“I’m not taking the piss, but you Hindus pray to everything… even money!” so said a certain acquaintance of mine, at university once.
He was browsing through a leaflet about Diwali, that was being distributed at a Diwali party which he came along to (many non-Hindus come to such events). He made his comment in reference…..
Most Hindus living in the West have an urge at one point in their lives to learn about Hinduism. Sometimes the curiosity arises from a genuine desire for guidance in life. In other cases the urge to look into Hinduism comes from a particular incident – for example being asked questions that we’re not able to answer. There may be any number of different starting points to an individual’s quest.
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The reason for me writing this article stems back to an incident which occurred a few months ago. A group of friends were using a room in my house to do some filming, and one of their younger cousins was there with them. Afterwards everybody got into a discussion about religion, and one of the comments which most people agreed on was that Hinduism is not a religion in the usual sense of the word, but a path to discover your dharma. However my friend’s cousin, who was a few years younger, commented “You keep talking about dharma, but what is dharma?” This was his first and only comment in the whole discussion.
A few of my friends had started a new Hindu Society in their university, as it hadn’t existed earlier. They wanted it to be a place for Hindus and those interested in Hinduism to come together in celebration of Hindu Dharma and be conversant about a wide range of issues effecting Hindus and Hinduism. Freshers’ fairs offer the unique opportunity to present yourself and your society to other students, and are also a great time to meet both a diverse range of people and to get involved in common causes and activities with like-minded people. So I went to the fair to help my friends with their stall.
The day was going great, until…
Hinduism as Sanatana Dharma, a universal way of knowledge does not require that we reject science or return to medieval superstitions. For example, Hinduism does not require that we believe that the world was created 6000 years ago, nor is it opposed to the theory of evolution, which it long ago formulated in a spiritual way as an evolution not merely of form but of consciousness.
Sanatana Dharma recognizes the validity of all forms of knowledge. Yet it says that knowledge is of two types. The lower knowledge - based on name, form and number - can only help us understand the outer world. It cannot reveal our True Nature or help us discover the Eternal.
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The Mahabharata is in my opinion the greatest literature in the world. No other work brings out the complexity of human problems in such a profound and entertaining way. It shows us the application of philosophy when it comes to the deciding between the right and wrong in such cases where the answer is not straightforward.
Four of the most striking characters in the Mahabharata are Arjuna, Bhishma, Drona and Karna. These men were perhaps the four greatest warriors of the era and were also well learned and had firm principles by which they lived.
At this year’s Janmashtmi festivities I was fortunate enough to be attend two separate celebrations. Both of the mandirs which I visited were fast running out of space to sit. Devotees of all ages had travelled from near and far, where they gathered to take part in the celebrations.
What is it about Krishna that makes him so popular? To a sizeable range of age groups? To people with completely different lifestyles and upbringings? To His devotees born at different ages?
My mom normally does the daily puja in the house. And when she can’t my sister does it. But last weekend my parents were away and my sister couldn’t do the puja for some reason either, so I said that I’d do it. Well to be honest, she could but I wanted to do the puja because I had an exam I hadn’t really studied for the next day. I told her that that I’d perform the puja so long as she stayed outside the temple-room and directed me as to what to do. She said what’s the point, I wasn’t gonna listen to her anyways.
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From September 16th to 22nd, Chinmaya Mission UK held yet another excellent series of talks on Hinduism. The talks were delivered in English, and the subjects ranged from topics such as ‘Meditation Demystified’, ‘Self-Image’, ‘But Why…?’ to discourses on Chapter 18 of the Bhagavad Gita.
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On August 15th 60 years ago, an ancient civilisation accounting for over 1/6th of the world’s population, achieved freedom. Despite the sad events that accompanied India’s Independence, the partition of India and the accompanying massacres, Independence Day is a happy event, celebrated by over a billion people every year, in many parts of the world.
A sacred song recited thousands of years ago to a hesitant hero who had lost his courage and will to fight also provided inspiration to thousands of those who struggled for India’s Independence. That song - the Bhagavad Gita…
