Religion assignment
jennyswufe
WR1Blecture5-PuranasEpicsandsacredimages.pptHinduism
Puranas, Epics and Sacred Images – some sources of popular devotion
Image Worship
(rather than “idolatry”)
- Vedic religion gives no indication of the use of images in worship.
- Evidence from the IVC is inconclusive.
- Image worship is very widely practiced in Hinduism.
- Explain!
See explanatory notes on the use of images in worship, from a believer’s perspective, at http://www.hinduwebsite.com/idols.asp and at http://londonmandir.baps.org/worship/murti-puja-image-worship-in-hinduism/
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Images are murti
- Images or forms of gods in Hinduism are known as murti.
- The trimurti or triple form of God (as Brahma the Creator, Vishnu the Sustainer and Shiva the Destroyer) is widely known, but can be rather misleading…
The trimurti collapses the three gods into a single form with three faces. Each god is in charge of one aspect of creation, with Brahma as creator, Vishnu as preserver, and Shiva as destroyer. In combining the three deities in this way, however, the doctrine elides the fact that Vishnu is not merely a preserver and Shiva is not merely a destroyer. Moreover, while Vishnu and Shiva are widely worshipped in India, very few temples are dedicated to Brahma, who is expressly said to have lost his worshippers as the result of telling a lie and is merely entrusted with the task of creation under the direction of one of the other two gods. Scholars consider the doctrine of the trimurti to be an attempt to reconcile different approaches to the divine with each other and with the philosophical doctrine of ultimate reality (brahman).
https://www.britannica.com/topic/trimurti-Hinduism
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All gods are forms of God
- “God” in Hinduism is understood to be both transcendent and immanent; the divine unity, the ultimate formless “GOD” is known as Brahman.
- (Not to be confused with Brahma or Brahmin)
- Saguna and nirguna
Brahman, in the Upanishads (Indian sacred writings), the supreme existence or absolute reality. The etymology of the word, which is derived from Sanskrit, is uncertain. Though a variety of views are expressed in the Upanishads, they concur in the definition of brahman as eternal, conscious, irreducible, infinite, omnipresent, and the spiritual core of the universe of finiteness and change. Marked differences in interpretation of brahman characterize the various schools of Vedanta, the system of Hindu philosophy based on the writings of the Upanishads.
According to the Advaita (Nondualist) school of Vedanta, brahman is categorically different from anything phenomenal, and human perceptions of differentiation are illusively projected on this reality. The Bhedabheda (Dualist-Nondualist) school maintains that brahman is nondifferent from the world, which is its product, but different in that phenomenality imposes certain adventitious conditions (upadhis) on brahman. The Vishishtadvaita (Qualified Nondualist) school maintains that a relation exists between brahman and the world of soul and matter that is comparable to the relation between soul and body; the school identifies brahman with a personal god, Brahma, who is both transcendent and immanent. The Dvaita (Dualist) school refuses to accept the identity of brahman and world, maintaining the ontological separateness of the supreme, which it also identifies with a personal god.
https://www.britannica.com/topic/brahman-Hindu-concept
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Puja
- Puja is the name given to worship – it takes place in the home or in temples.
- It consists of making offerings to the deity.
- This is a domesticated form of sacrifice, expressing a relationship with the divine.
- It is difficult to relate to an abstract Absolute (ref Krishna, next slide)
Puja is the act of showing reverence to a god, a spirit, or another aspect of the divine through invocations, prayers, songs, and rituals. An essential part of puja for the Hindu devotee is making a spiritual connection with the divine. Most often that contact is facilitated through an object: an element of nature, a sculpture, a vessel, a painting, or a print.
During puja an image or other symbol of the god serves as a means of gaining access to the divine. This icon is not the deity itself; rather, it is believed to be filled with the deity's cosmic energy. It is a focal point for honoring and communicating with the god. For the devout Hindu, the icon's artistic merit is important, but is secondary to its spiritual content. The objects are created as receptacles for spiritual energy that allow the devotee to experience direct communication with his or her gods.
http://www.asia.si.edu/pujaonline/puja/background.html
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Bhagavad Gita Ch 12
- “For those whose minds are attached to the unmanifested, impersonal feature of the Supreme, advancement is very troublesome. To make progress in that discipline is always difficult for those who are embodied.”
Sacrifice, darshan and prasad
- Devotees are blessed by the sight of their god.
- They share food offered to images.
