Foundations of Hinduism Flashcards
1
Q
what is the meaning behind the word ‘Hindu’
A
- etic discourse - what the invaders called people living near the Indus river
- not a description of a religion but of a people and a way of life
2
Q
why is Hinduism so complicated?
A
- there is no definitive truth as to what the beliefs are
- immensely diverse
3
Q
when did the IVC begin?
A
-about 4,600 years ago
4
Q
what is Harappan culture?
A
-all the local cultures which joined the IVC
5
Q
what was the IVC?
A
-an organised, urban culture focused around towns and cities
6
Q
describe the houses:
A
- were planned before being built
- built on brick platforms to protect from floods
- houses were 2 storeys
- houses had a bathing area with water draining into city sewers
- all the bricks were of standard size
7
Q
why might people say it was a hierarchal society?
A
- because of the difference between large buildings and citadels and smaller ones in residential areas
- some toys were made out of more expensive material than others
8
Q
some urban features:
A
- sewers
- granaries
- industrial areas
9
Q
describe the management of water:
A
- access to local wells
- a system for removal of waste through sewers
- settlements were built on slopes to allow water to flow from reservoirs into the city
10
Q
where was a ‘great bath’ found?
A
Mohenjo-Daro
11
Q
what was special a special feature?
A
standard weights and measures
12
Q
why is it so hard to find out information about the culture and people?
A
the texts and remain untranslated
13
Q
what is some evidence for life after death?
A
-seals and clay models were buried/general possessions with the people
14
Q
IVC culture and Vedic Hinduism possible links with fire:
A
- two fire places
- fire sacrifices
15
Q
IVC culture had a possible social hierarchy how is this linked with Vedic Hinduism?
A
varna system
16
Q
IVC culture and Vedic Hinduism possible links with water:
A
- great bath
- ritual washing
17
Q
what animal do both IVC culture and Vedic Hinduism have in common?
A
bulls - symbol of power - Rig Veda
18
Q
links between IVC and modern Hinduism (2):
A
- great bath and washing for purification
- female figures and clay figurines and goddesses and murtis
19
Q
what might female figurines represent and why?
A
-fertility goddesses because of exaggerated feminine characteristics
20
Q
what opposing ideas do goddesses represent?
A
- traditional ideas of femininity such as motherhood e.g. Ganga Ma, ma meaning mother
- also powerful sometimes wrathful figures such as Durga or Kali
21
Q
what is the name for feminine power of the divine?
A
shakti
22
Q
what is a view that makes female goddesses important?
A
that male devas are powerless without their consort
23
Q
why is venerating murtis so common?
A
because for many the point of worship is to gain darshan, or a glimpse of God ‘meeting the gaze of God’
-so murtis often have big eyes
24
Q
what are the two links of the figurines in the IVC?
A
- worship of goddesses
- worship of murtis
25
description of 'Proto-Shiva' figure:
- appears to have antlers
- sitting in yoga position
- erect phallus
- surrounded by animals
26
what are the different forms Shiva is portrayed as in Hinduism? (4)
- lingha: a phallic symbol representing his creative power (anthropomorphic because some say it is dangerous to worship him as a man)
- Shiva maha-yogi: who maintains the universe through meditation
- Shiva paraputi: surrounded by animals and wearing antlers
- Nataraja: cosmic ecstatic dancer (dancing on a demon symbolising ignorance, maya)
27
what might some scholars argue that the yogi postion might mean?
- Kak and Frawley
- evidence for yoga being practised in the IVC
- however this argument is overstated
28
hierarchal society links:
- to varna (caste) system
| - rigid spiritual hierarchy
29
why might IVC houses have two fireplaces?
- one for cooking and warmth
| - one possibly for fire sacrifices
30
what kind of account was given of the Aryans in the Vedas?
accurate rather than mythological account
31
what does Aryan mean?
'the noble ones'
32
who were the Aryans?
-nomadic pastoralists and warriors who were invaders
33
what seems to have happened to the Indus Valley sites?
-abandoned and inhabitants driven away
34
how did the Aryans describe themselves and how did they describe the people they supplanted?
- tall and fair skinned
| - 'dark skinned, squat nosed, phallus worshippers'
35
what kind of gods did the Aryans worship?
- war like gods
| - particularly Indra 'smasher of cities'
36
where could the varna system originate from?
