BRIEF INFORMATION

— Hinduism is the world's third largest religion with

around 15% of the ES entire population practicing the Hindu
faith.
— Hindu followers in India comprise the major bulk with
almost 80% of the country's popula- tion adhering to the
religion.
— Hinduism was never a missionary religion unlike
Christianity or Islam.
— Three other religions that sprung in India have their
origins in Hinduism. Around sixth century B.C.F., Jainism
and Buddhism appeared to challenge traditional Indian
beliefs and practices. In the fifteenth century C.E., Sikhism
arose that featured Hindu and Islamic influences.
— Hinduism is often times considered as the oldest and most
complex of all world religions.

BACKGROUND OF ORIGIN
— The term Hindu originated from the Persian word
"hindu" (in Sanskrit sindhu) which means "river." It also
refers to the people of the Indus Valley- the Indians.
— The name was given in the nineteenth century to describe
the wide array of belief systems in India.
— It was originally known as "Arya Dharma" or the "Aryan
Way."
— Harappa and Mohenjo-Daro are the first civilizations to
be speculated as Hinduism's origin place.
— Images of fertility gods and goddesses are noticeable from
the artefacts while some figures appear in the lotus position
which was later absorbed by yoga Hinduism and other sects.
— Later elements of Hinduism may have taken shape from
the practices of pre-Aryan people who were already civilized
city dwellers.
— Aryans brought with them their set of beliefs based on
oral texts known as Vedas.
— There is much difficulty in identifying elements in the
Vedas that are genuinely pre-Aryan or Aryan influenced. In
general, Hinduism has pre-Aryan and Aryan elements that
date back to ancient times.

SACRED SCRIPTURES

SHRUTI
— Shruti literally means "that which is heard."
— Regarded as eternal truths that were passed orally.
— The four collections of texts of the Vedas form the shruti
and are considered primary sources and the most
authoritative texts of the Hindu faith.
— Other writings that form part of shruti include the
Samhitas, Brahmanas, Upanishads, and a few Sutras.

— The four basic Vedic books (composed of sacrificial

hymns) are composed of Rig-veda, Sama-veda, Yajur-
veda, and Atharva-veda.
— The word Veda means "knowledge" or "sacred lore."
— The earliest known Sanskrit literature from the Brahmanic
period and oldest scriptures of Hinduism.
— The Rig-Veda is the most important and oldest book that
dates back to around 1500 B.C.E. to 1200 B.C.E. It is also
the oldest living religious literature of the world; a collection
of over a thousand hymns and more than thousand verses
dedicated to the Aryan pantheon of gods.

1. Indra - leader of the devas or gods; the lord of heaven in

Hinduism; god of rain and thunderstorms.
2. Agri - god of fire; messenger of the gods.
3. Adityas - sun-gods.
4. Mitra - deity for honesty, friendship, contracts, and
meetings.
5. Varuna - god of the water; god of law of the underwater
world.
6. Ushas - deity of dawns.
7. Savitr - solar deity.
8. Rudra - deity of wind or storm.
9. Pushan - solar deity; god of meeting.
10. Brihaspati - diety and religion.
11. Dyaus Pita - sky god; father sky.
12. Prithvi - mother earth.
13. Surya - chief solar deity; the sun.
14. Vayu - lord of the winds.
15. Apas - water.
16. Parjanya - thunder and rain

— Vajur-Veda or the "knowledge of rites" is the second

book, a compilation of materials recited during rituals and
sacrifices to deities.
— The third book is Sama-Veda or the "knowledge of
chants", a collection of verses from the basic hymns recited
by priests during sacrifices.
— The fourth book is Atharva-Veda or "knowledge given by
the sage Atharva", which contains rituals used in homes and
popular prayers to gods.
— The Atharva-Veda contains numerous spells and
incantations for medicinal purposes and magical aids to
victory in battle among others.

— Each Vedas consists of four main parts: the Mantras,

Brahmanas, Aranyakas, and Upanishads.
— Mantras are hymns and chants for praising god.
— Brahmanas are explanations of the Mantras with detailed
descriptions of the sacrificial ceremonies related to them.
— Aranyakas are meditations that explicate their meaning.
— Upanishads or secret teachings transcend rituals to
elucidate the nature of the universe and human's
connectedness to it.
— The many teachings embedded in the Upanishads are
called Vedanta, which teems with spiritual truths.
— Upanishad forms the the fourth part of the Vedas.
— The term Upanishad literally translates as "sitting down
near" or "sitting close to" as it implies listening intently to
the mystic teachings of a spiritual teacher who has fully
understood the universal truths.
— It could also mean "brahma-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."
— Varying in length from one page to over fifty pages, all
fundamental teachings and concepts about Hinduism are
found in these profound treatises such as:
1. karma (action)
2. samsara (reincarnation)
3. moksha (nirvana)
4. atman (soul)
5. Brahman (Absolute Almighty).
— Out of 200 Upanishads, 14 are considered principal
writings.

