Hinduism: Beliefs vocab Flashcards
Indus civilisation
The first civilisations based along the Indus River.
River Ganges
Were the Indus Civilisation migrated too.
Shruti texts
Texts that are the unquestionable truth.
Smriti text
Texts that are less important —> poems/stories etc.
Brahman
Hindu term for God.
Aum symbol
Represents God throughout everything used in meditation.
Monotheism
Belief in one God.
Nirguna-Brahman
Give without Form.
Saguna-Brahman
God with Form.
Deities
The manifestation of Brahman.
Bhagavan
God without does -> in spirit world.
Antaryami
God within
Ganesha
Elephant head - chopped off + found baby elephant. Nicked his head. (Poor dumbo)
Hanuman
Monkey God
Parvati
Reincarnation of sati, perfect motherhood. Consort of shiva.
Saraswati
Consort of Brahma, Goddess of learning.
Lakshmi
Worshipped at Diwali. Representative of prosperity and beauty.
The Trimurti
3 most important manifestations of God. Shiva, Vishnu, Brahma.
Brahma
Created everything on the world.
Shiva
Watches over + rules creation + destruction.
Maya
Illusion/distraction from God.
Ascetic
Particularly dedicated Hindu - No posessions.
Shaivism
People dedicated to shiva.
Vishnu
Deity with 10 avators
Vaishnavism
Hindus specifically dedicated to Vishnu.
Avatar
One of the forms Vishnu takes to restore balance between Dharma (virtue/good) and Adharma (evil)
Rama
Avatar who saved Sita from The ten headed demon ravana.
Ramayana
The book in which the story of Rama + sita is
Sita
The princess (wife of Rama) who was kidnapped by Ravanna.
Krishna
One of the best known avatars of Vishnu. Known for making peace in the kurukshetra war and teaching about ahimsa.
The kurukshetra war
A war between two nations which was ended by Krishna’s interference. Krishna taught soldiers from both sides about dharma and living honourable lives, which caused the fighting to be called off.
The 4 aims of life
Dharma, Artha, Kama, Moksha
Artha
Earning a lawful living through honest means. For many Hindus, this also means using their wealth to help others.
Kama
Enjoying life responsibility and having a positive outlook.
Moksha
The soul joining with Brahman after death. Hindus believe that souls are reincarnated and live many lives. The ultimate aim is for the cycle to end and the soul to be released back to God - Brahman
Dharma
Virtue -> good virtue
Sanatana Dharma
6 personal virtues, sustaining -> apply to everyone
Varnashrama dharma
Responsibility depending on age, status, job etc…
Varna
The duties that a Hindu should follow at different stages of their life.
Free will
The idea that everybody is in control of their own decisions and so it is up to them to do good things so they can end up achieving Moksha.
The 6 personal virtues
Ahimsa, Love, humility, control, empathy, respect
Ahimsa
Non harm to all living things. Eg. Live peaceful, perhaps vegetarian.
Atman
Eternal soul
Transmigration.
Movement of atman from one body to the next.
Samsara cycle
Continuous cycle of birth > life > death that the Atman goes through
The law of karma
Good actions = good consequences
Bad actions = bad consequences
Reincarnation/rebirth
Atman taking on a physical body
Punya
Merit
Papa
Sin
Prakriti
Physical matter
Purusa
Spirit
Jiva
Only concerned with bodily needs and appetites
Maya
Evil illusions
Cosmology
Ideas and beliefs about the universe
The cycle of 4 ages
Hindus believe that the universe has 4 cycles, once all 4 are completed, it starts again.
Yuga
‘Era’
Golden yuga
Original age
Silver yuga
Second age, people start dying
Copper yuga
War and battle
Iron yuga
Industrialism + everything wrong with the world.
Kalki
Avatar of Vishnu who appears at the end of the cycle of 4 ages to destroy and recreate the universe
Tri-guna
3 stages that all matter goes through- creation, maintenance and destruction.
