R Christianity and Hinduism. ELIGION is as old as the hills. The higher a nation rises in the scale of evolution, the better and finer is its conception of religion. Religion determines the growth, the development, and the culture of various countries. Both Christianity and Hinduism have millions their followers, but narrow-minded persons have for the last hundred years been painting Hinduism in the most hideous possible colors. They have, through platform and press, shown to their satisfaction that Hindu religious doctrines are mythological accounts of the passionate escapades and cruelties of a host of imaginery gods and godesses. On the other hand, there is not a single movement of higher thought throughout the length and breadth of the United States that is not getting its inspiration directly or indirectly from Hindu philosophy. The people of the West make little or no discrimination between the various communities inhabiting the vast empire of India. All the different religions now found among millions of Hindus go by the name of Hinduism. But in the words of a competent authority, "Happily, India, though it has at least twenty distinct languages, has but one sacred and learned language (Sanskrit) and one literature (Vedic) accepted and revered by all adherents of Hinduism alike, however *Dr. Shastri delivered this lecture in Minneapolis on Feb. 4th, 1917. diverse the race, dialect, rank, and creed." That remark does not hold good in the case of Mohammedanism and Christianity-both religions of Semitic origin and both claiming adherents among the people of India. Of the remaining population more than two hundred millions of people adhere directly or indirectly to the teachings of the Vedas, which are yet sealed books to the western world. Let us therefore analyze Hinduism : Scope and Extent of Hinduism. : The four Vedas are the foundation on which the superstructure called Hinduism is based. The Brahmans and the Upanishads are commentaries and expositions of the Vedic texts and deal with various physical and metaphysical problems. The four Upa-vedas deal exclusively with science. It is especially upon the subject matter of these books, says Gurudutta Vidyarthi, that a true estimate of Indian and occidental civilization can be formed by comparison. These four Upavedas are.....the Arthveda, the Dhanurveda, the Ayurveda and the Gandharvaveda. The Arthveda is the Upaveda that deals with the applied mechanics, engineering, perspection, practical arts (chemistry and physics), and geology. The Dhanurveda is the science of martial appliances, instrument, and tactics. The Ayurveda is the Upaveda that deals with surgery, botany, physiological chemistry, anatomy, physiology, materia medica, chemistry, and toxicology. The Gandharvaveda is the Upaveda of music and fine arts. Then come the six schools of philosophy-the Niyaya, the Sankhya, the Yoga, the Visheshaka the Mimansa and the Vedant. The teachings inculcated in the Bhagvat-Gita are based on the philosophies of both the Sankhya and the Yoga. The Vedantas are six in number. They are Shikhsha (alphabet), Vyakarna (grammar), Nirukta (etymology), Chanda (poetry), Kalpa (morals), and Jyotish |