Hinduism is unlike many other religions in that it does not have a single founder or text, but is more like an umbrella in ways of life. In death and life for the Hindu, “The ultimate goal of the soul is liberation from the wheel of rebirth, through reabsorption into our identity with the Oversoul (Brahma)-- the essence of the universe, immaterial, uncreated, limitless, and timeless” (Leming & Dickinson, 2011, p. 134). Susan Thrane MSN, RN, OCN discusses the beliefs of Hindu culture in the article “Hindu End of Life: Death, Dying, Suffering, and Karma” published in the Journal of Hospice and Palliative Nursing. Thrane (2010) states that there are almost 2.3 million Hindus in India. Hindu’s believe in interconnectedness, karma, and reincarnation.
When death occurs, the body is prepared for viewing. People of the same gender prepare the body by laying their “hands across the chest, closing the eyelids, anointing the body with oil, and placing flower garlands around it.” (Leming & Dickinson, 2011, pg. 384). According to Leming and Dickinson, Hindus believe that cremation is “an act of sacrifice” because they are offering their body to God. The body is usually cremated on the bank of a sacred river. The book, Understanding dying, death, and bereavement offers an “invocation” that would be close to what a priest would recite, “Fire, you were lighted by him, so may he be lighted from you, that he may gain the regions of celestial bliss. May this offering prove auspicious.” Leming and Dickinson (2011) state that between 10-31 days post cremation, a feast (shraddha) is shared among mourners and priests. Shraddhas can last hours to days, depending on the wealth of the family. Once this shraddha is over, the mourning period comes to a close. It is said that the funeral is the second most important ritual, following a wedding, and that many families spend all the money they have on them, leading to impoverishment (Leming & Dickinson, 2011, p.
230). There are two main “types” Buddhism that are practiced around the world. The first is Theravadin, and the second is Mahayana (Smith-Stoner, 2005, p. 228). Buddhism contains a “message of salvation” that considered the “Four Noble Truths” (Leming & Dickinson, 2011 p. 134). They are, the truth of suffering, the truth of the cause of suffering, the truth of the end of suffering, and the truth of the path that leads to the end of suffering. Leming and Dickinson (2011) describe how the combination of ethics and meditation are the eightfold path to enlightenment (Leming & Dickinson, 2011 p. 136). The author believes it is important for practitioners to recognize the increasing numbers of people practicing Buddhism in the United States in order to enhance their ability to care for end of life needs in this population. Smith-Stoner (2005) states that Buddhism is one of the fastest growing religions in the United States and that Colorado is one of the main population centers (Smith-Stoner, 2005, p. 229). In Buddhism, it is extremely important to be able to tame emotions and the mind which is done through meditation. The author thinks it is pertinent to know the
According to document A, “Hinduism was (and is) polytheistic - Hindus believe in many gods…..In this kind of Hinduism, people believed in reincarnation - that people could be reborn into other bodies after they died.” The excerpt shows that the daily life would be affected since Hindus will worship more gods and believe in reincarnation. Moreover, Hindus believed in Karma as well as Dharma. Karma was the good or bad actions that had an effect on the soul in later reincarnations. Dharma was the spiritual duties that one must follow. Now it is evident that beliefs were influenced by religion.
From the text excerpt in Document A, “Hinduism was (and is) a polytheistic religion - Hindus believed in many gods. --- In this kind of Hinduism, people believed in reincarnation - that people could be reborn into other bodies after they died.” This evidence shows that because of religion, Hindus have belief in many gods, and believe in reincarnation. Without a religion, they would not believe in an all-mighty ruler, or in reincarnation. Hindus also believed in karma, which means the good and bad actions that have an effect on the soul, and dharma, or spiritual duties one must follow. As you can see, beliefs were greatly influenced by religion.
Hinduism is made of many different religions and does not have one origin or single founder. The religion of Hinduism is very old, “300-100 B.C.E.--- The first trace of temple worship. Hindu people worship at the shrine, where Hindus make offerings to a murti. A murti is a statue of a god or goddess” (McMillan). In addition, other religions are based off Hinduism, “5000-10000 B.C.---Hinduism can be traced back to 5000-10000 B.C. Hinduism is a very old religion, many religions are based off of Hinduism, like Sikhism, Buddhism and Jainism” (McMillan).
Tiwari, Subhas R. “Hindu Conecpt on Death.” The Hindu University of America. Apr 2006. Web. 30 Nov. 2013.
Hinduism is a very unique religion; it is the oldest living religion and does not have a single founder unlike Buddhism. Hinduism
(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
Bodies are prepared for burial following the custom that men are wrapped in their prayer shawl, and women in a white burial shroud.
“You will be with me today in paradise,” Jesus Christ told this to the thief on the cross while they were dying. However, can people believe that there is truly life after death? In many different religions there are different perceptions of life after death. For example in the Buddhist religion, the Buddhist people believe that life is practice for death. Professor Brown, of California State University of Northridge stated, “The Buddhist people cultivate positive, happy virtuous states of mind and abandoning non-virtuous, harmful, suffering states of mind.” This teaching is mirrored by Christianity teachings as well. Professor Brown also stated, “Death is an opportunity for great spiritual achievement if one is prepared and remembers one’s spiritual practices and beliefs and understandings during the death process.”
"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).
...eath is is not a cessation in Buddhism. Death can be seen as a new beginning. A new opportunity to reach spiritual perfection. Infant mortality is a difficult subject to talk about for many Tibetan parents. Survivors are often faced with poverty and other extreme hardships after the loss of a loved one. However, Buddhism provides great comfort to survivors by teaching that Earthly bodies are impermanent. Tibetan cremation procedures place great emphasis on reincarnation. Tibetan views about death are focused on nirvana and spiritual perfection. These practices are spiritually meaningful for both the living survivors and the dead.
Funerals are very important ceremonies in Hindu tradition. Hindus see cremation as an act of sacrifice to God and...
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.
Death in Different Religions Death has a great impact on people's lives in such a way that they learn to value life, or even live it to the fullest. But what happens to us after we die? Many religions have answered this question for us, according to their faiths. Buddhism is a religion where Buddhists believe in the concept of death and reincarnation or rebirth.
While most traditional religions are easy to define and comprehend, Hinduism is not. It cannot be spoken about as one single entity but rather a label for many different traditions within itself that originated in India. It is the world’s third largest religion with a following of a billion people. Hinduism, at its most basic definition, is the belief in either several gods or goddess, or the belief in one God with many faces. It is a way of life that relies heavily on the ideas of cause and effect. They believe in reincarnation with a desire to be liberated from the cycle of birth and death. They believe it is the key to a lifetime of happiness, prosperity and love. While it is considered to be the oldest
Hindu mythology has interesting theories on how the Earth was created and the reincarnation of people, Hinduism is very different to many other mythologies and has some unique key features that make it stand out from the rest. History tells that there are over 330 million gods in Hindu mythology. There are six main gods in Hinduism. Hindu’s have an interesting belief of what happens to them after death, the afterlife Hindus believe in must be met by accomplishing a goal. Hinduism is a unique belief in many gods, the life cycle and reincarnation of its people.