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Welcome to Hindu Traditions
Welcome to Hindu Traditions.
More than a billion people, about one in seven human beings, are Hindu. Their tradition is the oldest of the world’s major living religions, with roots more than three thousand years deep, yet it has no single founder, no single scripture, and no central authority. Many Hindus prefer to call it Sanatana Dharma, the eternal way.
In this course you will read the Upanishads and the Bhagavad Gita, meet Hindu gods and goddesses as Hindus themselves understand them, explore the great ideas of karma and liberation, and learn how Hindus worship, marry, mourn, and celebrate. You will hear the voices of women saints and scholars, of Dalit reformers who fought caste, and of Hindus living today in India and in your own community. Throughout, the goal is to describe Hindu traditions as Hindus would recognize them, while being honest about the debates within them.
How This Course Works
| Topic | Details |
|---|---|
| Prerequisite | None. Titles and degrees begin with ordination through the Ordination Orientation. |
| Pace | Self-paced. Most students finish in four to six weeks, studying about four to five hours a week. There are no deadlines. |
| Structure | Eight modules. Each module has a lesson, a reading assignment, and a ten-question quiz. |
| Book report | Read one of the books offered, pass its ten-question quiz, and write a one-paragraph summary, after Module 8. |
| Final exam | Fifteen multiple-choice questions and one essay of 1,500 to 2,000 words, taken after Module 8. |
| Credit | 3 credit hours toward further titles and degrees. |
Grading
| Part | To pass |
|---|---|
| Module quizzes (8) | Pass each with 70% or higher. Retakes allowed. |
| Book report quiz (10 questions) | Pass with 70% or higher. Retakes allowed. |
| Book report summary (one paragraph) | Approved by the school |
| Final exam, Part 1 (multiple choice) | Pass with 70% or higher. Retakes allowed. |
| Final exam, Part 2 (one essay, 1,500 to 2,000 words) | Approved by the school |
Required texts
- The Bhagavad Gita, translated by Eknath Easwaran
- The Upanishads, translated by Eknath Easwaran
- Hinduism: A Very Short Introduction, Kim Knott
Many of these books are available from public libraries, used bookstores, and as ebooks.
What you will study
Module 1: What Is Hinduism? Module 2: The Vedas and Upanishads Module 3: Dharma, Karma, and Liberation Module 4: The Epics and the Bhagavad Gita Module 5: One and Many: Gods and Goddesses Module 6: Philosophy, Yoga, and the Poet-Saints Module 7: Worship, Rites of Passage, and Festivals Module 8: Modern Hinduism and Hindus Today
Book report choices
The Bhagavad Gita, Eknath Easwaran, translator; Hinduism: A Very Short Introduction, Kim Knott
Academic honesty
All written work must be your own. You may quote and discuss the course readings and other sources, but you must say where the words and ideas came from. Submitting work written by someone else, including work generated entirely by AI tools, is not permitted.