Hinduism: A Primer (Part 2)

L-R Adi Shankara, Ramanuja, Madhava, and Basava

 Hinduism; A Primer (Part 2)

The Great Philosophies

This is part 2 of my Hinduism primer series. This series is meant for those who are new to Hinduism or want to understand Hinduism in a larger context. In these posts I attempt to boil down the most important aspects to understanding Hinduism in a religious and historical context so as to not overburden the reader. I will go into greater detail on all subjects in subsequent blog posts. If you have yet to read part 1 please click the link below.

Hinduism: A Primer (Part 1)

Over the millenia India has fostered many philosophies and beliefs. Of these great ideas only a few have survived into the modern age. Most Hindu's will follow one philosophy or another even without realizing they are doing so. Traditionally there are six astika (orthodox; belief in Veda and in god as therein defined) philosophies of the Hindu religion though today only a few are still actively practiced by any large number of people. There are also several philosophies called nastika, or unorthodox philosophies. These nastika philosophies consist of today's Buddhism, Jainism, etc etc. Any philosophy that denounces the Vedas and the idea of a supreme soul or god is considered nastika.

For the ease of understanding, in this post I will only cover the philosophies of Vedanta (Adwaita, Dwaitism and Vishishtadwaitism) as well as touch upon Achintya Bheda Abheda as these are the ones most who are new to Hinduism will come into contact with. Yoga is also considered an Astik philosophy but I will write a separate post to understand the traditional view of yoga.

Adwaitism or Adwaita Vedanta was heavily propagated by Sri Adi Shankaracharya in the 8th-9th centuries during a period when Buddhism and Jainism had supplanted the traditional Vedic religions of India. This caused a reforming and Shankara is still seen as a savior of classical Hinduism. Adwaitism itself deals with the idea of Brahman (A cosmic primordial spirit that can be associated with all of creation and the vital life force of the universe) and the soul (called Jeevatma) and the connectedness of them both as a single entity. In Adwaita philosophy, simply put, the differences between ourselves and god and each other is an illusion (maya) and our goal in life is to realize this illusion. Adwaita is true non-dualism.

Dwaitism, propagated by Sri Madhavacharya in the 12th and 13th centuries followed quite the opposite path. Dwaitism is absolute dualism. It view is that man and god are two separate entities existing independently and while brahman may make up creation we are separate from each other in this ocean of Samsara (rebirth) and the only way to escape is to have faith and believe that god (in whatever form) will pull us out of this ocean. Dwaitism is important for many because even if it seems limiting to some it teaches the importance of love and devotion on which things like the bhakti cults (to be explained in a later chapter) are founded on.

Vishishtadwaitism was heavily propagated by Sri Ramanujacharya in the 11th century. Vishishtadwaitism bridged the gap between Adwaitism and Dwaitism (Non-dualism and dualism) by forming a philosophy on conditional non-dualism. In Vishishtadwaitism, god (Lakshmi and Narayana) are seen as being both aspects of brahman and are interconnected as noted in Adwaitic philosophy but all things are real and are not illusion and following the path of devotion (as in Dwaitism) you can eventually reach moksha (liberation from bondage). The Sri Vaishnava sect are the direct descendants of Ramanuja's original teachings and will most commonly follow Vishishtadwaitan philosophy.

There are several smaller schools of philosophy that exist that have borrowed parts of the larger philosophies. Such as Chaitanya Mahaprabhu's bhakthi (Devotional) movement who follows a philosophy called Achintya bheda abheda which is a varied version of Vishishtadwaita.  

Chaitanya Mahaprabhu

Once again I would like to point out that this is just a quick introduction to the general philosophies. In no way have I come close to fully explaining any of the philosophies named above to their deserving exactness. Whole books have been written on each one; indeed many books. I have written this to be a simple and quick introduction so that those wanting to delve deeper may understand better where to look.

I would also like to point out that faith and philosophy are not interdependent. While it is true that most Vaishnava's will follow either Dwaitism or Vishishtadwaitism this not always true just as how not all Shiva or Devi worshipers follow pure Adwaitic Vedanta. Indeed, many people of faith may follow varieties of each of these or synthesis of them in their own personal faiths and philosophies. The wonderful plurality of Hinduism allows these variations freely.

Narasimha Chaturdashi

Narasimha, the name of the ferocious aspect of Mahavishnu, protector of Prahalad and all Vaishnavas. His name, Nara-Simha can be literally translated to Man (Nara) Lion (Simha). His major legends can be found in several puranas; namely the Vishnu Purana, Agni Purana and Bhagavat Purana. The most commonly known legend associated with the great Narasimha is located in the Bhagavath Purana in which he saves the child devottee Prahalada from his demon-king father Hiranyakashipu.

