RE:hinduism
by Leeladitya on Oct 06, 2007 05:23 AM Permalink
A small correction Sarath. Hinduism is not at all a religion. It's the way of life of the people who flourished on the banks of river sindhu. The arabs had a problem with pronouncing sindhu and they called it hindu. The greeks had a much bigger problem and they called it Indu. Hinduism in reality is a free land where human minds are allowed to evolve. And hence we have a vedic tradition which deals with rituals. And we have upanishads which contradict vedic tradition. We have religion which evolved from the roots of non-voilence and we have another which evolved from vegetarianism. Also we have a spiritual tradition where gods are not involved and the emphasis is on the soul and the eternal. Any outsider who wants to refer to any of these practices would often use a generic term called Hinduism. Comments appreaciated.
RE:hinduism
by Leeladitya on Oct 06, 2007 05:55 AM Permalink
The name is never derogatory Jon..it's the character of the creature that carries that name that is susceptible to derogation.
RE:RE:hinduism
by Bipin Musale on Oct 06, 2007 06:11 AM Permalink
It is a misconception that the word "Hindu" is a deregotary term coined by Arabs. The word"Hindu" finds reference in our ancient literature too(it is said). It stands for "Heenani gunani dushayati iti Hindu" i.e. a Hindu is one who destroys the bad instincts within him on priority basis or a person who gives spiritual upliftment priority(over material progress). Thus the words "Christain" or a "Mohamadan" stand for "follower" of somebody but a Hindu is not one who follows anybody but one who is convinced of what to do and does it.
RE:RE:RE:hinduism
by Leeladitya on Oct 06, 2007 06:19 AM Permalink
Hi Bipin. I never said that the term Hindu is a dergotary term coined by Arabs. It's the phonetics that dictate the pronounciation as far as I believe. And coming to your reference, anything written in Sanskrit is considered to be ancient becuase of selective works made by selective scholars until middle ages. It's hard to know when this identity called Hindu was accepted by people of the Indian sub-continent and when it found it's place in the texts. Just an observation Bipin.
RE:hinduism
by bharati sarkar on Oct 06, 2007 06:19 AM Permalink
If you scratch the surface of Hinduism you will see Vaishnavism.Vaishnav means a bhakta or devotee of Vishnu(Krsna).Vaishnavism is also called 'Sanatana dharma' or 'Eternal religion'.Dharma(does not mean religion) means 'intrinsic nature' or 'swabhav'.The dharma of 'atma'that is to worship the 'Param atma' or Lord Sri Krsna.Therefore Krsna states in Bhag.Gita,'to abandon all varieties of religion since the extant religions are merely extensions of our bodily designation.But we are not this body.We are spirit souls.Therefore He states 'Mam ekam saranam braja',that is, simply take My shelter.Therefore true dharma(religion) defined as 'dharmam tu saksad bhagvat pranitam'(Bhagvatam), means,true religion is to follow the instructions of Lord Sri Krsna.Therefore dharma is something very specific not speculative.Non violence and vegetarinism are the effects not causes of dharma. Gita is also called Gitopnaishad,therefore Upanishads are part and parcel of Vedic literature.There can only be one God.The 'gods' you mention are demigods and demigodesses (devi,devta).The devi,devtas are not independent,but like us they are completely dependent on Lord Krsna,for their existence.Even the topmost demigod,Lord Shiva,is created by Krsna.Lord Shiva, is also the topmost Vaishnav,'vaishnavanam yatha Shambhu'. deepak sarkar
RE:hinduism
by Shalin Vasavada on Oct 06, 2007 05:51 AM Permalink
nice job! but i believe more than being Hindu and keep thinking about our culture, our real problem is traitors within our country. we must act today to protected our future. still.. very well said Leeladitya!
RE:hinduism
by Leeladitya on Oct 06, 2007 06:08 AM Permalink
Don't worry Shalin. The way I believe, from the evidence we get from history, it's the oppressed who draw strength from the weakness. It's a natural thing with human mind, body and society. The Indian society is on the right track of revitalisation. Home made food will only appeal once you are vexed with the fast food.