- keeping the two groups separate
| - forbidding marriage across the racial divide
37
what fact supports the theory that the Aryans invaded?
no weapons
38
what is Sanskrit seen as?
a European 'proto-language'
39
what are the problems with an Aryan invasion:
- the IVC was incredibly large
- the cities were abandoned not 'smashed'
- no signs of warfare
40
what is likely to be the cause of abandonment?
water shortage caused by the drying of the saraswati river
41
what theory do the majority of scholars believe?
- the Aryan migration theory
| - they migrated over thousands of years
42
when were the Vedas believed to be have written?
1500 BC
43
what does the term Vedic religion mean?
used to describe the religious ideas in a group of Sanskrit texts called the Vedas
44
why are they still important today?
contain beliefs and practises that are still part of contemporary Hindu practise
45
what does it mean when they are used as a benchmark?
meaning if you accept the vedas as the most important religious texts then you are a Hindu
46
who brought about the idea of the vedas being a benchmark?
Dayananda Saraswati
47
are the vedas shruti or smriti?
- the vedas are shruti
- meaning that which is heard
- meaning they are words heard by rishis
- thus ultimately authored by God
48
what does the word 'veda' mean?
'to know'
49
what varna are they still important to?
the Brahmin priests who incorporate sections into daily rituals
50
what was Vedic religion centred around? (2)
- yajna, the fire sacrifice
| - worship of the devas
51
what is the yajna based upon? and what makes it a sacrifice?
- making offerings to the devas by placing them in the fire
| - the specific ritual and Sanskrit words makes it a sacrifice
52
was early Vedic religion monotheistic or polytheistic and why?
polytheistic because many scholars identify 33 devas
53
what categories were the devas divided into?
sky, atmosphere, earth
54
who was the principle deva?
- varuna
- sky deva
- celestial or heavenly being
- creator of the world
- maintained the universe in accordance with rta-'the way things should be'
55
about Indra:
- 'thunder god'
- god of battles
- thrashes the evil spiritual powers of the universe
56
about Rudra:
- controlling the primal powers of nature - storm, sickness, and possibly even death
- widely feared so invocations called upon him were not called upon directly but through Shiva
57
what devas were the most important?
- those associated with the yajna
| - terrestrial devas
58
what would you do if you wanted something?
-pay a Brahmin priest to perform a yajna
59
what ideas about the afterlife hadn't been developed in the Vedic times?
reincarnation or a cyclical existence
60
what was the most common sacrifice?
horse
| early records suggest human but it probably wasn't common
61
what happened at the end of the vedic period to sacrificial gifts?
they were standardised to ghee, grains, fruit and milk
62
what is another significant element of yajna?
the preparation and drinking of soma, a hallucinogenic
63
what happened over time to the devas in relation to yajna?
- they became less important
| - elements of the sacrifice were worshipped and deified
64
who were the deities of the yajna? (3)
- agni god of fire
- soma the deva who represented the symbolic liquid offering
- brihaspati the divine priest
65
what is special about sanskrit?(2)
- is not a human language, divine, shruti
- the thing and word aren't different, not a way of describing external reality but a way of participating even controlling reality
66
is sanskrit shruti or smriti?
shruti
67
what is a mantra?
a phrase in the language of the gods, a powerful utterance
68
what is believed to happen when one says a mantra correctly?
can bring about changes in the universe
69
what is special about Agni in relation to the 3 realms of the cosmos?
he is part of all 3
- earth-fire
- sky-sun
- atmosphere-lightning
70
what did the polytheistic religion change to?
- pantheism
| - a single being or entity underlies all the different phenomena of the world
71
what is the difference between shruti and smriti?
- shruti 'that which has been heard' - unquestionable truth from God
- smriti 'that which has been remembered
72
are the vedas shruti or smriti?
- shruti
- revealed to rishis
- without beginning
73
what would the majority of the orthodox say about the vedas?
- that they are impersonal, not the 'word of God'
| - pre-existent, an embodiment of eternal law
74
what is the oldest text?
the Rig veda, a collection of hymns
75
what does the term Veda describe?
- the 4 samhitas-collections
| - importance is to do with yajna
76
meaning of shruti:
shruti means revealed
77
meaning of smriti:
smriti means remembered
