India truth alone triumphs

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Hinduism
Presented by Ambassador of India to
Chile Susmita Gongulee Thomas
There are as many ways to god as there are men
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This is India

• In religion and culture, India is the only
  millionaire! There is only one India, the land of
  dreams and romance. The one land all men desire
  to see, and having seen once, by even a glimpse,
  would not give that glimpse for the shows of all
  the rest of the globe combined. India is the
  cradle of the human race, the birthplace of human
  speech, the mother of history, the grandmother of
  legend, and the great grandmother of tradition.
  Our most valuable and most instructive materials
  in the history of man are treasured up in India
  only.
• -Mark Twain

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Facts About India

• 5,000 year old ancient civilization
• 325 languages spoken 1,652 dialects
• 18 official languages
• 29 states, 5 union territories
• 3.28 million sq. kilometers - Area
• 7,516 kilometers - Coastline
• 1.1 Billion population.
• 5600 dailies, 15000 weeklies and 20000
  periodicals in 21 languages with a combined
  circulation of 142 million.
• GDP 576 Billion. (GDP rate 8)
• Parliamentary form of Government
• Worlds largest democracy.
• Worlds 4th largest economy.
• World-class recognition in IT, bio-technology
  and pharmaceuticals.
• Largest English speaking nation in the world.
• 3rd largest standing army force, over 1.5Million
  strong.
• 2nd largest pool of scientists and engineers in
  the World.

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Diverse GeoGraphy
Desert (West)
Mountains (North)
Beaches (South)
Volcanic Plateau (Middle)
Plains (East)
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Hindi
Languages of India
Punjabi
Sanskrit
Marathi
Bengali
Kashmiri
Kannada
Assamese
Gujarati
Tamil
Oriya
Urdu
Malayalam
Telegu
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Religions of India
Hinduism-about 82
Islam- about 12
Zoroastrianism-about 0.01
Sikhism-about 2
Christianity-about 2.5
Jainism-about 0.5
Zionism about 0.0005
Buddhism- about 0.7
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Hinduism

• Hinduism is generally regarded as the world's
  oldest organized religion. Hinduism is mainly
  alive in India.
• It is the dominant faith of India, practised by
  over 82 of the population.
• Since religion is a way of life in India,
  Hinduism forms an integral part of the entire
  Indian tradition.
• Definition It is not easy to define Hinduism,
  for it is more than a religion in the Western
  sense.
• Uniqueness Hinduism can never be neatly slotted
  into any particular belief system.
• Origin According to historians, the origin of
  Hinduism dates back to 5000 or more years.
• Basic Tenets Hinduism lacks any unified system
  of beliefs and ideas.
• Scriptures Two types of sacred writings
  constitute the Hindu scriptures heard (sruti)
  and memorized (smriti).
• Gods Deities Hinduism believes that there is
  only one supreme Absolute called Brahman, but it
  does not advocate the worship of one particular
  deity.

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Hinduism

• Uniqueness and Spread-
• Hinduism differs from Christianity, Islam, and
  most other religions in that it does not have a
  single founder, a specific theological system, a
  single system of morality, or a central religious
  organization headed by an organization or
  individual. It consists of "thousands of
  different religious groups that have evolved in
  India since 1500 BCE.
• Hinduism is today the world's third largest
  religion, after Christianity and Islam. It claims
  about 762 million followers - 13 of the world's
  population. It is the dominant religion in India,
  Nepal, and among the Tamils in Sri Lanka. There
  are 766,000 Hindus in 2001 in the US. Statistics
  Canada estimates that there are about 157,015
  Hindus in Canada. It is a growing religion.

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Hinduism is henotheistic

• Hinduism is a henotheistic religion. It
  recognizes a single deity, and views other Gods
  and Goddesses as manifestations or aspects of
  that supreme God.
• Henotheistic and polytheistic religions have
  traditionally been among the world's most
  religiously tolerant faiths.

