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Epistemology of Hindu Philosophy and Its Educational Implications

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Education Quarterly Vol. 3 No. 1 July 2019 11

Epistemology of Hindu Philosophy and Its Educational Implications

Jiwan Dhungana
Email: jiwandhungana@gmail.com
Teacher
Sanothimi Campus

Abstract
This paper is about exploring the epistemological assumptions of Hindu philosophy. The
paper has explored the Hindu worldview about the individual, world, and God, the
epistemology of ontological assumptions, and their sources to understand its educational
implications. The paper has collected the information through the analysis of various
literature, some videos or lectures of Hinduism found in 'YouTube', and the personal
interview with a Hindu scholar of Nepal. The paper found that Hindu philosophy is
completely theistic, spiritual, and Sanatana. It states the humanistic and harmonious
approaches of life as realizing it as soul. Hindu lifestyle is found as a deeply ingrained belief
and lifestyle of people in Nepal having various influences on the educational system. The
philosophical assumptions of Hindu philosophy have a direct influence on various
educational practices.
Keywords: Hindu Philosophy, soul, Sanatana, salvation, Vidya
Introduction
Is the spiritual world true and material world illusion? Is the world created by God (Brahma)
and preserved by God (Bishnu)? Does the individual indicate the soul or physical body? Are
there 8.4 million times of the cycle of birth and death? Is the life of an individual is
determined by destiny? These are the fundamental questions that we are hearing every day. It
is becoming more controversial as different philosophical thoughts emerged. I have
experienced some contexts where I am hearing these questions.
The first context, when we were enjoying a picnic at a romantic place on 25th April 2015, we
faced the heavy earthquake of 7.8 Richter scale. Everyone was calling the name of god 'Ram
Ram' there. I observed the whole group there that no matter whether she/he is teenage, young
or old, all people were calling 'Ram Ram'. The situation was dreaded that many homes were
broken down and many people were likely to lose their lives. I used to hear this name from
some people but that day I heard this voice from everyone. I wonder to know that why people
of Nepal always call the name of a Hindu god in the dreaded situation.
In the second context, two years ago, I meet my two aunties, who were going to
Shyamashyam Dham (a religious place Hindu) every Saturday. They told me that now they
were devoted themselves to the deeds of god rather than material or sensual satisfaction.
They further told me that now they know the facts that what they are supposed to do as being
humans in this world. I was surprised that why they have changed themselves as the just
opposite of their a few years ago's thinking. It has attracted my attention to know that why
people at some point in time turn themselves into a spiritual beings.
The third context, when we lost any family members or relatives or friends we often hear that
no need to worry about any loss of people because days of our life are pre-determined by
destiny or god which we can't control. Recently, a senior surgeon doctor of Nepal 'Upendra
Devkota' also regards this idea extracting the message from a religious book called Gita to
understand human life. I wonder to know that why all types of people of Nepal are so
attached to the Hindu philosophical premises.
Fourth context, one day when I was visiting the Hindu temple, two people of father and son
arrived at the gate of the temple. The son, showing the statue of the lion, asked his father to
run away because there were statues of lions which the child thought as real and that might
kill them. The father replied that that is the just statue, not a real lion so we don't need to
Education Quarterly Vol. 3 No. 1 July 2019

