Hinduism History Lesson1

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Note to Students, Parents and Teachers

This Educational Insight is HINDUISM TODAY magazinesresponse to the controversy in California over the way

Hinduism is taught in public-school history books. It is a16-page lesson on Hindu history, beliefs and practices forsixth graders written from the Hindu point of view. It is his-torically sound and acceptable in content and tone to thevarious denominations of the Hindu community.

The problem with every existing textbook for this gradelevel is that Hinduism is presented negatively, incompletelyand inaccurately. This lesson is patterned after a typicalchapter on the Jewish faith in these same books. It delib-erately does not follow the specific California standards for

presenting the Hindu religion because we believe them tobe deeply flawed and contrary to the States own generarule that teaching material must: 1) be historically accurate

2) instill in each child a sense of pride in his or her heritagand 3) avoid adverse reflection on a religion. It is our intent that this lesson will serve as a model for US textbooksproviding an authentic depiction of the eminent historyand traditions of the faith while giving 10-year-old Hindustudents justifiable pride in their religion.

In most states teachers are allowed to supplement thetextbooks with additional material. This lesson may be ofered as a more accurate basis for the classroom study othe origins and development of Hinduism in ancient India

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CHAPTER1

april/may/june , 2007 h i n d u i s m t o d a y I-1

HinduismFromAncientTimesThe largest civilization in the ancient

world developed in the Indus Valley

of India over 5,000 years ago. In the

thousands of years that followed,

India produced many great empires

under which science, art and philos-

ophy flourished. Out of this rich his-

tory developed the Hindu religion,today the third largest in the world.

This young priest is conducting a

fire ceremony just as was done in

ancient times.


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SECTION1What You Will Learn...

The Big Idea

Many Hindu religiouspractices are seen in thearcheological remains of thendus-Sarasvati civilization.

The sacred texts of Hinduismare in the Sanskrit languageand were originally memo-rized but unwritten.Ancient Indian art and sci-

ence were highly developed.

Hinduism developed overhousands of years in India.

Main Ideas

ey Terms

dus and Sarasvati rivers, p. 2;

das, p. 3; Sanskrit, p. 3

BUILDINGBACKGROUNDIndias known history begins with the Indus-

Sarasvati civilization, 5,500 years ago. We know from archeology that

this culture shows many features of later Hindu practice.

Understanding Ancient Indian HistoryThe early cities of India developed along the Indus and Sarasvatirivers starting around 3500bce. They are called the Indus-Sarasvaticivilization or, sometimes, the Harappan culture. It was the largestand most advanced civilization in the ancient world. But the mightySarasvati River dried up, and what was once a fertile area became adesert. The people of the region moved to other parts of India andbeyond. By 2000bce the civilization had entered a period of decline.

The Religion of the Indus-S arasvati People

A great many artifacts have been discovered from the Indus-Saras-vati cities. These include pottery, seals, statues, beads, jewelry, tools,games, such as dice, and childrens toys, such as miniature carts.

The at, stone seals have pictures and writing on them. Scholars

have not yet agreed on what the mysterious script on the seals means.They show deities, ceremonies, symbols, people, plants and animals.We learn from them that people at that time followed practices iden-tical to those followed by Hindus today. One seal shows a meditatinggure that scholars link to Lord Siva, while others show the lotusposture used by todays meditators. The swastika, a sacred symbol ofgood luck used throughout Hindu history, is common.

There are statues, including a small clay gure with its handspressed together in the traditional Hindu greeting of namaste.

his column in each of the three

ections presents our outline

or Hinduism in 6th grade

istory books. It is intended to

eplace existing lists of required

opics, such as those found in

he California Standards.

Explain the similarities be-

tween Indus-Sarasvati civiliza-

tion and later Hindu culture.

Discuss why the Aryan Inva-

sion theory has been disputed

by many scholars.

Discuss the social and political

system and advancement of

science and culture.

Explain the development of

religion in India between 1000

bce and 500 ce.

A gurine of a married woman shows a redpowder calledsindurin the part of her hair.Hindu women today follow this same cus-tom as a sign of their married status. Thepipal tree and banyan tree are depicted of-ten. These remain sacred to Hindus to thisday.

TheVedas

The central holy books of Hinduism are thefourVedas. Hindus regard them as spokenby God. They are in Sanskrit. TheVedaswere not written down but memorized.Students might spend twelve years learningthese scriptures. Some would memorize one

Veda, others all four. Even today there are

priests who can chant an entireVedaasmany as 10,500versesfrom memory.The relationship between the people of

the Indus-Sarasvati civilization and thosewho composed theVedasis not clearlyunderstood. We know that the Rig Vedadescribes the Sarasvati as the most mightyof rivers owing from the Himalayan

mountains to the ocean. Therefore, the holytexts had to be composed well before 2000bceby which time the river had dried up.TheVedasdescribe a powerful and spiri-tual people, their clans, kings and emperors.Their society was complex. The economyincluded agriculture, industry, trade, com-merce and cattle raising. TheVedascontainthousands of hymns in praise of God andthe Gods. They describe a form of re wor-ship, yajna, around a specially-built brickre altar. In several Indus-Sarasvati citiesarcheologists have unearthed what look likere altars.

