HINDUISM

REPORTER:
PREPARED BY:
LEA ESQUEJO VIVIAN ABALOS
MAICA RUBILLA MIRALOU PAGADUAN
 HINDUISM
The world’s third
largest religion with
around 15% of the entire
population practicing the
Hindu faith.
 HINDUISM
The major bulk with almost 80% in
adhering to the religion are came
from India.
*Other Asian countries with
considerable Hindu faithful
●Nepal (23 million)
●Bangladesh (15 million)
●Indonesia (3.9 million in Bali)
■ There are also substantial number of Hindus in
Mauritius, Guyana , Fiji, Bhutan, Trinidad and
Tobago, Suriname, and Sri Lanka
■ Three other religions that sprung in India have
their origins in Hinduism
■ Around 6th century B.C.E., Jainism and
Buddhism appeared to challenge traditional
Indian beliefs and practices
■ In 15th century C.E., Sikhism arose that
featured Hindu and Islamic influences
 HISTORICAL BACKGROUND
Hinduism is oftentimes considered as the
oldest and most complex of all world religion.
• This religion may have begun around
the third millennium B.C.E., the
elements and themes of Hindu beliefs
may have begun.
• Hinduism had no one identifiable
founders, unlike other major religions.
(Hopfe 1983)
 The Hindu originated from the Persian word hindu
(in Sanskrit sindhu) which means “river”.
Hinduism was originally known as “Arya Dharma”
or “Aryan way ”.
In the 1920s, archeological excavations in two pre-
Aryan cities of Harappa and Mohenjo-Daro revealed
that natives already had a flourishing civilization with
their agricultural cities characterized by well-panned
streets with drainage systems.
 Images of fertility gods and goddesses
are noticeable from these artefacts while
some figures appear in the lotus position
which was later absorbed by yoga Hinduism
and other sects.
Aryans brought with them their set of
beliefs based on oral texts known as Vedas.
Firstly, the Aryans brought with them a
polytheistic religion similar to that of other
Indo-European peoples . Secondly, sacrifice
was the principal form of worshipped to the
Aryan gods.(Hopfe 1983).
 SACRED SCRIPTURES
The sacred texts of Hinduism have been
principally passed down throughout
generations by way of music, recitation,
dance, and drama. Sanskrit has been the
language of the earliest writings (Coogan
2005).
 SHRUTI
■ Shruti literally means “that which is heard”
■ The four collections of texts of Vedas from the
shruti and are considered primary sources and
the most authoritative texts of Hindu faith.
■ Other writings that forms part of shruti include
the Samhitas, Brahmanas, Upanishads, and a few
Sutras.
Vedas
Four basic Vedic books:
Rig-veda, Sama-veda , Yajur-veda, and Atharva-
veda.
■The word Veda means “knowledge” or
“sacred lore.”
■The earliest known Sanskrit literature from
Brahmanic period and oldest scriptures of
Hinduism.
 Gods and Personification or Attributes
Goddesses
Indra leader of the devas of gods ;the lord of heaven in Hinduism;
god of rain and thunderstorm
Agri god of fire; messenger of the gods

Adityas sun-god

Mitra deity for honesty, friendship, contracts, and meetings

Varuna god of water; god of low of the underwater world

Ushas deity of dawns

Savitr solar deity

Rudra deity of wind or storm

 Gods and Personification or Attributes
Goddesses
Pushan solar deity; god of meeting

Brihaspati deity and religion

Dyaus Pita sky god; father sky

Prithvi mother earth

Surya chief solar deity; the sun

Vayu lord of the winds

Apas water

Parjanya thunder and rain

■ Yajur-Veda (Knowledge of Rites)
- This book is a compilation of recited during rituals and
sacrifices to deities.
■ Sama-Veda (Knowledge of Chants)
- This books a collection of verses from the basic hymns
recited by priests during sacrifices.
■ Atharva-Veda (Knowledge Given by the Sage Atharva)
-This book contains rituals used in homes and popular
prayers to gods.

