Hindu Beliefs Exam-Style Questions
A QUESTIONS:
DEFINITION & EXAMPLE
Ahimsa Non violence towards all living This is because all living beings should be
things treated with respect and compassion. Many
Hindus will be vegetarian as being a
non-violent human includes not killing
animals.
Brahman The supreme power in the Hindus believe God can be formless, and with
universe, ultimate reality, known a form - Nirguna and Saguna
as God
Dharma The religious, moral duty or every This is affected by varna and ashrama. For
person differing on their role in example, the duties of a student from a
society Brahmin family will differ to those of a retired
businessman.
Moksha Release from the cycle of birth, Hindus can achieve moksha through
death and rebirth, it is ultimate meditation and bhakti yoga - by cutting off
union with God attachments to the material world and
focusing on the Ultimate Reality.
Murti ‘Form’, image or statue of a For example, Swaminarayan hindus may have
god/goddess, often the focal point an image of Nar Narayan in their puja
of puja.
Trimurti Three major aspects of Brahman, Vishnu preserves the earth by incarnating in
the supreme power: Brahma the various forms when good needs to be
creator, Vishnu the preserver, and reestablished
Shiva the destroyer
Bhagavan The personal side of God with For example, many hindus worship Krishna,
characteristics who is depicted as naughty, cheeky and
intelligent
Shakti Shakti is the feminine energy of She can appear as Parvati, Kali, or Durga,
the universe various forms of Shiva’s consort
Atman The eternal self, usually translated It has always existed, it cannot be destroyed.
as soul or spirit This comforts hindus that it is not the end
after death and their soul lives on in another
being.
, B QUESTIONS (5 marks)
PEE PEE/ PET PET
Describe the role of the trimurti (5)/ Describe Hindu teachings about the trimurti (8)
The Trimurti is the three major aspects of Brahman. It involves Brahma the creator, Vishnu
the preserver, and Shiva the destroyer. Brahman exists beyond this world as a spiritual
force, hence, the trimurti are manifestations of the Supreme Being to allow Hindus to gain a
deeper understanding of Him. Furthermore, the trimurti explains how this earth was created,
maintained, and then eventually destroyed. This is shown in the Kurma Purana (1.9) where
Brahma and Vishnu together killed the demons that wanted to sabotage the creation of the
universe. This story demonstrates how the trimurti work interdependently to maintain the
earth. Lastly, the Kurma Purana also states ‘Shiva lived in all of the elements, including the
sun, water, sky, fire, wind and trees’ which shows how the trimurti represent the elements of
all that exists.
However, different deities of the trimurti have different significance to Hindus. For example,
Vaishnavas focus their worship on Vishnu, and consider him to be the supreme God,
Brahman, with Saguna qualities. They tend to not accept the idea of the Trimurti, and believe
that Vishnu has no equal as he is the manifestation of Brahman. Brahma and Shiva are
forms of Vishnu. On the other hand, Shaivities focus their worship on Shiva. Like
Vaishnavas, they believe that Shiva is not one of the trimurti and he alone is responsible for
the creation, maintenance and destruction of the universe. For example, Shaivities usually
represent shiva with three heads to show his three roles. In addition , Brahma is hardly
worshipped today by Hindus. Some Hindus believe that this is because he behaved
inappropriately towards Saraswati, and was punished by Shiva, ensuring that he could not
be worshipped. Others believe it is because his role as a creator is over.
Describe Hindu teachings about Brahman (5)/(8)
Hinduism teaches that Brahman is the spirit which created the universe, and works within
the physical universe. This is shown in the quote ‘From Him the universe merges, and in it
the universe breathes’ (Upanishad) which illustrates that the universe is living because of
Brahmans control over its ‘breath’. Furthermore, Hindus believe Brahman exists inside all
things, in the heart of all beings. This belief is known as ‘Antaryami’, which translates to
‘Inside controller’ where Brahman (the absolute truth) exists inside our souls. This is
supported in the quote from the Katha Upanishad: ‘He is the swan, dwelling in the bright
heaven; he is the Vasu, dwelling in the sky…’ which explains that He is omnipresent and
‘dwells’ everywhere.
Adding to the previous point, Hindus believe that everything is made of Brahman. This can
be seen in the quote ‘Everything is Brahman and Brahman is everything’ which emphasises
that Brahman is not only omnipresent, but also exists in everything. This aligns with the
Monist school of belief that although it may appear that the universe is made of many
different objects, in reality they are all part of Brahman, and will return to Brahman. All our
souls are part of one universal soul, which is Brahman. On the other hand, not all Hindus
would agree with this belief. The Monotheistic school of belief teaches that Brahman’s
creation (including our souls) is different from the universal soul that is Brahman. Even
A QUESTIONS:
DEFINITION & EXAMPLE
Ahimsa Non violence towards all living This is because all living beings should be
things treated with respect and compassion. Many
Hindus will be vegetarian as being a
non-violent human includes not killing
animals.
