So what? What’s the big deal! What’s the point of all this anyway? Increasingly, teenagers, young adults and even adults find Hinduism no longer relevant to them. Perhaps rightly so! After all, there is no clarity on why so many types of rituals are practiced and so many types of Gods worshipped. Imagine a typical scenario of a kid coming home from school and asking his parents why they worship an elephant-headed God. Whilst mom is trying to find an answer, dad says: “Don’t ask stupid questions! Hinduism is a mysterious religion. Just do as you’re told!”
Today, the youth, whose role models are from Hollywood and Bollywood, are embarrassed about being Hindu. Few are inspired by great epical heroes like Rama, Sita, Arjuna, and Krishna. But why should they be, when no one can explain to them why Krishna had 16,000 wives! Why do we worship so many Gods? Why do we worship the rat in the morning and kill the rat in the evening? Why do we do “abishekha” and waste so much milk and ghee? Why do we chant so many mantras that sound boring? Why does Goddess Kali look so angry and have so many hands? The youth have so many questions, but receive few answers. In school, they are repeatedly told to ask questions, but at home, they are told not to!
When great religions in the past, such as the Egyptian, Inca, and Greek, gradually faded into history, how did Hinduism stand the test of time? Indisputable universal laws, collectively known as “Sanathana Dharma”, form the backbone of our culture. Our ancestors, who understood the scientific validity in these laws, adhered to them to live dutiful and honest lives, to serve the needy and to respect other religions. Today, the youth question the scientific nature of these laws and demand evidence, which hardly anyone is able to provide. The evidence is in fact, overwhelming and will fill volumes, but here’s an example. Just over 500 years ago, the earth was considered to be at the center of the solar system. Copernicus, the renowned scientist, was condemned for revealing his theory that the sun was actually at the center and not the earth, but his theory was later proved by Galileo. Few are aware that our ancient sages knew about this centuries before Copernicus’s time. Visit any Hindu temple and see the “Nava Graha”, the nine planet deities. Observe what is placed at the center—the sun or the earth? Even western scientists have looked to Hinduism for guidance. The Bhagavad Gita was the constant companion of Einstein and Oppenheimer, the father of the atomic bomb. Yet, most of our young professionals today disregard it since they are fed a book of “slokas”, the recitation of which, they are told, will obtain God’s grace. Few understand that Lord Krishna did not give us a book. He gave us a message.
I believe we have a responsibility to revive the true spirit of Hinduism in the hearts of young parents, youth, and children. Intelligent people do not need superstitions, void of meaning. They need meaningful explanations that are relevant to their frame of thinking. It is a difficult undertaking, but thanks to a special program called TRAC (Tradition, Religion, Aspiration, Culture), started by Dato’ J. Jegathesan, from Malaysia, people from all age groups can learn the true meaning of Hinduism in a unique and entertaining way. With a perfect blend of music, humor, audience-interaction, and intensity, he captures the attention and instills understanding even in the very young audience.
We are fortunate to have Jegathesan in Phoenix this year, where he will be conducting a free two-day TRAC session on March 15th and 16th (9:45 AM to 4:00 PM), at Arizona State University (Murdock Hall 101). You are encouraged to bring your children (or your parents!) and enjoy the entire weekend filled with the spirit of Hinduism. For more information and registration, please visit the TRAC site at http://www.tracphoenix.org, or feel free to call me at (602) 561-7190.
Before we force our children to go to temples, let us build a temple in their hearts, so that they will, for themselves, seek the brick and mortar temples, with a yearning to understand and evolve.
Filed under: Religion & Spirituality | 2 Comments
Tags: hinduism, trac
Just as a single force in space can be mathematically conceived as having various spatial components, the Supreme Being or God, the personal form of the Ultimate Reality, is conceived by Hindus as having various aspects. A Hindu deity (god or goddess; note small g) represents a particular aspect of the Supreme Being. For example, Saraswati represents the learning and knowledge aspect of the Supreme Being. Thus, if a Hindu wants to pray for acquiring knowledge and understanding, he prays to Saraswati. Just as sunlight cannot have a separate and independent existence from the sun itself, a Hindu deity does not have a separate and independent existence from the Supreme Being. Thus, Hindu worship of deities is monotheistic polytheism and not simple polytheism.
Hindus declare that there is only one Supreme Being and He is the God of all religions. There is no “other God.” Thus the Biblical Commandment “Thou shalt have no other God before me,” really means, “Thou shalt not deny the Ultimate Reality or worship any power other than the Ultimate Reality.”
Hindus view cosmic activity of the Supreme Being as comprised of three tasks: creation, preservation, and dissolution and recreation. Hindus associate these three cosmic tasks with the three deities, Brahma, Vishnu and Shiva. Lord Brahma brings forth the creation and represents the creative principle of the Supreme Being. Lord Vishnu maintains the universe and represents the eternal principle of preservation. Lord Shiva represents the principle of dissolution and recreation. These three deities together form the Hindu Trinity.
One must clearly understand that Brahma, Vishnu and Shiva are not three independent deities. They represent the same power (the Supreme Being), but in three different aspects. Just as a man may be called a doctor, father or husband based upon the tasks he performs, the Supreme Being is called Brahma, Vishnu or Shiva when conceived as performing the three different cosmic tasks of creation, preser-vation, and dissolution/recreation. “The oneness of the three gods Brahma, Vishnu and Shiva is brought out by the mystic symbol AUM where ‘A’ represents Vishnu, ‘U’ Shiva and ‘M’ Brahma.”
Hindu religion is often labeled as a religion of 330 million gods. This misunderstanding arises when people fail to grasp the symbolism of the Hindu pantheon. According to the Hindu scriptures, living beings are not apart from God, since He lives in each and every one of them in the form of atman (BG 10.39). Thus each living being is a unique manifestation of God. In ancient times it was believed that there were 330 million living beings. This gave rise to the idea of 330 million deities or gods. Actually, this vast number of gods could not have been possibly worshipped, since 330 million names could not have been designed for them. The number 330 million was simply used to give a symbolic expression to the fundamental Hindu doctrine that God lives in the hearts of all living beings.
http://answers.yahoo.com/question/index;_ylt=AjDjU0opgxjssoGJFDkuykrty6IX;_ylv=3?qid=20080104133845AAwAK9d&show=7#profile-info-7c0eb610d871f4900af356753fbd90b4aa
It is absolutely right. However, in my understanding as I look back when I was a child, Faith is the first step towards Spiritual awakening. In today’s world it no longer exists as we are constantly trained to question. Think with the logical mind than, with the subjective mind from where Love flows. However, practices need to change according time and place. You cannot roam around in a shirt and shorts in Antarctic… its too cold. Likewise if today’s world constantly prods us to question, then we better start asking them and helping the younger generation in the process to stay connected to that which is permanent. There are many organizations in India that are reviving the Vedic Civilization that was long forgotten, the traditions and practices that were carried on by our fore-fathers. There was definitely a period in history when practices were carried out blindly. However, through modern education, we are coming to understand difference between superstition and culture. But to the younger generation, this is not so obvious, why the younger generation, the generation of my father and grand father also don’t understand the significance of many things.
That is the reason in Hinduism, Satsangat (Good company), company of the holy and pious people is considered to be the best guide in the spiritual path.