Hinduism: what it is, characteristics, beliefs and origin

What is Hinduism?

Hinduism is a religious system originating in India. It is made up of a great diversity of tendencies. However, its fundamental elements are the belief in Brahman as the supreme universal principle, karma, reincarnation, and liberation.

The term Hinduism comes from the word Hindu, a Persian adaptation of the name of the river Sindhu. From the nineteenth century of ours, the suffix -ism was added to designate the set of values, beliefs, and religious practices of the peoples of the Indus Valley.

Its practitioners, called Hindus, conceive it as a lifestyle and a cosmogony. Therefore, they do not refer to Hinduism as a religion, but rather as "Sanatana Dharma", which means 'tradition' or 'eternal path'.

om symbol

The symbol of Hinduism is the Om, which represents the impersonal god Brahman, as well as the universe and the essential. The Om is a sacred syllable that works like a mantra. That is, a vibrant song or prayer that Hindus value as a primordial sound, from which other sounds are generated.

Hinduism does not have a founder nor does it have a vertical hierarchy similar to monotheistic religions. This favors the great diversity of metaphysical, spiritual, philosophical currents, customs, cults, and rituals that characterize it.

Currently, Hinduism is the dominant spirituality in India, Nepal, the island of Mauritius (Africa), and the island of Bali (Indonesia), although its practice has spread to some countries of other cultures.

Characteristics of Hinduism

• It does not have a hierarchical structure. Hinduism does not have a main authority figure, nor does it have a church in the hierarchical sense of the term. This explains the variety of beliefs and rituals associated with this spirituality, which grow with popular devotion.
• It is diverse and plural. Hinduism is a syncretic religion, which supports many beliefs and philosophies, as it has brought together a great diversity of cultures over the centuries. These beliefs may be monotheistic, polytheistic, or even agnostic in expression.
• It has a rich pantheon of deities. Hindus have a system of different devatas, devas , and devis , that is, idols, demigods, and demigoddesses, which represent different manifestations of the highest universal Principle. For this reason, some specialists point out that Hinduism is not exactly polytheistic.
• It is not a proselytizing religion. Originally, Hinduism was transmitted through the caste system of India. Therefore, it is not an expansive religion in search of followers. However, it is open to new accessions. This explains its growth and presence in the Western world.

Main beliefs of Hinduism

The belief system of Hinduism is very varied and complex due to its characteristics. Within this diversity, all Hindus share a series of fundamental beliefs: karma, dharma, reincarnation and liberation.

Karma

In Hinduism, karma is known as an energy that is produced according to the actions of people. If a person does good, he will release good karma. On the contrary, if he does wrong, his karma will be negative.

In other words, karma refers to the consequences of all the actions that a person develops in his life. It resembles the law of cause and effect. The idea of ​​karma represents a deep sense of justice.

dharma

Dharma refers to the set of duties that a person must respect and fulfill in his life, such as virtue, religiosity, conduct, etc. In other words, the Dharma is the must be for which we exist.

The word means something like 'religion', 'pious conduct' or 'right conduct'. In Hinduism, two main paths to the Dharma are recognized: the domestic path or the monastic path.

reincarnation ( samsara )

Hindus generally believe in reincarnation, which is called samsara . Reincarnation is that, after death, the soul can occupy a new body. According to the actions of the person, he may reincarnate in superior, intermediate or inferior existences.

Liberation ( moksha )

Hindus also believe in spiritual liberation, which is called moksha in Sanskrit . As long as a person fails to overcome karma, he remains bound by illusion (maia) and the suffering it induces.

There are three ways to attain spiritual liberation, which is the purpose of Hinduism. These paths are: the path of action (karma marga); the path of knowledge (jnana marga) and the path of devotion (bhakti marga).

 

Doctrines or darśanas of Hinduism

The basic beliefs of Hinduism are subject to various interpretations that we can call doctrines or darśanas. The term darśana means 'vision', and in this case, it is used to refer to the six doctrines that Hinduism groups.

1. Vedanta - It means 'end of the Vedas'. It is a doctrine that focuses on studying three books: the Upanishads ; the Brahma-sutra (or Vedanta-sutra ) and the Bhagavadgita .
2. Yoga - It is a physical and mental discipline that seeks the liberation of the soul with respect to the material. Accept the existence of God. The term means 'union' in Sanskrit. Its main text is the Yoga-sutra of Patanjali.
3. Sankhya - It means 'number' or 'enumeration'. It is based on dualism, which recognizes the presence of a temporary body and a body of subtle material, which transcends after death and migrates to another body.
4. Mimansa - It means 'reflection' or 'critical inquiry'. It regulates the interpretation of the Vedas and the justification of the Vedic ritual. It is very important in Vedanta.
5. Niaia - It means 'rule' or 'method'. It tries to put an end to the suffering that results from ignorance, proposing four methods to know reality: perception, inference, comparison, and testimony.
6. Vaisesika - It means 'private'. It is of materialistic tendency. Identify and classify everything that exists. To do this, he proposes three categories of real existence (substance, quality and movement) and four that derive from logic or intellect (community, particularity, property, and non-being).

Origin and history of Hinduism

The origin and formation of Hinduism is an ancient process, characterized by the sum of various beliefs over the years, as if it were layers.

It is estimated that the origin of Hinduism dates back to around 1750 or 1500 BC It was introduced to India by nomadic Indo-European tribes who worshiped the forces of nature.

Appearance of the impersonal divinity Brahman

After the agricultural revolution and sedentarization, the beliefs and rituals of those tribes became more complex. Over time, the concept of Brahman appeared, which means 'sprout' or 'expansion' in Sanskrit. It is an impersonal deity to whom the supreme universal principle is attributed, that is, the origin and end of life.

