Hinduism Beliefs: Hinduism believes in the continuity of Life... the death of the body does not mean all is over as per the beliefs in Hinduism. The reincarnation belief is the primary asset of Hinduism. As per Hinduism beliefs our atman the soul within is on a cosmic journey primarily meant for the purification of Atman (eradication of the dross within the soul). It is for this purpose that every Atman the soul within manifests a body again and again until it completely purifies of all the impurities within.
This process of purification of atman the soul within in a complete Life cycle requires 8.4 Million manifestations. This is not merely a belief in Hinduism. This is a fact stated in Bhagavad Gita... the core document of Hinduisum... the doctrine put forward by Lord Krishna in the battle of Mahabharata between Pandavas in the Kauravas. Bhagavad Gita... the sacred scriptures contains the Essence of the whole Cosmos... the Life itself.
By understanding Gita one is able to cross over the threshold of Life and reaches the stage of Salvation (Moksha in Hinduism). The journey of 8.4 Million manifestations by our atman the soul within is estimated to be completed in 96.4 earthly Million years... a long journey indeed! By manifesting one body after another our atman the soul within is nearing its final goal when it shall get liberated forever from the cycle of birth and death. No further manifestations our atman the soul within shall live for Baikuntha (the final abode of god) also known as the kingdom of heaven in Christianity.
The beliefs in hinduism are not merely a result of thinking of the renowned Sages of the yester era. These beliefs are based on logical conclusions arrived after long drawn conclusions, lengthy discussions on the matter of atman the soul within and Brahman (God Almighty) and inter alias their relationship with Mother Earth.
Lord Krishna who is considered an Avatar put forward the wisdom of the Vedas to the community in a concise form known as the Bhagavad Gita. The belief in reincarnation process in hinduism is based on the surmise that the body of a human being and every living being is a temporary phenomenon in the Life of an atman the soul within. It is a truth that our atman the soul within has taken the body and not vice versa. When this fact has been established then the mortality of the body becomes a proven fact.
Apart from the belief in hinduisum that Life is a part of continuing process in the cosmic system... all related phenomenon's like reincarnation, existence of god, the Almighty Creator, presence of an atman the soul within every living body, the theory of Karma which becomes the pivotal point of Hinduism because it is the residual Karma which gets carried through the chromosomes from one Life to another.
It is also a confirmed belief in hinduism that our atman the soul within is ever existent and never decays and dies. The death only occurs of the body manifested by atman the soul within and Atman soul being a minuscule form of God Almighty... it is ever existent in the cosmic system. And this subtle truth forms the core of Hinduism. As per Hinduism as surmised in Bhagavad Gita even after the collapse of the cosmic system (the dissolution called as pralaya in Hinduism) Atman never dies. The journey again continues for Atman but starting from the first manifestation and until the 8.4 Millionth manifestation.
One more prevalent belief in hinduism is the advaita vedanta as per which there is only one entity in whole Cosmos and that is God Almighty. As per Hinduism concept of Advaita Vedanta everything else other than the existence of god Almighty is Maya (the feel of ignorance) for as per Hinduism the existence of the bodies and the cosmic system as a whole does not hold good. Why the surmise... for when the cosmos does not seem to have a boundary then the existence of the cosmos itself is negated.
If the existence of the cosmos is negated then how can the World, the cosmic system exist. As per Advaita Vedanta all is a part of an illusion created by God Almighty and termed as the veil of ignorance (Maya) in Hinduism. This is not a wrong anomaly... this anomaly has been adequately covered in Bhagavad Gita... the foremost of all sacred Scriptures existing on Mother Earth. As per Advaita Vedanta the complete Cosmos is an idea... a thought of God. Similarly has everything we seem to visualize in our dreams vanishes the moment we wake up... the whole Cosmos is surmised as a dream state of God Almighty.
Anything which does not have a concrete boundary cannot be considered to exist similarly has so much happens in our dreams but when we wake up nothing is existent. All vanishes in thin air. Similarly the moment atman the soul within reaches its 8.4 Millionth manifestation... all is over for that atman the soul within for it has gained immortality forever. No further manifestations and finally liberated forever from cycle of birth and death atman the soul within in its pristine purified form goes back to Baikuntha (the abode of God).
We can also surmise the above complex subject going on within our body similarly as the body of a Human Being that is considered a mini Cosmos in itself. Within our body there are multitudes of bacteria and viruses that develop a family and die out again to develop a new Life circle. The circle of Life goes on and on. For these bacteria and viruses the existence of the Human body is like a Cosmos in itself for they do not know what lies beyond the body of a Human Being. These bacteria and viruses continue to do their Karma fulfilled their part of Life. They have no other choice.
