Hinduism #1 Chapter 7

Hindus  Over 900 million worldwide  Most live in India,  large numbers in Nepal, Bangladesh, Indonesia, Sri Lanka & Malaysia  Make up the third largest world religion  Just under 1% of total Canadian population  4 th in Canada  Christianity 76%, Islam 2%, Judaism 1.1%  Majority of Hindus in Canada were born outside Canada  Most life in Ontario, Quebec, Manitoba & Sask.

Hinduism: means many things has many variations  It is not a unified, centralized religion  Has no formal church and no single authority  Has no founder, no fixed doctrines

Hinduism: one of the world’s oldest religions  Evolved over 3 periods:  Pre-Vedic (2500 – 1500 BCE)  Vedic (1500 BCE to 600 BCE)  Upanishadic (began around 600 BCE)

 Pre-Vedic Period Matriarchal society, Indus River valley, complex cities  Vedic Period  After the 1 st sacred writings THE VEDAS  Scholars believe writings were collected in this time  Ritual focus: prayer, elements of nature, animal sacrifices  Upanishadic  600 – 200 BCE culture was unified  Vedas were accepted, interpretations called Upanishads  Focus shifted from sacrifices to the inner self

Rituals  Puja  Worship of one or more Hindu deities  Murti, image of a deity  Puja usually takes place in the home, can also take place in a temple

Puja in a Hindu Home  Most families have a place of worship in their homes  When they worship:  Remove shoes, ring bell, light lamp, burn incense  The murti is washed, decorated with garlands / flower petals  Small amount of red paste on foreheads  Offering of fruit, light, flowers, sweets  Lamp moved around indicating presence of God  Food that is part of the puja is eaten by those present

Temple worship  One can visit the temple (mandir) any time  A temple has many shrines each to a different deity  Worshippers remove shoes and wash their hands  Approach the shrine to make an offering  Ring a bell as they approach announcing their arrival

Puja in the temple  Similar to that at home, led by a priest  Priest chants verses from scriptures while performing puja  Worshippers sing & clap while lamp circled around deities  Service ends with sharing of blessed food offering  Havan, an important ritual, a fire offering, priest lights a fire, pours butterfat or oil into it while chanting  Prayers of purity offered, priest dips finger in water, touches ears, eyes, nose, mouth, arms, body and legs  Worshippers do the same, reminder: God lives within them