There are many religions around the world, and many that are different from what we have in America. Sikhism is a religion based out of India, but its people are often confused with Muslims and Hindus. Because of this, there has been a significant amount of hate crimes against them. Sikhism is its only religion, so it is important to know its aspects and how it differs from Hinduism. Sikhism is a monotheistic religion that believes in the ten Gurus. The first of these Gurus is Nānak, who at…
Hinduism in America In this paper I am going to talk about the religion of Hinduism and its role in the United States and in the city of Philadelphia. As a Hindu it is a great opportunity to learn more about my religion because Hinduism is complex and interesting religion to research about. In this paper I will talk about Introduction of Hinduism, Sacred texts, Notion of Karma and Reincarnation, Sacred symbols, Hinduism in the United States, Hindu temples in Philadelphia, Hindu Festivals and…
With close reference to relevant theoretical material, discuss the compatibility of Coelho’s Eleven Minutes with postmodernist constructions of identity. Comparing Paulo Coelho’s writings to a delta of sediments is a just analogy to make in the scope of this essay: an accumulation of sediments from the bosom of everywhere; an everywhere nevertheless, seen through the eyes of the Brazilian, to paraphrase Ortolano (2003). The author’s tales are illustrative of phenomenon such as juxtaposition…
“When she calls out to Ashoke, she doesn’t say his name. Ashima never thinks of her husband’s name when she thinks of her husband, even though she knows perfectly well that it is. She has adopted his surname but refuses, for propriety’s sake, to utter his first. It’s not the type of thing Bengali wives do. Like a kiss or caress in a Hindi movie, a husband’s name is something intimate and therefore unspoken, cleverly patched over. And so she utters the interrogative that has come to replace it,…
Storytelling: the mythological art of Hinduism in aspects of transmitting and performing devotion Storytelling, as expressed by Johari is a human activity which is “as old as the humanity itself. (P.1)” While mythologies, being the collections of explanatory stories that serves to anchor people’s understanding on both the natural and cultural, tangible and intangible world are shared universally. Hinduism, particularly favors the heavy use of mythological stories as a vehicle that can transmit…
Islam and Hinduism Before we start with the description of Islam and Hinduism we need to understand what its religion, or at least try to comprehend the meaning of religion. The definition of religion is very difficult, many have try but they focus on only the few aspects of religion, some will exclude beliefs, practices and those religions that will not fit well. As Kile Jones once he wrote trying to define religion “It is apparent that religion can be seen as a theological, philosophical,…
The Saptamatrikas, though varying in number across different texts, mainly consists of the seven goddesses namely, Brahamani, Vaishnavi, Maheshwari, Kaumari, Varahi, Indrani and Chamunda. The Matrikas have been dated back to third century BCE by some scholars although they only appear in iconic depictions after 1st and 2nd century CE. There are several myths concerning their creation. One, in where they are created by Shiva to drink the blood of demon Andhakasura. According to Markandeya Purana,…
The Early Medieval period can be understood as the period lying between the ancient and the medieval. This era like the ‘Ancient’ and the ‘Modern’ has a personality of its own because it was not merely a period of time between the 4th-5th century and the 12th century but one that marked the transition between the ancient and modern world. The early medieval age in India was an era which showed immense transition, developments in the society’s social, economic and political field and drastic…
INTERPLAY OF SOCIO-CULTURAL FORCES AND PSYCHO-SEXUAL MOTIVATIONS IN THE PLAYS OF VIJAY TENDULKAR AND BALWANT GARGI Abstract: The purpose of the present paper is to study the plays of Vijay Tendulkar and Balwant Gargi to understand the tragic plight of suffocated individuals at the mercy of oppressive socio-cultural forces and hidden psycho-sexual desires. The plays of Tendulkar and Gargi depict the collapse of human life and desires under dysfunctional moral values and corrupt…
In the Shiva tradition of Hinduism, Shiva is seen as the Supreme God. Lingam or Linga is the Sanskrit word for Shiva’s phallus it is used as a symbol for the worship of Shiva. The origin of the lingam dates back to the early Indus Valley civilization. The Lingam is not mentioned in the Vedas yet still the Lingam is a major symbol of worship to many. Even with its absence from the Vedas, the Shiva Lingam is of importance in many other major Hindu scriptures, including the Puranas. As stated by…