- Hinduism, native to India, is one of the oldest religions in the world and its philosophical influence is far reaching. For example, in contemporary Western culture Hindu concepts like Karma, Reincarnation, and Yoga are widely embraced.
- Hindu philosophy is founded upon two main ideas: 1) Monism – everything is one or spiritually interconnected; and 2) Pantheism – everything is god. So, for the Hindu, all is god and all is one.
- Humanity’s basic problem according to Hinduism is that we’ve lost touch with our divine nature, our spiritual interconnectedness to the impersonal, universal force that is god.
- Hinduism teaches a concept known as “Maya”, the belief that this physical, material world is an illusion. Humanity is trapped in this world of illusion and caught in an endless cycle of Reincarnation.
- Reincarnation is based on one’s Karma, where a person’s good and bad deeds will determine how they will be reborn in the next life. Most Hindus believe they will be reincarnated countless times.
- The goal of every Hindu is to experience liberation from this endless cycle of Reincarnation. This is done by attaining enlightenment, the experience of transcending this world of illusion to become one with the impersonal, universal force they call god.
- There are three paths to attaining enlightenment in Hinduism: devotion to the gods through idol worship, practicing meditation and yoga, or by ethical living and good deeds.
- Hinduism is like every other religion that seeks salvation through human effort, it can never provide ultimate deliverance and freedom. Humanity’s problem is not ignorance of our divine nature, it’s our sinful hearts and rebellion against our holy Creator.
- When witnessing to a Hindu the greatest hope we can offer is that Jesus came to truly free us from our bondage to sin and our fear of the grave. The Christian can know with certainty they’ve been forgiven and will experience eternal life with God.
For more information on the religion of Hinduism please check out Dr. Carlson’s book, Fast Facts on False Teachings, available in our online store.