HinduismThe Eternal Religion

Harappan/Dravidian Civilization2500 to 1500 BCE

Aryan Invasion“Noble Ones”

Iran means “land of Aryans”Varnas = colors

Some Key Terms

• Atman• Karma• Maya• Avidya• Moksha• Dharma• Samsara• Yoga• Puja

Umbrella Religion

• What does this mean?• No founder• Source of 3 other religions

Recyclable Universe

• Cyclical Time• Samsara

The Gods

• Monotheism – belief in one god• Polytheism – belief in more than one god• Henotheism – worship one god while

recognizing the existence of other gods

BrahmanHINDUISM HAS 330 MILLION GODS AND GODDESSES

WE ARE ALL PART OF BRAHMAN

THE GOAL OF HUMANKIND IS TO ACHIEVE MOKSHA WITH BRAHMAN

WHAT IS NOT BRAHMANIS MAYA/ILLUSION

unchanging, infinite, immanent, and transcendent reality which is the Divine Ground of all matter, energy, time, space, being, and everything beyond in this Universe; thousands of deities of one universal spirit is called Brahman

Brahman is atman

Brahman is like the ocean?

Trimurti

“Having three forms”

Brahma•Creator god

•In art often shown in the color red, holding the 4 Vedas, four bearded heads.

•Wife: Sarasvati

Shiva

• God of destruction, disease, death and reproduction

• “Auspicious One”• Most popular god• Not in the Vedas - maybe

Rudra

Shiva

• Symbols: 3rd eye; crescent moon; serpents; tiger skin; ashes; drum

• Rides a bull named Nandi• Traditional home is Mount Kailasa• Benares or Varanasi is a holy city for

Shiva• Wives are Kali and Parvati

Nataraja• Lord of the Dance• Most popular image

in Hindu art• Mujalaka is the evil

dwarf• Five activities:

creation, preservation, embodiment, liberation, and destruction

Vishnu

• The Preserver. God of love, benevolence and forgiveness

• Vertical stripes• Chief concern is for humanity• Vishnu becomes an avatar to help humans

• There have been 9 avatars – and one to come

Matsya – the Fish

Kurma – the Tortoise

VarashaThe Boar

NarasimhaHalf-manHalf-lion

Vamanadwarf

ParashuramaRama with an axe

Krishna

Buddha

KalkiFuture Avatar

GaneshaParents: Shiva and Parvati

New beginningsUltimate sacrifice

Hanuman

• Rama’s helper in the battle against the evil king Ravana in the Ramayana. He saves Sita.

• Embodiment of obedience to ones master.

• Supernatural powers.• Rama and Sita are often

shown on his chest.

Kali

• Wife of Shiva• In art, shown wearing

a necklace of human skulls, eating corpses, tearing away at human flesh, drinking blood

• Followers of Kali are known as thugs

Lakshmi

• Wife of Vishnu• Usually shown in a red

sari, with coins coming from her hands and with a lotus flower

• When Vishnu incarnates so does Lakshmie.g. Sita and Rukmini

Sarasvati

• Wife of Brahma• Goddess of learning and the arts• Very popular in the Vedas• In art, dressed in white “pure

illumination,” four hands holding a book, prayer beads, and a vina (sitar) showing that she is the source of the vibrations of the universe.

• Hindu children will ask her for help

Sacred Texts

Vedic Era1500-600 b.c.e.

Veda = Knowledge

4 Vedic Books:Rig VedaYajur VedaSama VedaAtharva Veda

Epics

• Ramayana– Major characters: Rama; Sita; Ravana; Hanuman

• Mahabharata: longest epic

Bhagavad-Gita

“Song of God”Conversations betweenKrishna and Arjuna

Upanishads“sitting near”

• 6th c. BCE• Reincarnation• Maya• Avidya• Atman• Brahman• OM

Sacred Space

IndiaCan set up a temple anywhereGo to the temple to see and to be seen by the gods

USAcommunity

Cow Veneration

Laws of Manu

• Codified the varna system• Argues that the four classes are rooted in the

beginnings of the cosmos.– Brahmins (priests)– Kshatriyas (warriors)– Vaishyas (producers)– Shudras (servants)

• Each person must live their dharma or else will not achieve moksha

Yoga“to yoke”

• Jana (knowledge)• Karma (action)

– Living according to ones dharma

• Bhakti (devotion)

Similar to Christianity:We find our path to God

Holidays

October 23, 2014

March 17, 2014

What is Navaratri?Navaratri (also spelled Navratri or Navaratra) is a festival of dance and worship. The word Navaratri is made of two words: Nava (nine) and Ratri (nights).

Navaratri is divided into three-day sets, each devoted to a different aspect of the supreme goddess. The first three days are devoted to Durga (to destroy all our vices, impurities, and defects). The next three day set is devoted to Lakshmi (the giver of spiritual and material wealth), and the last set is devoted to Saraswati (the goddess of wisdom).

Blessing from all three aspects of the divine mother is the only way to have all-round success in life.

Krishna Jayanti

Happy Birthday Krishna

August 2014

Hapy BirthdayGaneshaFenruary 2014

Kumbh Mela is attended by millions of people on a single day. The major event of the festival is a ritual bath at the banks of the rivers in each town. Other activities include religious discussions, devotional singing, mass feeding of holy men and women and the poor, and religious assemblies where doctrines are debated and standardized.Kumbh Mela is the most sacred of all the pilgrimages. Thousands of holy men and women (monks, saints and sadhus) attend, and the auspiciousness of the festival is in part attributable to this. The sadhus are seen clad in saffron sheets with plenty of ashes and powder dabbed on their skin per the requirements of ancient traditions. Some called naga sanyasis may often be seen without any clothes even in severe winter, generally considered to live an extreme lifestyle.