Hinduism About the topic In this topic pupils will learn about their Hindu sisters and brothers, how they live as a family and how they worship Where this topic fits in This topic will be taught discretely but will follow two of the CHURCH topics: domestic family, and either local community or universal world Key words God, gods, goddesses, Vishnu, power, Shiva, destroyer, renewer, change, hermits, worship, temple, Mandir, Aarti, prasad, beginnings, Ganeshea ing outcomes One Importance of family Through family that children Children at home learn stories and practices Two (a) Prayer at home Home is centre of Hindu family s The home shrine religious life. A special corner holds the shrine Two (b) We all celebrate Some of the Hindu stories Belief in one god, presented e.g. Krishna, Rama and Shiva through different names and images Three (a) People we look up to Hindu festivals Divali, Holi, There are special times for birthdays of Rama and Krishna; Hindu people light over darkness Three (b) Places of worship Hindu temple (Mandir) worship How Hindu people worship Four (a) How messages are Hindu holy books, Sanskrit; Vedas; Sacred writings are important passed on poems telling stories of Rama and Krishna. Children hear stories in the family Four (b) Importance of symbols Sacred symbols: Aum, lotus flower Sacred symbols are important Dharma the law or truth, pilgrimage Three: Other faiths: Hinduism 1
HINDUISM Three (a) Lesson 1 Key words: God, gods, goddesses People we look up to Who are the people we look up to at home, at school etc. Why are they s p e c i a l? A favourite Hindu god: Krishna; his story: Krishna s triumph over the evil Kansa Belief in one God who is represented through different names and images Hindu people believe in one God over all. But they believe that God has shown himself in all sorts of different ways. In the Hindu stories, the d i fferent ways of showing God are given names and adventures. T h e y are called gods and goddesses. Most Hindu people have some favourite ones, and their pictures and statues are kept in the family shrine. They remind people that God is always present. Krishna s adventures are about overcoming evil. Once Krishna had grown up, his task was to overcome king Kansa s wickedness. Kansa had ruled his people selfishly and cruelly for many years evil was the only thing he knew. He tried to kill Krishna several times, but each time Krishna won. Kansa knew he would have to try t r i c k e r y. He invited Krishna and his friends to a great feast where there would be sports. However, the wrestling matches would not be fair, and a great wild elephant was ready to trample him to death. People tried to persuade Krishna not to go, because they knew he was a very special person and they were afraid for him. But Krishna set off with his friends, and as they went into Kansa s town, the crowds cheered him and climbed onto rooftops to see him. Kansa was crazy with jealousy. As Krishna drew near to the palace, the wild elephant snapped the chains that held him to the gates and stampeded towards Krishna. His friends scattered, but Krishna faced the charging animal and seized its head. The maddened elephant shook its head violently but Krishna held fast. His strength was greater than Kansa s evil plan and with a great s h u d d e r, he brought the elephant to the ground. It was captured and harmless now. Krishna was now tired and Kansa sent out his team of wrestlers to fight him and his friends. But they easily defeated Kansa s men, who crawled away into their houses. Krishna went forward into the king s throne room. To his surprise Kansa shouted: Come no further. See my 3 prisoners: the king on whose throne I sit and your mother and father. Everyone was amazed: they had thought the old king was dead and no one really knew who K r i s h n a s parents were. I shall kill you all! shouted Kansa. But the time had come for Kansa s evil to be stopped: Krishna stabbed him through the heart, quicker than a blink of an eye. There was great rejoicing throughout the land. T h e true king could reign once more and Krishna had found his parents. Illustrate an event in the story or make a cartoon of an exciting m o m e n t A class display could be made of pictures illustrating Hindu stories Belief in one God, who is represented through different names, images and stories. We respect other people s ways of talking about God. 2 Three A: Other faiths: Hinduism
HINDUISM Three (a) Lesson 2 Key words: Vishnu, power, Shiva Who are our heroes? What kind of hero or heroine do you like in a story? Are they clever, strong, brave or kind? Do they sometimes play tricks on people and make you laugh? Do they do good deeds? Vishnu: preserver of the Universe. Shiva: a powerful protector The god Vishnu is thought of as preserving the Universe and Shiva is protector of both gods and humans. There is a story that shows this: Once upon a time everything in the world had grown weak, even the power of the gods. This was very serious, but Vishnu knew what to do. He told the other gods that the sea must be mixed up, like milk being churned into butter and it would provide a strengthening drink which would give everyone the power they needed. Vishnu made a secret mixture of herbs, which he put into the sea and all the gods looked for a rope strong enough to pull backwards and forwards through the sea to churn it up. They didn t find one so they used a great sea serpent called Vasuki. They wrapped his body twice round a mountain and then pulled the rest of him backwards and forwards. The sea churned up beautifully. But the mountain turned round and round, screwing its way down into the earth. Vishnu turned himself into a great turtle and pushed himself under the mountain to steady it. The snake was getting angry and started spitting poison into the churning sea. Shiva realised in time that this would kill all those who swallowed the strengthening drink, so he opened his mouth and filled it with the poison. Before he could swallow it, his wife put her hands round his throat so that he could not swallow. He was nearly strangled and his face turned blue but he was saved. So was everyone else because the churned up seas provided the life-giving drink they needed. In pairs make up a hero story of your own in which your hero fights on the side of goodness against evil. Be ready to tell others. Make illustrations of the story for the display. Belief in one God through different names and images We respect the different ways people have of describing God s power now that we know some Hindu stories. Three A: Other faiths: Hinduism 3