SHMRITI
— Smriti 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
shmriti.
— The Ramayana, or the "Story of Rama" or "Rama's
Journey," is a Sanskrit epic poem written by the poet
Valmiki consisting of 24,000 verses in seven books and 500
cantos.
— SUMMARY: Rama is the center of the story. A prince
who later will be portrayed as avatar or incarnation of the
Hindu god Vishnu. He was born in Ayodhya. Rama was
exiled by his father on the eve of his coronation. Meanwhile,
in the forest, Rama's consort, Sita, was abducted by Ravana,
the demon-king of Lanka. Rama struggles mightily to win
Sita back. After a battle, Rama kills Ravana and reunites
again with Sita. Returning to Ayodhya, they are crowned
with Rama portrayed as the ideal king. Rama and Sita are the
epitome of perfect man and woman.
— RAVANA symbolizes ambition and greed resulting in
cosmic disorder and degradation of women and family.

— Mahabharata which is composed of around 100,000

verses making it the world's longest poem.
— This is attributed to the author Vyasa who is also
considered to be the scribe of the Vedas.
— It tells of a great struggle among the descendants of a king
called Bharata, a name used by many Indians to mean
"India."
— SUMMARY: Two families are at war, the Pandavas who
represent good and the Kauravas who embody evil. The
hundred Kaurava brothers try to cheat their five cousins, the
Pandavas, out of their share of the kingdom. As intense battle
ensued, every kingdom had to take sides. With the help
ofKrishna, another incarnation of Vishnu, the Pandavas
emerged triumphant but lost all their sons and closest kin in
battle.
—With about 100,000 couplets and 1.8 million words in
total, this poem is about four times longer than the
Ramayana, eight times longer than the Iliod and the
Odyssey put together, and fifteen times longer than the
Bible.
— Mahabharata is an epic vision of the human condition,
such as intrigue, romance, duplicity, moral collapse,
dishonour, and lamentations.

BHAGAVAD GITA
— A celebrated episode within the Mahabharata is the
Bhagavad Gita (or simply Gita) which is translated as "the
Lord's Song."
— Considered as one of the holiest books by the Hindus.
— It is a 700-verse narrative of a dialogue between the
Pandava prince Arjuna and his guide-cousin Krishna.
— SUMMARY: Just as the war is about to commence at
Kurukshetra, Arjuna is troubled at the thought of having to
fight his relatives and contemplates his fate and struggles set
before him. He then seeks the opinion of his charioteer
Krishna who asserts the righteousness of the act while
expounding the moral and philosophical consequences of
human actions. Their conversations in the battlefield, found
between chapters 25 and 12, comprise about eighteen
chapters and constitute the Bhagavad Gita.
— GITA instructs any person that one may reach god
through devotion, knowledge, or selfless action.
— Humans must do their duty or dharma whatever it may be
and whatever results it could produce.
— GITA is considered the layman's Upanishads because the
difficult teachings of the Upanishads are presented here in a
manner that commoners can understand.

BELIEFS & DOCTRINES

— Bhakti stands for the soul's longing for and clinging to
god.

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,
Brahma, the creator; Vishnu, the preserver; and Shiva, the
destroyer.

— BRAHMA is the creator of the universe yet receives the

least attention among the trimurti.
— Only two temples are dedicated to him in India and he has
no cult of devotees.
— He is not worshiped in the same way as other gods
because he has done his task and will not come into his own
until the next creation of the universe.
— Brahma has FOUR HEADS and EIGHT HANDS.
— His chief consort is SARASWATI, the goddess of science
and wisdom.
— Brahma's vehicle is a swan or goose which symbolizes
knowledge.

— VISHNU is a god of love, benevolence, and forgiveness,

whose primary concern is humanity itself.
— He is worshiped in various forms of his incarnations or
avatars.
— Vishnu has appeared on earth in nine different forms and
will come a tenth time to end the present era or kalpa, to
bring the world to an end, and then recreate it.