*Each Vedas consists of four main parts, the Mantras, Brahmanas,

Aranyakas, and Upanishads.
Upanishads
■ It is literally translates as “sitting down near” or “sitting
close to” as it implies listening intently to the mystic
teaching.
■ It could also mean “brahman-knowledge” whereby
ignorance is totally eliminated.
■ The great Indian nationalist and philosopher Sri
Aurobindo described the Upanishads as the “supreme
work of the Indian mind.”
■ All fundamental teachings and concepts about Hinduism
are found in these profound treatises----such as karma
(action), samsara (reincarnation), moksha (nirvana),
atman (soul), and Brahman (Absolute Almighty).
 SHMRITI
It is literally means “that which
has been remembered.”
These writings serve to
reinforce shruti and are interpreted
by sages and scholars alike. The
great epics Ramayana and
Mahabharata, which contains the
philosophical poem Bhagavad Gita,
are part of smriti.
Ramayana

It is translated as the
“Story of Rama” or “Rama’s
Journey,” a Sanskrit epic
poem written by the poet
Valmiki consisting of 24,000
verses in seven books and
500 cantos.
Rama
Ramayana

Presently, this story is danced out

and acted in Southeast Asia where
Hindu influence is observable. Most
characters are popular in Indonesia,
Thailand, and Cambodia (Coogan
2005).
Mahabharata
Another major Sanskrit literature of old India is
Mahabharata which is composed of around one
hundred thousand verses making it the world’s
longest poem. The Mahabharata tells the great
struggles among descendants of a king called
Bharata, a name used by many Indians to mean
“India” (Coogan 2005).
Mahabharata
With about 100,000 couplets and 1.8 million words
in total, this poem is about:
• 4 times longer than the Ramayana
• 8 times longer than the Iliad and Odyssey put
together
• 15 times longer than the Bible.
It is an epic vision of the human condition, such as
intrigue, romance, duplicity, moral collapse, dishonor, and
lamentations (Kolanad 1994).
Bhagavad Gita
■ A celebrated episode within the
Mahabharata is the Bhagavad Gita
(or simply Gita) which is translated
as “the lord’s song.”
■ Has 700-verse narrative of a dialogue
between the Pandava prince Arjuna and
his guide-cousin Krishna.
■ The Gita is instructs any person that
one may reach god through devotion ,
knowledge, or selfless action (Coogan
2005). Krishna
 BELIEFS AND DOCTRINES

■ The Hindu faith offers of its followers many paths

to salvation.
■ God and goddesses can be worshipped at their
temples.
■ Bhakti stands for the soul’s longing for and
clinging to god (Brown 1975).
Devotion to the Trimurti

■ The Brahman is often seen in

three forms or functions, called
the Trimurti, these are creation,
preservation, and destruction.
■ These functions are expressed
in god forms, namely, Brahman,
the creator; Vishnu, the
preserver; and Shiva, the
destroyer.
Devotion to the Trimurti
Brahman (Creator of the Universe)
Receives the least attention
among the trimurti. Has four
heads and eight hands.
His chief consort Saraswati, the goddess of
science and wisdom. Brahman’s vehicle is a
swan or a goose which symbolizes
knowledge.
Devotion to the Trimurti

Vishnu (The Preserver)

Known as god of love, benevolence, and
forgiveness, his primary concern is humanity
itself. Vishnu is depicted as having four arms
and with a dark complexion. His most
popular manifestation is Krishna. Vishnu’s
consort is Lakshmi, the goddess of fortune.
Both Vishnu and Lakshmi ride the eagle
mount or kite Garuda, the symbol of the sky
and the sun. The snake in Garuda’s claw
represents water.
 Incarnation Form Attributes

Matsya fish saved humanity and the sacred Veda texts from flood
Kurma turtle helped create the world by supporting it on his back
Varaha boar raised the earth out of water with his tusks
Narasimha half-man, half-lion destroyed a tyrant king

Vamana dwarf subdued king Bali, a powerful demon

Parshurama Brahmin destroyed the warrior class
Rama man rescued his wife Sita and killed the demon Ravana

