Hinduism Ever Changing Religions
The Ever Changing Religion
Hinduism is one of the oldest and perhaps the most complex of all organized religions. It is its complexity that has led it to be the subject of debate for several reasons. The primary dispute appertains to the fact that Hinduism encompasses a broad spectrum of Indian religious ways as if they were only one tradition (Fisher, 2014, pg. 71). In its defense, Hinduism’s great age can account for much of its extreme variations. It is an evolving religion. Hinduism has evolved from early Vedic polytheism, to Upanishadic pantheism, to essentially monotheism.
The roots of Hinduism can be traced back thousands of years ago during the Vedic age - a time before Hinduism was even labeled as such. The Vedic age refers to the …show more content…
when the Upanishads were developed. These new sacred texts “represented the mystical insights of rishis who sought ultimate reality through their meditations in the forests” (Fisher, 2014, pg. 76). New belief sets accompanied the new sacred text. Reincarnation or “the transmigration of the soul into a new body after death of the old body” was one such new belief (Fisher, 2014, pg. 540). Possibly the biggest change that occurred in the era was the belief in the “unseen but all-pervading reality Brahman, the Unknowable” (Fisher, 2014, pg. 77). The impersonal Brahman is not separate from oneself, but rather everything in the universe. This pantheistic view proposed by the Upanishads was drastically different from the polytheistic one proposed by the Vedas. Still, Hinduism continued to …show more content…
Vaishnavites are those who have chosen to worship Lord Vishnu as though he were the Supreme as a person. The ancient Vishnu is notorious for being merciful, gentle, and kind. Vishnu is also known for his associations with Lakshmi as well as an array of earthly incarnations of himself. Among the most popular of these incarnations are Rama and Krishna (Fisher, 2014, pg. 89). In addition to Lord Vishnu, there are two other popular gods. A smaller number of Hindus have chosen to be Shaivites. Shaivites are those who have devoted themselves to “a personal, many-faceted manifestation of the attributeless supreme deity” known as Lord Shiva (Fisher, 2014, pg. 87). Shiva represents asceticism. He is also associated with androgyny as is he often depicted with masculine and feminine characteristics. He is also heavily associated with feminine consorts, mainly with his spouse Parvati. The two are the parents of the popular elephant-headed deity known as Ganesh (Fisher, 2014, pg.
Hinduism is one of the oldest and perhaps the most complex of all organized religions. It is its complexity that has led it to be the subject of debate for several reasons. The primary dispute appertains to the fact that Hinduism encompasses a broad spectrum of Indian religious ways as if they were only one tradition (Fisher, 2014, pg. 71). In its defense, Hinduism’s great age can account for much of its extreme variations. It is an evolving religion. Hinduism has evolved from early Vedic polytheism, to Upanishadic pantheism, to essentially monotheism.
The roots of Hinduism can be traced back thousands of years ago during the Vedic age - a time before Hinduism was even labeled as such. The Vedic age refers to the …show more content…
when the Upanishads were developed. These new sacred texts “represented the mystical insights of rishis who sought ultimate reality through their meditations in the forests” (Fisher, 2014, pg. 76). New belief sets accompanied the new sacred text. Reincarnation or “the transmigration of the soul into a new body after death of the old body” was one such new belief (Fisher, 2014, pg. 540). Possibly the biggest change that occurred in the era was the belief in the “unseen but all-pervading reality Brahman, the Unknowable” (Fisher, 2014, pg. 77). The impersonal Brahman is not separate from oneself, but rather everything in the universe. This pantheistic view proposed by the Upanishads was drastically different from the polytheistic one proposed by the Vedas. Still, Hinduism continued to …show more content…
Vaishnavites are those who have chosen to worship Lord Vishnu as though he were the Supreme as a person. The ancient Vishnu is notorious for being merciful, gentle, and kind. Vishnu is also known for his associations with Lakshmi as well as an array of earthly incarnations of himself. Among the most popular of these incarnations are Rama and Krishna (Fisher, 2014, pg. 89). In addition to Lord Vishnu, there are two other popular gods. A smaller number of Hindus have chosen to be Shaivites. Shaivites are those who have devoted themselves to “a personal, many-faceted manifestation of the attributeless supreme deity” known as Lord Shiva (Fisher, 2014, pg. 87). Shiva represents asceticism. He is also associated with androgyny as is he often depicted with masculine and feminine characteristics. He is also heavily associated with feminine consorts, mainly with his spouse Parvati. The two are the parents of the popular elephant-headed deity known as Ganesh (Fisher, 2014, pg.