worry about it. Later, the son saw that his father was worshipping another statue inside the
temple and asked his father to differentiate with evidence between the statue found at the gate
and the statue found inside the temple. I feel that the question of the son was remained
unanswered.
By analyzing the above contexts and fundamental questions, I wonder to know how Hindu
philosophy defines the world, human beings, and the relation of a human being with the
world. I am curious to know further that how “the ultimate ‘goal’ of human life is to realize
the soul (Aatma) and attain salvation from worldly sorrows through the practice of
knowledge (Gyan)”. This paper intends to explore the epistemological assumptions of Hindu
philosophy and its implication in the present context of the education system of Nepal.
The Hindu philosophy is atheistic philosophy that believes in Om (trinity: Brahma, Bishnu,
and Maheswor) and it is entirely based on Vedas. Hindu religion and philosophy are closely
intertwined, its roots reach back some 4500 years to a civilization that flourished in the Indus
valley (Ozmon, 2012). Hindus worshiped gods that represented powers in nature (Ozmon &
Craver, 1999). I wonder to know that how people developed the deeply ingrained belief
system of Hindus and what are the sources of such beliefs.
The epistemology of Hindu philosophy is about searching the source of ontological
assumptions formed in Hindu philosophy. Epistemology stands for how we know about what
we know. The ultimate source of Hindu philosophy is Vedas. The Vedas, the oldest Hindu
scriptures, consisted of a group of hymns, chants, and treaties of a people who called
themselves "Aryans" (Ozmon, 2012). The epistemological assumptions can be found in three
basic texts: the Vedas, the Upanishads, and the Epics (ibid). The paper is more interested to
know about how the information derived from such source is playing the role to set Hindu
ingrained character.
The Upanishads is a much more intellectual version of Vedas. The message of Upanishads is
to merge self (Atman) with the supreme (Brahman), whereby Atman and Brahma come
together (Ozmon & Craver, 1999). Upanishads explains that Brahman is the only absolute
reality, one must be absorbed into Brahmin to achieve liberation. The spiritual teacher (guru)
is well versed in Vedic scriptures, as well as knowledge of Brahmin.
Hinduism also teaches that the soul never dies. Every action of humans affects how the soul
will be in the next incarnation. The Gita promotes the idea that the whole world of nature and
the universe of name and form are all illusions (Ozmon, 2012, p. 82). The aim of Hindu
philosophy is the salvation of the cycle of birth and death. It believes with 8.4 million times
of incarnation to become a human being again if you didn't do proper action in your life.
These are all contradictory that we can find in Hinduism. I wonder to know that why all
people are showing their beliefs with spirituality, deeds for god, the path of salvation, and the
behaviors of divinity.
Research questions
The paper has intended to seek the answers to the following research questions for the study.
How does Hindu philosophy interpret the individual, the world, and the god?
What are the basic ontological assumptions of Hindu philosophy?
What are the epistemological sources for ontological assumptions about Hinduism?
How can we apply the epistemological assumptions of Hinduism in education?
Theoretical framework/orientations
Hindu philosophy is reasoning about the various rituals performed during the course
of one's life. I have chosen the various theoretical orientations to analyze the various aspects
of Hinduism. I have chosen the 'Vedic theistic orientation', 'humanistic theory', 'peace and
non-violence theory' and 'reformative theory' to identify its various implications into the
educational system in Nepal.
Education Quarterly Vol. 3 No. 1 July 2019

