Hinduism – A Religion Or A Way of Living?
Referred to as the oldest religion on earth, Hinduism boasts about a billion followers, mostly on the subcontinent of India. This makes them the third largest religion after Christianity and Islam. But is it a religion?
Quite unlike other religions, the Hindu religion does not worship any specific God, it does not claim any specific Prophet, it does not believe in any specific philosophic dogma, it does not follow any specific set of religious rites and does not have any specific founder; in fact, it does not satisfy the traditional definition of a religion in any way. It appears to be a way of life and it was not very surprising to learn that some Hindus are atheists.
It acts like an umbrella, accommodating several religious factions, each with their own god(s), prophets & rituals, binding them in a lose federation. Some of these factions differ from each other as much as Christianity, Islam, and Judaism differ from each other, of course without the animosity we got used to.
It teaches behavior such as honesty, kindness, patience, forbearance, self-restraint, and compassion, among others. As such, it has remarkable similarities with the Abramic religions. I have not met a lot of Hindus but the few I got to know all had one thing in common. They were pacifists who would rather do themselves short before putting another at a disadvantage. They behaved more like Christians than most Christians I know. Maybe we can learn something from the Hindus. It appears that any person can practice his own religion within Hinduism without violating the doctrine of his own religion.
So, I ask again; is it a religion or is it a way of living?
This is not an effort to convert anybody to Hinduism; it is merely my view on the topic and therefore just my opinion. You are welcome to give your take on it providing that it does not start another religious war on the blogs.
May you have a prosperous day.
Comments (49)
First one- Goddess Mariamman
Second one- Lord Rama with his eternal consort, Sita-Devi and his brother Lakshmana
I would respond but later because it requires a great deal of elaboration, without which it is hardly possible to get to the insight of the issues or questions you have taken up. And presently I am consumed by the elder daughter's entrance exams for medical studies.
I think I would like to post a blog in that respect. And I would like to borrow the title of your blog, for that matter, if you don't mind.
Anyways you touched the core subject, which is hotly discussed these years in India, but with a political angle.
Nothing to fear. Visitors seldom get into the townships.
I wondered who they were.
Quite a mouth full. Thank you very much.
I found this. It is quite interesting.
IN THE SUPREME COURT OF INDIA
CIVIL APPELLATE JURISDICTION
CIVIL APPEAL NOs. 4434A-34D OF 1986
This was the verdict
It (Hinduism) does not satisfy the traditional features of a religion or creed. It is a way of life and nothing more.
A complete transcript of the case can be found here:
You do that, my friend. We can only go on what is on the Internet and you know how reliable that can be.
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Let me tell u this,if seeing is believing,then have u seen Mongolia?if not does that mean it does not exist?
Similarily,talking about Hindu religion,all that u have posted here,makes No sense:-) cause forget about people,u come n treat a COW here in Hindu place n the reaction of people here will tell u or show u how athiest,or true they are n what they follow since 8/10,000 years now.Try it yeah:-)
And yes,in India(Hindus) its believed that there are 36 crore gods n goddeses,go figure n calculate how much is that:-) and if u have nothing else to do,pls don't try to create a fuss on this lovely site yeah:-)