Comparing Religious Rituals: Hinduism and Christianity

Comparing Religious Rituals Hinduism and ChristianityINTRODUCTIONThe proportional analysis presented in this term paper is re whollyy focused on ii religions namely Hinduism and Christianity, because they play a major role in defining to eld world spirituality and thinking. Hinduism is the worlds oldest religion spell Christianity is the worlds largest religion so comparison in the midst of those both religions is surely critical in function our purpose in a perfect valet de chambrener. In sever bothy religion, at that place atomic number 18 several rituals that a soul has to conduct during his life clock. Here we atomic number 18 going to discuss the iii main rituals and a method of revere for both the religions. The tercet most important rituals, that we ar discussing, argon instalment service, marriage sacrament and the death communion. In Hinduism at that place are preferably a few initiation ceremonies however Up eachana the ritual that relieve iodinesel fs permission to both Hindu to plain the Vedas and Upanishads provides the most important transition in his or her life. Similarly the marriage notice and death cremation ritual are in truth important in any religions, e exception in ally in Hinduism since it believes in souls and reincarnation. universe Ritual in HinduismIn Hinduism, the rituals can be summarized to sixteen stages and each of them is dedicated to theology by a ritual called Samskara. The Samskaras starts with birth sacrament and ends with the death observance cremation.The most important Samskara in a Hindu religious life is the sacred thread cognise as Upanyana sacrament. This ceremony takes place between the ages of eight and twelve years. The importance of this ceremony lies in the belief that when a boy is initiated with the sacred thread, it means he is score to accept the religious teachings.Upanyana goes buns to 3000 BCE out front the birth of nobleman Krishna. It was save performed for the you ng boys of the three casts known as Brahmins, Kshatriyas and the Vaishyas. These three framees are tell to be twice born because the sacred thread ceremony is basically a spiritual second birth, but the Shudras or servant class are not permitted this ceremony. The boys gunpoint is s amazed prior to the initiation in order to symbolize the second birth. In Upanyana, the young boy is wed the sacred thread and hence obtains the religious right to study Vedas and Upanishads.In this ritual, worship of Lord Ganesh is performed and indeed the sacred pees of the pot. With the holy weewee the sanctification of the place and the convocation is d unmatchable. The priest declares the purpose of the ritual and asks the permission of the assembly to conduct the ceremony. because the ceremony of wearing the sacred thread is performed by tying the holy wrist band. The grains are sprout in pots by the ladies symbolizing the environmental care. The young boy receives the last meal from he r pose before entering the school with relatives and friends. He needs to get his head s leadd in order to enter into the austere life detaching himself from his old life. past the bathing ceremony is conducted with holy piddle. The holy fire is nimble and the boy is dressed in the attire of Brahmchari. fount then starts with 11 mantras of 11 opposite deities for protection again all considerates of troubles in studies. The boy devotes 11 sacrifices in the fire. Then aft(prenominal) the initiation to Gayatri Mantra supplicants are scoreered to Sun- perfection. Then the holy ashes are smeared at specific spots in the clay chanting mantras. The boy assures the Guru to perform Brahmacharya duties regularly with devotion. He then goes around for alms starting with the mother and overly receives blessings from the gathering and honoring guru. Ladies wave the cinnabar and sacred grain containing water system.In this ritual three disagreeent materials are used for the thr ead. It is believed that these three threads stand for different classes a special grass for the Brahmin, a bow string for the Kshatriya and wool and hemp for the Vaishya. These three threads are too speculate to remind the Hindu that he must control mind, speech and embody and also they stand for the three major Hindu deities Shiva, Vishnu and Brahma. The knot used to tie these three strands unifyly is called Bhrama granthi.The ceremony finally ends with a ritual bath after which he is entitled as Snatak. This ritual bath symbolizes the boys new role in life.Initiation Ritual in ChristianityIn Christianity, churches insists that each individual quest the religion understands the meaning of the all the beliefs and follows them with complete agreement. Christians are supposed to create their own commitment. So Christians have the initiation rite called Confirmation it is the minute that confirms and strengthens the beliefs and commitments which were initially make by the p arents on their childs behalf. Confirmation is generally conducted before adult baptism and hence can be considered as an initiation rite. Initiation generally starts around the age of six or sevenerer. For a papistical Catholic, the child is prepared for premier(prenominal) Confession and First Communion during that while and then confirms his or her beliefs between the ages of 11 and 14. While in the Anglican Church, confirmation is conducted between