Vedic theistic orientations

The world is created by Brahma (Luitel, 2006). The Vedas have redirected to human beings
to perform deeds for the various Devatas namely prominent devatas like Agnideva (Luitel,
Yajurveda in Nepali, 2006); Indradeva and others (Luitel, 2006); Agnideva, Indradeva and
Somadeva and others (Luitel, 2010); and Agnideva, Indradeva, Somadeva and all other
devatas (Luitel, 2006) to make them happy to be blessed or safeguarded by them. The Hindu
philosophy is a completely theistic philosophy that believes entirely upon the belief system of
god. It redirected us to be fully devoted to the deeds of god so that people are likely to obtain
salvation from their cycle of birth and death.
There is a big surprising assumption with Hinduism that a biological being can only get the
human incarnation after spending 8.4 million times of life in 'Yoni' or womb (Bhatta, 2011).
The undoubted beliefs on Vedas have already created the deeply ingrained conviction on
people that they are destined to carry out hard work to make god happy to be blessed and
safeguarded.
I have acknowledged these underlying assumptions of this worldview to search wide horizons
of Hindu philosophy's sphere. I have analyzed the views and theories by employing this light
of theistic orientation.
Humanistic theory
The humanistic theory views that religion should be for the welfare of people but not for
sacrificing people for religion's sake only. Though there are several orthodoxies on
Hinduism, we can find a wide range of humanistic views as well. It promotes the idea that all
should be happy or 'sarve bhavantu sukhinha', each individual has a soul which has equal
value, and the family system has been a permanent institution for every human being. When
the god is blessed to a human being then s/he is likely to show affection to all human beings
as 'basudhaiba kutumbakam' or a sense of brotherhood to entire human beings (Bhatta, 2011).
I have used the humanistic theoretical lens to analyze the assumptions of Hinduism. As
having a theoretically humanistic view on it, we can change the several blind orthodoxies. If
we have a humanistic lens to accept worldview holds by Hindu practitioners then we can see
the greater implication in the present context of Hindu philosophy influenced society.
Peace and non-violence theory
The core principles of Hinduism seem to be peace and non-violence. In every ritual, Hindu
followers 'om shanti' 'om shanti' which means it believes in peace and non-violence. Some of
the social evils as emerged from some orthodoxies have given ways for discrimination on the
ground of gender, culture, caste, and so forth. These implicated discriminations that existed
therein need to be thrown away by taking help from the most sacred text of Hinduism's
Vedas.
I have used this notion to identify the various dimensions of Hinduism that need to be
changed to establish an equitable society even within the philosophical outlooks of Hinduism.
Reformative theory
As seeing a great discrepancy between theoretical orientation and practice, it is required to
reform the several aspects of Hinduism. As analyzing the most sacred text of Hinduism
'Vedas', the caste system and discrimination on the ground of caste can't find in the text. As
Hindu followers believed in theological text, I have employed the ideas of Vedas to reform
the blind and orthodoxies therein.
There is a morning god's song that 'om jaya jaya Jagadisha hare, swami jay Jagadisha hare,
bhaktajanake sankata, dashajanake sankata kshanme dura kare om jay Jagadisha hare' or
there is a super-powerful god, human beings are destined to do deeds for god that after being
happy by the deeds of people, God will bless the human being so that all types of sorrows
will come to end. It indicates that people are accustomed to believing in the power of God
rather than the power of man/woman.
Education Quarterly Vol. 3 No. 1 July 2019

The theory has helped me to acknowledge that people's behaviors are guided by religious
beliefs and traditions. Those beliefs and traditions which are orthodox and superstitions are
required to change as consequences of the powerful application of education.
Ethnography
Ethnography is about describing and understanding from the point of view of a native.
It incorporates sociocultural perspectives, background information such as historical,
political, economic, and social called emic perspectives (Creswell, 2009). The
ethnomethodological study helps to understand the issues more deeply.
I have used this theoretical principle to analyze the perspectives of Hindu great
teachers and the public general to understand the epistemological position more intensely.
Method
The paper reviewed the theoretical literature from various books. The paper has
analyzed the important lectures recorded and disseminated from youtube of the best religious
experts. It has reviewed the video record of an Indian Monk, Haridas Ji, and Sadhguru. The
paper has interviewed a scholastic teacher of Hindu philosophy to understand the
epistemological assumptions of Hinduism. The data collection was basically by reviewing the
various recorded lectures of national and international religious teachers, reviewing religious
documents, and interviewing with local religious teachers.
The data collected from narration and literature are organized on the themes that
emerged. The interpretation of the data is carried out by the principles of religion should be
for the happiness and harmoniousness of humankind, not people to subject to religion.
Results
The results of the study are presented here with the headings of liberation from the
cycle of birth and death, assurance of rebirth by deeds of the human, biography of Brahma,
general philosophical premises of Hindu philosophy, and epistemology of Hindu philosophy.
Liberation from the cycle of birth and death
Haridas Ji is one of the main teachers of Shyamashyam Dham (a religious teaching
center) in Nepal. He explained that why we want liberation from the cycle of birth and death.
He has visualized the sorrow of being into the cycle of birth and death 8.4 million times
(Haridas, 2018). Haridas Ji made aware people that the life of today is the result of our
actions that we did in the previous incarnation and the life of the next incarnation will be
determined by the actions we perform in this life.
Haridas Ji stressed that when we do deeds for god then we can get all things that god
has. There are three governors of the universe as Vedas says: Brahma, Bishnu, and
Maheshwor. The ultimate god as Haridas believes is Krishna, and we are supposed to do
deeds for Krishna to get salvation from worldly sorrows (Haridas, Janma mrityu rahasya: part
41, 2012).
Haridas Ji accepts the reality that humanity has the various attributes of physical
pleasure, anger, greedy, and devotion with something but one can use all these attributes to
achieve the god (Haridas, 2018).
There are three spaces or Loka of the soul after the death, the space of holy deities
(Baikuntha Loka), the space of holy (Divya Loka), and the space of supreme (Brahma Loka)
(Haridas, 2012). No one can enter into the space of the holy land without deeds for god. He
suggests we need to make the god happy so that your soul can enter into the desired land after
your death rather than going again into the cycle of birth and death.
Assurance of rebirth by deeds of the human
The religious scholar of Hindu, Padhanath Dahal also accepts the reality that Hindu
philosophy talks about the birth and death cycle as 8.4 million times (Khanal, 2016) but that
will only apply if the human doesn't properly perform their actions as it supposed to be
Education Quarterly Vol. 3 No. 1 July 2019

