Comparing Hinduism and Islam - Essay Example

?Hinduism & Islam Introduction Hinduism and Islam are two of the prominent religions in the world. Even though Hindus are small in number compared toMuslims, it is one of the oldest religions in the world. “According to historians, the origin of Hinduism dates back to 5,000 or more years” (Das), Even though Nepal is the only Hindu country in the world, many other countries including the second largest populated country India, consists of large number of believers in Hinduism. “Statistically, there are over 800 million Hindus, concentrated mainly in India and Nepal” (Devshoppe). On the other hand, Islam is one among the three Abrahamic religions (Christianity & Jewism are the other two). In other words, Muslims, Jews and Christians have a common father in Abraham. All these three religions originated from Abraham. Abraham’s eldest son Ishmael is the father of Islamic religion. Hindu religion is standing out from other religions because of their belief in multi God theory. It should be noted that Muslims believe in single God theory like Jews and Christians. There are certain common elements and differences in the belief structure of Hindus and Muslims even though their theories about God are entirely different. This paper analyses the similarities and differences between Hindu beliefs and Islamic beliefs. Analysis of Hinduism & Islam through research Hindu religion is the religion of Vedas based on the practice of Dharma. (Dharma is the code of conduct of life principles). “The foundations of Hindu religion were laid by ancient rishis (sages), who taught their disciples the eternal principles of life they had discovered through their meditations” Since Hinduism has no founder, anyone who practices Dharma can call himself a Hindu”(Devshoppe). There are 4 different types of people in the Hindu religion basically as per the ancient belief; Brahman, Kshathriya, Vaisya and Shudra. Only the Brahman people got the rights to do the rituals in the temple and they are considered as the highest class in the Hindu religion. Kshathriya people had the right to rule the country while the other two were the working class. The word Brahmin is derived from the word Brahman ie the supreme self. This caste is traditionally ranked first, among the four main castes. Vedas are the primary source of knowledge for brahmins. The word Kshtriya denotes an aristocratic status. In Sanskrit it is derived from the word “Khatra” ie Power, Rule, Roof, Government etc.. This caste is traditionally ranked second in the four main castes. The Vaishya are on the third rank of four main castes in Indian society. The word Vaishya is derived from a word which means to live, and the caste was originally focused on farming, agriculture, and trading. The shudras are the lowest and largest caste. As per the Sanskrit definition, Shudra can be any person, regardless of his Varna. As per the Purush-Sukta of Rig-Ved,the Shudras are originated from the feet of the Lord (Brahmana-Kshatriya-Vaishya-Shudra) Hindus believe in “The three-in-one god known as “Brahman,” which is composed of: Brahma (the creator), Vishnu (the Preserver), and Shiva (the Destroyer)” (Hindu Beliefs). In other words, for every Godly activity, Hindus have a separate God. They believe that the entire world is controlled by different Gods who have different duties. Bhagavad Gita is the Holy book for Hindus. “Spoken by Lord Krishna, the Supreme Personality of Godhead to His intimate disciple Arjuna, the Gita's seven hundred concise verses provide a definitive guide to the science of self realization” (Bhagavad Gita). Hindus give more respect to women compared to any other religions in the world. According to Hinduism, a soul is reincarnates again and again on earth till it becomes perfect and reunites with its Source. During this process, soul enters many bodies and attains many forms (Jayaram) Islam means to submit freely to The Commandments and Will of The One and Only God (Allah). This submission should come from within, from sound belief in and conviction to Allah, with no doubt. It should also come from love, trust, and affection. Allah is not a special god for Muslims, but Allah is The Creator of all creatures, including mankind. The Prophet Muhammad is the Messenger of Allah. The Prophet Muhammad received The Word of Allah (revelation), through the archangel Gabriel (The Holy Spirit). This revelation comprises the Religion of Islam. The Qur'an is the authentic collection of this revelation recorded in book form. It is the exact, unchanged Word of Allah to all mankind (Meaning of Islam) My own views of Hinduism & Islam In my opinion, multi God theory of Hinduism seems to be unacceptable compared to the single God theory of Muslims. It is difficult to believe that there are different Gods for different activities in this world. If more than one God exists in this world, definitely a power struggle for domination between these Gods could be possible. I do not advocate the caste system in Hindu religion. It is difficult to believe that God has created people with different status. In other words, the Hindu doctrine of one caste superior to another is difficult to digest in this modern civilized world. The single God theory of Islam seems to be more acceptable to everyone. It should be noted that both Christians and Jews also believe in single God theory even though they believe in Holy Trinity; Father, Son and the Holy Spirit. Moreover, Christians and Jews are o believe in prophets just like Islam. For Christians, Jesus is the son of God whereas for Muslims, he is only a prophet. Muslims believe that Prophet Mohammad is the only messenger of Allah. In my opinion, Islam should give more respect to women community as some of the major accusations against Islam by others are the ill-treatment of Muslim women by Islam. Women beating and Sharia laws with respect to marriage and divorce are against the interests of the women community in Islam. The Hindu belief; Karma is the base of eternal life, seems to be in line with Muslim beliefs about salvation. Muslims believe that only through good acts, one can attain salvation after death. Similarities and differences between my own views and the research findings Hindus give more respect to women whereas Islam gives less respect to women. In other words, Hindus are more civilized compared to Muslims as far as the treatment of women is considered. However in all the other respects Hindu beliefs seem to be outdated. Even though science does not believe in religion or God, many scientists do believe that a superpower is controlling this world. Hindus believe in many superpowers which is unacceptable to many of the scientists. Islam does not believe in any caste system in its religious beliefs. Islam treats all people equal even though women are treated slightly differently. However Hindus believe that God has created different types of people and each type of people should engage only in a particular type of activities. In other words, Shudras can never become a king or Vyshias can never perform the rituals in the temple. “Islam is said to be the biggest critique of theory of rebirth”(Agni). However, Hindus do believe in rebirths and they are of the view that death is the beginning of another life in this world. Islam believes that earthly life only once for every human. Evaluation of different views and insights gained After evaluating Hindu beliefs and Muslim beliefs, I have learned a lot. Both Hindus and Muslims talk about good acts. Both the religions reject sins and stress the importance of good acts in getting salvation. Hindus believe in rebirth in this world whereas Muslims believe that only one life is there for every human in this world. In short, death is not the end of life, but the beginning of a new life according to the beliefs of Hindus and Muslims even though they have different concepts about the life after death. Hindus believe that humans have many lives in this world whereas Muslims believe that humans have another life in God’s Kingdom after the life is over in this world. Works Cited Agni, Satyagni. “Islam and Rebirth”. 2010. Web. 01 April 2012. “Brahmana-Kshatriya-Vaishya-Shudra”. Web. 01 April 2012. “Bhagavad Gita”. Web. 01 April 2012. Das, Subhamoy. “Theories About the Origin of Hinduism”. 2012. Web. 01 April 2012. Devshoppe. “Details About Hinduism”. 2008. Web. 01 April 2012. “Hindu Beliefs”. Web. 01 April 2012. Jayaram V. “Hinduism and Belief in Rebirth”. 2012. Web. 01 April 2012. “Meaning of Islam”. The Islamic Bulletin. Web. 01 April 2012. Read More