Essays

Hinduism is also known as 'Sanatana Dharma' to Hindus. In Sanskrit, the original language of India, 'Sanatana' means Everlasting and 'Dharma', by a crude translation, means Religion. The Everlasting Religion, Hinduism was founded, exists and flourishes in India.

What is Hinduism? Is it a religion or is it a culture? The truth is - it is both a religion and a way of life. India gave to the world the original, oldest and most profound philosophy of life. The brilliant ancestors of present-day Indians explored the Truth behind our existence and gave 5everal philosophies and theories to define the Truth, At the same time, they created a set of rules for 'good living' on this earth. The philosophical concepts that Indians gave to mankind are eternal and constitute no religion by themselves. However, the rules for good or 'Dharmic' living that they laid down constitute the Hindu religion.

Sanatana Dharma does not have a starting point in history, does not have a Founder and has no Church. The sages who shaped the Hindu religion merely reiterated the teachings of the Vedas, the Hindu scriptures (most of which is unwritten). The Vedas are believed to have no origin. In ancient India, the Vedas formed the educational system and broadly comprised all the different spheres of life, such as spiritual, scientific, medical and so on.

A popular misconception is that Hinduism is polytheistic - believes in multiple gods. The Vedas tell us this about god OM Poornamadah Poornamidam Poornaad Poornamudachyte, Poornasya Poornamaadaaya Poornamevaavashisyate,. Translated in English, this verse means 'What is Whole - This is Whole - What has come out of the Whole is also Whole, When the Whole is taken out of the Whole, the Whole still remain-, Whole', The essence of this verse is that the Infinite cannot be measured arithmetically - God is Infinite. The Infinite can be represented in Infinite ways and does manifest in infinite ways. This, in short, is the essence of the Hindu belief in God. That He is everywhere, around us and within us. In fact, Hinduism takes the bold step of proclaiming that 'we are God'.

At the end of the day, Hinduism is monotheistic (Believes in One God). However, Hinduism believes not only in One God, but also in His Infinite manifestations around us and within us perpetually. Realizing that it is impossible for mankind to visualize the Infinite, Hinduism presents us with His forms to help of visualize him. This belief of Hinduism is often confused with polytheism.

To illustrate this point - We all observe the unending processes of birth, existence and death, which seym to be continually taking place around us. We constantly witness these processes and arc yet ignorant of them, living as we do in the comfort of our illusory lives. Hinduism gives form and shape to these 'works' of the Infinite with the Hindu Trinity - Brahma, Vishnu and Shiva. 'Brahma' creates, 'Vishnu' sustains and 'Shiva' destroys or consummates everything in the Universe.

That the Supreme can be worshipped in any form is a concept unique to Hinduism. Such worship is truly a tribute to His greatness- Another popular misconception is that Hinduism promotes idol worship. Hinduism does not promote idol worship. To me contrary, Hinduism urges us to transcend all physical aids to worship, in our spiritual progress. Realizing that it is impossible for the mortal human to visualize the Infinite and instead of sustaining false hopes of such achievements, the religion urges us to slowly and steadily continue our progress in pursuit, of the Truth. For such steady progress, the religion asks us to start with physical aids such as temples and idols and through practice and devotion, ultimately succeed in visualizing God without the aid of temples and idols.

We are asked not to worship idols, but worship God in the form of idols. This is done to facilitate contemplation of the Infinite with our finite capabilities. In quote none other than the great intellectual. Sivami Vivekananda on this matter - "If a person wants to drink milk, he uses a cup as he cannot drink it directly. For the quivering and unsteady mind, there should be a visible form or a symbol, the idol, so that it becomes a foundation for his adoration. The idol (win of God is akin to a vessel which enribles a man to drink the milk. Through the instrumentality of an idol, a devotee comprehend-, divinity."

Another popular misconception is that all Hindus are vegetarian'; and Hinduism prohibits meat eating. Kshatriyas (one of the hindu castes) are allowed to eat meat, as long as it is offered to [lie Almighty first before consuming all "Follow your Dharma perfectly instead of following another's Dhanna imperfectly," say the Vedas, At the Same time, a Brahmin's Dharma is education and pursuit of knowledge. He- as asked to refrain from killing and is encouraged to eat simple food in order to maintain equanimity;

From a philosophical perspective, a 'Yogi' or one who has known and .seen the Infinite cannot and will not kill to eat meat. Why? Because he sees God in every form of the. How can he hurl' anything or anyone when he loves everything and everyone? Hinduism promotes stratification of society under the 'caste system' and encourages discrimination against the less fortunate. The caste system originally described in the Veda',, but much abused and maligned over the years, is nothing but a representation of an efficient human society. The