(Dahal, 2018). He extracted some sentences from Gita and concluded that birth and rebirth
depends upon the action one performs in his/her life.
Biography of Brahma: first day of 51st year
The explanations of the spiritual world as a true world are found to be tried to justify
with the help of the concept of the biography of Brahma. There are the beliefs on the trinity
nature of God as Creator, Maintainer, and Destroyer as mentioned in Vedas. Lord Bishnu is
believed as the maintainer, Brahma as the creator, and Maheshwar as the destroyer of the
universe. Brahma represents the universe which we all live in and it is the Brahma who
creates life forms (Monk, 2017). Vedas say that during the day Brahma is busy in the creation
of life and during the night all life he created is absorbed back into him. So we will be there
only for the day of Brahma's (ibid).
The Brahma today has completed the age of the first day of the 51st year. The life span
of Brahma is 100 years. A year consists of 360 days. A day consists 4.32 billion of years for
the day plus 4.32 billion years for the night all together 8.64 billion years. Furthermore, this is
not the first time that the universe has been created. The universe was created together with
Brahma and it will be destroyed together with the completion of the life span of Brahma.
The mystical explanation about the world and Brahma are being the tool of continually
establishing the principle of 'spiritual world is the true and material world is just illusion' in
Hindu philosophy.
Immorality of the Soul
There is a belief system in Hinduism that the soul is immortal (Adhikari, 2016). Death
occurs when the soul permanently leaves the gross material body. When we die the soul
exists from the present body, the soul travels to the location of the next body, and the soul
enters the next body. There are nine gates of soul in the body to exit; the two eyes, the two
ears, the two nostrils, the mouth, and the two excretory organs (Unknown, 2017). The exit of
the soul from the organ from the upper parts is explained as desired because such soul exit is
believed to be ensured liberation.
The comments in the video found that "I heard the soul enters the baby at around the 6-
month stage, we are all spiritual beings having a human experience at this time. I wish we
could all wake up and see that we are all brothers and sisters and shake off all of the control
structures and be free and at peace" (Unknown, 2017). This comment indicates that people
accept this reality.
It shows that people have deep convictions about the immortality of the Soul. Those
who believe in this they are likely to engage themselves to ensure the exit of soul from other
than excretory organs by not going the opposite of prescribed ideals of life's conduct.
Philosophical premises of Hinduism
The philosophical premises of Hindu philosophy are presented with sub-headings
of Sanatana Vedas based culture, peace and harmony, respect towards nature, belief in
rebirth, craving for moksha, family system, and humanity.
Sanatana Vedas based culture. Vedic philosophy is not about religion but it is about
the lifestyle which is believed to be started since the creation of the universe (Ramanathan,
Juvva, Dutta, & Khaja, 2016) that’s why it is called Sanatana. There is a belief that Vedas
was originated from the mouth of God therefore they are regarded as the ultimate source of
knowledge in Hindu philosophy. It accepts universality and supremacy of soul, regards
immortal nature of the soul.
Peace and harmony. Peace and non-violence is the main motto of Hinduism that we
call 'Om Shanti Shanti Shanti' (Khanal, 2016). In every ritual or ceremony, we conduct this
peace prayer (Unknown, 2013). It means peace is needed at a personal level, community
level, and global level. Shanti Path is very essential. Further, Hindu philosophy regards
theoretically equal value to male and female that we address - Sita-ram/ Radhe-Shyam/
Education Quarterly Vol. 3 No. 1 July 2019

