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The Essence of Hinduism

© S.Kavita

Hinduism aptly known as SANATANA DHARMA or the Eternal Religion has nearly one billion followers, largely concentrated in India and Nepal. Hinduism is built upon diversity - that is there can be many paths, many scriptures and many forms of worship to realize the BRAHMAN or the Supreme Being.

It embodies a large spectrum of philosophies ranging from pluralistic theism to absolute monism. The religion has evolved with great teachers and philosophers making their contribution to the wealth of knowledge which has accumulated over past thousands of years. It is the only religion which has not reduced itself to one teacher, one book and one faith. Hence there have been no prosecution of heresy or holocausts in the land of the Hindus. The human spirit always seeks to grow and express itself in numerous ways. The diversity of Hinduism nourishes a great civilization.

The various schools of Hindu philosophies though diverse share a vast heritage of culture and belief: karma, dharma, reincarnation, all-pervasive Divinity, temple worship, sacraments, manifold Deities, the many yogas, the guru-sishya tradition and a reliance on the Vedas as scriptural authority.

The word ATMAN signifies the consciousness in man which experiences gross objects during the waking state and the subtle objects during the dream state. It also experiences bliss from the absence of duality of subject and object in dreamless sleep.

Reality experienced at the transcendental level is called the BRAHMAN. When the sense perceived world is regarded as real , Brahman is considered as the omniscient and omnipotent Creator, Preserver and Destroyer. But when the world is not perceived to exist - for instance when in deep meditation - then one experiences Brahman as the unconditioned Absolute . The image of creator with an omnipotent existence becomes irrelevant.

The transcendental Brahman is considered the cause of the universe in association with maya, and becomes known as the conditioned Brahman or Brahman with attributes, or by such other epithets as the Lord and the personal God. Brahman is identical with the self of man known as atman.

The unconditioned Brahman is free from the limiting adjuncts of space, time and causation. The Upanishads reiterate that the Supreme Brahman is not to fixed, it is unlimited, unborn and not to be reasoned about. The realization of the unconditioned Brahman is the supreme purpose of life, because it bestows immortality.

The Vedas concede the reality of the phenomenal universe with all its limitations, and of finite living beings, who need an object of prayer and worship.