Hindu Concepts
Upanishads
• A sacred text of Hinduism
• Written as a dialogue (like prose/poetry)
• Insights to external and internal reality
Brahman
• A divine reality/ The Supreme Spirit
• Dialogue of the boy and his father (salt water)
– “An invisible and subtle essence is the Spirit of the whole
universe. That is Reality. That is Truth. Thou art That”
• Brahman can be known – but no explicit description of
it
• All things are ultimately one through Brahman
– “Brahman is the God who appears in forms infinite”
– Reality, Conciousness, and Bliss
Atman
• Similar to a soul – but more accurately…
• Your deepest self
– A divine reality that you share with everything
• When experienced fully, Atman is Brahman
Maya
• The “illusion” of our everyday world
– “magic” and “matter”
• World is real, but we don’t see it for what it is –
one divine reality in many different forms
– A Great Consciousness
• The world, like our thoughts is ever changing, but
our Atman/Brahman is constant
– When our bodies die, our Divine Spirit remains and
moves on to another form
Karma
• Rebirth of the human
– Rebirth cycle can include everything from plants to
demigods
• Can move up or down in life depending on
choices
• The human part of the cycle is very important
• Karma = moral cause and effect
• Natural order of things
• Freedom from cycle when karma ceases to exist
Samsara
• Wheel of Life
• Circle of constant rebirth and change in self
and world
• YOLO = NO
Moksha
• “Freedom” / “Liberation” / “To Be Released”
• The Ultimate human goal
• Moving beyond the confines of the “self” to
experience ultimate reality
– Seeing the Brahman in everything
• “When all has become Spirit, one’s own Self,
how and whom could one see?”
Overall Goal in Life?
• Try and write a description connecting all the terms :
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–
–
–
–
–
Brahman
Atman
Maya
Karma
Samsara
Moksha
• A Hindu’s ultimate goal in life is to connect to their Atman, which is
ultimately Brahman – the force that is in all things. This entails
making good, moral decisions in order to be reborn in better forms
(karma). One must try and live beyond the maya of the world in
order to be released from samsara and achieve moksha. (to be
released from the wheel of earthly life into ultimate reality/oneness
with Brahman)
Path of Desire