Gauri-Shankar/ Aama-Buwa/ Devi-devata. All are manifestations of the same supreme soul.
Our festivals, if understood and practiced well, strengthen Social harmony. Hinduism takes
life as a holistic way of life (Mayled & Ahluwalia, 2003). Life is regarded as sacred in
Hinduism, so all the different aspects and stages of life are celebrated with the beginning of
birth.
Respect towards Nature. Hindu Sanatana culture respects nature. It regards the earth as
a mother that Mata Me Bhumi Putro-ham Pritihivya (I'm the child of mother earth) as stated
in Veda (unknown, 2018). We can see the worship of cow or Gai puja, dog or Kukur
puja, snake or Nag Puja, hill or Parvat Puja, river or Nadi Puja, land or Bhumi Puja, sun or
Surya Puja, etc. are some of our Sanatana cultural practices.
Belief on rebirth. There is a belief on Hinduism that sin and religious identity is the
result of your previous deeds (Khanal, 2016). Deeds for bhakti of god but never expect
anything from your deeds because whatever you do in this life, you will experience the result
of it only on your next incarnation.
Craving for Moksha. The aim of life according to Hinduism is liberation from the birth
and death cycle that it is really difficult to follow the 8.4 million times of birth and death
(Haridas, 2012). The basic principle of Hinduism is that it regards elders are like God
or pitridevo bhava, teachers are like God or gurudevo bhava, guests are like God or
athitidevo bhava which is a way of receiving truth or Satyam, goodness or Shivam, beauty or
Sundaram (Khanal, 2016). It also appeals to help to those who are poor, miserable, and
helpless particularly for earning religion.
Family System. Family is the most beautiful institution that human being has ever
created (Gupta, 2005). Family is the first open school to learn basic values like love, respect,
forgiveness, co-existence, cooperation, tolerance, etc. Culture is protected and continued by
the family and family is maintained and sustained by the culture.
Humanity. 'Sarve Bhavantu Sukhinh' (Khanal, 2016), or 'all human beings are wished to
be happy' is the basic idea that Hinduism holds (Sharma & Trikha, 2006). It prays for the
welfare of the entirety of humanity. It celebrates unity in Diversity. Diversity is a basic
character of Hinduism. One can choose any path, any practice... but the beauty is that all
these paths/practices are inter-connected. A sense of worldly brotherhood (Basudhaiva
Kutumbakam) is the supreme human way of looking at the world (Khanal, 2016).
Epistemology of Hindu philosophy
Epistemology of Hindu philosophy is presented here with the organized themes of
Vidya and Avidya and Chittabhumi.
Vidya and Avidya. Vidya is about acquiring knowledge of spirituality whereas Avidya is
about acquiring knowledge about the physical world or world of material (Timalsina,
2009). Vidya drives to salvation and Avidya to material gain. People are in a state of
ignorance (Agyanta) due to the inability to understand the body and the Brahma. The access
to Avidya and lack of Vidya are the key causes of sorrow. When people study the Vedas,
eight-fold yoga, rules of Brahmacharya, and so forth then the ignorance (Agyanta) will be
ended and people can stay free from their worldly tensions.
It shows that Hindu philosophy encourages people to reach the knowledge of Vidya. Vidya is
all about knowing the knowledge that is written on the theology of Hindu and applying them
to the daily life.
Five levels of mental life (Chittabhumi). The nature of human mental life consists of five
levels which are Ksipta or restless, Mudha or torpid, Viksipta or distracted, Ekagra or
concentrated, and Nirudha or restricted (Sharma, 1987). Ksipta or restless is a state of mind
where qualities of rajas dominate the human mind for sensual satisfaction. Mudha or torpid is
a state of mind which dominates the human mind by tamas qualities and redirects them
towards ignorance. Viksipta or distracted is a state of the human mind where sattva qualities
Education Quarterly Vol. 3 No. 1 July 2019

