RELIGIONS OF INDIA

RLST 2610
TO HELP YOU UNDERSTAND THE DIFFERENT ASPECTS OF INDIAN
RELIGIONS, BELOW ARE LISTED THE MAIN ASPECTS WHICH PERVADE
THROUGH THE DIFFERENT RELIGIONS IN INDIA
THESE ARE WAYS OF APPROACHING THE DIVINE OR ABSOLUTE
THEY ARE:
1) ASCETICISM
Asceticism of some form or another can be found in nearly every religion in India.
It can involve fasting, holding the body in a particular posture. Jainism makes a very
extensive use of asceticism, especially involving fasting and pulling out ones hair.
Asceticism can also be milder and more mental, such as spending a long time sitting
in one place in meditation.
When we talk about ascetics we usually mean those persons who give up living at
home to 1)either become wanderers, or 2) live in a religious institution such as a
Hindu or Jain ashram or a Buddhist monastery.
Formal vows of asceticism include 1)Sannyasin, becoming a Hindu monk, 2)
becoming a Jain monk, 3)becoming a Buddhist monk (Bhikshu/bhikku). Jains have
more women monks than either Hinduism or Buddhism.
Some persons dont take formal vow and just become wanderers. These people are
usually called Sadhus.
TEXTS USED: No particular texts used by a person who practices asceticism. However
2 famous very short songs which extol asceticism were written by the 8
th
century Adi-
Shankara- : 1) the stanzas on wearing a loin cloth and 2) the stanzas on Nirvana.
TIME LINE: Practiced historically throughout; not associated as beginning in any
particular time.
2) YOGA
Yoga involves mastering the mind by quieting the thoughts. It takes its cosmology
from Samkhya and believes in Purusha=spirit and Prakrti,= nature (the elements earth,
air, etc. and also including but unlike Samkhya also believes in ISWARA, the Lord. The
goal of Yoga is union. This means especially to not let the mind, which is likened to
wild horses, carry one away, but rather to learn how to concentrate the mind on a
particular thought wave. By directing the mind one is able to eventually attain
enlightenment. Yoga is a practice which relates to all the different religions in India,
Buddhists practice Yoga, Jains practice Yoga, Hindus practice Yoga, and Sikhs practice
Yoga. Yoga is about concentrating the mind, learning how to direct it. The ideas of
Yoga are used by all these traditions however, Buddhism, Jainism and sikhism dont refer
back to the text Patanjali wrote, the Yoga Sutras, even if these religions use the ideas that
Patanjali expounds.
How does asceticism relate to Yoga?
The practice of yoga in most cases involves asceticism, though the asceticism in yoga is
mostly directed inwardly and is not so often expressed outwardly (except in the case of
Tantric Yoga where the body becomes the vehicle and then the outward also has a role
but still secondary.) See below for the relationship between Yoga and bhakti, Yoga and
Tantra.)
TEXTS USED: Main Text used is Patanjalis Yoga Sutras (Youre reading a portion of
this). Some persons also use the Bhagavad Gita to explain Yoga as well. Some persons
also use the Upanishads (Youre reading part of the Brhadaranyaka Upanishad) as a way
of understanding the mental practice and goal of Yoga. Tantric traditions also have some
texts used for Yoga as well such as the Vijnana Bhairava, a text which outlines 112
different types of yogic meditations such as staring at a flame, or watching for the space
between 2 thoughts, or the space between the in-breath and the out-breath. 2 other
Tantric yoga texts from approximately the 11
th
century: Hatha Yoga Pradiipikaa and
Gheranda Samhita. These texts deal mostly with bodily postures, the form of yoga
made popular in classes in the West today.
TIME LINE: Patanjalis Yoga Sutras dates probably from 1
st
to the 2
nd
century CE. The
Bhagavad Gita dates from the 2
nd
century CE. By approximately the 8
th
century Tantra
consciously begins to borrow from the earlier Yoga tradition and modifies it.
3) BHAKTI = DEVOTION
Bhakti begins to become prominent very early. The Bhagavad Gita (2
nd
cent.) extols
devotion to Krishna. However Bhakti really starts to become very popular by the 6
th
century with the songs to Shiva by the Nayanar poets in South India (the folk songs to
Shiva that you read are a folk form of bhakti that comes from this movement) and the
Vishnu Namalvar poets a few centuries later, also in South India. Telling the stories of
the young cowherd boy Krishna are a main form of bhakti practiced also, even today.
