A Comparison of Judaism and Hinduism - Essay Example

A Comparison of Judaism and Hinduism Introduction of the Religion Judaism is the religion of the Jews. The Jews believe that there is a single God (monotheistic) and that his presence is experienced in human actions and history. They believe that they are the Chosen People who will communicate between God and Men. They think that the Jewish people were directly communicated with by the divine about three thousand years ago and that a covenant was made between Jews and God. This covenant has remained in place since this time. The Jewish people have been persecuted for many centuries, culminating in the Holocaust during World War II when Hitler’s Nazis tried to rid the whole world of them. Partly as a result of this war and the Holocaust, the state of Israel was founded. Anyone of the Jewish faith can become a citizen of Israel. At present Jews live in many different countries of the world. Their contributions to science, the arts, economics and virtually every other sphere of human activity has been huge. Indeed, their success may be part of the reason that people have persecuted them for so long. Hinduism refers in general to the civilization of the Hindus – who were the original inhabitants of the land of the Indus river. The word “Hindu” was invented by British writers in about a830, and is in general used to describe Indian civilization over the last 2000 years. The Hindu religion is the third largest in the world, with about 1 billion adherents. In contrast to Judaism, Hinduism does not have a single set of religious beliefs or a main founder, but rather encompasses many different religious rituals and practices. Most Hindus follow the Vendata philosophy and believe in a cosmic spirit called Brahman. It is worshipped in many different forms such as the Vishnu, Shiva and Shakti. There are many different religious texts within Hinduism, the most famous of which is probably the Bhagavad Gita. In general, Hinduism can be portrayed as either polytheistic (many gods) or henotheistic (a personalized god and god as an idea). The Brahman cannot be described in words according to much inHind Hindu scripture, but can only be understood through direct experience. The Interview Location The interview location was the Hindu Temple of Chattanooga, which is known as Sanatan Mandir. This temple has been in existence about ten years and welcomes Hindus of various persuasions. The temple is located on Boney Oaks drive in the city. The Interview Can you tell me about yourself, where were you born? I was born forty years ago in Bombay, India. I moved to the USA for graduate studies in engineering, married an American and am now an American citizen. I have lived in America for about ten years. I am an engineer. Describe to me the Hindu religion That is a very big question. Hinduism is not just one religion but may be seen as a whole series of different religions that have a common background. However, people are free to worship in their own manner. There is not just one doctrine but many doctrines. For example, every full moon day I celebrate the festival known as Katha Puja. Some Hindus who come to my temple celebrate this with me, others do not. Other Hindus celebrate various ceremonies and deities that I do not celebrate. But we are all Hindus. I hope that explains a little of it for you. To me Hinduism is more a way of life and a way of looking at the world than a specific religion. I am not sure about the existence of any particular god, but I am sure about the spiritual structure of the universe. What exactly that structure is I don’t know, but I am sure it exists. Hinduism tries to make sense of that structure. What is the most important aspect of the Hindu religion? As I said before, perhaps the most important aspect of Hinduism is the freedom to believe in whatever aspects of the religion that you wish to. Most Hindus follow the Vendata philosophy, although this varies from beliefs in the Tantra to much more conservative beliefs. The structure of the universe and god, or gods, is revealed through actual human experience. It cannot be described or studied, it must be experienced. As an engineer I have taught that the world can be explained through methods such as science and mathematics. But my religion tells me that trying to describe it in this way is essentially futile – we must experience it in the most full and open manner. Almost the way that a small infant experiences the world. These two sides of me – the professional and the spiritual – are linked through Hinduism. I know every Hindu would describe the most important part of our religion in a different way. But that is what it is to me. Why is yoga so important? Well, here we have one of the strange things about Hinduism. To me yoga is not that important, but I can describe its general place within Hinduism, as far as I understand it. Yoga enables a spiritual and physical fitness to come about. In some senses it is a form of prayer. Thus the relaxation exercises and emptying of the mind enable people to come to closer to that experience of the universe – without thinking or analyzing it – that enables a true experience of the Vendata and the Brahman. The Brahman is of course either god, or gods, or perhaps even just a set of ideas that show how the universe is run. Yoga also enables a physical fitness that will keep people healthy. It is only through the health of the mind and the body that a Hindu can truly worship. Those who practice yoga are often involved deeply in the Tantric part of Hinduism. They believe that the only way of truly knowing the divine is for them to see an image of the deity and to almost become part of that deity. They often see this in the form of a sexual union, and this is often controversial among many Hindus. Explain your understanding of reincarnation Reincarnation is a very difficult concept. Within Hinduism, as within many other Indian religions such as Buddhism, reincarnation is linked to the idea of karma. That is, a soul must travel from body to body through a number of lives as it seeks to come to a point where it no longer needs to come back. I have never entirely understood how reincarnation actually exists if you don’t really remember any of the past lives. Am I the same person as I was in past lives – or is my soul something separate from the person that I know that I am when I wake up each morning? Many such questions are part of the overall Hindu experience – and I feel that it is a stronger religion because it does not tell people what to believe