Vedic Religion

• Male deities associated with the heavens

• Sacrifice-essential ritual

• Brahmin priest controlled rituals and prayers– Rig Veda – thousands of poetic hymns– Brahmanas -descriptions of procedures

Hinduism Beginnings

• Evolved from Vedic Religion• Dates: 2000-1500 BCE• Founders: Arya Peoples

– No individual• Process=unknown

– Brahmin priests still at top– Sacrifice less central– More opportunity for direct

contact between gods and individual worshipers

HinduismHinduism• Where Practiced?:

• India

• Monotheistic?:

• No => Polytheistic: – 330 Million

Ganesh

• Religious Books:

• Vedas: collection of psalms, prayers, chants

• Upanishads: origin of the universe, Brahman

• Epic Poems:

• Ramayana: Life of Rama (Vishnu)

• Mahabharata: longest poem in the world– Contains the Bhagavad Gita

• Place of Worship

• Temples

• Home Shrines

Rel. Leader: BrahminNo Rel. Sects

GODS

Hinduism has thousands of gods.

Families worship their own god.

Hindu Gods

• Vishnu: preserver

• Shiva: destroyer

Vishnu

ShivaBrahma

BRAHMA

• The Creator God• Four faces stand for the

four corners of the universe• Many Hindus believe that

all Gods originate from Brahma

Hinduism Gods

• Brahma: Supreme force of universe

–Salt and Water Analogy

Elephant Story

VISHNU

• “The Preserver God”• maintain balance of good

and evil• returns to earth as different

forms (avatars) to bring justice/balance– Human and animal

Shiva: Visual Analysis

Shiva

• The Destroyer God• “Cosmic Dance”• Dances in a halo of

fire • Fire in left hand• He crushes the dwarf

Shiva

• Left hand holds the flame of destruction, purification, and renewal

• Snake symbolize his power over evil

Rules and Laws

• Caste System: Social Classes

• Karma: good and bad actions

• Dharma: Duties

• Samsara: cycle of life – (birth, life, death and rebirth)

Samsara

• Samsara: People go through Cycle of birth, life, and death

• Reincarnated (reborn) at either a higher or lower level depending on how well they fulfilled their dharma

Karma• Karma• Actions performed by each

individual during a lifetime. • Good action = a step towards a

better rebirth• Bad action = step towards a poorer

rebirth• Can be reborn as an animal—it

will be harder for them to gain the knowledge they need to escape from samsara

Dharma

• Duties: set of rules to be followed

• Obligations to family and society.

• Determined by one’s position (caste) in society and by the stage of life that they have reached.

Moksha

• Liberation from samsara (cycle of life)

• Your soul (atman) becomes one with Brahman, the universal soul

• This happens when one’s karma (actions) continually fulfills their dharma (duty).– Replace ignorance with wisdom.

OM or AUM • Main symbol of Hinduism

• visual and verbal expression of god

• “a” = beginning• “u” = progress• “m” = dissolution

Miscellaneous Hindu Practices

• Cremated the same day you die

• Suttee / Sati

–“virtuous woman”

• Ganges = Sacred

• Cow = sacred

SRI YANTRA

• focal point for meditation

• 9 triangles intersect to form 43 triangles

• 3 concentric circles

• framed by a square

Hindu Meditation

SRI YANTRA

This form is the geometric expression of thedivine sound of creation... OM

Conclusion

• Successful transformation based on Vedic Oral Tradition

• Ultimate victory of Hinduism over Buddhism • Buddhism was driven from the land of its birth• Responded to needs of people for personal deities• Buddhism demanded too much of ordinary people• Absorbed Buddha as a God • Behind the diversity and multiplicity of Indian

religion lies an ultimate unity.