Sanatana Dharma is the original religion that comes down from the dawn of creation of this universe. What is Sanatana Dharma? Sanatana means eternal and Dharma means duty, activity or nature. Thus Sanatana Dharma means the eternal duty or the eternal activity or the eternal nature of the soul. (More about Sanatana Dharma and the eternal nature of the soul will be discussed in session 5 and 6 of this course). To awaken the eternal spiritual nature of the soul and realize God is the goal of all religions.
Wouldn’t it be simple and less confusing if there was only one scripture teaching us of one God and one religion rather than all these varieties of God’s and scriptures? Yes, it would be less confusing but it would also be less accommodating to have only one level of scripture for everyone. This is because there are a wide variety of people on the planet.
To cater to this huge variety of people at different levels, Sanatana Dharma or the details about the nature of God and the soul are given to the people according to the different times, places and circumstances. To the spiritually advanced more details are given and to the spiritually bankrupt only initial instructions are given.
Let us consider the origin or the beginning of the major religions of the world with respect to 2011 AD:
Sikhism: 600 yrs old. Founder: Guru Nanak. Scripture: Guru Grantha Sahib.
Islam: 1300 yrs old. Founder:…
Christianity: 2000 yrs….
Buddhism: 2500 yrs…
Bhagavad Gita: 5000 yrs old
Hinduism: 6000 yrs…
Each religion claims their monopoly on God. Each religion claims that they have the perfect knowledge of God and those who have faith in their brand of religion will go to heaven while all other souls will rot in this world or go to hell! Let us use a little common sense here. If any religion claims that their version of God is perfect, we can ask them, “Did God exist before the founder revealed the name of God and the details of his religious rituals?”
To the people with Islamic faith, we can ask, “Was Allah created 1300 years ago by prophet Mohammed (pbuh)? Did Allah (God) exist before prophet Mohammed (pbuh) revealed the Islamic faith? How did the souls who appeared on the planet, before prophet Mohammed gave Islam, go back to Allah? If no one goes to Allah without following the Muslim type of religion, then is God so cruel or partial that He waited for billions and billions of years since He created the universe for the first souls to come to Him?”
Similar questions can be asked to the Christians, “Were any souls forgiven for their sins before Christ since the beginning of creation? If only the Christians go to heaven and all others go to hell forever then what abut the billions and zillions of unlimited souls in the plants, birds, beasts, fishes etc? Will they never reach God?”
Many Hindus claim that, “There are crores and crores of God’s and we can worship any one of them according to our choice and we shall get the same result.” Then what about the western religions? Well, the answer some broad-minded Hindu may prefer is, “They are also correct in their own way and they also ultimately achieve the same goal.” But they think that this worship of 33 crore God’s is blasphemy against their One God. This is a contradiction, how can both be true!
(OPTIONAL –
A short note on Hinduism:
Is Hinduism a religion? What is Hinduism? Many modern day Hindus are confused about the identity of their religious faith. Often we hear the answer, “Hinduism is not a religion. Hinduism is a way of life!” On further inquiry, “Oh, what is that way of life? What are the rules and regulations that each Hindu must follow as a part of their religious faith?” We may get more unclear and confused or even contradictory answers, “You can do what you like. As long as you are true to yourself and true to God, you need not follow any person or sect or religion and just do good and be good, then you’re a Hindu!”
But one man’s good could be another man’s bad. So how do we really understand who is a true Hindu and define what is Hindusim?
The word Hindu is derived from the Sanskrit word Sindhu, the historic local name for the Indus River in the northwestern part of the Indian subcontinent, part of Pakistan. The word Hindu was first used by Arab invaders and then went further west by the Arabic term al-Hind referring to the land of the people who live across river Indus and the Persian term Hindū referring to all Indians.
By the 13th century, Hindustān emerged as a popular alternative name of India, meaning the "land of Hindus". Originally this land was called Bharat and the religion Sanatana Dharma.
Originally, the word “Hindu” was a secular (note: not a religion) term, which was used to describe all inhabitants of the Indian subcontinent (or Hindustan) irrespective of their religious affiliation. Thus, Hindu or Hinduism was simply a political or social word given by the Arab or Moghul invaders to the people living on the other side of Sindhu. For example, people living in Mumbai are called Mumbaikars, those living in Maharashtra or who speak Marathi are called Maharashtrians, those living in America as Americans etc.
Can a political name, given to set of people, living in a particular tract of land, be called their religion? Interestingly the word Hindu is not found in any of the scriptures that they claim are sacred. There is no mention of the word Hindu in the Vedas, Puranas, Ramayana, Mahabharata, Bhagavad Gita, Vedanta Sutra or any other similar sanskrit scripture. Thus the term Hindu is a modern term, given by foreign Moghul invaders to people living in India. Indian and Hindu mean the same geographically.
It was only towards the end of the 18th century that the European merchants and colonists referred collectively to the followers of Indian religions as Hindus. Eventually, it came to define a precisely religious identity that includes any person of Indian origin who is a follower of the Vedas.
Thus a Hindu is one who neither practiced Abrahamic western religions (like Judaism, Christianity and Islam) nor non-Vedic Indian religions, such as Jainism, Buddhism, Sikhism, thereby encompassing a wide range of religious beliefs and practices related to Sanātana Dharma. Hinduism is formed of diverse traditions and has no single founder. Among its roots is the Sanatana Dharma and as such Hinduism is often called the "oldest living religion”. (Source: Wikipedia)
The conclusion is that Hinduism is a geographical or political word, given by foreigners and it has very little to do with religion. Therefore, most Hindus are confused about what Hinduism is or what it stands for. The original religion is called Sanatana Dharma as mentioned in the original Vedic literatures. Hindu religion today is simply like an external shadow of the true religion of the soul – Sanatana Dharma.
The term Hinduism was introduced into the English language in the 19th century to denote the religious, philosophical, and cultural traditions native to India. Thus, Hindu culture according to modern historians may have originated about 6000 years ago as found in the Harappa civilization but the spiritual culture of Santana Dharma has existed since the beginning of creation.