This begins in South India with Srimad Bhagavatam Puranam in approximately the 9
th
century. This book has lots of stories of the life of the young Krishna, how he steals
butter, how he as an adolescent steals the clothes and hearts of the cowherd women
(gopis) and how he meets with them and dances with them in the forest. The pictures of
Krishna with his flute come from this cycle of stories. Later in the 16
th
century, Mirabai
thinks of Krishna using these same stories featured in the Srimad Bhagavatam Puranam
and has great devotion for Krishna and writes her own poems about and to Krishna. (you
read some of these). In Bengal too, in the 16
th
century people talk about these stories and
write about them and sing to Krishna, dancing in the streets. This movement which
began with the Bengali saint Caitanya, is what the Hari Krishnas today look back to as
their roots. There are also some important South Indian poets who are devotees of Shiva,
called Virashaivas, a movement that begins in the 12
th
century. These include the court
minister Basavanna, and also Akka Mahadevi, who leaves her husband to wander naked
through India writing songs to Shiva. In north India, in the 15
th
and 16
th
century many
other poets are great Bhaaktas. These include especially Ravidas, the outcaste poet who
reveres the god Rama, (you read some of his poems) and Tulsidas who lived in the 16
th
17
th
centuries and also wrote poems to Rama. Note the North Indian distinction between
Saguna and Nirguna. Saguna is worship of god in a particular form, (like Krishna).
Nirguna is worshipping God as transcending all forms.
Devotion to the Goddess is also very important. One of the main expressions of this
bhakti happens during the 9 nights (navaratri) celebration in the fall. At this time people
read the Devi Mahatmya for 9 straight days, do puja to images of the Goddess
Mahishasura Mardini (a form of Durga who slays the buffalo demon).
Reciting the name of God is also a very important practice in bhakti. This happens
across religious traditions. Sikhs, Buddhists, Hindus (not so much Jains) all use this
bhakti practice.
Sikhs also rely heavily on the practice of Bhakti. And their scripture, the Guru Granth
Sahib includes poems of Kabir and Ravidas. (Question to figure out: why is Ravidas, who
is the guru of Mirabai according to tradition, in the Sikh Guru Granth Sahib, while his
disciple Mirabai is not?)
Devotion is also an element of Buddhism, though this aspect only starts to get stressed
later with Mahayana traditions, (4
th
century about the same time that Bhakti starts to get
important within Hindu traditions). Especially bhakti gets underway in Buddhism with
the Lotus Sutra (a text that becomes very popular in China and Japan).
Jainism also has elements of bhakti, but of all the traditions it downplays this aspect in
its literature and ritual. (Question to figure out: why does Jainism downplay bhakti?)
How does bhakti relate to Yoga?
Bhakti and Yoga are said to lead to the same goal, but these two methods are probably
the most different from each other. This is because Yoga involves the mastery of the
mind, while bhakti is about surrendering to God. So the mind becomes still when one
uses yoga to control it, actively inculcates an opposite thought, AND the mind becomes
still when it gets absorbed in love with the form of Krishna. These are two different
methods, which both lead to the mind becoming still.
How does bhakti relate to asceticism?
Bhakti is a path of love, devotion, so it tends to not involve conscious asceticism. The
only asceticism it employs is when one is so much in love with the deity that one doesnt
even realize that one hasnt eaten etc.
On the other hand, numerous (probably most) ascetics really do have much *devotion* to
the divine and will adopt bhakti practices to help them in their ascetic quest, even though
as a method for approaching the divine, bhakti does not at all require asceticism.
Bhakti is probably the single most popular way to approach the divine, today
especially. Even today in India, many people practice devotion, bhakti by singing songs
to different Gods, offering puja to them. Some people today even write their own songs
as a practice of devotion to God, just as Mirabai and Ravidas did (as well as many others)
in the past. People also dont just have devotion bhakti for Gods; sometimes important
saints are worshipped with devotion as well. For example, you saw the film of the saint
Ramana Maharshihe too is worshipped today, as is the famous saint Shirdi Sai Baba
who died in 1918 and who now has many temples (even some in America) where people
worship images of him.
