From the Rig Veda

what is your opinion of the speaker's conclusions about creation?

My opinion of the speaker's conclusions about creation is that he ultimately has no idea how it began. He leans towards one ultimate being creating it along with many gods, but questions towards the end prove he has no idea.

The Vedas

- oldest sacred writing of Hinduism - older than those of any other major world religion - composed in Sanskrit (began 1500-1200BC) -hindus believe it contains eternal truths that were divinely revealed to ancient seers of prophets - memorized and recited orally; formed the basis for ancient religious rituals in India

veda

"knowledge"

Hindu's revere the vedas as "shruti," which literally means...

"that which is heard"

A paradox is a statement that seems contradictory but may reveal an unexpected truth. Identify a paradox in this hymn and explain it in your own words.

- "neither non-existence no existence; there was neither the realm of space nor the sky" (nothing there) - "neither death nor immortality then" (no life) - "no distinguishing sign of night nor of day" (no time) - "Darkness was hidden by darkness" (no light)

The Rig Veda

- means "knowledge in verse" - oldest and most important verse of the four Vedas - contains over one thousand verse hymns - runs as long as the Illiad and the Odyssey together - orally recited and passed on from generation to generation for more than three thousand years - Priests known as Brahmans preserved the test during this long time span bu using special memorization techniques including group chanting - Both a classic world literature as well as an invaluable source of historical information about early Indian religious and social development

Vedism

- the religion of the Aryans -involved elaborate sacrifices to a number of gods -the hymns of the Rig Veda were composed for these sacrificial ceremonies, which were led by Brahmins - Hinduism gradually evolved from Vedism

How does the speaker describe the conditions before creation?

-"neither non-existence nor existence than" - "neither the realm of space nor the sky which is beyond" (there is nothing) - "neither death not immortality then" (no life) - "no distinguishing sign of night nor day" - "Darkness was hidden by darkness" (no light) - "all this was water"

In the reading focus on page 496, you discussed familiar creation stories and theories. Compare on of them with this creation hymn

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Why does this hymn pose so many unanswered questions?

Because the belief of Hinduism which derived from Vedism involves questioning everything, this is their basis for religion.

This hymn was composed thousands of years ago. Do you find it relevant today? Explain your answer

It is relevant in that it describes the basis of a major world religion (Hinduism). However is irrelevant in describing how the Earth came to be because it proposes no actual belief on how it came to be.

What conclusions does the speaker draw about creation?

The speaker draws no absolute conclusions about creation. He starts off acting like he knows all about how the world began, but by the end he questions everything. He does not know; questions what he knows.

What does the speaker suggest might be the source or sources of creation?

The speaker suggests the source of creation might be... - "that one breathed,..." - "the life force..." - "that one arose through the power of heat" - "Desire came upon that on in the beginning; that was the first seed of mind

How does the speaker describe the relationship of the gods to creation? What does this imply about the gods?

the speaker describes the relationship of the gods to creation in that the gods came after creation. which implies that the gods were not involved in the creation, they are minors to some supreme being, and other being created the gods.

Who or what might the speaker be referring to in the sentence "That one breathed, windless by its own impulse"?

the speaker might be referring to the creator of the universe