The oldest is called the Rig Veda (hymns praising a number of gods), with the other three being the Yajur Veda (rituals for sacrifices), the Sama Veda (chants for ritual worship), and the Athara Veda (spells and charms for healing the sick). The Rig Veda, the oldest of the four Vedas, was composed around 1500 B.C. Vedas are ancient oral traditions that reflect the customs, belief and practices of the ancient Aryan people. It contains hymns, chants, incarnations and rituals from ancient India. Later additions to the Vedas were the Upanishads, which elaborates on how the soul (Atman) can be united with the ultimate truth (Brahman) through meditation. It was written around 700 BC ("Hinduism, Information, Gods…," 2009).
The other type of Hindu literature is smrti, which is verbal remembered or "handed down" by tradition, texts. One of the most famous stories is the Ramayana. Written more than two thousand years ago, the Ramayana is a love story about Rama and Sita. The demonic king of Lanka, Ravana, captures Sita, who was eventually rescued with the help of Hanuman, the monkey king. Sita had to proved her fidelity by leaping into flames. Agni, the fire God, rescues Sita, telling Rama that Sita was indeed pure. The Ramayana has been a perennial source of spiritual, cultural and artistic inspiration, not only to the people of India but also to the people all over the world. It has helped to mould the Hindu character and has inspired millions of people with the deepest of love and devotion. The Mahabharata was written at about 300 BC and is the world's longest poem of 100,000 verses. The Bhagavad Gita is the sixth book of the Mahabharata and is a poem describing a conversation between a warrior Arjuna and the God Krishna. The Gita discusses selflessness, duty, devotion and meditation. The Dharmashastras are another group of writings that deal with the religious duty. The most significant of these is the Manusmrti, written around 200 AC, which dealt with Hindu law and conduct. The Puranas,...
Karma yoga refers to finding salvation through fulfilling the familial and societal duties and overcoming bad karma. Jnana yoga focuses on the acquisition of knowledge, but it is the third way, Bhakti, that promises release from the mundanity of the world through a personal approach to God, or devotion through acts of worship and symbolism. (Rood, 1994). Each of these three, however, have a great deal in common in that they are all using a particular form of ritual to cleanse their soul, release the bounds of earthly existence, and promising something far, far better than any life they have known. This very premise of utilizing a path is essential in Hinduism -- and the idea, also echoed in the Buddhist traditions, is to progress through various existences until the lessons have been learned such that the next incarnation is completely without earthly bounds (Bowes, 1976).
REFERENCES
Bhaskarandada, Swaimi (2002), The Essentials of Hinduism: A Comprehensive Overview of The World's Oldest Religion, Viveka Press.
Bowes, P. (1976). The Hindu Religious Tradition: A Philosophical Approach, Allied
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"Heart of Hinduism," (2004). Cited in: http://hinduism.iskcon.com/
Hinduism, cited in www.allfaith.com
"Hinduism, Information, Gods, Goddesses, Mantras, Epics, Festivals, Articles," (2009). Cited in:
http://www.hinduisment.com/
Knott, Kim, (2000), Hinduism: A Very Short Introduction, Oxford.
Michaels, A. (2004). Hinduism: Past and Present, 5th ed. Princeton University Press.
Rinehart, R., ed. (2004). Contemporary Hinduism: Ritual, Culture, and Practice. ABC-Clio.
Rood, Rick, (1994), "Hinduism," in www.leaderus.com