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Categorizing Hinduism

• Categorizing the religion of Hinduism is somewhat
  confusing
• Hinduism has commonly been viewed in the west as
  a polytheistic religion - one which worships
  multiple deities gods and goddesses. Although a
  widespread belief, this is not accurate.
• Some have viewed it as a monotheistic religion,
  because it recognizes only one supreme God the
  panentheistic principle of Brahman, that all
  reality is a unity. The entire universe is seen
  as one divine entity who is simultaneously at one
  with the universe and who transcends it as well. 
• Some view Hinduism as Trinitarian because Brahman
  is simultaneously visualized as a triad -- one
  God with three personalities Brahma the Creator
  who is continuing to create new realities.Vishnu,
  (Krishna) the Preserver, who preserves these new
  creations. Whenever dharma (eternal order,
  righteousness, religion, law and duty) is
  threatened, Vishnu travels from heaven to earth
  in one of ten incarnations. Shiva, the Destroyer,
  is at times compassionate, erotic and
  destructive.
• Rightly speaking, Hinduism is henotheistic it
  recognizes a single deity, and recognizes other
  gods and goddesses as facets, forms,
  manifestations, or aspects of that supreme God.

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The hindu Trinity
Lord Maheswar or Shiva- the Destroyer is third of
the trinity of Hindu Gods.
Brahma- the Creator is the first god of the
trinity. He is the incarnation of the Supreme
Brahman.
Vishnu- the Preserver is the second of the
trinity.

• The Supreme Power has three aspects Creation,
  Preservation, and Destruction.
• Hinduism has given each aspect a face and legends
  for people to understand these powers.
• Each Aspect has numerous manifestations.
• But they all represent the same Supreme Power.

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aspects of Vishnu

• Matsya (fish)
• Kurma (tortoise)
• Varaha (boar)
• Narasimha (man-lion)
• Vamana (dwarf)
• Parasurama (the warrior with an axe)
• Rama kills Ravana
• Krishna
• Buddha Hindus consider Buddha as an incarnation
  of Lord Vishnu and accept his teachings, but do
  not directly worship him.
• Kalkin (a man on a white horse)- Future

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Names of hinduism

• This religion is called
• Sanatana Dharma, "eternal religion,"
• Vaidika Dharma, "religion of the Vedas,"
• Hinduism -- the most commonly used name.
• Various origins for the word "Hinduism" have been
  suggested  It may be derived from an ancient
  inscription translated as "The country lying
  between the Himalayan mountain and Bindu Sarovara
  is known as Hindusthan by combination of the
  first letter 'hi' of 'Himalaya' and the last
  compound letter 'ndu' of the word Bindu.'" Bindu
  Sarovara is called the Cape Comorin sea in modern
  times.
• It may be a Persian corruption of the word Sindhu
  (the river Indus)
• It was a name invented by the British
  administration in India during colonial times.
• The classical theory of the origins of Hinduism
  traces the religion's roots to the Indus valley
  civilization circa 4000 to 2200 BCE.

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Hindu texts

• Sacred texts
• Hindu sacred texts are perhaps the most ancient
  religious texts still surviving today. Some
  appear to be millennia older than the Hebrew
  Scriptures (Old Testament) which conservative
  Christians date to circa 1500 BCE and liberal
  scholars date to circa 900 BCE.
• The primary sacred texts of Hinduism are the
  Vedas
• The Rig Veda,
• Sama Veda,
• Yajur Veda
• Atharva Veda
• Then in addition there are
• The Upanishadas
• The Ramayana.
• The Mahabharata
• The Bhagavad Gita
• The Brahmanas, the Sutras, Puranas, and the
  Aranyakas.

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Rig Veda - Knowledge of Hymns, 10,859
verses There is only one truth, only men
describe it in different ways. Yajur Veda -
Knowledge of Liturgy, 3,988 verses Sama Veda -
Knowledge of Classical Music, 1,549 verses Ayur
Veda - Knowledge of Medicine, over 100,000
verses Upanishads deal with Vedic philosophy
form the conclusions of each of the Vedas. "They
tell us how the soul (Atman) can be united with
the ultimate truth (Brahman) through
contemplation and mediation, as well as the
doctrine of Karma-- the cumulative effects of a
persons' actions." They teach
Contents of texts
Jyotisha Astrology and Astronomy. Kalpa
Rituals and Legal matters. Siksha
Phonetics. Aitareya Creation of the Universe,
Man and Evolution. Chandogya Reincarnation,
Soul. Kaushitaki Karma. Kena Austerity, Work,
and Restraint.
Dharnur Veda Science of Archery and
War. Mundaka Discipline, Faith and warning of
Ignorance. Sulba Sutra Knowledge of
Mathematics Yoga Sutra - Knowledge of
Meditation Kama Sutra - Knowledge of Love and Sex
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Hindu Beliefs