Darshan, ( Sanskrit: “viewing”) also spelled darshana, in Indian philosophy and religion, particularly in Hinduism, the beholding of a deity (especially in image form), revered person, or sacred object. The experience is considered to be reciprocal and results in the human viewer’s receiving a blessing. The Rathayatras (chariot festivals), in which images of gods are taken in procession through the streets, enable even those who in former days were not allowed to enter the temple to have darshan of the deity. Darshan is also imparted by gurus (personal spiritual teachers) to their followers, by rulers to their subjects, and by objects of veneration such as pilgrimage shrines to their visitors.
https://www.britannica.com/topic/darshan
Prasad:
Prasada (in Sanskrit) is a material substance of food that is a religious offering in both Hinduism and Sikhism. It is normally consumed by worshippers after worship.
'prasada' literally means a gracious gift. It denotes anything, typically an edible food, that is first offered to a deity, saint, or an avatar, and then distributed in His or Her name to their followers or others as a good sign. The prasada is then considered to have the deity's blessing residing within it. In contemporary Hindu religious practice in India, the desire to get prasada and have darshana are the two major motivations of pilgrimage and temple visits.
As a spiritual state prasāda has a rich history of meanings in the Sanskrit tradition from Vedic literature onwards. In this textual tradition, prasada is a mental state experienced by gods, sages, and other powerful beings and is marked by spontaneous generosity and the bestowing of boons. In the earliest literature (Rig Veda) onwards Prasāda is understood in this sense of a mental state, not as an aspect of ritual practice. In later texts such as the Shiva Purana, references to prasada as a material substance begins to appear alongside this older meaning.
In its material sense, prasada is created by a process of giving and receiving between a human devotee and the divine god. For example, a devotee makes an offering of a material substance such as flowers, fruits, or sweets. The deity then 'enjoys' or tastes the offering. This now-divinely invested substance is called prasāda and is received by the devotee to be ingested, worn, etc. It may be the same material that was originally offered or material offered by others and then re-distributed to other devotees. In many temples, several kinds of prasada (e.g., nuts, sweets) are distributed to the devotees.
Some strict Gaudiya Vaishnavas, most commonly initiated ISKCON devotees, will eat only prasadam, i.e., everything they eat is first offered to Krishna, not simply a few items as with most other Hindus. In addition, the cooking of prasadam is done without tasting, because it is not for the believer's own consumption, but to offer to Krishna — they will receive the remnants of Krishna's food, which they consider to be NON-different to Krishna. ISKCON temples are known for providing free prasada meals to all who come, as they believe that this is not only feeding the poor but providing them with Krishna's mercy as well.
One way that prasadamis commonly prepared is to place the food in offering before an image or deity of the spiritual figure to be honored, sometimes on a plate or serving vessel reserved only for spiritual purposes; and only then, after some time is allowed to pass, does the food become holy prasadam for further distribution.
(from https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Prasad )
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The Immanent and Transcendent Divine
- Everything exists in time and space, but God is the one in which everything, even time and space, exists.
- ( ref Bhagavad Gita 9:6 - Know that as the mighty wind blowing everywhere rests always in the sky, likewise all living beings rest always in me.)
Know that as the mighty wind blowing everywhere rests always in the sky, likewise all living beings rest always in me.
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Devotional schools: Acharyas
- Three very different interpretations of the Veda are offered in Hinduism – and three very different conceptions of the self.
- They form the basis of acharyas, or philosophic/devotional schools of thought
A spiritual teacher is to be revered more than one’s own parents. There is a slight difference between a guru and an Acharya. A guru is a teacher who dispels ignorance, but in the case of an Acharya there is a further qualification. He is the one who practises what he preaches. The Gautamadharma Sutra says that among gurus, an Acharya is preeminent. Acharyas thus enjoy an elevated status, said M.K. Srinivasan in a discourse.
The Upanishadic period was a golden period of learning. During this age, we find the broadmindedness of preceptors. Disciples sometimes learnt from more than one preceptor and this was not considered wrong by the main preceptor. In the case of Satyakama, for example, he was instructed by a bull, a swan, fire and a diver bird and yet his preceptor — sage Gautama — did not object. Upakosala learnt from the fires and then completed his learning from his preceptor Satyakama. Svetaketu learnt from his father and also from another teacher. Suka learnt from his father Vyasa and also from King Janaka. This practice of learning from many continued to be followed later too. Ramanujacharya, for example, was instructed by five of Alavandar’s disciples. Kooratazhvan sent his sons Parasara Bhatta and Vedavyasa Bhatta to study under Embar; similarly, Devaraja asked his son Vatsyavaradacharya to study under Engalazhvan.