start to dominate but rajas also assert. Ekagra or concentrated is a state of the human mind in
which the mind is entirely dominated by sattva where rajas and tamas are subdued or the
mind is concentrated on the objects of meditation (Khanal, 2016). Nirudha or restricted is the
super dominance of Sattva qualities in the human mind (ibid).
It shows that the extent of involvement and conviction with religious practices are gradually
increasing knowledge access or epistemology of Hindu philosophy. Chittabhumi seems like
the process of developing the attitude and values of Hindu philosophy in every individual.
Educational practitioners need to know the levels of mind to conditioning pupils with them if
that seems rational and un-conditioning pupils with the knowledge, values of Hindu
philosophy if those seem inappropriate with modern societies.
Hindu philosophy and education. The Gurukul is the nature of education according to
Hindu philosophy (Gawande, 2002). It works for combating ignorance by providing Vidya to
develop wisdom on Vedas, Upanishads, and so forth. The process of education seems very
idealistic and the relation between teacher and students seems very intimate. The students
of Gurukulas are bound by the philosophical norms of Hindu philosophy and various rules.
The teacher is regarded as next to god.
The Gurukul is the representation of a religious Hindu philosophy-based education system.
General or modern education is also influenced by various philosophical premises of Hindu.
The curriculum and educational practitioners seem required to be well known with the
philosophy of Hindu to ensure the right balance between religious and secular beliefs.
Discussion
The discussion part consists of how the individual, the world, and the god is
interpreted in Hinduism, ontological premises, epistemological sources of ontology, and their
educational implications.
Interpretation of the individual, the world and the god in Hinduism
The Hindu philosophy has interpreted the individual as soul, the universe as the life of
Brahma, and the trinity nature of God.
The individual as Aatman or soul in Hinduism. The Hindu philosophy believes that
the human being consisted of the physical object, the body, and the non-physical object, the
soul. The body is temporary and the soul is permanent and immortal. When the soul
permanently exits the gross material human body, then it travels to the next body and enters
into the next body which is the continuous cycle of the soul (Unknown, 2017). As there are
nine gates to exit the soul from the body (ibid), if the soul leaves from the head then one will
be likely to go on Baikunthaloka (holy land) but that depends entirely upon one's actions
performed during his/her life. This message even redirects us to engage for the deeds of god.
The understanding about world or universe in Hinduism. The paper found that
Hindu philosophy has a unique view about when and how the universe was created and will
sustain. Since the existence of Brahma, the universe is created and will be destroyed with the
completion of the life span of Brahma (Monk, 2017). The Brahma today has completed the
age of the first day of the 51st year. The life span of Brahma is 100 years. A year consists of
360 days. A day consists 4.32 billion of years for a day plus 4.32 billion years for the night all
together 8.64 billion years. Furthermore, this is not the first time that the universe has been
created. The universe was created together with Brahma and it will be destroyed together
with the completion of the life span of Brahma.
These views are different assumptions than the science explains about the creation and
age of the universe. There is no way of empirically proving it but only the beliefs that Hindu
people trust by reading Vedas.
Trinity nature of the God. The Hindu philosophy believes that the universe is
created by God Brahma, preserved by god Bishnu and god Maheshwar as a destroyer. It
Education Quarterly Vol. 3 No. 1 July 2019

