Hinduism is an ancient religion with no founder or known date of origin. The term “Hinduism” simply derives from the word “India” and refers to a wide variety of religious traditions and philosophies that have developed in India over thousands of years. Most Hindus worship one or more deities, believe in reincarnation, value the practice of meditation, and observe festive holidays like Diwali and Holi. 1
______________________________________________________________________________
A Hindu Prayer for Peace
Oh God, lead us from the unreal to the Real.
Oh God, lead us from darkness to light.
Oh God, lead us from death to immortality.
Shanti, Shanti, Shanti unto all.
Oh Lord God almighty, may there be peace in celestial regions.
May there be peace on earth.
May the waters be appeasing.
May herbs be wholesome, and may trees and plants bring peace to all.
May all beneficent beings bring peace to us.
May the Vedic Law propagate peace all through the world.
May all things be a source of peace to us.
And may thy peace itself bestow peace on all and may that peace come to me also.
– U.N. Day of Prayer for World Peace 2
______________________________________________________________________________
Hindu Upanishads
Lead me from death to life,
from falsehood to truth.
Lead me from despair to hope,
from fear to trust.
Lead me from hate to love,
from war to peace.
Let peace fill our heart, our world, our universe.
Peace, peace, peace.
– Adapted from the Hindu Upanishads by Satish Kumar
______________________________________________________________________________
O! Mother Earth
O! Mother Earth,
who has the ocean as clothes and mountains and forests on her body,
who is the wife of Lord Vishnu, I bow to you.
Please forgive me for touching you with my feet.
– Hindu Prayer
______________________________________________________________________________
Bhagavad-Gita
The brightness of the sun, which lights up the world, the brightness of the moon and of fire
– these are my glory. With a drop of my energy. I enter the earth and support all creatures.
Through the moon, the vessel of life-giving fluid, I nourish all plants.
– Lord Krishna, Bhagavad-Gita (Song of the Lord)
______________________________________________________________________________
Peace
Supreme Lord, let there be peace in the sky and in the atmosphere. Let there be peace in the plant world and in the forests. Let the cosmic powers be peaceful. Let the Brahman, the true essence and source of life, be peaceful. Let there be undiluted and fulfilling peace everywhere.
– The Atharva Veda
______________________________________________________________________________
Prayers for Peace
May there be peace in the higher regions; may there be peace in the firmament;
may there be peace on earth.
May the waters flow peacefully; may the herbs and plants grow peacefully;
may all the divine powers bring unto us peace.
The supreme Lord is peace.
May we all be in peace, peace, and only peace; and may that peace come unto each of us.
Shanti (peace) Shanti—Shanti!
– The Vedas, trans. Raimundo Panniker
______________________________________________________________________________
Hindu Morning Prayer
May all in this world be happy,
may they be healthy,
may they be comfortable
and never miserable.
May the rain come down in the proper time,
may the earth yield plenty of corn,
may the country be free from war,
may the Brahmans be secure.
– Hindu Morning Prayer
______________________________________________________________________________
Pure and Strong
Lord, make me so pure and strong
That all creatures may look upon me with friendship.
And may I also look upon all creatures with friendship.
– Yajur Veda
______________________________________________________________________________
There is a Light
There is a light that shines beyond all things on earth,
beyond all of us, beyond the heavens,
beyond the highest, the very highest heavens.
This is the light that shines in our hearts.
– Chandogya Upanishad
______________________________________________________________________________
Nature’s Beauty
Nature’s beauty is an art of God. Let us feel the touch of God’s invisible hands in everything beautiful.
By the first touch of His hand rivers throb and ripple. When He smiles the sun shines, the moon glimmers,
the stars twinkle, the flowers bloom. By the first rays of the rising sun, the universe is stirred;
the shining gold is sprinkled on the smiling buds of rose; the fragrant air is filled with sweet melodies
of singing birds, the dawn is the dream of God’s creative fancy.
– Rig Veda 1.6.3
______________________________________________________________________________
Prayer for the Unity of All Life
May the winds, the oceans, the herbs, and night and days, the mother earth,
the father heaven, all vegetation, the sun, be all sweet to us.
Let us follow the path of goodness for all times,
like the sun and the moon moving eternally in the sky.
Let us be charitable to one another.
Let us not kill or be violent with one another.
Let us know and appreciate the points of view of others. And let us unite.
– Hindu Prayer
______________________________________________________________________________
Prayer For Peace
I offer you peace. I offer you love. I offer you friendship.
