Religion in India Chapter 8 Section 1 By: Annalisa Szymanski, Brett Perkins and Taylor Nilsson B

Religious Traditions Almost all Indian religions worship one superpower or God, some worship more than one God. Religious customs and traditions vary Practices are diverse, but there are some common beliefs. T

Overview of Religions Most of the Indian religion spreading has gone through southeast and East Asia; recently it has spread through to Europe and North America Many world religions have originated in India and other religions were traced back to be bread in India There is a large diversity in Indian religions, which creates a rich culture. All religious beliefs stand equal before the law, but India still faces issues with competing political parties and what religion group should be the most powerful. B

Religions in India The three religions of Hinduism, Buddhism and Jainism were developed in India in ancient times and are considered to have molded the Indian philosophy as we understand it today. Hinduism is a polytheism religion that developed in India about 5000 years ago and is one of the oldest religions in the world. Today, about 80 percent of the Indian population practices Hinduism. Although Jainism and Buddhism was popular in India in ancient times, less than 1% of the population follow those religions today. A

RELIGION IN INDIA PIE GRAPH 81.5% Hindu 12.3% Islam ALL OTHERS 2% 2.33% Christianity Sikhism 2% A

Basic Hindu Beliefs Hinduism is a world religion with no founder and has no formal church Hinduism is traced back to Aryan beliefs and practices, which have been changing over thousands of years Indian Culture is shaped and unified around Hinduism T

Sacred Texts Sacred Texts are documents of Hindu beliefs Two important Hindu texts: – The Vedas composed of eternal truths that were revealed to the wise men – The Upanishads helped explain The Vedas ideas Law codes, epics & long narrative poems were ways Hindus wrote their ideas – Such poems as The Ramayana and The Mahabharata are the two most famous Hindu epics B

The Ramayana Valmiki was first to write it around 300 BCE and much has been added over the years. Rama, based off of God Vishnu, wife is abducted by Ravana, the demon king. Rama goes into the forest and encounters many adventures he has to face Helps Rama deal with dharma A

Brahman In Hinduism thousands of gods are worshiped Brahman is a single supreme force that all gods are part of Brahman is nameless, formless, and unlimited, and many Hindus believe it is hard for many to understand T

Hinduism There are three main gods of Hinduism. These gods each have his own family, and take many forms. – Brahma “the creator” – Vishnu “the preserver” – Siva “the destroyer” Different sects (religious groups) these gods Hindus believe in the unity of all life An atman is an essential self or a universal soul Hindus believe that all of nature is part of the same universal soul Hindus are nonviolent, and respect nature T

Reincarnation Moksha-The true goal in a Hindus life- to believe in feeling the soul from the body so that the soul can unite with Brahman Moksha cannot be achieved in ones life time Hindus believe people undergo reincarnation, the rebirth of soul in various forms. These forms can be from a God to a flower to a snake. All forms are temporary. B

Karma The law of Karma governs the cycle of death & rebirth until the soul reaches union with Brahman Karma- a law that holds every deed (mental or physical) in life and affects ones fate in a future life. – Every good dead will end in happiness – Every bad deed ends in sorrow  A

Hinduism Caste System The caste system was developed in ancient times from 4 social classes of the Aryans The caste system set up a strict social and religious order When one was born into a caste they would stay in the caste for life and could only marry one in that caste B

Caste system and Karma Hindus think that Karma corresponds with the caste system – If one has done bad then they would be in the lower caste – If one was good they would be in the higher caste- closer to moksha (the true goal) T

Caste Duties Each caste has its own dharma (duties and obligations) – Dharma is the obedience to caste rules and moral laws If ones carries out their duties they can have a hope in their next life to move up in the caste A

Buddhism By 600 B.C the Brahman Caste had become powerful and claimed they could perform the carried rituals of Hinduism People, such as Siddhartha Gautama, tried to lower the priests power T

Gautama’s Enlightenment Gautama’s Story – Son of local ruler, enjoyed life of luxury, not noticing the real human world – When Gautama went beyond the palace walls, he discovered life was full of suffering and misery – He set out on a 6 year journey to find the cause of misery – One day he sat in meditation under a sacred tree and understood the cause of suffering and the cure – From then on he was then known as Buddha, or also as the “Enlightened One” T

The Buddha’s teachings The Buddha spent the rest of his life teaching others what he learned and called his ideas the Four Nobel Truths The Four Nobel Truths: – Suffering is universal- every body suffers from pain, sickness, or death – The cause of suffering is desire-pleasure causes suffering, because pleasure must end – The only way to end suffering is to crush desire-if people give up desire they may reach a freedom from the cycle of birth or death, known as nirvana – The way to end desire is to follow the Noble Eightfold Path (the guide to right conduct) A

Buddha and Hinduism The Buddha thought of himself as a Hindu (he believed in reincarnation, karma) Although Buddha was Hindu he denied the existence of any gods, thought priests were not necessary, and rejected the caste system Instead Hindus had to find nirvana by following the Noble Eightfold Path B

Spread of Buddhism Many people followed the Buddha – He set up monasteries and convents where people could devote themselves to his Noble Eightfold Path After Buddha died, his ideas were recorded in The Three Baskets of Wisdom Buddhist missionaries carried Buddha's ideas across Asia Hinduism absorbed many Buddhist ideas also B

Difference in Buddha figures Indian Buddha Chinese Buddha (laughing Buddha) Chinese Monk Budai Gautama A

Two Sects of Buddhism Theravada Buddhism – Stressed the monastic life & way to get nirvana – They thought of Buddha as a teacher, not a God Mahayana Buddhism – Worshiped Buddha as a God T

Other Religious Traditions Jainism was a religion that developed out of efforts to reform Hinduism – Mahavira was the founder of Jainism who lived during Buddha’s time, and rejected the power of the Brahmans, but included the idea of reincarnation – Jainists believe in ahimsa, or nonviolence to any living creature, therefore all Jainists are vegetarians Christian communities developed along with Islam communities In 1500 Sikhism developed, as a combination of Hinduism and Islam B

SYMBOL OF JAINISM -The hand symbolizes “do not be afraid” or “stop before violence occurs” -The circle in the center represents reincarnation -The word in the middle of the circle, is ahimsa -The 24 spokes in the circle represent the 24 enlighteners of Jainism A