Krishna man told the epic poem Bhagavad Gita to the warrior Arjuna
Buddha man the enlightened man
Kalki horse yet to come to earth
Devotion to the Trimurti
Shiva
The destroyer and the god of
death, destruction, and disease. He is
also the god of dance, vegetable,
animal, and human reproduction
(Hopfe 1983). In mythology, he is
described as having a constantly erect
penis and sexually alert at all times
(Hopfe 1983).
 Perhaps the most terrifying of
his consorts is Kali depicted as
wearing a garland of human
skulls, tearing the flesh of
sacrificed victims, and drinking
blood. Kali is also the ferocious
form of consorts Durga and
Parvati.
Routes to Moksha (release or liberation)
From the Upanishads one may find the three principle and inter-related
doctrines within the Indian religion.
■ Firstly, every soul dies and is reborn anew in new form (this cycle is called
samsara).
■ Second, one’s deeds have an effect in this or a future life.
■ Lastly, one may escape the weary round of death and birth (Parrinder 1971).
A soul may escape the cycle of rebirth and attain moksha. This
particular liberation can be achieved through the four yogas . The
word yoga is derived from the root word yuj which translates as “to
yoke” or ‘to join.” The philosophy of yoga was developed by the
sage Patanjali who lived in the second century B.C.E. He is
considered as the “father of modern yoga” as the codified to
teachings of yoga in his Yoga Sutra (Hopfe 1983).
 The Four Yogas Practices

Jnana Yoga
The path of knowledge, wisdom, introspection, and
(The Way of Knowledge)
contemplation

Bhakti Yoga The path of devotion, emotion, love, and service to God and
(The Way of Love) others

The path action, service to others, mindfulness, and

Karma Yoga
remembering the levels of our being while fulfilling our
(The Way of Work)
actions or karma in the world

Raja Yoga The path of meditation that directly deals with the
(The Way of Meditation) encountering and transcending thoughts of the mind.
Routes to Moksha

For all Hindus, there are four desirable goals

of life or purushartha. These are dharma
(appropriate behavior), artha (the pursuit of
legitimate worldly success), kama (the pursuit
of legitimate pleasure), and moksha (release
from rebirth).
 WORSHIP AND OBSERVANCES
■ Hindu scriptures state that there are 330 million gods or devas (Kolanad
1994). These include manifestations of natural phenomena, evil forces, and
evil illnesses.
■ Hindu worship or puja involves image (murtis), prayers (mantras), and
diagrams of the universe (yantras) ( Bowker 1997).
■ However, most Hindus worship individually involving mantras or vibrating
sounds that summon the deity and the prasad or gift offerings (Bowker
1997).
■ In temples, ceremonies may be in the form of offering a flame, milk, or
honey, and even reciting chants and music. While worship may be
undertaken any day of the week, Thursday is considered to be the most
opportune day.
■ Main festivals include Holi, Diwali, and Dusserah. The Diwali or “Festival
of Lights” is India’s biggest and most important holiday of the year held in
October or November that is similar to Christmas holiday of the Christians.
 WORSHIP AND OBSERVANCES
The city of Varanasi, also called Benares, is the most
important and sacred pilgrimage site in India and is considered
as the home of Shiva. Other popular sites include Kurukshetra
(the place of the great war in Mahabharata), Ayodhya (the old
capital of Rama), and Mathura (Krishna’s birthplace).
 SUBDIVISIONS
■ Followers of Hinduism vary in their set of
beliefs and practices, including reverence to
a particular god.
■ Presently, there are four principal
denominations within the Hindu faith. These
are Shaivism, Shaktism, Vaishnavism, and
Smartism.
■ Each sects has its own religious leaders,
sacred texts, schools, and temples.
Shaivism – Lord Shiva, the Compassionate One, is God for
the Saivites.

Shaktism – The Goddess Shakti is supreme for Shaktas.

Vaishnavism – Lord Vishnu is God for the Vaishnavites.

Smartism – Smartas are known as liberals as they

embrace all major Hindu gods.
SELECTED ISSUES

■ Hinduism continues to be the

religion of almost 80% of the
Indian people.
HINDUISM and WOMEN

Even though the Manusmriti or the “ Laws of Manu”

states that women should be honored in Hindu society,
women have always been considered inferior to men in
almost all aspects of life.

WOMAN'S LIFE = taken care of by her father + taken care

of her husband in married life + taken care by her sons
upon old age
HINDUISM and WOMEN

Widowed women perform sati,

they are expected to jump on the funeral
pyre of their husbands
CASTE SYSTEM
It is one of the major
distinguishing feature of Indian
culture that still affects modern-
day society. A system of social
class composed of the
Brahmins, Kshatriyas,
Vaishyas, and Shudras,
opportunities are based upon
family origin.