24
This needs an examination of the meaning of the word Hindu. A few questions already exist about what the term 'Hindu' means. Legally in India, anyone who does not follow Abrahamic faiths are Hindus. That includes Jains, Sikhs & Buddhists too. Similarly ISKCON would also fall under the category of legal Hindu.
If one were to see if ISKCON would fall ...
20
You are right about the statement from Gita. But its implication is different. You are talking about the following verse:
sarva-bhūtāni kaunteya prakṛtiṁ yānti māmikām
kalpa-kṣaye punas tāni kalpādau visṛjāmy aham [BG - 9.7]
Meaning
O son of Kuntī, at the end of the kalpa, all the beings and material nature (prakruti) enter into Me, and at the ...
20
When a person gets Brahma-Vidya / Moksha then there is no rebirth for that person. And when he doesn't have birth he can't do various sacrifices and rituals for Devatas. So, Gods do not want that men should attain Brahma Vidya. It is explained in Brihadaranyaka Upanishad as:
I-iv-9: They say: Men think, ‘Through the knowledge of Brahman we shall become ...
18
Because no one has actually seen what happens after death, there are multiple beliefs regarding this. But the yogis through their eyes of knowledge know the movement of the beings before and after their death:
utkrāmantaḿ sthitaḿ vāpi bhuñjānaḿ vā guṇānvitam
vimūḍhā nānupaśyanti paśyanti jñāna-cakṣuṣaḥ [BG - 15.10]
Meaning
Not the people ...
18
The answer is obvious, it is because we are not exactly the God, we are jiva, an energy of God. And because we are an energy of God, we are called as God by some. Just like fire and a spark of fire are essentially the same, so also God(Brahman) and us(Jiva) are essentially the same. But, just like fire is huge than a spark of fire and has more heat or energy,...
18
Yes, the current Brahma attains Moksha at the end of his life. As I discuss in this answer, the Srimad Bhagavatam describes what happens to the inhabitants of Brahmaloka, including Brahma himself, at the end of the Mahakalpa:
Worshipers of the Hiraṇyagarbha expansion of the Personality of Godhead remain within this material world until the end of two ...
answered Oct 21 '15 at 3:46
15
No, animals don't attain moksha. Because the natural order is as below:
sthāvarāḥ krimayo'vjāśca pakṣiṇaḥ paśavo narāḥ
dārmmakāstridaśāstadūnamokṣiṇaśca yathākramam [VP - 2.6.34]
Meaning
After experiencing the sufferings of hell, the sinners go through the various stages of existence in the following order: immovable trees, worms, birds, animals, ...
15
So are we really God?
Who are we?
Who is God?
What is our relation with God?
Different schools of Hinduism say different things about this concept.
Advaita (commonly called Non-Dualism) - Sri Adi Shankaracharya (believed to be incarnation of Lord Shiva)
According to this school of thought, there is only One who exists in this world, and that is God. There ...
15
Rig Veda in 7.59.12 tells Shiva [Rudra] is the God who grants eternal Mokshya. Rishi Vasistha is the Seer and Rudra is the devta and it invokes the Three Eyed One.
The verse is:
त्र्यम्बकं यजामहे सुगन्धिं पुष्टिवर्धनम्
उर्वारुकमिव बन्धनान्मृत्योर्मुक्षीय माऽमृतात् ।।
tryambakaṃ yajāmahe sugandhiṃ pushtivardhanam
urvārukamiva bandhanānmṛmrityor ...
14
Assuming that by Moksha you mean liberation from this material existence, not merging into he absolute (Brahman), following are the answers to your questions.
How many paths exist?
There exists four fundamental paths for attaining liberation. They are Karma, Jnana, Dhyana and Bhakti. But dhyana being a physical technique that can be used both in the Jnana ...
14
The path of knowledge is commonly referred to as Jnana Yoga. What is meant by Jnana depends upon the scripture being read. Oftentimes scripture will distinguish between
Vijnana (refers to Knowledge -meaning Realization of Brahman, Transcendent Perception of the Ultimate) and
Jnana (meaning mental and scriptural knowledge/understanding of Brahman, but not ...
13
The proper practice to be followed in the use of the Mrityunjaya Mantra is described in this excerpt from the Rudra Samhita of the Shiva Purana. The sage Dadhichi once got into a fight with a king named Khshuva. Kshuva easily overpowered Dadhichi, so Dadhichi's ancestor Sukracharya (guru of the Asuras) came and magically healed his wounds, and then told ...
12
ekam sat vipra buhudha vadanti
Truth is One, men call it by various names - The One Brahman is called by various names. Rig Veda
Krishna says (Gita VIII, 5-6) "And whoso, at the time of death, leaves his body remembering me alone and goes forth - he attains My being; concerning this there is no doubt. For whatever object a man thinks of at the final ...
11
Both Nirvana & Moksha are liberation from Samsara(repeating cycle of birth, death & rebirth). To understand the difference between them, we'll see what Moksha & Nirvana is as per many schools of Hinduism & Buddhism(only a very high level view).
Advaita
Advaita school believes in Jivanmukti(liberation here and now). One can attain Moksha ...
11
Every living thing is having "Athma" or "soul". In Hinduism, body is illusion and the "Athma" is true and the reality. After death, Athma will take rebirth until it is merged with the supreme one called "Paramathma" . This is called "Moksha". The time taken for the Moksha will depend upon one's "Karma" and "Dharma".
