Well, first of all, they live for the sake of living and loving – people, nature, their gods and their sacred rituals. They live in close communion with nature, with the earth, with their temples, with their families and with everything living. They were not taught to hate. They were not taught to own more than their neighbors, to accumulate, to climb to pinnacles of power. They were taught to help each other out in need, to be in peace with their inner selves and with the universe. I am mostly referring to the Hindus, since that is by far the majority religion.
The role of religion in the lives of Hindus
Almost all Hindus depend totally on their religion to go through their lives with equanimity. They worship at the temple or the shrine, regularly, and in masses whenever there is a sacred ritual taking place. It's a common ritual to touch the floor with their foreheads and Hindus frequently in temples and before shrines stop to make the sign of worship – bowing and putting hands together before the image of a god or a symbol thereof, for instance a holy Nandi (bull). The joined hands are placed higher and higher to indicate increasing respect and veneration. Hindu men often prostrate themselves on the floor of the temple in veneration of the specific god the shrine or the temple is devoted to.
The worshippers assemble in front of the Brahmins who are the only ones allowed into the sanctum sanctorum, the innermost often small and dark place that surrounds an idol. [1] The Brahmins are the highest caste in the age-old Hindu caste system. They are the keepers and interpreters of their religion, the representatives of the god of the temple. In the sanctum sanctorum people give flowers or other offerings and receive the imprint of ashes on their foreheads. Candles are often lit in front of the idol and the worshippers make the sign of veneration, hands together and heads bowed.
In many temples non-Hindus are not allowed into the temple proper. But what is common for everybody is that whenever you are inside a temple you must not wear your shoes. You just leave them at the entrance before crossing the gateway to the first open-air temple court. Being barefoot is to ensure that nothing is in the way of your communication with the earth, or you can also say so as not to soil the sacredness of the temple. But you can get your feet fairly sore from walking on hot stone or burning hot sand, going from one section of the temple to another.
Without this close communion between the people and their sacred symbols, it seems that the lives of the Hindus would be empty of much of the essential values that make them such trusting and fulfilled beings. The outstanding feature of Hinduism is the message of living in peace and harmony with all people and with nature. There is no hate message, only acceptance of the Other.
Of course there is a mixture of religions in India and you very often see Muslims in the streets and there are mosques as well as Hindu temples and sacred shrines in the towns and villages. Many men are now dressed in Western garb, but practically all women are dressed in saris or salwar kameez (tunic, pajama and long scarf), if Hindus, and long black robes if Muslims, burkas or not burkas. Children wear western dress, but school children normally wear uniforms: for girls dresses and often scarves around their necks, tied in the back; for boys shirts and long pants.
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