Brahman The supreme power in the Hindus believe God can be formless, and with
universe, ultimate reality, known a form - Nirguna and Saguna
as God
Dharma The religious, moral duty or every This is affected by varna and ashrama. For
person differing on their role in example, the duties of a student from a
society Brahmin family will differ to those of a retired
businessman.
Moksha Release from the cycle of birth, Hindus can achieve moksha through
death and rebirth, it is ultimate meditation and bhakti yoga - by cutting off
union with God attachments to the material world and
focusing on the Ultimate Reality.
Murti ‘Form’, image or statue of a For example, Swaminarayan hindus may have
god/goddess, often the focal point an image of Nar Narayan in their puja
of puja.
Trimurti Three major aspects of Brahman, Vishnu preserves the earth by incarnating in
the supreme power: Brahma the various forms when good needs to be
creator, Vishnu the preserver, and reestablished
Shiva the destroyer
Bhagavan The personal side of God with For example, many hindus worship Krishna,
characteristics who is depicted as naughty, cheeky and
intelligent
Shakti Shakti is the feminine energy of She can appear as Parvati, Kali, or Durga,
the universe various forms of Shiva’s consort
Atman The eternal self, usually translated It has always existed, it cannot be destroyed.
as soul or spirit This comforts hindus that it is not the end
after death and their soul lives on in another
being.
, B QUESTIONS (5 marks)
PEE PEE/ PET PET
Describe the role of the trimurti (5)/ Describe Hindu teachings about the trimurti (8)
The Trimurti is the three major aspects of Brahman. It involves Brahma the creator, Vishnu
the preserver, and Shiva the destroyer. Brahman exists beyond this world as a spiritual
force, hence, the trimurti are manifestations of the Supreme Being to allow Hindus to gain a
deeper understanding of Him. Furthermore, the trimurti explains how this earth was created,
maintained, and then eventually destroyed. This is shown in the Kurma Purana (1.9) where
Brahma and Vishnu together killed the demons that wanted to sabotage the creation of the
universe. This story demonstrates how the trimurti work interdependently to maintain the
earth. Lastly, the Kurma Purana also states ‘Shiva lived in all of the elements, including the
sun, water, sky, fire, wind and trees’ which shows how the trimurti represent the elements of
all that exists.
However, different deities of the trimurti have different significance to Hindus. For example,
Vaishnavas focus their worship on Vishnu, and consider him to be the supreme God,
Brahman, with Saguna qualities. They tend to not accept the idea of the Trimurti, and believe
that Vishnu has no equal as he is the manifestation of Brahman. Brahma and Shiva are
forms of Vishnu. On the other hand, Shaivities focus their worship on Shiva. Like
Vaishnavas, they believe that Shiva is not one of the trimurti and he alone is responsible for
the creation, maintenance and destruction of the universe. For example, Shaivities usually
represent shiva with three heads to show his three roles. In addition , Brahma is hardly
worshipped today by Hindus. Some Hindus believe that this is because he behaved
inappropriately towards Saraswati, and was punished by Shiva, ensuring that he could not
be worshipped. Others believe it is because his role as a creator is over.
Describe Hindu teachings about Brahman (5)/(8)
Hinduism teaches that Brahman is the spirit which created the universe, and works within
the physical universe. This is shown in the quote ‘From Him the universe merges, and in it
the universe breathes’ (Upanishad) which illustrates that the universe is living because of
Brahmans control over its ‘breath’. Furthermore, Hindus believe Brahman exists inside all
things, in the heart of all beings. This belief is known as ‘Antaryami’, which translates to
‘Inside controller’ where Brahman (the absolute truth) exists inside our souls. This is
supported in the quote from the Katha Upanishad: ‘He is the swan, dwelling in the bright
heaven; he is the Vasu, dwelling in the sky…’ which explains that He is omnipresent and
‘dwells’ everywhere.
Adding to the previous point, Hindus believe that everything is made of Brahman. This can
be seen in the quote ‘Everything is Brahman and Brahman is everything’ which emphasises
that Brahman is not only omnipresent, but also exists in everything. This aligns with the
Monist school of belief that although it may appear that the universe is made of many
different objects, in reality they are all part of Brahman, and will return to Brahman. All our
souls are part of one universal soul, which is Brahman. On the other hand, not all Hindus
would agree with this belief. The Monotheistic school of belief teaches that Brahman’s
creation (including our souls) is different from the universal soul that is Brahman. Even
