Brahma through proper discipline of mind and body. This discipline is called“yoga.” There are four principal disciplines of yoga: (1) Karma, thediscipline of works, action, or performance of good deeds; (2) Jnana, thediscipline of thought, philosophy, and knowledge; (3) Bhakta, the wayto one god through faith and devotion; and (4) Raja or royal yoga, theapproach to Brahma through meditative exercises.Hindus consider the cow to be sacred, not as a god but as a symbol ofidentity with all life. The Hindu affection for the cow is something special,probably because throughout their history Indians have depended so heavilyon the cow for pulling plows and carts, for milk, and for fuel (dried dung isstill India’s principal domestic fuel). For a Hindu to consume beef is asacrilege, tantamount to cannibalism. Some Hindus bow respectfully to allcows that they pass, and wealthy men endow hostels to take care of old anddecrepit cows. Seeing God in everything, the Hindus have a reverence for allliving things—trees, rivers, cows, ants, etc. This reverence is expressed in oneform as ahimsa, or nonviolence to animals as well as to humans; as a result,most pious Hindus are vegetarians.EthicsPersonal ethics are not neglected in the Hindu texts, and there is muchsacred literature of high ethical value, notably the Bhagavad Gita, the TamilKural, and many of the poems of the medieval hymnodists. For the layman,the norm of personal conduct was contained in the traditional three aims inlife (purushartha): righteousness of religious merit (dharma); profit andmaterial advantage (artha); and pleasure (kama). All three were regarded asworthy of pursuit, but the claims of the first overrode those of the second,and those of the second overrode those of the third. There was a fourth long-term aim of salvation (moksha), which was only pursued directly by ascetics.Modern Hindu teachers, however, appear to have largely disregarded thedoctrine of the three aims, and the layman is often told to follow the ascetic’sway of life as far as possible.Contributions to the WorldUndoubtedly, the greatest contribution of Hinduism to the world hasbeen that of Mahatma Gandhi, whose unique synthesis of religion andpolitics provided an ideology for the civil disobedience movement which wasinstrumental in gaining India’s independence. Greatly influenced byChristian ideas which he reconciled with the Hindu outlook, Gandhi gave anew sense of purpose to many Hindus of all classes and taught them torespect their traditional beliefs and practices while adapting them to theneeds of the times, Continuing the work of early reformers, he encouragedthe emancipation of Hinduism from the system of class and caste andfostered a spirit of social service. His work has been continued in theagrarian reform movement led by Vinoba, and in many smaller movements.RELIGIOUS LITERATUREHindu scriptures were written during various phases in the growth ofHinduism. The later and higher forms did not condemn nor displace the2-91
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