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Hinduism's influence on Indian society
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Uk essay on the relationship between reincarnation and karma in Hinduism
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Hinduism is one of the most complex, most varied, and diverse religions in the world—in that there is no “rigid common set of beliefs” (Georgis, 62). For example, one can believe in only one god, or many gods, or no gods (Georgis, 62). One also has the freedom to choose how to practice their faiths in terms of what rituals they practice, what texts they read, or what temples they choose to go to. In fact, “inside of Hinduism there is room for millions of major and minor gods, their temples, and their priests” (Arostegui, 01/22). Now, even though Hinduism does not share a common set of beliefs, it does not mean that the concept of morality, that being what is right and what is wrong, gets lost in translation to those who practice the Hindu faith. That is because, within the diversity of Hinduism, there is a common concept that is shared; that being the concept of reincarnation and karma. According to Faris Georgis, and within the context of Hinduism,
“life is determined by karma, in which rebirth is dependent on moral behavior in a previous phase of existence” (62). Additionally, “Hindus see their level in this present life as based on their actions in a previous life. If their behavior in the previous life was evil, they might experience tremendous hardships in this life. A Hindu’s goal is to become free from the law of karma, therefore, to be free from continuous reincarnations” (Georgis, 62).
It is fair to then say that because 80.5 percent of India’s population identifies themselves a...
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...terms of not being able to financially support themselves and their families (Singh, 5). In rural societies for example, rape, sex-selective abortions, infanticide, and dowry murders occur at higher rates when compared to societies within India that are better-off.
Secondly, the Government of India has recognized that violence against women is a constant issue within their society which is why they have passed laws such as The Dowry Prohibition Act of 1961 and the Medical Termination of Pregnancy Act of 1971. However the problem resides in India’s ability to enforce its own laws. With laws passed to curb violence against women, dowry deaths still occur, as well as sex-selective abortions, and rape too. The criminal justice system within India is also in disrepair in that the majority of men who are accused of rape or even murder within India, never get convicted.
Some of the most prominent aspects of Hinduism are the atman and samsara which is one the clearest distinctions between Hinduism and other religions. When Krishna states, “I have never not existed; nor have you, nor have these lords of men. Nor will we cease to exist, all of us, from now onwards” (Bhagavad Gita, 185), he is referring to the atman or the human soul which is believed to have always existed and will continue to exist. And when he says, “Just as one throws out old clothes and then takes on other, new ones; so the embodied self casts out old bodies as it gets other, new ones” (Bhagavad Gita, 187), he is talking about samsara and reincarnation. It is from this text, where Hinduism gets its defining characteristics. As long as the Gita continues to be relevant in India so will these philosophies. It reinforces the idea of reincarnation, the soul, and duty which shapes the way the Hindus live their lives. The goal for a Hindu is to break out of samsara and achieve Brahman, and according to the Gita, fulfilling one’s dharma is the way to accomplish this. The Bhagavad Gita is significant to Hinduism, because it has helped Hindus identify an ultimate goal and teaches them how to achieve
...onsibility in life which is decided by the caste they are born into. However, living amongst other people, one’s soul might become “forgetful of the Lord” which leads to “[attaching] itself to pleasure” which would make it “bound” to the wheel of the universe. For a soul to escape this cycle birth, death, and rebirth, it is necessary to connect with this god. The Hindu people believed that “by uniting oneself with him…one ceases to be ignorant” and this means “Birth, death, and rebirth will be no more.” This credence of rebirth and karma highly influenced the way the Hindu society developed.
Hinduism is a revolving wheel of life, death and rebirth called Samsara better known as reincarnation. Hinduism believes this life cycle is directly related to a person's karma, which are the deeds they have done. "Karma determines the kind of body, whether human, animal, or insect, into which he or she is reincarnated in the next life" (Halverson). To effectively ending the life cycle one must obtain Liberation. Liberation is obtained by striving to remove desires of the ego "through realizing that only the undifferentiated oneness of Brahman is real" (...
The concept of reincarnation is related to karma, karma deals with a system of rewards and punishment based on the actions of the individual (Oxtopy & Segal 266). Due to bad karma by the individual, it takes many lifetimes for the karma to be worked out; reincarnation also known as samsara in Hinduism is an ongoing cycle of death and rebirth. To be released from the cycle of samsara, to achieve moksha one must reach enlightenment (Oxtopy & Segal 266-267). In the Bhagavad Gita, Krishna, an incarnation of the ultimate deity as a personal god in the Hindu religion, explains three ways to moksha: the way of action, the way of knowledge, and the way of devotion. The Gita also made it clear that one should strive for moksha in everyday of our life as long as we act without attachment (Oxtopy & Segal 274). Reincarnation a concept widely receive by Hindu’s around the world, there are evidence to support the truth of this concept.
Gender-based violence is made possible by the ideology of sexism in Indian traditional culture which argues that women are worth less than men in the sense of having less power, status, privilege, and access to resources that is more prevalent in middle class and low caste families.
Hinduism is the world’s third largest religion and was originated in the Indian subcontinent. Is rare that a big religion like Hinduism don’t have a single founder, religious organization, specific theological system and don’t even a system of morality, but it is a religion that has evolved over thousands of years. Hinduism has a diverse body of cultural and philosophical practices. Hinduism consists of belief and tradition. The most recognized belief and traditions of the Hinduism are Karma, Dharma, Samsara and Moshka. Hindu people don’t believe in violence, but they do believe in prayers, honesty, truth, austerity, celibacy and penance. The Hindu scriptures are collectively referred to as the Shashtras. The Hindu scriptures were initially passed on orally from generation to generation until finally ancient scholars wrote them down; mainly in the Sanskrit language that was the prevailing language of the time. Some of the Hindu scriptures are the Shruti and Smritis. The Shruti primarily refers to the Vedas which represent eternal truths revealed to ancient sages but some other Hindu individuals associated the Vedas with a God or a powerful person. The Smritis are all of the other text different than the Shruti. The most know of the Smritis are the Mahabharata and the Ramayana. Although the Hindus worship a large pantheon of Gods and Goddesses, they believe in the one Supreme Power that manifests itself in various forms.
