The world's oldest surviving way of life!
The
world's oldest surviving way of life!
Hinduism as it is called, is not a belief system but a science of living. Having
stood the test of time over many thousands of years and outlived all
civilisations, it continues to grow, flourish and evolve.
The word Hinduism correctly stated is Sanatana Dharma meaning the 'Eternal Way'
or the scientific method by which humanity may survive and thrive into eternity.
In contrast our experts are saying that humanity is on the verge of extinction
because we choose to act on beliefs instead of knowledge.
That Hinduism is referred to as a religion and Hindu's as followers of Hinduism
is a convenience of language and cultural understanding. Here are some reasons
why Hinduism not only works in the modern age, it will continue in the centuries
to come.
1. Hinduism never uses force to convert
The first empires of the modern age, Greece, Rome, Egypt and others believed in
gods that gave them the right to conquer neighbouring kingdoms and kill
populations for economic and political supremacy, and personal pleasure. Little
has changed as that's how our world works. Religious conversion still plays a
key role in the expansion of the Christian and Islamic empires along with
beliefs as to particular political systems being the best way to govern.
This was never with the case of Hinduism although there have been those who
abandoned Dharma for power and worldly pleasures. There are many tales of cosmic
battles as we find in the Mahabharata, however they are stories with a
philosophy and message behind them, not something meant for propagating
Hinduism. Over many thousands of years, Hinduism quietly chugged along and it
was widely adopted across all of Asia because it is logical, scientific and it
addresses all human concerns.
2. The original democracy
Hinduism recognises human psychology and the desire for everyone to be happy. As
such, Hinduism provides the means for every individual to be secure, healthy and
happy. Therefore Hinduism is democratic without the need of an authoritarian
leadership. Instead Hindu civilisation had the counsel of the wise men and
women, the scientists and scholars (Brahmans) who maintained the history and
advised how to avoid mistakes of the past.
Hindu society was communal without private land ownership until being introduced
by the British, women controlled the family wealth and the citizens enjoyed a
high standard of education with a 95% literacy rate and excellent health care
focused more on preventive medicine.
3. Scientific
Within the science of Hinduism it's recognised that our perception of the world
is somewhat illusory, because we are sensory beings the entirety of our worldly
experience only occurs within our own minds and the physicality of our existence
reflects energy and motion. These ideas are for meditation and deep reflection
yet they also contain the keys to happiness.
The knowledge within Hinduism gave rise to our modern sciences, language,
numbers, astronomy, metallurgy, medicine, agriculture and so much more including
the science of yoga.
The science of yoga teachers how to discern the truth from the false, the real
from the unreal. It is the path of liberation and freedom from the multitudes of
suffering that people experience in their daily lives.
This scientific approach to living aims for optimum human well-being with the
ultimate goal being full self-realisation of one's human potential also referred
to as Moksha or liberation. This approach to life creates a stable society and
gives individuals the opportunity to pursue pleasure if they choose or to work
towards Moksha and the ultimate freedom.
Zero, Pie , Planetary Positions, Speed, Shape Of earth , Structure of Solar
System, Rules of Physics, mathematics, Existence of Atomic and Sub atomic
particles etc were discovered long ago in ancient India.
"The Hindu religion is the only one of the world's great faiths dedicated to the
idea that the Cosmos itself undergoes an immense, indeed an infinite, number of
deaths and rebirths. It is the only religion in which the time scales
correspond, no doubt by accident, to those of modern scientific cosmology. Its
cycles run from our ordinary day and night to a day and night of Brahma, 8.64
billion years long. Longer than the age of the Earth or the Sun and about half
the time since the Big Bang. And there are much longer time scales still" ~ Carl
Sagan (astronomer and author)
4. A celebration of life
Within Hinduism there is the recognition that we live in a miraculous and
wonderful universe of which we only understand a very small part. There is an
understanding that all life coexists and although humankind can exist as the top
predator and the highest form of animal, this does not satisfy the human need
for the expression of happiness, joy and bliss.
Therefore all life is celebrated from the potentiality that began creation and
especially to the feminine, divine and mundane because it is from within the
feminine that new life emerges. Therefore every mother all the way back to the
mother of mothers is celebrated.
Psychologically offering gratitude and praise, celebrating the existence of
other life beyond oneself is one of the keys to unlocking happiness within
oneself. Even if one has no disposition towards any Hindu concepts, expressing
praise and gratitude are antidotes to suffering.