the ages of 11 and 16 and scarce after this ceremony he or she receives consecrate Communion. Often the ceremony of confirmation includes the First Communion.In any way, in both the churches the Bishop, on behalf of the church, asks the person to brook his or her faith in the teachings of the Church. Then after naming, the Bishop confirming his or her affirmations welcomes them into the full fellowship of the Church. He does this by laying his hands on them indicating devil significances. Firstly it bestows the power of the H oly Spirit upon the person to place him or her to be and to live as a Christian. Secondly, it links the person to the very roots of Christianity through the bishop who was also empowered by the antecedent bishops and hence creating a link which goes back to the earliest Christians. After this ceremony their families usually held a party to celebrate the person to become integrity of them. Family members and family friends bring gifts. Gifts might include a bank account in his/her name or some(a) fixed deposit and also stop like briefcase, an expensive pen.Marriage in HinduismThe most important ceremony after the initiation ceremony is the wed ceremony. There are different variations in these ceremonies and rituals. A prospective match is looked for the children from their own community or caste. In this process of looking for a match, the parents take a facilitate of a holy priest who compares the jathakam or janampatri of the bride and set up. Janampatri is basically a pamp hlet in which the characters and future of a person are written pop out depending upon the positions of the nine planets when the person was born. besides modern day play offs usually applaud each other before their arranged marriage is approved by their parents. In fact the approval of the elders is slowly becoming a formalities and the marriages among different communities and castes are becoming common.EngagementThis is an important pre- hook up with ceremony. In this ceremony the two families agrees with the wedding and also decides the date of the wedding. The suspenders exchange the difference of opinion rings.Barni BandwanaThis is held 15 years prior to the marriage at get ups place. The pundit (priest) performs a puja of Lord Ganesh so that the wedding ceremony can happen without any kind of mishaps. During a Puja, a Mauli (thread) is tied to the hands of parents and the groom to save them from crime eyes.MayaraThis ceremony is common to both the bride and groom. The maternal uncle of the bride or groom is supposed to bring gifts to her sister and the bride or groom. In fact in some parts, the maternal uncle is supposed to give gifts to all the close relatives of the bride or groom.Sangeet SandhyaThis is an level of musical entertainment which takes place about two to three long meter prior to a wedding either in a gap hall or at home. It is arranged by the brides family for bride and groom.Similarly they have Tilak Lagwana and Mehendi Lagwana before the wedding ceremony in which the brides family draws a Tilak on the supercilium of the groom while the bride has her hands and feet being apply with Henna.During Marriage festivitiesHindus have several rituals during the marriage but the most important is are as follows.AartiThe grooms party is received at the entrance of the wedding venue with a diya fixed on a platter and the brides mother takes the Aarti of the groom with it. It symbolizes that they punish to purify the soul of groo m before the marriage since marriage is the soldering of two souls and not just the bonding of two pot and two families.Kanya DaanIn this ritual, the brides father gives away the daughter by the libation of the sacred water symbolizing that he is giving away the bride to the groom. The groom recites the Vedic Hymns to Kama the god of Love for pure love and blessings (with his shoes off) and in the meanwhile the brides sisters sneak the grooms shoes and ask for money in return.SaptapadiThe Saptapadi literally means seven steps but it is referred to as the seven rotations taken by the bride and groom around the holy fire which is considered as the most important particle of Vedic Hindu weddings. The holy fire is seen as the witness when the couple up makes vows to each other. Also bride and groom are tied by a knot denoting a lifelong bond between them. Each go of the consecrated fire is led by either the bride or the groom, variable by community and region. Usually, the bride l eads the groom in the first circuit. The bride leads the first cardinal circuits while the groom leads the last three of total seven circuits. With each circuit, the couple makes a vow to promise to make full crusade to give a laughing(prenominal) relationship and household for each other. The seven vows taken are as follows.To provide for food always (Hindu).To give you excellent health and energy (Hindu).To ordained in Vedas, during your life time (Hindu).To give you happiness in life (Hindu).To make your cows and advanced animals grow in strength and in numbers (Hindu).To make all the seasons be beneficial to you (Hindu).To make the homams (sacrifices to be done in Holy Fire) to be performed by you in your life as ordained in Vedas, successful and free from hindrances (Hindu).Marriage in ChristianityIn Christianity, the union between man and woman is predestined by God. Since Christianity believes in souls it can also