Hinduism and Buddhism

1. Hinduism and Buddhism

2. Hinduism

3. History • One of the oldest religions in the world • Evolved from the beliefs of the people living in an area called the Indus Valley in what is now northwestern India and eastern Pakistan

5. Believed in one main god, Brahma (or Brahman), and many lesser gods. • A set of sayings and teachings called the Vedas inspired by Brahma • Contain hymns and chants

6. The Trimurti, the Hindu Trinity (from left ), Brahma, Vishnu, and Shiva, c. 1880.

7. Vishnu with his 10 avatars (incarnations): Fish, Tortoise, Boar, Man-Lion, Dwarf, Rāma with the Ax, King Rāma, Krishna, Buddha, and Kalkin. Painting from Jaipur, India, 19th century; in the Victoria and Albert Museum, London.

8. Society • Castes – classes • Brahmins – priests • Assisting people with worship and remembering and passing the sacred texts • Kshatriyas – soldiers and nobles • Vishyas - farmers, merchants, and craftspeople • Shudras – servants and laborers • Untouchables – people outside the other castes who did the dirtiest jobs

10. Society cont… • Hindus believe people were born into a certain caste because of their karma from a past life • Remained a member of that caste for life • Not allowed to associate with other castes • Around the 9th century BC the Brahmins became very powerful • Another group, hermits, emerged as religious leaders, who lived a simple life in the forest and devoted their life to meditation

11. Practices • Yoga • Intended to transform consciousness to free yourself from desire • Bhakti • Devotion and praise to deity • Cast is irrelevant • Reciting or singing name of deity • Caring for image • Wearing emblems or symbols representing deity • Forehead markings (Tilak )

12. Spread of Hinduism • In the 8th century Muslims migrated to India and after 500 years of conflict took over India • The British set up colonies and further diluted the Indian culture • Gandhi (1869-1949) – used the Hindu principle of non-violent resistance to eventually free India of British rule in 1947

14. Beleifs • Gurus, Hindu teachers • Share a common set of beliefs • When people die they come back to earth in a process called reincarnation • A person’s good or bad behavior, called karma, during their lifetime influences their status in their next life • As a reward for good behavior, they might be born into a higher caste • As a punishment for bad behavior, the could be reborn as an animal

16. Beliefs cont… • Samsara • the cycle of birth, death and rebirth • Ends when a person achieves moksha, the final stage of purity • Four stages of life • A student, householder, a forest hermit, and a wandering holy man • Most spend their adult life as a householder

17. Animals • Certain animals are sacred • Cow • Source of milk and cheese • Does work by pulling carts and plows • Dung is used as fuel • Not allowed to kill a cow • And most Hindus do not eat beef • Many do not eat meat of any kind

18. Concept of god • One creator-god – Brahma • Vishnu – the preserver • Believed to appear in ten forms, or avatars • Shiva – the destroyer • A god of opposites, responsible for destroying creation, but also for re-creating it • Special places can be gods and goddesses • The Ganges River is worshipped as a goddess • Believe the waters will wash away their sins and cure their illnesses

20. Sacred writings • Written over thousands of years • Oldest is in Sanskrit • Vedas – written between 2000 and 400 BC • Rig Veda • Collection of hymns about the Hindu gods and their worship • Upanishads – which talk about reincarnation and moksha

21. Symbols • Gods and goddesses in pictures and statues • Shown to have many faces and arms • Brahma has four faces to show he rules over the four points of the compass • Each rides a specific animal • The written form of the sacred sound of omor aum is used as a symbol • Represents the first sound heard in the world and also is found at the beginning of Hindu prayers

22. Worship/sacred space • Temple or special shrine in the home • Worship individually • Dharma, behaving in a good or ethical way, to be an act or worship • At home, offer prayers daily • Offerings such as food, flowers, incense, milk, water, or ghee (a form of butter) to a statue or picture • Some temples are in caves or mountains • Dedicated to a god or goddess

25. worship • Before a baby is born special prayers are offered • 10 or 12th day a naming ceremony • 5 or 6 months special prayers for first solid food • Another special ceremony for first haircut and ear piercing somewhere between one and five

26. Sacred thread ceremony • Hindu boy from one of the upper three castes • Age of 12 • After a series of ritual baths and prayers the boy is given a loop of thread • It is made up of three cords, each is made up of three twisted strands, symbolizing the interconnectedness of all existence. • The boy wears the cord over his left shoulder and under his right arm for the rest of his life.

