Table of Contents

Introduction 1

Part I: Introducing Hinduism 7

Chapter 1: A Quick Overview of Hinduism 9

Chapter 2: From Past to Present: A Condensed History of Hinduism 21

Chapter 3: Hinduism’s Core Beliefs and Values 37

Chapter 4: Major Hindu Denominations 51

Chapter 5: The Structure of Hindu Society 65

Part II: The Hindu Pantheon and Its Religious Leaders 79

Chapter 6: Pantheism to Polytheism: From the One to the Very Many 81

Chapter 7: Hindu Gods and Goddesses 89

Chapter 8: The Avatars of Vishnu: The Divine Descent 111

Chapter 9: Revering the Role of Religious Leadership 125

Part III: The Sacred Texts 141

Chapter 10: The Vedas: Centuries of Accumulated Treasures 143

Chapter 11: Gaining Higher Knowledge with the Upanishads 155

Chapter 12: Living with the Epics and Puranas 169

Chapter 13: The Song of the Lord: The Bhagavad Gita 193

Part IV: Hinduism in Practice 205

Chapter 14: Worshipping at Home 207

Chapter 15: Worshipping at Temples 221

Chapter 16: Holydays and Festivals 235

Chapter 17: Cradle to Cremation: The Life-Cycle Rites 255

Chapter 18: Taking a Pilgrimage 269

Part V: Delving Deeper into the Hindu Concept of Reality 287

Chapter 19: The Six Schools of Thought: The Darshanas 289

Chapter 20: Vedanta: The End of Knowledge 305

Chapter 21: The Yogic Path to Salvation 319

Part VI: The Part of Tens 331

Chapter 22: Ten Common Questions About Hindus 333

Chapter 23: Ten Common Prayers 337

Chapter 24: Ten (Plus) Traditional Mandates 343

Index 349

About the Author

Dr. Amrutur V. Srinivasan , born in India, is primary founder and first president of the Connecticut Valley Hindu Temple Society. He has functioned as a Hindu priest performing a wide variety of pujas (worships), weddings, and other ceremonies since 1971.