Hinduism Final

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Raja Rammohan Roy

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1774-1833, associated with the Brahmo Samaj (est 1828) Bengali Brahmin, always wore thread, teachings were eclectic. Echoed discourse of Brits. Used Christian theology. First to use “hinduism” in 1816, liked synchotisms and upanishads (strict monotheism) against image worship, visited Europe, really against suti, promoted a woman’s right to own property 1830, “Father of Modern India”.

* was sick of british visionaries denigrating Hinduism and said that it was iconoclastic and monotheistic. 'white-eashed' hinduism and played on a british playing field - sanitized it to speak to a colonial audience

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Dr. B.R. Ambedkar

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1891-1956, dalit political leader, chief architect of Indian Constitution, led India’s Buddhist Revival via Mahar conversions of 1953, very popular among rickshaw drivers, fought with Ghandi against caste... decided to convert to Buddhism

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Swami Vivekananda

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Calcutta babu, at 1893 Chicago World’s Fair, disciple of Sri Ramakrishnam more intellectual, blew people away, connected to American engagement with Hindu thought

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Sri Ramakrishna

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takes on all religions, enlightened in many faiths! Embodiment of global, Kali preist.

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Sri Ramakrishna

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takes on all religions, enlightened in many faiths! Embodiment of global, Kali preist.

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Dayananda Saraswati

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1824-1883, monk, connected with the Aryo Samaj (1875) born into Shaiva family, critic of image worship! Studies under blind sage Sannyasin, capaigns to return to Vedic traditions, rejected puranic lore as later corruptions. Rejected jati, varna determined by character in public examination, promoted equality of women and emphasized social complete equality!

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Sir William Jones

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an Englishman, really interested in Indian literature. Came up with idea of PIE. Quest for identity and tradition: expansivness of Hindu literature raised questions; origins in ancient literature? Respect and celebration for Indian language and tradition.

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H.P. Blavatsky

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Russian mystic lady, theosophical society, associated with American preist Olcott

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Theosopical Society

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Madam Blavatsky, founded in 1875 in Upstate New York, formulated and combined world religions, in 1875 Blavatsky sets up mystic theosophical society in Madras, merged ideas and traditions. “Mahatmyas” in discussion with her, had the biggest English newspaper in India, published letters from these Mahatmyas (all in Hindu doctrine!) secrets of world relgions (like Hinduism) that surpassed Western thought. Centers for religious experiementation!

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Mahadeviyakka

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woman saint, refused to marry a Jain guy, radical poet. Wrote the “silk worm” poem. wandered around naked, wandering mendakins, one of the Virashaiva trinity of saints

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Basavanna

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Of Virashaiva sect: resistence against systematized traditions. Really against caste. Poem about the body being a temple. Another one of the Virashaiva saint trinity, refused to wear Brahmin thread, minister to the king

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Allama Prabhu

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Original saint who really founded Virashaiva tradition. First to wear the Shiva lingam on the body, idea of individualized worship, moving away from temple worship and tradition, caste system etc. Resistence and reform. One of the trinity of Virashaiva saints, he was a temple drummer (low caste) son of a devadasi, fell in love with a woman, she died: he went on a crazy religious pilgrimage!

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Gorakhnath

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one of the Naths, part of the Radical Ascetic and Tantric groups (Madhasiddhas and Goraknathis) in addition to social critique, also engaged in anti-social behavior and transgressive ritual practices. becomes symbol of failed social/religious movements. He systematized hatha yoga, people crazy about him in Tibet!

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Aiyanar

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“white god” in article about difference in caste, how reflected in Gods. Vegetarian, Aryan... more of an upper crust god.

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Karuppanasami

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“black god”, tied to Dravidians? non-veg, excepts meat offerings, sort of a servant to Aiyanar.

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Arya Samaj

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Reflected back to Vedic times, with assigned castes The guy in charge is Saraswati!

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Nammalvar

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Sri Vaishnava alvar, devoted bhakti poet to Vishnu, Hymns for the Drowning, South Indian (Tamil Nadu), name means “our alvar”, bhakti poems

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Andal/Kotai

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female alvar (only one); worshipper of Vishnu; was taken by Krishna (avatar of Vishnu) to wife- disappeared in temple

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Nandanar

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One of the 63 Nayanars, devotee of Shiva, an untouchable, low caste guy, wants to go to the temple and see Shiva, but can't because he's low caste, Nandi the bull moves aside for him! Eventually becomes a brahmin through walking thru fire (echoes caste issues: he has to transform himself before getting to enter the temple)

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Ravidas

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first saint we read about in "Songs of the saints of india", untouchable, a leather worker, (camar) from Sri Govardhanpur (near Benares) loves Rama, part of the nirguna (without attributes) school of bhakti.

