Modi will develop India into a Hindu state: Goa minister

[Bang Galore]

My point was that there are Muslims that say Islam is a way of life, and everyone is born a Muslim, and that you'd probably have an issue with that; the fact that you haven't addressed this point directly, pretty much tells me that I've hit the nail on the coffin that your dead argument's corpse is in.

That's not much of a point. Being Muslim requires you to have a particular & only that view to qualify as one. Hinduism can be seen as being unconcerned about particular religious practices simply because it makes no claim for either the superiority of a particular belief system nor does it reject other belief systems. In fact, it bases itself on the premise that there are many paths available.

 

[he-man]

There is nothing to answer there. Hinduism is not a religion per se in the sense that there is no founder, no one book, no one doctrine, no initiation, no apostasy, etc. etc. Whereas one does not get born a Muslim (no matter what some copycat Muslims say). You have to read the Kalima, boys have to get circumcised. Denial of the prophet gets one thrown out of the group. So how can one be born a Muslim when they have no acceptance of the prophet when they are born?

Its a religion all right.

 

[Indrani]

Its a religion all right.

It does not fit any parameter of a religion. Yes people want it to be considered a religion because otherwise they will lose out since the world is categorized by religions. If they do not accept it as a religion, then the more aggressive religions can poach on them even more saying hey you don't belong anywhere, so why not come to our "group", "Church" whatever.

The term Hinduism itself non-existent in any Hindu literature. What people followed then before "religions" were born was just trust in God-Brahman. You could call it by any name, worship it anyway, build a temple or not, they just lived naturally. There is no Kaffir in Hinduism because there never was anything else to be "other."

 

[he-man]

It does not fit any parameter of a religion. Yes people want it to be considered a religion because otherwise they will lose out since the world is categorized by religions. If they do not accept it as a religion, then the more aggressive religions can poach on them even more saying hey you don't belong anywhere, so why not come to our "group", "Church" whatever.

The term Hinduism itself non-existent in any Hindu literature. What people followed then before "religions" were born was just trust in God-Brahman. You could call it by any name, worship it anyway, build a temple or not, they just lived naturally. There is no Kaffir in Hinduism because there never was anything else to be "other."

U r explanation is irrelevant as people consider it a religion,,,,dosen't matter on which grounds

 

[Indrani]

U r explanation is irrelevant as people consider it a religion,,,,dosen't matter on which grounds

Okay.

 

[Indrani]

There are Muslims who say that Islam is not a religion, rather it is a way of life and every child born is considered a Muslim, I bet that you disagree with that assertion.

The same logic applies, hinduism is considered a religion by non-hindus. It is not misrepresenting anything if the belief system has a god or a set of gods, and has holy books.

Your logic is flawed. Muslims saying Islam is not a religion is not supported by evidence, whereas Hindus saying it is not a religion is supported by evidence. Hinduism having a set of belief systems is like saying the universe is both real and unreal. Gods exist and do not exist. For every set of belief that you will say belongs Hinduism, there are a set of beliefs which contradict that which also belongs to Hinduism.

People claim anything anywhere anytime, but still there is such a thing as facts.

 

[Kloitra]

It does not fit any parameter of a religion. Yes people want it to be considered a religion because otherwise they will lose out since the world is categorized by religions. If they do not accept it as a religion, then the more aggressive religions can poach on them even more saying hey you don't belong anywhere, so why not come to our "group", "Church" whatever.

The term Hinduism itself non-existent in any Hindu literature. What people followed then before "religions" were born was just trust in God-Brahman. You could call it by any name, worship it anyway, build a temple or not, they just lived naturally. There is no Kaffir in Hinduism because there never was anything else to be "other."

What parameter they would be, which define any religion? Just because it follows different philosophy than Abrahamic religions doesn't means it can't be called a religion (this is what you appear to be saying). A similar one would be Shinto of Japan - similar amalgamation of culture and faith, with no definite 'parameter' as you seem to call it.

 

[Indrani]

What parameter they would be, which define any religion? Just because it follows different philosophy than Abrahamic religions doesn't means it can't be called a religion (this is what you appear to be saying). A similar one would be Shinto of Japan - similar amalgamation of culture and faith, with no definite 'parameter' as you seem to call it.

