INTRODUCTION Hinduism, a modern concept, it is the main, broad, comprehensive and oldest religion of the Indian subcontinent, Nepal and Bangladesh. However, we can say that Hinduism is quite widespread in Caribbean, Northern America, United Kingdom, South Africa and Thailand. (Knott, 2017, p.7) There are about 900 million believers today. In this respect, after Islam and Christianity, the 3rd greatest religion in the world. There is no specific name or an individual founder such as the other religions. Its anonymity is expressed with the traditional term ‘Sanâtana dharma’. The origin, like the name, is based on India. Those who belong to this religion are called Hindu. These religionist Hindu embraces their religion as a life style. …show more content…
The multitude of places they are in and the numerous forms they manifest point to the diversity and richness of the Hindu cultures. However, Hinduism has gone far beyond the culture. It extends to other areas such as social structure, social life of the Hindus, ethical issues, equality policy and nationalism. (Knott, 2017, p.7) Contemporary Hinduism and traditional stories, teachings and rituals influence the lives of Indians living in and around the Indian peninsula in many ways. As I mentioned before, according to Hindus, Hinduism is an eternal tradition called ‘Sanâtana dharma’. According to this, Hinduism goes beyond the history of mankind in terms of origins, the facts have reached the world through revelation and thanks to the Vedas, he has been up to daylight. Contrary to this, Hindu nationalists think the divine truth is revealed to the Aryans, a noble and enlightened race that lived thousands of years ago in India. The common language of Aryans is the great Sanskrit language in which sacred texts are …show more content…
According to the Hindu secularism, state is not independent from religion, every religion is legally entitled to equal representation in the state. The state has no official religion but the transactions that are born from civil law are made according to the religion of the citizen. For instance; ‘Personal Muslim Law’ is applied for Indian Muslims, but Hindu, Christian and other beliefs are subject to ‘Common Law Legislation of
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.
In the beginning the phrase Hindu are thus cultural, political, and geographical. Although, some Hindu say that people born a Hindu; however, there are many people who follow the Hinduism and they are noon Indian descent. Indeed, Hinduism is rooted in India, but it is growing across the world in this modern days. About eighty percent of the Indian population identify themselves as Hindu, which is a huge number, the other twenty percent of Indian population follow, Buddhism, Islam, and Christian. Hindus believe in a supreme God, they also believe in a cycle of birth, death, and rebirth. In the Hinduism Veda is a Sanskrit word means knowledge, and Atman means eternal self which is the true self, and it refers to the non-material self, which never change. Dharma means duty it refers to the power which support the universe and
There are many different areas of Hinduism covered in the book The Hindu Religious Tradition. The first important area discussed is about Aryans and early Indian culture. The Indus civilizations, cities, art, and culture are explained. Also discussed is the coming of the Aryans, the Gods of the early Aryans, and Aryan fire sacrifice.
Hinduism is a complex religion that has a variety of beliefs and traditions. In the nineteenth century, the British had to categorize the people living in the region of the Indus River for census purposes thus getting the name Hindus by foreigners. Today they have a preference of being labeled as "Sanatana Dharma (eternal religion)" (Pg 79)
Hinduism, also known by the name Sanatana-Dharma, is often referred to as the “oldest religion” in the world, is generally considered to be an ethnic religion and is fundamentally based on the religion of the original Aryan settlers. “Hinduism, from the Persian Hindi (Sanskrit sindhu), literally "river." Means "of the Indus Valley" or simply "Indian." Hindus call their religion sanatama dharma,"eternal religion" or "eternal truth” (“Facts on Hinduism”). It was founded around 3000 BCE, and is now considered to be the third largest religion in the world. Followers of Hinduism, which is estimated to be anywhere around 900 million, are especially concentrated in India, Nepal, and other countries throughout Asia. The broader world contact that has occurred since World War II allowed various forms of Hinduism to become more widely known and accepted. The multiple Hindu sects, including the Krishna Consciousness, have been particularly successful among young American and Europeans and claims to be adherent around the world. Hinduism is dissimilar compared to other religions, in the fact that it has no founders. This religion is considered to be permissive in creed or code as it is not necessarily coordinated in any way, even though various sects and cults are formulated. This religion is especially known for its tolerance because it is willing to accommodate those who are exceptionally religious; whether it be a Jew, Christian, or Muslim as a part of their religion. Hinduism is very transformable and accepts elements of different religion. Overtime it has even developed different aspects of both Christianity and Buddhism and incorporated them into the religion of Hinduism. Hinduism worships a multiplicity of gods; the most important in...
Hinduism is a polytheistic religion with countless Gods and Deities, that is now the third most followed religion in the world, after Christianity and Islam. The word “hindu” originated from the Sanskrit word “Sindhu” which is a historical name of the longest river in Asia, northwest of India. Hinduism is unique, the only religion without a founder, no one scripture, and it is without a specific set of rules and expectations. It is often described as being a way of life, unlike other religions, and is said to be an assortment of different religious, philosophical ideas, and cultural practices that began in India. While it doesn’t have specific teachings, it does have sacred texts, the Sanatana Dharma, otherwise known as “The Eternal Teaching”.