The Aryan I nvasion Theory

Many school books present an Aryan Inva-sion of India. It is the theory that Aryaninvaders came from central Asia in 1500bce and conquered the indigenous Indus-Sarasvati civilization. It was these foreign-ers, the theory states, who wrote the Rig

Veda in Sanskrit. The theory was proposedin the 19th century by scholars in Europe,

HINDUISMTODAYSTEACHINGSTANDARDS

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Lord Siva in medifound on the Indu

2 hinduism today april/may/june , 2007

Origins ofHinduism

IfYOUlived then...Your house is built on a wide, waterless riverbed. Your father tells you it

was once the giant Sarasvati River, five kilometers across. There is not

enough rain to provide for the family s crops and cattle. Travelers tell

of another great river, the Ganga, hundreds of miles away. Your father

and other villagers decide they must move.

How would you feel about the long journey?

FROMINDUS-SARASVATITOMODERNTIMES

Indus-Sarasvati sculptures,seals and artifactsmore than 5,000 yearsold display features ofmodern Hinduism

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At left is a clay figure showing the

typical Hindu greeting of namasteThis clay figure of a woman has red sinin the hair parta custom followed b

married Hindu women to this day

dinodia

Lord Siva in medifound on the Indu


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strong identity and pride in their occupation. Fromtime to time people would move from one caste toanother, or establish new ones. The evolving castesystem became unfair to the people at the verybottom of the social order. Though caste is still animportant factor in arranging marriages, caste dis-crimination is illegal in modern India.

Women have always been held in high regard inIndia. Some of Indias foremost religious and politi-cal leaders are women. Hinduism is the only majorreligion in which God is worshiped in female form.

Life in ancient times was hard work for bothmen and women. The women were responsible forrunning the household; the men for their craft orfarm, as well as security. In general, women hadfewer property rights than men, but received lighter

punishments for crimes and paid fewer taxes. Theyparticipated equally with their husband in religiousceremonies and festival celebrations. Some womenwere highly educated, and a few even composedseveral of the holy Vedic hymns.

The period from 1000bce through the Guptaperiod up to the mid-6th century ce was a timeof great advancement. Hindus discovered the zeroand established the counting method, includingthe decimal system, we use today. Their astrono-mers knew that the Earth orbits the Sun and cal-culated the length of a year with great precision.

Medicine was so advanced that doctors werforming complex surgery not equaled in Euuntil the 18th century. In ancient times Indone of the most advanced and wealthy natiEarth. Since ancient times, a quarter of thepeople have lived in India.

sed on language studies. In part, it triedexplain why Sanskrit is so closely relatedEuropean languages, including English.any scholars now dispute this theory be-use all the evidence for it is questionable.

dditionally, modern scientists have foundbiological evidence, such as DNA, that

ople came from outside India in signi-nt numbers since at least 6,000bce.Many common explanations about Indianstory and culture are based on the Aryanvasion theory. Those who defend it claimat Sanskrit, the caste system and Hinduays of worship came from outside India. Ifu are studying India in school, you mayad about this outdated theory.

nduism Emerges

the Indus-Sarasvati culture declined,any of its people migrated to other places.hey settled mostly in north and centraldia, especially along the Ganga Riverstem. They interacted with tribes whod lived in those areas from ancient times.ound 1000bce, the Tamil-speaking Dra-dian people in the South had separatelyveloped a sophisticated language and

culture. Because of inadequate archeologi-cal research, we do not know a lot aboutthis period. However, by 600bce, India haddeveloped a common culture from northto south and east to west. By this time thesocial, religious and philosophical ideasand practices central to Hinduism are fullyevident. These are in continuity with thereligion of the Indus-Sarasvati culture, theteachings of theVedas, Dravidian cultureand elements of the tribal religions.

Hindu public worship, described in theVedas, took place in temporary shelters builtfor that purpose. The earliest mention ofpermanent temples for the worship of Godis in the Grihya Sutras,around 600bce.

Indian Society

A distinctive feature of India at this time wasthe varna or class system. Society was clas-sied into groups with specic occupations.These groups tended to become hereditary.There were four broad classespriests, war-riors, merchants and workers (includingcraftsmen). The system provided order andstability to society. Later on, the varnas di-vided into hundreds of sub-sections calledjatis(castes). Individualjatisdeveloped a

Section 1 Assessment

REVIEWING IDEAS, TERMSANDPEOPLE

1. a.Explain What happened to the Sarasvati Riv

b. AnalyzeWhat customs from modern Hindu

depicted in artifacts of the Indus-Sarasvati civi

2. ElaborateWhat are the advantages of a hered

occupation? What are the disadvantages?

