Hinduism and Judaism, Essay Example

Similarities and Differences between Hinduism and Judaism

Introduction

Human faith and religion have many faces in the contemporary world. Human beliefs about their origin and development, the spiritual path of humankind and dogmas that they have to follow are the most common distinguishing factors determining religions. Hence, despite the widespread tension and discrepancies between religions, it is always possible to find out some unifying principles, as well as fundamental differences. The present paper will deal with two examples of such kind: Judaism and Hinduism. As one can think, at a first glance there is nothing common between them, though they are both ancient and have a great number of followers.

Hinduism is an ancient religion having much in common with Buddhism. It is practiced in the Eastern cultures and prescribes full refusal form the earthly pleasures, activities and temptations for the sake of meditation and spiritual improvement. The reward for the spirituality is to leave the circle of life and death that is considered the low level of human existence. The religion is in fact anti-theistic because of absence of a real divine posture in its scriptures. Brahman is the highest divine authority, the unity with which is considered the highest blessing of a Hindu (Rigler).

Judaism is known as a religion of Jews, the motherland of Judaism is Jerusalem, though it is evident that the latter religion has much in common with the Christianity. The inscriptions of Judaism tell the believers to enjoy their lives to the fullest extent, remaining virtuous and faithful personalities at the same time:

“The 613 commandments of the Torah are prescriptions for how to engage every part of one’s body and every component of the physical world in consecrated action. Even a “mental” or “emotional” commandment, such as “Love your neighbor as yourself,” has specific, physical stipulations, namely: Concern yourself with your neighbor’s physical welfare, show him honor, speak well of her” (Rigler).

Surely, it is vital to note that these two religions have a set of distinctive, unique features, and commonalties. The most notable differences include the meaning of birth, the religious way to truth, the goal of spirituality, the way to spirituality, the propriety of sexual relationships and family, the purpose of life and the essence of after-death. The commonalties include the dominance of rules that people have to obey to reach Nirvana, or blessing, the guidelines for becoming good people and praising their God, the primary authority of Holy books (Vedas and Torah). Hence, they need to be considered in detail in order to understand the essence of religious experience.

Meaning of Birth

The meaning of birth is different in two religions; in the opinion of Hindus, the human being is another human reborn from the previous life. The reincarnation occurs in the world because of the human inability to realize their unity with Brahman. Hence, coming into life means the spiritual weakness or lack of spirituality on the whole.

The cycle of life, death and rebirth is called samsara; the Hindus view the human life cycle as a kind of energetic existence. They reject the idea about the immortal human soul and consider a human being only a vessel for the universal energy. As soon as an individual dies, his energy flows back to the universe to fill another human being in the act of his/her rebirth (Comparison Chart: Buddhism, Hinduism, Traditional Judaism, and the Gospel). “Hinduism, which does posit a Divine creator, describes the Divine direction of this world as lila, “playful sport,” with no more purpose and meaning than a game of ball” (Rigler).

The meaning of birth in Judaism is much deeper; in fact, it actually exists with the proper regard of people and their God. Jews believe that they are born in the image of God, and they enter the human world for living decent, faithful lives. However, they are able to commit both good and bad deeds; hence, their destiny is completely in their hands. Judaism treats humans much milder than Hinduism, placing much more value to the individual human being Comparison Chart: Buddhism, Hinduism, Traditional Judaism, and the Gospel).

The Way to Truth

The way to truth is seen in the spiritual exercise by Hindus; they have yoga as the main spiritual training that helps them achieve self-truth. In case Hindus are not self-conscious and do not do not foster their spirituality in yoga, they bear the sufferings of life and also experience samsara (Comparison Chart: Buddhism, Hinduism, Traditional Judaism, and the Gospel). The most authoritative documents in terms of finding the religious truth are Vedas, the ancient scriptures on Hinduism.

The way to truth, as seen in Judaism, is in the oral interpretations of the Hebrew Scriptures of the Bible. These are the inscriptive guidelines on the virtuous behavior and deeds. Deeds are valued more than beliefs and principles; however, the unity of God is considered the utmost virtue for believers. The whole life, the unity of deeds, attitudes and spiritual values form the value of the person and his/her achievement of the universal truth (Comparison Chart: Buddhism, Hinduism, Traditional Judaism, and the Gospel).

