Hinduism
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The Hindu religion and culture is a very complex subject. The Hindu religion combines rich ethnical and standard beliefs. We will take a closer look and try to understand the Hindu religion and culture. The Hindu religion is the oldest religion of the five major religions, which are Islam, Christianity, Judaism, Buddhism, and Hinduism (Major World Religions, 2006). The Hindu religion began to develop about 4.000 years ago in India, but it there was no single founder or system of belief (Major World Religions, 2006). There are many diverse and various Gods in the Hindu religion. One of the most important beliefs is the theory of karma, which holds that all beings, human or animal have karma which determines which soul is for which body and the birth attribute of each soul. The ideal of the Hindu religion is for the soul to move upward to the most sacred level through reincarnation. Reincarnation is when “one takes birth again and again in countless bodies–perhaps as an animal or some other life form–but the self remains the same. Birth as a human being is a precious and rare opportunity for the soul to advance toward its ultimate goal of liberation from rebirth and merging with the Absolute Reality” (Fisher, 2005). In other words if a person leads a good life, does good deeds, and has good faith then he or she will attain good karma and his or her soul will move upward as a higher being. With good karma his or her soul will have a much better chance in the coming life, but if he or she did bad things in their lives then his or her soul will move downwards to an inferior position in life maybe a dirty animal or instinct. Hinduism is primarily found in India but continues to grow across the world. Hindus are very peaceful and passive they avoid fighting and violence all together because it is considered an act of evil (T. Khanna, personal communication, March 21, 2006). Hindus have to be patient in their religion to achieve their peacefulness. Hindus are also known to be very friendly. Having such characteristics would greatly empower our whole society no matter what religion someone is from.
My interviewee Tony Khanna, a fellow co-worker, took me to his temple he goes to worship, on a Sunday evening. He took me to the Sri Meenakshi Devasthanam located in Pearland, Texas. The first thing I noticed upon arrival at the temple is the beautiful architectural building design outside. I was in amazement of how beautiful the temple was. I had not seen something so beautiful in quite awhile. The temple is visible from a quite a distance away and has two stunning white towers. When coming up to the temple from the parking lot Tony indicated to me that the temple was established in 1977 and was a replica of a famous temple in India. There was a huge white gate we had to walk through to get to the main temple. Once inside I was greeted by many Hindus that were quite pleasant and talkative towards this outsider that I was. Before the visit one of my questions to Tony was if Hindus welcomed outsiders within their temples. He indicated that Hindus are very open and that I would be welcomed. I was quite surprised for this to be so true. With in the confines of the temple there were many different kinds of symbols that I was not quite familiar with. A couple that I noted was a Diya, Om, and Swastika. There were many Swastikas on the side of the temples. There are actually four small temples with the main temple walls. The entrance to the temple has a huge library with many religious books and movies. Inside the huge library there were some beautiful paintings and artifacts. Within the temple there was also a marriage hall. From what I understood this marriage hall is very popular and booked for months in advance. There was also a youth building for teenagers to gather and socialize. The confine itself is in a very rural and quite area giving the worshipers a perfect place for meditation. I have to say I was a little worried that I would feel out of place or looked down upon but I never once felt such feelings. The experience was very rewarding and gratifying. The temples hours are Monday through Thursday 8:30 AM to 12 Noon and 5:00 PM to 8:30 PM, Friday 8:30 AM to 12 Noon and 5:00 PM to 9:00 PM, and weekends 8:30 AM to 8:30 PM.
During my interview I asked how often a Hindu goes to the temple to worship. There are certain times the temple is open through out the week but if need be someone can open the temple just about twenty-four hours seven days a week upon request. There are not any mandatory days Hindus have to come to the temple to worship; it is as often as someone likes or needs (T. Khanna, personal communication, March 21, 2006). I wanted to know what god if any do Hindus worship. They worship the Almighty. Some Hindus believe in other gods while some Hindus might believe in another god. Some different gods that are worshipped are Vishnu, Mahesh, and Brahma. It is not a Hindus way to be judgmental (T. Khanna, personal communication, March 21, 2006). Some sacred items or symbols in the Hindu religion are Diya, Om, and the Swastika. The Diya is a symbol of a sort of pot with a flame in it. It is used during meditation and the fire is a symbol of life (T. Khanna, personal communication, March 21, 2006). The OM symbol is also used in mediation. The phrase OM is a sacred phrase during meditation because one does not use their lips or tongue to pronounce the word (T. Khanna, personal communication, March 21, 2006). Another important Hindu symbol is the Swastika that represents holiness. The swastika is considered “extremely holy and auspicious by all Hindus, and is regularly used to decorate all sorts of items to do with Hindu culture” (Religion Facts, 2006). Unfortunately the swastika is widely remembered as the Nazi symbol (Religion Facts, 2006). Tony indicated that their sacred texts that