Hinduism
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Hinduism
Introduction by Scott B. Key
“Hinduism is indefinable. It is a vast conglomerate of religious beliefs and social practices. It is polymorphous, syncretistic, and has great powers of absorption. You can be an atheist, a pantheist, a materialist, a polytheist, and still be a Hindu.”
“Hinduism is not so much a religious system as a vast complex of systems, not all of which are consistent with one another.”
“How artistic that there should be room for such variety – how rich the texture is, and how much more interesting than if the Almighty had decreed one antiseptically safe, exclusive, orthodox way. Although he is Unity, God finds, it seems, his recreation in variety!”
Introduction
An impossible task
A superficial introduction
Setting
Indian subcontinent
Rivers of life
Indus River
Ganges River – holy river
Heat and Rain
November to February is the “cold” season
February to June is the “hot” season – often very hot
June to November is the rainy season – monsoons – this is the only time of the year that it rains and without the rain no life is possible
History
Harappa culture
Indigenous people of India
Complex culture (see text)
Aryans
Indo-European
Entered India from the Northwest – through present day Pakistan (which they invaded along with Persia or Iran)
Superior weapons and technology – bronze weapons at first and then iron weapons, and horse-drawn chariots
Invasion began about 2500 BC and continued off and on until 1500 BC
Language – Sanskrit tied to Greek, Latin, French, Spanish, German, and English
The language has its roots in northeastern Europe about 3000 BC or earlier
Many words in Latin, Greek, German, English can be traced back or shown to be related to Sanskrit and/or its modern expression Hindi
Gods and goddesses
Polytheistic religion
Dyaus Pitr = Zeus Pater
Earth Mother and daughter Dawn Ushas = Eos (Greek)
Indra god of the thunder who releases the rain
Agni or Igni god of fire compare to English words ignite and Latin ignis
Vishnu is mentioned at this early Vedic stage but is not important
Soma – god of the moon and associated with an intoxicating drink
Ceremonial worship in which the priests were very important
Henotheism – many gods but only one was worshipped at a time or emphasized over the others
Four ancient Cosmogonical Themes
The original Waters are fertilized by a god “imagined as the Golden Embryo” and the Waters give birth to the “god of fire, Agni.”
The “primordial giant Purusa (the Man)” is sacrificed by the gods and “from his dismembered body proceed the animals, the liturgical elements, the social classes, the earth, the sky, the gods.”
This is a metaphysical meditation on the emergence of Being from non-Being. This is found in the Rig Veda (10.129)
The fourth theme involves the separation of Heaven and earth either by the dissection of Vrtra by Indra or by means of “the Universal Artisan, Visvakarman (RV 10.81) who fashions the world like a scupltor, a smith, or a carpenter.”
War, castes, and change
Aryans had four classes of people
Priest – Bramin (seers and spiritual leaders who controlled the ceremonies and sacrifices)
Warrior/King – kshatriya (administrators)
Merchant – vaishya (producers – artisans and farmers)
Servants – shudras
Untouchables – not slaves but the lowest rung of society and populated initially by the defeated people, Harappa
Caste system
The defeated people became a fifth caste – the untouchables
Over time there came to be over 3,000 sub-castes
Marriage laws prohibit marrying outside ones caste
Greater privilege means greater responsibility
Justice “was defined as a state in which privileges were proportionate to responsibilities.”
Axis Age
Trans-cultural change – see text for general theme
Profound questions concerning the human condition, pain and suffering, justice and ethical behavior seem to be the catalyst for change
Some have argued that the Upanishads represent the response of Hinduism to the teaching of Buddha
A discussion the major ideas of the Upanishads and the Bhagavad Gita will come later in the outline
Islamic Invasion
Invasion from the Northwest from present day Afghanistan
Controlled Northeastern India for several centuries (add to this)
Impact on Hindu thought – served to provide a movement toward monism
E. Encounters with