Four castes described in the scriptures arc - the Brahmins, the Kbhatriyas, the Vaishyas and the Shudras. According to flu' Vedas, an efficient human society is based on the strength of its educational/ knowledge-pursuit system (Brahmin), its military ami defence system (Kshatriya), its economical and business system (Vaishya) and a strong, happy, productive workforce (Shudras). This noble representation was misinterpreted, exploited and abused by a few in the Indian society, leading to the indiscriminate creation of thousands of castes and sub-cash's, including the so-called 'upper' castes. Fortunately, the caste system has been more or less abolished since Indian independence and the distinctions are beginning to disappear, although not significantly,

Devotion lo God is presented as one of the several ways to achieve 'Moksha' or oneness with the Infinite, but perhaps the easiest. This idea is expressed in the 'Bhagavad-Gita' (Hindu scripture), "Whosoever offers to Me with love a leaf, a flower, a fruit or even water, T appear in person before that devotee of sinless mind and delightfully partake of that article offered by him with love. Arjuna, whatever you do, whatever you eat, whatever you offer as ablation lo the sacred fire, whatever you bestow as a gift, whatever you do by way of penance, offer it all to Me'. Again, "To those devotees who worship me, thinking of none else, who devote their mind to me and are ever perseverant in my service and in My contemplation, 1 confer that permanent heavenly abode from which there is no return to life."

Such devotion can be towards any form of the Infinite.. A devotee of 'Rama' will not spend a minute without thinking of Him and the Divine Mother. A 'Shiva' devotee will spend his time eulogising His Tangam'. If looked at more analytically, a 'Karma yogi' (one who serves the Infinite through service to society) immersed in the service of the poor and destitute sees God in them and hence cannot bear separation from them.

What is devotion? In short, it means submitting totally to God, discharging His obligations at His behest. How do we cultivate devotion? 'Concentrate and fix the mind on Mf'. This sounds simple but in practice one knows how tough it is to tame the mind. When we sit in prayer, our minds are naturally unsteady, impetuous, powerfully defiant and unrelenting. To keep the mind subdued is as difficult as to control wayward wind- Concentration requires discipline and constant practice. So, "If you cannot steady the mind, then seek to realize me by practice which consists in constant retraction or withdrawal of the mind from worldly affairs. If you cannot discipline yourself, dedicate all your actions to me-" (Chanting His names all the time) "It you cannot do this either, take refuge in Me renouncing all fruits of your actions." (Do everything as a service to God - looked at analytically, this will lead you into pious actions. Why would you do something evil if you wanted to do everything in the service of God?)

The entire cosmos is subject to the vicissitudes time and hence whatever has an origin at a point of time has to come to an end. According to Hinduism-, everything is conditioned by time. The process of creation (Srishti) and

dissolution (Pralaya) of the Universe is a periodic cycle in which the entire Cosmos manifests at the time of creation and withdraws at the time of dissolution. The Infinite alone is beyond time - beginning less and endless.

 This endless cycle of births and rebirths that all 'souls' experience is called 'Transmigration'. All souls are cursed to experience transmigration, except the Infinite, which is beyond creation or destruction. This Absolute Truth or Ultimate Reality does not perish even though all beings are subject to decay. This unman fest being is spoken of as the Indestructible, the Supreme Being, God, Almighty. 'Yogis' strive to become one with the Absolute Truth and this oneness is called 'Moksha'. In other words, it is a state of mind where we are free from encumbrances, where we are indeed the One. 'Tat Twam Asi', proclaim the Vedas, meaning 'Thou Art That'. We simply fail to realize that. Hinduism believes in transmigration of the soul. Such transmigration is what results in reincarnation. This, in short, is the popular theory of Karma.

Karma and rebirth are interrelated concepts in Indian philosophy. According to the theory of Karma, we are all part of a cycle of births and rebirths. This cycle has neither beginning nor end. We are simply experiencing the results of our own actions in our journey through this cycle. Each spoke in the cycle is a predecessor to the next spoke. When a cycle moves, all spokes move one after the other in a never-ending chain. Similarly, in the cycle of 'Samsara', life forms are spokes that evolve from one experience to another and from one form to another according to their actions. Good actions cause good effects (Law of Cause and Effects), while bad actions cause bad effects. It is as simple as that,

Our actions bind us to this world and such bondage- causing action is known as 'Karma'. The bondage refers to the confinement to this 'samsara' just as spokes are confined to the wheel of the cycle. While good actions cause us to be reborn to experience the good effects, bad actions cause us to be reborn to undergo pain and suffering. 'Yogis', however, are free of karmic actions and reactions, therefore not bound by the cycle of transmigration. Such a state of everlasting freedom from 'samsara' is known as 'Moksha'.