Ghosts &
Hinduism
Back to: Ghosts
in Religion
Ghosts can be found within religion and Hinduism.
Hinduism teaches that ghosts are people without physical bodies, the
souls of people who died before their time, typically by tragedy. Many Hindus believe human
beings have two bodies. When the physical life
ends
prematurely with the passing of the first body called the gross body,
the person will remain in an ethereal state in the second body called the
subtle body, until the remaining time of the life
is complete and an entirely new
body can be inhabited. Having not fully experienced life's joys, ghosts experience
great suffering due to the senses remaining intact,
but without a physical body to interact with our world
through.
Therefore, it is impossible to satisfy the ghost's desires and a hell-like state
of existence is suffered for the set period of time allotted.
In Hinduism, many followers prefer cremation of the deceased person's body,
as this is believed to prevent the soul
(or ghost) of the person from trying to re-enter their old body
after death. This idea is believed to be especially true for
ghosts
who are
materialistic in nature, or suffer from
earthly
lusts
and addictions. Many Hindus believe that some ghosts will seek other people's
bodies in attempts to fulfill those lusts and addictions. This is believed to be
the root of
some life
problems, and is known as ghost possession, occuring when people weaken
themselves through times of stress, making themselves subject to ghostly
influence. This belief in ghost problems, ghost illness and ghost
possession stems from ancient, sacred Hindu writings and idealogy, which teaches
a somewhat complicated system of dharma, karma and re-birth. Hinduism has
therefore created various rituals for followers to be rescued from ghosts and
the problems they cause, and to also assist the ghosts onward in their life
journey.
Hindu beliefs teach that we are surrounded by a multitude of
spirit entities, which exist within the "ether" that encompasses
everything. This ether, which could be equated to spirit, or
energy is also called, akasha. The Akashic Records are
believed to contain every event in time, somehow recorded in the ether
as an imprint of energy that may be possible to be re-played or visibly seen by
those with psychic abilities. Hinduism teaches that seeing into the
akasha which contains the Akashic Records, in other words,
seeing ghosts, is possible by those who know how to use the third
eye. Interestingly, Hinduism also teaches that the soul of a person
will continue to re-incarnate on earth until free from all physical, earthly
desires, which ends the cycle of ghosts and suffering.
Buddhism and
Hinduism have influenced each other, though they have fundamental
differences. Buddhism does find its roots within Hinduism, as Buddha was
born into a Hindu family, but later found enlightenment which spawned new,
radical teachings upon which Buddhism was founded. Teachings concerning
ghosts in Buddhism also exist.