What makes a hindu a hindu?

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Devi_bhakta

 

Welcome, trisdale, and thanks for your kind words about Mother's club!

 

Your post contains a lot of good questions -- the significance of the

lotus (thanks for a great reply, adi_shakti16!); the shady reputation

of Tantrism; and what makes a Hindu and Hindu? All of these are

important topics for Shakti devotees.

 

But I'll try to shed some light on this one: "Is there such thing as

conversion in hinduism?"

 

Well, that is a controversial topic! Despite its universal appeal,

Hinduism is very closely associated with the Indian subcontinent, and

even temples abroad seem to be as much South Asian social clubs as

places of worship. Non-Indian devotees are often viewed with

skepticism and suspicion, or simply ignored. This persistent

"outsider" status can make it hard for these devotees to feel like a

part of the local Hindu community. I know several members of this club

who've had such experiences, and I hope others will share their

thoughts as well.

 

A big part of the problem may be that, in Hinduism, religious and

social life are so intimately interconnected. Also, Hinduism -- like

Judaism, but unlike Christianity and Islam -- does not actively seek

out converts. So when converts come to Hinduism, Hinduism often has no

idea of what to do with them.

 

But as is so often the case in Hinduism, this rule has exceptions.

Some orders DO seek to spread Hinduism around the world, most notably

the Himalayan Academy in Hawaii, led by Satguru Sivaya

Subramuniyaswami -- an extraordinary American-born monk trained in

Sri Lanka, who heads a prestigious Hindu monastery on Kauai, and is

publisher of "Hinduism Today"

(http://www.hinduismtoday.com/index.html)

 

Subramuniyaswami, who is extremely conservative and traditional in his

religious views, has published very specific guidelines for conversion

at http://www.himalayanacademy.com/basics/conversion/ However, these

guidelines strike many born-Hindu Indians as excessive, and several of

them have joked to me that they themselves could not fully qualify as

Hindus under his exacting standards!

 

So, I cast the question back to the floor: What makes a Hindu a Hindu?

Birth only? Formal conversion? Or can behavior and beliefs alone make

one a Hindu? If so, what behavior and beliefs? Any and all replies,

full or partial, are welcome!

 

yeshe_o

 

I have never posted on this wonderful forum before, because I did not

feel qualified to do so. Greetings everyone! I would say my answer for

my self has been "Who can become Enlightened?Who is allowed to seek

Liberation?"

 

Then the rest is the Path for that individual. I know the horrible

empty feeling of rejection by those "religious" who decide 'who is

what' and I have been rejected by a religion due to the fact I was a

married woman. Now the Path is the Path filled with many Blessings and

many are there along the way to help me as fellow sojourners.

 

My wish would be that all who are Seekers have these sort of

obstructions to their longings, pushed aside. And these 'religious'

who place labels on fellow beings, look closely at their own karma and

the merit of turning away or the negativities involved in their

actions toward a Seeking Soul. That all may have liberation from this

saha (samsaric) world and live in joy.

 

 

Nora55_1999

 

Its much easier to define a non-hindu than a hindu.

 

Lets take 2 scenarios :

 

a)In this part of the world, it is common to see a chinese going to a

hindu temple and carrying a kavadi during Thaipusam. When somebody

asked him : are you a hindu? He says no. Sometimes you can see Sikhs

in a hindu temple and participating in the prayers. And again when

somebody asked them: are you a hindu? They will reply no. And I am

sure there are many others who are the same. They dont consider

themselves as hindu, but are going to the hindu temples and

participating in prayers.

 

b) A born hindu but he never goes to the temple nor does he perform

poojas at home. But when you asked him the same question he will reply

: yes i am a hindu.

 

So what does these 2 scenarios tells us? It goes back to the question

devi_bakta asked : What makes a Hindu a Hindu? Birth only? Formal

conversion? Or can behavior and beliefs alone make one a Hindu? If so,

what behavior and beliefs?

 

To me, being a hindu is a state of mind. I am what I think I am. If I

think im a hindu, even though im not practicing it, then I am a hindu.

Nobody will dispute your claim because thats is what hinduism is all

abt and has been. Its your own thinking. Remember in our earlier

discussion: hindusim is a way of life. Unlike other religions in

order for you to be accepted you must perform certain rites or

conform to certain set of rules. Otherwise they will never accept you

as one.

 

There is not a creed of conversion in Hinduism. Its is a way of life

based on universal brotherhood and understanding. It does not insist

on one particular path and therefore there is no cause for conflict.

Nor it believes in converting others into its fold by force or

otherwise. In its long history there was no record of hindus ever went

to war on the basis of religion. Despite not having any creed of

conversion, hinduism have managed to survive for more than 5000 years.

