Sacred Texts
The text that is the last part of the Vedas.
What are the Upanishads?
A common way of engaging with the gods by perhaps decorating a murti or bathing a murti
What is puja?
Not for World Religion class
What does PIE stand for and how many people in the world today speak a language related to it today?
Proto Indo European
1/2 of the world's population
The god associated with Varanasi
Shiva
Name two avatars of Siva (For WORLD RELIGION)
Define avatar and give an example. (For Eastern and Western Civilization)
The linga (phallus) and the Nataraj (dancing Shiva)
How would you connect the following connection to the words "Monism" and "Polytheism"?
This is my lower nature;
But beyond this, I have another
Higher nature; the life
That sustains all beings in the world
Know that it is the womb
From which all beings arise;
The universe is born within me,
And within me will be destroyed.
Higher Nature that contains the Trimurti. Brahman creates all, is all (Monism)
Polytheism. Trimurti-- Brahma (creator), Vishnu (sustainer), Shiva (destroyer)
To be seen and seeing...
Darshan
Not for World Religion
According to the film How Steppe Ancestry Changed the World how did those IE residing on the steppes take existing technology and find new ways to use them in order to adapt to their needs?
they attached wheels to larger wagons, which allowed them to travel longer distances
adapted wheels to lighter war chariots to make them more effective in battle
took the domestication of horses further to suit their pastoral lifestyle and ability to travel further and to use during warfare
The names of three gods and their roles. What is that trinity of gods called?
Trimurti--Brahma (creator), Vishnu (preserver), and Shiva (destroyer)
Is Hinduism a world-renouncing religion?
No. While in the sacred texts the world is illusory (maya) and something one wants to realize is an obstacle in the path to moksha, Hinduism also takes into consideration the life we live and the stage of life we are in. In each of those stages we realize different things. A Householder for instance is encouraged to engage in worldly activities like getting married, having children, having a job etc. One can achieve stages that focus on learning or devotion in the same life as being a householder or in another reincarnation. We can not all be monks or gurus!
Name three Hindu concepts that the following text relates to and connect the concepts to specific words in the text.
“According as [the self] acts and according as it behaves, so it becomes: by doing good it becomes good, and by doing evil it becomes evil. It becomes virtuous through virtuous action, and evil through evil action… As is its desire, so is its resolution; and as is its resolution, so is its deed; and whatever deed it does, that it reaps.”
Karma--doing good, it becomes good...being virtuous...
Dharma--Deeds according to station in life or caste
Samsara--whatever deed it does, that it reaps...reincarnation depends on our karma related to dharma
How does one engage with a specific sacred site?
pilgrimage
puja--such as in Varanasi at a Shiva shrine or bathing in the Ganges, which represents the Goddess Ganga
dying in Varanasi, which according to popular religion leads to escaping the wheel of samsara and reincarnation
buying an object from the shrine to take back with you to receive some blessing or to remember the visit
Not for World Religion Class
What are three theories about how Indo-Europeans or Aryans migrated into the Indian subcontinent?
Aryan Invasion Theory--Violent and relatively quick invasion because they were strong and well built--primarily and male invasion--related to this theory is that they had a technological advantage (British colonialist theory)--3000 years ago a warrior wave driving away previous culture
Indigenous Aryanism--Those who say Aryan people already lived in India when other IE migrated into India and so those others moving in did not change much (Hindu nationalist theory)
More gradual migration over hundreds and hundreds of years
Who are the parents of the elephant-headed god and his name?
What is Ganesha known for?
Hindu and Parvati. Ganesha
A protector against all obstacles
How has the concept of varnas or castes changed over time
Aryans introduced four castes as a hierarchical system
Brahmins--priestly class
Kshatriyas--warriors or rulers
Vaishyas--merchants
Shudras--workers
As Indo-Europeans blended with the folk in India the varna system became much more complex and the untouchable caste was introduced which prevented this underclass from touching or socializing with the "pure" castes
Untouchables as an underclass was made illegal in the early 1950s although some of these ideas persist especially in the rural areas--the untouchables just become the lowest caste of the official varna system
In modern times while you are born and die in the same caste, because of more widespread education and numbers of jobs especially in urban areas people have more social and economic mobility
What three concepts in Hinduism can you relate to the following text. Prove with words from the text.
