Hinduism
Hinduism (Sanskrit: Sanātana Dharma, “the Eternal Law”) is the world’s oldest living religion and the third largest by adherents (~1.2 billion). It is not a single creed but a vast, pluralistic family of traditions encompassing theistic, monistic, dualistic, and non-theistic philosophies, unified by shared textual heritage (Vedas, Upanishads, Bhagavad Gita, Puranas) and a common soteriological vocabulary (dharma, karma, moksha, samsara).
Core Concepts
- Dharma — Cosmic law, ethical duty, right conduct
- Karma — The law of cause and effect governing moral action across lifetimes
- Samsara — The cycle of birth, death, and rebirth
- Moksha — Liberation from samsara; the ultimate spiritual goal
- Atman — The individual soul or self
- Brahman — The ultimate, all-pervading reality; the ground of being
Major Traditions
| Tradition | Supreme Deity | Emphasis |
|---|---|---|
| Vaishnavism | Vishnu / Krishna | Bhakti (devotion), dharmic order |
| Shaivism | Shiva | Yoga, tantra, asceticism, cosmic destruction-creation |
| Shaktism | Shakti (Devi) | The divine feminine, Kundalini, goddess worship |
| Smartism | Five deities equally | Advaita Vedanta, philosophical non-dualism |
Hinduism in the Archive
Hindu concepts form the Eastern pillar of this knowledge archive, providing structural parallels to Western esoteric systems:
- Kundalini and Chakra — The subtle-body energy system central to all Tantric practice
- Shiva and Shakti — The cosmic polarity whose reunion is the goal of spiritual practice
- Shaktipat — The Tantric guru-transmission that awakens Kundalini
- Subtle_Body — The esoteric anatomy (nadis, prana, bindu) underlying the physical
- Veil_of_Maya — The illusion of material reality that spiritual practice dissolves
The cross-traditional parallels between Hindu and Kabbalistic systems (Chakras ↔ Sefirot, Kundalini ascent ↔ Tree_of_Life ascent, Moksha ↔ Ein_Sof return) constitute one of the archive’s most potent lines of synthesis.
See Also
- Shiva — The destroyer-transformer deity
- Shakti — The divine feminine cosmic energy
- Kundalini — The dormant serpent energy central to Tantric soteriology
- Chakra — The psycho-spiritual energy centers
- Subtle_Body — The esoteric anatomy
- Shaktipat — Grace-based transmission of spiritual energy
- Veil_of_Maya — The illusion of material reality
- Comparative_Religion — The academic framework for Hindu-Western comparison
- Buddhism — The Indian tradition born from Hindu context
- Kabbalah — The Western mystical system with structural Hindu parallels