Hinduism is the indigenous and predominant religious tradition in India. Many variations of this religion have developed in the past decades and a number of non-Hindu religious movements gained inspiration from it. Experts say it is difficult to assign orthodoxy to Hinduism.
The caste system is one of the oldest aspects of Hinduism. It is important to learn about the caste system before a person can fully understand Hindu’s religious beliefs. There are four basic castes or social classes according to Hindu teaching—the elite caste known as the Brahman; Kshatriyas or the rulers and warriors; the Vaisyas or the farmers and merchants and the Shudras or laborers. Each caste has its own obligations and rules. Those outside the caste system are called the untouchables.
Here are the principles that Hindus believe in:
- Brahman, the three-in-one god is composed of Brahma the Creator, Vishnu the Preserver and Shiva the Destroyer.
- The law of Karma- “Good begets good and bad begets bad”.
- Reincarnation or the transmigration of souls (samsara). A journey on the circle of life where a person experiences a series of physical births, deaths and rebirth to another life.
- Nirvana, the goal of the Hindu. This is the release of the soul from the endless cycle of rebirths.
Learning about Hinduism requires one to conduct their own research, just like what you’ll normally do when selecting phlebotomy training classes. The information presented in this article, however, can give you an idea about Hinduism beliefs.