God,The Cosmos & The
Human Condition

Sources,

Revelation,
Scriptures,
Holy Texts

Organization:

  Hierarchy
  Leadership
  Ministries

 Calendar

 Time Line
&/or
 Feast Days

Prayer
Worship

Ritual

 Views onThe
 Moral Life

One Supreme God called BRAHMAN

Many forms and hence multiple Gods and Goddesses.

Concept of Trinity:                                   

Brahma:
The Creator    

Vishnu

The  protector

Siva

The  destroyer

The Cosmos undergoes an endless cycle of birth and destruction.  It acknowledges millions of universes.

Humans are in a cycle of births and deaths called reincarnation, till they attain liberation called
Moksha by various yogas.

Karma yoga or the path of duty

Bhakti Yoga  or the
path of devotion

Raja Yoga or the path of penance

Human suffers or enjoys in this birth depending upon his/her previous birth good and bad deeds (Karma),

And can be changed or modified by the present good or bad deeds.

Non-founded religion.

Many seers expounded the principles as revelations Religious scriptures are classified as the Sruti (that which is heard) and Smrti (that which is remembered)

Vedas are the ancient collections of hymns,rituals and prayers & forms the Sruti.

1.Rg Veda considered the oldest text book in any religion.

2.Yajur Veda

3.Sama Veda 

4.Atharva Veda are followed by the Smrtis
which includes the
Upanishads and Purana. Ramayana and Mahabharat considered as great epics.

The latter includes the famous teachings, by Krishna an incarnation of God, called Gita or Song of Gods.

Religion and Medicine are intertwined.

Texts available for the practice of Medicine are –

Atharva Veda (1500 b.c.e.)

Caraka Samhita(100 c.e.)

Sushruta Samhita (200 c.e.)

And Ashtanga hridaya Samhita (700 c.e.)

No central organization or hierarchy. Many different Gurus or teachers over the last >5000 years. There are Temples with Priests to facilitate the individuals prayer or Puja.

Social organization:

 Four classes or Varnas/castes:

1.Brahmin or priest

2.Kshatriya or Ruler/warrior

3.Vysya or businessman

4.Sudra or workers.

Caste system (Portuguese for lineage) is outlawed now.

Concepts rapidly changing currently promoted by secularism.

The Hindu calendar is based on 27 stars and based on lunar cycles.

The Lunar year is roughly seven days short of the Gregorian calendar. Made up every three years as an added short month.

Concept of time is measured in Kalpas. Every Kalpa has 4.32 billion years and is divided into 4 Yugas.

We are currently in the last Yuga – 195588597^th year !

Personal rites or celebrations

-Birth

-Naming

-First birthday

-First feeding

-First haircut

-Initiation in studies

-Home coming

-Wedding

-Funeral

Common :

Many festivals through out the year based on lunar calendar.

-Holi-spring festival

-Janmashtami or Lord Krishna's birthday

-Navarathri or nine nights for goddesses

-Dussehra  or Rama's win

-Deepavali or festival of lights

A congregation is not a must for worship.  Prayer and worship at all levels are considered important. The

Religion has

 Mantras for all occasions with rituals. Mantra itself is God.

Every stage in life from birth to death has a Samskara or ritual associated with it. These rituals are an exercise in self-control as well celebration. As an object of focus and concentration for prayer, paintings and figures are used.

Representative forms of God:

-Pratika- Image

-Linga - idol

YantraDiagram

Two types of prayers

1.External

2.Internal:

The worshipper meditates and concentrates on his ishta-devata or personal choice of form of God. They are

Japa is repetition of mantras.

Mudra or gestures by hands

Meditation is encouraged.

Four Obligations:

1.Salutations to ancestor once a month or once a year

2.Salutaions to Devas
or demigods

3.Salutaions to community

4..Salutations to all living beings

Four aims or goals in life:

1.DHARMA 
means " the privilege,duties

and obligations of person, a standard of conduct as a member of the community, as a member of the caste, and as person in a particular stage of life. Dharma laid down the rules and ordinances for actions in all situations.

Always steering away from absolutes, always sensitive to context, the laws allow qualifications for time, place & exceptional circumstances

2. KAMA:

Pleasure, usually understood as aesthetic pleasure of all kinds- art, music, dance,  drama,

literature, poetry and sex. All of this should be done, of course, within the realm of Dharma or in a virtuous manner

3.ARTHA:

Working for and achieving success, in terms of both wealth and power.

4. MOKSHA:

Attempting to get released from the bondage of the cycles of births and deaths due to Karma by realizing the GOD within.

Notions of
Body & Spirit

Physician – Patient Relationship 

Indiv. Autonomy

        Vs.

  Community

Views on Rx:

Transfusion
Transplant
Organ Donation
Autopsy

Views on
Suffering/Death:

Sustaining vs.
Withdrawal of
Life Support

Who's at the

  Bedside –

Spiritual Care 
for the Patient & Care for the
Dead

Concept of holistic medicine

(Vaidya) or physician should be

-Knowledgeable

-experienced

-friendly

-compassionate

-Virtuous

-Devoted to  learning

-rational

-ready to act

-clean

Patient should be

-endowed with good memory

-must follow directions

-Provide all relevant information without fear.

Concern for both

-Meaning of selfhood, "I"ness or Godliness encased in a body

-sense of continuity in all eventualities and all life tasks

-Material self (Ahamkara) human, public, negative and worldly / private

-Transcendent self (Atman) positive, nearer to and more like God

-self as witness, untouched by birth and death

-Godly SELF is the only  true reality. Physician should charge depending on the capability of the patient.

-Free care to poor is part of Dharma.

No contraindication to transfusion

-No impediment to transplantation (described in epic Mahabharata)

-No restriction of organ donation (described in Siva Purana)

-cremation is recommended

-No hurdles for autopsy (described in Sushruta Samhita), except time.  Cremation is recommended by sundown if person dies during day and by next sundown if one dies during night.

Suffering is considered part of ones Karma but it is okay to get relief.

-Death is opposite of birth and not of life and Hindu concept denies death's finality.

-since rebirth is almost certain; death is just a passage to next life.

-Pain medications can be given in adequate doses to control pain, but should not diminish patient's alertness or thinking capabilities.

-Withdrawal of life support is not contraindicated.

In fact artificial or mechanically sustained life is held to be of little value.

-Individual's choice and self-willed death be allowed in very elderly, suffering from incurable disease, great calamity etc. In these situations euthanasia could be classified as a self willed death.

-Currently suicide and euthanasia are illegal in India.

Brain death as well as PVS is valid for withdrawal of life support.

Withdrawal of food is permitted.  Fasting is indeed a form of self willed death and hence not contraindicated.

Death is private.

Only close relatives stay at the bedside.

-Most people prefer to die in their own bed/home. 
Hospice care usually rendered by relatives in home.

-to attain better next life spiritual readings or special mantras by self or others is encouraged

-Visiting the sick is only by patient's request.