HINDUISM Three (a) Lesson 3 Key words: Shiva, destroyer, renewer, change, hermits The mystery of change and death Think about change in our Universe, what happened to the dinosaurs? Do you know what the first birds were like? When the trees in a forest decay and die, is the forest finished? The story of Shiva: destroyer and renewer of the Universe When Hindu people think about the mystery of change, destruction and renewal in our Universe, they tell stories of Shiva: the dancer. Once upon a time, there were a large number of hermits, living far away from other people so that they could concentrate on the search for truth. They had not found it and were beginning to think there was no such a thing as truth. Shiva came to visit the hermits but they did not welcome him. In fact, they swore at him. Shiva explained that he had come to help them find the truth. They were even ruder to him. As he tried to talk to them the hermits let loose a fierce tiger on Shiva. But Shiva simply put out his little finger and when the tiger sprang, he stripped its skin off and threw it round him as a cloak. The carcass fell on the ground. The hermits were desperate to send Shiva away so they sent out an evil little dwarf armed with a club. Shiva lifted up his foot and stood on the dwarf, then he began to dance. Only the lord of the dance could dance like that. The hermits were astounded and fascinated by the skill and rhythm of the dance. They realised at last that Shiva was a god. Show the children a picture or image of Shiva dancing and point out the main characteristics: Shiva as dancer: represents the cycle of nature with death and new life succeeding each other; also the circle of flame (no beginning and end) Many arms: symbolise power Shiva s third eye: power of destruction & renewal He may be wearing a tiger skin and a snake (from the story) He may carry a trident symbolising lighting & storms His hair may be flying out in tangles: symbol of a holy man He may be wearing prayer beads: symbol of a holy man The dwarf under his foot: ignorance which he tramples They might be given an outline of Shiva, on which they could fill in the characteristics, like the snake round his neck etc. and write in the meanings. The way Hindus express their ideas We respect the way people of other cultures (like Hindus) express the mystery of life on earth. 4 Three A: Other faiths: Hinduism
HINDUISM Three (b) Lesson 1 Key words: worship, temple, Mandir Places of worship When we join with other people to worship God, where do we go? What kinds of churches have you been to? (big ones, small ones, Cathedral, etc.) When we go into a holy place like a church what do we do? How do we show this is a holy place for us. Hindu temple (mandir) How Hindu people worship as a community When Hindu people gather together to worship, they go to their temple. This is called a mandir. [Show pictures] A mandir might be big and specially built but it might be quite small, perhaps a converted hall. The first thing people do is to take off their shoes in the porch, before going into the main room. This is a sign of respect in all Eastern religions, not just Hindu. As they go in, they will ring a bell, to let the gods know they are there and to make each worshipper concentrate on prayer. Worshippers usually bring gifts of flowers or food which they lay at the feet of the images. When flowers are brought, they are often made into garlands by taking the heads off the stalks (daisies or chrysanthemums are ideal) and threading them on a strong cotton. They are put round the necks of images, or draped over tops of pictures. The images are fairly large statues, usually clothed in rich and brightly coloured robes. They stand on platforms or steps covered with cloths and lamps or candles are lit in front of them. Some temples curtain off images at night, or when they are not actually part of worship. It is possible to identify which god or goddess an image represents by the clothes or the things being carried. In many ways, the mandir is a much larger and grander version of the shrine in a family home; the worship is the same too. Incense sticks are burnt and there is both private, silent prayer and the singing of hymns and reading from Hindu scriptures. If a large simple shape of a mandir is put on the wall of the classroom, it could be filled with children s pictures of the things in a temple, as the 3 lessons progress. I d e a l l y, a visit to a mandir can be arranged. If this is impossible, as many pictures as possible should be provided and a video shown. A traditional Hindu Prayer: A u m. Peace be in the heavens, peace be in the depths, peace be on the earth. May the waters flow peacefully, may the herbs and shrubs grow peacefully, may all the powers of the gods bring us to peace. May all be in peace, in peace and only in peace, and may that peace come also to me. Peace. Peace. Peace. (Aum or Om is a very holy sound, which when it is spoken well brings a sense of peace. It is used at the beginning and end of prayer and reading from holy books.) How Hindu people worship as a community. Three B: Other faiths: Hinduism 5
