Brilliance of Hinduism

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Heritage and History of Hinduism

Hinduism, in the wider context, is not a religion but a way of life, as it represents the culture, civilization and religious ethos of our ancient wisdom, which is enshrined in the Vedas, Puranas Upanishads, Vedanta, religious scriptures, the epics, Gita etc. No other religion in the world has such a vast, wide and deep treasure of knowledge that has something to offer to various faiths and religions. Hinduism and Hinduttava are recent versions which have their roots in Brahmanism, Vedanta and Sanatan Dharma. Hinduism is Sanatan because it is eternal and everlasting as it has no doubt, a beginning, but certainly no end. It is beyond the confines and limitations of time. Sanatan Dharma is the edifice upon which all our life and order are dependent.

Unlike Christianity and Islam, the other two great religions of the world, Hinduism can neither be interpreted nor explained in terms of a restricted sense; hence Hinduism is not only a religion but also a culture, a civilization a way of life, a faith — it is like a big river, like the Ganges, within which so many rivers submerge and lose their individual identity and existence. So, Hinduism is a mother to many religions which have spring up from it, like Buddhism, Jainism, Sikhism etc. which are religions but not a way of life. It can be compared to a rainbow which consists of seven colours but, in its synthetic and comprehensive form, it represents a multi-coloured fabric.

The word ‘Hindu’ and ‘Hinduism’ have their origin in Persian ‘Sindhu’ became Hindu and the inhabitants, living along the Sindhu river were called as ‘Hindus’ and the country to which they belonged came to be known as ‘Hindustan’. The Greeks called ‘Sindhu’ as ‘Indus’, so far then Sindhu or Hindu meant ‘Indian’ and ‘India’. But the term ‘Hindu’ and ‘Hindustan’ as also ‘India’ and ‘Indian’ indicated the civilization of Indian sub-continent. Similarly Sindhu Valley Civilization was also called as ‘Indus Valley Civilization.’ But Hindus and Hinduism were not confined to ‘Indus’ area, but it entailed area from Kashmir to Kanyakumari—this a wide spread expanse which connotes Hindu religion, philosophy and culture, apart from ethos and way of life.

Hindus attach utmost importance to mother nature which embodies mountains, rivers, oceans, air, earth, space and fire. Most of the important religious towns are situated in the banks of rivers, sea shore or mountains, hence utmost significance was accorded to such religious places, rivers and mountains. India is the only country where Hindu religion is deeply engrained in the minds of the Hindus who are devout by nature. It is the only country in the world which has so many religions, faiths, festivals, celebrations, rituals, social norms, and where freedom of expression and practice of various religions is a matter of practice, it is a unique example of unity in diversity. Similarly diversity in languages, spoken and written, is another salient feature of India.

Aryan Civilization cast great impact on the Hindus. Aryan race was initially confined between the area called ‘Indus’ (or Sindhu) and Saraswati (which is now extinct) rivers, called Sapta-Sindhu which was then known as ‘Brahmavarta’ or ‘Aryavarta’. But when this civilization spread to Gangetic plain and then to east, west and south regions, it was called as ‘Bharat’ or ‘Bharatvarsha’—this nomeclation owes its orgin to the war fought between the descendants of the great Bharatas. It is quite surprising that the Pakistanis prefer to refer India as ‘Bharat’, while we still call it India or Hindustan.

The Aryans migrated to India from other regions and it opened a new chapter of transition from Mohenjodaro and Harrapan Civilizations. The Aryans were a comparatively mature, enlightened and progressive race whose knowledge about industry, commerce, economy, transport, use of metals, concept of deities and worship were at variance, but all the same they also injected flow of new blood to Indian way of life and practices. Despite their unique and novel practices they were successful in adapting themselves to the Indus valley Civilization, religion and practices. The Aryans were a race of fighters, they were courageous, brave and permissive, loved art and literature, were also experts in agriculture. But they were men of receptive mind and approach, hence they had to face hardly any problem in adjusting themselves, alter vocations and religious practices in conformity with those of the Indians who were part and parcel of Hindu religion. Worship of deities like Shiva, (or Pashupati) and mother goddess, penance and yoga were the attributes of Harappan religion; and were incorporated in Hinduism at a later date. So Harappan Civilization was the pre-vedic, and Pre-Aryan culture, religion, civilization and practices, sensibly opted to follow a middle course, as they adopted what suited them and inducted new practices of theirs, so as to cultivate a synthesis and assimilation of religion and culture.

The historians believe that Indus Valley civilization existed as far back as 3500 B.C., when Hindu culture and religion also existed, even though in an undeveloped and infancy form. Viewed from this angle, Hinduism can be said to have existed about 5,500 years ago, if 3500 B.C. is accepted as a dividing line between Hinduism and Indus Valley Civilization. So Harappan religion is the forerunner of Hindu religion, which had to suffer and undergo some radical changes due to the Aryan invasion. In short present Hindu religion is a synthesis and assimilation of Indus valley civilization, Aryan civilization and Harappan civilization. Hinduism was deeply rooted in Hindu mind and practices, hence it could easily sustain the onslaught of Muslim and European invasions.

