Hinduism: Cosmological And Ethical Ideals

- Karma, samsara and nirvana fall under the religion of Hinduism. When all of our actions bring consequences, either in this life or the next is referred as karma. Samsara means the cycle of birth and death. Us humans are basically good, but are caught up in a cycle of pure desire and also of suffering that is a direct result of ignorance and of the go. Nirvana is another word to describe the permanent liberation from life. It is a liberation from the cycle of samsara, in which we cease to exist and become one with the universe.

In the Hindu culture there is a variety of gods and ways of life, differing greatly from the Western monotheistic thought. Instead of just one god for all, there is a god for whomever this particular god appeals. However, the Hindu way of life is set inside a parameter of steps that eventually lead to a state liberation from Samsara, the cycle of life within karma. These steps relate to the age of the person and duties prescribed. These life station are Kama, Artha, Dharma and Moksha. Kama is the pursuit of pleasure, Artha is the pursuit of worldly success, Dharma is to seek righteousness and perform sacred duty and Moksha liberation from Samsara and the cycle of life. In each of these the ideas there is a “do what you want till your desire

When looking at Christianity and Hinduism there are many ways to look at each religion from a theological perspective. This is why the best way to look at the broad view of these religions would be to analyze each by comparing and contrasting what each religion is about. The first point to look at would be at how Hinduism and Christianity are very similar in how they view the world. This can be seen in how they both strive to achieve a state of higher being whether it be with the eternal state of Moksha or eternal life in heaven with God. They both also look to be more introspective of themselves in order to maintain a good relationship with their higher being. This can be seen with Christians trying their hardest to maintain their faithfulness to God (Letter to the Romans, Reader p. 200) or Hindus making sure to maintain their duties in their caste in order to climb the system (Bhagavad Gita, Reader p. 75). Another comparison would be that Christianity follows the “Golden Rule” which is better known in the Hindu religion as karma. This is an important cornerstone to both religions because it creates a system of justice for both religions to follow. To truly examine these two religions one must also look at the differences that each religion has to each other that make them each a unique belief. A main difference would be that Christianity focuses more on the short term while Hinduism focuses more on the long term. Another difference is the rewards that a Christian

Many of the core beliefs of Hinduism have evolved over time, with some becoming increasingly clearer, and others going from merely an idea into full-fledged beliefs. Karma, Dharma, and the theory of Samsara and moksha are the core beliefs that almost all who define themselves as a practicer of Hinduism would accept. The belief of karma started out in the Early Vedic period merely as “ritualistic action or labor”. It transformed into a “moral law” that incorporated the idea that all actions have fruits, whether good or bad. “Action, which springs from the mind, from speech, and from the body, produces either good or evil results”. This concept of a "law of karma" where good actions yield good results, and bad in bad, extends from the Vedic idea of consequential action from the confines of the ritual to everyday life.

Hinduism is a religion that is difficult to define. No one can say who the founder is, or connect it to a certain place or time. So in order to understand Hinduism, we follow a coherent set of assumptions upon which people base their lives; otherwise defined as the Indian Worldview.

Different from other religions, Hinduism presses biology and the Divine are one (48, 51). This is expressed through the following and belief of Shiva and Shakti. Shiva, is an absolute cosmic being and the sheer life force. Shakti is the absolute power of the universe the whole of the cosmic their progeny (48). Hinduism has several variations that make this religion very complex to understand; to simplify this “way of life,” simply think Dharma; while it’s a broad term in Hinduism it is very important. Summed as the moral behavior of an individual and becomes known as, rita, when this behavior is in accordance with the cosmic order (49). By practicing dharma, one upholds the social order. In dharma, one is constantly reflecting and self-correcting in any areas of opportunity for improvement. So dharma can be viewed as the saying, you reap what you sow. This “leaping out” or “skimming to a different level,” leading us then to moksha, which is a final quest in the life path of Hinduism (49). According to the Laws of Manu, dharma and moksha, are just two of the four goals of life, listed here in order of

India is a country full of mysteries and differences. It has a long history, a profound yet unique culture, with diversified nationalities, races, religions, languages and a huge population. The pursuit of secularism and inveteracy of sectarianism have brought huge influence to the Indian society. As the mainstream culture in India, Hinduism plays an important role in the Indian society and has dominated almost 2000 years of its history. Although in the following years since, the Indian culture gradually becomes a combination of different races, religions and languages, Hinduism still remains to be the key to dig into the development of the culture and society of India.

