Sacred Elements Of Hinduism

Hindu Scriptures

The Hindu scriptures, written over a period of 2,000 years (1400 B.C-.500 A.D.) are voluminous. They reflect the practices and beliefs for hinduism which arose during the different long periods of Hindu history.

The Hindu scriptures are divided into two classes -sruti and smriti. Sruti, or "what is heard," refers to the eternal truths of religion which the rishis or seers saw or heard. They are independent of any god or man to whom they are communicated. They are the primary and final authority of religious truth. Using the analogy of the reflection of an image in a mirror or on the surface of a lake, the intellect of the ancient rishis was so pure and calm that it perfectly reflected the entirety of eternal truth. Their disciples recorded this truth and the record of it is known as the vedas.

Smriti, or "what is remembered," possess a secondary authority, deriving their authority from the sruti whose principles they seek to expand. As recollections they contain all the sacred texts other than the vedas. These are generally understood to include the law books, the two great epics, the Ramayana and the Mahabharata, and the Puranas, which are largely collections of myths, stories, legends and chronicles of great events.

Also included are the aqamas, which are theological treatises and manuals of worship, and the sultras, or aphorisms, of the six systems of philosophy. There is also a vast treasury of vernacular literature largely of a bhakti or devotional type, which continues to inspire the masses of religious Hindus and which different sects accept as smriti.

The Vedas

The Vedas form as the basis for sacred element of hinduism.The word veda literally means wisdom or knowledge. It is the term applied to the oldest of the Hindu scriptures, originally transmitted orally and then subsequently preserved in written form. The vedas contain hymns, prayers and ritual texts composed over a period of one thousand years, beginning about 1400 B.C.
The term vedas (plural) refers to the entire collection of these wisdom books, also known as the samhitas, which include the rig-veda, the samaveda, the yajur-veda and the athara-veda. Each of these texts consists of three parts: (1) the mantras, hymns of praise to the gods; (2) the brahmanas, a guide for practicing ritual rights, and (3) the upanishads, the most important part of which deals with teachings on religious truth or doctrine.

The samhitas are the basis of vedic Hinduism, the most significant of the group being the rig-veda. This collection of hymns, originally composed in Sanskrit, praises the various Hindu deities, including Indra, Soma, Varuna and Mitra.

The yajur-veda consists of a collection of mantras borrowed from the rig-veda and applied to specific ritual situations carried out by the executive priest and his assistants.

The sama-veda in the same manner borrows mantras from the rig-veda. These hymns are chanted.

The athara-veda consists of magical spells and incantations carried out by the priests.

The Upanishads

The Upanishads form an important sacred element of hinduism.The upanishads are a collection of speculative treatises. They were composed during the period 800 to 600 B.C., and 108 of them are still in existence. The word upanishad conveys the idea of secret teaching. Its treatises mark a definite change in emphasis from the sacrificial hymns and magic formulas in the vedas to the mystical ideas about man and the universe, specifically the eternal Brahman, which is the basis of all reality, and the atman, which is the self or the soul. The upanishads reportedly had an influence upon Gautama Buddha, the founder of Buddhism, as can be observed in some basic similarities between the upanishads and the teachings of Mahayana Buddhism.

Evidence that Hinduism must have existed even circa 10000 B.C. is available: The importance attached to the river Saraswati and the numerous references to it in the Rig-Veda (interestingly, Ganga appears only twice) indicates that the Rig-Veda was being composed well before 6500 B.C. The first vernal equinox recorded in the Rig-Veda is that of the star Ashwini, which is now known to have occurred around 10000 to substantiate this claim.