In the legend the demon-king Hiranyakashipu had achieved a conditional immortality through boons granted by the god Bramha, After years of penance Bramha had appeared to the demon-king asking him what his desire was? To this Hiranyakashipu replied,

 O my lord, O best of the givers of benediction, if you will kindly grant me the benediction I desire, please let me not meet death from any of the living entities created by you.

Grant me that I not die within any residence or outside any residence, during the daytime or at night, nor on the ground or in the sky. Grant me that my death not be brought about by any weapon, nor by any human being or animal.

Grant me that I not meet death from any entity, living or nonliving created by you. Grant me, further, that I not be killed by any demigod or demon or by any great snake from the lower planets. Since no one can kill you in the battlefield, you have no competitor. Therefore, grant me the benediction that I too may have no rival. Give me sole lordship over all the living entities and presiding deities, and give me all the glories obtained by that position. Furthermore, give me all the mystic powers attained by long austerities and the practice of yoga, for these cannot be lost at any time.  

In this way the demon-king insured that he could not be killed, at least in any simple way. 

After a few events in the story I won't go into the demon-kings son Prahalad is born in the celestial sage Narada's hermitage and becomes a great devotee of Vishnu. Over the years Hiranyakashipu tries over and over to convince his son that he is god. Finally in a last straw the demon king asks Prahalada where his god is and Prahlada replies the Narayana (Vishnu) is in the pillar next to him, the smallest twig and every space in between. In a rage Hiranyakashipu strikes the pillar near Prahalad and suddenly Narasimha arises full of ferocity from its remains. After a fight Narasimha carries the demon-king to the threshold (neither inside or outside) at dusk (neither day or night) and puts him on one of his knees (neither on the ground nor in the sky) and tears him open with his gigantic claws (not by any weapon). Prahalad calms down the angry Narasmha and worships him.





Narasimha worship is traditionally strongest around modern day Telangana and Andhra Pradesh. Particularly in Ahobilam where many ancient Narasimha temples dot the caves and jungle. Ahobilam is also revered as being the place where Hiranyakashipu's palace was actually situated and Narasimha first took form.

Narasimha worship has also become very popular with ISKCON (Hare Krishnas) who consider Narasimha as a protector of Vaishnavas. The Bangalore ISKCON, Mayapur ISKCON, as well as New Vrindavan in West Virginia all keep amazing Narasimha deities.

A short prose I had written after my first visit to Tirupati Venkateswara Temple..

  The bus rumbled slowly up the hills of Tirumala, the sun just beginning to rise above the landscape pierced the thick mists that had formed on the holy mountains. The air was electrified with devotion; my first sight of the holy temple of Tirupati was of a giant Shank and Chakra glowing in the morning on the peak of the mountain. My heart accelerated its pace and my mind leaped into a frantic want to see that most ancient image of god.

          

     We entered into the temple after an eternity of waiting. My heart and mind were exhausted but I still ached to have darshan of the lord. Before entering into the inner-sanctum I made the simple prayer and hope that I would be able to see the lord properly. The crowd behind and in front of me were relentless… the pushing was almost frightening. One could be caught and pushed in any direction without discretion and the simple mass of bodies all clamoring for a simple look into the golden doors was vast.

I entered the inner-sanctum and came face to face with the image of my lord. Balaji had heeded my prayer and I was pushed into a pocket directly in front of the ageless Srinivasa. Reality and time slowed to a stop, all noise for me was lost and nothing existed except for Venkateshwara and myself. I stood in awe of the grandness, the beauty and grace of the lord. It almost felt as if he was staring back at me, deep into my soul. With that single glance of the Lord my mind was in absolute bliss and I felt as if so many questions, so many confusions I had were all answered in that momentary look into the face of god. My mind was quieted and my heart beat with sheer adrenaline.

          
   After the darshan, that for me lasted an eternity, I was pushed from the face of my lord. I craned my neck for even one tiny look more into that most holy of holies. I exited the temple in complete calmness with the only aspiration of coming to see my lord again. I realized that tears had been flowing down my cheeks as I felt my face wet; I circumbulated the temple in parikrama, the names of God swirling in my mind. Everything, all I have ever wanted or thought suddenly made sense... all questions were answered leaving me with the memory of my visit to abode of Sri Srinivasa.