Usually in western religions they believe one god (Jesus) and he is shown in only one form, but in the Hindu religion they only believe in one god and he is shown in many different forms. Hinduism is woven into many different aspects of Hindu life. In general is very important in Indian life from their worship to their yearly celebrations the influence they have from this religion is amazing.
As I said before Hinduism is a interesting religion. Unlike Chrisianity, Islam or Buddism the religion doesn’t have a central figure who can be given credit for the creation of Hinduism. Hindus read many holy books like Vedas, The Upanashads, and the Bhagavadgita. The name “Hinduism” comes from the name Indus River. Hinduism is also one of the oldest religions in the world. In Hinduism Hindus are divided into different classes (Varna) which was authorized by the sacred scriptures. At the top of the class system are preists or brahmins, next are warriors, rulers, or kshatriyas, after them there are merchants, traders, or vaishyas and on the bottom there are artisans or shudras. Also in the class system there are untouchables. Untouchables are people who's parents married from diffeerent classes. You can not eat with or marry someone from a different class or you will become an untouchable.
The hindu god is shown in different ways male, female, human, animal, half human or half animal. Some of them are Brahma, Vishnu, Shiva, Laxmi, Durga, Saraswati, Paravati and Ganasha. There worship is somewhat like us but most of the time not, like they believe in one god just like us but that god is shown in different forms(not like us). They also have temples dedicated to one of the gods they worship not like us at all. Two popular dynasties are the Shiva Temple and Hanuman.
The influence hinduism has on hindus is very strong. There worship for example. They never eat beef because cows are holy animals. Also people who are influeenced have a shrine in there home. Hindus have no sunday schools and when wives are pregnant there are prayers that she will have a boy. Other places in the world are also influenced by this religion too. Like Thailand, Nepal, and Malaysia, they are strongly influenced by hinduism. There is also a matter of carma and dharma. If you have good carma you will have good dharma and if you have good carma and dharma then you will be reincarnated. Hindus dont dress like we do, the men wear pj like pants and shirts and the women wear saris. Hindus also have 4 aims in their life. The first aim is to provide. The second aim is to earn money by ones own effort within bounds of duty. The third aim is to enjoy life. The final aim is to reach the state in which they will inable the liffe-force. Aside form their aims in life they also have dutys. The kids dutys are to show grattitude and respect to parents, do well in school, succeed in examinations, and to show respect to their teachers. The parents dutys are to provide shelter, food, clothing andeducation. To hindus these dutys are more important than rights.
There are many celebrations in which hindus show respect to gods and have fun. Holi is their springtime festival. Hindus cover themselves in bright colored powders as they remember two stories, The god khrishna, Prahlad and the wicked Holika in which the festival was named after. The night before people light fires to rid the air of evil spirits. Holi takes place in early March. Raksha Bandhan is their summer festival when brothers and sisters share their love for eachother. This festival dates back more than 500 years ago. Raksha means protection and Bandhan means bond. On the morning of the festival the children pray. Preforming the steps of the festival(puja) includes 4 steps. #1 Sister blesses brother with holy mark(tilak) symbol of success. #2 Sister ties a rakhi on brothers right wrist while he vows to protect her. #3 Brother and sister exchange indian candy. #4 Brother gives sister a gift. This festival takes place in August. Diwali is their winter festival. This festival lasts for 2 days. The name comes from the word- deepavali the word means row of lights. They pray to laxmi at night then touch elders feet in a sign of respect. The last night hindus pray and feast. They also set off fireworks to ward off evil.
So why is this religion so important? It is important because about 1/6 of the planet practices Hinduism. It is also important to know about Hinduism because if you meet someone from the Hindu religion you wouldn't want to offend them by saying something stupid. Since we do business with India and Hinduism is very popular there we should know about this religion because we might have a better relation with them.
Usually in western religions they believe one god (Jesus) and he is shown in only one form, but in the Hindu religion they only believe in one god and he is shown in many different forms. Hinduism is woven into many different aspects of Hindu life. In general is very important in Indian life from their worship to their yearly celebrations the influence they have from this religion is amazing.
As I said before Hinduism is a interesting religion. Unlike Chrisianity, Islam or Buddism the religion doesn’t have a central figure who can be given credit for the creation of Hinduism. Hindus read many holy books like Vedas, The Upanashads, and the Bhagavadgita. The name “Hinduism” comes from the name Indus River. Hinduism is also one of the oldest religions in the world. In Hinduism Hindus are divided into different classes (Varna) which was authorized by the sacred scriptures. At the top of the class system are preists or brahmins, next are warriors, rulers, or kshatriyas, after them there are merchants, traders, or vaishyas and on the bottom there are artisans or shudras. Also in the class system there are untouchables. Untouchables are people who's parents married from diffeerent classes. You can not eat with or marry someone from a different class or you will become an untouchable.
The hindu god is shown in different ways male, female, human, animal, half human or half animal. Some of them are Brahma, Vishnu, Shiva, Laxmi, Durga, Saraswati, Paravati and Ganasha. There worship is somewhat like us but most of the time not, like they believe in one god just like us but that god is shown in different forms(not like us). They also have temples dedicated to one of the gods they worship not like us at all. Two popular dynasties are the Shiva Temple and Hanuman.
The influence hinduism has on hindus is very strong. There worship for example. They never eat beef because cows are holy animals. Also people who are influeenced have a shrine in there home. Hindus have no sunday schools and when wives are pregnant there are prayers that she will have a boy. Other places in the world are also influenced by this religion too. Like Thailand, Nepal, and Malaysia, they are strongly influenced by hinduism. There is also a matter of carma and dharma. If you have good carma you will have good dharma and if you have good carma and dharma then you will be reincarnated. Hindus dont dress like we do, the men wear pj like pants and shirts and the women wear saris. Hindus also have 4 aims in their life. The first aim is to provide. The second aim is to earn money by ones own effort within bounds of duty. The third aim is to enjoy life. The final aim is to reach the state in which they will inable the liffe-force. Aside form their aims in life they also have dutys. The kids dutys are to show grattitude and respect to parents, do well in school, succeed in examinations, and to show respect to their teachers. The parents dutys are to provide shelter, food, clothing andeducation. To hindus these dutys are more important than rights.
There are many celebrations in which hindus show respect to gods and have fun. Holi is their springtime festival. Hindus cover themselves in bright colored powders as they remember two stories, The god khrishna, Prahlad and the wicked Holika in which the festival was named after. The night before people light fires to rid the air of evil spirits. Holi takes place in early March. Raksha Bandhan is their summer festival when brothers and sisters share their love for eachother. This festival dates back more than 500 years ago. Raksha means protection and Bandhan means bond. On the morning of the festival the children pray. Preforming the steps of the festival(puja) includes 4 steps. #1 Sister blesses brother with holy mark(tilak) symbol of success. #2 Sister ties a rakhi on brothers right wrist while he vows to protect her. #3 Brother and sister exchange indian candy. #4 Brother gives sister a gift. This festival takes place in August. Diwali is their winter festival. This festival lasts for 2 days. The name comes from the word- deepavali the word means row of lights. They pray to laxmi at night then touch elders feet in a sign of respect. The last night hindus pray and feast. They also set off fireworks to ward off evil.
So why is this religion so important? It is important because about 1/6 of the planet practices Hinduism. It is also important to know about Hinduism because if you meet someone from the Hindu religion you wouldn't want to offend them by saying something stupid. Since we do business with India and Hinduism is very popular there we should know about this religion because we might have a better relation with them.