"The Hindu religion is the only one of the world's great faiths dedicated to the idea that the Cosmos itself undergoes an immense, indeed an infinite, number of deaths and rebirths. It is the only religion in which the time scales correspond to those of modern scientific cosmology." - Carl Sagan
The
oldest religion in the world that is still widely practiced is
Sanātana Dharma, or what is commonly referred to as Hinduism. A
diverse and varied tradition, Hinduism is the dominant religion of
India, with roughly eighty percent of the Indian population, and
fifteen percent of the world population at large identifying as
Hindus.
The
origins of Hinduism have been traced back by historians to at least
2500 BCE, and may go back even further. There is archaeological
evidence of Hindu practices such as yoga, meditation, and veneration
of Hindu gods and goddesses going back thousands of years earlier. A
religion that has persisted for so long, while still retaining such
large numbers of adherents, should be of interest to any seeker of
ancient knowledge of the spirit.
Hinduism
is a fairly new term used to denote the indigenous spiritual
traditions of the peoples of the Indian subcontinent. It is a
scholarly invention used to classify a vast amount of different, and
sometimes seemingly contradictory beliefs. The term used for
thousands of years before the invention of "Hinduism" was
Sanātana Dharma. Sanātana Dharma is Sanskrit for "eternal
truth," or "eternal way." The term Hinduism comes from
a mispronunciation of "Indus," as the religion of Hinduism
has its origins "beyond the Indus Valley." "Hindu"
is just another way of saying "Indus."
This
article is not meant to explain or outline the beliefs of Hinduism in
any way. There are a number of articles on the Internet that already
do that, many of which I find useful and accurate, which I have
listed below. Rather, this article is meant to explain the
fundamental truths within Hindu teachings that are universal and can
apply to any part of the world. Many Hindu teachings correlate quite
well with other world religions and science. Hence, I feel that
Hinduism can answer a lot of questions about life and existence that
are currently unanswered in the minds of many.
Below
are three links to check out for those interested.
*
https://www.hinduismtoday.com/modules/wfchannel/index.php?wfc_cid=5
An introduction to Hinduism.
*
https://www.hinduismtoday.com/modules/wfchannel/index.php?wfc_cid=19
The so-called "Nine Core Beliefs" that define Hinduism.
*
http://sanskrit.org/hindu-primer/ For a deeper study of Hinduism,
there is a lot of information provided here.
Hinduism
developed as a synthesis between the practices of the Indo-Aryans,
who practiced the Proto-Indo-European religion, and the Dravidians,
who practiced their indigenous folk religion. Hinduism came from the
influence of these two traditions. Much of the core teachings of
Hinduism are found in its sacred historical texts, the Vedas, which
are the oldest written works of spirituality known to man.
The
Vedas are four books which consist of hymns that discuss the nature
of the universe, the meaning of life, rites of worship, and mystical
practices among other things. A part of the Vedas are the Upanishads,
which are deeply mystical and esoteric texts that require deep study
to understand.
A
lot of the ideas presented in the Vedas are of Indo-European origin,
and are therefore related to Zoroastrianism, which may have developed
contemporaneously with Hinduism, as well as European pagan
traditions, such as Germanic and Greco-Roman paganism.
However,
a lot of ideas in Hinduism are unique to the tradition, such as the
Hindu view of God. In Hinduism, there is one God, called Brahma.
However, he manifests himself in different forms. In its purest
essence, God is Nirguna Brahman (formless), however, this does not
mean God cannot be Saguna Brahman (God with form).
Deities
such as Brahma, Vishnu, and Shiva are all forms of the same God
(Brahman). As a matter of fact, there are approximately three-hundred
thirty million (330,000,000) deities venerated and worshiped in
India, all of which are believed to be forms of one Ultimate Reality.
Or,
the cyclical nature of creation, with Brahma as the creator of the
universe, Vishnu as its preserver, and Shiva as its destroyer. Along
with this, Hinduism has a rich cosmology with vast detail, and
various different interpretations. Some of these aspects have been
adopted by other religions, such as, for example, Zoroastrianism and
Buddhism.
For
a religion that most think of as confined to India, Hindu ideas are
widespread. Hinduism was previously the dominant religion in
modern-day Pakistan, Tibet, and Bangladesh. Traces of Hindu culture
can be found in Thailand, a predominantly Theravada Buddhist country,
though it is the last country where worship of the Hindu god Brahma
is still prevalent, and Japan, where Hindu deities such as Ganesha
and Saraswati can be seen in Buddhist temples.
Many
of these Hindu deities are seen as equivalent with or identical to
other Indo-European deities. For instance, Indra is seen as
equivalent to the Germanic god Óðinn, and the Roman god Jupiter.
This is perhaps the clearest example of a unified origin between
Hindu and European deities.
My
reason for pointing out this information is to show the universal
nature of Hinduism, as a system of beliefs that have migrated to
different parts of the world. Also, there is a certain amount of
interconnection between Hinduism and other native traditions, such as
the aforementioned Zoroastrianism and European paganism. A common
belief among Hindus is that Sanātana Dharma is the original religion
of mankind, and as time went by, these beliefs were altered and
adjusted. The archaeological record points to this in some ways, by
showing how far back Hinduism extends.
It
is common knowledge that Jainism and Buddhism both originate from
Hinduism. Both are native religions to the Indian subcontinent.
However, some have even speculated that Western religions such as
Christianity may also have significant Hindu influence. This is
extremely prevalent in the mystical and Gnostic sects of early
Christianity.
In
the twentieth-century, many philosophers and writers began
hypothesizing the idea of a perennial philosophy, or a primordial
tradition that existed long ago in the past, from which all religions
splintered, and that its teachings may be preserved within the
religions practiced today. The search for this perennial wisdom,
first promoted by Frenchman René Guénon and later expanded upon by
Italian esotericist Julius Evola, has led many to study Hinduism, a
religion which directly claims to hold this primordial wisdom within
its teachings.
These
thinkers, associated with the thus named Traditionalist School, have
developed a keen interest in Hinduism and other ancient traditions in
search of sacred, archaic wisdom, perhaps lost to the ages. I am of
the belief that this lost wisdom lies within the pages of the Vedas
and the Upanishads, as well as the Bhagavad Gita.
The
fact that we are talking about a living, breathing tradition that is
active today with millions of adherents is only more compelling. A
source for attaining knowledge of the divine is at our fingertips. My
premise here is to expel this knowledge unto the masses who are
willing to see, and hopefully help to contribute an understanding of
what Hinduism is.
I
think anyone interested in understanding Indo-European spirituality
must look at Hinduism as a guideline. When I look at indigenous
religions, ranging from European paganism to Native American
mythologies, I see
Sanātana
Dharma.
The ancient sages of the Indian subcontinent are not the only ones
endowed with this divine knowledge, and therefore, anyone practicing
these traditions will see their own religion in Hinduism, if they
give it the proper attention.
