Interesting Facts
The ultimate purpose and goal for a Hindu’s religious and spiritual practice is to attain [fill in the blank]
What is Moksha
What was the name of the Avatar in the Mahabharata? For bonus points, what does an Avatar mean?
What is Krishna (one of the Avatars in Hinduism). Avatar is a Sanskrit term that means "Descent". God descends and takes human form to teach human beings the path of Righteousness.
Beginning between 4500 and 5000 BCE, Hinduism originated in the Indus River Valley, which is located in these two countries.
What is "Pakistan" and "North West India"
This word is used to describe the Hindu recognition of the atman (divine self, life principle, consciousness) to be immortal and evolving through the experience of varied lives in a process wherein it regenerates into different physical bodies through cycles of birth and death.
What is "Reincarnation"
The term Sanatana Dharma translates to this meaning in English.
What is "Eternal Path of Righteousness"
The color of many Hindu Gods that represent the limitlessness of Divinity
What is Blue
These two words are titles given to an individual who has made a lifetime commitment to monkhood.
What is Swami *(male) or Swamini *(female)
This word comes from the Sanskrit word "sindhu", which means "river". The Persians mispronounced the word to refer to the land around the Indus River... and the mispronunciation stuck around.
What is "Hindu"
This term refers to the liberation or release from the cycle of death and rebirth. It is also a concept shared with other religious groups such as the Buddhists, Jains, and Sikhs.
What is "Moksha"
In Hindu, this symbol is a decorative mark or piece of jewelry worn on the forehead typically between the eyebrows. It may be a sign of religious devotion, fashion, wisdom or used for medicinal application. It is also applied to newly married women to symbolize their role as the family's protector.
What is the "Bindi"
This word is used to describe the concept in Hinduism that refers to the Ultimate Reality, the Supreme Being, and the Divine Consciousness. It is considered the highest universal principle and the true essence of all existence.
What is "Brahman"
One who not only has deep knowledge that can lead to Moksha (liberation or enlightenment)
What is a Spiritual Teacher or Guru
Shaivas, Shaktas, Vaishnavas, and Smartas are the four words used to describe the _____.
the four major "denominations" or "deity traditions"
The title is the name for the collection of ancient Sanskrit texts that outline the moral principles and codes of conduct for Hindus.
What is the "Dharma-Shastras" or "Dharmasastras"
This Hindu practice originated in northern India over 5000 years ago, but its practice is held by many Hindu and non-Hindu practitioners worldwide. It also translates to the word "Union" in English.
What is "Yoga" . Yoga is aimed at helping the practitioner evolve to finally be united with God.
Due to the fundamental belief in ahimsa (non-harming), in India, more than 30% of all Hindus, Buddhists, Jains, and Sikhs are . . .
What is "vegetarian"
Born into a Hindu family, this biochemist and Nobel prize winner is known for his research that showed the order of nucleotides in nucleic acids, which carry the genetic code of the cell and control the cell's synthesis of proteins. A scholarship called the "Khorana Program" was created in his name in by the India's Government Department of Biotechnology and at the University of Wisconsin in the U.S.
Who is "Har Gobind Khorana"
Contrary to popular perceptions that Hinduism is a mystical religion exclusively concerned with transcendental concepts of spiritual practice, Hinduism has been a wellspring of this word which is defined as "the systematic study of the structure and behavior of the physical and natural world through observation experimentation, and the testing of theories..."
What is "science" or "scientific thought"
A multi-layered term and its meaning depends on context. Broadly, it is the mode of conduct for an individual that is most conducive to spiritual growth.
What is "Dharma"
This ancient symbol and holy image in Hindu culture means "conducive to well-being." It can be right/clockwise facing to represent the sun, prosperity and good luck, or left facing, symbolizing night and the tantric aspects of Kali.
What is a "swastika"
To be come this type of practitioner of the Hindu faith, an individual may have to renounce all duties and obligations of family life, including wealth, personal property, social status, marriage and family ties.
What is A "Swami/Swamini"
Often regarded as the greatest mathematician of all time, this Hindu practitioner had almost no formal training in pure mathematics but made substantial contributions to mathematical analysis, number theory, infinite series, and continued fractions, including solutions to mathematical problems then considered unsolvable.
What is "Srinivasa Ramanujan Aiyangar"
This word is defined as "the universal law of cause and effect."
What is "Karma"
Many Hindus follow set, obligatory guidelines for frequency and length while others may be more fluid and individualized in this practice.
What is "prayer"
This title fulfills an essential role in Hindu society and serve as the spiritual and religious leader and minister of his or her Hindu temple or organization.
What is a "Swami"