First personified divinities and new disciplines

On this basis, little by little, new personified divinities appeared, such as Shiva, Vishnu, and the Great Goddess Kali.

These new beliefs were mixed with others of popular origin and with mystical or ascetic disciplines such as yoga. Thus, Tantra or Tantrism took place, which values ​​the body as a means to reach divinity.

Monastic orders and consolidation of Hinduism

New sects emerged from Tantra with differentiated cults, which favored metaphysical and philosophical speculation. This gave rise to various monastic orders, among which those founded by Sankara and Ramanuja stand out.

With the foundation of the monastic orders, whose liturgical language is Sanskrit, Hinduism was consolidated and spread throughout India.

Popular devotion (Bhakti)

Parallel to the monastic orders, expressions of popular devotion grew in India, manifested especially in songs. This gave rise to the modern Indian languages ​​in which popular devotion is expressed today. This popular religiosity movement is called Bhakti (devotionalism).

holy books of Hinduism

The historical process of Hinduism has given rise to a series of sacred books of different tenor. These sacred books of Hinduism can be classified into two large groups, which are the srutii and the smriti .

group of the srutii

For Hindus, the sruti are the texts inspired by the divinity to the Rishis or saints and originally transmitted by oral tradition. They are valued as the main sources of spirituality. The most important are the four Vedas (Rig-Veda, Iayou-veda, Sama-veda, and Atharva-veda). Much later, the Upanishads were included in this canon.

• Rig-veda: they are the oldest hymns of Hinduism, originally transmitted by oral tradition. These hymns are believed to have appeared around 1500 BC This book is the main foundation of Hinduism.
• Iayou-Veda: is the book of sacrifices. It was composed around 900 BC approximately. Most of its content is drawn from the Rig-veda.
• Sama-veda or singing veda. It is an epic-religious book that orders the hymns of the Rig-veda for singing.
• Atharva-Veda. It is the book of rituals and procedures of daily life. It was incorporated into the four vedas late.
• Upanishad. They delve into the content of the Vedas and teach about the identity between Atman (the human spirit) and Brahman (the divine spirit).

group of the smriti

Smriti means 'the remembered'. Therefore, the smriti group collects the texts that organize and comment on the tradition, and that are later than the Vedas. They are usually attributed to some author. Within the group, the following stand out:

• The 18 Puranas. They are texts that tell the mythological stories of Hinduism.
• Maha Bharata. Long epic-mythological book. It tells the story of the war between two families: the Pandavas and the Karauvas.
• Rāmāyana. Epic text attributed to Valmiki, and probably written in the 3rd century BC It tells of the life of Rama.
• Sūtras. Collection of aphorisms, that is, brief sentences that act as a rule in certain areas.
• Brahmana. They are commentaries to the Vedas, which explain and justify the Vedic rituals.
• Aranyakas. It deals with the philosophical meaning of the rituals of the Vedas.

gods of Hinduism

Brahman

At its core, Hinduism stems from the belief in an impersonal deity known as Brahman (pronounced Bráhman ). Brahman is the supreme universal principle, that is, the principle that governs the universe and, therefore, is considered as the cause and the end of existence.

It should not be confused with Brahma, who is the personification of the creative principle, nor with brahman or lowercase brahmans, since when written this way, it refers to the monks who transmit Sanskrit and spiritual teaching.

The main manifestation of Brahman is contained in the Trimurti (three forms), that is, a trinity formed by the deities Brahma, Vishnu and Shiva. Unlike Christianity, this "trinity" is not worshiped as a divine group or community, but simply a way of referring to all three gods at once.

Brahma

He is the creator god, that is, the personification of the creative power of Brahman, and is part of the Trimurti. The manifestation of it is periodic. He is usually depicted as a human form with four heads, each of which represents listening to the four Vedas. His wife is Sarasvati.

Vishnu

He is the conservative god or protector of the universe. He is part of the Trimurti. He also represents mercy and kindness. Vishnu is believed to have manifested in ten avatars or reincarnations. The best known are Rama and Krishna. Vishnu is represented with four arms, in each of which he carries a different attribute. His wife is Laksmi.

shiva

He is the destroyer and renewing god of the universe at the same time. He completes the group of the Trimurti. He is known as a yogi, so he is considered the patron saint of yogis. He is depicted with long hair, a lingam (a stone), three eyes, four arms, a trident (trishula), and other items. He is the husband of Parvati and the father of Ganesha and Kartikeya.

 

Krishna

In principle, Krishna is the eighth incarnation or avatar of Vishnu and is perhaps the best known. His name means means black, dark blue or attractive. He represents the embodiment of love and joy.

However, for the followers of the current called Krishnaism, Krisha is the main form of the supreme Principle, and from him the other gods, including Vishnu, would emanate.

 

Saraswati

She is the wife of Brahma, and is considered the goddess of wisdom, learning and the arts. She is depicted as having four arms, and they are often shown riding a swan or peacock.

Laksmi

She is the wife of Visnu. She is the goddess of abundance, good fortune, love and beauty. She represents prosperity in all its aspects, both material and spiritual. Lakshmi has other avatars like Sita, Radha and Dharani.

Parvati

Her name means daughter of the mountains. She is the personification of the Himalayas. She manifests as Uma, Durga and Kali. She is the consort of Shiva, and her children are Ganesha and Kartikeya.

Ganesh

He is the god of intelligence, wisdom, abundance, and new beginnings. Son of Shiva and Parvati, he is represented with the head of an elephant and the body of a child or youth with a swollen belly.

 

 

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