Hindu Authority

The question of origin- In order for us to completely understand Hinduism, we must first understand that this a philosophical system of beliefs. To give a definite origin of Hinduism would be very hard to address because there are no known origins. There are no beginning points or a name of a founder. Hinduism can be traced all the way back to around 1500 B.C in what we now call India and has a lot of different beliefs, philosophies and views that contradict each other. All Hindus believe in one God, a supreme being known as Brahma. Brahma is an entity believed to live in every single facet of reality and existence throughout the whole universe. Brahma is both impersonal and unknowable and is often believed to exist in three separate forms: Brahma, the Creator, Vishnu, the Preserver, and Shiva, the Destroyer.

Ganesha, the Elephant-Headed God, is the most worshipped god in the Hindu religion most commonly practiced in India. He represents Wisdom and the distinction between good and bad and is the leader of ganas, also known as beings.

The word Hindu has evolved from being the word the Persians used for the Indus River in 500 BC to the accepted name for the primary religion of India this name was originally given by foreign rulers and ultimately used by Europeans in the 1500's as the official name of the religion. History plays an important part of Hinduism because new developments reinterpret an update past practices rather than end them. The Hindu religion is broke down into three periods the Vedic period, the Upanishadic period, the classical period, and the devotional period.

The Supreme Court of the United States has produced many infamous cases in its existence as a part of the three branches of government. It has seen many cases pertaining in particular to the Voting Rights Act initially enacted in 1965. There are two sections of the Voting Rights Act of 1965 that are of particular concern in most cases, sections 4 and 5. Section 5 of the Voting Rights Act requires certain states, districts, and localities to obtain federal preclearance before making any changes or alterations to their election laws or practices (Overby). Section 4 specifies a formula for determining whether a geographical area is subject to section 5 (Overby). When the Voting Rights Act was enacted in 1965 it was originally restricted to five years. However, since then there have been multiple extensions. Congress extended it for the first time in 1970 for another five years, followed by another extension in 1975 for seven more years, and for another twenty-five years in 1982 (The Oyez Project). When the twenty-five year reauthorization came to expire in 2006, Congress yet again extended the 1965 Voting Rights Act for another twenty-five years (The Oyez Project). Since its passing and continuous reauthorizations, there have been many attempts to declare the Voting Rights Act, specifically sections 4 and 5 unconstitutional. A distinct case that warrants a closer look is the case of Shelby County v. Holder.

Unlike many modern day religions, there are no clear origins of Hinduism. Hinduism is a fusion of various Indian cultures and traditions that over time molded into a religion. Its main roots, however, are in the Indus Valley civilization which was located in what is today known as northwest India and eastern Pakistan between 2500 and 1500 B.C.E, along with the Aryan culture and religion which existed between 1500 and 500 B.C.E. This dates back almost 4,000 years, which makes it one of the oldest religions to date (“Hinduism Influences”). The term Hinduism, however, wasn't always used to describe the religion. The word Hinduism is derived from the Persian word that refers to the Sindhu River in northwest India, and was adopted as a way to refer to the people of that region. By the end of the 19th century, however, the British Colonial Administration began to use the word Hinduism to describe the various religious beliefs and practices of the majority of India's population (“Hinduism Origins, Hinduism History, Hinduism Beliefs.”).

The sculpture is a bronze object that is extremely detailed. It is a sculpture of a lady with a head dress that’s standing in top of another woman’s shoulders. The Dancing Shiva is an important object in the Hindus religion. It’s important because the sculpture represents the blessing of the world and symbolizes that you should fear the world. Hinduism is a major religion and religious tradition of South Asia, the oldest worldwide religion, characterized by a belief in reincarnation with a large amount of gods and goddesses.

Hinduism is the name given to a family of religions and cultures that began and still flourish in India. The word “Hindu,” comes from the name of the river Indus, which flows from Tibet through Kashmir and Pakistan to the sea. It originally referred to the people living in that particular region of the world, regardless of their faith. Hinduism has no original founder and is one of the world’s largest religions following Christianity and Islam, with approximately a billion adherents. Hinduism is henotheistic, which is the devotion to a single god while accepting the existence of other gods. Their god is present in everything, and they believe that their soul repeatedly goes through a cycle of being born into a body, dying, and then becoming reborn into another body, whether it is human, animal or spirit. Hindu’s also strongly believe in karma, which is a force that determines the quality of each life, depending on how well one behaved in a past life. Hindu’s do not separate religion from other aspects of their life. Hinduism in India dictates Hindu’s lives in that it involves a caste system which controls their position in society, assists them in earning a living, helps manage how they raise their a family and controls their diets. Hindu’s believe that freedom or liberation is the true goal in life. True freedom is the freedom from all external conditioning influences, whether of body or mind. This is the freedom of Self-realization,

Brahma is the god of creation. In today’s world, he is the least worshipped god in India. There are only two temples in all of India dedicated to him (Brahma). Brahma has a unique look, with four heads and four arms. The second god, Vishnu, is the god of preservation. Thus far in creation, he has been said to be incarnated nine times. Worshippers believe that he will incarnate one last time near the end of the world. Similarly, to what Paul thought of Jesus, “Like any major god, Vishnu is involved in a number of colorful stories which illustrate his virtues as the protector of cosmic order” (Vishnu). Vishnu is uniquely depicted by having blue skin, and four arms. In his four hands, he holds objects representing what he is dependable for. Shiva, the last god, is the god of destruction. In Hinduism, destruction is considered necessary for new life forms to appear. Shiva is portrayed by his blue face and white body, three eyes, and four arms.

