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What is Hinduism and what do Hindus believe?



    
    

Clarify Share Report Asked July 01 2013 Mini Anonymous (via GotQuestions)

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Shea S. Michael Houdmann Supporter Got Questions Ministries
Hinduism is one of the oldest known organized religions"its sacred writings date as far back as 1400 to 1500 B.C. It is also one of the most diverse and complex, having millions of gods. Hindus hav...

July 01 2013 7 responses Vote Up Share Report


4
My passport new Arun Kumar Supporter Engineer, Chennai, India
The explanation above is based only upon the Mahabharata and vedas. The other scriptures like Saivism and Vaishnavism and songs of the sages ("sitthargal" in tamil) were wholly neglected. 

The 1st century Indian Christianity was corrupted by the Aryans (or) the Brahmins. Hinduism is not a single religion, but a conglomerate of mutiple faiths and worships. 

The Gospel of Christ entered northern India in the 1st c AD through
the apostle Thomas and spread in the Pahlava Empire of Gondophares
and the Sakas who were under their dominion. The apostle’s ministry
ended in the south where he died a martyr in Mylapore. In the year 1794 A.D. Sir William Jones, the European chief justice of the then Supreme Court of India at Calcutta, coined the new term Hinduism for the caste discriminating principle of Varnashrama Dharma originated on the basis of Manu Dharma sastra. Today, Hinduism is known as Hindutva. The term Hindu religion is totally a new name which cannot be found in any Indian literature prior to 1794 A.D. Out of the five Indian religions of Buddhism, Jainism, Saivism, Vaishnavism and Sikkhism; Saivism and Vaishnavism were brought under the Varnashrama principle of caste hierarchy by Adi Sankara. After naming the discriminating principle of casteism of Manu Dharma as Hindutva, the religions of Saivism and Vaishnavism, which were enslaved to the caste discriminating principles, were given a new name as ‘Hindu Religion’ Thus, Hindu religion is different from Hindutva or Hinduism. 

The purpose of the avatar of God is explained in Saivism as follows: 
“Iravaa inbaththu yemai iruththa vendip 
piravaa muthalvan piranthaan” 
(The unborn prime God was born to give us eternal pleasure.) 
(Poatrip Pakorodai 69) 

If it is said that God became an avatar so that man can be liberated 
from the bondage of sin to acquire eternal happiness. 
Then, when did man fall into sin? 
Sivagnanapotham, the theological foundation for Saivism says as 
follows, 
“Avan aval athu yenum avai moovinaimayin 
thotria thithiye odungi malaththulathaam 
antham aathi yenmanaar pulavar” 
(In the beginning God created man (avan-first man), woman 
(aval-first woman) and the world (athu) in three different actions 
and they were holy. But, later on they fell into the sin or malam, 
which ended the life of holiness and was the beginning of sin 
say the scholars.) 
(Sivagnanapotham - 1)

How did creation which was holy, fall into the sin? Saiva Siddhanta 
explains it as follows, 
“Muththi mutharkodikkae mogak kodi padarnthu 
aththi paluththathu yenru vunthee para 
appalham vunnaathae vunthee para” 
(Amongst the creatures which were holy, on the first creeper 
(first man), the creeper of sin crept over it and bore the fruit of 
evil. Speak this forth. Do not partake of that fruit. Speak this 
forth.) 
(Thiruvuntiyar 41) 

Hence God sacrificed his five senses, he is known as 

‘Ainthaviththaan’ 
(One who sacrificed his five senses) 
(Thirukkural – 25) 
and this is explained in Thirukkural as follows: 
“Pori vaayil ainthaviththaan poitheer olhukka 
neri ninraar needu vaalhvaar” 
(Those who follow the one, who sacrificed his five senses on 
an instrument and showed us the way and who is the life and 
truth, will have eternal life) 
(Thirukkural – 6) 

Thus, the influence of Christianity in Hindu thought is clearly seen. However, the fullness of the truth is seen only in Saiva Siddhanta where "Meykandar’s Siva Gnana Botham sets" the standard for the truth. Many do not realize that the roots of Hindu Religion are in South India. Their founding saints - 63 Nayanmars of Saivism and 12 Alvars of Vaishnavism were all from the South and the evidence for early Indian Christianity has been buried all these years in Tamil Literature. However, the theistic faith of the Hindus was later corrupted by the atheistic philosophy of Monism. 

(P.S.:We have more to explain, which is not possible in this forum. Hence, For the whole book, please follow the link http://appiusforum.net/book.pdf)

March 07 2014 1 response Vote Up Share Report


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