28. Holidays/ festivals • Holi – February or March • Dussehra – September or October • Diwala – October or November

29. Membership • One of the world’s largest religions • Close to one billion Hindus in the world

30. Buddhism

31. History • Founded by Siddhartha Guatama (563-483 BC) who later became know as the Buddha • Lived in northern India (present-day Nepal) • Raised in luxury and his father wanted him to become king. • A fortune teller told his father that when the boy saw four people, a poor man, and old man, a corpse and a beggar, he would leave his family and not become king. • Siddhartha saw the four men and at 29 left his family to seek out an answer as to why there was so much suffering in the world.

32. History cont… • For six years he travelled • Meditating under and bodhi in a place called Bodh Gaya he became aware of the answer, which he called the Four Noble Truths and the Eightfold Path • He began to travel, preaching and teaching and became known as the Buddha (The Enlightened One) • Buddhism spread and took on different characteristics in different places.

35. beliefs • Four Noble Truths • There is suffering in the world. • Suffering is caused by human desires or greed. • Suffering can be stopped by stopping human desires. • This can be done by following the Eightfold Path.

36. The Eightfold path • Right understanding – understanding the teachings of the Buddha, especially the Four Noble Truths. • Right thoughts – thinking about the Four Noble Truths and how to put them into practice by being kind to others. • Right speech – speaking kindly toward and about others. • Right action – acting in ways that are kind and helpful.

37. The eightfold path • 5. Right livelihood – choosing a job that is not harmful to others. • 6. Right effort – concentrating on becoming a better person. • 7. Right mindfulness – being aware of thoughts in order to think kindly towards others. • 8. Right concentration – practicing meditation, which helps to enlighten the mind.

39. Beliefs • Completing the Eightfold Path is said to have freedom from all suffering which Buddhist call reading nirvana • Buddhists believe that when a person dies he or she returns to continue in another attempt to reach nirvana • The laws of karma, reincarnation and dharma apply

40. Concept of god • Buddha is not thought of as a god, but as a person who is enlightened • Any person can become a buddha

41. Sacred writings • For centuries passed down by monks through word of mouth • Written down in the first century, Pali Canon • Dhammapada

42. symbols • Buddha • Hands touching the ground symbolizes his enlightenment • Reclining position shows the Buddha in a stage near to nirvana • The Wheel of life, the wheel of the law • Circular nature of life, cycles of life and rebirth

43. Theravada Buddhism • Sri Lanka, Burma and southeastern Asia • Most traditional, individual responsibility • Most become monks or nuns to seek personal enlightenment • Shave heads and wear saffron as Buddha did, live in simplicity and meditation • Boys as young as 4 or 5 sent to a monastery

44. Mahayana Buddhism • 2nd century BC • India, spread to Tibet, China and Japan • Bodhisattvas, people who are ready to reach nirvana but chose to help others along the path to enlightenment

45. Comparison of the Theravadan & Mahayanan traditions:

46. Japan • In Japan- Pure Lane Buddhism • Zen Buddhism –centers on meditation, taken into Japan • Believe in enlightenment called satori, by physical labor or meditation cross-legged

47. Dalai Lama • Vajrayana Buddhism or Tantric Buddhism, Tibet – Dalai Lama, spiritual leader • When he dies his spirit enters a newborn boy who becomes the next Dalai Lama

50. Worship/sacred spaces • Practice in all aspects of life • Devotion is meditation • Temples and monasteries can be found everywhere • Shrines were built to house relics of Buddha or to house his writings • When visiting a temple • Might remove shoes • Sit before a statue of the Buddha • Recite a short verse • Leave an offering • meditate