Hinduism: Key Religious Concepts

What Hinduism: Key Religious Concepts covers

Hinduism: Key Religious Concepts is examined in AS Unit 1, An Introduction to the Study of Religion — the Hinduism option, studied instead of the other five. It covers Brahman, atman and the nature of the self, the Trimurti, cyclic time and Saguna Brahman, karma, samsara and reincarnation and Evaluating Brahman, the Trimurti and karma.

The 4 subtopics

Each one has its own page.

• Brahman, atman and the nature of the selfWords sat, chit and ananda and what is meant by calling Brahman macrocosmic and atman microcosmic.Open →
• The Trimurti, cyclic time and Saguna BrahmanFour yugas of a world cycle, why Hindus do not regard Shiva's destruction as simply negative and three characteristic features of Vaishnavism.Open →
• Karma, samsara and reincarnationSanchita karma, prarabdha karma and kriyamana karma.Open →
• Evaluating Brahman, the Trimurti and karmaRecall questions on atman and the absolute, Ramanuja's position, worshipping an impersonal God, Vaishnavism and Shaivism as separate religions, and whether this life or the next matters more.Open →

What you need to know

Answer each one before you reveal it.

Take Hinduism: Key Religious Concepts further

The same content, four other ways.

Questions from this topic

Each one with the model answer underneath.

1. 1

   What is Brahman?

   Model answer

   Brahman is the one ultimate reality that underlies, pervades and sustains everything that exists.

2. 2

   What do the words sat, chit and ananda mean when applied to Brahman?

   Model answer

   They mean being, consciousness and bliss, the three terms Vedanta uses to point to what Brahman is in itself.

3. 3

   What is the atman?

   Model answer

   The atman is the eternal self within a living being, distinct from the body, the mind and the personality that change and die.

4. 4

   Explain what is meant by calling Brahman macrocosmic and atman microcosmic.

   Model answer

   Brahman is the universal spirit present throughout the whole of reality, while the atman is that same reality present at the personal level, so the self within is the universe in small.

5. 5

   What is the jiva-atman?

   Model answer

   It is the individual soul as it exists in a body, carrying its accumulated karma and passing from one life to the next.

6. 6

   What is the paramatman?

   Model answer

   It is the supreme self, the divine indwelling in all things, which most schools other than Advaita hold to be more than the individual soul.

What is inside Levo

Six ways to work the same material.

Hinduism: Key Religious Concepts revision questions

What does Hinduism: Key Religious Concepts cover in WJEC A-Level Religious Studies?

4 subtopics: brahman, atman and the nature of the self, the trimurti, cyclic time and saguna brahman, karma, samsara and reincarnation and evaluating brahman, the trimurti and karma. Each one has its own page with questions and model answers.

How is Hinduism: Key Religious Concepts organised?

By the WJEC 603-0277-X specification, subtopic by subtopic, so it matches the order you are taught it in.