indicates that people who are guided by Hindu philosophy believe in God, power of God and
sees all causes and reasons of the universe as the intent of god.
Basic ontological premises of Hindu philosophy
The ontological premises of Hindu philosophy are mainly spiritual,
universal, Sanatana, and humanistic in nature.
Brahma satya Jagat mithya. Shankaracharya has said that 'Brahma Satya and Jagat
Mithya' or the spiritual world are real, and the physical world is a mere illusion. Further,
Vedas described that during the day Brahma is busy in the creation of life, and during the
night all life he created absorbed back into him (Monk, 2017). So all the control system
resides on Brahma, therefore, we have to follow the path of achieving God. The physical
world and material happiness are all illusions.
This philosophy redirects us to be detached from sensual and material happiness, and
following the path of spirituality is to achieve God. It explains the world, life, and all
activities as mysterious or operated by the power of God.
Sanatana Hindu lifestyle. The paper has found contradictions between the sources
consulted. Ozmon (2012) describes the roots of Hindu philosophy back to some 4500 years.
Some explain it as the lifestyle of people created together with the creation of the universe.
Monk (2015) linked the creation of the universe with the birth of Brahma which is
uncountable years in itself.
People who are influenced by Hindu philosophy, believe in the concept of Brahma
because it is written on Vedas (shastra). It has no scientific evidence in itself, however,
people have accustomed with this that people take the name of God at the time of difficulty
which might be the lifestyle of people.
The rebirth. Hindu philosophy believes in 8.4 million times of being in yoni or rebirth if one
doesn't do proper deeds for God in his/her life (Haridas, Janma Mrityu Rahasya: part 41,
2012). If one can carry out proper deeds for the god then he/she is likely to get salvation of
his/her soul or Jivatman into the soul of god or Paramatman otherwise one has to face the
cycle of birth and death. Whatever action or karma one performs, determines the life or
rebirth of the next incarnation.
It redirects us to perform all actions that are fully associated with the deeds of God. This is
what the reason that people who believe in this reality then they would devote themselves to
the deeds of God.
The liberation/salvation of human. As per the information that the paper analyzed,
the main aim of life according to Hindu philosophy is that to attain salvation. Salvation can
be achieved by ending the process of birth and death cycle of your own. Sadhguru, a religious
teacher of Hinduism in India, told that you must know yourself if you want to live totally;
you must attend to the god (Sadhguru, 2015). Once you know yourself as a soul
or Atman, then you can live totally and happily (ibid). When one performs the proper deeds
for god in his/her life then he/she is likely to enter into the holy land or Vaikuntha Loka or
more so that he/she doesn't have to enter into the cycle of birth and death again.
It is only a matter of belief written on religious books of Hindus. However, it redirects us to
be moral and ethical in the practices.
Humanity. The 'Basudhaiba Kutumbakam', all human beings of the world are
friends, strives to build the sense of world brotherhood or sisterhood. The wishes Hindu
philosophy disseminate everywhere is that 'Sarve Bhavantu Sukhinha' or wish to be happy all
and message of peace and non-violence or 'Shanti is more human way even for today's
society. Theoretically, Hindu philosophy state equal value to male and female that we address
- Sita-ram/ Radhe-Shyam/ Gauri-Shankar/ Aama-Buwa/ Devi-devata, etc. Hindu philosophy
address first female rather than male. The more, it accepts the soul of every being in the
universe which has equal value.
Education Quarterly Vol. 3 No. 1 July 2019

