Social Studies Flashcards
What did Vedas contain?
Contained hymns and rituals to please the gods
What does Hinduism mean?
“Religion of the people of India”
What is brahmanism
Religion of the Vedic age based on priests and rituals specifically sacrifices
What were Brahmins?
Priests with great power. They were the only ones allowed to perform rituals
What are gurus?
Teachers and thinkers left home to think and talk about religious ideas
Who were founders of Hunduism?
Gurus and their students
What are Upanishads?
Writings and ideas connecting people’s lives and heavenly forces
What were the Hindu Holy Scriptures?
Vedas and Upanishads
Who were the only ones allowed to interpret Vedas
Brahmins
Who could study the Upanishads?
Indians of all castes
What were the two epic poems?
Ramayana and Mahabara
What might be the worlds longest poem?
Mahabharata may be the worlds longest poem with 200,000 lines
How many lines does the Mahabharata have?
200,000 lines
What are the basic Hindu Beliefs?
There is one supreme cosmic conscience, spiritual force or god known as Brahman
Brahmin is the source of what?
All things
Who are forms of Brahmin
Vishnu, Shiva, and Shakti
Every person is born with a what
Soul
Describe Shiva
God of power, change, creation and destruction
Describe Vishnu
God that preserves and maintains creation
Why was sacrifice important in the Vedic age?
Sacrifices wet needed in order to please the gods
A soul is a form of what?
Brahmin
What aspects of Hinduism helped it spread?
Hinduism had flexibility. It did not require regular attendance at religious services. It was easy to practice
What do Hindus believe about death
When people die most will undergo reincarnation. Soul will be reborn in another body
Define karma
Law that determines how a person is reborn
What are the four basic goals in life?
Dharma
Striving for well being
Pleasure
Moksha
Define dharma
Doing what is right
What falls under dharma and define it
Ahimsa:avoiding doing harm to living things
Define Moksha
Liberation from reincarnation; persons soul becomes one with Brahman
What is the purpose of human life to Hindus?
Achieve Moksha
What are the three paths to Moksha
Way of knowledge
Way if works
Way of devotion
Describe way of knowledge
True understanding of one’s soul and its oneness with Brahmin
Describe way of works
Carry out religious rituals and duties to improve karma
Describe way of devotion
Path of love
