Hindu
A myriad of spiritual paths crisscross over the terra firma of the Indian subcontinent. A few of these paths could be called unified systems; Buddhism, Jainism, and Sikhism, for example, are properly unified systems. The majority of these paths, however, can be called neither unified, nor systematic. The paths are simply too diverse to be legitimately categorized under one proper and unifying name. In spite of this fact, the Indian subcontinent’s colorful spiritual variety is usually lumped together under the name Hinduism. To make matters even more interesting, the name “Hinduism” wasn’t coined by indigenous people; it was originally derived from a term that was applied by foreigners and it was enforced in the nineteenth century by British colonial power. In spite of all of this, the everyday reality of the Indian subcontinent is built upon religious and spiritual diversity.
Sanatana Dharma is the name preferred today. Sanatana means “eternal” or “ageless” and implies that this way of being has always existed. Dharma is a term that points towards religion, duty, ethics, social well-being, and transcendental awakening. Sanatana Dharma is a spiritual expression built upon the understanding that the divine has countless faces. India, for example, hosts more than 330 million deities, according to Sanatana Dharma. The divine, for the Sanatana Dharma sojourner, is everywhere.
An introductory look at Hinduism – or any world religion for that matter – has to begin with the faith’s sacred literature.
The Vedas are the primary texts of Sanatana Dharma. The date of this sacred lit goes all the way back to 8000 – 6000 BCE, when the stories began being told orally. The Vedas are a collection of ancient and sacred that are comprised of four parts. The first and earliest are the Samhitas. The Samhitas are composed of hymns of praise and adoration to deities. The Brahmanas follow the Samhitas. The Brahmanas consist of directions and instructions for the ritual sacrifices to the deities. The third section of the Vedas is composed from the writings of those who withdrew to the forests to meditate. This compilation of forest writings is called Aranyakas, or “forest treatises.” The fourth and final section of the Vedas consists of teaching offered by spiritual masters who explain the transformational results that follow participation in the ritual process. this section of the Vedas is called the Upanishads.
The oldest of the Vedic scriptures – and among the oldest of the world’s scriptures – is the Rig Veda. The Rig Veda celebrates and seeks the blessings of the deities controlling the cosmos. These particular deities are called Devas. The major Devas include Indra (god of thunder and welcome rains), Agni (god of fire), Soma (god of sacred drink), and Ushas (god of the sky and celestial realms). The hymns directed to these deities are intensely devotional. A few examples of these hymns from the Rig Veda follow.
A Hymn to Agni (Fire)
How is Agni supposed to “bring the gods here”?
I call upon Agni, the one placed in front, the divine priest of the sacrifice, the invoker, the best bestower of gifts.
Agni is worthy of being called upon by seers past and present: may he bring the gods here!
Through Agni may one obtain wealth and prosperity day by day, splendid and abounding in heroic sons.
O Agni, the sacrifice and work of the sacrifice, which you encompass on all sides–that alone goes to the gods.
May Agni, the invoker who has the powers of a sage, true and most brilliant in glory, come here, a god with the gods!
Whatsoever favor you wish to do for a worshiper, Agni, that favor of yours surely comes true, O Angiras [member of a priestly family].
O Agni, you who gleam in the darkness, to you we come day by day, with devotion and bearing homage;
to you, ruler of the sacrifices, keeper of the Rta [cosmic law], brightly shining, growing in your abode.
So, be of easy access to us, Agni, as a father to his son. Abide with us for our well-being.
A Hymn to Indra (Sky)
What is Indra supposed to do for the weary, the weak, the needy priest (a Brahman, of course) and the singer?
The one who is first and possessed of wisdom when born; the god who strove to protect the gods with strength; the one before whose force the two worlds were afraid because of the greatness of his virility: he, O people, is Indra.
The one who made firm the quaking earth; the one who made fast the shaken mountains; the one who measured out wide the atmosphere; the one who propped up heaven: he, O people, is Indra.
The one who, having killed the serpent, released the seven rivers; the one who drove out the cows by undoing Vala, the one who generates fire between two rocks, victor in battles: he, O people, is Indra.
The one by whom all things here were made moving; the one who put in hiding the lowly Dasa color; the one who, like a gambler who has won the stake, has taken the enemy’s possessions: he, O people, is Indra.
The one who is the terrible one, about whom they ask “Where is he?” and they say of him, “He is not!” He diminished the enemy’s possessions like stakes [at a game]. Put your faith in him: he, O people, is Indra.
The one who is the impeller of the weary, of the weak, of the Brahman seeking aid, the singer; the one with goodly mustaches who is the helper of him who works the stones, who has pressed the Soma: he, O people, is Indra.
The one in whose control are horses, cows, villages, all chariots; the one who has caused to be born the sun, the dawn; the one who is the waters’ leader: he, O people, is Indra.
The one whom the two lines of battle, coming together, call upon separately, the nearer and the farther, both foes; even the two who have mounted the same chariot call upon him individually: he, O people, is Indra.
The one without whom people do not conquer; the one to whom, when fighting, they call for help; the one who is a match for everyone; the one who shakes the unshakable: he, O people, is Indra.