3. a.Summarize How are women regarded in Hi

society?

b. RecallWhat are some of the great scientific

ments in ancient India?4. a.Explain How were the Vedaspreserved?

b. List What kind of information is in the Vedas

c. Explain Why is it important that the Rig Ved

tions the Sarasvati River as a mighty river?

5. AnalyzeWhat does your school history book s

about the Aryan Invasion? How does this lesso

FOCUSONWRITING

meline: Early Indian History

2600-2000 BCEHeight of Indus-Sara-

svati civilization. The

city of Lothal includes

large buildings and

an enclosed harbor.

5000 BCEeginning of Indus-

Sarasvati cities

600 BCEIndia is a unified culture at this time.

Large cities flourish in the Gangetic

Plains. Indian physician Sushruta

develops complex methods of sur-

gery. Tamil language flourishes in

the South. First mention of temple

worship appears in the Grihya Sutras.

321 BCEFoundation of the pan-

Indian Maurya Empire. Time

of great advancement in

science, statecraft, economy,

architecture, music and art.

200 CEHindu influence starts to spread

is now Cambodia, Thailand, Mala

Indonesia. In 1200 ce, the Hindu

called Angkor Wat is built in Cam

the worlds largest religious struc

2000 BCESarasvati River

dries up. People

move to North

and Central India.

500 BCEMagadha Empire in

the North and Pandyan

Kingdom in the South

flourish. Buddhism

and Jainism, offshoots

of Hinduism, become

prominent religions.

200 BCETiruvalluvar com-

poses Tirukural, one

of Indias greatest

scriptures on ethics

32Gupta Empire reigns over m

India, with Tamil kingdoms

south. This is the Golden A

India and Hinduism, with re

and tolerance for all rel

5000 BCE 2500 BCE 500 BCE 3001000 BCE 200 BCE

The sacred fire altar

of the ancient Vedic

rites. To this day

Hindu weddings

and other rites are

conducted around

fire altars.

HINDUSYMBOLS

Lothal

Gupta Art

Sushruta

Angkor Wat 12

harrapan.com

s.rajam

4 hinduism today april/may/june , 2007 april/may/june , 2007 hinduis m tod

ACADEMIC

VOCABULARY

continuity

unbroken con-

nection or line of

development

hereditary

passed from par-

ents to children


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The Big Idea

Hindus believe in a oneSupreme God and also manyGods and Goddesses.Dharma, karma and rein-carnation are central Hindubeliefs. There is a specialemphasis on nonviolence.Vedasare the primary Hinduscriptures. There are other

mportant scriptures as well.

ndus believe every soul willultimately achieve

God Realization.

Main Ideas

ey Terms

natana Dharma,p. 6

ahman,p. 6

va,p. 7

ja,p. 8

rma,p. 8

ncarnation,p. 8

BUILDINGBACKGROUNDFrom its beginnings, Hinduism has been an

open-minded religion. It is a basic Hindu belief that there are many

ways to approach God. Hinduism does not dictate one way as the only

way. Hindus believe Truth is one, paths are many and that every per-

son eventually finds spiritual salvation.

Religion Permeates the Hindus Daily LifeHindus base their way of life upon their religion. The Hindu culturecomes from Hindu beliefs. The key beliefs are in a one SupremeGod, subordinate Gods and Goddesses, heaven worlds, the divinityof the soul, dharma, karma, reincarnation, God Realization and lib-eration from rebirth. God Realization means the direct and personalexperience of the Divine within oneself. The original Sanskrit namefor Hinduism is Sanatana Dharma, meaning eternal religion.

Belief in God and the Gods and Goddesses

Hindus believe in and worship a one Supreme God. In the scrip-

tures, the Supreme God is called Brahman or Bhagavan, worshipedas both male and female. Brahman is all-powerful, all-knowing,all-loving and present in all things. God created everything in theuniverse out of Himself. This creation is not separate from Him.He guides the evolution of everything over vast spans of time. Ul-timately, He absorbs the universe back into Himself. This cycle ofcreation, preservation and absorption repeats without end.

The Supreme God is both transcendent and immanent. These aretwo key philosophical concepts. Astranscendent,God exists beyond

Explain the basic Hindu beliefs

regarding God, the Gods and

Goddesses, dharma, karma

and reincarnation. Describe

basic Hindu practices.

Discuss the Hindu principles

of nonviolence and religious

tolerance.

Describe the Vedasand

their Upanishads, Ramayana,

Mahabharata(including the

Bhagavad Gita) and other

important Hindu scriptures.


Hindu Beliefsand Scriptures

IfYOUlived then...The king has passed a new law increasing the taxes on farmers. The

farmers in your village have not had a good year. The harvest is smaller

than usual. The new tax may mean people will go hungry. Some in the

village want to attack the tax collectors. Others want to lie about the

amount of harvest. Still others say a peaceful protest will cause the

king to change his mind on the tax increase.

