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Great World Religions: Hinduism

By: Mark W. Muesse, The Great Courses
Narrated by: Mark W. Muesse
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Publisher's Summary

In this 12-lecture series, you'll encounter a religion that is perhaps the most diverse of all; one that worships more gods and goddesses than any other, and one that rejects the notion that there is only one path to the divine. These lectures provide a window into the roots of, perhaps, all religions. You'll explore over the course of Hinduism's 5,000-year journey: the Indus Valley civilization; the sizable variety of Hindu gods and goddess; the sacred writings in the Vedas, Bhagavad Gita, and Upanishads; Hindu ritual purity rites; the Aryan language of Sanskrit, whose roots can be seen in English words such as "divine," "video," and "ignite"; and much more.

The story of Hinduism, you'll come to see, is the story of very non-Western traditions (such as arranged marriages and the caste system) that have survived and thrived for thousands of years. It's also home to a wealth of gods, terms, and practices (such as karma, Krishna, yoga, and guru) that have found a home in Western lives and language. Along the way, Dr. Muesse discusses salient aspects of Hindu life and places them in historical and theological context. He also explains that Hinduism honors all seekers of truth, that it contains multiple paths to divine reality (the way of action, the way of wisdom, and the way of devotion), and that it can be both a monotheistic and a polytheistic faith.

PLEASE NOTE: When you purchase this title, the accompanying reference material will be available in your Library section along with the audio.

©2003 The Teaching Company, LLC (P)2003 The Great Courses

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Better than nothing

When I started this series I knew virtually nothing about Hinduism. After 12 lectures, I still don't feel like I know very much. Maybe this is due to the nature of the religion, which is incredibly diverse, or maybe the lecturer waffles too much. I'm not sure. He says during the lectures that to understand Hinduism you really need to see, smell and even taste it, and I think that may be true. A religion like Hinduism, with it's heavy emphasis on shrines and visually-represented gods, may be too hard to understand without some images. I also found the delivery a bit off putting because the professor has a broad, regional American accent, although at least he is very clear.

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