Attitude to Family and Sexual Life

Both religions have diametrically different attitudes to sexuality, sexual relationships, and marriage. Hinduism, for example, promotes negative attitude to sexuality, with the highest path of spirituality achieved only under the condition of celibacy. Sexual temptation is considered the power of the inner self in a human being, hence the most profound and spiritually strong Hindus usually propagate full refusal form sex. However, there is some place for sexual pleasure in the Hinduism; Hindus consider sex a spiritual tool for reaching Nirvana, and do not include any familial or emotional components into the relationships. Tantric sex for Hindus is practiced much better with strangers, and not spouses (Rigler).

In contrast to Hinduism, Judaism worships sexuality and poses the family union above all other virtues of believers. According to the Torah, sexuality is normal, it is examined and actively discussed, it is prohibited in some cases such as incestuous relationships and spousal unfaithfulness, and it is promoted as the family value. More than that, sexuality within the limits of marital relationships is considered the strongest unity with God that may exist in the earthly life. Discipline and family purity are worshipped as the strongest human values that make them virtuous and blessed (Rigler).

Spirituality

The aim of spirituality in Hinduism is to get out of the life and rebirth cycle, to realize the unity with Brahman and to join the universal stream of energy without reincarnation into a human being. In the process of achieving the unity, Hindus worship many incarnations and idols. The result is achieved by practicing spiritual training such as yoga (Comparison Chart: Buddhism, Hinduism, Traditional Judaism, and the Gospel).

The principles of spirituality in Judaism are completely different: Jews are called to serving God and other people, dedicating their lives to knowing God. The believers have to observe mitzvoth, which means observance of Torah and other holy books’ regulations on how to live a virtuous life. Judaism also favors prayers, repentance and kavannah (which means the proper intention) (Comparison Chart: Buddhism, Hinduism, Traditional Judaism, and the Gospel).

The Difference in Concepts of Torah and Veda

Initially, the existence of Torah and Vedas, sacred writings of Jews and Hindus, is the unifying characteristic of both religions because they both are guided by a code of conduct and virtuous behaviors legitimated by the religions. However, the followers were apt to think that there could be nothing common between the concepts described in these holy writings because of the diametrically different approaches to life, prayer and worship designated in the Torah and Vedas. There is a multitude of differences, including the perception of the origin of divinities, the rituals for their worship, the mysterious writings about their origin and nature, and the most widespread elements of religious traditions and related elements of worship. Nonetheless, the differences are not as grand as they may seem, and the comparative study of Arumuga Navalar, a Hindu debating the completely different nature of Judaism and Hinduism, indicates numerous fields in which both religions correlate and even find their parallels (Goodman 60).

The first concept doubted by Navalar is the Jewish monotheism as compared to the Hindu polytheism. The researcher states that the concept of monotheism in Judaism is highly doubtable and finds many commonalties with Hinduism in the holy writings: Saivas worship other gods but Siva because they are either slaves or servants of the prime Lord, while Judaism and Christianity also cannot find a unifying name for their God, referring to Him as Jehovah, the Holy Spirit, or Christ, and using different natures of the divinities as well as the mysteries of their revelations to the human beings (Goodman 60).

However, Navalar draws the distinctive difference between the two religions in the form of divinities, stating that the human-like form of Siva should not be understood precisely, and the male and female forms of the absolute Sivam as Siva and Parvati are also the mysterious embodiments to perform the godly duties by the Lord. This is the main distinguishing peculiarity between divinities because Judaism worships a God that came to the Earth in a body and flesh and died for the sins of his people to save them from the rage of the Father Lord.

The next similarity drawn in the holy writings for both Judaism and Hinduism is the postulate that the infinite Lord takes some residences in the human world to allow His followers to come and worship Him, and to pray (Goodman 60). There are certain parallels for the places of worship in the Bible, hence Navalar emphasizes such writings as about the temple of Jerusalem, the mount of God named Horeb, the mount Sinai, not mentioning all temples, synagogues, mosques  and churches established in all parts of the world by followers of Judaism, Christianity and Islam. The places of worship exist in every religion for the followers to come and conduct their rituals and meditations.