So why do we need it now? Is it because we feel threaten due to the

intensive effort of other religion in conversion that suddenly we feel

the need to do the same? If anyone ever come up with some set of rules

abt conversion, do we actually believe everybody will accept it?

There are a number of westerners are turning to hinduism. What makes

them to embrace hinduism?

 

 

 

sugarandbrine

 

As many here know, I was not born into the Hindu culture (not in this

life, anyhow ). I've found myself drawn to the religion and life

and now...yes. I consider myself a Hindu. But that is secondary to me.

First, I am a child of God. If anyone asked, I think my answer would

be thus.

 

To properly address this subject, we must also ask, "Does it matter

what title I give my spirituality?" To me, it doesn't really matter. I

am the same person now as I have been this entire life. I believe the

same things - things I have felt were right deep down inside of me for

as long as I can remember, even though they go against what I was

taught as a child - now that I consider myself Hindu. To me, I am the

same person whether or not I use that specific word.

 

This journey is more about faith and devotion than about words. I've

learned this through my contact here. When I first came to the

clubs, I was looking for guidance and instruction. I was looking for

reassurance on a path that I have since realized I chose long ago.

Through my contact with the loving members here and on other clubs, I

have come to realize that the "social" aspects of religion aren't

what's important. Sure, it's nice to have people around you that

presumably understand how you feel and what you believe. However,

there are millions of paths to God. No one else truely understands -

only God understands.

 

I guess I'm trying to say that the only relationship I am concerned

with as far as religion goes is my relationship with God. I worry

about myself and how I act only so I am sure to honor myself as I

would honor God. I am not concerned about trying to explain a

relationship that goes beyond mere words.

 

Sure, I look to the people that were born into the Hindu religion for

guidance and understanding; I want to learn. I ask about tradition.

The only reason I do this is so that I can honor God. It is not

because I am trying to be something I am not. We are all children of

God. We all deserve the same chances to feel Divine Love.

 

I found this article

(http://www.himalayanacademy.com/basics/conversion) that our

illustrious founder has pointed out during my earlier studies. To be

honest, after I read it I questioned myself because I felt that I

could not follow all of these strict rules of conversion. I soon

realized that the important event had already occurred - I felt a

change in my heart.

 

So if people judge and think I (or anyone else) am not Hindu...let

them. I am true to myself and honor God the best I know how. There is

nothing wrong with that.

 

 

Devi_bhakta

SugarandBrine - Thanks for an astonishingly beautiful and touching

reply. There is something bold and truthful in having the belief and

commitment to plainly state (as Nora also did): "Yes. I consider

myself a Hindu."

 

I know that both of you have gone through tremendous amounts of

soul-searching and personal difficulty in arriving at this seemingly

simple conclusion. Let's face it -- it is a very big deal.

 

And yet Yashe O and I have posted on the social difficulty of

"breaking into" a religious community, especially one like Hinduism,

which generally neither seeks nor knows what to do with converts. One

you've arived at this particular destination, it's hard to know what

to do next.

 

The situation is complicated by the fact that Hinduism is less a

"religion" than a large group of related-but-very-different religions.

To ask a Delhi Vaishnavite about Tamil Shaktism is somewhat akin to

asking a Southern Baptist about the fine points of Russian Orthodoxy:

Sure, they're both nominally sects of the same "religion," but beyond

that, they're more striking in their differences than their

similarities.

 

That's why a club like this serves an important purpose -- as you put

it, "it's nice to have people around you that presumably understand

how you feel and what you believe."

 

Although this is a "Hinduism" club -- Shakti Sadhana is a distinctly

Hindu approach to Goddess worship -- we are fortunate in the great

diversity of our membership. Among those of you I've had the good

fortune to meet, there are Hindus from many different Indian cultures

and religious traditions. There are also Christians, Jews, Muslims

and many different stripes of Pagans ... all drawn in their own way to

Shakti, and seeking some form of information or guidance among us.

 

Like you, sugarandbrine, I prefer not to worry about labels. You put

it best: "The only relationship I am concerned with as far as

religion goes is my relationship with God. ... I am not concerned

about trying to explain a relationship that goes beyond mere words."

SilentSoul_55 has pointed out that Shakti is unique in that most

devotees do not spontaneously approach Her out of the blue; She tends

to "choose" certain individuals, whether they like it or not. And

once She has chosen, She will not be denied; however winding the

devotee's path, it must ultimately lead to Her. But those who

willingly and openheartedly answer Her call are most generously

rewarded.

 

SilentSoul wrote, "The beauty of Shakti sadhana is that -- unlike

other sadhanas -- Mother Herself takes the lead and guides her little

children towards the path of Moksha. She does not become angry [at]

our falls; She does not demand anything from us. If only we have

faith and pure love for the Mother.....she appears soon."