The origins of Hinduism date back to the third millennium B.C.E., establishing this faith as one of the world’s oldest major religions. Hinduism is a complex and diverse faith that has no uniform dogma or creed. One of the main Hindu world views describes each soul (Atman) as experiencing a series of life-journeys through unending cycles of time. Through these life-journeys, which include the cycle of life, death, and rebirth, the soul seeks to gain union with the Supreme Being (Brahman).

This cycle of reincarnation is called "Samsara:’ To gain union with Brahman, the Hindu must live an exemplary life of self-control, nonviolence, reverence for all living creatures, charity toward and tolerance of other humans, and devotion to rituaI and worship. This journey of spiritual ascent through Samsara requires attention to the following processes and principles:

Dharma

Accepting one’s station in each incarnation or life, as expressed through the caste system.

The caste system (varna) is the framework on which Hindu society has been built for many centuries. Though the Indian Parliament has outlawed caste discrimination and education is eroding some of its power, custom and tradition are so thoroughly ingrained in Indian life that change moves slowly and with great difficulty. Caste is less a foctor than it once was, yet it still pervades Hindu society and is most powerfuI in the many small villages where the majority of India’s population lives.

The four main castes were originally organized by occupation. These four have evolved into three thousand subcastes. The maincastes are as follows:

Brahmin: priests, teachers, seers
Kshatriyas: originally soldiers; now corporate directors,
administrators, office workers, and managers
Vaisyas: merchants, craftspeople, technicians
Sudras: factory workers, field hands, laborers

Outside of these divisions are the "outsiders/outcastes," once known as "untouchabies," Mahatma Gandhi called these people the Harijans or "people of God," They did-and in many cases still do-the work that other caste members would not do. Restrictions were so rigid-and often still are-that an "untouchable" was not allowed to walk on the same side of the street as a Brahmin. Never could they eat with or live in the same areas as members of the main castes.

Some historians claim that castes were not originally a part of the Hindu religion but were created to defend the position of the Aryan ruling class against both the indigenous population and later conquerors. Throughout recorded history, however, caste has been pervasive In the scriptures and customs of Hinduism.

Karma

Today’s actions bear on the future, or "one reaps what one sows."

Maya

This material world is really illusion. Yet it is in this world that each human being must seek to overcome his or her faults and weaknesses.

Moksha

Liberation from the cycle of death and rebirth through attainment of union with Brahman.

Hinduism is sometimes referred to as the "religion of thirty-three million gods and goddesses." Traditional Hindu beliefs describe many gods and goddesses who live in the Himalayas of northern India. These deities are not God as is Brahman, nor are they fully human though they enact all kinds of human experience. Indian literature includes many myths and legends detailing the origins of these deities and of the rituals, celebrations, and festivals relating to them that have become an important part of Hinduism over the centuries.

Even with all of these gods and goddesses, Brahman is clearly identified as "god" as Westerners understand this concept. Brahman is the Creator and the Creation, though always described in three personifications: Brahma (Creator); Vishnu (Preserver), and Shiva (Destroyer)

For the Hindu, every aspect of daily life is an expression of religion. The separation of the secular and the sacred familiar to Westerners is unknown in Hinduism. The Hindu’s day begins in the morning with bathing according to prescribed rituals. The preparation, serving, and eating of meals are carried out in accordance with religious prescriptions. Most Hindu homes have a family shrine where the family’s chosen god or goddess is worshipped. Each day the family god/goddess must be bathed, given food, and decorated with fruits and flowers in preparation for the family worship.

Hindu religious practice includes many rituals, celebrations, and festivals, which occur regularly throughout the year. Many of these rituals focus on honoring the gods and goddesses. Hindu practice also involves rites of passage throughout childhood and adulthood that are important in Hindu life. These serve as constant reminders of the person’s duty as a devout Hindu, and they strengthen family ties and people’s sense of responsibility to one another.

Some of the better-known scriptures of Hinduism include the following: The Vedas, The Brahmanas, The Upanishods, and The Bhagavad-Gita. Passages from several of these scriptures will be used as resources during this unit.

MANTRAS

1. OmorAum

When chanting Om, draw the syllable out to the fullest extent of your breath until the "m" is a low, murmuring sound.

Om sounds like: Ooo ooo o o o mm mm m m . . .

Om or Aum is a sound that is believed to contain the energy of Brahman, the same energy that created the universe.

2. Sri Ram Jai Ram Jai Jai Ram Om

(Phonetically: Shree rahm ji rahm ji ji rahm oo oo oo mm mm)

Accent the underlined syllables as you chant:

Sri Ram Jai Ram Jai Jai Ram Om

Translation:

Sri: a title of honor
Ram: Lord
Jai: Hail!
Om: the expression of the whole of being, of the ultimate creative energy in the universe

READINGS FROM HINDU SCRIPTURES

From The Bhagavad-Gita

"On Self-Control"

If you have self-control
and move in the world
while restraining your senses,
you are free from attachment and hate,
and attain serenity of mind.

