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 History and Diversity
The first thing to understand about Hinduism is that it is not a unified
religious tradition originating either historically or mythically with a single
figure who provides either revelation from or enlightened insight into the
Divine. In that regard, it is different from every other religious tradition
examined on this website. Rather, Hinduism is a shorthand designation for a
variety of religions indigenous to the Indian sub-continent. Even that broad
definition can be misleading, however, since there are other religions (Jainism,
Sikhism, and even originally Buddhism) that are indigenous to India but not
simply diverse variations of Hinduism.
The historical development of Hinduism is usually traced from the earliest
inhabitants of India, through the flowering of the Indus Valley civilization,
the Aryan invasion, to the emergence of Vedic religion with its revelation or
insights preserved in the Vedas (see the discussion of
Sacred Writings below). Over the course of a millennium (from about 1400-400
BCE) a vast body of literature was developed from what
originated as oral traditions. This period of expansive religious reflection was
then followed by another millennium of consolidation and synthesis (from roughly
500 BCE to 500 CE). Yet even during
this effort, no fewer than six traditional darśanas
(literally, "views" but what can be considered "schools" of thought and
practice) were developed which continue to the present. To attempt to explain
the distinctives between "schools" would draw us much deeper into the
intricacies of Hinduism than can be done on this website (for further
information, consult the Resources listed
elsewhere).
Hinduism is predominately a theistic religion, that at
particularly the level of popular devotion venerates many deities. It
nevertheless has a sense that all of these deities are in some way emanations or
incarnations (avatāra) of "God as Lord" (bhagavān). It is because
the Divine can be manifested in so many forms that there is such a proliferation
of gods and goddesses within Hindu tradition. Some have related the primary
manifestations of the Divine into a trimūrti of God as "creator" (Brahma),
"preserver" (Vishnu), and "destroyer" (Shiva) who leads all through endless
cycles of coming into being, existence, destruction, and re-creation. Each of
these primary manifestations of the Divine can lead to further manifestations,
so that for example Krishna is a "descent" of Vishnu.
Sacred Writings of Hinduism
Hinduism does draw a distinction between "revelation" (śruti)
and "tradition" (smrti), but there is nothing like the agreed upon
"canon" lists found in some other religious traditions. Even scholars of
Hinduism will differ in their counts, for example, of how many Upanishads are to
be considered "revealed" (some setting the number at 13, others at 18). For that
reason, there is a more general term, agama, that is sometimes translated
"scripture" and is applied to all writings that at least some Hindus consider
revealed. These agamas number in the hundreds. What will be provided here, then, is a brief discussion of the
types/classes of sacred writings in Hinduism and a placing of some of the
better-known literature within that scheme.
There are four collections of hymns and instructions for
performing various religious rituals by particular types of priests that are
foundational to Vedic Hinduism, and from which that designation is drawn since
each is named a veda (the Sanskrit word for "knowledge"). The best known
of these is the Rig Veda. It is a collection of 1,028 hymns divided into ten
mandalas. Within each "circle" the hymns are typically gathered together
according to the deity being addressed and then from longest to shortest. It is
from these hymns that the very complex mythology relating the various deities to
one another is derived, as well as the various cosmologies regarding the process
of creation and order of the universe.
Three types of writings then carry forward and develop
the ideas in the Vedas, namely the Brahmanas, Aranyakas, and the Upanishads.
This final collection gathers the teachings of the sacred masters, some of which
are granted the status of "revelation" and others considered "tradition." Within
these teachings, the masters develop an understanding of reality that completely
reverses materialistic philosophies. In the Upanishads, the created, material
world is ultimately the illusion since it distracts from the true knowledge of
absolute being that is in some sense contaminated by the differentiations of
created things.
The final type of Hindu literature to be considered here
is the epic literature. Chronologically the latest forms of Hindu sacred
writings, perhaps the most important epic is Mahābhārata, which consisted
of 100,000 stanzas (more than eight times the combined length of the Iliad
and the Odyssey) relating the battle between five brothers and some 100
of their cousins. Contained within it is the Bhagavad-gītā ("The Song of
the Blessed"). This song relates a series of teachings by the god Krishna to one
of the brothers regarding three means to free the mind from enslavement to the
material and thereby be released from the cycle of rebirth. Such means are
referred to as yoga, and these three alternatives are presented as the
yoga of detached action, the yoga of knowledge, and the yoga of devotion.
Hindu Practices
Although many non-Hindus are fascinated by the elaborate mythologies and the
more philosophical speculations of Hindu sacred literature, the heart of
Hinduism as an observed faith is its practice. The goal of this observance is to
bring an "ordering of life" that aligns it with dharma, the
"appropriateness" of life that accords with one's place in the cycle of rebirth.
Those who find themselves reborn as humans, and outside the lowest caste of
those born into humanity for the first time, have the opportunity to order their
lives through principles and practices that will lead them ultimately to
"release" (moksa) from these cycles of incarnation. So long as the
essence of the person (ātman) is entangled in desire
for the created world, it continues to be reborn (samsāra) where its
different forms of existence are governed by inescapable moral laws (karma).
Those who succeed in breaking all attachment to and desire for the created will
enter a state of being of absolute union with the Divine known as nirvāna
(this understanding of nirvāna as the joining of the soul with the Divine
is thus quite distinct from the notion of nirvāna in Buddhism; see
the discussion of the "Four Noble Truths" on this
website).
A basic means for losing this attachment to the world is
through yoga, a much more diverse practice than the flexibility and relaxation
exercises familiar to most Americans. The goal of all these practices is to
provide focus to the mind which is otherwise always fluctuating and divided in
its attentions. The basic approach is from outward to inward: by controlling the
body and breath one ultimately can control the mind. Yoga includes not only
actions, but also knowledge about the Divine and ultimately devotion to the
Divine.
Many people with even a passing familiarity with certain forms of Hinduism
are aware that historically this religion has maintained certain dietary
restrictions (such as refraining from eating beef or maintaining a completely
vegetarian diet). The precise nature of these restrictions vary between different
forms of Hindu devotion. Units with Hindu Scouts with even broader
understandings of these dietary requirements should nevertheless be sure that
menus at all events include options that are in keeping with their practice.
That need not mean that all meals must be vegetarian, but there should be plenty
of foods served that make possible a balanced and nutritional meal within these
dietary guidelines.
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