In Hinduism the prayers are for the purpose of calling upon the gods or the different supernatural powers for a purpose. This purpose is usually the welfare of specific people or the entire community. The most powerful prayers are the vedic hymns.

In Hindu prayers the content of the prayer and its utterance is equally important. The vedic mantras are considered to have magical powers and are usually chanted loudly during public ceremonies. Usually the Hindu prayers are a praise to the gods and goddesses for the purpose of seeking favors from them.

According to Hinduism there are basically 5 prayers for all occasions. These 5 prayers are  :

• Maha Mrityunjaya Mantra: It is the life giving prayer and dedicated to Lord Shiva. Lord Shiva is considered the three eyed God .
• Meditations on Shiva: This prayer is also dedicated to Lord Shiva.
• Meditations on Ganesha: This prayer is also dedicated to Lord Ganesh. According to Hinduism Ganesh is the son of Lord Shiva and Parvathi.
• Meditations on Krishna: This is a prayer to Lord Krishna , the narrator of the Bhagvad Gita.
• Meditations on Rama: This is a prayer to Lord Rama, the hero of Ramayan.

The other prayers along with their significance are as follows :

The Gayatri Mantra : it is the one of the most ancient and most powerful prayers. It is in Sanskrit. The Hindus believe that by chanting the Gayatri Mantra and  establishing it in the mind, if you  just do regularly do leading a normal life, and do what is predestined, your life will be full of happiness. The gayatri mantra consists of 24 syllables. These syllables are arranged in a triplet of eight syllables each. It has its origins in the rig veda.

Ganesh Mantra : Lord Ganesha is considered to be the hurdle remover. In Hinduism all venture  should be started after chanting the Ganesh Mantra.

Vishnu Arti: This a prayer dedicated to Lord Vishnu. It is also known as universal prayer.

Saraswati  Vandana :   Saraswati is the Hindu Godess of wisdom and knowledge. This prayer  is dedicated to her.

Hanuman Chalisa :  This prayer is dedicated to Lord Hanuman. According to Hinduism he is “Pavan Putra” the son of the wind.

The Hindu prayers can again be classified into :

Vrat Kathas :  They are usually with reference to the days of the week and main festivals of the Hindus such as Depawali,BhaiDooj,

Chalisas :  Chalisas are forty verse prayers dedicated to different Gods and deities

Aartis : Aartis are prayers which praise the Gods and deities.

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The Hindu  Temple is also called Mandir. It is reserved for spiritual and religious activities.  A part of building or the whole building can be exclusively  meant for  worship .The temple is dedicated to a Hindu deity and the statue of this deity or murti is a unique feature of  the temple. This deity  is the presiding deity. The temple is sometimes also dedicated to other subordinate deities.

One has to be bare footed to enter the temple. Shoes are not allowed. The mandir should be clean and respected.  The bell is rung  when the praying or worshipping of the god is going on. The offerings that are given to the  god constitutes of flowers and fruits.

The Temple architecture is a religious architecture and is related to sacred geometry and astronomy. The temple is a place of sanctity. Any hindu temple has common features such as

• Inner sanctum
• The garbha griha or the womb-chamber
• A congregation hall
• Possibility of an antechamber and a porch

The tower  has  a shikara. This shikara is like a tower.

On the basis of Architecture the Hindu temples are of three types. They are Nagara, Dravida and Vesara.

Nagara : The nagara style is also called the north Indian temple style. In this style there is Shikhara. The shikhara is a beehive shaped tower. Layer of architectural elements such as gavaksas and kaptas are placed one above the other. This is  topped by Amalaka.  Amalaka is a large round cushion like element.   The whole plan is square based.

The tower give a circular impression just because the walls are broken up.  Sometimes many smaller reproductions surround the central shaft.  The Chandella temples are the best example of Nagra Style Temples. Most of the ancient northern temples  no longer exist and were destroyed during the Islamic rule.

Dravida :  The Dravida style is also called the south Indian temple style. It developed in nearly 7^th century. These temples have a pyramid shaped tower. This  tower consists of

• Small pavilions,
• A narrow throat and
• Shikhara (Dome on the top)

The repeated storey gives a horizontal visual thrust. The deities were carved on the stone on the inside wall and the outside wall of the temple. Usually the deities are made of panchdhatu. Panchdahtu means  five metals -gold, silver, copper, zinc and tin.

Vesara : The vesara style is also called the hybrid or the deccan temple style. It existed in the modern states of Andhra Pradesh and Karnataka. Hoysala temple is an example of Vesara style architecture.

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Hinduism being one of the oldest  religion and tradition in world, the more you read the more knowledge you get and more knowledge you crave for. There are many books on Hinduism. The core books on Hinduism include Vedas, Upanishads, puranas, Ramayana and Mahabhartha which mainly consists of Bhagvad Gita.