TEXTS USED: Many different texts are used. The most important ones are often
recited today still. These include Srimad Bhagavatam Puranam, Tulsidas
Ramacharitmanas, which is a rewriting in Hindi of the epic Ramayana (recited especially
in North India). Also, the songs of Ravidas, Mirabai, and Kabir are still sung (Youre
reading some of these). The Bhagavad Gita is also used as a text relating to Bhakti. For
Sikhs the Guru Granth Sahib is especially recited (Youre reading some of these). This
is a devotional practice. Later Buddhism has several texts, especially the Lotus Sutra, but
even more important for Buddhist devotion is reciting the name of the Buddha or
bodhisattvas who are yet to come such as Amitabha, or Avalokiteshwara. The recitation
of the phrase Om mani padme hum is used as a devotional practice by many.
TIME LINE:
Bhakti is a way of approaching the divine which certainly exists by the time of the
Bhagavad Gita, if not much earlier. It continues even through today. Most people who
revere Hindu Gods today practice some form of Bhakti. Examples would be
contemporary saints like Ammachi who encourages the path of bhakti for her followers
or the modern saint Ramakrishna who had great devotion to the Goddess Kali. Bhakti
becomes very popular by the 6
th
century in south India, with the Alvars and Nayanars.
The south Indian Virashaivas begins in the 12
th
century. Bhakti becomes very popular in
North India by the 15
th
century with saints like Ravidas and Kabir, with Mirabai and
Tulsidas in the 16
th
century. From this time onward its popularity has remained unabated.
The Guru Granth Sahib is from the 16
th
17th century.
4) TANTRA
Tantra is a movement which begins to gain momentum by the 9
th
century. It involved
using very technical ritual in order to approach the divine. Its goals are stated as two-
fold: 1) the attainment of powers; 2) the attainment of liberation. It employs very
sophisticated rituals to attain these goals, and sometimes, in the case of left-handed
Tantra, the use of illegal substances, such as liquor, sex as part of the ritual (the 5 ms).
Tantra cuts across all lines: so there are Vaishnava Tantrics (people who worship Vishnu)
and Shaiva Tantrics, also Tantrics who follow one or another form of the Goddess
(especially, Durga, Kali, Lalita). There are also Buddhist Tantrics (the Dalai lama).
There were Jain Tantrics (but not anymore today). (There is not much documentation of
Sikh Tantrics, however there is a tradition of this, just with very little literature).
How does Tantra relate to Yoga?
Tantra often employs elements of Yoga, however Tantra uses a slightly different
systeminstead of 8 limbs as in Patanjali, Tantra has 6 limbs. The limbs are the same
except Tantra compress the last three and adds Reasoning as the highest.
Important differences between Tantra and Yoga:
1)Tantra employs more external ritual than Yoga.
2) Tantra focuses more on the bodyespecially with the idea that the body is a
microcosm.
3) Tantra yoga practice not so much quieting the mind as directing it to visualizing
complex images of deities and concentrating on mantric sounds.
How does Tantra relate to Asceticism?
There are many ascetics who are Tantrics; and many more ascetics who are not Tantrics.
In general Tantric paths are highly organized in terms of their ritual and practice, whereas
many non-Tantric ascetics dont employ such a high degree of ritual organization.
Tantrics use methods of asceticism, but not so much fasting. Tantra explicitly declares
that asceticism is not a higher path than the householder path. On the other hand,
numerous Tantrics do become wandering sadhus and some also become sannyasins.
How does Tantra relate to Bhakti?
Tantra nearly always employs elements of bhaktidevotion to the deity is very important
in Tantra, however Tantra involves
1) much more attention to method
2) a greater focus on the body as a part of the practice: (examples: kundalini,
installing the deities in the body via nyasa the ritual awakening of the deities in
the body.)
3) Tantra tends to be more non-dualthe self is the deity. (example: when one
does the puja, worship as part of a Tantric ritual, sometimes this involves offering
the flowers which one offers to the deity on top of ones own head. Why?
Because you are ultimately the deity).