be seen as a bond between two souls. As per Jesuss message that wedding is a relationship, a union so real and intimate that the two become one flesh. So in a Christian marriage, husband and wife are treated as one. The weddings are conducted in church with all friends and family members. There are different views on holding marriages and have diverse ways of conducting it.Pre union RitualsBefore wedding, an engagement ceremony is kept. After this, there is a hen party known as the Bridal shower in which all the fe mannish persons gather at the brides place and rejoice by recounting and dancing. The gifts are showered on the bride and then the bride offers them a pink cake with a hidden thimbleful. The woman who gets the thimble is supposed to get married next. Similarly the groom celebrates the Bachelors party with his male friends.This is considered a wild party bash, wherein he celebrates his last night as a bachelor. Raising a toast is a must here. At some places, just like the Hindu wedding, the bride and the groom are applied turm eric and sandalwood paste. It is known as Haldaat ceremony. However, in Goa it is known as Ross, wherein the couple is applied coconut paste in place of turmeric. After all these rituals, finally the wedding day arrives.Wedding RitualsOn a wedding day, a car is sent from the groom to pick up the bride and the groom waits for it outside the church. Then they enter the church together, after the Best man of the groom welcomes her with a bouquet of flowers. Then the couple walks down the corridor with artillery in arm. The priest who is been awaiting them bless them with the best wishes. The priest then reads sing from the Holy Bible and then the sermon known as homily on the holiness of the wedding. After that, he asks question to the groom and the bride referring to their agree for the marriage. After they take each other as their lawfully wedded wife and husband, priest declares them as Husband and Wife. The couple then makes vows to check-out procedure with each other through thick and thin and promise to give all the happiness they can. The couple then exchanges rings which are demonic by the priest first, to instill love and faith between the two. The family, friends and the gathered people blesses the couple. Finally the wedding concludes after the marriage registration and the couple walking down the aisle, arm in arm. The church then sends off a copy of the signed paper to the Registrar of Marriages.Post Wedding RitualsGenerally a Reception follows the wedding which is basically a festivity party. It is considered a grand aff crinkle, thats when the couple is welcomed by the guest. After that, the couple cuts the wedding cake and the Toastmaster offers a toast in the honor of the newly-wed couple. Then the party goes on and people celebrate it with dance and dinner party. at once people keep a live band present for the people to swing on.Death and Cremation in HinduismDeath is considered the last Samskara in Hinduism. When a Hindu person dies, hi s or her utter body is bathed and wrapped in clean, mostly snowy khadi cloth. The white color also signifies the excellence of the soul after it left the body. Similarly at the ceremony of cremation, all mourners are supposed to wear only white clothes since white is considered to be the color of the mourning. A priest conducting the ceremony purifies the body and funeral pyre by sprinkling holy water and in the meanwhile keeps singing or chanting religious hymns or songs. The ritual of the body to be set alight is only done by the eldest male child of the decedent, or the closest male relative. Hindus in India are cremated upon gift grounds upon wooden pyres, but because of scarcity of wood to a greater extent and more people have started using the cremation chambers. The ashes of the persons remains are gathered and placed in a pot. This gathered ashes must be immersed in one of the holy rivers. However, if one is not able to immerse it into the holy river, any river or body of water that meets the ocean can work. Generally the holy water from Ganga is poured in the mouth of the deceased or mixed with the ashes pursual cremation. The cremation ceremony should be performed within three and a half days of the death and the ashes of the deceased must be immersed within three days (Death and Afterlife in Hinduism). If it is not done within that time frame, extra rituals are needed to be carried out. However the practice of cremation is not general among all the Hindus. People of various regions and castes whitethorn also bury their dead as well. However, most of the Hindus prefer cremation in comparison to burying, even if burial is the common practice of the family.BeliefsThis is based on the belief that a Jiva is made up of five elements of prakriti (nature) which need to be re cancelled to their source upon its death. Of them fire, earth, water and air belong to the body and come from this world, whereas the fifth element the ether (fine matter) bel ongs to the arena of the subtle body and comes from the higher worlds. By cremating the body, the elements are rightfully returned to their individual spheres, while the subtle body along with soul returns to the worlds beyond for the law of continuation of its afterlife (Death and Afterlife in Hinduism).Hindu funeral rites actually have two purposes. They are conducted in order to make sure a