• Two major divisions within Hinduism
• Vaishnavaism which generally regards Vishnu as
  the ultimate deity
• Shivaism which generally regards Shiva as the
  ultimate deity.
• In addition, many rural Hindus worship their own
  village goddess or an earth goddess.
• Hindus believe in the repetitious Transmigration
  of the Soul. This is the transfer of one's soul
  after death into another body. This produces a
  continuing cycle of birth, life, death and
  rebirth through their many lifetimes. It is
  called samsara.
• Karma is the accumulated sum of ones good and bad
  deeds. Karma determines how you will live your
  next life. Through pure acts, thoughts and
  devotion, one can be reborn at a higher level.
• Eventually, one can escape samsara and achieve
  enlightenment.
• Bad deeds can cause a person to be reborn as a
  lower level, or even as an animal. The unequal
  distribution of wealth, prestige, suffering are
  thus seen as natural consequences for one's
  previous acts, both in this life and in previous
  lives.

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Hindu Lifestyle

• Hinduism has a well deserved reputation of being
  highly tolerant of other religions. Hinduism
  says
• "Ekam Sataha Vipraha Bahudha Vadanti"
• "The Truth is One, Different Sages Call it by
  Different Names"
• Hindus organize their lives around certain
  activities or "purusharthas."
• These are called the "four aims of Hinduism," or
  "the doctrine of the fourfold end of life." Men
  can find God in two ways
• A. Those who live in the world or "samsara." as a
  normal humans form the "pravritti,. Their three
  goals are 
• 1. Dharma righteousness in their religious life.
  This is the most important of the three.
• 2.Artha success in their economic life
  material prosperity.
• 3. Kama pleasure sensual, sexual, and mental 
  enjoyment.
• B. Those who renounce the world or "samsara." are
  "nivritti,". Their main goal is
• 4. Moksa Liberation from "samsara." This is
  considered the supreme goal of mankind through
  meditation, yoga, daily devotions, public
  rituals, and puja, a ceremonial dinner for a God.
  

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The basics of hinduism

• 5 PRINCIPLES 1. God Exists One Absolute OM.
  One Trinity Brahma, Vishnu, Maheshwara
  (Shiva)Several divine forms2. All human beings
  are divine3. Unity of existence through love4.
  Religious harmony5. Knowledge of 3 Gs Ganga
  (sacred river), Gita (sacred script), Gayatri
  (sacred mantra)
• 10 DISCIPLINES 1. Satya (Truth)2. Ahimsa
  (Non-violence)3. Brahmacharya (Celibacy,
  non-adultery)4. Asteya (No desire to possess or
  steal)5. Aparighara (Non-corrupt)6. Shaucha
  (Cleanliness)7. Santosh (Contentment)8.
  Swadhyaya (Reading of scriptures)9. Tapas
  (Austerity, perseverance, penance)10.
  Ishwarpranidhan (Regular prayers)

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Dance- a tribute to Gods
Manipuri
Bharatanatyam
Mohiniattam
Devadasi
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The Encyclopedia Britannica Quote

• "Man must have an original cradle land whence the
  peopling of
• the earth was brought about by migration.
• As to mans cradle land, there have been many
  theories but the
• weight of evidence is in favour of
  Indo-Malaysia.
• "If there is a country on earth which can justly
  claim the honour of having been the cradle of the
  Human race or at least the scene of primitive
  civilization, the successive developments of
  which carried into all parts of the ancient world
  and even beyond, the blessings of knowledge which
  is the second life of man, that country is
  assuredly India.

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secular Tolerance

• "In India today,
• we have a lady born a Catholic (Sonia Gandhi)
• stepping aside so a Sikh (Manmohan Singh)
• could be sworn in by a Muslim president (Abdul
  Kalam)
• to lead a nation that's 82 Hindu.
• I defy anyone to cite another country with such
  diversity and tolerance to its political
  leadership."

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The End