| 00 | | 00 |
| | Principles
and Practice of Hindu Religion | | Hindu
Heritage Study Program
| Chapter
- VI : The
Daily Practice of the Faith | An
Applied Method of Practice of the Agamas and the
Vedas to lead a Pious and Peaceful Way of Life |
| |
| \ | | |
| \ | | |
| Lesson
- 83 : | Evolution
of Beliefs and Spirit of Hinduism Development
of Cultural Practice in the Community | Please
see below for
Lesson - 84 |
| |
| \ | | |
| \ | | |
| | The
cultural practice of the community developed over the generations by adopting
to the local area and the practices of various tribes they mixed with, as the
groups moved from one place to the other. There was significant social interaction
and acceptance of one another's belief with tolerance. There were many wars and
imposition of some habits also, which at times led to modification of the basic
cultural practice to adapt to other community habits and faith. Vedic teachings
were the main principle on which all these practices developed. The variations
were very small and were based only on the interpretations of the teachings and
the educational levels of the community. The applied form of the teachings led
to the practice of the Bhakthi path of worship based on the Agamas and worship
in the Temples and at home to a Deity in a Form. Most of these forms of rituals
and practice of worship were generally similar, based on many different manifestations
of God as in various Puanas and Ithihasas, using the same recitations of Vedas
and Agamas.
| |
Hinduism
offered the six Dharsanas and developed the four major divisions
of the faith for worship, namely, Saivam, Vaishnavam, Saktham and Smartham.
They explain the three gunas, Sathva, Rajas and Tamas, the four
purusharthas, dharma, artha, kaama and moksha. The theories
of varna-ashrama dharma, karma and rebirth guide the individual in their life,
far beyond the usual do's and don'ts given by most other faiths. The Vedantha
and Bhakthi concept and the four Yogas, Karma, Raja, Bhakthi and Jñana
Yogas, define the pathway as a simple way both for religious practice and
also for every activity of life. They clearly establish the ethics and practice
for the common man, the elite and the illiterate alike. Each family and each community
had a different form of God or one of their manifestations. Most of the community
chose one form of worship or other and followed slightly different rules of life
and ethics for each, according to Dharma Sasthra. As the community was very tolerant
for opinion of other people and their freedom, as a respect to the others, they
often attended many forms of worship, on the belief that all paths lead to the
same God.
| |
| \ |
| |
| \ | | |
| Lesson
- 84 : | How
did this Culture Develop with Rules of Dharma? The
Characteristic Paths of Various Gunas and Varnas | |
| |
| \ | | |
| \ | | |
| \ | | |
| In
the true sense, Saathvika guna represented the pious and educated religious
person who has to follow all the teaching of the faith and perform duties without
attachment and follow the yogas properly. They follow truthfulness [sathyam],
vegetarianism, nonviolence [ahimsa] and follow the proper dharma of their birth
and status. They represent the pious, educated and religious people, but not necessarily
according to one's "varna". The kings, as they ruled several segments of the country,
fighting with each other, allowed Rajasika guna as acceptable for their
community that works to preserve the land and its people for administrative and
military purpose. They enjoyed certain amount of worldly pleasures and could not
follow all the dharma of the sathvic person. Ahimsa and Sathyam were sacrificed
by this group to gain power of the land. The group of people with Tamasika
guna were left out with no knowledge or power. They had to make a living at
the bottom of the ladder working for others as they could not afford to have the
luxury of following high principles and demand what they want and what they will
eat. They had no other choice except to get best out of what was available to
them. Some of them still remained saathvic in spite of the sufferings but others
had to give up most of the dharma for their living and were Tamasic. | |
| Vedas
described three Gunas in every person, Saathva, Rajas and Tamas. They
considered Saathva guna as superior and more acceptable. Based on these Gunas
and the four varnas explained in Purusha Sooktha, the community
got divided for following their vocations as a simple way of division of labor.
The theories of karma and reincarnation were introduced to justify the injustices
to hold on to the corrupted practices of family oriented job preferences. Even
the families at the lower end of the ladder wanted to remain stuck to this system,
more than the ones in the upper end because of the fear of effects of karma. The
pious ones, in spite of their castes of their birth, remained very religious.
In the older times, they could move across the varna barrier through individual
aspirations, desires, education, ambition, personal achievement and marriage.
In the medieval times, struggle for existence led to tight walls across these
lines. | |
| \ | | |
| \ | | |
|
| |
|
00 | |
