Hinduism

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Hinduism

• Basic Worldview

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Key Terms

• Braham The all-pervading, self-existent power,
  the cosmic unity.
• Atman The true self The essence or principle of
  life reality in its individual forms, as
  distinct from brahman n.b. this is not
  individual soul rather it is the universal self
• Maya Literally illusion this world is
  neither real nor unreal
• Advaita Only one reality exists. All things are
  one. A strict form of this belief called
  monism was taught by Shankara.
• Dharma moral and religious duty

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Key Terms

• Karma
• Literally action the inexorable moral law of
  cause and effect governing the future bad
  actions lead to rebirth in the lower orders,
  perhaps as an animal good actions lead to
  rebirth in the higher orders, perhaps as a
  priest.
• Samasara
• The bondage of life, death and rebirth, governed
  by the law of karma
• Moksha
• Literally release liberation from the
  continuous round of rebirths
• Bhakti
• Devotion or worship (often but not always
  offered to a single deity) Liberation by faith
  as distinct from liberation by works or knowledge.

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Indian World View

• Diversity as essential element of Hinduism
• No need to select exclusively
• Flexibility
• Divine is manifested in a number of ways
• Truth transcends all conceptualizations or
  verbalizations

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Common Beliefs

• Common beliefs include
• Recognition of Veda as revelatory and
  authoritative
• Even if content is largely unknown to many Hindus
• Recognition of Brahman priests
• Bear and teach the Vedas
• Ideal of ritual purity
• Brahman as ultimate
• samsara
• Transmigration of atman
• Karma

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World View Cycles Reality

• Endless ages and cycles of death rebirth
• There are creation stories, though Upanishads
  suggest that source of creation is unknowable
• Each falls into period of decline
• Present point of cycle is one of increasing evil
  chaos
• Ultimate Reality
• Diversity of approaches but two main strands
• Brahman as the Sacred Ultimate
• Theistic Hinduism

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Ultimate RealityBrahman

• Brahman as the Sacred Ultimate
• Evolution of understanding
• Stress on oneness
• All-embracing principle
• The one behind all differentiation
• Precedes any forms of multiplicity
• The ultimately real
• Transcendent and immanent
• Immanent because Brahman permeates all
  reality/existence (monism), including gods

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Ultimate Reality Brahman

• Grounds all reality
• Ultimate cause, source and goal of all existence
• Preserves universe
• All things emanate from Brahman
• Uncreated
• Infinite
• Apophatic quality
• Beyond description on conceptualization
• Impersonal
• No personal attributes
• IMPORTANT AtmanBrahman

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Two ways of knowing Brahman(see esp. philosopher
Shankara)

• Saguna Brahman
• Lower level of knowledge .
• Stress on immanence
• Manifest
• Changing
• Active
• With formdifferentiated
• Bounded
• Personal god
• With attributes
• Creative force in the universe

• Nirguna Brahman
• Highest level of knowledge
• Stress on transcendence
• Unmanifest
• Non-changing beyond change
• Non-active
• Formless undifferentiated
• Unbounded
• Impersonal
• Beyond all attributes
• -

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Indian World ViewAtman

• What is eternal is atman or self
• More real than empirical self
• Atman Brahman- pure consciousness
• Through mediation one may come to experience the
  atman and achieve unity with Brahman
• Atman is eternal, immaterial immortal
• Ego (the I) is impermanent
• Mistake true nature if excessive focus on the I
  
• Result is one is caught in bondage of samsara
• N.b. that for many in India, liberation is not
  communion w/personal God

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Indian World ViewKarma

• Law of karma
• Every action has a consequence which leads to
  rebirth
• Karma binds one to wheel of existence, samsara
• Three paths karma (action), jnana (knowledge),
  bhakti (devotion)
• Liberation achieved through path of jnana or
  bhakti

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Indian World ViewDharma

• Law of dharma
• Ones dharma is conditioned by karma from
  previous lifetimes
• Dharma is duty to live in the state of life which
  has been determined

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Dharma (cont.)

• Two aspects of dharma
• Dharma as cosmic ordering principle
• Dharma as expression of cosmic order in the
  social order
• Dharma on these two levels are linked in that
• The social order represents (is a microcosm) of
  the the cosmic order
• Dharma is focus in day to day existence
• All things have proper place function
• Understand what our place is, its associated
  duties follow it to best of ability
• We have duty to contribute to dharma which keeps
  world functioning
• Ignorance selfishness cause us to fail to take
  our proper place in divine, cosmic order
• Maintaining divinely ordered society is central
  to Hindu way of life

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Doctrine of Maya

• Doctrine of Maya
• saguna Brahman what we subjectively experience
  w/ our senses
• Finite world does exists, but it is not the
  ultimate reality
• Shankaras rope illustration

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Indian World ViewBasic Problem

• Basic Problem We fail to realize our true
  nature atman Brahman
• Ignorance of our true nature (identify w/Brahman)
  causes egotism
• We act as if the phenomenal world was ultimate
  reality we pursue selfish desires
• Pursuit of desires causes desire for worldly
  existence
• Which leads to actions which have consequences
  (karma)
• Karma (the chain of acts consequences) then
  produces bondage to physical world through cycle
  of samsara
• Solution is moksha from samsara so that the atman
  can attain union with Brahman
• Thus it is our ignorance selfish desire that
  creates conditions for next lifetime
• Realization of our true nature comes from insight