One more common element is observed in the ritualistic design of places for worship; there is a linga in all Hindu temples for worship. It is the sculptured icon of Siva in the sacred part of the temple, and only the priests have access to that place. It serves as the embodiment of Siva, and at the same time as the residence for His spirit in the temple. There are certain parallels in the place for the icon as well as its religious importance in Judaism – the ark of covenant is present in all Christian and Jewish temples for worship (Goodman 61).

Fasting is also a component of religious experience noted in both Vedas and Torah. Hindus decide to conduct reduction of food as the aid for meditation and achieving the higher self in the spiritual practices (Goodman 75). Drawing a parallel, one can state that strict rules and periods of fasting in Judaism are also connected with getting closer to the God, with understanding God and reaching a godly nature because of abstinence. There are many fasts in Judaism connected with the religious holidays and the religious calendar, so one can see that both religions actively use the concept of fasting for the religious practice.

A similarity is found in the pariah status of Jews: there is a pariah caste in India that also represents the group of disprivileged and segregated people. Both Jews and pariah people in India have some common characteristics: separation from the world on the basis of taboos, religious obligations in the lifestyle, and promise of salvation on the basis of their status. Jews as the pariah nation are characterized by lack of autonomy, internal prohibitions, political and social disprivilege, and distinctiveness in the economic organization (Weber, Roth, & Wittich 493). Both Hindu and Jews as pariah tend to the stronger unity because of their deprived, inferior position.

Thus, salvation hopes underlie the basis of religious practices for Jews and Hindu. They are tied to fulfilling religious obligations in the pursuit of improving chances for rebirth. Nonetheless, here is the fundamental difference in their perception of salvation: Hindus practice religion in the hope for reincarnation in a higher caste, while Jews were historically hoping to secure their place and the place of their descendants in the kingdom of the future released from parish status and possessing the mastery in the world (Weber, Roth, & Wittich 494).

Attitude to Death

Hinduism places little importance to death and even poses some positive component into the end of life because of the suffering associated with samsara, the cycle of life and death. Hindus are ready to death from the very beginning and do not see anything dramatic about it, as it represents the hope to unite with Brahman and leave samsara (Comparison Chart: Buddhism, Hinduism, Traditional Judaism, and the Gospel). The same perception affects the idea of the after-life: Hindus do not believe in any world existing beyond life, hence they are sure the immediate reincarnation follows death until the human being reaches deliverance and unites with Brahman, which is the entire universe for them.

Jews, in their turn, believe in the world existing after life, which is the ‘world to come’. However, they do not place any bad or good meaning to it like in Christianity (Heaven or Hell). The afterlife exists in Judaism because the very religion contains a clear idea about the immortality of the human soul. There are several variants of afterlife in Judaism, including some teaching about heaven and hell, earthly resurrection, and a happy life in the ‘world to come’ (Comparison Chart: Buddhism, Hinduism, Traditional Judaism, and the Gospel).

Commonalties in Judaism and Hinduism

Despite the fact that Judaism and Hinduism are substantially different areas of religious practice, there is still possible to find some unifying characteristics that allow making certain conclusions on their commonalties. First of all, in case of perceiving both religions as ethno-religious systems, one will surely admit that they represent two highly developed cultural modes and include rituals and meditations, study and prayers, service and sacrifice, joy, modesty and charity (Goodman 9). These similarities are present in all religions, thus making them similar in the spiritual basis for worship, and outlining the concept of religion as a code of conduct other than a legislative one.

It is important to note that despite the large geographical distance and cultural differences, both religions are focused on similar spiritual qualities of their followers. Both Judaism and Hinduism propagate zealousness for correct behavior and passion for communal unity. This is the way of preserving the community of followers and it is widely utilized by both religions (Goodman 9).

Secondly, both religions have the concept of home as a central one in their fundamentals; the first evidence of that fact can be found in the image of home as a sacred temple for all believers, the extremely important role of a family and domestic rituals, as well as the importance of the followers’ ethnicity and origin of the divinities put in the center of worship (Goodman 9). In addition, extended family relations are largely encouraged in Judaism and Hinduism, hence adding evidence to the domestic nature of both religions. One more home symbol is seen in the Jewish exile and cyclic return to the homeland, as well as the Hindus’ pursuit of unity with Brahman (Goodman 9).