How would you respond to the tax increase? Why?

the physical universe. Asimmanent,His di-vine form pervades all nature and humanity.

In Hinduism, the soul is called atman.God exists within each soul. The Chando-gya Upanishadexplains it like this: Whatyou see when you look into another personseyes, that is atman, immortal, beyond fear;that is God.

Hinduism has different branches withvarying beliefs and practices. The four ma-jor branches are Saiva, Shakta, Vaishnavaand Smarta. Saivas and Shaktas call theSupreme God Siva, though Shaktas worshipthe female aspect of God. Vaishnavas callHim Vishnu. Smartas may choose one ofsix Deities to worship as the Supreme. By

whichever name or form, He is the same,one Supreme God. The Rig Vedasays, Theseers call in many ways that which is One.

Hindus may also worship Gods and God-desses, called devas, such as Ganesha andSarasvati. In Sanskrit, devameans shiningone. In some ways, these divine beingswho live in the heaven worlds are like the

angels and archangels in Western religions.Some Hindus consider the Gods and God-desses as alternative forms of the SupremeGod, and not as individual divine beings.

Each God and Goddess has particularpowers and areas of responsibility. For ex-ample, Ganesha is the Lord of Obstacles.Before beginning a new project, a Hindumay pray to Ganesha to remove any obsta-cles blocking his way.

In the Vaishnava tradition, Lord Vishnuappears on Earth as a divine personality, oravatar, from time to time to restore morallyright living. Of Vishnus ten avatars, LordRama and Lord Krishna are the most im-portant. Rama and Krishna are not separate

Gods. They are two forms of the one Su-preme God.In temples and shrines, the Supreme

God and the Gods and Goddesses areworshiped in a ritual called puja. Puja isa ceremony in which the ringing of bells,passing of ames, chanting and present-ing of owers, incense and other offerings

Hindus believe in a one supreme and loving God. At the sametime, they believe in Gods and Goddesses, great spiritual beingswho help us.

ONESUPREMEGODANDMANYGODSANDGODDESSES

Ganesha is the God prayed tobefore beginning any task orworship. His elephant headmakes Him easy to recognize.

Sarasvati is the Goddess of

learning and music. Below,She sits on a lotus flower play-ing the multi-stringed vina.

In the Bhagavad GitaLord Krish

Arjuna His universal form as thGod encompassing all the othe

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8 hinduism today april/may/june , 2007 april/m ay/ june, 2007 hinduis m tod

man, is reborn in a new body, experiencingmany lifetimes. The purpose of rebirth isto progressively achieve spiritual maturityand God Realization. Eventually each soullearns to live by religious principles andavoid creating negative karma. The processof reincarnation continues through manylives until the soul achieves liberation.

Hinduisms Sacred Scriptures

The fourVedasare the holiest scriptures forall Hindus. The Upanishads, an importantpart of theVedas, explain the Hindu philoso-phy. The next most important scriptures, alsoin Sanskrit, are theAgamas. There are spe-cicAgamasfor each major tradition in Hin-

duismSaiva, Shakta and Vaishnava. TheAgamasexplain philosophy, personal conduct,worship and temple construction. There arehundreds of other scriptural texts dealingwith religious and secular law, government,social order, economics, ecology, health, ar-chitecture, science, music, astronomy andmany other subjects. The Puranasare ency-clopedic accounts of the forms and avatars ofGod, the many subordinate Gods and divinebeings, creation, spiritual teachings, histori-cal traditions, geography and culture. TheTirukuralis a Tamil masterpiece on ethicsand moral living. TheYoga Sutrasof Patan-

jali explore yoga and meditation.The Ramayanaand Mahabharataare

two sacred epic histories of India. TheRamayanais the story of Lord Rama, whois the seventh incarnation of Lord Vishnu,and his divine wife Sita. This 24,000-versepoem describes Prince Ramas birth, Hisbanishment to a forest for 14years, theabduction of Sita by the demon Ravanaand Ramas victory over Ravana. The Ra-mayanaremains immensely popular to thisday in India and Southeast Asia.

The Mahabharata,Great India, is a78,000-verse story of a massive war thattook place in ancient times between thePandavas and their cousins, the Kauravas,

for the throne of a great kingdom. It alsodescribesthe nature of self and the world,karma, important family lineages of India,human loyalties, saints and sages, devotionto God and the ideals of dharma. LordKrishna, the eighth incarnation of LordVishnu, is a key gure in the epic. A centralepisode called the Bhagavad GitanarratesKrishnas dialogue with the Pandava archer,Arjuna, on the day of the battle. It is oneof the most popular and revered amongVaishnava and Smarta scriptures. Hindusacred music, dance, drama and the artsdraw heavily on the Ramayana, the Ma-habharata and the many Puranas.

invoke the Divine beings, who then cometo bless and help the devotees. During thepuja, through holy chants, gestures and sa-cred ritual, highly trained priests guide theworship. The priests treat the Deity withutmost care, attending to Him as the Kingof kings. The purpose of the puja is to cre-ate a high religious vibration and communi-cate with God or a deva through themurti,or consecrated statue,that is the focus of

worship. Deityis the proper English wordformurti. The wordidolis often used, butit is incorrect.

