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Introduction to the Bhagavad Gita. Cultural Context: Western vs. Eastern Religions. Western Traditions: Judaism, Christianity and Islam The absolute is transcendent, beyond and other. The goal tends to be to form a loving relationship with God. The Divine is a “person”.
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Cultural Context: Western vs. Eastern Religions Western Traditions: • Judaism, Christianity and Islam • The absolute is transcendent, beyond and other. • The goal tends to be to form a loving relationship with God. • The Divine is a “person”. Eastern Traditions: • Hinduism, Buddhism, Confucianism, Taoism • The absolute is immanent, within and ultimately identical with the seeker • The ultimate is something transpersonal, and the goal is awareness and unity. • Every person is ultimately divine.
Cultural Context:Western vs. Eastern Religions Western Traditions: • Time is perceived as a river, flowing toward eternity. • Contemplates life after death. • God acts through history to teach lessons, redeem or punish (e.g. - Exodus, Crucifixion, Night of Power). • Tend to categorize, define and label distinctions between beliefs, worldviews and practices. Eastern Traditions: • Time is a great, primeval ocean, always existing, totally surrounding us. • Contemplates life before birth. • History is a reflection of human rather than divine action. • Line is blurred between philosophy and religion. All branches of knowledge are seen as aspects of one truth.
Overview of Eastern Religious Canon: • The Rig Veda sings glorious songs of praise. • The BhagavadGitadraws a paradoxical connection between action and detachment. • The Tao Te Chingteaches one to live following the example of nature. • Confucian Classics illustrate how to make a civilization. • The Upanishads speak philosophically about the nature of the ultimate and the human relationship to it. • The great sutras of Mahayana Buddhism teach worship, wisdom and compassion. • The Tibetan Book of the Dead shows one how to die.
An Overview of Hinduism • Common associations in the West: • Sacred cows, karma, caste system, yoga, reincarnation, Mahatma Gandhi, image worship, avatars, bed of nails, gurus, The Kama Sutra. • Hinduism is responsible for: • Buddhism, Jainism, Transcendental Meditation, Deepak Chopra’s philosophy. • Yoga, tantra and meditation. • Hinduism’s religious philosophy is most closely related to: • Particle theory and quantum mechanics!
What Makes Hinduism Unique? • It DOES NOT have: • A founder • Dogma • Central authority such as a pope or ecclesiastical council • Specific rules for what or what not to believe • Specific creeds to recite • It DOES have: • Competing philosophies • Disparate religious practices • Divergent lifestyles • The ability to accommodate the individual seeker • “Paths” to follow toward the ultimate goal of freedom
What’s in a Name? • Unlike Christianity, Buddhism and Confucianism, it is not named after a founder. It also does not have a name that describes what its followers believe, like Islam, which means “surrender” or “Catholic”, which means “universal”. Just as Judaism is the religion of the Jews, so Hinduism is the religion of the Hindus. • Yet Hindus do not call their religion “Hinduism”, but use the word “darshana” , which is often translated as “philosophy”, but really means “seeing” or experience”. Or they may refer to their faith as the Santana Dharma, the eternal way of truth.
The BhagavadGita: Click the picture for an animated video summary on the class website.
