HinduismCPD5

__**//HINDUISM //**__ __**HISTORY **__

Hinduism started approximately 4,000 years ago or in 2,500 BCE (Before Common Era) in **//Indus Valley, India//**. A weird thing about Hinduism is that it didn't have a founder. It is the oldest religion and that is probably why they don't have a founder. Hinduism was formed from many different beliefs. Many parts of the world have Hindus, but 80% of them are in India. The Hindus believe in the **//Caste System//**  . The Caste System consists of four classes. The four classes are **//Brahmins//**, **//Kshatriyas//**, **//Vaisyas//**, and **//Sudras//**. Each c lass has specific people that are in each. Brahmins, , consist of priests, teachers, and scholars. Kshatriyas, ,consist of the warriors (soldiers). The Vaisyas, , consist of the merchants and the people  who have to work and sell items for a living. The Sudras, ,  consist of the slaves and people who get paid very very little for what they do.

__**Beliefs **__

Hindus believe in many Gods, but t here are only four main Gods and they are **//Ganesha//**, **//Shiva//**, **//Brahma//**, and **//Vishnu//**. Ganesha is the God of success. If you pray to Ganesha, ,  she will help you succeed in what you are doing. <span style="font-family: 'Lucida Console',Monaco,monospace; font-size: 20px;">Shiva, ,<span style="font-family: 'Lucida Console',Monaco,monospace; font-size: 20px;">is the God of destruction. Brahma, <span style="font-family: 'Lucida Console',Monaco,monospace; font-size: 20px;">, is the God of creation or the <span style="font-family: 'Lucida Console',Monaco,monospace; font-size: 20px;">divine God. Hindus believe that he is responsible for creating hinduism. The last major God is Vishnu <span style="font-family: 'Lucida Console',Monaco,monospace; font-size: 20px;">. Vishnu is the God of protection. If you pray to Vishnu, you should get the protection you wanted, and what time <span style="font-family: 'Lucida Console',Monaco,monospace; font-size: 20px;">you want it. Gods that are lesser than the four main Gods are called **//deities//**. All of the Hindu Gods have **//d//****//harma//** <span style="font-family: 'Lucida Console',Monaco,monospace; font-size: 20px;">. For special holidays in the Hindu religion, they wear certain marks on their foreheads. Women and girls wear a **//bindi//**, which is a dot. Men and boys wear //**tilak**// (**til**- //uh// k).Hindus also believe that cows are sacred. Because they are sacred, Hindus do not consume anything made from cows. They also believe that nature is sacred. Nature is sacred because of what it gives them (wood, food, shelter, etc.). Hindus b <span style="font-family: 'Lucida Console',Monaco,monospace; font-size: 20px;">elieve in the samsara. The **//samsara//** is their cycle of life which is, birth, life, death, and rebirth. After being born many times and being good to others, you will stop being born and lifted <span style="font-family: 'Lucida Console',Monaco,monospace; font-size: 20px;">to **//moksha//**. They are also big believers of **//karma//** <span style="font-family: 'Lucida Console',Monaco,monospace; font-size: 20px;">. They believe that it will effect you in your next life.

__<span style="color: #f10ea6; font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive; font-size: 175%;">Spirtual Places __ <span style="font-family: 'Lucida Console',Monaco,monospace; font-size: 20px;">Spirtual places in Hindusim are the mandir. A **//man//****//dir//** is their place of worship. Another place of worship is the **//shrines//** that they <span style="font-family: 'Lucida Console',Monaco,monospace; font-size: 20px;">keep in their homes. The shrines represnt people. Their prayer is call **//huja//**. When they huja, they are paying their respects to Brahma. At the beging of a worship, they ring a bell to show that they are present to worship their Gods. Before they enter their shrine area or their mandir, they take off their shoes and purify themselves. By purifing themselves, they are making themselves clean and welcoming the time that have coming with their Gods. The taking off of the shoes signifies that they don't want to get the Gods dirty and they want to keep them nice and clean. __<span style="color: #800080; font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive; font-size: 175%;">Sacred Writings __ __<span style="color: #000000; font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 20px;">﻿ __ <span style="font-family: 'Lucida Console',Monaco,monospace; font-size: 20px;">The sacred writings are written in <span style="font-family: 'Lucida Console',Monaco,monospace; font-size: 20px;"> **//sanskrit//**. The oldest book in Hinduism is the **//vedas//**. In the vedas, there is a story named **//Mahabharata//**, or the longest Hindusim story. It is about a LOT of first paternal cousins that are f <span style="font-family: 'Lucida Console',Monaco,monospace; font-size: 20px;">ighting about who should be the king of an ancestral kingdom named **//Bharata//**. Long story short, it doesn't end good. Another story is called **Ramayana**. This story is rich in poetic language and descriptions. It also consists of seven books and 24,000 couplets. Reciting the Ramayana is considered a religious act, and scenes from the epic are portrayed throughout India and Southeast Asia.

__<span style="color: #ff5400; font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive; font-size: 175%;">Spiritual Leaders __

<span style="font-family: 'Lucida Console',Monaco,monospace; font-size: 20px;">The only really big spiritual leader that Hinduism has had is a man name **//Gandhi//** <span style="font-family: 'Lucida Console',Monaco,monospace; font-size: 20px;">. He is also called Muhanda or Great Soul. He did many things to help Hinduism get even more believers. He is the greatest leader that Hindus have ever had. __<span style="color: #30bee8; font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive; font-size: 175%;">Tradtions and Holidays __ <span style="font-family: 'Lucida Console',Monaco,monospace; font-size: 20px;">One of the Hindu traditons are **//Raksha Bandah//**. This is the celebration of siblings. The wedding of the girl in the family is the most important time in a Hindu boys life. When his sister gets married he does the majority of what a father would do during his daughters weeding (walk her down the aisle, give her away to groom, etc.). There are two main Hindu holidays and they are **//Divali//** and **//Holi//**. Divali is the festival of lights. They celebrate it by eating vegetarian foods and sweets. They celebrate this at the end of October or beginning of November. Holi is the celebration of spring. They take colored water and spray each other with it and make each other many many different colors. They do this to celebrate they beginning of life.