The Vedas : The four Vedas are Rigveda, Samaveda, Yajurveda and Atharvaveda. The Rigveda provides the wisdom of verses. It consists of 180 hymns.   The Yajurveda higlights  the wisdom of scarifical formulas. The Samaveda highlights the wisdom of chants While the Atharvaveda is about wisdom of Athrvan priests. The oldest veda is the  rigveda. It was written around 1500BC.The contents of the Vedas are hymns, rituals, incantations. The text of the vedas  is known to be coeval with the nature. The Vedas are of a very high spiritual level.

The Upanishads : The Upanishads focus on renunciation and asceticism. It I the continuation of the vedic philosophy. They stress and highlight  the union of the soul with the ultimate truth through meditation, thought and the principle of Karma.The principle of Karma means the overall effects of a person’s deeds.

The Puranas : The Puranas are texts composed after the Vedas. It is about the creation and distruction of the universe, family history of kings, demigods and heroes. The Upanishads include descriptions of Hindu geography and cosmology.

Bhagvad Gita : It is the teachings of Lord Krishna. It was narrated to Arjuna at Kurukshetra when The Pandavas had to war with the Kauravas.  ‘Bhagvad Gita’ means the ‘Song of God’. The teachings mentioned there is are universally applicable to all. The Bhagwad Gita shows us how to live life, how to perform out duties in this illusionary world. Human beings are bound  to actions and desires just because of egoism and ignorance. We remain glued to the cycle of birth and death as well as to the natural forces. Bhagvad Gita reveals the way freedom from this mess.   Bhagvad Gita reveals how to live life as it is and as it comes.

Bhagvad Gita prepares a person from within to withstand  and overcome  the struggles in life, through  stability, self-discipline , detachment, stability of mind, right discrimination, right knowledge, and surrendering to God. For salvation stability of mind is a prerequisite. Tranquility of minds brings end to all sorrows.

The Ramayana : The Ramayana was written by Valmiki.  The Ramayana is a sacred epic that revolves around the Lord Rama the hero of the poem and Sita his wife. It focuses on the truth and good prevailing over and victorious over the false and evil.

All the above mentioned books were written in Sanskrit. Most of the people nowadays do not know Sanskrit. So these book have been translated to other languages.

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Hinduism is a religious  and cultural tradition that is rooted in the Indian subcontinent.  Hinduism is the oldest religious tradition. Hinduism is also called Sanatan Dharma which means ‘eternal religion’. Hinduism originated in the Indus Valley which is currently in Pakistan. Hinduism is the third largest religion being practiced in India, Nepal, Sri Lanka.

Holy Scriptures : The Vedas, the Upanishads, the Ramayana  and the Mahabharatha  are the pillars of Hinduism.  The Vedas are ancient texts  written by rishis. The Vedas include Rigveda (Wisdom of the Verses), Yajurveda (Wisdom of Sacrificial Formulas), Samaveda (Wisdom of Chants), and  Ataravaveda (Wisdom of Atharvan Priests).

The Upanisads highlight  asceticism and renunciation. The Ramayan is about the life of Lord Rama. The Mahabharatha includes the Bhagvad Gita that describes karma-marga  (Path of Duties), jnana-marga (path of knowledge) and bhakti-marga (path of devotion). The Puranas is also one of the ancient texts.  The Mnausmriti is the prescribe law book.

Practices  and Beliefs:   There are numerous practices in Hinduism. The western world considers Hinduism to be a religion of multiple gods and multiple deities.  In spite of the diversities and variations there are central issues that unify them in one religion “Hiduism”. According to Hinduism,  Brahma  is the creator of this universe, Vishnu is the  preserver  and  Shiva is the destroyer.

Shiva is considered sometimes to be all the three simultaneously, the creator, maintainer and destroyer of life.  Most people  consider Hinduism to be a henotheistic religion in which a single deity is recognized , but at the same time  other gods and goddesses are considered forms , facets , aspects or manifestations of the supreme and are equally recognized. Vaishnvaism and Shivaism are the two division which are usually followed by the urban Hindus.

Vaishnvaism regards Lord Vishu as the ultimate deity while Shivaism considers  Lord Shiva as the ultimate deity.  The ultimate aim of Hinduism is moksha (liberation, salvation) from the cycle of death and rebirth. Hinduism is based on Dharma, Samsara, Karma, Moksha. Dharma means ethics and duties;  Samsara  means rebirth; Karma  means right action; Moksha  means liberation from the cycle of Samsara.

The structure of the caste system in India is supported by the belief that one’s karma (deeds) determine  one’s birth in the next life.  The caste system in India  is determined by the occupation and constitutes of Brahmins who are the priests, Kshatriyas who are the nobles and warriors, Vaishyas who are the commoners and Sudras who are the servants. The Upanishads  mention that Brahmanhood is achieved by  in-depth learning  rather than birth.

Usually  Hinduism is represented by Om and Swastika. The Om represents Prarabrahman while the Swastika symbolizes auspiciousness. Hinduism advocates practice of nonviolence, respect for all life, and Vegeteranianism.  Besides the Trinity of Brahma, Vishnu, Mahesh (Shiva), the other gods and goddesses that are mostly revered and worshipped are  Ganesha, Krishna, Rama, Hanuman,  Lakshmi, Saraswati, Ambe, Durga.

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