Hinduism Ms. Carlyle Anderson Junior reporter

Reader- This is a brief scrapbook I have compiled on the various parts of Hinduism (the gods, Ganges River, Vedas, etc.), in hopes that it will be some help in learning the basics of this amazing religion. Enjoy! =)

Hinduism is a polytheistic religion, meaning it worships many gods; unlike Christianity, which has only one. There are about 7 deities in total: Shiva(god), Hanuman(god), Saraswati(goddess), Lakshmi(goddess), Ganesha(god), and Krishna(god) & Radha(gopi). HINDU GODS & GODDESSES

SHIVA "The Destroyer" The source of both good and evil. HANUMAN "The Monkey King" A symbol of strength and devotion. HANUMAN "The Monkey King" A symbol of strength and devotion.

SARASWATI Goddess of knowledge, music, and the arts; the deity who can bestow wisdom and drive out ignorance. SARASWATI LAKSHMI Goddess of beauty, wealth, and prosparity, and a common household deity(bestowing good fortune and well- being on the family).

GANESHA (GANAPATI) Lord of beginnings and remover of obstacles. A symbol of strength and wisdom. KRISHNA AND RADHA Krishna: the incarnation of Hindu god Vishnu; Radha: his favorite gopi (milkmaid)

THE GANGES RIVER The ganges river is named after the goddess Ganga, who lived up in the heavens. Hindu mithology states that a human king, Bhagiratha, prayed to the god Brahma to have her decend to earth so that he could cleanse and release the souls of his ancestors who had been condemned to wander the nether-world. She threatened to destroy earth, so was released in small streams by the god Shiva.

THE VEDAS The Vedas, Hinduism's oldest and most sacred texts, were composed between 15oo and 600 BC. They are a collection of hymns and rituals used to perform Vedic ceremonies; and form the foundation of the religion of Hinduism. They are made up of four different books; the oldest being the Rig- Veda, a collection of over 1,000 hymns invoking the gods of war and fire, respectively. The others books are: Atharva-Veda(myths, verses, spells, & prayers), Yajur- Veda(details on Vedic sacrifice), and Sama-Veda(liturgical chants)

THE MAHABHARATA, "The great talk of the Bharatas", is a major epic in ancient indian literature. It is composed of 18 books(nearly 100,000 verses); and over 800 years, has come to be known as THE story of india.

SANSKRIT (ANCIENT LANGUAGE) Sanskrit is an ancient Indo-Eropean language, dating back to almost 1,5oo BC. It was intoduced to India by people who called themselves the Ayrians, and shows an interestingly close similarity to Latin and Greek. At this day and age, it is only used/spoken for religious and ceremonial purposes, although the language has survived an extremely long time.

Raja Ravi Varma. "lithograph of hanuman fetching the mountain" Photograph. en.wikipedia.org. 27 Feb 2013(modified) Web. 27 Feb en.wikipedia.org "Lord Shiva Prayers" Photograph. Bhajans Kirtans Prayers. Web. 27 Feb "The LakshmiGoddessofWealth shrine" Photograph. Web. 27 Feb "Saraswati Puja 2013" Photograph. Bengalis In Chicago. Web. 27 Feb IMAGE CITATIONS:

"Shri Ganesha" Photograph. Web. 27 Feb "Radha Krishna Pictures" Photograph. Web. 27 Feb Photograph. indiatheancientdiamond.blogspot.com. Web. 27 Feb 2013.indiatheancientdiamond.blogspot.com IMAGE CITATIONS:

"Mahabharata (holy book of Hindu's)" Photograph. Web. 27 Feb "Ganges River" Photograph. Web. 27 Feb, 2013www.travelandescape.ca Photograph. banu.com. Web. 27 Feb 2013banu.com "Hindu woman bathing in the Ganges River" Photograph. Web. 27 Feb IMAGE CITATIONS:

WEBSITE CITATIONS: IMAGE CITATIONS: WEBSITE CITATIONS: "Rigveda (padapatha) manuscript in Devanagari, early 19th century" Photograph. en.wikipedia.org. Web. 28 Feb 2013.en.wikipedia.org

Thank you for reading this Scrapbook Guide To Hinduism =). For more information, please visit country.india/must-go-on-trips.earth * * (made up site. In other words, go take a trip to the country itself.)