I see your beauty. I hear your need. I feel your feelings.
My wisdom flows from the Highest Source. I salute that Source in you.
Let us work together for unity and love.
– Mahatma Gandhi
______________________________________________________________________________
Peace Chant
Peace be to the East! Peace be to the West!
Peace be to the North! Peace be to the South!
Peace be above! Peace be below!
Peace be to all creatures of this universe!
Peace be everywhere.
– Sri Swami Sivananda
______________________________________________________________________________
Quotes and Inspirations
Earth provides enough to satisfy every man’s need, but not every man’s greed.
– Mahatma Gandhi
You must be the change you wish to see in the world.
– Mahatma Gandhi
Look at the trees, look at the birds, look at the clouds, look at the stars… and if you have eyes you will be able to see that the whole existence is joyful. Everything is simply happy. Trees are happy for no reason; they are not going to become prime ministers or presidents and they are not going to become rich and they will never have any bank balance. Look at the flowers – for no reason. It is simply unbelievable how happy flowers are.
– Osho
Just as the beauty and sweet fragrance of the Lotus flower are only revealed when it rises up from the muddy water and turns towards the sun, so our lives will only grow in beauty when we leave behind the world of Maya or illusion and look toward God, through meditation.
– Swami Vishnu Devananda
We meditate on the transcendental glory of the Deity Supreme, who is inside the heart of the Earth, inside the life of the sky, and inside the soul of the heaven.
– From the Gayatri Mantra
Only spiritual consciousness – realization of God’s presence in oneself and in every other living being – can save the world. I see no chance for peace without it.
– Paramahansa Yogananda
If one’s mind had peace, the whole world would appear peaceful.
– Sri Ramana Maharshi
You have it in your power to make your days on Earth a path of flowers, instead of a path of thorns.
– Sri Sathya Sai Baba
Be the peace you wish for the world.
– Mahatma Gandhi
Meditation On Lord Shiva
Shaantam padmaasanastham shashadharamakutam panchavaktram trinetram,
Shoolam vajram cha khadgam parashumabhayadam dakshinaange vahantam;
Naagam paasham cha ghantaam damaruka sahitam chaankusham vaamabhaage,
Naanaalankaara deeptam sphatika maninibham paarvateesham namaami.
MEANING: I prostrate myself before the five-faced Lord of Parvati, who is adorned with various ornaments, who shines like the crystal jewel, who is seated peacefully in the lotus pose, with moon-crested crown, with three eyes, wearing trident, thunderbolt, sword and axe on the right side, who holds the serpent, noose, bell, damaru and spear on the left side, and who gives protection from all fear to His devotees.
Meditation On Lord Ganesha
Gajaananam bhootaganaadisevitam
Kapittha jamboophala saara bhakshitam;
Umaasutam shoka vinaasha kaaranam
Namaami vighneshwara paada pankajam.
MEANING: I worship the lotus feet of Ganesha, the son of Uma, the destroyer of all sorrows, who is served by the host of gods and elementals, and who takes the essence of the kapittha-jarnbu fruit (fruit resembling the bilwa fruit).
Meditation On Sri Krishna
Vamshee vibhooshita karaan navaneeradaabhaat
Peetaambaraadaruna bimbaphalaa dharoshthaat;
Poornendusundara mukhaad aravinda netraat
Krishnaat param kimapi tattwam aham na jaane.
MEANING: I know not any other Reality than the lotus-eyed Krishna with hands adorned with flute, looking like a heavy-laden cloud in lustre, wearing a yellow silk garment, with His lower lip like a ruddy bimba fruit, and with face shining like the full moon.
Meditation On Sri Rama
Dhyaayedaajaanubaaham dhritasharadhanusham baddhapadmaasanastham,
Peetam vaaso vasaanam navakamala dala spardhinetram prasannam;
Vaamaankaaroodhaseetaa mukhakamala milal lochanam neeradaabham,
Naanaalankaara deeptam dadhatamuru jataa mandalam raamachandram.
MEANING: One should meditate on Sri Ramachandra, with hands reaching the knees, holding the bow and arrows, seated in the locked-up lotus posture, wearing a yellow garb, with eyes vying with the newly-blossomed lotus petals, with a pleasant gait, who has Sita seated on His left thigh, who is blue like the clouds, who is adorned with all kinds of ornaments and having a big circle of Jata on the head.
aftabalam629 