Hinduism and Christianity are different in their specific beliefs, but their fundamentals are essentially the same. That is, the stories, teachings and means to their goals may radically differ, but the goals themselves, such as concepts of afterlife, heaven, and human goodness, are alike. Spiritual perfection is found in Hinduisms moksha and Christianitys Heaven. Hinduism teaches Karma and Christianity holds Jesus Christs teachings of goodness as means whereby humans can measure right and wrong conduct. Hinduism and Christianity edify cleanings of the soul, both with great focus on water. Hinduism believes in the role of its many Gods in everyday life. It has three primary Gods, which some Hindus believe act as one in Brahman. Most Hindus [...] hold that all gods and goddesses are the Ultimate Reality or Absolute Reality [...] called Brahman (Clemmons). Christianity also believes in the role of God in everyday life, and similarly, has only one God, composed of three figures: Father, Son, and Holy Spirit, to which all are referred, "God." It is for these reasons to be elaborated herein, that Christianity and Hinduism, despite superficial variation, are the same at their cores.

Hinduism is one of the worlds oldest religions at approximately 3 500 years old, beginning approximately 1 500 BCE. Its origins trace back to the Indus Valley region (Jayaram). Hinduism derived richly from the Indus People, the Vedic People, from Dravidian cultures, from folk religions and also from the foreign traditions of Mesopotamia, Greece, Arabia, China and central Russia (Jayaram). Its highest concentration is in India, and the majority of the population of India is Hindu. Followers of Hinduism, however, exist worldwide, numbering an approximate total of 800 million. Furthermore, Hindu philosophy and literature have become worldly influential even to those who do not follow the religion (White). Such is the wisdom behind them. Hindu scriptures do not come from a single book; Hinduism rather has many sacred writings, all of which have in some way contributed to its doctrines. The Vedas, the Puranas, the Ramayana, the Mahabharata and the Manu Smriti are the most important (White).

Christianity, known as such, began approximately 2 000 years ago after the death of Jesus Christ, who taught about human values of Goodness, Gods unconditional love for all humans, and His perpetual will to forgive all repenting sinners from their wrongdoings. Christianity has become the largest of world religions with over 2 billion followers. Furthermore, of all religions, Christianity spans the greatest geographic area (Britannica). Christianity has many denominations, sprouting from numerous discrepancies in the opinions and biblical interpretations of its followers. Christian doctrines are derived almost in totality from interpretations of the bible, which was written by followers of Jesus throughout a period following his death, during the formation of the Church. Still today, many separations within the church exist, but its fundamentals about right and wrong, good and evil, and necessary human love for God and each other stand steadfast.

Both Hinduism and Christianity have central beliefs in Heaven. In Hinduism there are many and varied concepts of heaven. Worshippers of Vishnu, the Preserver, for example, believe that they will go to a heaven in which there is no suffering, fear, or death and that they will be able to live in the glory of Vishnu's eternal light (Britannica). Christianitys view of heaven is more uniform among its believers. It holds that heaven is a place of peace and salvation in which to dwell eternally with Jesus, the Son, God, the Father, and the Holy Spirit.

The core belief of Hinduism is that humans and all living beings contain souls, which must achieve spiritual perfection. When it is achieved, the soul permanently enters a higher level of existence, called moksha. This entry is the purpose of living. Reincarnation is the rebirth of a soul into a new Earthly existence. It takes place redundantly over extraordinary numbers of years, until moksha is achieved (White). The concept of perfection, though elucidated differently in Hinduism, is similar to Christianitys beliefs that a human soul goes to heaven after achieving subjective perfection; not true perfection, as implied in Hinduism, because such was only possible by the Christian saviour, Jesus Christ. The cyclic death and rebirth process in Christianity is a metaphoric rather than an actual one. In Hinduism, a soul is actually dead and then reborn. Whereas, in Christianity, the soul, within the same physical Earthly body goes through a series of deaths and births, so to speak, within the lifespan of that one body only. The birth and death in Christianity are caused by sin and repentance. In sinning, the soul is wounded, and a part of it dies. In repenting ones sins, that dead part of the soul is reborn even stronger than before. Hence, the process of achieving perfection in both Hinduism and Christianity is through failure and death, and resultant rebirth, in order to try again to achieve sufficient perfection for Heaven or moksha.

In Hinduism, the law of karma states that every action influences how the soul will be born in the next reincarnation. If a person lives a good life, the soul will be born into a higher state, perhaps into the body of a brahmin. If a person leads an evil life, the soul will be born into a lower state, perhaps into the body of a worm (White). The conclusion, therefore, is that virtue yields reward, and evil yields penalty. This is true in Christianity as well, although endorsement of punishment throughout the years, especially after Vatican II, has somewhat ceased. In Christianity, doers of good find reward in heaven, while doers of evil do not. In both Christianity and Hinduism, blissful ends promote living for the glory of God, and doing what is, by human and divine standards, morally right. Furthermore, both religions promote similar standards of what such righteousness is, focusing of communal values, loving ones neighbours, and in trust, obeying when asked to obey, as with parents, respected peers, and God.