Vedanta Desika says that all teachers who add to a student’s knowledge are to be equally revered. He says that the duty of the teacher is to teach the means to liberation; the Lord must then bless the disciple and the student must be ever grateful to the teacher who instructed him. The Supreme One assumes the form of man, to impart knowledge to us. Lord Krishna taught Arjuna through Bhagavad Gita.
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The Mythic Imagination
- The stories of gods in any tradition might be termed “myths” –
- Do not confuse this term with “untruth” – think of myths as poetic expressions of truth – the symbols in myths and sacred images help the devotee understand the world.
Myth: A traditional story, especially one concerning the early history of a people or explaining a natural or social phenomenon, and typically involving supernatural beings or events
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Indian Myths are found in the Puranas: “Ancient things”
- Sacred texts considered smriti (remembered) rather than sruti (heard)
- Attributed to the sage Vyasa (“divider”)
- Of uncertain age – problems of dating oral traditions.
- Some may be as old as the Vedas.
Purana, ( Sanskrit: “Ancient”) in the sacred literature of Hinduism, any of a number of popular collections of myth, legend, and genealogy, varying greatly as to date and origin.
Puranas were written almost entirely in narrative couplets, in much the same easy flowing style as the two great Sanskrit epic poems, the Mahabharata and the Ramayana. The early Puranas were probably compiled by upper-caste authors who appropriated popular beliefs and ideas from people of various castes. Later Puranas reveal evidence of vernacular influences and the infusion of local religious traditions.
Traditionally, a Purana is said to treat five subjects, or “five signs”: the primary creation of the universe, secondary creation after periodic annihilation, the genealogy of gods and patriarchs, the reigns of the Manus (the first humans), and the history of the solar and lunar dynasties. Creation and dissolution (sarga, “emission,” and samhara, “gathering in”) occur when Prajapati, a creator figure of the Vedic age, emits the universe and opens it, but everything is always in it, just alternately revealed (manifest) or concealed (latent); sarga lets it out, and samhara pulls it back in.
The Puranas also treat various topics concerning religious developments that occurred between about 400 and 1500 ce. Those additional topics include customs, ceremonies, sacrifices, festivals, caste duties, donations, the construction of temples and images, and places of pilgrimage. The genealogies of gods, Manus, and kings form an open-ended structure into which individual authors place whatever they wish to talk about (though some Puranas ignore the genealogies entirely). The questions of primary concern to those authors are how to live a pious life and how to worship the gods. Such worship includes the rituals (pujas) that should be performed at home, in the temple, and on special festival days; places to go on pilgrimage; prayers to recite; and stories to tell and listen to. Significantly, most of those rituals do not require the mediation of a Brahman priest.
There are traditionally 18 Puranas, but there are several different lists of the 18, as well as some lists of more or fewer than 18. The earliest Puranas, composed perhaps between 350 and 750 ce, are the Brahmanda, Devi, Kurma, Markandeya, Matsya, Vamana, Varaha, Vayu, and Vishnu. The next earliest, composed between 750 and 1000, are the Agni, Bhagavata, Bhavishya, Brahma, Brahmavaivarta, Devibhagavata, Garuda, Linga, Padma, Shiva, and Skanda. Finally, the most recent, composed between 1000 and 1500, are the Kalika, Kalki, Mahabhagavata, Naradiya, and Saura.
All the Puranas are strongly sectarian—some devoted to Shiva, some to Vishnu, and some to a goddess. But even those officially devoted to a particular god often pay considerable attention to other gods. By far the most popular Purana is the Bhagavata-purana, with its elegant treatment of the childhood and early life of Krishna. There are also 18 “lesser” Puranas, or upa-puranas, which treat similar material, and a large number of sthala-puranas (“local Puranas”) or mahatmyas (“magnifications”), which glorify temples or sacred places and are recited in the services at those temples.
https://www.britannica.com/topic/Purana
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Mahapuranas
- Typically puranas contain the claim that reading them devoutly will ensure release from samsara.
- They tell of creation, and of the saving deeds of a particular god (or form of god)
The Devotional Cult of Vishnu:
Vaisnavism
- Puranas are dedicated to extolling the virtues and saving powers of particular gods. The cult of Vishnu (the pervader) has grown to be the largest in India.
