Christianity and Hinduism

My parents, who are both Christians wanted me to know about other religions so I wouldn't grow up thinking that Christianity was the only religion out there. At first I was quite perplexed by this religion with its multi-armed deities and what seemed to me cow worshippers. It didn't help that I was raised in a fundamentalist Christian church where we were taught that Christianity is "the only way", and that all other religions are wrong. As a result, I grew tired of seeing supposedly tolerant Christians belittle other religions but their own. I began to wonder if Hindus truly believed in one God. I don’t know much about what they actually believed in. I decide to ask my friend who is from Indian, who practices Hindi what are their beliefs. I have learned from her that what I thought was a religion of many gods turned out to be a religion that worshipped one God. Worshiping God in many different forms. I have learned that Hindus perform deity worship of pictures or statues of their gods, but they don't believe that these images and statues are God himself. They believe that the Gods are present in the statues, but they still differentiate. Perhaps to some like myself thought they were idol worshippers, but that is far from the truth. This is one of the biggest misconceptions about Hinduism that they are strictly polytheistic.

There are many Gods in Hinduism, but most Hindus see them as different representations and manifestations of the same absolute Brahman which is a little more analogous to the Christian God. Although there are many "Gods" in Hinduism ultimately there is only one true God Brahman. However, not all Hindus perform deity worship. They believe that since Brahman is impersonal and unknowable, there is no poin...

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...rshan, and it is an important element of the worship. The priest also offers the offerings that have been given by the worshippers to their deity. This offering is called Prasad which is normally food, like fruits and nuts. At the end of the service, the worshippers come forward and receives back some of the Prasad to take and eat. I was able to join in on worshipping, but I was only allowed to approach within a few feet of the altar there is a barrier in front of it that only the priest may cross. At the barrier there were colored and scented ashes that a worshipper could place on his or her forehead as a sign of devotion. The holy ash is smeared on the forehead, and the red powder called kumkum is placed as a dot between the eyebrows. This red dot, which is worn by many Hindus, is a sign that the person wearing it has recently visited a temple and worshipped there