Hinduism is the culture which gave birth to [Mathematics]zero , decimal number system ,Infinite series [Astronomy]Trigonometry , shape of earth ,and list goes on...as every sciences is not of Greek origin..
As there was outer sciences ....there is immense inner sciences too...various methods to calm down the mind..studied by many Cognitive Psychologist...origins of Yoga/Medicinal Herbs/Ayurveda....
the environmentalist movement(Green Peace) was due to the impact of this culture where nature is sacred not a place for man/women to exploit it but till now people in this movement are saving environment for future Generations and not considering it's sacred (on the Ground that without which we cannot live) ...by doing this we can also control climate change...
and the Go vegan movement(As lived by Gandhi Himself)....
There was no persecution of scientists in the culture...(unlike persecution of Galileo,etc..) science and Hindu culture go hand in hand...
Then people would say what about draconian caste system...see every society has social divisions(Like division of Peasants and Royal family before French Revolution) even today....as every one cannot be a CEO nor a Sweeper....as Caste is not even a word from this culture it's a Portuguese word...it was basically the flexible Varna(Sanskrit word) system wherein a person depending upon it's speciality was given a group...
Then meaningless rituals...first we have to see what's meaning does it have/what are it's good or bad impacts on nature.....by using science...
If it is not understood visually then we should not Blindly reject it rather experience it...one can get by meditation a Rishi( Hindu Sages) state for better experiencing life...but one can't have Jesus/Mohammed state as it's blasphemy...as it might be Hypothetical...but science too has hypothesis...
It is the only religion(Doubtful to define it as that) having no single Founder.....no single Holy Book...
Swami Vivekananda Said "Was there ever a more horrible blasphemy than the statement that all the knowledge of God is confined to this or that book? How dare men call God infinite and yet try to compress Him within the covers of a little book.."
What is better to experience God than to simply believe in him/her... :)
Every one is busy convincing each other to believe in Him/God or not to
...let us be creative and let not force others...that is why the creativity led to 330 million(estimation) Gods in Hinduism...there is "Ishtha Devtha" which is that if u want u can create your own God/No God , etc.....what else do you need...
It is like an open Architecture....
Atheism/Theism MAY lead to more violence because in future there should not be war between Believers and Non-Believers...So be an open Architecture...
Any response/rebuttal is appreciated...
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"Atheism/Theism MAY lead to more violence..."
Apparently, Hinduism already has/does.
http://www.breitbart.com/national-security/2015/01/06/family-honor-kills...
1. Hinduism didn't math. a person that happened to be hindu did, but not because he was hindu.
Hinduism has a great deal of harmful problems. For example many hindus cremate and in doing so the perfectly healthy wife is expected to throw herself on the pire and kill herself. That is a hindu belief.
2. Like all religions, hindus ignore facts and believe that prayer and sacrifice to their gods is important. They pollute the Gangis river as a result of their religion.
3. Hinduism supports cults, that can take any number of actions as commanded by the god of that cult. Example the Thuggees. http://www.ancient-origins.net/myths-legends/thuggees-cult-assassins-ind...
Hare Krishnas are another example of this cultism, that brainwashes people and compels them to give all their world belongings to the cult leader.
In older times hindus committed genocide in the name of their religion.
Hinduism may not be as destructive as christianity but it is a very harmful as are all false beliefs.
1.Mostly culture plays a important role for shaping one's psyche , thinking , etc....
Common misunderstanding...it's called Sati...this Was done by women only in two states of India not all(not inscribed in any scriptures)and the Reason is that in 1500 A.D and so when Muslim Invaders(Ruthless,evil) came for Invasion from west side of India after the Invading they used to rape the women of the ruling class and locals too....in order for not getting raped , women burnt themselves...(as Invaders used to rape even dead bodies)...so cremating oneself is the best logical way in that scenario..rather than being a slave(Salute to those Rajput women)...
But the biased media(International/Local) show it as a Hindu ritual/belief ...which isn't true...
2.Why would they ignore facts...when even they found the earth is a sphere(Aryabhatta)...there was no fight between the Hindus and Aryabhatta as he showed the fact here.. People simply accepted...alike fight between church and scientists for earth is flat or not...important and unimportant is a personal choice...
Pollution of river Gangis for that matter is a recent one..it's not due to any ritual but due to Factory waste...and negligence by people too...but if u move to upper Gangis , it is like fresh/drinkable water....