Vedas and Upanishads are the original monumental works and sources of Hindu religion and knowledge. They are the edifice upon which Hinduism is founded. It is a bit difficult to trace the exact date when the Vedas were composed. Actually Vedas were handed down in verbal form only, and then retained in memory. Memory has a limited storage capacity, hence additions or deletions cannot be ruled out, especially when knowledge has to pass through various persons, even generations. So, it cannot be maintained with certainty that the present form of the Vedas is an actual reproduction of original version which were only verbal. Historians place the period of the Vedas between 2000 and 2500 BC which actually corresponds favourably to the period of Indus Valley Civilization, but the Vedas seem to have been reduced to writing about 1000 B.C. But all such dates seem to be speculative.

Rig-Veda is the oldest of all the four Vedas, while Yajur, Sama and Atharva Vedas seem to have been composed during the later Vedic period. Ancient religious scriptures of the Hindus can be subdivided into three different parts, like.

Samhitas — These consist of collection of sacred hyms in verse, addressed to various male and female deities.

Brahmanas — These portions are found in prose through which rites and rituals have "been described in details.

Arayanaks — These are ‘forest treatises’, which are supplements and continuations of the Brahma. These are the three parts of the Vedas through which Vedic knowledge is handed down to the aspirants. The hyms in the Vedas pertain to multiple disciplines, but are not argumentative like the Upanishadas. Vedanta or Upanishadas and are not also speculative, but they contain vast treasure-house of knowledge; religious teachings and philosophy which form part of the Aranayakas, most of which are almost extinct now. There are believed to be about 108 Upanishades, but only sixteen out of these are called as the principal Upanishadas; but other upanishadas, by no means, are insignificant. The central theme of Upanishadic philosophy is the unification and identification of soul with the supreme soul (Brahma), because soul is no different or independent from God, rather it is part and parcel of it, as a part cannot be different from its whole. Shankracharya, thereafter, expounded his theory of Vedanta based on the relationship between supreme soul and Purusha, and emancipation of soul from cosmic bondage, by abandoning ‘Maya’ or ignorance that Camouflages true identity of the soul. All the aforesaid philosophic theory pertains to higher and super knowledge.

Next comes Sutra literature or Vedangas which consist of Kalpasutras, Sraut Shutras and Kalpasutras which role out knowledge about supplementary lower knowledge consisting of the rules pertaining to performance and observance of rites, rituals, sacrifices, ceremonies, with regard to conception, birth, thread and names giving ceremonies, wedding, death and funeral ceremonies, initiation, Hindu family life, etc. These practices may be termed as extension of the rules governing mantras, hymns, prayers; worship, incantations etc. Pauranik and Sutra literature is exoteric in nature, while that of the Vedas is isoteric, as the latter contains the spiritual truths which are expressely revealed, hence expressed implicitly.

Ramayana and Mahabharata are the two classical epics.

The story of Ramayana revolves around the hero Rama, an incarnation of Vishnu, who upheld the virtues of righteousness (Dharama), even at the cost of undergoing problems and hardships. Ramayana is a saga of sacrifice, righteousness, devotion, unflinching faith, obedience, truthfulness and victory of ‘dharma’ over ‘Adharma’ (Victory of justice and goodness over evil). Ramayana was composed by Valmiki, also called as ‘Adi Kavi’. Apart from Rama, the centre-point figure, these are Sita, Rama’s consort, his three brothers, and three mothers Monkey-God, Hanuman, Bali and Sugreeva and Jamavant, Rishis and hermits, Demon king Ravan, his sons, brothers, and his consort Mandodari. It is the Hindi Ramacharitmanas (also called ‘Tulsi Ramayana’ or Simply Ramayana by the masses) which is learnt by heart by many Hindus—it consists of seven cantos written in Avadhi-language, a dialect of Hindi language. Whatever we find in daily life will be found in Ramayans also, it is not only an epic but also a mirror of social, cultural and religious practices that prevailed at that time. It also points to the internecine feuds amongst various religions, and sects like Vaishanavites, Shakatas and Shivites. Social evils and practices, Traits of Kaliyug, behaviour, attitude and leanings of people of those days are also mentioned in the epic by Tulsidas, as his vision was wide and permissive. He established rapport amongs followers of Vishnu, Shiva and Shakti. It also dwells upon the caste-system, which had touched its nadir in his time.

Ramacharitamanas is a saga of sacrifice, religious, social and cultural developments, duties enjoined upon various sections of society, social behaviour, performance of rituals and customs, psychological impact of behavioural disorders, interrelation between the ruler and the ruled, parents, children, constrains of working class and employers etc. Some of the verses in Tulsi Ramayana are used as proverbs and taken as guidelines to perform multiple acts and duties. It is a story of triumph of good over evil or Dharma over Adharma. The story of Ramayana would have come to an end after the marriage of Rama and his three bothers, if Manthara and Kaikeyi had not pushed forward the cause of kingship of Bharat and Rama’s exile for fourteen years. In fact she look upon herself the onerous task of putting an end to demons’ activities which had assumed dangerous proportions, due to which all the sages, gods and other virtuous persons were feeling tormented. Just read description of Kaliyug and determine yourself whether the ingredients of Kaliyug exist today or not. It is the broad vision of the poet which could visualise the probable chain of events in the near future.

