Archives for June 2018

Varna should not to be confused with the much more nuanced Jāti or the European term “caste”.^[9]  

Jāti is a group of clans, tribes, communities and sub-communities. Each jāti typically has an association with a traditional job function or tribe. Religious beliefs (e.g. Sri Vaishnavism or Veera Shaivism) or linguistic groupings may define some jatis.

From 1901 onwards, for the purposes of the Decennial Census, the British rulers in India classified all Jatis into one or the other of the varna. This deliberately ignored the fact that there are innumerable Jatis that straddled two or more Varnas, based on their occupations.

This has lead to a confusion that Jati and varna are some how interchangeable and has been used to deride Hindu Society.

A matha refers to a monastery in Hinduism.^[2][3] 

The monastery host and feed students, sannyasis (monks, renouncers, ascetics), gurus and are led by Acharyas. These monasteries are sometimes attached to Hindu temples and have their codes of conduct, initiation and election ceremonies.^[4][10]

Jāti (community) is an endogamous groups people marry within their own Jati. A jati may be divided into exogamous groups  called Gotra, where people do not marry within their own Gotra but marry a different gotras within their own Jati.

A renunciant Hindu person of knowledge is usually called Varnatita or “beyond all varnas” in Vedantic works. The bhiksu is advised to not bother about the caste of the family from which he begs his food.  Hindu Dalits and scheduled tribes who do not belong to any varna, are called avarna.^[7][8]

Some Hindus choose to live a monastic life (Sannyāsa) in pursuit of liberation (moksha) or another form of spiritual perfection.^[19] Monastics commit themselves to a simple and celibate life, detached from material pursuits, of meditation and spiritual contemplation.^[394]

Some monastics live in monasteries, while others wander from place to place, depending on donated food and charity for their needs.^[395]

Many temples feature one or more idols (murtis). The idol and Grabhgriya in the Brahma-pada (the center of the temple), under the main spire, serves as a focal point (darsana, a sight) in a Hindu temple.^[383]

The Bhagavad Gītā links the varna to an individual’s duty (svadharma), inborn nature (svabhāva), and natural tendencies (guṇa).^[330]  The varna system is discussed in Hindu texts, and understood as idealised human callings.^[10][11]

Hindus advocate the practice of ahiṃsā (non-violence) and respect for all life because divinity is believed to permeate all beings, including plants and non-human animals.^[345] The term ahiṃsā appears in the Upanishads,^[346] the epic Mahabharata^[347] and ahiṃsā is the first of the five Yamas (vows of self-restraint) in Patanjali’s Yoga Sutras.^[348]

In accordance with ahiṃsā, many Hindus embrace vegetarianism to respect higher forms of life. There are many Hindu groups that have continued to abide by a strict vegetarian diet in modern times. Some adhere to a diet that is devoid of meat, eggs, and seafood.^[356] Food affects body, mind and spirit in Hindu beliefs.^[357][358]

The word Acharya in Hindu monastic tradition refers to either a Guru of high rank, or more often to the leader of a monastery and sampradaya (teaching institution, denomination).^[36][37] This position typically involves a ceremonial initiation called diksha by the monastery, where the earlier leader anoints the successor as Acharya.^[36][38] Alternate titles of the heads of Hindu monasteries are Jeer, Jiyar or Ciyar.^[39] The chief of a collection of large Hindu monasteries in a sampradaya has been sometimes referred to as Jagad guru.^[40]

While these stages are typically sequential, any person can enter Sannyasa (ascetic) stage and become an Ascetic at any time after the Brahmacharya stage.^[392] Sannyasa is not religiously mandatory in Hinduism, and elderly people are free to live with their families.^[393]

Traditionally the life of a Hindu is divided into four Āśramas (phases or life stages; another meaning includes monastery).^[384] The four ashramas are:

• Brahmacharya (student),
• Grihastha (householder),
• Vanaprastha (retired) and
• Sannyasa (renunciation).^[385]

The Ashramas system has been one facet of the Dharma concept in Hinduism.^[391] Combined with four proper goals of human life (Purusartha), the Ashramas system traditionally aimed at providing a Hindu with fulfilling life and spiritual liberation.^[386]

Australian Hindu temples constructions started in the 1980s after the immigration of Hindus from India and south east asian countries. Although initially, temple were built make shift in home buildings, most of these temples have been rebuilt on the traditional styles. As Hindu population grows in Australia, more and more temples are coming into existence while older temples are getting renovated or expanded.

The food habits vary with region, with Bengali Hindus and Hindus living in Himalayan regions, or river delta regions, regularly eating meat and fish.^[352] Some avoid meat on specific festivals or occasions.^[353] Observant Hindus who do eat meat almost always abstain from beef. The cow in Hindu society is traditionally identified as a caretaker and a maternal figure,^[354] and Hindu society honours the cow as a symbol of unselfish giving.^[355]

Some Hindus such as those belonging to the Shaktism tradition,^[363] and Hindus in regions such as Bali and Nepal^[364][365]practise animal sacrifice.^[364] The sacrificed animal is eaten as ritual food.

Varnas (theoretical classification based on occupation)

• the Brahmins: Vedic teachers and priests;
• the Kshatriyas: warriors and kings;
• the Vaishyas: farmers and merchants; and
• the Shudras: servants and labourers.^[329]

A Hindu temple is a house of god(s).^[372] It is a space and structure designed to bring human beings and gods together, infused with symbolism to express the ideas and beliefs of Hinduism.^[373] Hindu temples are spiritual destinations for many Hindus (not all), as well as landmarks for arts, annual festivals, rite of passage rituals, and community celebrations.^[377][378]