What makes up the Hindu religion
Hinduism has grown to be the third world largest religion and one of the oldest practiced religion and faith. Hinduism is actually not perceived as a religion at all because it does not have a single concept of God and rules laid down to govern it. It is a religion that recognizes the multiple existence of multiple deities and arguably the most tolerant earthly religion (Pauwels, 2002). Hindus do worship a whole set of pantheon Gods, and they strongly believe that the kingdom of heaven is not the only place where goodness resides, but it is the entire city where their Gods reside. Hindus are ruled by a specific ruler known as Indra, who is believed to be a very cunning and politically striking leader.
Hinduism is made up of various uniting believes which have made the religion arguably strong and persistent over the years. Hinduism is strongly founded on the conviction of eternal truth or rather the Santana Dharma (Fisher, 2005). This is the most unifying system of beliefs which is founded on the conviction that truth is knowable and it can strongly be experienced. Therefore, the term Hinduism is used as an umbrella covering many different traditions. Every single tradition among these many employ different methods of enlightenment and they perceive things in different ways. What practically binds all the Hindu sects together is the acceptance of the famous statement and belief of the Rg Veda which means Truth is one, and the different sages refer to it by different names (Pauwels, 2002).
Hinduism is therefore bound by unifying underlying concept of unity which is deeply shared through a strong sense of morality. The belief in the principle of transmigration and the teachings of ahimsa or rather the teachings on non- violence are one among the most strong convictions which constitute Hinduism as a religion and have kept it working over the years (Pauwels, 2002).
The term Hinduism first came into being in the 19th century derived from the colonized British foreigners who had created a name for the people living around the region of Indus River, in India subcontinent for the purposes of conducting census. To the westerners, the name Hinduism is sounds much of a religion. But to the actual indigenous Indians, the name actually portrays a variety of religious traditions unified under one umbrella (Fisher, 2005). There has been various significant societal and cultural influences which have made Hinduism very vital in reference to the region in which it originated.
These include The diverse organized body of religion, beliefs and philosophy, and the significant cultural practices predominate to the native India cultures characterized by a strong set of beliefs on the principle of reincarnation, the existence of a supreme being who exists in different forms and natures, the strong belief that the existing opposing theories and aspects belong to one umbrella of eternal truth and lastly the desire for continued liberation from early evils.
The existence of varied cultural and diverse societal influences in India highly made Hinduism very vital to the region in which it first originated. The existence of various numerous traditions and social systems from its place of origin which were supposed to be adhered to, highly influenced the indigenous people of India to follow and adhere to adepts of Hinduism (Fisher, 2005). Culturally, Hinduism is made up various myths and beliefs which applied to the countless faces of divine which constantly interact with different forms of individuals and people. Additionally, in the cultural traditions there existed divine deities who could punish, bless and protect the people depending on their level of veneration. Various traditions and myths were passed on teaching and describing to people the different ways of worship and the significance of venerating to the various deities (Fisher, 2005). In addition different forms discipline was established to express veneration and devotion towards the deities.
As for societal influences, believers of Hinduism culture have established a form of a five step caste system which significantly helps in segregating and shaping the lives of people accordingly (Pauwels, 2002). The very first group is made up priests, specialists and philosophers in spirituality known as Brahmins, the second caste is known as Kshatriyas composed of nobilities such as warriors, kings and vassals who held the responsibility of guarding and preserving the society. The third were the Vaishyas who were basically the economic specialists composed of merchants and farmers, the fourth were the Shundra who comprised of manual laborers and artisans. And lastly untouchables who did most of the undesired tasks such as transporting human corpses and cleaning human waste (Fisher, 2005). Membership in a particular caste was strictly hereditary and it was maintained through very strict rules.
The desire for liberation from evil and earthly existence is basically the major purpose of all the different traditions and self disciplines within the Hinduism. The ultimate goal of the believers in Hinduism is to be united with the divine. Therefore, to attain this divine goal of liberation it may cost one the entire life. Believers in Hinduism therefore put in practice various forms of yoga in order to experience the concept of oneness with the divines. Additionally, they constantly perform life threatening pilgrimages at different specific sites in order to venerate and mediate the Devine. Besides all some do fast during various days of the luner calendar as a way of showing devotion and a desire for liberation (Fisher, 2005). A series of religious practices such as venerating specific deities, mass bathing and festivals are other significant forms of expressing their strong desire for liberation.
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