5. Hinduism is open to multiple interpretations and multiple paths
While Hinduism broadly recognises one God as the potentiality that gave rise to
creation and a guiding principal in life as kindness, there are many valid ways
of interpretation and application. Hinduism also has many God's and people are
free to create their own because there is no God within creation other than the
potentiality of creation which were thousands of years have stood the test of
mathematical logic and reason. The primary principle of creation is referred to
as Shiva-Shakti but all the other gods may be seen as points of perception
fulfilling roles within human consciousness.
There is no requirement to believe in any God and belief itself is not thought
very highly of because one can believe in any nonsense likely to be untrue,
therefore one is performing self harm. Religions/beliefs prescribe a rigid
formula that worked when the people didn't think much and accepting rigid ideas
was a comfort. Today people are better educated so rigid ideas and
unsubstantiated beliefs don't fit in the new millennium.
6. Hinduism is open source
The people who came up with the ideas that developed into what we call Hinduism
never stopped asking where, why, what or how? They wanted to know where we were
in the universe, where this universe was in relationship to perhaps other
universes, they wanted to know our true nature and why we were here. They used
logic and reason, they developed mathematics and calculus giving rise to
acknowledge of our solar system and place in the universe.
Hindu wisdom is contained in the Vedas, the Upanishads, the Ramayan and
Mahabharat which are the most popular books of Hinduism. They contain their own
philosophies which changed as the centuries went by because we learned. Animal
slaughter existed in ancient Vedic times but we have learned that vegetarianism
is a healthier life option. Hinduism is not static, but the most dynamic way of
living in the world because it's responsive to life and new knowledge. Like the
open source software movement, Hinduism too is open source.
7. Hinduism supports feminism
Gods and goddesses feature with equal measure in Hinduism and there is no god
without a goddess. If Ganesh Puja is the life of Mumbai, Kali Puja is the
highlight of Kolkata. The river Ganga symbolizes the goddess and Vaishno Devi is
a top pilgrimage centre in North India. Shakti is woman empowerment. Shakti is
the power of the feminine divine which can be tapped by both men and women.
Says the Shaktisangama Tantra...
Woman is the creator of the universe,
The universe is her form,
Woman is the foundation of the world,
She is the true form of the body.
Very few traditions in the world talk of the feminine in such a fashion. In
Hinduism, at the divine and cosmic level, there is nothing to distinguish the
masculine and the feminine.
8. Hinduism doesn't define a Hindu
There is no definition of a Hindu other than as a geographic region and one
cannot become a Hindu. Nor is there any procedure to stop being a Hindu. Anyone
and everyone can embrace Sanatana Dharma (Hinduism). It's as simple as that. The
most powerful concepts in the world are free to walk into.
9. Hinduism has over one billion adherents
Despite Hindus not forcefully converting or propagating Hinduism all over the
world and other religions trying hard to convert Hindus, Hinduism is still
flourishing and growing. There are one billion Hindus in India alone. Nepal has
81% Hindus. There are sizable Hindu populations in Mauritius, Fiji, Guyana,
Bhutan, Sri Lanka and the West Indies. Hindus are doing extremely well in
Americas to. They are a very small population there, but they're one of the most
successful communities in North America.
11. Hinduism is more spiritual than corporeal
There was a time when religions believed they had all the answers to questions
like how the universe was created. Why the world was the way it was. Why Nature
went forward in a certain manner. But now people are much more sceptical, to say
the least. Religion survives in the twenty first century purely due to its
spiritual side. Yoga itself is a huge discipline little understood by most.
Hatha Yoga has been around for thousands of years. It was developed in the
twentieth century and today has millions of adherents all over the world. But
the deeper Raja Yoga (union with the Supreme itself) could prove to be much more
powerful in the years to come. Peace of mind is what is sought in the modern
world today. The concept of "Shanti" has been around in Hinduism since the
ancient world. Hinduism is a very deep philosophy: It has many levels. You can
keep peeling layers one by one much like an onion. The philosophy is vast and
you can spend a lifetime just scratching at the surface of each and every
concept.
The Spirituality of the new age...
All this means that while some religions are finding themselves becoming more
and more irrelevant in the Internet Age, it will definitely not be the case with
Hinduism. This dynamic and evolving way of living will always remain
contemporary and offer something for the modern individual to live his or her
life.
We will change it and it, in turn, will change us. This feedback loop has been
going on for thousands of years and that's the way it will be in the new
millennium.
Now that the age of beliefs, empires and colonialism is diminishing because
these have been found wanting, Hinduism is finding greater and greater appeal in
our modern era. People don't want to be told, they want to discover for
themselves. Hinduism fits the bill perfectly. Unlike religions, Hinduism will
become more and more relevant as we go forward and only Hinduism welcomes
unbelievers and atheists.
Further reading:
Meanings of the Hindu Temples