disscussion board post 2

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University Of Arizona *

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Course

160A1

Subject

Religion

Date

Dec 6, 2023

Type

docx

Pages

1

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In South Asia, religion has been a major part of everyday life since ancient times. These nomadic people formed their beliefs in oral format which became known today as the Vedas. The development of creature-feeling, “the emotion of a creature, … overwhelmed by its own nothingness in contrast to that which is supreme above all creatures”, in the nomadic people (the Aryans) caused speculation to rise and led to the creation of the Puranic traditions that created the current religions, i.e.: Hinduism, Jainism, and Buddhism, (Otto, n.d.). It is the differences in the devotional traditions of the Vedas and the Puranas that best explain the evolution of the people’s views and beliefs. Vedic religion was a henotheism religion that had many deities that were worshipped, but only one was the primary god at a time. All the deities worshiped in the Vedic religion were forces of nature versus the Puranic gods with anthropomorphic forms. The main way to worship Vedic deities was through a fire ritual that started the worship focused on Agni (the one who is the sacrificial fire). “When Agni is pleased, the sacrificer has a good fire, and when … the gods have a good fire … they become generous” (Rig Veda). Because the people of South Asia were nomadic, their ritual locations had to be either mobile or something they could create anywhere (the nomads probably saw creating a new ritual site at each new location from their current surroundings more logical than transporting an altar with them). As the Aryans developed their sense of self and their surroundings, their religion developed as well. Gone were the Vedas and in were the Puranas. The Puranic traditions started transitioning from an external sacrifice for forces of nature to internal sacrifices (ascetism is a popular one) for powerful form changing gods. These major changes in beliefs continued to the forming of Buddhism, Hinduism, and Jainism. Somethings have remained from the original Vedic beliefs, like the soma of the gods (an ambrosia like drink) and chanting the prayers and stories. As the people settled down, religious practices were able to have more special places to do so (i.e.: temples and stupas). These places of worship have helped theologists build the understanding of these ancient traditions to this day. Sources: Otto, R. (n.d.). The Idea of The Holy (J. W. Harvey, Trans.). Oxford University Press. Rig Veda (unknown citation). Asuras and Daityas by Hillary P. Rodrigues (unknown citation). Miller, B. S. (n.d.). Bhagavadgita Krishna's Counsel In Time Of War . Bantam Books. Miller, B. S. (Ed.). (1984). Gītagovinda of Jayadeva: Love song of the dark lord . Delhi: Motilal Banarsidass Publishers.
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