What is Hinduism? A Personal View

http://www.clubmobile.org/trips/patan_lingam.html


http://picasaweb.google.c om/eperov/Durbar/photo#5116550748411595666

These pix tell us why Lord Siva is also known as the god of fertility.

Re: # 204
Now given the choice, every Hindu choses, will refuse to follow One Straight Path to One Absolute God, but instead will chose the paths that lead them astray
Ans: The matter is not like that. Every one will have some form of supreme god. But that may differ from person to person. For Sivaities, Lord Shiva and for Vaisnabhs, lord Vishnu is the ultimate God. There are difference of opinion, but people don't resort to violence. Rather respect other's opinion.
The nice example is West Bengal and Orissa. People of West Bengal mostly prays Goddess Kali or one of it's forms, where as for Oriya people Lord Jagganatha is supreme god. Now, if they have started Jihad/Crusade for this then there would not have both of these cultures alive.
This is the stark difference between Indian culture and Islam or Roman Catholicism. To respect others and learn from others, is civilisation.
Astray!!! What astray? Are people directionless? Absolutely no. India is functioning far better than any other christian/moslem country, though it has more than 30 dominant culture/religious groups.

Re: # 206
Why is Shivalingam the top Valentine's Day gift in Bangalore?
Ans: This is new to me. Can you please provide the source? I am staying in Bangalore since 2001.

The word Hindu attributed to sub continental people is somewhat misleading. The original people were Arians, Nagas and Draver. Then over 500 invaders brought different races to produce a complete mongrels race. The word Hindu came from Arabic. Muhammad's aunt name was Hinda. But a son from his wife's former marriage was named Hindu. Some people say it means black which is not correct. In Arabic Aswad (hijrey aswad or black stone) or Sudan derived from black. The river Sindu which was land of Irfan was misnamed by Arabs as Hindu as they were used to this name. The word is misnomer but in common use - to stay around till the galaxy spirals into Nothing. Hinduism as a religion or myth is in fact a common human heritage which depicts the evolutionary stage of primate consciousness. It is a hotch potch of beliefs where you can create your own god. Everything is revered. It leads to a lot of clumsiness in this competing world. However, the values in Hinduism which are based on respect for elders, joint family system and conservation are great. On the negative side the worship of rats leads to plague not to speak of score of other things. That is why a lot more religions outgrew from it and still has a great potential for missionaries to taper this raw resource

Urstruly#204:

Most, not all, Hindus may believe in an Absolute God, which they may call by several names but their God is not jealous and does not mind them worshipping other deities, in other words, the Hindu God has no problem with 'shirk'.

"Just like the Third Commandment of Moses (pbuh) every Hindu is forbidden to make the idols or "likeness" of Him yet Hindu will do it knowingly:

This is new to me. Where did you read that a Hindu is forbidden to make idols or likeness of Him?

NangaPir:

Thanks for adding some new bits of information, esp. regarding the use of Hind in Arabia.

Re: # 213 Dost

"This is new to me. Where did you read that a Hindu is forbidden to make idols or likeness of Him? "

I can quote many many more references but the following should suffice:

"O friends, do not worship anybody but Him, the Divine One. Praise Him alone."

[Rigveda 8:1:1]

"There is no image of Him."
[Yajurveda 32:3]

"Lead us to the good path and remove the sin that makes us stray and wander."

[Yajurveda 40:16]

"He is bodyless and pure."
[Yajurveda 40:8]

"There is no image of Him."
[Yajurveda 32:3]

"Of Him there are neither parents nor lord."
[Svetasvatara Upanishad 6:9]

"He is One only without a second."
[Chandogya Upanishad 6:2:1]

"His form is not to be seen; no one sees Him with the eye."
[Svetasvatara Upanishad 4:20]

Re: # 213 Dost

As far as your comment regarding the "jealous god" is concerned, I hope you were only joking. It is not our Lord who gets jealous but He wants us to be jealous. This is a delicate point. If you in a true love with your beloved, it is you who will get jealous if someone tries to tell you that there is another one who is better than your beloved. This is the test of your devotion.

Re: # 212
"The original people were Arians, Nagas and Draver."

History of South Asian region is very old as all the historians agree. So 'original' 'Aboriginal' or 'Indegenous' were not Aryan but linguistically they were Autro-Asiatic, Munda, Dravidians and then Aryans.

One more thing, if Sind 'becomes' 'hind' (linguistic change)then why "Shah" "Salam" "Sultan" and "Satan" did not change to "Hah" "Halam" "Hultan" and "Hatan"? Just curious to know.

#207
If The Creator can be worshipped then what is wrong in worshipping The Instrument that is used to create?
Regards

Re: # 212
On the negative side the worship of rats leads to plague not to speak of score of other things.

Ans: The pet animals in the temple are maintained in healthy state. Temple animal is so far not a source of any epidemic. Please enlighten me, if you know of such circumstance.

Re: # 215
Idol worshipping was basically part local/dravidian culture and has started post vedic era.
The nice example of the mixture of both Vedic and post vedic culture is pujas performed in most of the regions include both "HOMA- burning fire and offering" as well as creating MURTI and prasing in front of the MURTY.

Nkg,

(The pet animals in the temple are maintained in healthy state. )

I presume you are referring to the rats at Karni Mata mandir in Deshnkok, Rajasthan?

Regards

Proly, Upanishads represent only one of the schools of thought. Heterodoxy has been the forte of India. As DM rightly showed that Hinduism encompasses varying schools of thought including agnostic and atheist ideas.

Urstruly#215:

Rig Veda praises Indra and other gods and has invocations to them. Upnashidas, also known as vedanta or the end of vedas, do describe God as formless but you have not provided any example of any scripture banning idol worship. At the same time, you would be right if you said that no Hindu mandir has any idols of Om, Ishwar. Bhagwan, Parmeshwar or any other name by which the absolute is known in the Hindu literature.

You have provided an intersting definition of jealousy. If I understand you correctly, God does not hate me for shirk but you are supposed to hate me for doing so because my worshipping any other god is unacceptable to you. Am I correct?

[Are you in Pakistan these days?]

Re: # 223

DMji,
"Formless" God or any deity can NEVER be even "thought" of , let alone some body try to ascribe human like 'intentions, , 'motives' , ''jealosies' and other predicates to it.
That is why Islamic notion of a "formless" God is a CONTRADICTION!!!
"Formless" God can even NOT be 'worshipped' because it has no predicates - it can only be negated as it is rightly done in Upanishads -neti neti'!!!
Islam has got it ALL wrong- it is this mis-contruel of the nature of formless brahman that segregates the ASURA view from the Sura view!!! This is clear in Chandogya-Upanishad where even the Asuras mistook the formless Brahman for something it is not -same with Islam - it ascribes all human qualities of jealousy, hatred etc. to that "formless" Allah!!

QED!