1. What is Hinduism? One of the oldest religions of humanity Began in India Focus on tolerance and diversity: "Truth is one, paths are many“ Not one single way of practicing the religion; no set leadership Many deities but a single, impersonal Ultimate Reality – all thing are Brahman A philosophy and a way of life – focused both on this world and beyond Other religions grow out of Hinduism including Buddhism, Jainism, Sikhism

2. How did Hinduism begin? There is no particular founder It began in the Indus River Valley Civilization over 5000 years ago Aryans enter 4000 - 3500 years ago and bring rituals and traditions which will influence the development Vedic Tradition 3500 – 2500 years ago: sacred texts of the Aryans (Vedas) Solidified the caste system Upanishads (metaphysical philosophy) 2800 – 2400 years ago Combination of these works and Indus Valley traditions leads to the development of Hinduism

3. What are the Sacred Texts? There is no ONE sacred Hindu text Shruti (“heard”) – oldest, most authoritative: Four Vedas (“truth”) – myths, rituals, chants Upanishads - metaphysical speculation Plus other texts Smriti (“remembered”) – the Great Indian Epics: Ramayana Mahabharata (includes Bhagavad-Gita) Plus others

4. What do Hindus believe? All things are Brahman Brahman is represented as a god in human or animal form, these are called avatars All people contain Atman, the soul, which is Brahman trapped in a human Karma – spiritual impurity due to actions keeps us bound to this world (good and bad) – this not letting go leads to continual reincarnation or the process of Samsara How you live in one life will determine how you come back in the next life Ultimate goal of life – to release Atman and reunite with the divine, becoming as one with Brahman –this is known as Moksha – this can only happen at death

5. Key feature of Hinduism Respect for all life – strong belief in ahimsa or non-violence Many Hindus are vegetarians Human life is supreme: With in human life there are four varnas (castes) you can be born into priests & teachers, nobles & warriors, merchant class, servant class Many are born even lower than this –they are the untouchables

6. How do Hindus worship? Bhakti Yoga is seeking union with the divine through loving devotion to avatars In the home (household shrines)In the home In the Temples (priests officiate)

7. Who do Hindus worship? – the major gods of the Hindu Pantheon Brahma, the creator god

8. Who do Hindus worship? – the major gods of the Hindu Pantheon Vishnu, the preserver god Incarnates as ten avatars (descents) including: Rama (featured in the Ramayana) Krishna (featured in the Mahabharata) (Each shown with his consort, Sita and Radha, respectively)

9. Who do Hindus worship? – the major gods of the Hindu Pantheon Shiva, god of constructive destruction (the transformer) Appears as Shiva Nataraj, lord of the dance of creation… and with his wife, Parvati, and son Ganesha (the elephant headed remover of obstacles)

10. What about the goddesses? Devi – the feminine divine Saraswati, goddess of wisdom, consort of Brahma

11. What about the goddesses? Devi – the feminine divine Lakshmi, goddess of good fortune, consort of Vishnu

12. What about the goddesses? Devi – the feminine divine Parvati, divine mother, wife of Shiva

13. What about the goddesses? Devi – the feminine divine Durga, protectress Kali, destroyer of demons Plus about 330 million other deities

14. All these deities are but avatars (attributes and functions) of the impersonal Brahman All these deities are but avatars (attributes and functions) of the impersonal Brahman

15. SOME IMPORTANT THINGS TO THINK ABOUT WHEN LOOKING AT THE INDIAN CASTE SYSTEM 1. The word caste is Portuguese meaning race – it was given to the Indian system by the Portuguese to describe the social system they saw 2. Although many scholars directly tie the caste system to the Aryan invasion and Hinduism there are some disputes ~Social castes have been found throughout history in other Indian religious groups including Christians, Muslims and Jains ~Ancient Indian texts offer other explanations for the development of this system different from the widely accepted Aryan social policy Most explanations of the caste system focus on the four social divisions based on job type called varnas. However there are literally hundreds of different groups that people are divided into. These are called jati. ~A jati is a subcategory in the Indian caste system consisting of a group of people into which a person is born and within which he or she must marry. 4. The idea that when dealing with the varna there is a set hierarchy is untrue. In many villages, cities, time periods, the Brahman were not considered the highest caste, in others they were.