or how to believe it. There are many parts or reincarnation that are in fact impossible to describe – they just exist, and we will know more of them which each new incarnation that our soul goes through. What should a person expect when attending a service at the Hindu temple? Well, when you first arrive at the service there will be what is called “the opening of the door”. That is we adore and celebrate the powers that preside over the door. Each Hindu may see different deity as having control and power of protection over the door, but we come together to celebrate the overall protection that exists. The Vaishnavas suggest that the opening of the door to the temple is a symbolic opening of the doors to heaven. I like that interpretation and often think about it when I am entering the temple. After this point there are a whole variety of different ceremonies which may occur, depending on the time of year and the people in attendance. I know within some other religions they repeat the same ceremonies and words every week – this is not the case in Hinduism. A celebration of the full moon will be completely different from one of the Braham in general. Some people may take the whole time to contemplate the meaning of various holy books, others practice yoga. Others will constantly repeat what are called japas – these are like little poems or sometimes just phrases that celebrate the omnipotence of the deities. Do Hindus pray – and if so, to whom? As I said earlier, Hindus to pray, but often not to a general god, but rather to many different deities or maybe even, through the disciplines of yoga, to the general idea of the enlightenment and spiritual and physical connection to the scared. I know this sounds a bit complicated – and it is. There is no one real central form of Hinduism, so there is really no one central form of praying. Some people think that fasting is a way of praying – I don’t. I believe in reading the sacred books a lot and thinking about what they say about the divine. Is that prayer? – I don’t know, but it feels that way to me, so I guess that it is. Explain why a person is considered a guru. A guru is any person that either an individual or a whole group of people regard as a spiritual adviser. So a guru can be an adviser to a single person or to millions. The idea is that he is trusted, knowledgeable and is able to give advice. He is not like a priest or anything – no special training is needed. He must just be trusted and available to give advice. Describe family life for Hindus As with other types of family life, that for Hindus is I suppose as varied as there are types of people. Family life within Hinduism often depends upon the caste that one is born into. I myself am a Brahman, and I was taught as a child that I am a representative of divine power and that I am entitled to teach others and rule over others. I know that sounds kind of strange, and since I have lived in America I have moved away from thinking that. But Brahmans in general, especially in India, still believe this. Men are very much in control of all Hindu families – the women are reverenced – but men have the control. A girl traditionally lives with her family until she is married, and then she moves to the family of her husband and owes them allegiance. Many Hindu families live in very large groups – what I think is called an extended family here. So it is expected that when my parents get old – they are nearing that time now – they will come and live with me and I will look after them. This makes Hindu families much closer that those in many other types of religion – but also there are many tensions, especially for people like me and even more for my children. There are also some family gods that will be worshipped – in the forms of statues that represent them. Again, often this practice is falling out with people who have moved from India. END OF INTERVIEW PORTION How is Hinduism different from Judaism Beyond the belief that there is a generally spiritual nature to the universe that cannot be seen or proved – thus the need for some kind of faith – Judaism and Hinduism are very different. One of the major differences is that Jews, despite their many doctrinal differences, believe in a single God and in general agree on what his nature is and how his truth has been revealed on earth. Jews are agreed on the fact that they are the chosen people, a somewhat double-edged sword considering their history, but they are agreed on this status. Hindus come from a great variety of beliefs and backgrounds, and do not believe in a single god, or even, in some cases, that there is any individual god at all. Hinduism is often called a way of life and a philosophy rather than a religion. This is often said by people who do not understand a religion that does not formally worship through a set series of dogmas and doctrines. Jews believe that all people are equal in the eyes of God, except themselves, who are chosen. But the “chosen” nature of Jews does not make them superior or special in their eyes, rather they have a special relationship with God, for better or worse. Hinduism is based upon a very strict caste system in which members of one caste at the top, the Brahmans, are essentially seen as the divine representatives on earth. At the bottom of the caste hierarchy are the untouchables, who perform the dirty jobs and who are seen as somehow innately less than those above them. Hindus believe, in the main, in reincarnation, while Jews believe that the life we have today is the only one within a physical body. Thus what an individual does in this life is of the most importance, because it is the only one they will lead – and where they go afterwards depends on this. For most Hindus, this life is just one of many, and Karma is taken from one life to another, even though it may slowly dissipate over a number of lifetimes. Hinduism is a much larger (in terms of numbers of people) religion than Hinduism, and is more complex as it involves the relation and combination of a number of quite different and often contrasting beliefs. Many Hindu leaders, the greatest and most influential example is Gandhi, have taken precepts from many other religions (including Judaism) into their own teachings. Hinduism is thus eclectic in nature, whereas Judaism often sticks to particular precepts that are defined by their separation from others. Both religions essentially believe in the “Golden Rule” – that one should treat others as one wants to be treated oneself. But the method of coming to that state of moderation contrasts. Read More