Miss Buddha

by Ulf Wolf

  Once other religions of Indian origin began using this term, too, Hindus then adopted the expression Sanatana Dharma to distinguish their Dharma from others. The word Sanatana (meaning immemorial as well as eternal) emphasized the unbroken continuity of the Hindu tradition in contrast to the other Dharmas; for the Buddhist, Jain, and Sikh Dhammas possess distinct starting points, whereas Hinduism has no historical founder.

  One could date the beginning of true Hinduism as the 4th century BCE when the growth and separation of Buddhism and Jainism provided it with a distinctive sense of identity as Sanatana Dhamma. However, (especially Indian) some scholars prefer to date its beginnings at about 1500 BCE, the estimated origin of its earliest sacred texts—although recent evidence suggests these texts may be even older.

  In fact, certain beliefs and practices clearly identifiable as Hindu—such as the worship of sacred trees and the mother goddess—go back to the Harappan culture, which flourished around 3000 BCE.

  Some Hindu practices are even older. The deeply held religious meaning of the new and full moon, for one, today can be traced to the distant proto-Australoid period, before 3000 BCE; so it is on good grounds that Hinduism perceives itself as a cumulative tradition, originating among the mists of antiquity and continuing to this day without a break.

  A Comprehensive and Universal Tradition

  So far as religious beliefs and practices go, the Hindu tradition aims at universality. For one, it wishes to make the riches of Hinduism available to not only the Hindu but to any genuine seeker of truth and knowledge. For two, it does not limit Hindus to their tradition; rather it encourages them to explore all avenues that would lead to a realization of the divine, and it provides a system with many paths for such realization.

  Thirdly, not unlike science, Hinduism is constantly experimenting with and assimilating new ideas; and also like science, it is far less concerned with the origin or history of ideas than with whether they, as truths, do or do not work as demonstrated through direct experience; i.e., produce results.

  Hinduism’s openness to new ideas, teachers, and practices, along with its desire for universality rather than exclusivity, set it (miles) apart from those religions that define their followers by their (often unquestioned) belief in particular historical events, people, or revelations.

  Two events in the life of Mohandas Gandhi illustrate this aspect of the Hindu tradition. First, Gandhi named his autobiography The Story of My Experiments with Truth, clearly communicating the Hindu willingness to experiment continually as a means of discovering truth and to record the results of such experiments. Gandhi was seeking spiritual truth, but he approached it in the spirit of science.

  Secondly, when once asked, “What is your religion?” Gandhi answered, “My religion is Hinduism, which for me is the Religion of humanity and includes the best of all religions known to me.”

  It is actually a historical fact that, every now and then, saintly figures such as Gandhi rise to renew Hinduism to keep it abreast of the times.

  Because Hinduism has no central orthodoxy, and really no need for one, renewal (and strengthening) of its tradition has come from those who base their message on personal and direct experience of the divine.

  Hindu Teachings: What do Hindus Believe?

  Within the borders of Hinduism, we find various schools of thought that Hindu scholars have then systematized in different ways.

  These schools have all enriched Hinduism with their individual emphases: Nyaya on rigorous logic, Vaiseshika on atoms and the structure of matter, Sankhya on numbers and categories, Yoga on meditation techniques, Mimamsa on the analysis of sacred texts, and Vedanta on the nature and experience of spirituality.

  These teachings are normally summarized in texts called sutras or aphorisms, most of which can be memorized easily and recited as a means of gaining spiritual focus.

  Brahman: The Ultimate Reality

  Throughout history, the school known as Vedanta has constituted the standard form of intellectual Hinduism. According to Vedanta, the highest aim of existence is the realization of the identity or union of the individual’s innermost self (atman) with the ultimate reality (Brahman).

  Although Vedanta states that this ultimate reality is beyond name (as well as beyond time and reason), the word Brahman is used to refer to it.

  Whether this ultimate reality is itself without distinguishing attributes has been a subject of extensive debate among Hindu scholars. For to be ultimate Brahman must (virtually by definition) transcend all limiting attributes, such as name, gender, form, and features, as well as time and reason.

  But how can the human mind, with its time and reason boundaries, conceive of this transcendent reality, when human comprehension, by design, requires a personal reality, with attributes?

  A quotation attributed to 8th-century Hindu scholar Shankara illustrates the subtlety of this question, and these concepts: “Ishvara (another name for Brahman), forgive these three sins of mine: that although you are everywhere I have gone on a pilgrimage, although you are beyond the mind I have tried to think of you; and although you are ineffable I offer this hymn in praise of you.”

  Brahma, Vishnu, and Shiva: Aspects of Brahman

  Saguna Brahman—that is, Brahman when conceived as having or displaying qualities—generally takes the form of one of three main Hindu deities: Brahma, Vishnu, or Shiva.

  These personified forms of Brahman correspond to the three stages of the cycle of the universe. Brahma is the creative force from which the universe arises. Vishnu is the orderly force that sustains the universe. Shiva is the destructive force that brings a cycle to an end, leaving in its wake pure consciousness from which the universe is then reborn.