“Religion as defined by the great sages of India…it did not require belief in a set of doctrines, but rather hard, disciplined work, without which, any religious teaching remained opaque and incredible” (Armstrong 51). The profound history of Hinduism contains important fundamental elements that play a major role in the daily life of its followers. Hinduism is famously known as one of the oldest religions in the world, which is widely embraced and composed of three prominent attributes: spiritual, tradition, and the caste system. The combinations of these three attributes in the Hindu belief system add rich tradition and deepen cultural meaningfulness and experience that uniquely defines the Hindu system of beliefs
Hindus believe that when a soul expires, it acquires rebirth in a new body. This cycle is called samsara. To be set free from the endless cycle of birth, death and rebirth one must discover their true nature in order to be with the Brahman in Nirvana. In figure G a picture of a Cambodian statue of the A.D. 900 of Brahma meditating is presented. Nirvana is a state where pain, worry and the outer world do not exist. When a person in Hindu religion has bad Karma, they must take rebirth multiple times. The sacred source of all existence is divided among three gods. Brahma is the creator, Vishnu is the preserver, and Shiva is the destroyer. All three contribute to a person’s life and death and afterlife. In figure H a picture of a Vishnu sculpture is shown, and in figure I a picture of a sculpture of Shiva is
As Farnaz explained, in Hinduism we are said to live a continuos cycle of rebirths into different things, could be a plant, an animal, or human again, but the purpose of our lives is to end this cycle. The only way to end it, is to live a life with no imperfections or sins and since that is basically impossible to do, everybody will live this endless cycle. The Samsara doctrine states that our current life is a representation of our past and even earlier actions from our current lives (Farnaz). It is believed in “karma” and if we were evil in a past or even our present life we will live a miserable current life. Since Hinduism is a complicated and as Farnaz describes it complex religion, many Hindus have a variety of theories on how to end the cycle of living. Apparently in one of the most popular Hindu scriptures,The Bhagavad Gita, there are three paths to freedom from this cycle (Farnaz 10). The first path being “The Path of Knowledge” involves the process of meditation and yoga to learn about your true self (Farnaz). The second path is “The Path of Disinterested Action,” which states that we must engage in religious and non sinful actions without looking for something in return (Farnaz 11).This path claims that the reason people have to go through the cycle is because we only engage in righteous
Most people in the world derive their religious beliefs and traditions from their parents and peer influences. From a religious point of view, “There are many definitions for the term ‘religion’ in common usage. [Broadly defined], in order to include the greatest number of belief systems: ‘Religion is any specific system of belief about deity, often involving rituals, a code of ethics, and a philosophy of life’” (Robinson, 1996). However, in examining Hinduism, it is difficult to label the practices as a religion. This paper will expound upon the Hindu traditions, taking into account the characteristics of sacred elements, their meaning, and significance.
Hinduism is a very complicated religion from an outsiders prospective. When I think about it I never have really given any thought to what Hinduism is, so what is this religion, what do they believe in, what are the social and cultural influences and what is the desire for liberation from earthly existence?
Hinduism is considered as one of the oldest religion in the world, which is the dominant religion of Nepal and India. It describes about the eternal responsibilities all Hindus have to follow, regardless of class, caste , sex or origin. “ Unlike other religions in the world, the Hindu religion does not claim any one Prophet, it does not worship any one God, it does not believe in any one philosophic concept, it does not follow any one act of religious rites or performances; in fact, it does not satisfy the traditional features of religion or creed. It is a way of life and nothing more.”
Death is natural. It affects everyone and everything that is living. It is something that every person comes to understand as being a part of life, yet people are so often afraid of it. Death reminds people of all the negative things that are a part of life, such as pain and sorrow. If an alternative to death comes around, or something makes death easier, people want to take a part of that. Many people jump to religious ideologies not always because they truly believe in them or want to follow them, but because they want to escape death. Yet in many eastern religions, death is unavoidable and cyclical. There is new life after death, but that life leads death again, and the cycle seemingly continues forever. This cycle of rebirth is often called reincarnation in western culture. It is one of the core beliefs in many eastern religions. Hinduism is one of those religions; in fact, it is likely the first religion to adopt this train of thought, as Hopfe and Woodward (2014) claim it is perhaps “the oldest and most complex of all religions in the world” (p. 78). Before one fully understands Hinduism, they must recognize the relation reincarnation has to it. Reincarnation is a foundational belief in Hinduism, and it
For women in India, the last century has marked a great amount of progress, but at times it has been as stubborn as all the centuries before it. Women have been expanding their roles in society, at home, and even politics with female Prime Minster Indira Gandhi. Gender roles are ingrained deeply, however, and that is no more apparent than in the current rape epidemic. Specifically the last 40 years have been some of the most promising for Indian women, but they have also seen an 875% increase in rape cases (Park). The answers to why this is happening, and why it is happening now may open up a much deeper issue. The social climate is changing; a power struggle between genders steadies the quantity of violence against women. Meanwhile, their empowerment to speak out and hold a rapist accountable brings it to the attention of the world. A longstanding injustice that has been occurring right bellow the surface for years may have reached its boiling point.
Amanda Hitchcock. 2001. “Rising Number of Dowry Deaths in India.” Annual Editions: Anthropology 11/12, 34th Edition. Elvio Angeloni. New York: McGraw-Hill Higher Education.