HINDUISM Three (b) Lesson 2 Key words: Mandir, Arti, prasad Worship When we worship together as a group, what do we do? e.g. listen to reading; sing hymns; stand up or sit or kneel, together say prayers. Hindu act of worship at mandir (Arti) When Hindus worship together at the Mandir, they leave their shoes at the door and come into the main room and sit down crossed-legged on the floor which is covered with big white cloths. Most families will have left an offering of food and flowers before their favourite image. There is no special day for Hindus to worship at the temple and there is no particular Service. However, especially in Britain, there are times when people know many of their friends will be going to the Mandir so they can worship together, like Sunday when people are home from work. The worship is like Puja at home, only more solemn. A priest will light candles and lamps and incense sticks. A special deva lamp, like a metal plate with five little candles on it, will be moved in a circle slowly in front of the image. People will sing hymns about their love of God and the little tray of lights will be brought round: people hold their hands over the flames for a second and then pass their hands over their forehead and hair, this is called Arti. It an act of blessing, transferring warmth and the power of light to the body There will be a collection of money off e r i n g s. At the end of worship, everyone will receive a small handful of a warm, sweet paste called prasad. This is eaten to show that everyone is sharing the blessing of the gods. Usually, too, as people are leaving the Mandir, the priest and his helpers will give everyone something from the food offered to the gods, like an apple or some sugar. T h i s again shows that worshippers are blessed by the gods. A video of Hindu worship is a help From pictures, draw things and add to the class display of a Mandir. Making Prasad: perhaps in groups R e c i p e (ensure this is done with an adult) Ground rice/flour in equal quantities e.g.: 4oz each S u g a r Water as required Melted butter about 2oz Mix the flour and water into a paste, add melted butter and cook over a low heat until it turns a pale brown. Dissolve the sugar in boiling water and gradually add the mixture. Cook together, stirring all the time, until the mixture leaves the side of the pan (add more flour if it is too runny). Leave to cool until lukewarm. The prasad has the consistency of light dough or very stiff porridge. It should be possible to pick it up from one hand, with the other, to put in the mouth. The worship of Hindus How Hindu people worship. 6 Three B: Other faiths: Hinduism
HINDUISM Three (b) Lesson 3 Key words: beginnings, Ganesha Stories about beginnings Do you know any stories which tell how things began? Sometimes people make up stories about things no one knows the answer to, like K i p l i n g s Just so Stories with titles like How the Leopard got his S p o t s. The story of Ganesha whose image is in the mandir How Hindu people worship Some of the stories Hindu people tell are like that. One of the gods that all Hindus are very fond of is Ganesha. He is called the god of good fortune and success. Children think of him on their first day a new school and grown ups ask his blessing if they are moving house or starting a new job. His image has a very chubby body and the head of an elephant. T h e r e are many stories which explain this, different in various part of India. Here is one of them: Once there was a very bad king called Gajamukka. He managed to please lord Shiva, one of the greatest gods of all. Shiva granted him a wish. This was that he, Gajamukka would never be killed by any weapon, by any human being or by any of the lesser gods. Once he got his wish, Gajamukka was more evil than ever. He was very proud and made everyone worship him, even the lesser gods. (But not the three greater gods: Brahma, Vishnu and Shiva because they were too powerful.) When people worshipped him, they had to kneel down, cross their arms over and put their hands over their ears. The lesser gods were particularly ashamed of having to do this, so some of them went to lord Shiva and asked him to set them free from Gajamukka. Shiva went home to his palace which had a beautiful garden. In the garden was a temple and on the temple wall was written the holy letter Aum which looks like two elephants trunks twined together. Shiva and his wife looked hard at this letter and immediately were given a baby son: he was a little chubby god with the head of an elephant, three eyes and five hands. Shiva and his wife were delighted at this strange child. N o w, my son, said Shiva, Go and destroy the evil king Gajamukka and when you have done it, stand guard at our gates. Ganesha went off and declared war on the bad king. He tried out all sorts of weapons but none of them killed Gajamukka because he still had his wish. Finally, there was a last terrible battle. Ganesha broke off one of his own tusks and threw it at Gajamukka like a dagger. The evil king was pierced through the heart and fell down dead. If you look carefully at a picture of Ganesha, you will usually find that, not only has he got an elephant s head but a broken tusk. This is why Hindu people think of him as the god who is always ready to help people. Most Mandirs will contain an image of him. Finish putting items on to the class display of a Mandir. Check with p i c t u r e s Draw a picture of Ganesha and explain to a partner why he looks like t h i s The children might invite another class to see their displayed work and listen to explanations How Hindu people worship Ganesha is an important god. Three B: Other faiths: Hinduism 7