hnduism by abhishek jaguessar

8/4/2019 Hnduism by Abhishek Jaguessar

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HinduismBy

Abhishek Jaguessar



Scriptures

• Hundreds of scriptures

• oldest scriptures: thefour Vedas

• all scriptures dividedinto two broadcategories: shruti andsmriti

• Most popular scripture:Bhagavad Gita



Concept of God

• Nirguna Brahman -God without attributes

• Saguna Brahman -

God with attributes• Saguna Brahman can

be worshipped in anyshape or form, humanor otherwise



Hindu Trinity

• Brahma - the Creator

• Vishnu - thePreserver

• Shiva - the Destroyer

• Three aspects/powersof the same divine

being



Basic Beliefs

• Karma - the law ofcause and effect; “you

reap what you sow”

• Reincarnation -eternal soul traversesthrough differentbodies till it finds

liberation



Symbolism in Hinduism



Holy Cow!

• Hindus have alwayshad great respect forMother Nature and its

creatures• Cow is especially

significant because itsymbolizes

gentleness



Four Goals of Human Life

• Kama – fulfillment ofdesires

• Artha – accumulation of

wealth• Dharma – performance

of social and religiousduties

• Moksha – freedom fromwant



Four Paths to Moksha

• Karma Yoga - Path ofrighteous action

• Bhakti Yoga - Path of

selfless devotion• Jnana Yoga - Path of

rational inquiry

• Raja Yoga - Path ofrenunciation



Temple Worship

• Temples provide anatmosphereconducive for spiritual

progress• Centers of social and

cultural activities

• Provide a place forcollective worship andprayers



Six Philosophical Schools

• Sankhya - Sage Kapila

• Yoga - Sage Patanjali

• Mimamsa - SageJaimini• Vedanta – Sage Vyasa

• Nyaya - Sage Gautama

• Vaisheshika - SageKanada



History of Hinduism

• Originated between 4000 and 2000 BC

• No single founder

• Vedas: the oldest scriptures of Hinduism

• Veda means “to know”

• Rig, Yajur, Sama and Atharva Veda

• Upanishads explain the philosophicalideas in story and dialogue form



Veda Vyasa

• 1500 BC

• classified the Vedas intothe four traditionalcollections

• composed the 18Puranas

• composed his greatpoetic work, theMahabharata in a periodof two and a half years



Sankara

• Advaitha philosophy

• 7th century AD

• traveled all over India

having public debateswith other philosophers

• true happiness can beattained by removing

avidya (ignorance) andmaya (self deception)



Ramanuja

• 10th Century AD

• Vishistadvaitha

• wanted everybody

irrespective of socialstanding to enjoy theeternal bliss of LordNarayana

• Bhakti - completesurrender to the Lord



Madhva

• Dwaitha philosophy

• 12th Century AD

• the world is not an

illusion.• solitary study of the

scriptures, performingone's duty without

self-interest, practicalacts of devotion



Vivekananda

• First Hindu leader to visitAmerica

• Famous address at theWorld Parliament of

Religions in Chicago onSeptember 11,1893

• Spent three yearspreaching the Vedantaphilosophy in America

and England• Founded the

Ramakrishna Mission



Contemporary Hindu Leaders inAmerica

• David Frawley

• Satguru SivayaSubramuniyaswami

• Mahesh Yogi

• Satchidananda

• Mata

Amritanandamayi



Festivals

• Hinduism is a celebratory religion

• The motive: Festivals keep us close to Gods,

invigorate our household and renew our

personal life.

• Festivals signify victory of good over evil.

• Every month of Hindu calendar has atleast one

significant festival. Each festival has regional

significance also.• Celebration of diversity.



Yugaadi/Ugaadi:

•The first day of the year according to

the National Calendar of India.•The day falls in the beginning of spring- Vasanta Ritu – When the Goddess ofNature gets bedecked as a divinebride.

April/May

http://images.google.com/imgres?imgurl=www.aptemples.com/festivals/images/ugadi.jpg&imgrefurl=http://www.aptemples.com/festivals/ugadi.htm&h=158&w=150&prev=/images%3Fq%3Dugadi%26svnum%3D10%26hl%3Den%26lr%3D%26ie%3DUTF-8%26sa%3DN



Birthday ofLord Rama,the prince ofAyodhya, andhis coronation

as a king.

Sri Ramanavami Mahavir Jayanti

Birthday of Mahavira,

the founder of Jainism

Buddha Jayanti

Birthday of Buddha,

the founder of Buddhism



May/June

Lord Muruga

• Worshipped mostly inSouth India

•Guru: One’s teacher. The daycommemorates the birthday ofVeda Vyasa.•Time to remember and felicitateone’s teachers.

Guru Purnima



July/AugustRaksha Bandhan

Symbolizes the love betweenbrother and sister.

Krishnashtami

Birthday of Lord Krishna,

favorite lovable God of many :)



August/September

Ganesh Chaturthi

Birthday of the elephant God,Ganesha

Durga Pooja/Navaratri

A nine day celebration signifyingthe victory of Mother Durgaover the evil demon King

Mahishasura.



October/November

Deepavali: The festival of lights Mother Lakshmi

•Mother Lakshmi, the goddess of wealth and prosperity is worshippedon this day.•Beginning of the Hindu financial year.



December/January

Guru Gobind Singh Jayanti

Birthday of Guru GobindSingh, one of the Sikh Gurus

Sankranti/Pongal

Celebration of theharvest festival



February/March

Mahashivaratri

Birthday of Lord Shiva

Holi

Holi, the festival of colorscommemorating the victory of

Lord Krishna over the demon Holika

hnduism by abhishek jaguessar

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