Teachings of World Religions pt. 1

Hinduism

I. Origin – approximately 1000 B.C. in India. No one person founded Hinduism. Began as a worship of animals (bulls, goats, elephants, tigers, zebus) by early Indians who lived along the Indus river. Hindu beliefs and practices began to be fully developed by 600 B.C.

II. Sacred Writings

A. Vedas – oldest Indian writings; mixture of religious hymns, history, and mythology; comparable to Homer’s Iliad and Odyssey
B. Upanishads – teachings of Indian holy men who led hermitlike lives to pursue wisdom, truth, and contentment. Involved abstaining from food, drink, and worldly pleasures and long hours of meditation. Upanishads means “to sit down in front of.” These holy men had disciples who sat down in front of them to learn their teachings by repeating what the holy men said in ceaseless incantations. The teachings of these holy men written down and collected as the Upanishads. These writings molded Hindu teachings.
C. Bhagavad Gita (Song of God) – most revered of Hindu writings. Summary of Hindu theology. Takes the multitude of holy men teachings found in the Upanishads and created one unified Hindu belief system. Illustration – Mix, heat, and eat soup; 6 different soups mixed together to make one soup.

III. Deities – One universal spirit (Brahman), a group of major gods (Vishnu, Shiva, Ganesha) and a multitude of lesser gods. Hindu religion has thousands of gods. Brahman and the other gods periodically make themselves known to humans through “avatars.” Put on a disguise, human or animal, to share knowledge, wisdom, or truth. Hindus belief Jesus to be an avatar of Vishnu. They believe the gods and leading teachers of other religions were avatars of Hindu gods.

IV. Teachings

Brahman animates all life (gods, humans, animals) and is present inside each individual. Think “the Force” from Star Wars. Upanishads – “There is a light that shines beyond all things on earth, beyond us all. This is the light that shines in our heart.” That light or soul is immortal and longs to be reunited with Brahman. Problem – Soul is trapped in an “ill-smelling” human body that desires worldly pleasures (food, drink, wealth, possessions, sex) more than Brahman.

Hinduism teaches reincarnation. One’s soul endures a near endless cycle of life, death, and rebirth in its return journey to Brahman. One’s actions/behavior (karma) in their present life determined how much closer or further away to Brahman they would be in their next life. If a person behaved well (good karma), they would be reincarnated into a higher status and a life of happiness and ease. If a person behaved badly (bad karma), they would be reincarnated into a lower status and a life of suffering. Salvation came when the cycle of death and rebirth ended and one’s soul was reunited with Brahman. Enjoy eternal bliss. This could only be achieved when one completely rejected their selfish desires and worldly pleasures. One did this by practicing ascetism and yoga which involves meditations, chanting, postures, and breathing exercises. The goal of both is to free one from worldly desires and concerns in order to gain greater wisdom and knowledge that will help you move closer to Brahman in the next life. Journey to Brahman involves multiple deaths and rebirths.

800 million-1 billion Hindus in the world. Mainly South Asia.

Buddhism

I. Origin – approximately 525 B.C. in India. Founded by Siddhartha Guatama. He was the son of a local Indian ruler near the Ganges River. A holy man told Guatama’s father that his son would grow up to be either the greatest king ever or the greatest teacher ever. To ensure that he would he become a king, Gauatama’s father shielded his son from the outside world. One day, Guatama escaped his father’s protection and saw the misery of the world. At that moment, he was determined to escape the sufferings of this world and find peace for his soul. He abandoned his high social position and chose to become a follower of Hinduism. Guatama fasted for weeks and practiced yoga for hours, meditating and assuming awkward and painful positions. He completely denied himself the comforts of life. However, Guatama failed to find release for his soul. Guatama sat under a tree for seven weeks to solve the riddle of suffering. At some point, Guatama experience a condition of extreme peace and his soul entered a flawless realm called Nirvana. At that point, Guatama became Buddha, the Enlightened One.

II. Sacred Writings

Buddhism has no single central text of sacred writings. The multitude of Buddhist sects have their own individual writings that they regard to be sacred.

III. Deities – None.

IV. Teachings

A person’s goal in this life is to seek Nirvana (extinction … specifically desire and ignorance and therefore suffering.) It is a place of contentment and wisdom and therefore tranquil. To attain Nirvana one must avoid extremes and practice moderation (the Middle Way.) Learn and accept the Four Noble Truths: 1) Suffering exists. 2) The cause of suffering is desire (craving for wealth, possessions, love, social standing, respect, the after life.) 3) The cause of suffering can be overcome. Pain will cease when desire is forsaken. 4) The path of release is obtained by following the Eightfold Way: right perspective of life, right intentions, right speech, right actions, right livelihood (occupation that does not do harm to living things), right effort, right mindfulness (being alert), and right meditation. Do all this and you will be able to escape the sorrowful cycle of human existence into the serenity of oblivion.

Buddhism teaches karma and reincarnation. Unlike Hinduism, a person does not need to endure the torture of near endless cycle of life, death, and rebirth. One can achieve Nirvana in one lifetime.

Approximately 500 million Buddhists in the world. Mainly China (Tibet) and Southeast Asia.

After learning about Hinduism and Buddhism, how can one witness to a Hindu or Buddhist? Get a Topical Bible. Find a subject that is mentioned prominently in Hindu/Buddhist theology and see what God has to say about that subject. Start a dialogue/conversation. Example: Hindu – Your sacred writings says, “There is a light that shines beyond all things on earth, beyond us all. This is the light that shines in our heart.” This is what my holy scriptures says about this light. John 1:1-17; John 8:12; John 9:5; John 12:36; Hindu and Buddhist – topic: karma/struggling with the desires of human flesh. Romans chapters 6-10. Reincarnation – Hebrews 9:27