One more important difference between the two:
4) Tantra explicitly says its methods can offer the attainment of magical power
and/or enlightenment/salvation.
Bhakti, on the other hand, does not promise the attainment of magical power, only
the hope of salvation.
5) Bhakti takes most of its ritual forms from Tantra and greatly simplifies them. So the
main ritual forms of worship for bhakti are puja and singing songs. The elements of puja
in bhakti are a simplified form of that used in Tantra. Both Tantra and Bhakti use singing
as a way to connect with the divine, but Bhakti uses it more than Tantra and the songs are
often easier to remember, and simpler in form.
6) Both Tantra and bhakti place importance on reciting the name of the deity. Bhakti
emphasizes external singing out loud more, whereas Tantra emphasizes internal recitation
(japa) however both approaches use both methods (out loud and inwardly.)
TEXTS USED: The texts used in Tantra are much more diverse and numerous than
those used for other methods. The texts vary also according to the main deity one
follows (this is also the case with bhakti). Important texts which are used include:
1) the Devi Mahatmya, a 6
th
century text devoted to the Goddess. (used both in bhakti and
in Tantra), especially important in Bengal, but also referenced elsewhere including in
south India. This is probably the single most popular Tantric related text all over India.
2) Also the 1000 names of Lalita, with its commentary by Bhaskararaya, which is very
important in south India, and also important in Benares.
3) works by Abhinavagupta including the Tantra Aloka.
4)Also important are the Vijnana Bhairava, a text from the 9
th
century (or earlier) used in
non-dual Kashmiri Shaiva tantra, the Kularnava Tantra (from about the same period) and
referenced in the north and the south.
5) the Mahanirvana Tantra, mostly used in Bengal and northeast India.
TIME LINE: Tantra begins perhaps as early as the 5
th
or 6
th
centuries, CE, but doesnt
really begin to become prominent until the 8
th
and 9
th
centuries. It then spreads all over
India and then into Asia, in China Korea and Japan. Important schools which are
developed in Kashmir in the 9
th
12
th
centuries, especially including the writings of
Abhinavagupta make their way into south India and become part of the Shri vidya
tradition which is extremely popular still today in India. The text of Shaiva Tantra that
you read comes from this tradition. Tantra started to lose ground by the 18
th
and 19
th
centuries, and especially the British when they went to India thought it was corrupt,
transgressive and were vehement in denouncing it. As a result it does not have the
respectability today that it had centuries ago. However we should keep in mind that
Tantra has always been a practice which has been kept very much secret.
** OFTEN ONE PERSON WILL EMPLOY ALL OF THESE 4 DIFFERENT
APPROACHES BUT IN DIFFERENT DEGREES.
** SOME PEOPLE ONLY PRACTICE 1 OR 2 OF THESE
BELOW IS A CHART WITH THE DIFFERENT RELIGIONS OF INDIA AND HOW
AND TO WHAT DEGREE THEY EMPLOY EACH OF THESE 5
Method !
Tradition !
Asceticism Yoga Bhakti Tantra
Veda Not much,
more rltual
practice,
especially the
fire sacrifice
Not much.
More ritual
practice,
especially the
fire sacrifice.
Not a lot, but
some, however
it tends to be
incidental to the
ritual praxis, of
the fire and the
recitation of the
Vedas.
No. (though
some later
Tantric
practitioners
after the 17
th
century at the
earliest--
especially in
the Sri Vidya
tradition
interpret some
elements of the
Vedas as a
hidden form
and precursor
of Tantra. )
Vedanta Yes! but not so
much fasting.
Much more
wandering and
thinking about
the self
Yes, especially
with the idea of
looking inward.
Yoga traditions
often look back
to the
Upanishads.
The Upanishads
dont lay as
much emphasis
on controlling
the mind as
Yoga does,
however.
Not really.
Vedanta
focuses much
more on
knowledge:
knowing the
self and only
incidentally
does this
involve
devotion to the
deity. The
problem with
devotion for
Vedanta is that
it tends to
separate the self
from the deity,
whereas
Vedanta wants
to instill the
messages:
tattvam asi
and neti neti
No. Earlier
Tantra
especially
critiques the
philosophy of
Vedanta as not
really non-dual
because it can
only see the
world as
illusion
Maya.
