LIVING RELIGIONS - Hinduism
     Hinduism has always held that there are many paths to the same God.  "Truth is one; sages call it by different names," says the "Vedas," the Hindu sacred scriptures.  "There are many paths to God, but a path is by no means means God. Bow down and worship where others kneel, for where so many have adored, the kind Lord must manifest himself, for he is all mercy."        
      Hinduism arose from the ancient civilizationthat  developed in northwestern India in the Indus Valley in 6000 BCE.  Today there are 850 million followers of Hinduism all over the world. In India,  Hinduism is called "Sanatana Dharma" which means "eternal teaching." God, or the eternal spirit is called Brahman. The various Gods and Goddesses of the Hindu faith are different aspects of the one God.  Lord Krishna is the most popular of these aspects.  He is said to be the author of "The Bhagavad Gita," which is a guide to Hindu moral behavior. There are four paths to the goal for actualizing human potential for Hindus.  The first is the path of knowledge, which has three stages: hearing, listening to sages and scriptures; thinking, intensive reflection; and, shifting self-identification to one's abiding part.  The second path is through Love, to direct toward God the love that lies at the base of every heart. "Keep the name of the Lord spinning in the midst of all your activitie," brings the love of God into being. The third path is through work. All you need to do is learn how to work in ways that carry you toward God, not away from God.  The fourth path is through psychophysical exercises.  These exercises bring us through the four layers of self: the body, the conscious mind, the subconscious mind, and Being Itself.  This path requires the student to have one's personal life in reasonable order and one's relationships harmonious. Working through the body to the mind through the breath one unplugs from this world and embraces the spiritual world.