Hinduism
(Sanātana Dharma)
Hinduism is often referred to as Sanātana Dharma, a Sanskrit phrase meaning "the eternal law",
Hinduism is the world's third most popular religion, with around 750 million followers. The religion of Hinduism originated in Northern India, near the river Indus, about 4000 years ago and is the world's oldest existing religion.
Hinduism is practised by more than 80% of India's population.
Place of Origin India
Founder Developed out of Brahminism
Sacred Text Vedas, Upanishads

Sacred Building Mandir

Major Festivals Divali

Holy Place River Ganges is one of many holy places


Who is the founder of Hinduism?
Hinduism has no founder, it developed out of Brahminism.
Hinduism is the oldest religion, it may date to prehistoric times.


What is the symbol of Hinduism?
Aum is the main symbol of Hinduism. It is the sound heard in deepest meditation and is said to be the name most suited for God.
Hindu Artefacts



Where does the name Hindu come from?
The word "Hindu" comes from the name of the river Indus, which flows 1800 miles from Tibet through Kashmir and Pakistan to the sea.


How is Hinduism different from other faiths?
Hinduism has no founder, single teacher nor any prophets.
Hinduism is not a Single Religion. Hinduism is the practices of a variety of different religious groups which come out of India.



What do Hindus believe?
For many Hindus, religion is a matter of practice rather than of beliefs. It's more what you do, than what you believe. Hindus believe in a universal soul or God called Brahman. Brahman takes on many forms that some Hindus worship as gods or goddesses in their own right. Hindus believe that there is a part of Brahman in everyone and this is called the Atman.
Hindus believe in reincarnation - a belief that the soul is eternal and lives many lifetimes, in one body after another. The soul is sometimes born in a human body, sometimes in an animal body and sometimes in a plant body etc.. Hindus believe that all forms of life contain a soul, and all souls have the chance to experience life in different forms.
Samsara means going through the cycle of repeated births and deaths (reincarnation). Hindus believe that existence of this cycle is governed by Karma.
What is Karma?
Hindus believe that the soul passes through a cycle of successive lives and its next incarnation is always dependent on how the previous life was lived. (Similar to Buddhist beliefs) Karma is the cause of our particular destiny. Misfortunes in our present life are the result of acts that we have committed in the past. In the same way, our actions in our present lives will determine our fate in the lives that follow. Hindus therefore aim to live in a way that will cause each of their lives to be better than the life before.
What is Moksha?
The spiritual goal of a Hindu is to become one with Brahma. This freedom is referred to as moksha. Until moksha is achieved, a Hindu believes that he/she will be repeatedly reincarnated in order that he/she may work towards self-realization of the truth (the truth being that only Brahman exists, nothing else).