It seems that Hindu advocates theoretically humanity but the practice seems vice
versa. Therefore, we can apply the theoretical ideas of Hindu philosophy into practice as well
to reduce gender discrimination therein and promote humanity in the society.
Epistemological sources for ontological assumptions about Hinduism
The epistemology is about how the Hindu believers know the ontology of their own as
they are known. They are believed to be known by reading the theological sources or Vidya,
the practices of previous generations, and the cultural traditions.
Epistemological sources as Vidya and avidya knowledge. Vidya is about acquiring
knowledge of spirituality whereas Avidya is about acquiring knowledge about the physical
world or world of material. The Hindu philosophy stresses Vidya, the knowledge and idea
of Vedas, Upanishads, Ramayana, Mahabharata, and many other new versions of spiritual
knowledge which can lead every human towards salvation. It is believed that once people get
access to Vidya knowledge then they will choose the path of spirituality to achieve god and
get salvation.
Epistemological source as the behaviour of previous generation. The newborn
baby observes the elders' behavior and starts. If the elders' behavior is guided by
the Vidya knowledge of Hindu Philosophy then new generations are also likely to follow the
ideals of Hindu philosophy even if they have not accessed the Vidya knowledge yet.
Epistemological source as the cultural traditions. Society has several cultural
traditions which work as an opportunity to be linked with Vidya knowledge of the Hindu
Philosophy. As the encountered interaction of people with such cultural traditions redirects
people to follow Hindu norms and values even they have not studied the religious knowledge
sources.
Educational implications of Hindu Philosophy
The philosophical assumptions of people hold about how education should be and
should take place will have a high impact on education. The Hindu philosophy is itself a
lifestyle of people and belief system of Sanatana culture and its influence on education is
inevitable. The following aspects of the Hindu philosophy are the most applicable in the field
of education.
Evolutionary belief system and education. The beliefs system of people seems
different with every generation. The old generation seems to attach more to the religious
rituals and beliefs system but the new generation strives to verify the truth as per the
scientific norms. If we agree with the belief system of the old generation, then students seem
likely to be dissatisfied with the education they received. If the education system is attached
to the belief system of the new generation then those parents, who hold a religious belief,
seem to stop sending their children to school. When the educational practitioners move
through the complexity of such a situation then only the solution could be choosing the
middle path of adopting scientific knowledge, skill, and attitude together with integrating
core values of Hindu philosophy.
Linking education with humanistic values of Hindu Philosophy. We can apply the
concept of wishing happiness to all or 'sarve bhawantu sukhina', brotherhood or 'basudhaiva
kutumbakam' peace and non-violence and so forth in education to develop humanistic
qualities in human beings. We can deliver ethical or moral education to prepare ethical
people. We can use school to protect and promote our culture to the next generation.
Position of teacher and student. The process of education and the role of teacher and
student found in Gurukulas are the most applicable. In the case of non-applicable ideas, we
can integrate our process of education into our practice such as content, pedagogy, ethical and
moral values, and so forth by modifying them following Hindu philosophy.
Education Quarterly Vol. 3 No. 1 July 2019

Conclusion
The Hindu philosophy is deeply ingrained in the context of Nepal. It is a theistic philosophy
that believes in Om or trinity of god, soul, rebirth, and the power of god (Khanal, 2016). The
paper supports the principle of Haridas Ji, Sadhguru, and other various Hindu scholars who
deliver the lectures, and it encourages people to be highly ethical and moral by promoting
spirituality or deeds for god to get salvation from the cycle of birth and death as the core
principle of Hindu.
This paper has validated problems stated in some contexts. Hindu philosophy is a lifestyle of
people or 'Sanatana culture started since the creation of the universe that's why everyone
automatically calls 'Ram Ram' at the time of dreaded situation of the earthquake as a
consequence of conviction towards Hinduism. It has also validated the idea that once people
know the importance of being spiritual in Hindu philosophy or the importance of deeds of
God, then they are likely to follow that path ever.
The paper has concluded that the curriculum practitioners are responsible to meet the
philosophical expectations of parents who believe in Sanatana culture and the students who
believe in empirically proved knowledge. Therefore, the Hindu philosophy has the relation
with education to set curriculum objectives, to determine content, to choose the pedagogy,
and to evaluate the competency of students.
The paper can be useful for designing an educational system that is compatible with Hindu
philosophy. It can be a reference paper for educational practitioners to inform them about the
basic tenets of Hindu philosophy and the reasons of implications into the education process.
The paper has ignited several aspects of Hindu philosophy in which several types of research
can be carried out furthermore rigorously in the future. There are several issues in the field of
Hindu philosophy from the perspective of education for those who are looking to research,
the paper could be a basis for further exploration.

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