Hinduism

ORIGINATED IN THE INDUS RIVER VALLEY SOMETIME

BETWEEN THE 7 T H AND 5 T H CENTURY BCE AND CLAIMS
TO BE THE OLDEST RELIGION ON EARTH

Map of Indus River Valley/India

Hindu is derived from the Sanskrit word Sindhu (meaning river) used by
the Aryans. The word Hindu or Indu was used by the Greeks and the
Persians to denote the people living beyond the Indus River.

The Ancient Vedas

The Vedas are thought
to be the oldest
scriptural texts in
existence, predating the
Biblical texts. They were
written in Sanskrit and
are the result of
revelation by ancient
sages not to be
considered the work of
humans.

Sanskrit
Sanskrit (/snskrt/;
Sanskrit: sasktam
[smskrrt
t m] or saskta,
originally saskt vk,
"refined speech") is the
primary sacred
language of Hinduism, a
philosophical language in
Hinduism, Jainism,
Buddhism and Sikhism, and
a literary language that
was in use as a lingua
franca in Greater India.

Lingua Franca
Lingua franca: a
language that is
adopted as a
common language
between speakers
whose native
languages are
different. There
are thousands of
languages spoken
in India.

Is Sanskrit spoken today?

It existed alongside spoken vernaculars,
called Prakrits, which later evolved into
the modern Indo-Aryan languages. Sanskrit
continued to be used as a first language
long after it was no longer spoken. In India
and in Southeast Asia, Sanskrit enjoys a
status similar to that of Latin and Greek in
the Western world.
Common languages spoken in India include:
Hindi, Bengali, Marathi, Urdu, Gujarati,
Punjabi, Assamese, Sinhalese in Sri Lanka
and Odia, and English as a lingua franca.

Dharma, Non-Violence and

Karma
Dharma includes: Righteousness, Truth and Sacred Law,
Ethics, Duty and Justice, Religion and Laws of Nature.
Dharma means that which upholds.
Non-violence is the greatest force at the disposal of
Mankind. It is mightier than the mightiest weapon of
destruction devised by the ingenuity of man. Mahatma
Ghandi
With this teaching Ghandi influenced the Reverend Martin
Luther King Jr. in the fight for civil rights, Cesar Chavez
who fought for the rights of farm workers in California and
Nelson Mandela who fought for racial equality in South
Africa.
Karma: The Law of Cause and Effect. Whatever a
person does good or bad, will return to him in this or a future
life. What goes around, comes around! The higher aim is
to do good without expecting a return.

Hinduism
Unlike other religions, Hinduism
has no single founder, no single
scripture and no single
governing body.
Hinduism is known as a way of
life or a family of religions
rather than a single religion. It
is referred to as the Sanatana
Dharma, the eternal way or
the eternal way beyond
human origins.
Hindus believe that existence is
a cycle of birth (samsara),
rebirth all governed by Karma.

The Caste System

Parents teach their profession or trade to
their children at a young age. The groups in
the caste system became hereditary.
Hindus believe that the Caste System
provides a sense of belonging, social order
and stability.
The caste system provides social cohesion
that effects social, economic and political
life, especially in marriage and elections.
Women play an equal role in religious
ceremonies, festivities and social
relationships, and have held top positions in
religious and political life.

Hindu God(s)
Hindus believe that truth is one, but
paths are many and are therefore,
respectful and tolerant of other
religions. Hinduism is the only major
religion that worships God in male
and female forms. Hinduism worship
Gods with and without attributes.
The original name for Hinduism
means the Eternal Religion.
Hindus believe in a Supreme God
that can be represented as many
Gods, the divinity of the soul,
Reincarnation, Karma, God
realization and liberation from
rebirth.

The Supreme Being (Brahman):

Mono- or Polytheistic?
The Supreme Being (who created all
universe) has various names depending
on region and denomination, and is all
knowing, all powerful, all loving,
eminent (present in all things), and
transcendent (beyond them as well).
God is within each person or the divine
soul. God realization is experiencing
God within oneself (the ultimate goal in
life). Every person can know God
personally.
There are many Gods with distinct
attributes, who are all part of the
Supreme Being and Hindus can choose
which ones they want to worship.

Symbol Om, the Sound made

when the Universe was Created

Salvation (Moksha)
Ultimately each soul (atman) achieves
salvation as it unifies with God and is no
longer reborn.
Hindus do not believe in a Satan or an
Eternal hell.
Worship is central to Hinduism, therefore
every home has a place to worship, which
may be a shelf with deities or an entire
room.

Upanishads
Each of a series of Hindu
sacred treatises written in
Sanskrit circa 800200 BC.
The epics consist of the
Mahabharata which is ten
times longer than the Iliad
and the Odyssey combined. It
details a war between
Kauratas and Pandavas and
Krishna (Hindu Deity) fights
on the side of the Pandavas.
The famous "Song of the
Lord," or Bhagavad-Gita ( a
popular sacred text), is
actually a book within the
Mahabharata.

Hindu Holi(y)days
Festival of Lights (five
days) celebrates the
victory of good over evil,
light over dark.
Hindus are expected to
pilgrimage to Temples
and other holy sites during
their lifetime. The Kumbh
Mela was the largest
human gathering ever
30,000,000 pilgrims to
bathe in a designated river
for religious cleansing.

Buddhism, Jainism and Sikhism

originate from Hinduism
All three religions
share a lot of
philosophies in
common.
Yoga also originated
from Hinduism.
Hindus represent 15%
of the worlds religious
population and are
approximately 1.1
Billion followers.

What Hinduism is not

Discriminatory of other faiths:
Hindus acknowledge the potential
existence of multiple, legitimate
religious and spiritual paths, and
the idea that the path best suited
for one person may not be the
same for anotherAs a result of
this pluralistic outlook, Hinduism
has never sanctioned
proselytization and asserts that it is
harmful to societys well being to
insist ones own path to God is the
only true way.
Hinduism is actually a family of six
major schools of thoughts, one of
which is Yoga.
Hinduism is a global religion.

Hindu Contributions
Hindu mathematicians
developed thee numeral 0 and
decimals.
They performed complex
surgeries not performed in
Europe until centuries later.
They also determined that the
Sun orbited around the sun.
India was a large producer of
steel.
India is the worlds largest
democracy.