Hindus also practice internal worship ofGod. Sitting quietly, they may repeat thename of God while counting on beads. Oth-ers may chant, sing or meditate upon God.In Hinduism, there are many ways to wor-ship the Divine.

Dharma, Karma and Reincarnation

Dharmameans righteousness, divine law, eth-ics, religion, duty, justice and truth. Dharmameans the proper way one should live oneslife. To follow dharma, one should be religious,truthful, kind, honest and generous. Dharmaincludes the practice of nonviolence, calledahimsa in Sanskrit. It is the ideal of not injur-ing others in thought, word or action.

Karma, a central Hindu belief, is the law

of cause and effect. It means that anythingyou do will eventually return to you in thisor future lives. If we do something selshor hateful, we will in time experience thesame pain and suffering we caused to oth-ers. If our acts are good and kind, we willreceive goodness and kindness.

Reincarnationmeans literally to re-enterthe esh. It is the belief that the soul, at-


REVIEWINGIDEAS, TERMSANDPEOPLE

1. a.Define What is Sanatana Dharma?

b. ExplainWhat is a deva?

c. ElaborateWhat are the two key terms used by Hindus

to describe the Supreme God?

2. CategorizeWhat are the four main branches of Hindu-

ism?

3. a.Recall Why do Hindus pray first to Lord Ganesha?

b. IdentifyWhat are the two most popular incarnations

of Lord Vishnu?

c. ExplainWhat is the purpose of the Hindu puja?

4. a.Explain What is karma?

b. IllustrateWhat are some examples of following

dharma?

c. ExplainWhat is the purpose of reincarnation?

5. SummarizeMake a list of Hindu scriptures, startin

the Vedas.

CRITICALTHINKING6. EvaluateWhy do Hindus believe that there are ma

ways to approach the Supreme God?

7. Understanding nonviolence

Write a paragraph explaining your way to deal wit

tax increase example given on page six. Do you th

nonviolent approach would succeed?

FOCUSONWRITING

L T

NONVIOLENCE

The Hindu principle of ahimsa, or nonviolence, is important

today. Mahatma Gandhi, a devout Hindu, said, Nonviolence is

the greatest force at the disposal of mankind.

t is mightier than the mightiest weapon of

destruction devised by the ingenuity of man.

By nonviolent means Gandhi largely won

ndias independence, using peaceful protests,

boycotts, strikes and speeches. In the 1950s,

Martin Luther King, Jr. studied Gandhis meth-

ods and went to India to meet his followers.

He learned how Indias nonviolent movement

worked and applied the same methods to

fight for and win civil rights for Americas black

minority. Aung San Suu Kyi, a devout Buddhist,

has campaigned without violence for years to

win democracy for the people of her nativeMyanmar (Burma). In 1991 she won the Nobel

Peace Prize for her peaceful struggle against the countrys mili-

tary dictatorship. Another example is Cesar Chavez, who won

rights for California farm workers using nonviolent methods.

ANALYZINGINFORMATIONANALYSIS

SKILL

What are the advantages of nonviolence over

violence in bringing about social change?

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The sacred sound

aumis chanted at

the beginning and

end of most prayers


Sacred Texts

GUIDEDREADING

ord Help

hilosophy

a theory or attitude that

guides behavior

in

excessively proud

ysterious

unknown

nsume

to destroy completely,

as by fire

This verse says that the Gods

re vain.

hat test did the Supreme God

t them through?

from the

UpanishadsTranslated by Swami Prabhavanandaand Frederick Manchester

The Upanishadsare the part of theVedasthat teach philoso-phy. The wordupanishadmeans sitting by devotedly, as astudent sits near his guru to learn. This excerpt is taken from

the Kena Upanishad. It explains the nature of the SupremeGod, called Brahman in Sanskrit.

Try to sum up the meaning of each sentence

in your own words.

Once the Gods won a victory over the demons, and thoughthey had done so only through the power of Brahman, theywere exceedingly vain. They thought to themselves, It was wewho beat our enemies, and the glory is ours.

Brahman saw their vanity and appeared before them as anature spirit. But they did not recognize Him.

Then the other Gods said to the God of re, Fire, nd outfor us who this mysterious nature spirit is.

Yes, said the God of re, and approached the spirit. Thespirit said to him: Who are you?

I am the God of re. As a matter of fact, I am very widelyknown.

