about the diversity of Hinduism. All Hindus however do agree on one main thing that is called atman, atman is a small piece, that a Hindu may inherit of their main god; formerly know as Brahman. Atman is Brahman, and vice versa. Atman is the “undying soul of ones self”. Atman is ever evolving via reincarnation. Hindus believe Brahman possesses characteristics of “supreme unitary reality, and that Brahman is the ground of all reality” Brahman is revered as their “supreme god” (141). Brahman is that accordingly everywhere and in everything most Hindus believe and hold to this idea of Brahman. Brahman is also considered to have infinite
Some of the most prominent aspects of Hinduism are the atman and samsara which is one the clearest distinctions between Hinduism and other religions. When Krishna states, “I have never not existed; nor have you, nor have these lords of men. Nor will we cease to exist, all of us, from now onwards” (Bhagavad Gita, 185), he is referring to the atman or the human soul which is believed to have always existed and will continue to exist. And when he says, “Just as one throws out old clothes and then takes on other, new ones; so the embodied self casts out old bodies as it gets other, new ones” (Bhagavad Gita, 187), he is talking about samsara and reincarnation. It is from this text, where Hinduism gets its defining characteristics. As long as the Gita continues to be relevant in India so will these philosophies. It reinforces the idea of reincarnation, the soul, and duty which shapes the way the Hindus live their lives. The goal for a Hindu is to break out of samsara and achieve Brahman, and according to the Gita, fulfilling one’s dharma is the way to accomplish this. The Bhagavad Gita is significant to Hinduism, because it has helped Hindus identify an ultimate goal and teaches them how to achieve
Hinduism and Buddhism There are many religions that are practiced around the world, especially in Asia where there are eight different religions being practiced. In the country of India, Buddhism and Hinduism are the main religions that are practiced today. Buddhism and Hinduism were both founded in Asia, but they were founded by two different people and practiced in two different ways and languages. Buddhism is a living tradition that is passed down from teacher to student as a set of instruction and techniques for sanity and brilliance in the inner self and the world. Hinduism is more based on the thoughts and attitude about one’s everyday life, and reflects in his actions.
All in all, the very sight of death and dead person, made Gautam Buddha realize that “Life contains suffering” and it was only through the sense of sight that he was able to extract four noble truths from Four sights in Buddhism. Hence sense plays a major role in Indian Religion.
Puja is an auspicious activity that Buddhist adherents practice at a Temple or at home in their daily lives which may assist their path to nirvana. “Single-minded intense sitting…” is the key to proper meditation (Dogen) highlights that for one to transcend into a higher state, they must be able to meditate without the need to burn incense which distracts their senses from the environment. Puja portrays that rather than having the focus on physical matters, one should give focus on the spiritual side. Hence, the belief of mind over matter exists. Temple Puja is a place which adherents may practice rituals, allowing adherents to take on Buddhahood and contemplate about one’s self. The practice involves reciting prayers, chanting, bowing, and lighting incense which is all symbolic; Incense symbolises the purifying of oneself which represents the concept of achieving nirvana as the incense distracts one from their senses. During Puja, the adherents see the image of Buddha, hear the chanting, and smell the burning incense which make their experience multi-sensory. The monks of the Sangha usually chant ‘Hail Jewel of the Lotus’, bringing the adherent closer to nirvana, or they chant ‘Perfection of Wisdom’, enhancing the adherent’s understanding of their life. In Temple Puja, offerings are also made to bring about good Karma. Temple Puja is the interaction point between the Sangha and the adherent, thus creating a connection in the Buddhist community. The three jewels become non-existent if the connection between the Sangha and adherent did not exist. The Eightfold path plays an immense role in Puja: Right intention and view relates to the way an individual offers something. Right speech and action is the making of offering, bowing and chanting. Right effort and mindfulness is much more difficult for an adherent to attain but belongs to the meditation and chanting process. Right
Hinduism and Buddhism have different similarities and are in some ways connected to each other. Some of the practices of the two religions are similar in various ways and there are several examples to show this.
Hinduism and Christianity are two religions that have been around for thousands of years. Both of these religions have developed many philosophies on different aspects that can be compared to show their similarities and differences. The Hindu and Christian religion agree on many things. Based on humanity, our society follows some of the rules also because of the religion and laws. From the holy literature, there have been many different concepts that have been pledged but they all are supposed to lead you to the same effects such as a happy, healthy life, contribution to the world around us humans, and some kind of freedom after death. Some of the main subjects that can be reflected upon after learning of the history and fundamentals of these religions are the paths to enlightenment and/or salvation, the style of treating women through religions aspects, and the afterlife. This paper will give an analytic comparison of these two religions relating to the topics.
