Hinduism Essay -- Religion, Dharma, Atman

Hinduism is a religion filled with many philosophical thoughts about the soul, following your duties, achieving liberation and understanding the consequences of karma. Many of the beliefs in Hinduism makes a person think of life and their own actions they do everyday since it can affect your next life. Hinduism sometimes also makes one wonder if all of these various beliefs and philosophical thoughts are true or not and if you don’t follow your duties (dharma), if consequences really do occur or not in the present life and the next life. Atman, which is the soul, is constantly craving for things and always wants something even after we obtain our desires; it is a non-stop process (Embree 33). The Self (atman) is taken over by pleasure and pain, which is true in life because there are always desires that give us pleasure and make us happy (Embree 36). But one also needs to remember that life has its ups and downs meaning, there always will be a time of pain in life. No one is ever satisfied in life, we are always wanting more and more each day. According to the Upanishadic thinker the material world is not very important, only you, your soul, and the actions you do are important (Embree 36). Nothing else is more important in the world than your personality, which is the self (atman). I don’t completely agree with the Upanishadic thinker that the material world does not matter. It does matter because our actions and the way our soul feels at certain situations, it all comes from the material world. Yes, our acti ons are just as important but the material world drives us to our actions that the soul does. Every act we make, every thought and every desire, shapes this and our future lives. Karma, action and the consequences of action... ...rma at a young age. A person has to be able to follow their dharma no matter, because it may not always be the right action but it has to be fulfilled because it is your dharma. Arjuna in Mahabharata did not want to kill his own people, because he knew it was a sin. Krishna convinced him that he would commit a sin if he failed to perform his own duty (dharma) as a warrior, because a warrior’s duty is to fight (Embree 281). Hinduism can relate everything to each other and that is why for many it is easier to understand the whole concept of Hinduism, the atman, following your duties, achieving liberation and understanding the consequences of karma. You must perform your dharma in your life and do good karma in order to either have a better soul in the next life or to escape the cycle of samsara. If one does not obtain or fulfilled, one may not achieve liberation.