Hinduism
Hinduism
–
The Basics
•
Hinduism is the world’s third largest religion.
•
It is the main religion of India and Nepal and has over 900 million
adherents worldwide.
•
Hinduism is considered by many to be the oldest religion in the
world, dating back many thousands of years.
•
Unlike most other religions, Hinduism has no single founder, no
single scripture, and no commonly agreed set of teachings.
The Basics
continued
•
Hinduism originated around the Indus Valley near the River Indus in
modern day Pakistan.
•
About 80% of the Indian population regard themselves as Hindu.
•
Most Hindus believe in a Supreme God, whose qualities and forms are
represented by the multitude of deities which emanate from him.
•
Hindus believe that existence is a cycle of birth, death, and rebirth,
governed by Karma.
•
Hindus believe the soul passes through a cycle of successive lives and
its next incarnation is always dependent on how the previous life was
lived.
The Basics
continued
•
The main Hindu texts are the
Vedas
and their supplements. Veda is a
Sanskrit word meaning 'knowledge'. These scriptures do not mention
the word 'Hindu' but many discuss dharma, which can be rendered as
'code of conduct', 'law', or 'duty'
•
Hindus celebrate many holy days, but the Festival of Lights,
Diwali
is
the best known.
Hindu Terms
•
Atman
- means 'eternal self'. It refers to the real self beyond ego or
false self. It is often referred to as 'spirit' or 'soul' and indicates our
true self or essence which underlies our existence.
•
It entails the idea of the self as a spiritual rather than material being.
Thus it can be said that in this world, a spiritual being, the atman, has a
human experience rather than a human being having a spiritual
experience.
•
Dharma
- an important term in Indian religions. In Hinduism it
means 'duty', 'virtue', 'morality', even 'religion' and it refers to the
power which upholds the universe and society.
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- Spring '19
- Hinduism, Shiva