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Kabir

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mystic poet and saint of India; literature influenced the bhakti movement of india

Niguna school of bhakti (without attributes) Lashed out against a lot of people! Poetry very colorful and fun. Kabir-Panths: a form of resistence... interesting to note there are also sects who worship Kabir (sort of counter-intuitive to what Kabir actually states about temple institutions in his poems!)

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Mirabai

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Rajput princess, loves Krishna, has to marry evil family, poisoned but Krishna turns poison into ok to drink-stuff, merges with Krishna in the end. Only 22 signed poems, story similar to Andal.

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Minakshi/Minatci

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fish-eyed goddess of madurai! Born green with 3 breasts. Shiva is husband (3rd boob falls off!) Shiva tames her, she is raised as a warrior. A more localized goddess incorporated into larger canon? Connects to major theme of goddess worship

* power in her breasts was called anunga, post-pubescent power.

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Kali

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goddess of death and destruction, time and change. Usually depicted dark and violent and a consort of Shiva, on whose body she dances upon because of the feeling she gets when she steps on his heart

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Mariyamman

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South Indian (very popular there) small pox goddess, really popular to smaller, lower strata. Iconography: has a sword, bell, noose (controls difficulty) trident, feet on heads of demons, halo of flames (induces fever) worship concentrated on cooling her! Goddess temples on outskirts, Controlled Space--Nature relationship, dress in fertility red and green

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Vishnu

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supreme god in vaishnavite tradition; one of five primary forms of god; the sustainer; rides on ananta-sesha; has many avatars

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Rudra

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thought to be an early form of Shiva, from Vedic times, Rigvedic god of storms, wind and the hunt. Kate

* Lord of Ascetics. Has a conflict with Praja Parti.

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Krishna

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incarnation of Vishnu, written about in the Bhagavad Gita and also the Bhagatvad Puranas and Srimad Bhagavatam, playful, Holi is associated with Krishna, spent a lot of time in Vrindaban with his girlfriend Radha, had fun with the Gopi girls, famous poets associated with Krishna: Andal (depicts the Gopi girls yearning for Krishna) Mirabai (Rajput princess who eventually marries/merges with Krishna) Surdas (blind poet) wrote about playful side of Krishna, young Krishna. Krishna also plays a HUGE role in Bhagatvad Gita, talks to Arjuna about dharma while they are on the field, the field is refered to as Kshetra. Krishna talks about karma yoga and dharma. Naishkarmya karma: desireless action

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Ganesha

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Lord of obstacles and new beginnings. Guardian of Doorways. Pantron of Art, Science, Commerce. God of Wisdom. Myths include the Juicy Juicy Mango (where he cleverly travels the world three times by circling his parents, Parvati and Shiva, three times) and the origins of his elephant head (Parvati and Shiva assume the form of elephants and have sex, Parvati created him to guard her door while she was taking a bath, or Parvati shows him off to the other gods, even Saturn). He holds a weapon, noose, his broken tusk, and a bag of sweets in his hands. The myths behind his broken tusk include the day he wiped out 21 generations of kings, the day he insisted on seeing Shiva, and the day he used it to record everything a god was saying. He is especially known for his sense of humor. Trying to get him to laugh is a form of prayer. On a side note, Ganesha's name literally translates to "Lord of the Dwarves."

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Shiva

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In the Tamil bhakti tradition: 63 nayanmar saints. God of astheics, whenever there is a dirty job, Shiva does it! Iconography: third eye, snake around neck, linga (mark) Shiva Lingam in temples (main focus) more abstract, all creative powers held together in one point, closest representative to brahman, pillar, premordial

Different forms of Shiva: Nataraja: Shiva as the lord of dance, embodies Shiva as the 5 perfections, creation, preservation, destruction, maitenance, disillusion, destruction. Ardhanarishvara: "the lord who is half-female" purusha and prakriti combo. Shiva Shankara: the classic north indian representation, with trident, (cuts thru 3 modes of being to get to true meaning) left hand has the drum of existance Shiva Bhikshatana: beggar shiva with Brahma's 5th skull. Lingodbhava: pillar of fire with Brahma at top and Vishnu at bottom.