What is the Hindu way of life?
For many Hindus there are four goals in human life (purusharthas);
1 Moksha - the release of the soul (Atman) from the cycle of rebirth.
The individual soul (Atman) unites with Brahman the universal soul. There are different ways to Moksha.
• spiritual - involves acquiring spiritual knowledge through yoga and meditation. devotion to god
• working selflessly for the good of society.
How a person is reincarnated is determined by karma.
2 Dharma - the code for leading one's life.
Respect for elders is considered important and many consider marriage as a son's religious duty.
3 Artha - the pursuit of material gain by lawful means.
4 Karma- through pure acts, knowledge and devotion, you can reincarnate to a higher level. The opposite achieves the contrary result.


How do Hindus achieve Moksha?
There are four different paths to achieve Moksha which a Hindu can take.
The Hindu can choose one or all four of the paths they are:
1 The path of knowledge - Jnana-Yoga
Spiritual knowledge -leading to the knowledge of the relationship between the soul (atman) and God (Brahman)
2 The path of meditation - Dhyana-yoga
The idea is to concentrate so you can reach the real self within you and become one with Brahman
3 The Path of Devotion - Bhakti-yoga
Choosing a particular god or goddess and worshipping them throughout your life in actions, words and deeds.
4 The path of good works - Karma-yoga
This involves doing all your duties correctly throughout your life.


Why are there so many Hindu Gods?
Hindus actually only believe in one God, Brahman, the eternal origin who is the cause and foundation of all existence. The gods of the Hindu faith represent different forms of Brahman. These gods are sent to help people find the universal God (Brahman).
Most Hindus have a personal god or godess such as Shiva, Krishna or Lakshmi to whom they pray regularly.
The three most important Hindu gods (forms of Brahman) are:



Brahma - known as the Creator.
(Description)
Vishnu - Known as the Preserver
(Description)
Shiva (Siva)- known as the Destroyer.
(Description)

Other Hindu gods include:
Saraswathi - Goddess of Wisdom - Wife of Lord Brahma. (Description)
Saraswathi is the Hindu goddess of knowledge, music and all the creative arts.
Lakshmi - Goddess of Wealth - Wife of Lord Vishnu. (Description)
Lakshmi is the goddess of light, beauty, good fortune and wealth.
Parvati - regarded as a representation of Shakti. Parvati is the wife of Lord Shiva and the Godess of household and motherhood.
(Shakti is by literal definition sacred force, power, or energy. Shakti is the personnification of Brahman as feminine)
Ganesha - Son of Shiva and Parvati. (Description)
The Hindu god in a human form but with the head of an elephant.(pictured right)
Pictures and descriptions of Hindu Gods
Images of Hindu Gods (updated link)



What is the Hindu place of Worship?
Most Hindus worship (puja) every day at home and have a shrinethere. A shrine can be anything from a room, a small altar or simply pictures or statues. Family members often worship together. At the shrine, Hindus make offerings to a murti. A murti is a sacred stautue of God, or a god or goddess.
The Hindu building for communal worship is called Mandir (Hindu Temple). The temples are dedicated to different gods and are the focus of religious life. Outside India, people mainly gather at the mandir at the weekend.
Worshippers repeat the names of their favourite gods, goddesses, and the mantras. Water, fruit, flowers and incense are offered to the gods.