Similarly in the domains of Human Beings one does not have many choices. We do not come onto this Earth of our own choice and neither we go back as per hour wishes. We are born based on the residual Karma of past lives and the death of body occurs based on the residual Karma of the past and the present Life. Nothing much is in the hands of a Human Being nay every living being. If the journey of Life continues the way it is then it can definitely be surmised that everything contained in the cosmos is an act of ignorance (the veil of Maya) created by God Almighty so that every living being who is destined to continue living as they have been programmed do not stop at any stage of Life.
The third Hinduism belief which carries weight age is the belief that the Creator of the cosmos is one and only one... in hinduism we name him as Karta, Brahman, Parmatman, Ishwar and many other names. As per Hinduism there can be many man gods like Bhagwan Mahavira, Gautama Buddha, Jesus Christ and Prophet Mohammed but the Creator of the whole system remains one and only one... the Brahman, the Almighty one.
Bhagwan Mahavira preached that every Human Being has the ingredients to become a Mahavira one-day. He never believed in the surmise that it is just not possible for the common folk to reach the status of a man god. in hinduism every Human Being reaches the stage of Salvation (moksha as they call it in Hinduism)... and whoever reaches this stage is enlightened... for without gaining enlightenment Salvation (moksha) is not possible. And anyone who gains enlightenment becomes a man god like Bhagwan Mahavira.
In Hinduism we have approximately 330 Million gods. It simply implies that every living being has a right to pray to god in his own manner. If one does not have the means then in Hinduism... many people even consider a stone as a symbol of God and pray to the Almighty God through the medium of this stone. in hinduism many people consider pipal tree as a medium for praying to God. As many people as many mediums can there be for praying to God does not mean that 330 Million gods had their entity as a living being and attained the stage of enlightenment and finally took Salvation (moksha).
The concept of 330 Million gods is merely the form of deity to worship the ultimate God the Creator of the cosmos. Apart from that it carries no other meaning. In earlier times when people of lower castes were not permitted by the priests of the higher caste to enter the precincts of the temple then there was no other alternative for this poor beings other than to take a stone or a tree as a symbol for praying to God. Whether we pray to God in form of a statue, a tree or a stone is totally immaterial as long as we pay our Obeisance to God in a rightly and a justified manner.
The purpose must be served and the goal must be accomplished. God Almighty is not the least concerned about the medium we use for our prayers. It is the content of prayers, the Truthfulness of our prayers that gets conceded by God. Prayers are also deeply related to the Karma we perform in our day-to-day Life. While practicing adverse Karma we cannot expect miracles while praying to God. We shall get whatever is due to us... nothing less or more! None can expect mangoes to grow on a guava tree.
Every belief in hinduism is based on logical conclusions. Nothing is the result of mere hearsay or the whims and fancies of some perverted spiritual masters of the yester era. The Vedas... the foremost of all wisdom existing in hinduism is considered as something that has directly emanated from God Almighty. Any living being including Human Beings could not have produced the Vedas. They are the Essence of Life for every Human Being but after the advent of Lord Krishna, all the four Vedas, the Rig Veda, the Sama Veda, the Yajur Veda and the Atharva Veda were summarized in form of Bhagavad Gita.
Primarily, everything that is contained in all the four Vedas exists in Bhagavad Gita. The knower of Bhagavad Gita reaches stage of enlightenment (Kaivalya Jnana) and finally Salvation (moksha). There is nothing beyond for a Human Being to achieve. If we need to go to the Niagara Falls then we visit the place from a visitor point of view. But if an archaeologist visits Niagara Falls then apart from appreciating the scenic beauty he may also be interested in knowing the quality of the rocks beneath the fall and many more features related to archaeology. But for the common man... the normal visitor it is the scenic beauty that is of utmost importance.
Similarly, there are many more features in all the four Vedas which are not contained in Bhagavad Gita... distinct fields of specialization meant for the concerned specialist. But Bhagavad Gita contains all knowing which one reaches the stage of Salvation (moksha) and beyond which the cosmic Life for our atman the soul within ceases to exist. Having liberated forever... the goal by our atman the soul within having achieved... the Life itself comes to a full circle.
Be it basics, belief, bhagavad gita, Major Beliefs, BASIC Belief, bhagwad gita, Belief And Practices, sanatana dharma, Major Facts articles hinduisum... everything bogs down to... how we understand the core of hinduism!
By: Vijay Kumar "Atma Jnani"