A Hindu Temple in North India
I was born and grew up in Guyana, a former British colony on the northeast coast of South America. Venezuela is on the West of this small country, (83,000 square miles), and Brazil’s on the South. I spent my formative years there, and the greatest memories I have of Guyana are those that celebrate the diversity of its people.
Guyana has people of all ethnic backgrounds, with the largest group, at nearly *44 percent, being East Indian. So, I grew up with a wide exposure to different foods, cultures and religions, though I did not fully appreciate these gifts at the time.
Dhankumarie Naraine was one of my Hindu friends from childhood. I remember now that she did not want to get as close as I did to my two best buddies, Mezaun Kayum or Mayharool Ali, who were both Muslims. There was no animosity between Dhankumarie and Mezaun or Mayharool. They just kept a polite distance while each embraced me as their good friend.
I wish I’d paid closer attention back then to the practices Dhankumarie followed as part of her religious upbringing as a Hindu. Sadly, we never shared too many thoughts on our different religions. I just know that at certain times, I’d eat certain special foods prepared by Dhankumarie’s families and at other times those prepared by Mezaun 's and Mayharool’s. Or, I might participate in one of many Hindu festivals held in Guyana. During the course of any year, there are many, many Hindu festivals of which Diwali, Holi and Durga Puja are just a few.
Having more knowledge about spiritual teachings and doing some research, I now know much more about Hinduism than I did back then. From what I've learned, I now view Hinduism as a truly empowering teaching and practice. For one thing, it teaches that we’re each manifestations of God, the ultimate reality, or Brahman. The teaching also makes us directly responsible for our life experience through a belief in Karma, i.e. good or bad deeds that follow us through other lifetimes.
Hinduism Today
Hinduism is the oldest religion in existence and with about a billion followers today, Hinduism is the world's third-largest religion, after Christianity and Islam. Hinduism differs from Christianity and other Western religions in that it does not have a single founder, a specific theological system, a single system of morality, or a central religious organization.
Prominent themes in Hinduism include: Dharma, ethics and duties; Samsara, rebirth; Karma, right action, and Moksha, liberation from the cycle of Samsara.
Hinduism also promotes truth, honesty, non-violence, celibacy, cleanliness, contentment, prayers, austerity, perseverance, penance, and pious company.
Teachings in Hinduism
The teachings of Hinduism are not simple. They are a conglomeration of religious, philosophical, and cultural ideas and practices that originated and evolved in India since 1500 BCE.
Often known as "the religion of 330 million gods," Hinduism teaches that each of us is a unique manifestation of God. The number “330 million” came from the belief that at one time there were 330 million living beings. Ultimately, though, Hinduism teaches that there is only ONE: Brahman.
Hinduism views the cosmic activity of the Supreme Being as having three tasks: creation, preservation and dissolution/recreation. Three deities, Brahma, Vishu and Shiva, represent these tasks, respectively.
These three deities together form the Hindu Trinity. But Brahma, Vishnu and Shiva should not be viewed as three independent deities. Instead, they are three different aspects of the Supreme, and the oneness of the three gods is brought out by the mystic symbol AUM where 'A' represents Vishnu, 'U' Shiva and 'M' Brahma.
Hindu Scripture and Teachings
Basic scriptures of Hinduism, collectively referred to as Shastras, essentially are a collection of spiritual laws discovered by different saints and sages at different points in its long history. Two types of sacred writings comprise the Hindu scriptures: Shrutim, that which is heard, and Smriti, that which is memorized. These writings were passed on from generation to generation orally for centuries before they were written down mostly in the Sanskrit language. The major and most popular Hindu texts include: the Bhagavad Gita, the Upanishads, and the epics of Ramayana and Mahabharata.
The Bhagavad Gita is the New Testament of Hinduism. The Gita records a conversation between the warrior-prince Arjuna and his charioteer, Krishna, unveiled as an incarnation of the god Vishnu, in which personal devotion to deity is endorsed as a way of salvation for all classes of people.
This explains why in Hinduism there is a multiplicity of gods, numbering in hundreds. Hindus pray to these deities on a daily basis. There is a god in Hinduism to pray to for almost any human need or negative condition.
