| Encountering
Hinduism, therefore, means questioning our very idea of what religion should be. Hinduism
is overflowing with variety and even contradiction. One could say that there are more
religions inside of Hinduism than outside of it. Everything that we find in human
religious activity from aboriginal rites to insights of pure consciousness is already
there in the great plethora of Hindu teachings and practices. Hinduism
is not only connected with many Gods but with the formless absolute – the mysterious
immutable Brahman beyond not only the Gods and Goddesses, but even beyond the Creator. It
has a place for monotheism but regards monotheism as only one aspect of human religious
experience, not the measure of it all.
Hinduism accepts all human approaches to religion, including its
rejection, being willing to accept atheists into its fold. It does not try to circumscribe
the abundance of life in any formula. It can even accept Christianity as another line of
religious experience but not as the only one or necessarily the best.
Hinduism is not passed on by memorizing a creed,
though it does have clearly defined and highly articulate teachings and philosophies. It
is intimately connected with the Earth, nature, society and our daily activities from
eating and breathing to sleeping and dying.
Hindu Dharma sees itself not as manmade but as part of cosmic
creation, an emanation of the cosmic mind. It aligns us with the cosmic religion that
exists in all worlds and at all times. It is a way to link with the cosmic life, not a
belief that we can retreat into like a shell or like a fortress.
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