The BAPS Mandir was the first traditional Hindu temple in the Houston area. It has a very beautiful and detailed design. The entire temple is white with 5 pinnacles or towers above the temple. On each pinnacle is a flag attached to it. In front of the temple is a rectangular pool of water that looks like a manmade pond (there are also smaller pools of water on two sides of the temple). The water in the rectangular pools are held Holy by the Temple members. Right above the pool is a staircase leading up to the temple. The pillars of the temple have a very intricate design. There are 12 domes and 136 marble pillars. The architectural design of the temples pillars and were hand crafted out of marble and limestone by volunteer members and took over a year just to design. The design represents the traditional ancient Indian arts and values. The beauty of the temple also embodies a testimony of devotion and worship. Most activities take place in the open area of temple. On the outside of the temple a carving that is seen as a recurring symbol is that of the deities worshipped in Hinduism. There is also a youth center for recreational activities such as basketball and volleyball.
The interior of the BAPS temple is composed of limestone and Turkish marble. The interior contains statues of deities dressed up in colorful clothes, some male and some female. The statues of the deities appear to have actions, some playing instruments or holding their hands up in a certain manner as to greet people. The deities are placed on a stage with background in gold. Images of these same deities are displayed throughout the entire temple and in the carvings of the exterior.
The Mandir is the Holy Hindu temple that helps unite and strengthen the Hindu...
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... Judaism, and Islam. The ultimate goal of the Hindu is to maintain a life where you strive in the way of God expressing your appreciation and love for the bounties of life. Prayers are done on a regular basis to achieve a closeness to God just like the three other religions. In Hinduism individuals are able to repent for sins they have committed and it is encourage to repent for sins. Confession of sins cleanses the heart and are expiated when you do it in the presence of the good (deities in the Temple). Like the other religions there is a life after death based on our good and bad deeds. If you’re bad deeds outweigh your good deeds your soul will be trapped in a life of grief, if you’re good deeds outweigh the bad you will live a life of redemption and peace. Hinduism represents the five common notions through symbolism, but at a first glance it may not appear so.
The San Diego Mormon Temple bases its architecture on gothic roots; where the epitome of early gothic architecture is the Chartres Cathedral in France. The Mormon Temple is made of white aggregate stone and stucco, very angular and massive, built as a Gothic revival temple. Designed by William Lewis, Jr., the architect took into consideration Mormon temples in Salt Lake City and Washington, D.C. Hugely bulky at the base, the Mormon Temple rises from an enormous mound of earth, that conceals the lower floor. Built for the Mormons residing in Southern California, this temples marks the forty-fifth Mormon temple in the world. However, since its closing to the public in April 1993, only Mormons in "good standing" are now able to enter and use this massive structure. Situated in a suburban community of La Jolla/University City, the 59,000 square foot building is surrounded by shopping centers, residential areas and office buildings. There is no escaping the "angular, white monstrosity's" impact on the city. The gothic/space age temple capitalizes on an elevated sites that is close to the freeway, where thousands of motorists pass it daily.
(Pew Research Center 1) Hinduism unlike Christianity or Muslim, is deemed to be the oldest surviving religion. Having a collective number of sacred texts, it differs from any other faiths. Being a polytheistic religion the views of Hinduism followers are diverse from what monotheistic religions would consider to be the norm. Again, this religion consists of a different approach to the notion of afterlife. Companions of the belief system, consider Moksha to be their form of heaven. Moksha is when an individual is liberated from the ongoing cycle of death and rebirth. This is known as the Hinduism form of hell called Samsara. Karma is the impression that what an individual does throughout their life cycle will depict a positive outcome, or
The statue of Hatshepsut seated down is made with the material limestone. This limestone is lightly colored, which created a larger contrast with the other statues nearby. Her face was carved bringing out her eyes, eyebrows and other facial features. Her eyebrows also come slightly together towards the middle. Her lips forming a slight archaic smile. The dimensions are larger than an average female size. The statue is of great size, yet still in proportion. The body and head fit well with each other overall. However, it is greatly exaggerated in size.
The five Eastern religions of Hinduism, Buddhism, Confucianism, Daoism, and Shinto have some similarities when it comes to the their beliefs on death. Hinduism and Buddhism both believe in karma and reincarnation, while Daoism and Shintoism revolve their beliefs around nature. Confucianism chooses not to focus on things we do not know, so their beliefs on death are limited. In deciphering the different beliefs on death associated with each religion, it is important to understand the different belief systems and their origins. While some religions merged the views of the other religions, some came from the views of an originating founder. Each religion has their own view on life after death and whether or not their followers should be concerned
The votive statues were created by worshipers of the ancient Mesopotamian gods. They were crafted out of materials such as limestone, alabaster, gypsum, and other such materials (Votive Statues). These statues were created around 2900 to 2350 BCE at the Square Temple at Eshnunna. The creators of these statues created them in their own likeness to be held at the Square Temple, a place of worship to their gods. It was the worshipers belief that the gods would bless these statues and in turn, bless the creators (Department of Ancient Near Eastern Art, 2004). Worship of the gods was a huge part of the culture of Ancient Mesopotamia, as such these votive statues played a major role in that culture.