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Gargi

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mentioned in the Upanishads, philosopher, woman, she challenges a sage about the nature of atman (the soul) (Yajnavalka is the sage) --> slowly the notion of brahma appears. she is told by yajnavalki "by good works one becomes good, by evil one becomes bad" "as is his desire,s o is his will"

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alvar

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"those immersed in God" Tamil South Indian saints lived between 6th 9th centuries,expressed devotion thru bhakti to Vishnu/Krishna, 12 Vaishnava Saints, with one woman (Andal) Nammalvar was another alvar

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nayanmar

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Shaivite devotional poets of Tamil Nadu 5/10th centuries, 63 nayanmars, devotees of Shiva, bhakti tradition

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yakshi

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forest spirits, live in earth, signs of fertility, like trees

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T.M. (Transcendental Meditation)

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meditation technique introduced in 1958 in which participants would practice 20 minutes a day while sitting quietly with eyes closed. it involved repetition of thoughts and sounds, which is formally known as a mantra, and is said to not involve any contemplation or concentration. it's very popular in the United States and incorporates many practices like fasting and dance. it's focuses more on the development of individualistic worship

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Proto-Indo European

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unattested, reconstructed, and unrecorded common ancestor of Indo-European languages. founded by Sir William Jones?

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Indus Valley Civilization

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was an ancient civilization that flourished in the Indus Basin. it not only had a system of writing on seals and copper plates, but there was also language, which is known as the Dravidian language. it is apparent that the Indus Vally had a sophisticated civilization because of its architecture, complex government (for its times), and fascination with baths (because they symbolize purification). its occupants were mainly Aryans who either came from the theory of Aryan migration or cultural transformation basis. Nevertheless, their devotion to the Harappan goddess was so intense that they can also be called the Harappan civilization. goddess worship and fertility were their main concerns. this led to the creation of the Vedas.

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Aryan

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represented the majority if not the entire population of the Indus Valley civilization. known to be the original speakers of the Indo-European languages like the Dravidian languages.

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Dravidian

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Dravidian languages are 73 languages including Kannada and Tamil. it's spoken in southern India and northeast Sri Lanka. Dravidian people refer to the people who natively speak languages belonging to the Dravidian language family. they are mostly in southern India and are believed to be the originators of the Indus Valley civilization

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Ayodhya

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an ancient city in India where a controversial Hindu act of violence occurred. Hindu radicals desecrated a Muslim mosque named the Babri Mosque because they believed it was tainting and disrespecting the sacred grounds of the birthplace of the Hindu god, Ram. it led to a Hindu-Muslim riot. Although many died as a result, teh city still remains one of the holiest cities in Hinduism. ironically, Ayodhya translates to "not to be warred against."

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Ram Janma Bhumi or Ram Janma Bhoomi

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land in the north Indian city, Ayodhya, where Hindus claim is the birthplace of the Hindu god, Rama or Ram

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Agni Pariksha (Trial by Fire)

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Myth: Rama slays Ravana but does not even look at Sita afterwards. He then informs her that she is free to go and can do as she pleases. Sita begs Lakshmana to build her a pyre where she will undergo self-immolation since there's not point in living if she isn't with Rama. This was the first time Lakshmana was upset at Rama's decision to go along with it, but he builds it anyway. She walks through the fire unharmed and Rama runs to and embraces her. He tells her if she didn't successfully pass the Agni Pariksha, no one would accept her. It's a trial by fire where Agni, the god of fire, destroys the impure and sinful, but doesn't touch the pure and innocent

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sati/suttee

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practice whereby a woman is thrown upon her husbands funeral pyre. british used this to denigrate india. but this is also one of the ways a mortal woman could become a goddess

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jati

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Sanskrit word that literally means "born" or "brought to existence." It most often denotes communities as well as is associated to a specific job and religion. it can also be defined by varna and the caste system. (Bernadette)

*More specific and complicated than varnas, more relevant in deciding one's place in society, also more prevalent in villages

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Purusha

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cosmic man. the self that pervades the universe. In RgVeda-Purusha Sukta --> Purusha becomes dismembered by the devas --> his body parts become the universe. Not unlike Ymir story. In Samkhya school - Purusha is pure consciousness, the true identity, contrasted with Prakriti (the material world). in times of distress, the purusha is sacrificed to restore order. relates to the whole idea of the macrocosm in the microcosm.

* also, as yogic tradition evolves, the purusha becomes a latent field of consciousness which pervades all things --> carries a corollary into theistic hinduism --> purusha is usually represented by male deities standing in for consciousness i.e. Shiva

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Prakriti

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in the Bhagavad Gita, it represents the basic nature of intelligence by which the Universe exists and functions. it serves as the "primal motive force" and is the basis of all activity. it is composed of three gunas, which are tendencies or modes of operation like sattva (creation), rajas (preservation), and tamas (destruction). Sattva encompasses goodness, light, and harmony while rajas is associated with concepts of energy, ambition, and passion. lastly, tamas is associated with inertia, darkness, and sensitivity. Prakriti can be considered nature and represent the feminine aspect of it, while Purusha assumes the male aspect

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Brahman

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Brāhman - priest. Brahman - self, cosmic being, supreme self, pure. Brahman is everywhere, pervades peoples as much as it pervades the gods

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atman

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self/soul. "the one who breathed"

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phala

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fruit, the fruit of your actions (karma). if you have bad karma --> reincarnation. if you have good karma you can transcend the cycle of life & death.

