Lately I've started studying Hinduism and it seems super complex and I'm a bit confused about it all. Can you guys give me the basics and explain why for example some of the gods are also different ones (eg Kali and Durga)?
>>17843941
the thing with polytheism is that if they come across new gods, they'd rather absorb it in their system and move on.
this is why (imo) there are many different renditions of the same gods, some even going against their basic nature.
the original hinduism, if it can be called so, began during the time of gupta empire, which is known for amalgaming and maintaining the indian subcontinent as one. at that time, it was basically six different schools of thought - samkhya, yoga, nyaya, vaisheshika, mimaṃsa, and vedanta, literally meaning counting, exercise, rules, thikning, investigation, and knowledge, and were ways to examine the gods and unkown through their own means.
>>17843963
Overly-simplified description of the six dashanas. Hinduism is ultimately monistic. The "polytheistic" veneer is not a real thing. Each "god" represents a singular or various aspects of the ultimate godhead, but they are not separate. Whoever says they are full of shit. Even in the Rig Veda, the oldest of the scriptures, there are passages that say that there is only one reality and one godhead.
One of the best books I can recommend to all people who wish to study Hinduism is called Hindu Philosophy by Theos Bernard. It can be quite heavy, but there's a lot of crazy good shit in there. If you want something more entry-level, you can read the ten principal Upanishads, they are pretty easy to read (but incredibly hard to comprehend on an experiential level for a newcomer).
>>17844115
ofc it's overly simplified, is it possible to go into details here?
you describe the brahman, and that is how you say it is; all gods and demigods even humans are part of, and can attain the brahman consciousness. but that does not make the individual characters not gods.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Polytheism#Hinduism
>>17844140
The term "god" in english does not entirely equate to what the "devas" are in hinduism.
"God" automatically evokes a feeling of a separate anthropomorphic being who floats around in space-time who has thoughts and feelings close to that of a person, which cannot be the case because our thoughts and feelings are born of our circumstances which are inherently different than "God"s. It's a terrible term that loses much context when compared to other languages terms.
Brahma is birth, Vishnu is perseverance and shiva is death. This applies to many things. Many gods have different forms and many names depending on their role in the story their are refereed to. Brahma is the one revealed to Siddhartha the buddha during his enlightenment. All the pantheons in the different mythologies including the jewish one (which is what is in the old testament) refer to the same "gods". Same people different interpretations. As to if those guys really existed or exist in any form and as to what where they i leave that to you my friend.
>>17843941
The main thing is you must use DESIGNATED shitting streets, bathe in shit water, drink shit water, wash your clothes in shit water and rape anything in sight.
>>17843941
Did they explain that Hinduism is a forced, British conglomeration of multiple religions and philosophic traditions stemming from the Vedic texts? Because if not then you're going to have a bad time. It's like trying to explain what Christians believe after lumping Catholics, Protestants, Mormons, 7th Day Adventists, and Jehovah's Witnesses together.
>>17845663
wat?
hindu has been a term much before since Britishers came here
>>17843941
From my tradition Trika Saivism point of view existence is all different manifestations of Parama Siva (Highest Divine).
I look at it like all existences are Consciousnesses dreams. At the highest level there is a infinitely blissful consciousness experiencing infinity at every moment and we are its limited versions experiencing part of infinity for it.
>>17847567
Hindu evolved from the Persians calling the people across the Sindh river Sindhu. During the Moghul Period it was used to refer to anyone who wasn't Muslim. The first time it appears self-referentially is at earliest the 13th century, and again only as a contrast to Islamic inhabitants of that region. "Hindu vs. Turk" British merchants and scholars were the first to truly force the term to mean all the various native religions of India, rather than a geographical or cultural term.
There has never been a single belief system of Hinduism. Hindus, however, have followed many different belief systems through the years.