Their teachings are focused around what they call the nine basic beliefs. As far as death goes, Hindus teach and believe in the rebirth and reincarnation of souls. To them, souls are immortal and everlasting. Essentially the universe undergoes endless cycles of creation, preservation and
The actual building itself appears similar to a castle. The architecture had royal features due to the triangular points on the top of the building. There were three open doors; one big main entrance in front, two small side doors, and all the guests entered through the main entrance. Once I walked in, a big gold Buddha was centered in the back surrounding multiple iconic religious statues. There seemed to be about a hundred religious statues highly dazzled in silver or good.
Monuments such as the Dome of the Rock in Jerusalem and San Vitale in Ravenna, perform a great importance in Byzantine and Islamic architecture. Both of these structures did not exclusively represent the main place of worship, but most importantly as a symbol of achievement and growth within the current times of construction. Starting in 524, under the influence of Orthodox bishop Ecclesius, the development of San Vitale was to represent the achievements of the emperor Justinian. Julius Argentarius was the sponsor for this structure and it was dedicated by Bishop Maximian in 547. The Dome of the Rock is built on the Temple Mount in Jerusalem in 692 with the help of Abd al-Malik with the suspected intention to symbolize Islams influence in Jerusalem and its involvement in a highly Jewish and Christian supremacy. Although separated by over 100 yrs, both of these domes share multiple similarity's including a projected confidence of their originating culture.
"In Hinduism, salvation is achieved through a spiritual oneness of the soul, atman, with the ultimate reality of the universe, Brahman. To achieve this goal, the soul must obtain moksha, or liberation from the samsara, the endless cycle of birth, death, and rebirth. As a result of these basic teachings, Hindus believe in reincarnation, which is influenced by karma (material actions resulting from the consequences of previous actions), and dharma (fulfilling one's duty in life)"(Teachings and Beliefs, 2004, par. 1).
Hinduism is an ancient religion. It has no known founder. It has several holy books. The most important of these is the Vedas, a collection of hymns. Hinduism like buddism believes in reincarnation. The goal of this religion is also to escape the birth-death cycle. Through Hinduism the entire Indian social structure was formed by creating the caste system. The major difference between Buddism and Hinduism is that Hindus believe in a god. Brahman is the spirit that encompasses all living things. There are several lesser gods who are believed to be incarnates of Brahman.
Christians, for example, believe that souls that have lived by the words of their God will exist eternally in heaven as divine beings themselves. This conception of an afterlife is generally what we people who are residents of the Unitied States hold to be true. For American culture has its roots in Europe and European culture was and is still influenced by Christian faiths. Similar to Christianity, the Hinduism also eases the fear of death by presenting a life after death. Disimilarities present themselves in the two faiths concerning exactly what kind of afterlife is lived. Believers of the Hindu faith expect to be reincarnated after their demise, either as an animal or human being depending on the manner in which their lives were carried out.
The Temple was very large and beautiful. My friend and I were both stunned by how gorgeously built the Mandir was. The buildings were big and stretched across several acres of the land. Next to the temple was another large building, which was used as a center for gatherings and entertainment purposes. The temple had many different entrances, the main one we noticed were the big steps ...
...s and that temple worship, rituals, sacraments, and personal devotionals create a communion with these devas and Gods. Also Hindus believe that a spiritually awakened master is essential to know the Transcendent Absolute. The eighth belief is that all life is scared. The last belief the Hindus share is to believe that no particular religion teacher the only way to salvation. (“9 Basic Hindu Beliefs”)
Hinduism believes in the teachings of one human man, the Buddha, the “Enlightened One”. The ultimate objective of a Buddhist is to reach nirvana which is a state of enlightenment where a person no longer desires or suffers and is at peace. The Buddha taught the Four Noble Truths. Fiero lists the Four Noble Truths as “pain is universal, desire causes pain, ceasing to desire relieves pain, and right conduct leads to release from pain” (11). The Buddha believed and taught that insight and knowledge come from following the Eightfold Path (Middle Way). Fiero states that the Eightfold Path includes “right views, right intention, right speech, right action, right livelihood, right effort, right mindfulness, and right concentration” (11). If a person follows the Eightfold Path which leads to insight and knowledge then they could ultimately achieve nirvana. A Buddhist that avoids suffering and gains enlightenment is then released from what Fiero calls the “endless cycle of birth, death, and rebirth” (11). Only then has a person accomplished extinction of the Self or salvation. The aspect of the release from the cycle of rebirth is similar to the goal of a Hindu and like Hinduism; Buddhism encourages moral behavior in order to attain inner
All over the world, many people practice a religion of their choice. With any religion people participate in many rituals that show their commitment to their religion. Amongst the five major religions of the world, which are Christianity, Judaism, Islam, Hinduism, and Buddhism, they are all significant to what people believe in. Each of them include rituals, places of worship, a God or Gods, and so much more. The five major religions of the world each have key characteristics that highlight both their similarities and differences.