As a lump of salt thrown in water dissolves and cannot be taken out again,
though wherever we taste the water it is salty,
even so, beloved, the separate self dissolves in the sea of pure consciousness, infinite and immortal.
Separateness arises from identifying the Self with the body, which is made up of the elements,
which this physical identification dissolves, there can be no more separate self.
This is what I want to tell you, beloved.
Atman's relationship to Brahman--separate until we realize that they are one and indivisible. A lump of salt dissolves in the water cannot be taken out again
Maya--identifying Self with the body is what prevents us from realizing Brahman. The body has senses and passions, etc
Brahman is pure, infinite and immortal
What is a Hindu's understanding of the Ganges river that might be hard for someone who is non Hindu American for instance
What is bathing in and drinking the water of the river for curative purposes in a river where dead bodies are also bathed after death
The power of faith
Not for World Religion Class
What five ways does the film An Aryan Invasion? Indo-European Migration try to prove a slower migration of Aryans into India and disprove the Aryan Invasion Theory?
I. Philology--examining Vedic texts
II. Genetics--looking at IE genetic links in India
III. Linguistic Analysis--looking at loan words etc.
IV. Archaeology--pottery etc.
Only one site shows violent conquest...
V. Religion and Rituals
Name the goddess consorts of two different Hindu gods and a story related to one of them
QUESTION NOT FOR EASTERN AND WESTERN CIVILIZATION
Parvati consort of Siva who creates a son from the oils in her bath to protect her privacy.
Kali consort of or female version of Siva. Goddess of destruction and renewal. She is scary looking with garlands of heads and arms and a bowl of blood. Her energy is so powerful that she could burn up the world. Siva lies down below her feet to calm her down.
Define murti and puja
Puja: The act of showing reverence to a god, a spirit, or another aspect of the divine through invocations, prayers, songs, and rituals, practices. An essential part of puja is making a spiritual connection with the divine. Most often that contact is facilitated through an object: an element of nature, a sculpture, a vessel, a painting, or a print (murti).
Name three concepts in Hinduism that the following passage is talking about. Be specific about which words or passages point to that concept.
When the mind is detached from the senses
One reaches the summit of consciousness.
Mastery of the mind leads to wisdom.
Practice meditation. Stop all vain talk.
The highest state is beyond reach of thought,
For it lies beyond all duality.
Maya--the senses, duality
Moksha--different paths to reaching moksha: listening to teachers and sages, meditation and yogaKarma/Dharma--live a good life, don't build bad karma--"vain talk"
Brahman--beyond all duality
What are some of the different paths that one could take in the attempt to reach moksha or to move to a different and better reincarnation?
Through knowledge and learning from a guru
Through the practice of devotion to a particular deity, which could include things like yoga or meditation
Through doing good works
By living a good life--following ones dharma, the expectations of one's caste, building good karma
Name four objects, or vehicles or mudras or a combination from these three of either Vishnu or Shiva and what they symbolize in the iconography of the god
QUESTION IS NOT FOR EASTERN AND WESTERN CIVILIZATION
See pictures on the topic page for answers
Describe and explain the relationship between the terms karma, dharma, samsara and moksha.
Dharma in the largest sense describes the order of the universe that we all fit into. But we each have our individual dharma or sacred duty that is determined by our caste, job choice, or stage in life (householder for instance). By fufilling that sacred duty to the best of our ability while following Hindu ethics we gather good karma. If we don't do our sacred duty we build up bad karma. The more good karma one has the more likely one is going to reborn/reincarnated into a better body. Those who achieve a human body especially in the priestly or warrior caste have the possibility of being freed from samsara or the cycle of reincarnation and achieving moksha.