Unity Within Diversity

There are five sacred elements of hinduism, which contribute to the essential unity of Hinduism:

» Common Ideals
» Common Scriptures
» Common Deities
» Common Beliefs
» Common Practices

Common Ideals

All the sects and offshoots of Hinduism beliefs share the same moral ideals:

» Ahimsa (non-violence)
» Satya (truthfulness)
» Brahmacharya (often translated wrongly as sexual continence, it actually means the state of incessant search for the ultimate Truth      (Brahman). Note that it is not called God, merely the Truth, whatever it is)
» Maitri (Friendship)
» Dharma (a rather crude translation would be "fulfilling one's duty")
» KaruNa (Compassion)
» Viirya (Fortitude)
» Dama (Self Restraint - mental as well as physical)
» Shaucha (Purity - mental as well as physical)

The higher phase of self-control is detachment. Not only do we have to overcome what is evil in life, we must also become independent of what is good. For instance, our love of home and friends is good in itself, but unless we expand it to include everything in the universe, it will be a shackle, what if it is golden. Detachment does not imply disinterest in the changing world: it merely shifts a person's frame of reference to the Reality that endures forever, making his perception more objective, making him better equipped for life.

Truth as a cardinal virtue in Hinduism is far more than mere truthfulness; it means eternal reality. Hinduism says that the pursuit of Truth, wherever it may lead or whatever sacrifices it may involve, is indispensable to the progress of man. Hence no Hindu scripture has ever opposed scientific progress or metaphysical and ethical speculations.

Main Deities

The common deities are derived form the common scriptures. The idea that every deity whom men worship is the embodiment of a limited ideal, and that the deity is a symbol of some aspects of the Absolute is one of the most fundamental elements of Hinduism. It is this idea that makes Hinduism the most tolerant of religions and averse to proselytization through religious propaganda.

The three important functions of the Supreme - Creation, Protection and Destruction - came to be established in popular imagination as the Hindu Trinity - Brahma (NOT Brahman of the Upanishads), Vishnu and Shiva. The power associated with these gods came to be personified as their respective consorts. So Creator Brahma's consort is Saraswati (the goddess of Speech and Learning), Protector Vishnu's consort is Lakshmi (the goddess of wealth and prosperity), and Shiva's consort is Shakti (the goddess of power). Since Vishnu is the protector, he is the one who can take on an avatara, taking human form whenever the world order is disturbed by a colossal form of evil. The other two of the trinity do not have avatars.

Thus the law of spiritual progression is given as an unerring standard for us. It decrees the following values as of utmost importance:

» Spiritual Values: truth, beauty, love, and righteousness.
»Intellectual Values: clarity, cogency, subtlety, and skill.
» Biological Values: health, strength, and vitality.
»Material Values: riches, possessions, and pleasures.

This, then, is the key to understanding beliefs for Hinduism. For example, consider the Hindu view of History. Although it does not attach any importance to chronology, the sages had a correct view of historical progress and decline. Persons and wars were seen to be of less importance when compared with roles (played by the persons) and the lessons (of the war). The greatness of a civilization was judged not by the empires they possessed, nor by the wealth they accumulated, nor by their technological progress, but by the righteousness and justice did they cultivate.

The organization of the society was conceived as a corollary of the law of spiritual progress, whereby people were to be ranked not by wealth, numerical strength, or power, but by their spiritual progress and culture. The earliest reference to the Varnashrama Dharma, the caste system, is to be found in the Rig-Veda, wherein they are represented as parts of the body of the Creator. This is a poetic image indicating the organic nature of the society of the time. Caste was not to be determined by heredity: Virtue alone was the yardstick (Vajra Suuchika Upanishad is entirely devoted to discussing the Caste System;

Many Hindu religious leaders has pointed out the common features of hinduism which are as follows:

» Belief in one supreme God of Love and Grace.
» Belief in the individuality of every soul, which is nevertheless part of the Divine Soul.
» Belief in salvation through Bhakti.
» The exaltation of Bhakti above Jnana and Karma; and, also above, the performance of rites and ceremonies.
» Extreme reverence paid to the Guru.
» The doctrine of the Holy Name.
» Initiation through a mantra and a sacramental meal.
» The institution of sectarian orders of Sanyasins.
» The relaxing of the rules of caste, sometimes even ignoring all caste distinctions.
» Religious teaching through the vernaculars.