up attachment to allworldly things and seeks spiritual liberation. Besides the duties from theclass and station, there are also general duties (sanatanadharma). Theseinclude honesty, courage, service, faith, self-control, purity, and nonviolence.The classes and stations only apply to male Hindus.Purpose of Life The purpose of life is to respect the ideal way of life. Thereare also two other lesser purposes which are, enjoyment of desires and artha, ormaterial prosperity.Karma and Rebirth A popular belief in Hinduism is Transmigration of souls, orsamsara. Samsara is the passage of a soul from body to body as determined bythe force of one's actions, or karma. The strict karma theory specifies that aperson's type of birth, length of life, and life experiences are determined byone's previous acts. Yoga is a ritual used to assure rebirth.Philosophy Hinduism has six philosophical systems. The systems called Nyaya,Vaisheshika, Samkhya, and Yoga emphasize the understanding of basic principlesof metaphysics and epistemology. Nyaya in addition includes an analysis of logic.The systems called Mimamsa identify the performance of ritual. The many Vedantasystems emphasize understanding of the relationship between the self andultimate reality.Hindu Deities (gods) The Hindus believe the universe is populated with many gods.These gods behave much as humans do and are related much like humans are. Thisview is very similar to the ancient Greek theories. The supreme gods Brahma,Vishnu, and Shiva are often viewed with the relations they have with femaledeities. The females are called Shakti. The gods are ranked by how closelythey are related to the supreme gods. All the gods have duties but the supremegods control the destiny. Each god has its own part of the year when it isworshipped and own style that it gets worshipped in.Worship Typical Hindu daily worship includes a stop at several shrines, a visitto the temple, and home worship. A Hindu ...
