1: they always have to worship Brahman, directly or through the other gods; usually the form of worship is ‘puja.’
2: they must give admiration to the saints and holy men by reciting the Veda.
3: They must show respect for their parents and the elderly.
4: They must give shelter and alms to the poor or holy men.
5: They are instructed to feed animals because Hindus believe that all living things form a community.
(a iii) Analyse and explain the role and function of the Mandir in the local Hindu community.
In the local Hindu community the Hindu temple is a house for the god or goddess. It has a shrine containing the image of the deity. It is a place for worshippers to worship just as they might visit a close friend or to go see an important person. They may offer gifts or to pray or express their devotion by walking reverently round the murti. But it is not the murti they worship but the deity it represents. Some places in India, many shrines are outdoors and the local people care for them. According to Hindu teaching any gift no matter how poor, is acceptable as long it is given with sincerity and love.
For Hindus, friendship, hospitality, and service to others are important. Volunteers at the temple provide transport, take classes, clean, prepare food and also raise money for charities. The temple serves the community in many ways and welcomes visitors.
The temple acts as a community center, which provides opportunities for people to gain a greater understanding of the Hindu faith. It is also a place for people to come and make friends and helps you to become together with others and also to reunite. Hindu’s teaching teaches that you could earn good kharma if you visit holy places that the god or goddess was said to have visited before. The temple also helps Hindus to support their Hindu culture and to obtain their knowledge and faith by teachings and ceremonies like puja. The temple also helps to maintain hospitals, colleges, schools and many other facilities.
In Britain and also in Hong Kong it is more than just a place for worship because both places isn’t a Hindu community and there isn’t many Hindus so the Mandir is very important for the Hindus that live there to have a place to get together and to worship. Since they are in a foreign country the temple has become their Hindu home. Elders can meet friend from a similar culture who may share the same custom and languages. The temple may run youth clubs for teenagers to teach them more about their religion, faith and culture since most young Hindus are born British. They may not know how to write or read their home language because their first language is English from school. Few British Hindu families perform ‘puja’ at home, so the worship at the temple is very important for teaching children the religious traditions. When there is a festival, many families come together for ceremonies and people are able to meet their friends, exchange news and renew friendship. In this way the Hindu community meets the needs of its members.
(b) ‘You do not have to go to a Mandir to be a good Hindu.’
For Hindus the family is the basic unit of Hindu society and its tradition. It is at home that children learn Puja, the rules of purity and paying homage to the elders. Puja and devotion at home are the main focus of devotion and Hindus learn at home from the pictures, images, stories and symbols of their faith. Most important rituals are performed at home so going to the temple is not necessary. Also children learn from taking part in rituals and observing from it. So worship in the home is important. People may only go to the temple on festivals but it does not affect their faith because according to a Hindu priest, there is no problem if you don’t go to the temple because the main point in building a temple is to get peace. So if you can concentrate and find peace at home, it is alright to not go to a temple.
The temple is ‘abode of the god’ which means it is the home for god so the temple exists for the deity and not for the worshippers. Visiting the temple is just to perform Darshan, that is view the image and offering gifts and prayers. Atman is in all nature and all acts are important. Friendship, hospitality, service to others are important for Hindus and there are many other ways to obtain Moksha other then just going to the Mandir, Hindus could help the poor, care, give shelter, and to overcome anger because it is the biggest enemy. Just like Catholics, not going to church doesn’t mean they are a bad catholic. Not having sin is the most important.
On the other hand, going to the temple can help you bond with others and also visiting holy places could earn you good kharma because those are the places where the gods and goddesses have visited in the past. You should reunite with Hindu community at festival times and you need to view and worship Murti with life- force god. Going to the Mandir, you could gain blessings and it is a holy place. Worshipping at home is not enough, to show that you love and that you care, you must go to the Mandir and offer gifts to show your sincerity and that you respect them.
When you are in a foreign country like Britain it is important that go to a Mandir since it is the only place you can go together with their Hindus and you could make friends and celebrate the festivals of your own culture.
I think that it is important to go to a Mandir to be a good Hindu because it is in the temple that you learn about the religion and culture. It is the place where people meet and bond with others. Worshipping at home is not enough and to show sincerity and love to the god or goddess you should offer some gifts no matter how poor they are.
The temples is also important for Hindus in foreign country, as it is place where they can get together and worship and celebrate festivals as a Hindu community. The leader or priest of the temple does cultural classes and programs for children so they can learn from playing games or dancing. The priest is also there to help with any problems, so the temple is actually a helpful place instead of just a place to worship. So I think you should go to a Mandir to be a Hindu.
(ai) Describe the main features of a specific place of Hindu worship.
We visited a Hindu temple in Hong Kong. Because of the space limit, it wasn’t as big as the mandirs in India but it still follows the rules. The building faces east, which is where the sun rises. Also the gate has a red symbol of the sun painted on it. Leading up to the mandapa (main hall) is a flat of stairs. This is to indicate the steps towards Moksha, which is the highest level of mind. Before entering the mandapa, there is a separate shrine facing the mandapa, which is Hanuman. It should be the animal or vehicle that the god in this temple rides on in Hindu legends. Also on the left there is a cupboard for worshippers to put their shoes before they enter the mandapa. This is because you must be clean before you enter a holy place, which is the mandapa. Walking up to the shrines there is a bell hanging down and worshippers ring the bell to get the deity’s attention that someone has come to worship.
There are three shrines in the mandapa. The sea god, Vishnu and his wife Lakshmi, and Shiva, Ganesha, Paravati, and Durga. The shrine is like a house for the deities. In the garbha-griha, the murti is installed in the center and in front of it is a place for worshippers to place their gifts. The shrine is painted with many colors and lotus leaves are carved to make the roof of the shrine. This is to show the deities purity. Above the inner sanctum containing the murtis is the shikhara (tower or dome) this is to symbolize the mountains in India because mountains in India are the dwelling places of gods and it’s like a home. So the shape of temples are shaped like a mountain so it can be the best place for the gods to live on earth. Around the center shrine is a path, which worshippers can go around. The worshipper must go around three times and must go around on their right side so it will lead them the right way and clean their sin. In front of the right shrine is a linga; women will pour milk, yogurt and water because milk and water are the purist things in the world for Hindus. In the shrine of the sea god there is fishing net, it is because in the past Hong Kong had many fishermen and so people will come to worship the sea god to help them catch many fish.
In the mandapa there is also a place where the priest does his teachings. There is a bed situated on the right side of the mandapa and next to it is something like a cradle where the Veda is put. The Veda contains 100,000 verses of god’s teachings and how to worship. It is covered with cloth and taken out on Sundays where there is a big gathering and also on important festivals.