And what power do you wield?

I can burn anything on Earth.Burn this, said the spirit, placing a straw before him. The

God of re fell upon it with all his might, but could not con-sume it. So he ran back to the other Gods and said, I cannotdiscover who this mysterious spirit is.

Then said the other Gods to the God of wind: Wind, canyou nd out for us who he is?

Yes, said the God of wind, and approached the spirit. The

ASYOUREAD

GUIDEDRE

Word Help

adorned

beautifully dres

beholding

looking at some

remarkable

attained

won; achieved

Indra took a diff

approach to findin

who the spirit was.

Why did he succee

the others failed?

spirit said to him: Whoare you?

I am the God of wind.

As a matter of fact, I am very widely known. I y swiftlythrough the heavens.

And what power do you wield?I can blow away anything on Earth.Blow this away, said the spirit, placing a straw before him.

The God of wind fell upon it with all his might, but was unableto move it. So he ran back to the other Gods and said, I cannotdiscover who this mysterious spirit is.

Then said the other Gods to Indra, greatest of them all, Orespected one, nd out for us, we pray you, who he is.

Yes, said Indra and humbly approached the spirit. But thespirit vanished, and in his place stood Goddess Uma, welladorned and of exceeding beauty. Beholding her, Indra asked:

Who was the spirit that appeared to us?That, answered Uma, was Brahman. Through Him it was,

not of yourselves, that you attained your victory and your glory.Thus did Indra, and the God of re, and the God of wind,

come to recognize Brahman, the Supreme God.

The Vedasand Upanishadsare written in Sanskrit,

a language that is thousands of years old

Understanding Sacred Texts

1. AnalyzingHindus believe that the Supreme God is

immanent.Thatmeans He exists everywhere in the

universe, in everyone and everything. How does this

belief appear in the story?

2. ComparingWhat is the difference between Brahm

the Supreme God, and the other Gods introduced

hereIndra, the God of fire and the God of wind?

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The Big Idea

Hinduism has spread outsideof India several times.Hinduism is the third largestreligion in the world.Hindus practice religion athome and in temples andthrough the many festivals.

induism is the oldest worldreligion flourishing today.

Main Ideas

ey Terms

mskara,p. 12

ndi,p. 12

ja,p. 13

ami,p. 14

mbha Mela,p. 15

BUILDINGBACKGROUNDHinduism is the only major religion from the

distant past that is still vibrant today. It survived because of its tradi-

tion of home-centered worship, because of its rich teachings and

many religious leaders, and because it is not merely tolerant of other

religions but respects the validity of all spiritual paths.

Traditions and Holy Days

Hinduism is the oldest living religion in the world. There are todaynearly a billion Hindus worldwide, 95percent of whom live on theIndian subcontinent. Hinduism continues to thrive for many reasons.Its followers nd answers to their deepest questions about the mys-teries of life. With personal religious practices, pilgrimage to sacredshrines, temple- and home-centered worship, Hindus strive for GodRealization. And through celebration of the yearly cycle of vibrantand colorful festivals, they experience great blessings and joy.

Basic Practices

There are ve basic practices,pancha nitya karmas,often observed

by Hindus. They are to: 1) worship daily, 2) follow dharma, 3) ob-serve the samskaras (rites of passage), 4) celebrate the holy daysand 5) go on pilgrimage to sacred places. Other practices includemeditation, chanting of mantras, study of scripture, hatha yoga andother yoga techniques, and simple austerities, such as fasting. Thereare many samskaras, including a childs name-giving ceremony, therst feeding of solid food, the beginning of formal education andmarriage. It is a common practice for Hindu women to wear a bindi,a red dot on the forehead. A similar mark, calledtilaka, is worn by

Describe the spread of Hindu-

ism outside of India in ancient

and modern times.

Describe the daily observances

of Hindus, home and temple

worship, religious teachers

and the major festivals.

.Explain how Hinduism hassurvived over the last 5,000

years.

Hinduism inPractice

IfYOUlived then...You are born in Fiji in 1910. Your parents were brought from India by

the British to work in the sugarcane fields as indentured laborers. Now

they are free of debt and own farmland. The public school is OK, but

your parents want you to go to the best private school. The principal

there says you must leave Hinduism and convert to his religion before

you can enroll.

What do you think your parents would do?


Through the 12th century ce

19th century20th century and on


men at the temple or on ceremonial occa-sions. This forehead mark symbolizes manythings, especially spiritual vision.

Worship in the Home

Every Hindu home has a place of worship.It may be as simple as a shelf with picturesof God or an entire room dedicated to wor-ship. Many families have a spiritual guideor guru whose picture is displayed in theshrine. There, the family may light a lamp,ring a bell and pray daily. The most devouthold a formal morning worship ritual. Theyoffer owers, incense, lights and food toGod while chanting sacred verses. Indi-vidual members will often go to the shrinefor blessings before leaving for school orwork. At other times one may sit alone inthe shrine, pray and chant the names ofGod, read from scripture, meditate silentlyor sing devotional songs.