What do Hindus believe? Who is there god? I want to believe. Hindu comes from the name of the river Indus, which flows 1,800 miles from Tibet through Kashmir and Pakistan to the sea. Hinduism has no founder, nor the single teacher or any prophets. Hinduism is not a single religion it 's the practice of the variety of different religious groups which come out of India. Hinduism is not a complicated religion you know they do believe in one supreme God. "it is the sun, the moon, and the stars. He is the fire, the water, and the wind, the god who appears in forums infinite." (Experiencing World Religions Pg.81) and he takes three forms and they are Brahma the Creator, Vishnu The Preserver and Shiva the Destroyer named Brahman taking up to infinite forums.

dies, but it moves on from one body to another. This movement form one body to

Although we do not know the exact time that Hinduism began, it is believed to be over 4,000 years old. There have been overlapping civilizations in India that may have molded the religion into what it is now (Kinnard 1). Around 2,000 B.C.E., located near the great Indus River, the Indus Valley Civilization, who worshipped many goddesses, may have been the very beginning of the shaping of Hinduism. Near the end of the Indus Valley Civilization around 1,500 B.C.E., a new society surfaced in India. Believed to be brought by the central Asian Aryans, the Vedic religion began (Kinnard). The Aryans’ practices included the sacrifice of animals and other offerings to their gods into a sacred fire. The gods they worshipped were mainly gods of nature such as the fire god and the plant god (flood). This era was the time of the Vedas, which are scriptures describing rituals to please the gods (Kinnard). Later, around 1,000 B.C.E., priests called Brahmins began to reject the materialistic ways of the Vedic tradition and began to adopt practices

The highest deity for a Hindu would be a Brahman. Brahmans are the priestly class; they are virtuous and have a high moral sense. They take on one of the three main forms, which correspond to the three stages of the life cycle of the universe. The first of these is Brahma, the creator or the creative spirit from which the universe arises. Despite the religion being polytheistic and believing in millions of gods, Hinduism portrays Brahma has the highest supreme, being whom they look up to. The second is named Vishnu who is the preserver and is the force of order that sustains the universe. Through his exemplification, he preserves righteousness when the forces of evil threaten to succeed. The third and final form is Shiva who is the destructive concept of the universe. He is the force that brings the cycle to the end. Hindus of this level in the caste system show their devotion to this high deity through either prayer, ceremonies, pilgrimage, or just the simple chanting of the god’s name.

Starting off, the caste system in Hinduism it originates from the Rig Veda, not only is it an ancient system but many regard it as a distinctive trait of Hinduism and its long history and that it is virtually identical to the essence of Hinduism (Varna & Jati 9522) caste is also known as Varna in Sanskrit which means color but can be better translated to mean order (Varna & Jati 9522). The caste system places people into four hierarchal classes Brahmin or priest is the highest in the caste they are considered the closest to god, they are also the people responsible for keeping sacred knowledge and teaching it to others. Since they were the first caste created from the cosmic man they have a superiority over all other caste members this is one of the only traits shared by the various

Hinduism originated in India over four thousand years ago. The India-based religion lacks an individual founder. In the beginning, the term “Sanatana Dharma” erupted; but Sanatana Dharma soon transformed to “Hindu” after Islamic invasions occurred: “the Muslim invaders pronounced H for I” (Patheos), thus, the inhabitants along the Indus River were called “Hindus” as a result. The primary goal Hindus hope to achieve is to become reincarnated – thus reaching closer and closer to the state of nirvana every Hindu is called to with each transformation after death.

Hinduism is a movement centred around a religion, or in essence, is a religion which spans roughly 4th century CE. The followers of the religion are called Hindus, though in a different connotation as compared to Savarkar 's Hindutva. For Savarkar, Hindus were a people who lived in Hindustan, and were part of a common territory. In Old Persian, the land ahead the Indus River was called Hinduš (the Iranian interpretation of Sanskrit Sindhu), hence modern Persian Hind, Hindū. This added to the Iranic suffix -stān became Hindustan, "land of the Hindus" . Savarkar was a staunch believer of national unity as opposed to a religious fanatic. A reported atheist, he held Hindus as a cultural and political entity.