- Note the conch, mace and chakra.
Vishnu, ( Sanskrit: “The Pervader”) one of the principal Hindu deities. Vishnu combines many lesser divine figures and local heroes, chiefly through his avatars, particularly Rama and Krishna. His appearances are innumerable; he is often said to have 10 avatars—but not always the same 10. Among the 1,000 names of Vishnu (repeated as an act of devotion by his worshippers) are Vasudeva, Narayana, and Hari.
Vishnu was not a major deity in the Vedic period. A few Rigvedic hymns (c. 1400–1000 bce) associate him with the Sun, and one hymn relates the legend of his three strides across the universe, which formed the basis of the myth of his avatar Vamana, the dwarf. Legends of figures that later became other avatars, such as the fish that saves humankind from a great flood, are also found in the early literature. By the time of the Mahabharata (the great Sanskrit epic that appeared in its final form about 400 ce), the avatars began to be identified with Vishnu. Vishnu is said to manifest a portion of himself anytime he is needed to fight evil and to protect dharma (moral and religious law). Not all avatars are wholly benevolent; some, such as Parashurama (Rama with the Ax) and Krishna, bring about the deaths of many innocent people, and the Buddha corrupts the pious antigods. Vishnu’s vahana, his vehicle in the world, is the eagle Garuda; his heaven is called Vaikuntha.
Temple images of Vishnu depict him either sitting, often in the company of his consorts Lakshmi (also called Shri) and Bhumidevi (Earth), or reclining on the coils of the serpent Shesha—asleep on the cosmic ocean during the time between the periodic dissolution and re-manifestation of the world. He is also represented in a standing position and dressed in royal garments, holding in his four (sometimes two) hands the shankha (conch), chakra (discus), gada (club), or padma (lotus). On his chest is the curl of hair known as the shrivatsa mark, and around his neck he wears the auspicious jewel Kaustubha. In paintings, Vishnu is usually shown as dark-complexioned, a distinguishing feature also of several of his incarnations.
https://www.britannica.com/topic/Vishnu
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Ramanuja
- A prominent Vaisnava saint and philosopher, Ramanuja maintained that the nature of Brahman was Hari, the Divine Form of Vishnu.
Ramanuja’s image of Moksha
Vishnu Narayana: the proper home of Mankind
- Visistadvaita Vedanta (qualified non-dualism) “maintains a crucial differentiation as well as a fundamental unity” (Klostermaier p 413)
- Hence Krishna and Radha are seen as “all attractive”
Madhva
- A more extreme exponent of Dvaita philosophy was Madvha, who maintained that there was an absolute distinction between individual souls (jivatman) and the Divine Bhagavata, Vishnu.
Avatars
- Vishnu is worshipped in many forms known as avatars (literally descents)
- The most familiar are Krishna (see the Bhagavad Purana) and Rama (see the Ramayana)
Other Avatars include: Matsya,
the fish who saves Manu the Law-Giver from a great flood
Kurma, the Tortoise
Varaha, the boar
Narasimha, the Man-Lion
- The proud and evil king Hiranyakashyap is confounded by the simple faith of the devout Prahlad, who declares that Vishnu (God) is everywhere…
Parasurama, “Rama with an Axe”
This story recalls one of the most important social changes in Indian Society - where power shifted between the Priestly Brahmin class, and the Ksatriyas classes of society.
The Epics
- Mahabharata (the great tale of India)
- Ramayana (the deeds of Lord Rama)
Within the Mahabharata,
The Bhagavad Gita
Shaivism – the Devotional Cult of Shiva
Shankara
- The most influential Shaivite philosopher, founder of the Advaita school of thought.
- Advaita means “non-dualism” – not really “monism”.
- Brahman is identified with atman
Shiva means “grace”
- Almost invariably characterised as “the destroyer”, Shiva is not understood in this way by his devotees.
- Shiva means “grace” in all senses of the word.
- Here he drinks poison to save the world.
Shankara’s image of Moksha
The Shiva Lingam
Either or Both?
- While Shankara’s ideas have gained support from western scholars (perhaps because his nirguna Brahman is closer to the god of the Philosophers), Ramanuja’s theistic ideas sit more comfortably with the Hinduism of the Vedas, Epics and Puranas.
Mahadevi - The Great Goddess:
Some call her Shakti, the divine energy.
Shakta devotional worship
Shaktism
Next time… Pathways to the Gods
