Religion in India

Chapter 8 Section 1By: Annalisa Szymanski, Brett

Perkins and Taylor Nillson

Religious Traditions• Almost all Indian religions worship one

superpower or God, some worship more • than one God.

• Religious customs and traditions vary

• Practices are diverse, but there are some common beliefs.

Basic Hindu Beliefs

• Hinduism is a world religion with no founder and has no formal church

• Hinduism is traced back to Aryan beliefs and practices, which have been changing over thousands of years

• Indian Culture is shaped and unified around Hinduism

Sacred Texts• Sacred Texts are documents of Hindu beliefs • Two important Hindu texts:– The Vedas composed of eternal truths that were

revealed to the wise men– The Upanishads helped explain The Vedas ideas

• Law codes, epics & long narrative poems were ways Hindus wrote their ideas– Such poems as The Ramayana and The

Mahabharata are the two most famous Hindu epics

Brahman• In Hinduism thousands of gods are worshiped

• Brahman is a single supreme force that all gods are part of

• Brahman is nameless, formless, and unlimited, and many Hindus believe it is hard for many to understand

Hinduism• There are three main gods of Hinduism. These gods each

have his own family, and take many forms.– Brahma “the creator”– Vishnu “the preserver”– Siva “the destroyer”

• Different sects (religious groups) these gods• Hindus believe in the unity of all life• An atman is an essential self or a universal soul• Hindus believe that all of nature is part of the same

universal soul• -Hindus are nonviolent, and respect nature

Reincarnation• Moksha-The true goal in a Hindus life is to believe in

feeling the soul from the body so that the soul can unite with Brahman

• Moksha cannot be achieved in ones life time

• Hindus believe people undergo reincarnation, the rebirth of soul in various forms. These forms can be from a God to a flower to a snake. All forms are temporary.

Karma• The law of Karma governs the cycle of death &

rebirth until the soul reaches union with Brahman

• Karma- a law that holds every deed (mental or physical) in life and affects ones fate in a future life.– Every good dead will end in happiness – Every bad deed ends in sorrow

Hinduism Caste System

• The caste system was developed in ancient times from 4 social classes of the Aryans

• The caste system set up a strict social and religious order

• When one was born into a castle they would stay in the caste for life and could only marry one in that castle

Caste system and Karma?

• Hindus think that Karma corresponds with the caste system – If one has done bad then they would be in the

lower class– If one was good they would be in the higher

castle-closer to moksha

Caste Duties• Each castle has its own dharma (duties and

obligations)– Obedience to caste rules and moral laws

• If ones caries out their duties they can have a hope in their next life to move up in the castle

Buddhism

• By 600 B.C/ the Brahman Caste had become powerful and claimed they could preformed the Caired rituals of Hinduism

• They tried to lower the priests power, Siddhartha Gutama did also.