Hinduism - A journey to self realization.....

Introduction to Hinduism:

Hinduism is the world’s oldest known religion. It is also the third largest religion of the world with more than 1 billion followers. People who follow Hinduism are called as "Hindus." It is also known as “Hindu Dharma (Hindu Religion),” OR “Sanatan Dharma (Eternal Religion).” Hinduism has no single founder. It has been evolving over the thousands of years and will continue to. History of Hinduism can be traced back to before 7,500 B.C. Hinduism originated in India.

The word Hinduism actually has no real meaning because Hinduism was not founded as a religion. The name “Hindu” is given by the people outside of the India, especially Greeks and Arabs, to those living in the vicinity of “Sindhu” river. So, the way of life those people were following is called “Hinduism.”

Basic concept of Hinduism:

It will be easier to understand the basic principle of Hinduism if you know Law of Conservation of Energy. For those who have a science background or have some interest in science know the Law of Conservation of Energy very well. It is like this:

“Energy can neither be created nor destroyed. Only one form of energy can be transformed into other. The sum of all the energies in the universe remains the same.”

According to Hinduism, soul is immortal, while the body is subject to birth and rebirth. The soul changes bodies as a living person changes his/her clothes. So, the thing which we call death is actually just a transformation of soul from one body to another as the energy changes from one form to the other. This cycle continues births after births and the human beings are subjected to sufferings endlessly.

So, the ultimate goal of a Hindu’s life is to attend salvation (also called as Moksha or Nirvana) from the cycle of birth and rebirth. One can attend salvation when the soul of a person fully becomes one with the supreme spirit called "Brahman" (or God) who is eternal, genderless, omnipotent, and omniscient.

Why Hinduism: Uniqueness of Hinduism

Hinduism was not founded as a religion. So, it does not have only one founder and therefore, it allows multiple streams of thoughts, which lead us to the one and only GOD and is the base of tolerance towards other people who have different paths to reaching towards God.

Hinduism believes only in one GOD, as do the other religions, but at the same time, it allows its followers to worship other deities as they are believed to be the part of the same God, WHICH OTHERS DO NOT. This gives an impression at the first site that Hinduism believes in different Gods, but if one reads the sacred Hindu books like Bhagvad Gita or Vedas, this misconception gets wiped out.

Hinduism does not restrict belief of people by saying this is the only GOD or this is the only messenger GOD has sent to us. Hinduism accepts existence of all religions. It allows you to worship anything like trees, stones, nature, or even persons if you find them as one with GOD.

After all it is your life and you should be able to worship what you like. Why others should decide what you should worship? So, Hinduism acts as a guide in your journey of life to help you better your life and lives of all living beings in this universe.

Hinduism teaches us to love not only human beings but also the animals around us because as we are the creation of that Almighty, they are also the creation of His and have the same rights to live peacefully on this planet as we have.

For Hindus, the GOD is genderless. Hindus worship male as well as female deities.

Please do not forget to watch this video. It is an interview of Dr. Frank Morales alias Sri Dharma Pravartaka Acharya. This video will give you an insight into Hinduism.

At any point of time in your life if you are in any sort of problem, just remember the following lines from Holy Bhagvad Gita:

“Whatever has happened has happened for the best, whatever is happening is happening for the best, and whatever is going to happen, would happen for the best.