(interestingly,
after the 17
th
century the
famous popes
(shankaracaryas
) of India, who
are openly
Vedantic are
secretly
Tantric.)
Hinduism
--Vaishnava
--Shaiva
--Devi/shakta
other deities:
--Ganesh
--Surya
--Hanuman
Yes, but
partially.
Ascetics
worship all
these different
gods. Also
many sadhus
(wandering
ascetics) who
are not
affiliated with
an official
institution will
be devoted to
one or other
form of these
deities.
Partially. Some
of the followers
of these
different deities
incorporate
yoga in their
practice and
some do not.
These traditions
are highly
diverse.
Yes! All of the
followers of
these deities
practice some
form of
devotion to the
deity they
worship. This
always involves
the elements of
bhakti,
including puja
and reciting the
name of God.
This also
includes the
worship of
Yes, but
partially. Some
of the followers
of these deities
are Tantric and
some are not.
The greatest
majority will be
those who
worship the
Goddess.
(Though some
who worship
the Goddess are
not Tantric.)
The smallest
number will be
--Ones own
guru or a
famous or
important saint
are also often
the recepient of
devotion as
well
ascetics) who
are not
affiliated with
an official
institution will
be devoted to
one or other
form of these
deities.
These traditions
are highly
diverse.
always involves
the elements of
bhakti,
including puja
and reciting the
name of God.
This also
includes the
worship of
ones guru or
an important
saint, who can
be either alive
or dead.
those who
worship the
Goddess.
(Though some
who worship
the Goddess are
not Tantric.)
The smallest
number will be
Vaishnavas.
(Though there
are a good
number of
Vaishnava
Tantras, mostly
in the Bengal
region. Cf. The
Sahajiya text
you read.)
Worship of the
Gurus is
especially
important in
Tantra
Buddhism Yes, especially
Buddhists
become monks
and belong to a
monastery. Not
really many
wanderers at all
who are not
affiliated with a
monastery.
Yes. However
Buddhism
borrows from
earlier Hindu
yoga to develop
its own forms
of yoga. The
Buddha also
taught many
techniques for
meditation
which would
classify as
yoga.
Only later with
the
development of
Mahayana.
Earlier forms of
Buddhism
eschew
devotion to
gods, even to
the Buddha
who in the
beginning is
only
represented by
his footprints.
Later mahayana
(beginning 3
rd
cent.) starts to
venerate the
Buddhas as one
venerates gods.
Yes. Develops
beginning with
the6th cent.
approximately.
This is the form
of buddhism
which is
prevalent in
Tibet. In Sri
LankaNo.
the prevalent
form is the
early form:
Theravada.
Jainism Yes, many Jain
ascetics, most
are affiliated
with an
institution,
some are not.
Also some who
are affiliated
with an
institution will
wander, as do
many Hindus.
(not so with
Buddhists).
Yes. Like
Buddhism,
Jainism
incorporates
elements of
yoga in its
praxis.
Not so much.
Except on a
popular level,
more so.
However,
Jainism tends to
highlight that
only ones own
practice will
save one, so
even puja is just
a practice to
help inspire a
person to reach
the level of the
Jinas, not to get
help from them
For a short
period, a little.
Jain Tantra
does involve
some worship
of deiites,
however Jain
Tantra is never
very strong and
eventually
fades away. Not
at all today.
with an
institution will
wander, as do
many Hindus.
(not so with
Buddhists).
practice will
save one, so
even puja is just
a practice to
help inspire a
person to reach
the level of the
Jinas, not to get
help from them
or Gods, so
much..
very strong and
eventually
fades away. Not
at all today.
Sikhism Some Ascetics,
but Sikhism
doesnt stress
leaving home to
wander as an
ascetic. Rather
the community
is more tightly
knit.
Yes. Sikhism
incorporates
elements of
yoga.
Yes! Sikhism
involves
devotion to the
FORMLESS
aspect of god
and also to the
gurus of the
tradition. The
final guru is
the book, the
Guru Granth
Sahib.
Some.. Sikhism
involves use of
Tantric ideas
and
methodsbut
not left-handed
methods.
Kundalini is
referenced.