Temple Worship

Hindus prefer to live within a days journeyof a temple. The temple is a special build-ing, revered as the home of God. The mainDeity is enshrined in the temples centralsanctum. In India, there are hundreds of

thousands of temples, most quite ancient.Temples in India can be enormous, coveringmany acres, having vast pillared hallwaysthat can accommodate 500,000devoteesduring a festival. Often one or more familiesof priests oversee the temple and conductthe worship over many generations. WhenHindus migrate outside India, they builda temple as soon as possible. At rst, com-munity leaders themselves conduct the dailyrituals. Later, professional priests are hired.There are now hundreds of Hindu templesin America. The largest are in New York,Pennsylvania, Illinois, Texas and California.

The temple worship ceremony, or puja, isusually performed by a priest from India.

During the ceremony, he worships God bychanting Sanskrit verses from the scripturesand performingarati.Aratiis the wavingof an oil lamp in front of the Deity whilebells are rung. The priest also offers ow-ers, sweets and fruit. These offerings arethen distributed to the devotees as a bless-ing from God. Hindus may visit the templethroughout the day to worship and meditate.

Hinduism has spread outside of India in several waves. Firswas adopted by cultures throughout Southeast Asia throug

the 12th century ce. Second, in the 19th century many Hin-dus moved to the various European colonies, such as SouthAfrica, the Caribbean and Fiji. And most recently, Hindusmigrated to more than 150 countries in the 20th century.

SOUTHAFRICA

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ism. Instead, there are thousands of inde-pendent spiritual traditions, monastic ordersand religious institutions.

The Yearly Festival Cycle

There are many religious festivals celebratedby Hindus each year. They are observed athome, in temples and public places. MostHindu festivals are observed according toan ancient solar-lunar calendar. Several fes-tivals honor the avatars of Lord Vishnu. Forexample, Ram Navami celebrates the birthof Lord Rama in March/April. Krishna

Janmashtami, in July/August, celebrates thebirth of Lord Krishna.

Mahasivaratri takes place in February/

March, when devotees fast and worshipthe transcendent Lord Siva all night in thetemple. Diwali, or Dipavali, is the biggestfestival of the year. It is dedicated to Lak-shmi, the Goddess of Wealth, and takesplace in October/November. Navaratri isthe second largest festival. It lasts nine daysand takes place in September/October. Itis dedicated to the worship of the Goddess,Shakti. in her three forms: Durga, the God-dess of Protection; Lakshmi, the Goddessof Wealth, and Sarasvati, the Goddess ofKnowledge.

Holi, in March/April, is a highly spiritedfestival where everyone sprinkles each

other with colored water and powders. Itsignies the triumph of good over evil andmarks the beginning of the winter cropharvest. Vaikasi Visakham (May/June) is sa-cred to Hindus, Buddhists and Sikhs. GuruPurnima is a special festival to honor onesspiritual teacher, or guru. It takes place onthe full moon day in July. There are alsomany social festivals in India, such as Pon-gal. It is held in January and celebrates theincoming harvest.

One special festival, the Kumbha Mela,takes place in a twelve-year cycle. Hindusaints and millions of devotees travel to cer-tain sacred rivers at an auspicious time forworship. The 2001Kumbha Mela was held

at Prayag (modern Allahabad) in NorthIndia. It was attended by 70million people,including 30million on January 24 alone.This was the largest religious gathering everheld on the Earth.

SUMMARYHinduism is the oldest world religion.It accepts that there are many ways toworship God. It has endured for so longbecause the religion and culture have in-stilled in each Hindu a unique and strongsense of identity and community. The Rig

Vedaconcludes, Let there be everlastingunity and peace among all human beings.

Hinduisms Saints, Teachers and Swamis

Hinduism has a rich history of saints andsages, both men and women. Their lives areeducational and inspiring. They come fromall castes. Some saints, such as Adi Shankara,have written detailed explanations of theVe-dasand other scriptures. Other saints, suchas Mirabai, Tukaram and Sambandar, taughtthrough devotional songs. Recent saints in-clude Sri Ramakrishna and Anandamayi Ma.Their deeply religious lives have upliftedmillions of Hindus and others worldwide.

There are hundreds of thousands of reli-gious scholars and teachers, both men andwomen, known as pundits. Some give spell-binding discourses on sacred scriptures,including Ramayanaand Mahabharata.Tens of thousands may attend such gather-ings, which include storytelling, preaching,devotional singing and drama. These eventsoften go on for days or even a month.