FORMS OF VISHNU
1. Matsya - fish, saved humanity and the sacred Veda texts
from flood.
2. Kurma - turtle, helped create the world by supporting it on
his back.
3. Varaha - boar, raised the earth out of water with his tusks.
4. Narasimha - half-man & half-lion, destroyed a tyrant king.
5. Vamana - dwarf, subdued king Bali, a powerful demon.
6. Parshurama - Brahmin, destroyed the warrior class.
7. Rama - man, rescued his wife Sita and killed the demon
Ravana.
8. Krishna - man, told the epic poem Bhagavad Gita to the
warrior Arjuna.
9. Buddha - man, the enlightened man.
10. Kalki - horse, yet to come to earth

— Vishnu is depicted as having four arms and with a dark

complexion.
— His most popular manifestation is KRISHNA who is blue,
the color of infinity, and plays the flute.
— Vishnu's consort is LAKSHMI, the goddess of fortune,
who is seated on a lotus between two elephants with their
trunks raised above her.
— Both Vishnu and Lakshmi ride the eagle mount or KITE
GARUDA, the symbol of the sky and the sun.
— The snake in Garuda's claws represents water.

— SHIVA is the third in the Trimurti, the destroyer and the

god of death, destruction, and disease.
— He is also god of dance, vegetable, animal, and human
reproduction.
— In Hindu belief, death is but a prelude to birth, hence, the
god of death is also the god often revered through the
lingam, the male energy surrounded by the yoni, the female
source of energy.
— In mythology, he is described as having a constantly erect
penis and sexually alert at all times.
— Shiva has many consorts that express the differing
elements of his character.
— 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.
— However, Kali is frequently the subject of intense
devotion. Kali is also the ferocious form of consorts Durga
and Parvati.
— DURGA is a powerful goddess created from the
combined forces of the anger of several gods.
— PARVATI, the daughter of the sacred mountain Himalaya
and the goddess of love, fertility, and devotion, is the most
modest, conservative, and benign of Shiva's consorts.
— Her sons with Shiva include GANESHA, the elephant-
headed deity revered as the remover of obstacles, and
KARTIKEYA, the Hindu god of war.

MOKSHA
— Firstly, every soul dies and is reborn anew in new form
(this cycle is called sarasara).
— Second, one's deeds have an effect in this or a future life.
— Lastly, one may escape the weary round of death and
birth.
— Within every human is an eternal soul or ATMAN that is
being reborn many times and in various forms in accordance
to the moral law or karma.
— A soul may escape the cycle of rebirth and attain moksha.
— This liberation can be achieved through the four yogas
that involve a system of practices aimed at producing
spiritual enlightenment.
— 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 is considered as the "father of modern yoga"
as he codified the teachings of yoga in his Yoga Sutra.

1. Jnana Yoga (The Way of Knowledge)

¬ The path of knowledge, wisdom, introspection, and
contemplation.
2. Bhakti Yoga (The Way of Love)
¬ The path of devotion, emotion, love, compassion, and
service to God and others.
4. Karma Yoga (The Way of Work)
¬ The path of action, service to others, mindfulness, and
remembering the levels of our being while fulfilling our
actions or karma in the world.
5. Raja Yoga (The Way of Meditation)
¬ The path of meditation that directly deals with the
encountering and transcending thoughts of the mind.
— For all Hindus, there are four desirable goals of life or
PURUSHARTHA.
— These are:
1. dharma (appropriate behavior)
2. artha (the pursuit of legitimate worldly success)
3. kama (the pursuit of legitimate pleasure)
4. moksha (release from rebirth).
— A person who achieves moksha while in life is a free soul
or JIVAN-MUKTA.

WORSHIP AND OBSERVANCES

— Hindu scriptures state that there are 330 million gods or
devas.
— These include manifestations of natural phenomena, evil
forces, and even illnesses.
— Hindu worship or PUJA involves images (martis),
prayers (mantras), and diagrams of the universe (gantrus).
— Vital to Hindu worship is DARSHAN that pertaining to
seeing and being in the presence of deity.
— While worship may be undertaken any day of the week.
— THURSDAY is considered to be the most opportune day.
— The 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 the Christmas holiday of the
Christians.
— Pilgrimages are also undertaken by Hindus throughout
India to visit the sacred shrines of their deities. These include
rivers, mountains, and temples.
— 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.
—Many people come and live in the city until they die to
manifest their exceptional devotion. Other popular sites
include:
1. Kurukshetra (the place of the great war in Mahabharata)
2. Ayodhya (the old capital of Rama)
3. Mathura (Krishna's birthplace)

SUBDIVISIONS
— Presently, there are four principal denominations within
the Hindu faith:
1. Shaivism — Lord Shiva, the Compassionate One, is God
for the Saivites. Followers of Shaivism value self-discipline
and philosophy. They worship in temples and practice yoga.