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avatara

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a "crossing downwards", a physical embodiment of deity. spoken in terms of visnus incarnations.

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Hindutva

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Idea that the Hindu nationalist party promotes of "Hinduness." A return to Ram's golden kingdom

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yuga

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age of the world. Preceded by Sandhya ( twilight) and
Sandhyamsa (portion of twilight); 4 in number and duration first
computed by years of the gods.

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mandir

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northern counterpart of koyil, meaning temple

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bhakti

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"devotion" to a personal form of a God

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darshan

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Sanskrit for "sight". Most commonly used as 'vision of the divine', meaning 'point of view' * theistically, sight is the most fundamental means of engaging with the deity --> of both seeing and being seen by God. people go to temples and saints for darshan.

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akam & puram

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"inner" and "outer"; the inner core of truth of human life is "akam" or love. [i don't know what puram is so please fill that in] puram: poems of war that celebrate kings, more specific references to places and locations, written to praise kings (sometimes two bards that would have a dialouge, telling poem, in praise of local ruler

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paraiyan

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paraiyan: someone who beats the parai drum: a social outcaste (restores order with beat, so associated with bad luck, with disorder) South Indian term, inauspicious

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nirguna

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without attributes. saints who believed that god transcended
rituals, brahmans, and symbols that are usually held to importance.
Nirguna saints include Kabir, Ravidas, and Nanak.Usually lower caste who believe that god loves all despite caste position.

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saguna

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with attributes. Holds religious icons, rituals, and texts as
an important factor of Hinduism. Include Surdas, Mirabai and
Tulsidas.

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matal

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act of riding the palamino horse as a crazy, wild declaration
of love. Sangam tradition, guys who take palmirya palm and go crazy, ride it like a horse to show their mad love. Also a genre of poetry: women would threaten to do this out of love for deity

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purana

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collection of myths, mny puranas for many different traditions

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fakir

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Persian term for yogi, used in Western representations of Eastern religious figures. Muslim or Hindu mendicant monk who is regarded as a holy man.

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Mutiny of 1857

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Indian rebellion against British army. Considered
first Indian War of Independence. Sepoys ( Indian natives fighting
for British army) form a mutiny.

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memsahib-s

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ma'am + sahib - term of respect for a white european in India. --> term of respect for white european female in India. In colonial times.

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tirrupavai

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Andal's story, Andal's poem "The Sacred Vow", 30 verses one for each day of the month, describes Sacred Vow (pavai) undertaken by unmarried girls, objects of desire are Krishna and his drum, cycle of 30 poems, 3 major sections!

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vedas

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"revelation," accepted by the Hindus as true, emphasis on ritual

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upanisads

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Internalize the ritual; beginnings of philosophical speculations
and inquiries; 9th Century CE. "sit near" supposed to be transmitted from close members, at times question previous ritual order of the Vedas, Idea of PURUSHA SUKTA: the COSMIC MAN! (Really important idea!) embodied in each person, (grass comes from hair, your hair has plants, etc) Macrocosm-microcosm, sacrifice turns INWARD, only way to understand universe is to turn inwards!

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bhagavad gita

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In the Mahabharta, Krishna speaks to Arjuna, about karma yoga (yoga of action) and one's dharma. Talks about khestra "the field", denotes nature (prakriti) as also body-mind. The kshetrin or keshtra-jna is the "field knower".

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ramayana

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One of the great epics of India; many variations; talks of dharma;
evokes bhakti; performative traditions

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Ramcharitmanas

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epic poem composed by 16th century TULSIDAS! telling the deeds of Rama, with its composition the story of the Ramayana was available for the first time to the common man to sing and perform, gave birth to Ramalila, written in Avadhi (Eastern Hindi family) 7 books

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Devi Mahatmya

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Hindu text, victory of goddess Durga over demon Mahishasvra, part of the Makandeya Purana, written 400-500 CE, sage Markandya wrote it, important text of SHAKTISM, goddess as power itself, (vrs only male consort)

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Bhagavata Purana/Srimad Bhagavatam

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primary focus is on bhakti yoga, stories about Krishna, influence on Vishnu worship in the North, 9/10th century, Vaishnava purana, written in South but important in North, speaks of incarnations of Vishnu, etc, told by Goswami, Krishna's time in Vrindaban and also the coming of the Kali (Kate)

* questions about the avatars of Vishnu, goswami then tells him the things he has learned from sukadeva. each section describes an avatar of vishnu. the 12th section talks about the vishnu that has not yet come, kalu yuga and how the earthly universe will be destroyed.