It is like the greenhouse gases is emitted mostly by 1st world...which lead to global warming...why here christianity is not blamed..(Major followers)
3.Firstly "thug" is a british term derieved "during the colonial period "...it is called to the tribal people(mostly in forested area) as british wanted to cut down the forests for railway lines but the tribal people used to protect the forest as it was sacred(coz u know we can't live with forests)so tribals used to chase/kill the british in doing so....hence british blacklisted these tribe for killing people..which in real sense they were protecting the forests....(so for saving forests..that is what they got...coz invaders where not happy)..as Indians went on the lines of Invaders , now Indians are taught to save forests....article given is biased..as it could not give the proper origin and reason behind it...as Kali is a ferocious figure..on top they made this biased article without facts..
Hare Krishnas brainwashes people...I think you are brainwashed on this matter...Hare Krishnas have a philosophy behind giving all the belongings...read there books u may better understand...as after death Ultimately you don't take anything with you..so keeping material wealth is absurd in path of Spiritual Life according to them(Quite tough discipline)...these are taught by leader/Gurus then y would Guru take others belongings...all Gurus are not corrupt...so joining Hare Krishna is not by forcing or Charity based conversion..but on Individual basis...
3.Hindus and genocide....an oxymoron...India is the Place in the world where Jews and Zoroastrians(People from Persia as muslim rulers did a genocide on them and hence they moved to India) were not persecuted ..Zoroastrians(their culture) still live in India today though some migrated after colonial period..
Jews left India when Israel was created...and in Israel's constitution...they have mentioned "Thank You India for giving us a place to live "...on the contrary christians did genocide on Red Indians ,Greek,Pagan culture, Native Australians,etc....and their culture remains in Museums only...same muslims did in Mesopotamia ,Babylon,Afghanistan,etc..regions....where as in India still each states has inherent different cultures right from different way of dressing style ,cuisine, way of worship...but don't fight with each other....
Ah, Hindu apologetics! Haven't seen that on this site before.
Nyarlathotep, do we have a record keeper here? If so, this first time occurrence needs recorded.
Nyarlathotep...
"Hindu apologetics!"
Yes indeed...not seen this either......However it is nice to see the old apologetic practices continue .... for instance the tendency to be ,what shall I call it ?, lets say "economical with the truth."...
"Common misunderstanding...it's called Sati...this Was done by women only in two states of India not all(not inscribed in any scriptures)and the Reason is that in 1500 A.D and so when Muslim Invaders"
Nonsense .... see below...extracts from Wikipedia on Sati
link:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sati_(practice)
"Mention of the practice can be dated back to the 4th century BC,[4] while evidence of practice by wives of dead kings only appears beginning between the 5th and 9th centuries AD."
"The practice was particularly prevalent among some Hindu communities,[5] observed in aristocratic Sikh families,[6] and has been attested to outside South Asia in a number of localities in Southeast Asia, such as in Indonesia,[7] and Vietnam."
then again...
"Firstly "thug" is a british term derieved "during the colonial period "
and again this is nonsense......
once more from Wiki.......
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Thuggee
"The word "Thuggee" derives from the Hindi ठग (ṭhag), which means "deceiver". Related words are the verb thugna ("to deceive"), from the Sanskrit स्थग (sthaga "cunning, sly, fraudulent") and स्थगति (sthagati, "he conceals")."
So Sammy ...not a British invention then ?
Oddly there is no mention of protecting forests either.... and it appears that action against the Thugs pre dates the British in India...
" The earliest known reference to the Thugs as a band or fraternity, rather than ordinary thieves, is found in Ziau-d din Barni's History of Firoz Shah (written about 1356):"
I wonder why you are so interested in painting these "dyed in the wool" murderous thieves as proto Eco activists.
You should remember that just because you want it to be true doesn't actually make it true.
"The earliest known reference to the Thugs as a band or fraternity, rather than ordinary thieves, is found in Ziau-d din Barni's History of Firoz Shah (written about 1356)"
You see the British went back in time and planted 500 years of references to the Thuggees as bandits to support their colonialism, duh!
Yes, but it is also worth noting that the time machien they used was owned by the Pope at that time.
