Hindu Catholic Dialogue Commemorative Brochure 20150523

Author(s): United States Conference of Catholic Bishops
Publisher: United States Conference of Catholic Bishops

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E6. How is worship integrated in daily life? For the observant Hindu, there is no activity in daily life that does not involve worship.16 Prayers are prescribed to remember God during routine activities such as waking, bathing, eating, greeting others, picking up tools, turning on a light, etc. Pictures and symbols to remind one of God are displayed at home and in the workplace. In all actions, Hindus are asked to remember that God is present in all beings and all things.
LIFE CYCLE
F1. List three or four main life cycle events and the rituals associated with them. What do they signify? Scriptural tradition mentions forty sacraments to be observed through life. Three of them precede birth; those during childhood include birth, naming ceremony, first solid food, first haircut, etc. Being a student is the first stage of one's life. The "upanayanam" or "thread ceremony” traditionally marked the start of formal education under the guidance of a Guru. The second stage is "householder," which includes maintaining a family as an integral part of society. Wedding vows are exchanged in the presence of the sacred fire using Vedic mantras culminating in the prayer “may our minds always be in harmony.” In the third stage, husband and wife withdraw from active involvement in the world, devoting their time to spiritual study and practice. The fourth stage, which is entered only by a few, involves a ceremonial "death” to the world, renouncing all familial relationships, all property, and one's entire past identity, and surrendering oneself entirely to the Divine Will. The final sacrament is cremation of the body at death.
AFTERLIFE
Gl. Describe the funeral ceremony. After death, the body is cremated by male family members in an austere ceremony where only white clothes are worn, followed by several days of prescribed ritual, prayer, and scriptural readings. The rituals signify the provision of food and peace and comfort to the departed soul in its journey to the next world. After about two weeks of mourning, there is a feast celebrating the soul at rest.
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HINDU - CATHOLIC DIALOGUE