Hinduism has millions of swamis andother holy persons. Swamis are unmarriedmen (and some women) who have taken upspiritual life full time. Swamimeans hewho knows himself. Some live in monaster-ies; others wander as homeless mendicants.Swamis are the religious ministers of Hindu-ism. Many swamis teach, others run largeinstitutions that perform social service fortheir communities, and still others live aloneand meditate long hours each day in theirpursuit of divine enlightenment. Special

among these are the holy gurus. Gumeansdarkness andrumeans remover. Soguruliterally means the one who removes dark-ness. These men and women are greatreligious teachers, some with millions offollowers. Several gurus have popularizedthe Hindu practice of yoga by establishingtraining centers all over the world. No oneperson or institution is in charge of Hindu-


REVIEWINGIDEAS, TERMSANDPEOPLE

1. a.List What are the five basic practices of Hinduism?b. Define What does the bindi, red dot, signify?

c. Explain How do Hindus use their home shrine room?

2. List What are the various kinds of priests and holy men

and women in Hinduism?

3. a.Explain What is the years biggest Hindu festival?

b. Define What is the meaning of the rakhi bracelet?

c. Recall What is special about the Kumbha Mela?

d. Elaborate Why has Hinduism lasted so long?

4. List Make a list of three columns.In the first columwrite the name of a major Hindu festival. In the sec

put the time of year it occurs. In the third list what

celebrates.

5. Understanding Hindu practices

Why do you think Hindus want to live near a temp

FOCUSONWRITING

L T

FESTIVALSThe biggest Hindu festival of the year is Diwali, or Dipavali, the

Festival of Lights, celebrating the victory of good over evil, light

over darkness. It takes place for five days around the new moon

in October/November. It also honors the return of Lord Rama to

Ayodhya after 14 years in exile. Lakshmi, the Goddess of Wealth

is invoked for prosperity, and Her presence is felt in every home.

Hindus thoroughly clean the house, take a special bath and put

on new clothes. Thousands of small lamps, including traditional

clay oil lamps (pictured at right), are placed everywhere and

fireworks signal hope for mankind. It is a national holiday in India

and in many countries with large Hindu populations. Some

Hindu festivals take place mostly at home, such as Raksha

Bandhan, which is on the full moon in July/August. Sisters

tie a rakhi, or colored thread, around the wrist of their

brothers. In return, the brother gives his sister a presentand promises to protect her. The rakhican also be given to

anyone chosen as an adopted brother.

ANALYZINGINFORMATIONANALYSIS

SKILL

How do festivals help remind people to be more kind

and generous to one another?

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9/9I-16 hinduism today april/may/june , 2007

CHAPTER1DIRECTIONS: READEACHQUESTIONANDCIRCLETHELETTEROF

THEBESTRESPONSE

1. Evidence for what form of worship in the Vedaswas

found by archaeologists in the ruins of the Indus-

Sarasvati civilization?

A Temple worship

B Worship at fire altars

C Devotional singing

D Sacred dancing

2. The Indus-Sarasvati civilization ended because:

A Aryans conquered it

B The Sarasvati River dried up

C There was a great famine

D The people died of plague

3. The Aryan Invasion theory was based upon:

A Biological evidence, such as DNAB Archeological discoveries

C Language study

D Ancient histories

4. Which discovery was not made in ancient India?

A The concept of zero

B Surgery

C That the Earth orbits the Sun

D The moons of Jupiter

5. Evidence of Hindu temple worship can be as early as:A 1200 bce

B 600 bce

C 300 ce

D 900 ce

6. Which of these descriptions does not apply to women in

ancient India?

A Had fewer property rights than men

B Were never educated

C Wrote parts of the Vedas

D Paid fewer taxes

7. Which of these words does not describe the Hindu con-

cept of the Supreme God?

A Creator of the universe

B Transcendent

C Immanent

D Jealous of other Gods

8. Hindus believe that the devas, such as Lord Ganesha or

Goddess Lakshmi, are like:

A Archangels

B Nature spirits

C Mythical heroesD Imaginary people

9. Which of the following is not used in nonviolent protest

A Peaceful rallies

B Boycotts

C Strikes

D Vandalism

10. The Hindu scriptures include:

A The Vedas, Upanishadsand Bible

B The Vedas, Ramayanaand Quran

C The Vedas, Upanishads, Ramayanaand Mahabharata

D The Mahabharataand the Iliad

11. Hindus believe that every other religion:

A Is an acceptable way to approach God

B Is wrong

C Is useful, but only Hindus go to heaven

D Is not as good because Hinduism is older

12. How many countries do Hindus live in today?

A 20

B 50C 100

D More than 150

13. The saints of Hinduism are:

A Primarily high-caste men

B Only people who lived a long time ago

C Men and women of all castes

D Mostly great scholars

14. The biggest religious event in the world is:

A The Kumbha MelaB Easter Sunday in Rome

C The annual pilgrimage to Mecca

D Christmas in New York City

Standards Assessment

Internet Resources:Go to http://www.hinduismtoday.com/

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Hinduism History Lesson1