quiz 3 Flashcards
Four Goals in life
Kama: Pleasure, especially sensual love, as long as it is in the limits of Dharma
Artha: Material success and social power
Dharma: Ethical Duty, moral
Moksha: Liberation, ultimate goal of infinite being
Three paths of liberation
Karma Maga: (Path of work): Actions according to Dharma OR Karma Yoga; unselfishness.
Jnana Marga: (Path of Knowledge); focuses on philosophical reflection and meditation.; knowledge leads to enlightenment. 3 schools
Bhakti Marga: (Path of devotion); focuses on loving devotion to a deity
- contrasts jnana marga
Schools
Vedanta - A system of Hindu philosophy and one approach within jnana marga, holding that all reality is essentially Brahman
Most faithful to the predominant monism of Hinduism
The world and all finite beings within it are the stuff of maya (Cosmic illusion brought about by divine creative power). Faithful to monism
Sankhya - A system of Hindu philosophy and one approach within jnana marga, asserting that reality comprises two distinct categories: matter and eternal selves
Selves get entwined with matter, thereby becoming bound to the world of samsara
Followers of Sankhya strive to free the eternal Self from the bondage of the personality
Yoga - A system of Hindu philosophy and one approach within jnana marga, seeking to free the eternal self from the bondage of personhood, culminating in the experience of samadh
- physical and psychological practices
- acknowledges the connection between the human self and the other parts of our human makeup.
- free the eternal self from bondage by strppiing away the many levels of person hood in which that self is warpped
Avatar
An incarnation or living embodiment of a deity
Moksha
Hindus term for liberation
- release of the individual self Atman from the bondage of samsara; salvation one of the four goals of life
Monism
The doctrine that reality is ultimately made up of one essence
Brahman and Atman
Samsara
The wheel of rebirth of reincarnation; the worldly realm in which rebirth occurs.
4 sources of seeking guidance Abt Dharma in situations
Divine revelation, as expressed in the sacred scriptures
Sacred tradition, as passed on from generation to generation
The practices and example of those who are considered the wisest members of society
Conscience
Caste System
- Brahmin - The highest of the 4 classes of the caste system, traditionally made up of priests
- Kshatriya - The second of the 4 classes of the caste system, traditionally made up of warriors and administrators
- Vaishya - The third of the 4 classes of the caste system, traditionally made up of producers, such as farmers, merchants, and artisans
- Shudra - The lowest of the 4 classes of the caste system, traditionally made up of servants and laborers
____
Varna: Color. Original term for this division
The Aryans wanted to keep intermingling away
Shudra were like the native.
Outcaste: Untouchables:
4 stages of life
1st -> student (last until marriage)
Householder -> pursuing a career and raising a family
Forest Dweller -> birth of grandchildren
sannyasin (wandering ascetic)-> his stage is for forest dwellers who are ready to return to society but remain detached from the normal attractions and distractions of social life
Brahman vs Atman
Brahman: Eternal Essence of all reality, and source of the universe, beyond human reach
Atman: The eternal individual self, the ultimate self within
Rig Veda
Hinduism’s oldest texts.
4k years old
A collection of 1017 Sanskrit hymns composed about 1500 bc or earlier
Upanishads
A collection of over 2 hundred texts composed between 900-200 bc that provided philosophical commentary on the vedas
- teaches that the ultimate reality can be understood through inward contemplation of the self.
Mahabharata
epic poems of gods and avatars
Bhagavad Gita
Song of the blessed lord
A short section of the epic poem of Mahabharata in which the God Krishna teachers the great warrior Arjuna about Bhakti MArga and other ways to God; hindiums most popular text.
Ramayana
Epic poem featuring Rama
Ganges River
A holy place that is the most sacred
river; puify all sin
Thought to have fallen from the heavens from Vishnu’s feet onto shivas head and out from his hair
Cows? verneration
Cows are respected bc they represent humans; they suffer. Gandhi: protect of cow
Brahman
The eternal essence of reality and the source of the universe, beyond the reach of human perception.
- contemplation with the universe
neti neti (not this not that)
Atman and atman
The eternal self, which the upanishads identifu with Brahman; often lowercased to refer to the eterenself or soul of an individual that is reincarnated from one body to the next and is ultimately identified with Atman.
Atman: Supreme soul ties in with brahman
atman: Individual soul or self. the part that undergoes samsara
Realms
Heaven Titans
Ghost many realms of hell
Karma
The moral law of cause and effect of actions
Dharma
ethical Duty based on the divine order of reality; one of the 4 goals of life
Dharma for women emphasizes obedience to men; father husband son
women are more dependable; men are more prone to frivolity.
ascetic
one who renounces physical pleasures and worldly attachments for the sake of spiritual advancement
8 steps in preparing for yoga
- Abstaining from 5 acts: harming living things, lying, stealing, acting unchastely, and being greedy
- Observing 5 virtues: cleanliness, calmness, self-control, studiousness, and prayerfulness
- sitting in a posture that promotes comfort while discouraging drowsiness
- breathing properly
- closing the door of perception
- emptying the mind
- meditating
- going into samadhi
samadhi
a trancelike state in which self-consciousness is lost and the mind is absorbed into the ultimate reality the culmination of the eight steps of yoga.
- TRANSCENDENCE OF HUMAN SPIRIT
-
Shiva
- God of destruction
- worshipped by millions
- Shiva is so popular bc the destruction he brings makes way for new creation; fits in with the cyclical logic
Vishnu
- Preserver
- worshipped by millions
- 4 arms
- various symbols of of power and goodness
- ## regarded as the supreme protector and example of moral perfection
Kali
- wife of shiva
- black and wears necklace of skulls,
- bloodthirsty and violent towards enemies but shows care towards devotees
Krishna
An avatar of Vishnu.
has a prominent role in the poem of Mahabharata
- mischievous and often accompanied by females.
Rama
Rama is an incarnation of vishnu. so popular that is often worshipped like a dirty.
God Triad
Brahma (Creator) Vishnu (Preserver) Shiva (destroyer)
Brahma
The creator god
- rarely worshipped
Household and village rituals
Masks: Things in households that represent gods
- Tending sacred fire, ritual bathing, and devotional rites before these shrines
- clay figurines idolatry
Holy palces
there are often pilgrimizes to holy sites
rivers are regarded as sacred; entityu
Sati
The traditional practice of burning a widow on her husbands funeral prye
Modern Hinduism:
The caste system is changing; Indian government forbade discrimination against outcastes; other systems promoted the economic and social rights of ppl
Women: More progressive terms; less tradtional Hinduism. the degree in which Hindus follow traditional teaching varies from location. SATI IS FORBIDDEN NOW OR OUTLAWED
Agni
God of fire
Genesh
Elephant God
Radha
Krishna’s fav consort and with Krishna is the symbol of perfect love