souls happy migration to the other world and also save its family members from the after effects of contaminant consequent upon the death of a kin.According to Hindu beliefs, when a person dies, irrespective of whether he is far or near, his family members are polluted by the very process of his death and remain so for some time till the soul completes its journey to the other world and till they are purified through rituals(Death and Afterlife in Hinduism).Funeral Rites in ChristianityConveyance to the Church contradictory in Hinduism, the burial of the dead body is preferred in Christian ity. In the funeral rites the first stage is the conveyance of the body to the church. At a picky time, the clergy men are assembled in church and a signal is prone by the tolling of the bell. The parish priest goes to the house of the deceased with the rest of the company one cleric carries the crabbed and another holy water. The coffin is sprayed with holy water before it can be taken out of the house. The priest with his assistants speaks the psalm De Profundis with the antiphon Si iniquitates. The procession then leaves for the church with the cleric carrying cross goes first, followed by the members of the clergy carrying lighted candles. The priest walks immediately before the coffin and the friends and family of the deceased while others walk behind the coffin. When the procession reaches the church the antiphon Exsultabunt is chanted, and as the body is borne to its place the responsory Subvenite is recited. According to the present rubric if the corpse is of a priest the head is supposed to be facing toward the altar while if the corpse is of a layman then the feet are to be turned towards the altar.Ceremony in the churchThe second stage involves series of prayers, funeral circle and absolution. The prayers offered are the Office of the dead. Candles are distributed in the congregation during the Mass. The candles are exceedingly associated with the Christian funeral. These are to be lit during the Gospel, and during the absolution. This is due to a exemplary reference to baptism whereby Christians are considered the Children of LightAbsolutionThe absolution is a series of prayers for pardon that are spoken over the body of a deceased Catholic right before the burial. The absolution of the dead does not discharge sins instead it asks God for the persons soul does not have to suffer from the penalisation due to the sins which were forgiven during the persons life. The Libera me, Domine is call while the priests incenses the coffin and sprays the holy water on it. Then the priest says the prayer and then In Paradisum is sung when the body is carried from the church to the lumberingsite.Ceremony by the gravesideThe corpse is taken to the grave after the absolution. Then the priest blesses the burial plot. A newly withdraw grave is considered blessed while land never used for burial site needs to be blessed by sprinkling holy water. The priest then speaks the antiphon I am the Resurrection and the Life, after which the coffin is take down into the grave. Then the Lords Prayer is said silently, and the coffin is again sprinkled with holy water.Finally, after one or two brief responses, the following ancient prayer is saidGrant this benevolence, O Lord, we beseech Thee, to Thy servant departed, that he may not receive in punishment the requital of his deeds who in desire did keep Thy will, and as the true faith here united him to the company of the faithful, so may Thy mercy unite him above to the choirs of angels. thr ough with(predicate) Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen (Catholic).Then the priest speaks the final appeal to the GodMay his soul and the souls of all the faithful departed through the mercy of God rest in peace (Catholic).Thats how the graveside ceremony and the burial ceremony are conducted.In Summary, death rituals from both the religions make an effort to pouffe the souls and try to relieve the souls from the pain. However in Hinduism, the deceased is not forgotten in any occasions and also the generations coming on make sacrifices to comfort their ancestors soul. Nonetheless, both the religions believe in soul leaving the body during death and reincarnation. However Christianity does not openly admit the belief in reincarnation, in fact it states it in a different way by saying that eventually all the souls will find their way back to their corresponding bodies and will relieve themselves from the pain.ConclusionThe comparison between the two religions showed us how being similar in many respects their rituals differ from each other in a high manner. We found that there are pointing similarities between the motives behind performing the rituals. As in Christianity, only with Confirmation one becomes a Christian similarly in Hinduism one has to undergo the ritual of Upanyana in order to be able to study Vedas which makes him/her a real Hindu. Also in Hinduism we saw that Upanyana was only performed for males and during cremation also only males were allowed to enter the cremation site because females are thought as emotionally weak to be able to see their loved ones getting burned. However in Christianity males and females are given equal opportunity to perform the rituals. purge though having the same ideas behind conducting these rituals the style of performing these rituals is totally different.