A Conversation with Ed Viswanathan

Did you know that dissent is a very important part of Hinduism? Even atheists have the right to condemn Hinduism in public and still proudly proclaim that they are Hindus. Did you know that Rishis suggested “Murti”or “Vigraha” worship of God? This is because they considered the fact that God has no name or form (nama-roopa) and man cannot concentrate on anything without a name and form.

Hinduism is a culture, not just a religion, says Ed Viswanathan, the author of two bestsellers, Am I a Hindu? and Amazing Secrets of the Bhagavat Gita. In his new book, Amazing Secrets of Hinduism, Ed explains in a very simple and easy to understand language the concepts most of us are familiar with but don’t understand, including Karma, Maya, Dharma, why women wear a bindi etc.

There are many books on Hinduism. Tell us about what made you write this book.

The whole idea behind writing this book is to educate everyone about India and Hinduism, providing cultural and historical perspectives in simple sentences—one or two paragraphs maximum answering each topic.

I have purposely limited each answer to a page, since young people do not have time or patience to read more than one page at a time.

What are the five biggest myths about Hinduism?

Sadly, even today there are many myths about Hinduism, all over the world.

A. To begin with, Hindus do not worship idols like the way Old Testament (Holy Bible) forbids. Hindus use “Murti” or “Vigraha” to worship God, who is nameless and formless, during the initial stages of devotion, since man cannot concentrate on anything without a name and form.

B. Hindus will never say “Rest In Peace – RIP” when someone dies, since the meaning of RIP is “rest in peace until Jesus comes back”. When someone dies, Hindus pray for “Atma Shanti”, for the soul to attain salvation and never to take another birth again.

C. Hindus do not worship many gods. Hindus worship one and only God Brahman, which expresses itself in trillions of forms. By worshiping any god, a Hindu is indirectly worshiping the only God, Brahman.

D. A Hindu will never ever say, “I am a sinner.” According to Hindu scriptures, sin only means the false belief that one is the perishable material body and not the immortal soul within.

E. “Namaste” as well as “Hindu salvation concepts” are based on the firm belief that the soul within the body is immortal and is called Atman. Other religions do not believe soul is immortal.