The Epics and Puranas
Hindu spiritual literature continued to be developed beyond the Vedas. The two major genres following the Vedas are called Epics and Puranas. The Epics and Puranas are long narratives and poems built upon heroic themes and visions. The Supreme is represented in anthropomorphic form in these works. Said differently, the one supreme God is expressed as various human-like deities because the Hindu resists assigning unalterable or rigidly fixed forms or names to Deity and ultimately believes that devotion and worship directed towards innumerable god-forms and god-names reaches the one supreme God. The one supreme God is usually called Vishnu. It is with this understanding, that the two great Hindu epics – Ramayana and Mahabharata – were created. What follows are small excerpts from these epic Hindu poems.
RAMAYANA : CANTO CXVI.: THE HERMIT’S SPEECH.
When Bharat took his homeward road
Still Rama in the wood abode:
But soon he marked the fear and care
That darkened all the hermits there.
For all who dwelt before the hill
Were sad with dread of coming ill:
Each holy brow was lined by thought,
And Rama’s side they often sought.
With gathering frowns the prince they eyed,
And then withdrew and talked aside.Then Raghu’s son with anxious breast
The leader of the saints addressed:
‘Can aught that I have done displease,
O reverend Sage, the devotees?
Why are their loving looks, O say,
Thus sadly changed or turned away?
Has Lakshman through his want of heed
Offended with unseemly deed!
Or is the gentle Sita, she
Who loved to honour you and me –
Is she the cause of this offence,
Failing in lowly reverence?’
Ramayana is an epic Hindu poem that focuses upon the eternal play between good and evil. The conflict between good and evil is symbolically addressed in the poem’s depictions of an incarnate Vishnu’s battles. Lessons concerning the virtuous life and ideal relationships are taught all along the way. Vishnu incarnates as Prince Rama, a young man of virtue, honor, and respect. Rama’s goal is to kill Ravana – a ten-headed demon king of Sri Lanka. While Rama is busy with Ravana, the mother of his step brother works out a scheme to get rid of Rama so that her son can become heir to the king’s throne. Somehow, Rama’s step-brother’s mother convinces the king to banish him to the forest for fourteen years. Rama, being the young man of honor that he is, goes without argument because a son’s duty is to obey his parents. So, Rama and his wife Sita leave for the the forest. Later, Sita is kidnapped by Ravana the ten-headed demon king. Rama and his half-brother Lakshman recruit monkeys and bears to help them form a small army that will rescue Sita from Ravana and his demons. Hanuman the Monkey becomes the hero of the story because he symbolizes faith and devotion. The bloody battle ends with a face off between Rama and Ravana. Rama liberates Sita after he send a sacred arrow blessed with Vedic mantras straight through the heart of Ravava.
THE MAHABHARATA: BOOK 18: SVARGAROHANIKA PARVA
“Yudhishthira said, ‘Ye deities, I do not see here Radha’s son of immeasurable prowess, as also my high-souled brothers, and Yudhamanyu and Uttamaujas, those great car-warriors that poured their bodies (as libations) on the fire of battle, those kings and princes that met with death for my sake in battle. Where are those great car-warriors that possessed the prowess of tigers? Have those foremost of men acquired this region? If those great car-warriors have obtained these regions, then only do you know, ye gods, that I shall reside here with those high-souled ones. If this auspicious and eternal region has not been acquired by those kings, then know, ye gods, that without those brothers and kinsmen of mine, I shall not live here. At the time of performing the water rites (after the battle), I heard my mother say, ‘Do thou offer oblations of water unto Karna.’ Since hearing those words of my mother, I am burning with grief. I grieve also incessantly at this, ye gods, that when I marked the resemblance between the feet of my mother and those of Karna of immeasurable soul, I did not immediately place myself under orders of that afflicter of hostile ranks. Ourselves joined with Karna, Shakra himself would have been unable to vanquish in battle. Wherever may that child of Surya be, I desire to see him. Alas, his relationship with us being unknown, I caused him to be slain by Arjuna. Bhima also of terrible prowess and dearer to me than my life-breaths, Arjuna too, resembling Indra himself, the twins also that resembled the Destroyer himself in prowess, I desire to behold. I wish to see the princess of Pancala, whose conduct was always righteous. I wish not to stay here. I tell you the truth. Ye foremost ones among the deities, what is Heaven to me if I am dissociated from my brothers? That is Heaven where those brothers of mine are. This, in my opinion, is not Heaven.’
“The gods said, ‘If thou longest to be there, go then, O son, without delay. At the command of the chief of the deities, we are ready to do what is agreeable to thee.’
The Mahabharata is the second epic Hindu poem. This story stresses the importance of family, duty, kingship, and the benefits of ascetic devotion and practice. There is also an very, very important underlying message in the Mahabharata. It is this: The happiness of others is essential to one’s own happiness. If there is an ethic to be drawn from the Mahabharata, it is that …
Also, it should be noted, that the mystical poem famously known as the Bhagavad-Gita (Song of the Supreme Exalted One) is the eighteenth book of the Mahabharata. The Bhagavad-Gita is an incredible story. Everyone should read it, if it hasn’t already been read!
Finally, there are the Puranas. There are in total eighteen Puranas; six are about Vishnu, six are about Brahma, and six are about Siva. The Puranas are something like scriptural commentary. They explain in deeper detail the abstract philosophical teachings found in the Vedas and Upanishads.
The Value of Sanatana Dharma Scared Literature
The collection of Sanatana Dharma sacred literature is obviously deep, and, as is the case with every other global religion, it is held as sacred by the Hindu people. Familiarization with the sacred literature of different faiths is a spiritual strength and benefit. In fact, it may just prove to be enlightening. The Hindu collection of writings is an excellent place to start nurturing this familiarization. Go, grow.
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