The root of the motives for rituals of cleansing ones soul, in both Christianity and Hinduism, is purification from sin and evil, in preparation for the love of God. In both religions, water is almost always used. In Christianity, there are many examples of cleansing. Baptism is a Christian sacrament involving the use of water, which is either sprinkled on the head of the recipient, or into which he or she is fully or partially submerged (Britannica). There is holy water at every entrance in Christian churches as well, to bless oneself with the love of God and be cleansed before entering or leaving the Church. In Hinduism, cleansing plays an even more prominent role in everyday life. Worshippers cleanse themselves in communal baths before entering temples to pray, and all Hindus bath several times every day to be certain they are always clean for respect of oneself and of Gods. The most prominent example of Hindu cleansing, however, is the Ganges river, a great river of the plains of northern India [...] From time immemorial it has been the holy river of the Hindus (Britannica). Hindu myth holds that the river was poured down from heaven, and is now a sacred body, which holds the power to wash away sins. Therefore in both religions, cleansing plays a central role, in the interest of purifying the body mind and soul, in order to find God as such and in oneself.

Hinduisms concept of Gods as a force in everyday life has been so influential throughout its history that even many non-Hindus have come to greatly respect and admire the Gods, even though they do not worship them. Statues and paintings of many Hindu Gods, even outside of India, are dearly regarded symbols of peace and harmony for their cities, merely in their own existence. Hindu Gods are all represented in human form, save for Brahman, which has no form. Furthermore, many Hindu Gods have come to Earth themselves. Such are known as avatars: An avatar is the incarnation of a god or goddess who has descended from the heavenly world to rid the world of evil (Clemmons). The role of Gods in Hinduism as facets of everyday life has grown to such extent that Gods seem almost to be considered companions and friends. Many families choose a specific God, which composes many of their beliefs and desires, and pray to that God from their home. Christianitys belief of Gods is no less prevalent, though possibly far more subtle. Christians believe in an omniscient God that permeates everyone and everything, every thought and emotion of the world, as a friend, as a guide, and as a parent to love and to guide, to hold and console, and to raise those who have fallen in life that they may live and love again. This was exemplified with Jesus descent to Earth, to be with the men and women of sin that God created, to teach them and to show them how to love. Every Christian mass closes with a reminder that God lives within everyone and this, in subtle truth, is the most primal Christian doctrine.

Religions are complex bodies of contradiction, disagreement and often fallacy, bringing about hatred and indignant pride. Such is the result of the faiths and dogmas, with elusive stories to convey a specific point and elucidate a specific goal to its followers, resulting in casting out and ignoring those who are not official integrated, e.g. by baptism, and those who do not follow or believe in the mere stories, regardless of their belief in the ends they serve to convey.

What is overlooked by all persons of all religions is that in ignorance and closed-mindedness, the doctrines have been lost in obsessions and preoccupations with the stories that serve to convey them. Hinduism and Christianity, two religions so distant in times and places, and means of understanding the world, are yet identical in their teachings at their core. All religions teach the same thing. All religions, in Mahatma Ghandis most brilliant words, are true.

The greatest argument against all religions is their hypocritical arrogance. They proclaim God to be all-powerful and all-knowing. But they then assume the very role they state that only God can play. The humans in charge of the Catholic faith (i.e. pope and clergy) for instance, imply to know sinner from saint, and almost decide who goes to heaven, and whom to hell. They condemn persons for their sins, and give penances therefor. And they do not let non-believers of the religion into the church, even for sacraments of marriage, despite that all people are children of God, and all are supposedly equal. Perhaps some are just more equal than others.

My prejudices and disdains were overwhelming to all religions, including, at times, my own. My contempt lives on, but now in different and enlightened form. It no longer is based upon perceived inadequacies of religions I did not even fathom, nor upon apparent shortcomings in finding purpose or love or God. Such, all religions attempt and in such, all succeed. My prejudice and far deeper contempt now are toward all persons who compose the religions as such. Most, despite the immensely demanding concept of open-mindedness of the religion, fail in all regards to think outside the bounds of their own religion to search for a truth more objective than that merely appropriated by their predecessors.

It is in the ignorance of the existence of a higher truth than ones own that all wars are waged, that all lives are lost, and that all evil prevails.

I am a Catholic. I participate in Catholic community, go to Catholic church, and respect Catholic ideals and doctrines. But Catholicism is my means, not my end. My truth is not one learned, or read in books; it is one discovered and found in life. Religion, aforementioned as such, is comprised in my belief not of contradicting, but complementing religions. Religion is one, and eternal. It is a body of knowledge, from Buddhism to Islam, from Judaism to Sikhism, from Christianity to Hinduism, in which all virtues and all truths are born. To seek therefore the truth of only one religion is to ignore that of all others and thereby disregard the complete and actual truth.

In religion, pluralism is the only term that designates unity. All religions differ, but all are the same. And in their abundant presence, they compose, as a whole, the only thing that can truly be considered a religion. That is, the totality of human existence: all thought and love, and hopes and desires, all perceptions of afterlife and governance of the present, all fears and hatred bound as one with love and trust and death. It is in this perpetual conflict and undying war that alongside past and future and chaotic present, we so slowly ebb our lives. And lest we go in vain, let knowledge rein and pride fast perish; to believe in all, and believe in One.

Works Cited

Britannica 2002 Deluxe Edition CDROM. Encyclopdia Britannica, Inc. Christianity. 1994 2002.

Clemmons, Nancy SNJM. Exploring the Religions of our World. Ed. Michael Amodei. United Stated of America: Ave Maria Press, Inc., 1999. 93 - 115

Jayaram, V. Hinduwebsite.com. History of Hinduism. 28 November, 2004. http://www.hinduwebsite.com/hinduism/h_antiquity.htm

White, Charles S. J. "Hinduism." World Book Online Reference Center. 2004. World Book, Inc. 28 Nov. 2004. http://www.worldbookonline.com/wb/Article?id=ar257300