INDIA

Land of Prayer

Hinduism- is the chief religion of India - also known as Brahmanism

Brahma- God - “Soul of the Earth”

Belief of the Hindus1. Oneness of Brahma2. Reincarnation

a. good man’s soul will be reborn to a man having good reputation.

b. bad man’s souls will be reborn to animals.

Trinity of Hindu god1. Brahma- The Creator2. Vishnu- The Caretaker3. Shiva- The Destroyer

Other Gods4. Agni- fire5. India- storm6. Ganesha- elephant7. Laksmi- good fate8. Vasanti- Festival

Approximately, they had 300 gods and goddesses.

Buddhism- (16th century)

Gautama Buddha1. Rich Hindu prince who was humane 2. Pro-poor3. He hated caste system4. Hermit5. Taught that all men needed to be equal

Teachings of Buddha

1. Life is a sacrifice2. Life’s misfortune is based from sin.3. Life’s misfortune has ending. It shall end if he

denounces his worldly life.4. Nirvana- Oneness w/ Brahma.

Attaining Nirvana

1. Right belief2. Right Intention 3. Right Speech4. Right Action5. Right livelihood 6. Right effort 7. Right thinking 8. Right meditative prayer

• Hindus- are generally vegetarian.

• Vedas- Indian literature w/c consists of religious poem and hymns of praise.

• Taj Mahal- is the most beautiful mausoleum in the world as a gift of Shah Jahab to his wife.

Indian Literature

Rik-Shamhita- was a collection of thousand hy in praise of different gods.Literature of India is often called “Sanskrit Literature”

Sanskrit means “perfected” on “cultivated”.

Panchatantra (or Five Headings)-is a rich collection of brief stories of ancient time -contains the first fables ever written- Also contains short stories

Characteristics of Indian Literature1. It is based on piety, a deeply religious spirit.2. Indian literary masterpieces are written in the form of epics (The

Ramayana and the Mahabharata)

Ramayana- is about the reincarnation of the creator of god Vishnu the person of Krishna.

This reincarnation of Vishnu are called “Avatars” or descending of the Gods.

Mahabharata- greatest epic of India - it tells a story of civil was that might have

taken place in the early years. - a long poem.

Indian Drama

Two great Indian dramatists: 1. Bhasa2. Kalidasa- Indian Shakespeare

Shakuntala- his best known play.

Rabindranath Tagore

• Was a great Indian poets and dramatist.• Awarded the Nobel Prize for Literature in 1913.

Indians contributions to civilization:1. Four great religions 2. Yoga3. First fable of the world (Panchatantra) 4. Invented the zero and numerals in mathematics5. Music, arts and architecture are better known than any

forms of Oriental Culture

Indian Famous Personality

1. Mahatma Ghandi- peaceful revolutionist fought against English Imperialism.

2. Mother Theresa- champion of unselfish love

3. Jawahalrial Nehru- nationalist, first prime minister of India.