Paper

Assignment: Hinduism Paper

Monica S. Davis

HUM/130

November 14, 2010

University of Phoenix (Axia Online)

Assignment: Hinduism Paper

Hinduism is not a religion in the normal sense, but it is a mixture of traditions and beliefs that have existed a while. Hinduism is the world’s oldest religion and has no beginning. (Himalayan Academy Publications, 2010) Hinduism today is also referred to as Sanatana Dharma. Extreme variations within Sanatana Dharma Hinduism have no central point, but they admire the ancient scriptures or religious texts also known as Vedas (knowledge). The word santana means eternal or ageless, meaning they have always existed. Dharma, also known as religion, means duty, natural law, social welfare, ethics, and health (Fisher, 2005). Dharma and social connections as well as the good of all are said to correlate with the cosmos. Hinduism comes from the word “India Meaning River.” With Hinduism they do not only believe in one God but also in karma, reincarnation, and meditation. Hinduism main belief is that of the Brahman, the Unknowable. The rishis, which means Seer, to see, was the one that could find Brahman as the subtle self or soul (atman) within themselves. Once the inner soul and Brahman became one the experience was one of unspeakable peace and bliss (Fisher, 2005).

Spiritual expressions of Sanatana Dharma range from extreme asceticism to extreme sensuality, from the heights of personal devotion to a deity to the heights of abstract philosophy, from metaphysical proclamations of the oneness behind the material world to worship of images representing a multiplicity of deities (Fisher, 2005). In India there are 330 million deities worshipped by Hindus. Three major groupings of Hinduism are Saktas, Saivites, and Vaishnavites. Each person worships his or her own deity, but honors the others are well.

Cultural and societal influences made Hinduism vital to the regions that it originated from numerous traditions and social systems...