"Hinduism is the culture which gave birth to [Mathematics]zero , decimal number system ,Infinite series [Astronomy]Trigonometry , shape of earth ,and list goes on...as every sciences is not of Greek origin..
As there was outer sciences ....there is immense inner sciences too...various methods to calm down the mind..studied by many Cognitive Psychologist...origins of Yoga/Medicinal Herbs/Ayurveda...."
Neither the Hindus or the Greeks invented science. Science is an invention of the late 16th century. Until then we had math and philosophy. Yoga is not a science. It is a religious system. Aryuveda is not science. Where are the peer reviews and double blind studies of ancient times? Where in any Greek or Indian philosophy was there solid falsification of untruths?
"Common misunderstanding...it's called Sati...this Was done by women only in two states of India not all(not inscribed in any scriptures)and the Reason is that in 1500 A.D and so when Muslim Invaders(Ruthless,evil) came for Invasion from west side of India after the Invading they used to rape the women of the ruling class and locals too....in order for not getting raped , women burnt themselves...(as Invaders used to rape even dead bodies)...so cremating oneself is the best logical way in that scenario..rather than being a slave(Salute to those Rajput women)..."
Sati is not a logical solution to rape. It demonstrates the lack of worth a non-virginal piece of chattel has in a misogynistic society.
I came across this website that espouses the problem with hinduism:
http://www.frihost.com/forums/vt-84020.html
Basically like all religions hinduism is a tool to force the masses to obey a ruling group of people. All religions promote something that isn't proven fact.
That was the impression I got when I read the Bhagavad Gita in college. The message was clear to me: accept what fate has dealt you in this life, do not disturb the status quo.
Just like christianity demanding that you not question god and "you must have faith."
Yes i think the West has a idealized view of Hinduism. Apart from the british who has a sizeable hindu communauty at home, we europeans have little first-hand experience of that religion, and we mostly see it through the screen. We see colorful festivals, x-rated temples, an elephant-headed god, and we think that looks like a cool religion.
But this religion also created the caste system, one of the most oppresive social systems ever conceived. It also is plagues with religious violence, violence against women ( widow used to be burnt with their husbands ) and so on. It's a religion as bad as other, and it needs to disappear too.
Hello! I'm a newly registered member from France and this is my first comment on AR forums. Nice to meet you all!
About the question submitted, I guess the answer depends on what we call Hinduism. If the Charvaka school (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Charvaka), whose members were atheists and materialists, is considered Hindu, then I suppose Hinduism is able, in some way, to be harmless. But that school wasn't well accepted by the others, and apparently it doesn't exist any more. If Charvaka is labeled "Hindu", it must be mostly due to cultural considerations rather than religious ones.
All ideas can be harmful in a way or an other, it depends on how we choose to use them. But some are more likely to become banners of hatred and pretexts for violence.
As it has been pointed out, Westerners look at Hinduism from the outside and therefore winnowing between facts and propaganda (spread not only by politicians or interested international traders, but also by real enthusiasts of Hindu culture) is sometimes difficult for us. Religious Hindus themselves may hold some positive prejudice in favor of their religion. So, what do Indian atheists think about it? Are they accepted? Do they suffer from discrimination? Their views on the question should be valuable.
welcome to the forum
I've never seen a satisfactory definition of what is hinduism. The fact that it includes an atheist school of thought puzzles me even more.
All religions are susceptible to the decay of extremism by virtue of being both organised and dogma centric, and Hinduism by no means is exempt from it. India has its fare share of Hindu extremists/ terrorists and political outfits. The VHP and RSS are as absolute in their dogma as any taliban like outfit. India's blasphemy laws enacted upon by fundamentalist outfits cause much of its cultural decay. A prominent painter M F Husein lived and died in exile for fear of retribution from fundamentalist Hindu groups. India has had its major share of rioting and massacres based on communal lines. Like the ones in Godhra. Let me clarify here that this is not a reflection of the country as Indians in general are secular in outlook and generally open minded like any other secular minded country or maybe even more but like all gullible populace are suggestable. Fundamentalism is something no religion can separate itself from. Irreligion personally is the way forward. Let the past dwell in the past. Science and rationality is the way forward and it would be better if we can all embrace it as soon as possible.
All new posters above, welcom to the forum. As for you, Charvak, we are both in the same "boat", thinking wise. While it is not sinking, as of right now, it is just setting at Port.