Hinduism

Question 1

Hinduism is indigenous to what part(s) of the world?

Answer 1

The Indian subcontinent

Question 2

How many Hindus are there in the world today?

Answer 2

Around 1 billion

Question 3

What are Hinduism’s three most important texts?

Answer 3

1. The Vedas
2. The Mahabharata
3. The Ramayana

Question 4

Is Hinduism polytheistic? Why or why not?

Answer 4

No

Hinduism asserts a single Supreme Being called Brahman, but incorporates the worship of several different gods that represent Brahman’s different aspects.

Question 5

Around when did Hinduism begin to exist?

Answer 5

Its roots stretch back as far as 2000 B.C.E.

• It was codified in the Vedic texts beginning around 1500 B.C.E.
• Hinduism is unique among major world religions in that it has no single founder

Question 6

What are the Vedas?

Answer 6

The most important Hindu text(s)

• Essentially complete by 1200 B.C.
• Four collections of verses: Rig Veda, Sama Veda, Yajur Veda, Atharva Veda

Question 7

According to Hinduism, what are the four purposes or aims in life?

Answer 7

1. Dharma – duty (generally meaning one’s vocation)
2. Artha – wealth (the pursuit of worldly success)
3. Kama – physical pleasure
4. Moksha – the most important: enlightenment, liberation, union with God

Question 8

What is yoga?

Answer 8

Union of the self with the Hindu Supreme Being

Generally, refers to one of the many paths toward enlightenment

Question 9

What three aspects of the Supreme Being make up the Trimurti, the central trinity of Hinduism?

Answer 9

1. Brahma (the Creator)
2. Vishnu (the Preserver)
3. Shiva (the Destroyer)

Question 10

What are some important attributes of the Hindu god Brahma?

Answer 10

The Creator

• Has never been worshipped extensively, despite being one of the three main gods of Hinduism
• In depictions, wears red clothes and does not carry weapons

Question 11

What are some important attributes of the Hindu god Vishnu?

Answer 11

Protector and preserver of creation

• Embodiment of mercy, kindness, and peace
• Almost always has four arms and is often depicted lying on a serpent
• Consort is Lakshmi

Question 12

What are some important attributes of the Hindu god Shiva?

Answer 12

Transformer and destroyer

• Destroys the world at the end of each cycle (before Brahma creates it again)
• Associated with dance and meditation
• Consort is Parvati

Question 13

In Hinduism, what is Devi or Shakti?

Answer 13

The Mother Goddess or female aspect of the divine

Her many forms include Lakshmi, Kali, Parvati, and Durga

Question 14

What are some important attributes of the Hindu goddess Kali?

Answer 14

• Ferocious and destructive form of the Mother Goddess
• Usually depicted with blue skin, wearing a necklace of skulls and a belt of severed limbs

Question 15

What are some important attributes of the Hindu goddess Lakshmi?

Answer 15

• Consort of Vishnu
• Associated with wealth, happiness, pleasure, and good fortune

Question 16

What are some important attributes of the central Hindu figure Krishna?

Answer 16

• Eighth incarnation of Vishnu
• Central character in much Hindu mythology, including the Bhagavad Gita
• Embodiment of love and divine joy
• Often depicted as a young man playing a flute

Question 17

What are the four main levels of the Hindu caste system?

Answer 17

1. Brahmins
2. Kshatriyas
3. Vaishyas
4. Shudras

Note: there are many of subcastes.

Question 18

In the Hindu caste system, what is the role of brahmins?

Answer 18

• The highest caste
• Priests and preservers of knowledge and tradition

Question 19

In the Hindu caste system, what is the role of kshatriyas?

Answer 19

• The second-highest caste after Brahmins
• Warrior class
• Responsible for protecting others, especially brahmins, and dispensing justice
• Allowed to study the Vedas

Question 20

In the Hindu caste system, what is the role of vaishyas?

Answer 20

• The third-highest caste after brahmins and kshatriyas
• Peasants and merchants
• Have the right to lend money, own land, and study the Vedas

Question 21

In the Hindu caste system, what is the role of shudras?

Answer 21

• The labor caste
• Their role is to serve the higher castes, and they are not allowed to study sacred texts

Question 22

What is the Ramayana?

Answer 22

An epic Hindu poem written around the 2nd century B.C.E.

Tells the story of Rama, the 7th incarnation of Vishnu

Question 23

What is the Bhagavad Gita?

Answer 23

The single most popular Hindu text

• A section from the Mahabharata
• A “manual for mankind,” outlining major philosophical concepts of Hinduism, as well as several types of yoga
• The central figures of the Bhagavad Gita are Krishna, the divine teacher, and Arjuna, the warrior-protagonist who seeks guidance.

Question 24

What is atman?

Answer 24

The “true self” within each person, which is identical to the Hindu Supreme Being, Brahman

Question 25

What is Diwali?

Answer 25

The Hindu “festival of lights,” a five-day festival celebrated between mid-October and mid-November

Question 26

What is Holi?

Answer 26

A Hindu holiday celebrating the arrival of spring in early to mid-March

Involves general merrymaking, most famously spraying people with multicolored paints