Another commonalty found between Judaism and Hinduism is that they are the founding religions for a set of other mainstream religions of the modernity. Judaism is the foundation of Christianity and Islam, while Hinduism provides the basis for Buddhism and Jainism (Goodman 9). This fact allows for generalizations on the founding, primary nature of both religions and their tremendous role in the formation of the human spirituality.

The Concept of Religious Experience

It is hard to speak about religious experiences in Hinduism because the religion is inherently devoid of the divine creature that blesses people, punishes them for misdeeds or reveals the divine truth to those who have remained virtuous and faithful during their whole lives. Hence, the religious experience in Hinduism is limited to the feeling of the state of Nirvana that can be derived from spiritual practices and Tantric sex. However, since Hinduism is a deeply spiritual religion focusing entirely on the inner self of the believers and their sensations, it is truly possible to believe that Hinduism is the mixture of all possible religious experiences. Mainly, it combines the numinous and mystical experiences of Hindus, which means that they both meet the divine entity due to their meditation, and experience the mystical feelings of oneness with the extra-terrestrial world. Generally, it is also possible to note that with the proper regard to the Hindu canons, religious scriptures and practices, the experiences of Hindus are more spiritual than religious ones, hence being deprived of the most common religious experience features present in other religions centering on the divine authorities more actively.

The religious experience in Judaism is inherent in all religious practices that Jews perform during their lives, so it may be called more religious than spiritual one, in contrast to Hinduism. The Jews have their specific form of heritage that they worship and that is unique in comparison with all other religions; they believe in the unity of God and His revelation of truth in Torah; he is their savior and redeemer. The Jews are the only religious group that see the Torah as the way of life, and they are even able to see the joys in following its commandments despite the indisputable limitations and restraints it may pose at times. They have a huge number of customs, traditions, vows and religious dogmas that rule every sphere of their life, so they are really able to enjoy their faith in daily practices. Jews are closer to the religious experience because they make their life such experience without longing to it in hard efforts; they live via such experiences, making them a part of their daily life. These practices make Jews closer to the blessings of religious experiences.

Conclusion

As one can see, there is a huge range of differences between Judaism and Hinduism; some researchers did not dare to compare them for a long time as there seemed to be no touching points in them. However, the alternative approach of treating them both as basic religions that found many followers and thus have some canonic, fundamental elements allowed some generalizations. As a result, both religions were found to have the holy writings that contain the guidelines of faithful lives (though the principles of living a good life and being a good person are different), they both direct people at reaching a higher stage of their spirituality and development, to achieve virtue offered by the world etc.

Finally, both religions call their believers to praise God, though Judaism has a traditional God in the center of all beliefs, and Hinduism focuses primarily on many divinities and praises the spiritual component of life. As a conclusion, one should note that despite the realm of disparities found in these two religions, as well as many others, the religious world always contains a spiritual element and guides people to a better life, making them virtuous for the higher aim, be it Nirvana or the happy afterlife. Hence, the common traits of religions are present in all subdivisions thereof. As Goodman notes:

“the brahmanical and rabbinic forms of “Hinduism” and “Judaism” represent two species of the same genus and provide a model of “religious tradition” that is distinctly different from the prevailing Christian-based model that has tended to dominate the academic study of religion” (Goodman 104-105).

Hence, there are much more similarities between Hinduism and Judaism than it may seem from the first glance, and they have to be studied in much more detail to explore the issues involved in the formation of the religious experience of the humanity.

Works Cited

“Comparison Chart: Buddhism, Hinduism, Traditional Judaism, and the Gospel”. A Messianic Jewish Perspective. 1 Nov. 1995. Web. 14 Sept. 2010.

Goodman, Hananya. Between Jerusalem and Benares: comparative studies in Judaism and Hinduism. New York: SUNY Press, 1994. Print.

Rigler, Sarah Yoheved. “Difference Between Judaism and Buddhism”. Simple To Remember – Judaism Online. Web. 14 Sept. 2010.

Weber, Max, Roth, Guenther, and Wittich, Claus. Economy and society: an outline of interpretive sociology.Vol. 1. Los Angeles, CA: University of California Press, 1978. Print.