2. Shaktism — The Goddess Shakti is supreme for Shaktas.

She is the divine mother and assumes many forms, be it a
gentle one or a fierce deity. Believers use chants, magic, and
voga to summon cosmic forces.

3. Vaishavism — Lord Vishnu is God for the Vaishmavites,

especially in his incarnations Krishna and Rama. Adherents
have multitudes of saints, temples, and sacred texts.

4. Smartism — For the Smartas, devotees are left to choose

their own deity in one of six manifestations, namely,
Ganesha, Siva, Shakti, Vishnu, Surya, and Skanda. Smartas
are known as liberals as they embrace all major Hindu gods.

— It is important to note, however, that while these gods

have different names, Hindus all worship one supreme being.

SELECTED ISSUES

HINDUISM & 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.
— In traditional society, women are expected to perform
SATI or SUTTEE wherein widowed women are expected to
jump on the funeral pyre of their husbands to prove their
loyalty and help save the soul of their husbands in the
afterlife.

CASTE SYSTEM
— The caste system is a major distinguishing feature of
Indian culture that still affects modern-day society.
— A system of social class composed of the:
1. Brahmins
2. Kshatriyas
3. Vaishyas
4. Shudras

— There can be more than 3,000 separate castes in India.

— DALITS is most deplorable group are those persons that
do not belong to any group those that are disparagingly
called as "outcasts" or "untouchables."
— DALITS perform the most menial of jobs, such as street
sweepers, latrine cleaners, and handlers of the dead.
— KOCHERII R. NARAYANAN, a DALIT who became
the tenth president of India from 1997 to 2002.

POSSIBLE QUESTIONS

1. How did the Aryans lay the groundwork for the

establishment of Hinduism as a formal religion?
¬ The Aryans laid the groundwork for Hinduism by
combining their religious practices with the customs of the
people already living in the valley. Aryan religious practices
merged with the customs of people already living in the
valley to form the basis for Hinduism. They worshiped
numerous gods through sacrifice, practiced many elaborate
rituals and were careful to remain ritually pure according to
their varna or caste.

2. How is shmriti different from shruti?

¬ Shrmiti is considered less important Shruti, as the writings
of Shmriti serves to reinforce Shruti. Shruti is considered to
have been heard and transmitted by earthly sages, while
Shrmiti is remembered by ordinary human being. Aside from
that, Shruti is consists of four collections of Vedas and other
parts such as Upanishads and Brahmanas, which are
considered as the primary source and most important books
of Hinduism. On the other hand, Shrimiti is comprised of the
Ramayana and Mahabharata, the long epic poems that tells a
story, and the Bhagavad Gita, a narrative dialogue and one of
the most holiest book.

3. For a Hindu, how does one attain moksha?

¬ Moksha is achieved through meditation, achieving one's
dharma, detaching from the material world, and attaining a
divine understanding. This liberation can be attained through
the four yogas as it aims to produce spiritual enlightenment.

4. What makes Hinduism's beliefs, particularly its

polytheistic nature, complex for other people?
¬ First and foremost, Hinduism has many gods and
goddesses (330 Million in total), however, all of these are
just simply manifestations of the Divine Brahman. This
could be confusing to grasp for other religions considering
Hinduism's many traditions and philosophies and diverse set
of beliefs and practices alongside the belief of plenty of gods
and goddesses. Aside from that, Hinduism are not bound by
a book or one particular preaching or not a bunch of rigid
rules, which serves as a mystery to many of us.

5. Why do you think Hinduism is mainly concentrated on

India?
¬ As Hinduism emerge from the Indus Valley and developed
in India, it is obvious why the religion is mainly concentrated
on it. Almost all of its beliefs, teaching, and even its religious
stories are based on the culture and tradition of the people of
India. Even though the religion was able to spread through
South Asia and South East Asia, including the Philippines, it
does not strive on it due to the invasion of the Muslims and
Christians in the area. The religion also does not enforce its
belief to other people, which made its belief remain and
reside in India.

6. How did Hinduism strengthen the caste system? Do

you think the caste system will exist in countries that
embrace a different religion? Why or why not?
¬ Hinduism strengthens the caste system by justifying it
through the idea of karma and dharma. As Hinduism emerge
from the Indus Valley and developed in India, it is obvious
why the religion is mainly concentrated on it. Almost all of
its beliefs, teaching, and even its religious stories are based
on the culture and tradition of the people of India. Even
though the religion was able to spread through South Asia
and South East Asia, including the Philippines, it does not
strive on it due to the invasion of the Muslims and Christians
in the area. The religion also does not enforce its belief to
other people, which made its belief remain and reside in
India.