A woman makes a flower offering to Ganesh, the elephant-headed son of Siva Hinduism and Reincarnation
Reincarnation is a core belief in Hinduism. It is considered avidya, or ignorance, of one's true self that leads to ego-consciousness of the body. This grounds one in desire and the perpetual chain of karma and reincarnation.
According to Hinduism, the soul is immortal, while the body is subject to birth and death. The idea that the soul of any living being, including animals, humans and plants, reincarnates is intricately linked to karma, the sum of one's actions, and the force that determines one's next reincarnation. The cycle of death and rebirth, governed by karma, is referred to as samsara. To be trapped in samara is a result of ignorance of the true nature of being.
Hinduism teaches that the soul goes on repeatedly being born and dying. A person is born because he or she desires to be born to enjoy worldly pleasures. These only can be enjoyed through a body. Although Hinduism does not teach that all worldly pleasures are sinful, it teaches that they can never bring deep, lasting happiness or peace i.e. ānanda.
After many births, every person eventually becomes dissatisfied with the limited happiness that worldly pleasures can bring. At this point, a person begins to seek higher forms of happiness, which can be attained only through spiritual experience. When, after much spiritual practice, sādhanā, a person finally realizes his or her own divine nature, i.e. the true self is the immortal soul, rather than the body or the ego, all desires for the pleasures of the world vanish.
Salvation, or moksha, from rebirth is achieved through a realization of our identity with Brahman. This is achieved through deep meditation, often offered as a part of Yoga.
The Caste System
The belief that one’s karma determines one’s birth in the next life has supported the caste system in India. Although the caste system was abolished in 1949, it remains a practice in the rural parts of India even today. People were born into four Varnas, or social castes, in the following order of rank: Brahmins, priests or academics; Kshatriyas, rulers, nobles or warriors; Vaishyas, farmers, landlords and merchants; Sudras, peasants, servants and workers in non-polluting jobs. There is evidence in various texts that Brahminhood is attained by learning vs. birth.
The Dalits, considered outcasts, were not even considered to be part of the caste system. Until the late 1980's they were called Harijan, children of God. They worked in what are considered polluting jobs and were considered "untouchable" by the four castes. In some areas of India, even a contact with their shadow by a member of the Varnas, was considered polluting.
Over the years, many Dalits converted to Buddhism, Christianity and other religions in order to escape the caste system. As a matter of fact, on November 4, 2001, one million low-caste Dalits were scheduled to meet in Delhi, India, for a mass conversion to Buddhism.
An Untouchable Woman, India, 2003
This conversion has generated massive anger and even instances of violence and murder directed at proselytizing religions by some Hindus.
Yoga Practices
Followers of the Advaita Vedanta school, often associated with jnana yoga, believe that they will spend eternity absorbed in the perfect peace and happiness that comes with the realization that all existence is One, Brahman, and that the immortal soul is part of that existence. Thus they will no longer identify themselves as individual persons, but will see the "self" as a part of the infinite ocean of divinity, described as sat-chit-ananda i.e.existence-knowledge-bliss.
Followers of full or partial Dvaita schools i.e. dualistic schools, such as bhakti yoga, on the other hand, perform their worship with the goal of spending eternity in a loka, spiritual world or heaven, in the blessed company of the Supreme being, i.e Krishna or Vishnu for the Vaishnavas, Shiva for the Shaivites.
A follower of one school may believe that both types of salvation are possible, but will simply have a personal preference to experience one or the other. Sometimes you may hear that "followers of Dvaita wish to 'taste sugar,' while the followers of Advaita wish to 'become sugar.'"
Who is a Hindu?
A Hindu is an individual who accepts and lives by the religious guidance of the Vedic scriptures. While the teachings of the Hindu tradition do not require that you have a religious affiliation to Hinduism in order to receive its inner teachings, it can be very helpful to formally become a Hindu because it provides a formal connection to the tradition.
In India, Nepal, and among the Tamils in Sri Lanka, Hinduism is the dominant religion, with the number put at 905 million for those practicing the religion there.
Statistics put the number of Hindus in the U.S. at about 1.1 million Hindus and the number in Canada at about 157,000.