  Other forms of Ishvara worshiped by the Hindu are Shakti, the female aspect of divinity, and Ganesha, the elephant-headed deity associated with the removal of obstacles.

  Brahman may also take birth in a more knowable form, or avatar, to uphold Dharma and restore balance to the world.

  Krishna, a well-known avatar of Vishnu, appears at times to save the world. Rama, another well-known avatar of Vishnu, is the subject of the Hindu epic Ramayana (Way of Rama).

  In fact, Vishnu has ten major avatars, which are described in Hindu texts called the Puranas: fish (matsya), tortoise (kurma), boar (varaha), man lion (narasimha), dwarf (vamana), axe-wielding human (Parashurama), ideal person (Rama of the Ramayana), all-attractive perfect person (Krishna), the enlightened (Buddha), and a future incarnation (Kalki).

  Most Hindus choose a personal deity, a saguna form of Brahman with whom they can feel a direct personal connection. Devotion to this deity then takes a number of forms, including prayer, ceremonial worship, chanting of the deity’s name, and pilgrimage to sites sacred to the deity.

  Brahmanda: The Universe

  The relationship of the material universe, which Hinduism terms brahmanda, to the ultimate reality beyond the material poses a profound philosophical problem: While Brahman represents a permanent (timeless and unchanging) reality, the universe is in constant flux.

  This flux is considered eternal: eternal change. The Brahman, on the other hand, is eternal in a sense beyond change. According to Vedanta, Brahman alone is real. What reality the universe possesses springs from Brahman, just as the light of the Moon really springs from the Sun.

  Hence, all of creation arises from Brahman; Brahman is both the efficient cause of the universe—that is, its creator—as well as the material foundation of the universe—that is, the substance of which the universe is created. This is why the Hindu considers all of creation divine and deserving of our veneration.

  Atman: The Innermost Self

  As individuals we are also part of this changing universe.

  Our bodies are undergoing constant change—it is a scientific fact that every seven years every single cell in our body has died and been replaced by new, different, cells through the constant cycle of cellular death and regeneration—as are our minds, the mental flux of th
oughts and feelings.

  The Vedanta, however, holds that our self consists of more than mind and body, for at our core lies the unchanging, eternal atman, our innermost, transcendental and spiritual self, as different from our material self: our body, thoughts, and feelings, which are all part of the material universe.

  The atman is our true self.

  But we so easily lose sight of this because of our passionate and ongoing entanglement with our material self and its search for happiness in this universe. The Vedanta, however, tells us that the universe can never provide perfect and permanent happiness since it, like our material self, is in a state of constant flux.

  True happiness can only be attained through full awareness of atman and the discovery of its true relationship (one-ness) with Brahman.

  Through awareness of atman and its one-ness with Brahman, we attain not only happiness, but also moksha, or liberation.

  Liberation from what? One a mundane level, this liberation is from unhappiness, but the Vedanta goes deeper: Moksha is liberation from the chain of lives.

  Samsara: The Chain of Lives

  We commonly view ourselves as coming into being when we are born of our parents and as perishing when we die. According to Hinduism, however, this current life is merely one in a long chain of lives that extends far into the past and projects far into the future.

  According to Vedanta (and the Buddha), the origin of this chain of lives cannot be determined; but the process of our involvement in the universe—the seemingly beginningless and endless chain of births and deaths—has been given a name, and that name is samsara.

  The Hindu scriptures tell us that samsara is caused by ignorance.

  By ignorance of our true selves and by our ensuing desire for happiness and fulfillment outside our true (atman) selves, we continue to embody ourselves; we continue to be reborn in this infinite and eternal universe because of our unfulfilled desires.

  Samsara affords us endless opportunities to resume this external pursuit of happiness, until—enlightened—we can leave this squirrel cage.

  Karma: Action and Its Consequences

  The law that governs samsara is karma. The destination and quality of each birth and death we suffer is determined by the balance sheet of our karma—that is, in accordance with our past volitional thoughts, words, and actions.

  Karma is a pivotal Hindu concept. According to this doctrine, our present condition in life is a direct consequence of the actions—actually, volitional thoughts, words and actions—taken in our previous lives. The choices (again, volitional) we have made in the past directly affect our condition in the present, and the choices we make today all have consequences for our future lives in samsara.

  According to Hindu teachings, a true understanding of the cause and effect of this interrelation can lead a person toward right choices, deeds, thoughts, and desires, without the need for an external set of enforceable commandments.

  In other words, the principle of karma provides the framework for Hindu ethics. The word karma is sometimes translated into English as “destiny,” but karma does not imply the absence of free will or lack of freedom of action that destiny does. A better English translation for karma might indeed be “volitional action.” Thus, by the doctrine of karma, the freedom and ability to make choices remains with the individual.

  The law of karma is no less real than the law of gravity. But just as the law of gravity does not rob us of our freedom to move about, the doctrine of karma does not leave us unfree to act. Rather, karma describes the moral law under which we function, just as the law of gravity is the physical law governing our physical being here on Earth.