Hinduism is easily the oldest major world religion that is still in use today. It has not only survived countless attacks but has also thrived and has changed little to none in the last 2500-3000 years. "The Aryans are said to have entered India through the fabled Khyber Pass, around 1500 BC. They intermingled with the local populace, and assimilated themselves into the social framework. The Aryans did not have a script, but they developed a rich tradition. They composed the hymns of the four vedas, the great philosophic poems that are at the heart of Hindu thought" (The Aryans and the Vedic Age, 2004, par. 2).
Hinduism is one of the world’s major religions that evolved from the Vedic religion of ancient India. Hinduism has branches that contain several sects. The major branches are Vaishnavism and Shaivism. These sects rely on their own set of scriptures but their focal point is the ancient Vedas. The philosophical Vedic texts, from the Aryans, involved the Upanishads in searching for knowledge on how the human beings would escape reincarnation. Hinduism has a cosmic principle Brahman, whereby they believe in rebirth after death. Hinduism emerged around the beginning of Common Era then coexisted within Buddhism for several centuries (Clearly, 2013). It spread to Southern India and parts of Southeast Asia from the Northern India. The basic teaching of Vedanta is the belief that the human being is neither confined in the body nor mind but the spark of God within the soul. Most Hindu’s practice bhakti as a way to worship and follow their deity. Rather than live of fear of their deity, bhakti focuses on being connected with the...
Gandhi once said, “God has no religion”. This quote could mean thousands of things; it could mean that Gandhi didn’t believe in a god, that he believed in God, but not religion, or that he believed God didn’t care how a person found their way to him. Gandhi was a peaceful person; he believed in civil disobedience, and respecting people for who they were, which is why it was important for his religion to believe the same thing. Hinduism doesn’t just encompass one religion, it doesn’t say that because someone 's not a Hindu that their religion is invalid, in fact, it welcomes them. Hinduism wants them to find their own path to god; through reincarnation, through finding their avatar, and just losing their ego, it proves
Hinduism is unlike many other religions in that it does not have a single founder or text, but is more like an umbrella in ways of life. In death and life for the Hindu, “The ultimate goal of the soul is liberation from the wheel of rebirth, through reabsorption into our identity with the Oversoul (Brahma)-- the essence of the universe, immaterial, uncreated, limitless, and timeless” (Leming & Dickinson, 2011, p. 134).
In the play “Romeo and Juliet”, Shakespeare shows that love has power to control one’s actions, feelings, and the relationship itself through the bond between a destined couple. The passion between the pair grew strong enough to have the capability to do these mighty things. The predestined newlyweds are brought down a rocky road of obstacles learning love’s strength and the meaning of love.
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.
While most traditional religions are easy to define and comprehend, Hinduism is not. It cannot be spoken about as one single entity but rather a label for many different traditions within itself that originated in India. It is the world’s third largest religion with a following of a billion people. Hinduism, at its most basic definition, is the belief in either several gods or goddess, or the belief in one God with many faces. It is a way of life that relies heavily on the ideas of cause and effect. They believe in reincarnation with a desire to be liberated from the cycle of birth and death. They believe it is the key to a lifetime of happiness, prosperity and love. While it is considered to be the oldest
Hinduism is the world’s third largest religion and was originated in the Indian subcontinent. Is rare that a big religion like Hinduism don’t have a single founder, religious organization, specific theological system and don’t even a system of morality, but it is a religion that has evolved over thousands of years. Hinduism has a diverse body of cultural and philosophical practices. Hinduism consists of belief and tradition. The most recognized belief and traditions of the Hinduism are Karma, Dharma, Samsara and Moshka. Hindu people don’t believe in violence, but they do believe in prayers, honesty, truth, austerity, celibacy and penance. The Hindu scriptures are collectively referred to as the Shashtras. The Hindu scriptures were initially passed on orally from generation to generation until finally ancient scholars wrote them down; mainly in the Sanskrit language that was the prevailing language of the time. Some of the Hindu scriptures are the Shruti and Smritis. The Shruti primarily refers to the Vedas which represent eternal truths revealed to ancient sages but some other Hindu individuals associated the Vedas with a God or a powerful person. The Smritis are all of the other text different than the Shruti. The most know of the Smritis are the Mahabharata and the Ramayana. Although the Hindus worship a large pantheon of Gods and Goddesses, they believe in the one Supreme Power that manifests itself in various forms.
Today, Hinduism stands as India’s primary religion. In fact, India houses 90% of the world’s Hindi population and 79.8% of India’s population follows the Hindu religion, according to the 2011 census. It is thought by some to be the oldest religion in the world and the “eternal law” (Fowler). This culture is truly one as defined by Edward Taylor: “A complex whole which includes knowledge, belief, art, law, morals, customs, and any other capability and habit acquired by man as a member of society.” In order to have somewhat of an understanding about what the Hindu religion entails, one must study the Hindu conception of God, its basic concepts and key beliefs, as well as symbolism.