What is Hinduism's Holy book?
The most ancient sacred texts of the Hindu religion are written in Sanskrit and called the Vedas.
Hinduism does not just have one sacred book but several scriptures. The Vedas scriptures guide Hindus in their daily life. They also help to preserve the religious dimensions of family and society. Hindus have developed their system of worship and beliefs from the scriptures.
There are two main categories of the Hindu scriptures:
• Shruti ("that which is heard") consists of the four Vedas and Upanishads scriptures.
• Smriti ("that which is remembered") composed of traditional texts, including the Dharma Shastras (legal and ethical texts), the Puranas, and the folk/historical legends known as the Mahabharata and Ramayana.
The Hindu Holy Scriptures are mainly comprised of the following works written in the Sanskrit language:
1. The Vedas Rg-Veda (Rigveda), Yajur-Veda, Sama-Veda, Atharva-Veda (see further down )
2. The Upanisads - These consider the nature of the individual soul (Atman) and the universal soul (Brahman.) One of the Upanishads contains the earliest reference to the reincarnation of the soul in different bodies (transmigration) of the soul.
3. The Smrutis - (‘tradition) are the Laws of Manu (250 BC)
4. Ramayana - Contains the story of Rama and his devoted wife Sita. She is kidnapped by the demon king Ravana but is later freed by Rama with the help of the monkey god Hanuman. The poem is about how good will always triumph over evil and Rama and Sita are held up as role models for the perfect husband and wife.
5. Mahabharata - An epic poem telling the story of a war between two branches of a family. The Bhagavad-Gita forms part of this and means "The Song of God."
6. The Puranas - A collection of ancient tales about the different incarnations and the lives of saints.
What are the Vedas?
The Vedas are the oldest religious texts in Hinduism. The word Veda means knowledge. It is believed that the Vedas were orally revealed by Brahma to certain sages, who heard them and passed them down in an oral tradition. They were not written down; in fact this was prohibited. Because of this earliest oral tradition continuing even now when the Vedas are available in the written form, the Vedas are still known to be Sruti or shruti - ' that which is heard '.
The Vedas are mainly comprised of of hymns or mantras written in the Sanskrit language. They cover various subjects, from nature to everyday life and behaviour, and form the basis of all other religious writings. The books are so special that they are often kept in glass cases.
The four Vedas are:
• Rg-Veda (Rigveda) - The oldest and holiest Veda.
• Yajur-Veda
• Sama-Veda
• Atharva-Veda
Each Veda is divided into four sections:
• The Samhitas - The oldest portion - Contains the mantras and hymns The Brahmanas - The ritualistic teachings - They are written in prose and explain the hymns. The Aranyakas - The meditational section
• The Upanishads - The mystic and philosophical. They consider the nature of the individual soul (Atman) and the universal soul (Brahman.) One of the Upanishads contains the earliest reference to the reincarnation of the soul in different bodies (transmigration) of the soul.
The Vedas are the law. Most beliefs, concepts, and ceremonies are based on information contained in the Vedas.


What are the practices of Hindus?
The practice of Hinduism consists of rites and ceremonies centering on birth, marriage, and death.
There are three basic practices:
1 Worship (called Puja)
This is an integral part of the faith. Offerings (puja) are usually made to representations of the gods.
2 Cremation
The dead are burnt not buried
3 Compliance with the rules of the caste system
The caste system was 'a division of society to preserve society' similar to the society in ancient Egyptian times. Each group had rules of conduct to be obeyed.
The caste system divided people by occupation i.e. teachers and philosophers were brahmins; fighters were kshatriya; shopkeepers, moneylenders and tradespeople were vaishya; and servants and cleaners were shudra.
No caste was higher or more important (superior) to another. All were equal and aknowledged as essential to the society.
With thanks to Nirmisha Bhatt and Smruti Desai for providing us with information about the caste system
Is pilgrimage an important aspect of Hindusim?
Yes, pilgrimage is important to Hindus.
What are the popular pilgrimage places?
Popular pilgrimage places are rivers, temples, mountains, and other sacred sites in India. As these are sites where the gods may have appeared or become manifest in the world.