  When we, volitionally, cause pain or injury, we add to the karmic debt we carry into our future lives. When we, again volitionally, practice generosity and share with and help others in a genuine way, we lighten our karmic load.

  In the Bhagavad-Gita, an important Hindu text, Krishna states that the best way to free yourself of all karmic debt is by selfless action, or by dedicating every thought, word and act as an offering to Krishna himself.

  Purusharthas: Goals of Human Life

  Hindu teachings take a comprehensive view of the human condition and group the things we seek in this world and beyond into four broad divisions: Kama, artha, Dharma, and moksha.

  Kama includes the pleasure of the senses, both aesthetic (refined artistic) pleasures and sensual and sexual pleasure.

  Artha encompasses the pursuit of material well-being, wealth, and power.

  Dharma comprises our striving for righteousness and virtue.

  Moksha groups our desire for liberation from the chain of lives.

  As you can see, the first three of these goals pertain to the world we know, while moksha aims for freedom from the world and from our desires for kama, artha, and Dharma.

  Attaining moksha (liberation) is an extraordinary goal, which, today, very few people specifically seek. Those who do, however, will find the prior pursuit of Dharma to be a boon.

  Dharma, in the sense of our volitional duty or desire to do right, occupies a pivotal role in regulating artha and kama and promoting moksha. On account of this role, the goals of human life are often viewed in the order of: Dhamma, artha, kama and moksha.

  While Hinduism does not look down upon kama or artha, the ultimate aim of human life is held to be moksha, liberation from sorrow and desire and realization of the union with the Ultimate Reality (Brahma).

  Because we may not always enter the world in human form, Hindus consider that birth as a human being is a unique and valuable opportunity for seeking moksha—something most, if not all, lower forms of life remain ignorant of—and an opportunity that should not be wasted.

  Those who decide to pursue moksha may find that the system of Vedanta and Yoga (there are eight limbs of Yoga—of which our Western love affair with stretching and exercising the body is only one, and a minor one at that; the other seven concern spiritual progress and liberatin) provide a good road map for their journey.

  Jiva: The Individual

  According to one Hindu system, a human being consists of not one but three bodies.

  There is the gross physical body, the one the Westerner normally views as the self; there is the subtle body of thought and feelings; and there is an even more subtle body—known as the causal body—where our primal ignorance of our true nature is located, along with the knowledge of that ignorance.

  The physical body disintegrates after our death, but both the subtle and causal bodies travel from one life to the next.

  Another Hindu system envisions the human being as consisting of five layers or sheaths, called koshas, all covering the true self or atman.

  From the outside in, these layers are constituted by the physical body (annamaya), energy (pranamaya), mind (manomaya), consciousness (vijnanamaya), and bliss (anandamaya).

  Compulsive identification with one or more of these koshas (though what identification is not compulsive?), such as conceiving “I am my physical body,” limits us and prohibits knowledge of our true nature.

  Other Hindu concepts of personality employ yet other schemes.

  One popular concept visualizes a person’s dormant energy as residing at the bottom of the spine like a coiled serpent (kundalini). Upon awakening, this energy rises for the head and then it arrives (after piercing nodal points, called chakras, along the spine), one reaches liberation.

  Hinduism, being as all-embracing as it is—offers both spiritual and physical exercises to help us awaken to liberating all aspects of the personality.

  Yoga: Paths to Brahman

  Now, if we were one of those who wanted to rise toward Brahman, how would we go about it?

  Hindu thought takes the personality of such a seeker as the starting point, dividing human personalities into natures dominated by physicality, activity, emotionality, or intellectuality. The composition of our personality intuitively predisposes us to a particular type of yoga—that is, a path we might follow to ac
hieve Samadhi, union with Brahman.

  Although many people—especially here in the West—associate the word yoga with a physical exercises and discipline, in its original Hindu meaning yoga refers to any technique that leads the seeker toward and unites him or her with the ultimate reality.

  The physical fitness buff may seek such a union by practicing hatha yoga, a yoga system of physical exercises and breathing control. However, people with different personality traits have other choices. For the action-oriented person there is karma yoga, the yoga of action, which urges a life of selfless deeds and actions.

  The person of feeling may choose bhakti yoga, the yoga of devotion, which calls for unconditional love for a personal divinity.

  The person of thought may pursue jnana yoga, the yoga of knowledge, which calls for spiritual and physical discipline intended to bring direct insight into ultimate reality.

  Keep in mind, though, that these different yoga disciplines do not represent tightly sealed compartments, merely convenient classifications. A well-balanced personality might well make use of all four.

  These various yoga systems are sometimes referred to as margas (paths), suggesting (rightly) that the same destination can be approached by more than one route, and indeed by more than one mode of travel.

  Varna: Social Organization

  While the individual lives in a sacred relationship with Brahman, he or she also stands in a relationship to the society in which he or she lives.

  There are two Hindu concepts—varna and ashrama—that address this social dimension of human existence.

  Every Hindu society distinguishes among occupations by power, wealth, education, or other factors, and has long recognized four major occupational groupings.