11
No, the atma will not get moksha by such deaths. The default rule is, a person dying such unnatural death as suicide, weapons, etc. will become a ghost:
udbandhanamṛtā ye ca viṣaśastrahatāśca ye
ātmopaghātino ye ca viṣūcyādihatāstathā [GP - 2.22.8]
Meaning
One who dies by hanging, also through poison and weapon, one who commits suicide and also dies by ...
11
Various sects would have own views regarding this. Vaishnavas might tell moksha is not possible without grace of Lord Vishnu, similarly Shaivites might tell it is not possible without grace of Lord Shiva and similar for other sects like Shaktas, Ganapatyas, etc..
However we can take help of Shruti verses or eternal Veda sentences in such cases:
1) Lord ...
11
By reading scriptures one can not get Moksha. This is a well known conclusion of Hinduism.
Shabda Gyana (which are the scriptures) can not give Moksha. It is the direct perception or the Aparoksha anubhuti that will give.
Here's a verse from Patanjali Yoga Sutras.
shrutanumanaprajnabhyam anyavishayaa vishesharthatvat ||
The knowledge that is gained ...
10
Yes Moksha is permanent. As Krishna says in Bhagavad Gita:
na tad bhāsayate sūryo
na śaśāṅko na pāvakaḥ
yad gatvā na nivartante
tad dhāma paramaṁ mama [BG - 15.6]
That supreme abode of Mine is not illumined by the sun or moon, nor by fire or electricity. Those who reach it never return to this material world.
10
Moksha is a permanent state because sruti says so. Brahma Sutras 4.4.22 says (Swami Vireswarananda translator, available here - http://www.wisdomlib.org/hinduism/book/brahma-sutras/d/doc62753.html):
(There is) no return (for those released souls); on account of scriptural declaration (to that effect).
In his commentary to this verse, Sankara references 2 ...
10
Ramakrishna Paramahamsa says (Gospel of Sri Ramakrishna, Chapter 8):
There are three or four varieties of renunciation. Afflicted with miseries at home, one may put on the ochre cloth of a monk; but that renunciation doesn't last long. Again, a man out of work puts on an ochre wearing-cloth and goes off to Benares. After three months he writes home: 'I ...
10
By Taraka Mantra we basically mean the Pranavam, the first sound or OM, also called the Nada Brahman.
So, Taraka: Deliverer.
Taraka Mantra: From the root word tara–that which crosses. The Taraka Mantra is that which enables
its invokers to cross over the ocean of samsara and attain liberation.
Taraka Nama: The Delivering Name; Om
From Sannyasa Upanishad:
...
10
Have a look at the following verse from Kathopanishad's (Kath UP) Tritiya Valli:
ShataichekA cha hridasya nAdyastAsAm murdhAnamabhinihsritaikA |
TayorddhvamAyannmritatvameti vishvanganyA utkramane bhavanti ||
Among the 101 NAdis, that emerge from the region of heart, only one
has gone up to the Brahmarandhra. During the time of death, only if
...
10
Yes, usually that's what is stated in the scriptures. But in certain exceptional circumstances (may be due to compassion/grace of God) even animals or beings lower than humans can also get it.
Chaturashitilakshesu Sarireshu SaririnAm | Na Manushyam VinA
Annyatra Tatva GyAnantu Labhyate ||
Among the 84 lacs kinds of bodies (wombs) Tatva Gyana (...
10
Swami Sivananda writes in his "May I answer That" book, Page 93, Question 247 -
Prophets are born from time to time to remove a catastrophe and
establish Dharma. They preach according to the time, place, conditions
and requirements. Lord Buddha preached, “Don’t kill”. Guru Govind
Singh preached, “Kill”. When Buddha was born, people were ...
9
The ultimate objective in Hinduism depends upon what school of thought or philosophy you are following. But the common thing in all of them is the same, liberation from this material mode of existence. So getting rid of Samsara is the ultimate objective. But while staying on this material plane for a proper living many other things are required. Hence, ...
9
No, moksha is not the ultimate objective for all Hindus. Moksha is the goal for Advaita Vedanta. Vaishnava objective is Vaikutha where a Vaishnava will enjoy bliss with Krishna or Narayana eternally.
People who follow Purva Mimamsa want to go to heaven at least until the merit due to Yajnas are exhausted. People who follow Samkhya probably want to be ...
9
Let us first try to understand what moksha means. Moksha is commonly translated as complete liberation.
So what are we being liberated from? For us to be liberated, we must be bound right? So what are we bound by (Bhagavad Gita 14:5)
Sattva, rajas and tamas—these qualities, O mighty-armed Arjuna, born of Nature, bind fast in the body, the embodied, the ...
9
Yes absolutely yes! It is possible to get Moksha by simply doing good deeds all your life. How?
Karma Yoga
Karma yoga implies performing good deeds (or any deeds for that matter) without expecting anything in return. This is the path exemplified by the great Lord Buddha. He neither believed nor advocated a belief in God. He simply asked everyone to follow ...
9
This Brahma Vaivarta Purana chapter states that, one, who chants the name "Shiva", during his/her dying moments, is sure to attain moksha.
Shri Krishna then revealed the excellent value of Shiva Linga
Sthapana or establishing a Shiva Linga; he said: Maha Deva Maha Deva
Maha Deveti vaadinah, Paschaadyaami Mahaastrasto naama shravana
lobhatah, Shiveti ...
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