Other countries with large Hindu populations include: Bangladesh, Sri Lanka, Pakistan, Indonesia, Malaysia, Singapore, Mauritius, Fiji, Surinam, Guyana, Trinidad and Tobago and the United Kingdom.
In the U.S. alone, there are an approximated 200 Hindu temples or Hindu centers.
Sri Mariamman Temple, India
The practice of Hinduism
On a daily basis, the vast majority of Hindus engage in religious rituals.
Shrines are created in the home with icons dedicated to their chosen god.
Temples are usually dedicated to a primary deity along with associated subordinate deities though some commemorate multiple deities. Visiting temples is not obligatory, and many Hindus visit temples only during religious festivals.
Hindus perform their worship through icons, murtis. The icon serves as a tangible link between the worshiper and God. The image is often considered a manifestation of God, since God "dwells within." The Padma Purana states that the mūrti is not to be thought of as mere stone or wood but as a manifest form of the Divinity. A few Hindu sects, such as the Ārya Samāj, do not believe in worshipping God through icons.
Devout Hindus perform daily rituals, such as worshipping at the dawn after bathing, usually at a family shrine. This also typically includes lighting a lamp and offering foods before the images of deities, recitation from religious scripts, singing devotional hymns, meditation, chanting mantras, reciting scriptures and other types of practices. A notable feature in religious ritual is the division between purity and pollution.
Hindu woman performing a ritual
To overcome impurity or have it neutralized, purification, usually with water, is a typical ritual done by most Hindus. To accumulate merit points and reduce sufferings in the next world, there also is a strong belief in sacrifice and through performance of charity or good works.
Vedic rites of fire-oblation,yajna, are now only occasional practices, although they are highly revered in theory. In Hindu wedding and burial ceremonies, the yajña and chanting of Vedic mantras are still done. Rituals, upacharas, change with time. For instance, sacred dance and music offerings were replaced by the offerings of rice and sweets.
Occasions like birth, marriage, and death involve elaborate religious customs. In Hinduism, life-cycle rituals include Annaprashan,a baby's first intake of solid food, Upanayanam ,"sacred thread ceremony" undertaken by upper-caste children at their initiation into formal education, and Shraadh, ritual of treating people to feasts in the name of the deceased.
Other practices:
*Parents, in consultation with astrologers, decide the betrothal of the young couple and the exact date and time of the wedding.
* Cremation is the normal practice for disposing of the dead, except in children under five years old. Cremation is performed by wrapping the corpse in a cloth and burning it on a pyre.
Symbolism and Mantras in Hinduism
Hinduism has a developed system of symbolism and iconography to represent the sacred in art, architecture, literature and worship. These symbols gain their meaning from scriptures, mythology, or cultural traditions. The syllable Om, representing Parabrahman, and the Swastika sign, representing auspiciousness, are now widely regarded as symbols of Hinduism itself.
Other markings, such as tilaka, identify a follower of the faith. Hinduism associates many symbols, such as the lotus, chakra and veena, with particular deities.
Mantras are invocations, praise and prayers that through their meaning, sound, and chanting style help a devotee focus the mind on holy thoughts or express devotion to God and the deities. Many devotees perform morning ablutions at the bank of a sacred river while chanting the Gayatri Mantra or Mahamrityunjaya mantras. The epic Mahabharata extols Japa, ritualistic chanting, as the greatest duty in the Kali Yuga i.e.current age. Many adopt Japa as their primary spiritual practice.
The impact of Hinduism
The impact of Hinduism is being felt throughout the U.S. and other places in the world. Much of New Age thinking comes directly from Hinduism. Many religious experts seem to believe that because of its eclectic nature, Hinduism has the potential to serve as a major vehicle for uniting much of the non-Christian religious world. Hinduism also has large appeal to many who are disillusioned with strictly material pursuits.
As for me:
If I ever meet Dhankumarie Naraine, my childhood friend, my first question to her would be whether she knew her own innate power when we were growing up. I also would ask her next why she did not share this powerful and empowering message with me then!
Namaste’,
Che’
NOTE: In September, we’ll take a look at the Islam religion. For more on Hinduism, go to: http://fremonttemple.org
*These numbers are according to 2002 Census. Older censuses put the number of East Indians in Guyana at much higher numbers.
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