Hinduism is a part of worldview Pantheism. They would state that we all are a part of the universe and no God created us. We are all gods in our own kind. They would say we are a part of atman. Ataman is a part of brahma “an impersonal force of existence that is without separation” (Halverson, 2014). We all will be reincarnated, and the life we live now will determine our next life. In other words, they highly believe in karma. “The effects of our actions, moreover, follow us not only in the present lifetime but from lifetime to lifetime” (Halverson, 2014). Nonetheless, we are all to be born, live, die, and then have a rebirth. Known as the samsara, a wheel of life (Halverson, 2014). A cycle of life that continues over and over. According

     Samsara and moksha are the terms used in dealing with the Hinduism concept of afterlife. Samsara is the birth, death, and rebirth cycle. That’s why Hindu’s want to have good Karma so they can escape this cycle and eventually achieve moksha. Moksha is the escape of samsara and once Hindus achieve moksha they are set free from space, time, and matter. Moksha is what all Hindus want to achieve.

Hinduism, Jainism, and Buddhism are some of the most widespread faiths that follow this belief pattern, calling it samsara, which is the (karma-run helm of birth, death, and reawakening) (Fisher, 2014). They believe that the body is born repeatedly but that karma is carried onto the new form. Good karma forming is when the individual implements good deeds throughout their life and negative karma forming is when the individual does evil deeds during the course of one’s life, that not only distresses the person during their current life span but also all impending reincarnations. This idea of karma is used to explain many facets of a person’s life as their ambiance in their present life and all former lives will form what happens in their life. What is most fascinating is that the objective for the persons that shadow this route is not to have respectable lives born of virtuous karma but as a substitute halt this point though various lifespans of good

Samsara is known as the wheel of life, the cycle of birth, death and rebirth. It also embraces journeying in Buddhism and Hinduism. It shows a journey throughout the Himalayas and throughout the world, seeing a mans quest to find spiritual enlightenment and a woman’s quest to keep her enlightened love and life in the world. The documentary goes throughout many countries over a vast period of time and shows us different perspectives of civilizations. “Natural and man-made wonders are clearly being contrasted to the dehumanization caused by modern civilization, and various spiritual activities are shown”(Addiego 2012) .The film advocates a New Age or holistic perspective, with a sum of Eastern religion added for good measure. “The documentary takes us on a quest to a greater understanding and appreciation of the human condition and a reverence for the beauty and power of the natural world. It goes into great detail explaining the world and how people are suffering, and how they lived in poverty, greed, and violence”(Brusset 2012). In the midst of suffering and death, they discover that there are paths to rebirth or human transformation. With great respect for all the world's religions, the film delivers images of devotional practices and rituals of Tibetan Buddhists, Christians, Jews, and Muslims. This film really gave me a lot information about culture and can be related to two different guiding principles of

Religion can be characterized by the existence of belief and faith that something is acceptable and should be practiced without questioning or confirmation. In the Hindu religion, it can be confirmed that the way many things are characterized and the belief in the consequences of a person’s conduct can be categorically defined as faith. For instance, in Hindu, there is a belief that the individual soul is not created, but it has been in existence and will continue to exist. Just like in other religions whereby the actions of a person reaps the consequences in the next phase of life, Hindus, however, believe that the souls will one-day comeback to life in a different form, which utterly depends on the consequences of its actions before the rebirth. The kind of body that the soul will inhabit after that is determined by Karma, which is a term used to refer to actions

In this paper, I will argue that the dharmic belief of Hinduism is mistaken by building on one of Socrates’ arguments from the Euthyphro. Through Hindu scriptures, dharma has been codified as compassion, living by the rules of proper conduct, the path of uprightness, etc. According to them it is the observation of cosmic norms that permit us humans to avoid misery and be happy. In the Hindu concept of reincarnation, dharma serves as the measure that judges a person. Dharma is the barometer, and karma, the spiritual value of causality where your plans and deeds effect the future, the mercury within. To have good karma, you must abide by the norms outlined in living a dharmic life – that is doing what is right for you, your family, and your caste

Karma is the connotation of causality that past actions influence future events. This is the same for both Buddhism and Hinduism. Both also believe in an endless cycle of births known as endless cycle of births, known as samsara. and release from this cycle of rebirths.

Hinduism and Buddhism are both eastern traditions with much to say about the human condition as well as the reason human beings exist at all. In some ways they are different while also being similar in other ways. In this essay, those differences will be discussed and the similarities examined for their message. In conclusion, we will examine what these two faiths offer to the human beings of the twenty-first century.