It is not following a different philosophy, it is different thing/concept entirely. Religions have a definition. There is a structure to it with a beginning, a well defined boundary, and an end. Dharma has no structure to it at all. You can say people live in an apartment building with rules and regulations and that apartment building is called a religion. Then you have people living in the steppes or forests or apartments within that forest/steppes, just anywhere and anything with no particular hard lined rules or regulations which can be called as Dharma. Shintoism would be the close approximate of Dharma. Eastern traditions/philosophies have the same understanding of the world.

 

[Kloitra]

It is not following a different philosophy, it is different thing/concept entirely. Religions have a definition. There is a structure to it with a beginning, a well defined boundary, and an end. Dharma has no structure to it at all.

You are defining religion here. And I contest that definition. Why should religion have a well defined boundary? Why should it have any structure? Cannot I put all similar philosophies under one name and call it a religion? I can define a religion to be a collection of distantly related philosophies (having some sort of common ground). In the end it is just a technicality.

 

[Indrani]

You are defining religion here. And I contest that definition. Why should religion have a well defined boundary? Why should it have any structure? Cannot I put all similar philosophies under one name and call it a religion? I can define a religion to be a collection of distantly related philosophies (having some sort of common ground). In the end it is just a technicality.

Well you can go and call water as air or cow or anything you want but that will just make you unintelligible to people. The word religion was not invented by you and you cannot set its definition. You can of course come up with a new term where you can club anything and everything under the sun and call it whatever you want to name it. We already have something like that, called as Abrahamic faiths and Eastern traditions.

 

[Kloitra]

Well you can go and call water as air or cow or anything you want but that will just make you unintelligible to people. The word religion was not invented by you and you cannot set its definition. You can of course come up with a new term where you can club anything and everything under the sun and call it whatever you want to name it. We already have something like that, called as Abrahamic faiths and Eastern traditions.

religion
Use Religion in a sentence
re·li·gion
[ri-lij-uh

n] set of beliefs concerning the cause, nature, and purpose of the universe, especially when considered as the creation of a superhuman agency or agencies, usually involving devotional and ritual observances, and often containing a moral code governing the conduct of human affairs.
2.
a specific fundamental set of beliefs and practices generally agreed upon by a number of persons or sects: the Christian religion; the Buddhist religion.

As long as majority agree it is a religion, it will be, by definition.

 

[Indrani]

As long as majority agree it is a religion, it will be, by definition.

The Supreme court of India does not agree with you for one. Another, it has been very hard to define a Hindu and until now not many have succeeded in doing that. At last we have just settled at those who call themselves a Hindu are Hindus.

 

[Makaramarma]

The Supreme court of India does not agree with you for one. Another, it has been very hard to define a Hindu and until now not many have succeeded in doing that. At last we have just settled at those who call themselves a Hindu are Hindus.

Supreme court has only made observation of the generic term Hindu and Hinduism, and not on what constitutes the "religion" of Hinduism as it is commonly practised or understood.

Hinduism the religion is not necessarily about the nature of god or even the existence of god, it is about the practice of Dharma. Anybody who adheres to Dharma practices Hinduism and can claim Hinduism to be his/her religion.

Hence the claim of the Goan deputy CM that he is a Christian Hindu. He might understand the concept and Dharmic way of life more that most Hindus. The Irony. Of course that would make him loose his certificate of 'secularism'.

 

[Indrani]

Supreme court has only made observation of the generic term Hindu and Hinduism, and not on what constitutes the "religion" of Hinduism as it is commonly practised or understood.

Hinduism the religion is not necessarily about the nature of god or even the existence of god, it is about the practice of Dharma. Anybody who adheres to Dharma practices Hinduism and can claim Hinduism to be his/her religion.

Hence the claim of the Goan deputy CM that he is a Christian Hindu. He might understand the concept and Dharmic way of life more that most Hindus. The Irony. Of course that would make him loose his certificate of 'secularism'.

If it is not necessarily about nature of god or existence of god, then if falls outside the purview of the term "religion." That is all I am trying to say. It calls itself religion so as to be understood by others as an entity so that there is some distinction and it is not overrun due to the lack of that boundary.

 

[shiv]

i want my share of beef when i go to restaurants ! i dont care about hindu rashtra per se !