"The Yoga of Meditation"

For one who has conquered his self by the self, the Self is a friend; but for one who has not conquered the self, the Self becomes hostile like an enemy.

One who is impartial to friend, companion and foe, to those who are remote and neutral, to those who are hateful, to relatives, to good and evil men-excels.

From The Upanishads

KATHAI

Om…
May Brahman protect us,
May Brahman guide us,
May Brahman give us strength and right understanding.
May love and harmony be with us all.
Om . . . Peace. . . Peace. . . Peace.

SVETASVATARA XII

1. O Brahman Supreme!
Formless art thou, and yet
Though the reason none knows,
Thou bringest forth many forms;
Thou bringest them forth, and then
Withdrawest them to thyself.
Fill us with thought of thee!

2. Thou art the fire,
Thou art the sun,
Thou art the air,
Thou art the moon,
Thou art the starry firmament,
Thou art Brahman Supreme:
Thou art the waters-thou
The creator of all!

"In our manner of telling the story of the birth of Jesus… we have tried to give some understanding of how the story first came to be told, and in addition we have placed it alongside the stories of the miraculous births of Buddha and Confucius. With the three stories side by side, it is hoped that children may be given a broader understanding which will enable them to think for themselves. We hope that the result will not be merely a negative disbelief; that it may rather be a new appreciation of the significance to humankind of a truly great person and a realization that all people everywhere feel touched by an unutterable mystery when in the presence of a newborn babe." – Sophia Lyons Fahs in From Long Ago and Many Lands

GOD SAID TO JONAH, "Go at once to the great city of Nineveh and cry out against it; for their wickedness has come up before me." Jonah knew that if he gave the people of Nineveh God’s warning, they would beg for forgiveness. Jonah was also sure that they would be forgiven, since God was a merciful God. Jonah didn’t like the Ninevites and didn’t want them to be forgiven, so he took a ship to Tarshish, a town in the opposite direction from Nineveh, and the one farthest away.

While that ship was sailing to Tarshish, a terrible storm came up. The sailors were very afraid, and they threw all their cargo into the sea to lighten the ship in the water. Jonah, meanwhile, was fast asleep below deck.

The captain woke Jonah and begged him to call upon his God to keep them from dying. Then the sailors questioned him. "Where do you come from? Why are you here? When they found out that he was running away from his God, they cried, "What is this you have done? What shall we do to you, that the sea may quiet down for us?"

Jonah answered, "Pick me up and throw me into the sea; then the sea will quiet down for you; for I know it is because of me that this great storm has come upon you."

Still they tried to get back to land, but the storm got worse. Finally, they realized that they would have to throw Jonah into the sea if the rest of them were to be saved. So they picked Jonah up and threw him into the sea. The sea stopped its raging, and the sailors were certain that God had caused the storm.

God then provided a large fish to swallow Jonah; and Jonah was in the belly of the fish for three nights and three days. Then Jonah prayed to God for deliverance; God spoke to the fish, and it spewed Jonah out upon the dry land.

Again, God told Jonah to go to Nineveh, and this time Jonah went. The people of Nineveh listened to Jonah, and they begged God to forgive them. God heard their cries and was full of mercy for the Ninevites, just as Jonah knew God would be. Therefore they were forgiven. This made Jonah angry, but God finally convinced him that the people of Nineveh were worth saving.

When, if ever, is it right to go to war?

ACCORDING TO A HINDU STORY, long ago there came a time when the people became jealous and deceitful, and the leaders oppressive. Priests became insincere and some stole the gifts brought to the gods. Kings were tyrannical. Tribes and nations were continually warring one against another.

Then Brahman, the Eternal One, decided to give mankind a special helper, a human Savior who would live among men and protect and guide them and teach them the way to live. And so it happened that one day a divine child was born. At his birth, angels appeared, singing praises. They bowed down before him and named him Krishna, the Savior of Mankind, the incarnation of the Eternal Brahman.

Now Krishna of course was a human being as well as a god. He was born in India where at that time everyone belonged to a "caste." His was the Warrior caste, which meant that his dharma or destiny must be fulfilled in war and struggle.

But as a child Krishna did not seem to be a warlike person. He lived happily with other children, wandering with them over the fields and woods, and helping to tend the cows. He learned to play the flute, and often played it while his young friends danced together. A strong boy, he soon became a favorite among his friends, perhaps because he always seemed to use his strength to protect the weak. Many tales have been told of Krishna’s gallant and miraculous deeds during his youth. Always these were done in order to protect some innocent sufferer, or to save some person or animal in trouble.

As Krishna grew older, he left his happy life as a cowherd, became a student of the sacred books, and gave himself to a life of simple living and fasting. His teacher was amazed at his brilliance and devotion.

After finishing his studies, Krishna became the champion of one tribe or another which had been unjustly treated. Always his championship was of the weak against the strong and the evil. If happiness were to be spread among all the people, cruelty had to be destroyed even if war must be waged to achieve this. Thus Krishna, born into the Warrior caste, was true to his dharma.