Hindus believe that when a soul expires, it acquires rebirth in a new body. This cycle is called samsara. To be set free from the endless cycle of birth, death and rebirth one must discover their true nature in order to be with the Brahman in Nirvana. In figure G a picture of a Cambodian statue of the A.D. 900 of Brahma meditating is presented. Nirvana is a state where pain, worry and the outer world do not exist. When a person in Hindu religion has bad Karma, they must take rebirth multiple times. The sacred source of all existence is divided among three gods. Brahma is the creator, Vishnu is the preserver, and Shiva is the destroyer. All three contribute to a person’s life and death and afterlife. In figure H a picture of a Vishnu sculpture is shown, and in figure I a picture of a sculpture of Shiva is
Different religions, different ways, and one aim of maintaining religious identity. Hinduism and Judaism, two of the world’s biggest religions, are seemingly completely unalike. With differences such as their views of afterlife, death and birth Hindus believing in rebirth and “oneness” with Brahman, and Jews believing in a world to come, focusing more on God’s image, never really mentioning what happens after death. Yet when you take a closer look into both religions you find some similarities. Both religions’ rituals focus on the same things, they may be celebrated differently but the meaning behind the celebrations and the meaning behind some of their symbols are the same, and their purposes help people maintain their identity and keep the traditions of their cultures strong.
“If I were asked to define the Hindu creed, I should simply say: Search after truth through non-violent means. A man may not believe in God and still call himself a Hindu. Hinduism is a relentless pursuit after truth... Hinduism is the religion of truth. Truth is God.”
The concept, previously referred to as atman, is understood not as a familiar, day-to-day self, but rather something less physical. This self does not deal with our social selves or psychological selves and is not viewed as a collection of thoughts and feelings that we experience. However, this self is deeper within ourselves that can be thought of as spiritual, permanent and infinite. To fully know this self one must experience a process of deep meditation and withdrawal from society. This process is recognized as a process of ascetic discipline; and through this process one can discover atmans similarity to brahman. According to Hindu thought, Brahman is a hindu concept of absolute reality and is referred to as a transcendent being that all concrete things are dependent upon for existence. According to the Hindu concept of self, Brahman is “spirit of light..who in t...
Most people in the world derive their religious beliefs and traditions from their parents and peer influences. From a religious point of view, “There are many definitions for the term ‘religion’ in common usage. [Broadly defined], in order to include the greatest number of belief systems: ‘Religion is any specific system of belief about deity, often involving rituals, a code of ethics, and a philosophy of life’” (Robinson, 1996). However, in examining Hinduism, it is difficult to label the practices as a religion. This paper will expound upon the Hindu traditions, taking into account the characteristics of sacred elements, their meaning, and significance.
As I have mentioned in the above paragraph that I always had a dream to go visit the Hindu temple, so I decided to visit Hindu temple for my experience project. It is way that is giving me an opportunity to learn and find out interesting things about the Hindu practices. By just visiting to this temple I can find out many differences in between mine and Hindu culture. I have watc...
The experience that I have had at the Hindu Temple was somewhat different that I have anticipated. Right from the beginning, I immersed in a culture that was so unfamiliar to me and so rich in culture and history. First, as I walked in the Temple, I noticed a big pile of shoes on the floor; I realized I have to remove my shoes at the entrance and place in the shoe rack. First thing, that came to my mind, why they did not put their shoes in the shoe rack. I sure I felt different and uncomfortable walking barefoot with the jacket on. As I started walking inside of the room, I remembered to move clockwise as I visit each Deity. As a visitor, I tried to be mindful of their expectation. There was a bell at each deity that I was not aware of its purpose. Truthfully, it was a bit intimidating and uncomfortable, as I did not know what to follow. As I kept walking around the room, I noticed small groups of people were sitting on the floor quietly chanting. Little further, there were another small group of people standing in front of Deity praying along with the priest. Assumed these groups of people could have a different event than other groups
We have also seen that spirituality is the hall mark of indian culture. Since the beginning of Vedas, the seers and rishis had in innovated the experimental and reflective method of gaining knowledge and establishment of way of life. It is the cultivation of inner states it is the inward exploration and aspiration to materialize the human power ability and
Hinduism is regarded as the world’s oldest organized religion, but it’s also a way of life for much of India and Nepal. Unlike other religions, Hinduism allows and encourages multiple paths to the divine. There is no single founder and no single scripture, but is rather a conglomerate of diverse beliefs and traditions. They are often understood to be different means to reach a common end. But this acceptance of variety makes it difficult to identify religious tenets that are specifically Hindu. Still, there are some basic principles common to Hinduism that are essential to one's approach to life.