Hindu practices

Hindu practice is rich and varied. AQA expects you to know how Hindus worship at home and in temples, the major festivals, pilgrimage and rites of passage.

Worship — three forms

1. Havan (fire ritual)

A sacred fire is lit in a small altar; offerings of ghee, grains and herbs are made while priests chant Vedic mantras. Common at weddings, housewarmings and major festivals. The fire is seen as a witness to the ritual and a channel to the gods.

2. Puja (devotional worship)

The most common form of daily worship. Offerings to a chosen deity (ishta-deva) are made before a murti (sacred image):

• Flowers — beauty, transience.
• Light (a lamp) — wisdom, presence of the divine.
• Incense — purification.
• Food (prasad) — blessed and shared with worshippers afterwards.

The priest offers the worshipper a tilak mark on the forehead.

3. Mandir (temple) worship

A mandir is a Hindu temple. The central shrine houses the murti. Worshippers:

• Remove shoes; wash hands and feet.
• Walk clockwise around the shrine (pradakshina).
• Receive prasad and hear scripture chanted.
• Some bring offerings of milk, flowers or coconuts.

The Neasden Mandir in north London is the largest traditional Hindu temple in Europe (built 1995, BAPS Swaminarayan).

Home shrines

Most Hindu homes have a small shrine (mandapa) — a corner or cabinet with murtis, incense and lamps. Many Hindus perform daily arti — circling a flame before the deity while chanting.

Pilgrimage

Hindus undertake pilgrimage (tirtha-yatra) to sacred sites, especially river confluences and temple cities.

• Varanasi (Kashi/Benares) — the holiest city, on the Ganges. Bathing in the Ganges is believed to wash away karma; cremation on its banks brings moksha.
• Kumbh Mela — held every 12 years at four sites in rotation (Allahabad, Haridwar, Nashik, Ujjain). The 2019 Allahabad Kumbh Mela attracted ~120 million pilgrims — the largest peaceful gathering of humans in history.
• Char Dham — the four holy abodes (Badrinath, Dwarka, Puri, Rameshwaram).

Festivals

Diwali — Festival of Lights

• Five-day festival in October/November.
• Celebrates the return of Rama to Ayodhya after defeating the demon Ravana (in the Ramayana).
• Also festival of Lakshmi (goddess of prosperity).
• Lamps (diyas) lit in homes; firework displays; sweets exchanged; new clothes.
• Marks the start of the Hindu new year in many traditions.

Holi — Festival of Colours

• Spring festival in March.
• Celebrates love (Krishna and Radha) and the victory of good (Prahlad) over evil (Holika).
• Bonfires the night before; coloured powder thrown the next day. A festival of joy across the social spectrum.

Rites of passage (samskaras)

Sixteen traditional samskaras mark life stages:

• Namakarana — naming ceremony, ~10–12 days after birth.
• Vidyarambha — beginning of education, marked by writing the first letter in rice.
• Upanayana — sacred thread ceremony for upper-caste boys, beginning their study of the Vedas.
• Vivaha — wedding ceremony, with seven steps around the sacred fire (saptapadi).
• Antyesti — funeral rites; cremation, ashes scattered in a sacred river.

Karma yoga and dharma

Two key practical concepts:

• Dharma — religious/moral duty. Specific to one's stage in life and role in society.
• Karma yoga — the path of selfless action. Doing one's duty without attachment to reward, as taught in the Bhagavad Gita.

The Bhagavad Gita records Krishna's advice to Arjuna: "Let your concern be with action alone, and never with the fruits of action."

Examiner tips

• For 4-mark questions on worship, name puja AND describe the offerings.
• For 12-mark questions, contrast home and temple worship — both are valid; which is more important is debated.
• Always cite at least one specific festival with named figures (Kumbh Mela 2019: ~120 million).