As the years passed, the warring groups in India grew stronger and larger and the battles became fiercer until India became divided into two warring nations. One nation was ruled by the evil king, Duryodhana; the other, by the good king, Yudisthira, long remembered for his justice and good-will. Finally, the selfish and ambitious King Duryodhana banished the good King Yudisthira and his people into exile and refused to allow even five villages to be shared with them.

After Yudisthira had tried unsuccessfully for thirteen years to settle the matter without a major battle, preparations were begun for an all-out war between the armies of the two kings. Both sides came to Krishna asking for his help. Duryodhana, the evil king, asked Krishna for armies. Arjuna, the brother of the good King Yudisthira, asked not for armies but for Krishna alone, saying "Friendship is the strongest weapon in the world. I want you for my charioteer." Both kings were granted their wishes, and Duryodhana chuckled at Arjuna’s foolishness.

Not long after, in the red dawning of the morning, the two great armies faced each other on the sandy plains of Kurukshetra. The evil king was in his chariot at the head of one great army, now even larger than before. Arjuna, brother of the good king, was in his chariot at the head of the other army. But with Arjuna stood the god Krishna as charioteer.

Arjuna looked about and his heart grew faint, for he saw the faces of fathers and grandfathers, teachers, uncles, sons, brothers, grandsons, and friends. He spoke despairingly to Krishna:

"O Krishna, Krishnal Now that I look on all my own kins-n;en, arrayed for battle, my limbs have become weak, my mouth, is parching, my body trembles, my hair stands upright, my skin seems to be burning! My bow slips from my hand and my brain is whirling round and round. What can I hope for from this killing of kinsmen? What do I want with victory and empire?"

"Krishna, hearing the prayers of all men,
Tell me how we can hope to be happy
Slaying the sons of Dritarashtra?"
Evil they may be, worst of the wicked,
Yet if we kill them, our sin is greater.

* * * * * * * * * * *

"What is the crime I am planning, O Krishna?
Murder most hateful, murder of brothers!
Am I indeed so greedy for greatness?
Rather let the evil children come with their weapons
Against me in battle!
I shall not struggle, I shall not strike them.
Now let them kill me, that will be better."

Having spoken so feelingly, Arjuna threw aside his arrows and his bow. He stood as if already mortally wounded, his heart torn with sorrow.

Krishna was silent for a while. Arjuna tried once more to speak. ‘Which is worst," he cried out again, "to win this war, or to lose it? I scarcely know. My mind gropes about in dark-ness. I cannot see where my duty lies. Krishna, I beg you to tell me frankly and clearly what I ought to do. I am your disciple. I have put myself into your hands. Show me the way."

Krishna then answered: "Your words are wise, Arjuna, but your sorrow is for nothing. The truly wise person mourns neither for the living nor for the dead. Bodies are said to die, but THAT which possesses the body is eternal. It cannot be limited or destroyed. The real life within each one cannot be wounded by weapons, nor burned by fire, nor dried by the wind, nor wet by water. It is deathless and birth-less. It is indestructible. Therefore, never mourn for anyone.

"And besides, Arjuna, you were’ born in the warring caste. Fighting to protect, fighting to save others from oppression, is your duty. If you turn aside from this righteous way, you will be a sinner.

"Die, Arjuna, and you win Nirvana. Conquer and you enjoy the earth. Stand up now, and resolve to fight. Realize that pleasure and pain, gain and loss, victory and defeat are one and the same; then go into battle."

So Arjuna, the disciple of Krishna, rose and obeyed. A conch was blown and the blare of a thousand conches responded. Arrows shot through the air like meteors; the sun itself was shrouded in the dust of the battle. Horses leaped; men ran at each other with swords. Hundreds, even thou-sands, were wounded or slain.

With each new dawn, the battle was begun afresh, day after day for eighteen days. Finally, the evil King Duryodhana was slain, and Arjuna and Yudisthira were the victors.

In the early dawn after the battle, the plain was grim with the bloody burden of thousands of dead. It was a weary sight for miles around. Weeping wives searched for the bodies of their lost husbands. Mothers mourned over their dead sons. An old grandmother sat on the ground and wept. UO shame on prowess" she cried. "Shame on courage! Shame on war that leaves weeping women to bear the burden of grief"

In spite of all this, because of the terrible war and the courageous victory of Arjuna, there was finally peace in the land. Yudisthira was crowned king of both nations. He reigned as undisputed ruler of all India for thirty-six years and in his time there was justice throughout the kingdom. The people saw in Yudisthira the ideals which Lord Krishna had taught them to attain.

"He did not hate any living creature.
He was friendly and compassionate to all,
He freed himself of the delusion of "Me" and "Mine,"
He accepted pleasure and pain with tranquility,
He was forgiving, ever contented, self-controlled,
He was neither vain nor anxious about the result of his actions."

(Based on extracts from an unpublished manuscript, "India’s Story of Krishna," by Sophia Lyon Fahs. This was based in turn on Bhagavad-Gita: The Song of God, translated by Swami Prabhavananda and Christopher Isherwood (Hollywood, California: Vedanta Society of Southern California, latest edition 1972). Extracts are quoted with the permission of the Vedanta Society of Southern California.)