Hinduism

What is Hinduism? Combination of ideas and practices Main tenet = belief in reincarnation = being born over and over again Hindus believe that living a good life produces Good Karma and allows a person to come back as something better

Where does it come from? Has been practiced for as far back as 6500 BC Started in Indus River Valley (current day Pakistan) Still practice in India, Sri Lanka, Nepal, parts of Africa, Indonesia, and parts of Europe and the Western Hemisphere.

Comparison of Indus River Valley (where Hinduism started) to modern day Pakistan

Why is Hinduism Unique? It’s a way of life Combines beliefs, traditions, and ethics They use yoga and meditation to reach inner peace and to shed “Bad Karma” They believe in truth/honesty, non-violence, cleanliness, prayer, and treating others with respect.

Reincarnation Belief that people come back, after death, as someone, or something, else. This can be another person, an animal, or even a rock. This depends upon your Good or Bad Karma.

Karma Karma means “actions” or “deeds” Good karma comes through yoga, meditation, treating others respectfully, and living cleanly Bad karma comes from treating others with disrespect, and wanting many things

Caste System Hindus use a social class system called a “Caste” There are four levels with the caste system. Brahmin Kshatriya Vaishya Sudra The fifth group are the “Untouchables” who are considered so unclear they don’t even deserve a spot on the pyramid. The get the dirtiest and most undesirable jobs

CASTE ACTIVITY FOR THE NEXT WEEK

TASK Using the information cards you received, make a social class pyramid of the caste system in India. You must have at least 2 pictures for each caste and some kind of description/explanation as to why you chose those pictures. You must stay in your roles while doing this. You may notice that you can speak to people in castes lower than you but you may NOT speak to people in castes above you.

Brahmin: Supervise Others. You are the leader of the group Brahmin: Supervise Others. You are the leader of the group. As the leader you must keep everyone on task, but you also get the easiest tasks. You need to delegate roles to everyone in your groups, no one should just be sitting there. If your group is not working you will get bad karma.

Kshatriya: You are in charge of writing the explanations for each image. You must get the Brahmin’s permission before actually writing on the poster. When you aren’t working you must remain quiet and respect those in your own caste and the caste above you.

Vaishya: You are in charge of gluing the images onto the diagram the way the Brahmin wants them. When you aren’t working you must remain quiet and respect those in your own caste and the caste above you.

Sudra: You are in charge of cutting out the words and images that the brahmins decides on from the magazine. When you aren’t working you must remain quiet and respect those in your own caste and the caste above you.

Untouchables: You are in charge of cleaning up any scraps/ other garbage around the classroom. You may not speak or interact to anyone outside of your caste. Other people can speak to you but you can not speak to them.