Mahabharata

This an epic of feuds, internecine wars, jealousy, treachery, conspiracy, dominance of evil over virtue, of revenge etc. The main story revolves around the Pandavas and Kaurvas, who fought a pitched war to wrest throne. If Kaikayi is the central character of Ramayana, Shakuni holds the same place in Mahabharata. He was the king of Gandhar and his sister, Gandhari, was the wife of Dhritarashtra. It was Shakuni who meticulously laid a trap for exile of the Pandavas, by getting them defeated in the game of chess, through Duryodhana, his sister’s son.

In the Ramayana Rama left for exile, in deference to the wishes of his father, and left back Bharat and Shatrughana to rule of the kingdom in his absence. But, in Mahabharata, Duryodhana did not want to concede the kingdom to his cousins (Pandavas), sons of Pandu, the brother of Dhritarashtra, who was blind and was so deeply obsessed with affection for his sons that he was obliged to side with his sons, even when he knew well that he was being unfair and unjust to his nephews. Had he been a man of conviction and justice, he would never have allowed his sons to usurp the rightful claim of the Pandavas to the royal throne. Moreover he was helpless and handicapped and had to depend on the support of his sons and wife; even though his wife was neutral.

Lord Krishna is the pivotal figure in the epic and entire fabric of events in the epic is mastermnded, planned and executed with his divine power, tact, wisdom and sharp intellect. Every actor in Mahabharata is connected with lord Krishna in one form or the other and his impact is visible on everyone. It is he who had led the Pandavas to victory. The classical poem, Bhagwat Gita, is an inimitable and incomparable holy scripture that serves as an efficient guide for the householder, yogi, recluses, and Gyanis’. It lays stress on Bhakti and Karma yoga as a means to attain Nirvana or deliverance. If anybody cannot study other Hindu scriptures, he can gain complete knowledge about Bhakti, Karma, Gyan and duty. Lord Krishna is the incarnation of Vishnu, like Lord Rama. He is called as Yogiraj Karshna. He is an emblem of a friend, son, husband, selfless lover, a great statesman, a storehouse of multifaceted knowledge and, above all, a yogi in true sense of the term. There is hardly any other scripture on which so many explanations commentaries have been written. Lokmanya Balgangadhar Tilak, Annie Beasant, Mahatma Gandhi, sister Nivedita were some of the legendary personalities who wrote commentaries on the Gita. Mahatma Gandhi accorded so much significance to the Gita that he termed it as his (spiritual) mother. Whenever he was confronted with any problem or predicament he would seek refuge under the Gita and he always found solutions to his problems. The Gita is a gist of all our scriptures. It offers something for every person, as it always shows right path to the tormented persons.

Kama is an outstanding feature in the Mahabharata of all the characters, as he was the most liberal reasonable, accommodating, a true warrior, a dependable friend, a donor of high repute, a righteous person par excellence, true in word, deed and thought. He was upright, virtuous, righteous, duty-bound, a man of firm conviction and character. He is called ‘Daanveera’ because nobody will ever return empty- handed from his door, even if he had to suffer personal losses. Despite all the said qualities of head and heart, he remained a most deprived person, as even his own relations ditched, deserted and fleeced him. Suffering and deprivation were writ large in his life, but he never disappointed anyone, whosoever demanded anything. Even lord Krishna was highly impressed by him. He was the eldest of all the Pandava and Kaurava brothers, but being born to Kunti, when she was a virgin, he was called ‘Soot Putra’ which was a stigma on his brilliant character. He was not imparted any training in archery, warfare etc, as he was not son of Pandu. Despite all such blemishes his character cannot be matched by anyone else.

Most of the characters in the epic Mahabharta are embroiled in feud, revenge, animosity, warfare, nurture ill- will and malice, ready to settle scores, either for oneself or on behalf of another person. Here evil rules the roost and vertue is relegated to the backyard. Personal ambitions, without any regard and consideration for feelings of adversaries, dominate, And sober advice of elders is thrown to the winds, though there are also some characters whose intent and demeanour are above board, like Bhishma, Lord Krishna, Kunti, Gandhari, Yudhishthir, Kripacharya, Vidur etc. Here righteousness has given way to bestial overtones, collective virtue to personal ambition and good to evil. Moreover means do not matter, but ends supervene. But ultimately virtue wins and establishes its supremacy.

Bhagvat Gita

It is popularly known as Gita and is an integral part of the epic Mahabharata rather the quintessence. Arjun’s chariot driven by Lord Krishna, who decides not to fight a war with his own kith and kin. He believed that if a kingdom is acquired after bloodshed of own people, he would prefer to abandon such a blood-stained throne. Arjun is confused and perplexed and he decides not to wage a war against his own relatives. He is not scared of war but of its consequences, which would decimate countless warriors on both sides, leaving behind a trail of widows, orphans, destroyed homes and, above all, a devastation which could destroy the