Hinduism

Hindu Spiritual Disciplines The Sacred Thread –spiritual training only for upper-caste males women and shudras excluded –cord of three threads worn over the shoulder

The Hindu Life Cycle Traditional life periods –25yrs each chaste student and teacher householder stage –raise a family contribute productively to society begin retirement from society age of 75 sees full detachment –a sannyasin »ashram - monastic life

A Guru? The guru –“the venerable” –a teacher do not proclaim themselves teachers, the students simply come –no guru necessary for the sincere earnest seeker…most need help

Yoga –yoke or union with the infinite consciousness –One should use some form of disciplined technique to achieve this. Raja Yoga Jnana Yoga Karma Yoga Bhakti Yoga

The More Common Raja Yoga (89) –asanas - physical postures –prana - invisible life energy –chakras - bodily energy centers –mantras, sound repetition –yantras - a visual form

Entering The Mental Aspect Jnana Yoga –rational mind emphasis restraint, renunciation, resignation, concentration, faith –not mind, not senses, not body, then what?

A Thousand Points of Light.... Karma Yoga –any service rendered without thought or interest in its effect on anything God doing it through you, but not you

The ULTIMATE Love Story Bhakti Yoga –love affair for the god –the bhakta EXPECTS the god to appear at any time

Major Theistic cults Three unifying aspects –creating –preserving –destroying

The God’s of Hinduisim... (some of ‘em) Three major groupings of deity types; –Vaishnavites –Saivites –Saktas

The Feminine –Vaishnavites worship divine as Vishnu –the tender, merciful deity »basis for Hare Krishnas –the lotus floats serenely on the water with it’s roots firmly in the mud »refined spiritual energy rising from worldly contamination

The Masculine –Saivites worship divine as Siva –Siva = destroyer Often represented with a consort (Parvati his spouse)

And everything else –Saktas worship the female creative power –Durga »beautiful woman with ten arms and weapons –Kali »warrior goddess »destruction is actually transformation »one hand a sword, one a head, one saying fear not… »mask of ugliness, symbolizing pleasant with unpleasant, creation and destruction

BUT, Is it Poly or Mono? Ultimate faith in one genderless deity –Brahmin

Philosophical Systems Three common features –rooted in Vedas and other scriptures and truth through meditation –ethics are central to social life, hence good and bad karma are incentive for living ethical lives –cause of suffering is peoples ignorance of their true self, THE true self

Mindsets Two common systems –Samkhya –Advaita Vedanta

Material versus Non-material Samkhya –dualistic pre-vedic –two states of reality purusha = eternal self that is wise, pure, etc. prakriti = the cause of the material universe

Monasticism Advaita Vedanta –monistic single reality –life is an illusion we make it. The absolute is there, we misperceive

Devotions and rituals –rites of passage –cleanliness is a NECCESITY –multisensual sounds, smells, taste, sights, touch all involved –the image of the deity NOT the deity Forms of Worship

A Good Excuse For a PARTY Festivals –riotously joyous water pistols in worship!

Ghandi established two overreaching precepts; –awareness of spiritual truth –non-violent resistance to military-industrial oppression Modern Hinduism

TM Transcendental Meditation –a stilling of the mind and internal reaching for the true reality for couple mil we can stop your crime

A Return to the Ancient Ways Hindu fundamentalism –restoration of perfect rule, like in legendary times with perfect Hindu virtue being observed

A Newly Offered Path to Equality Exodus to Christianity –no castes