A diverse body of religion, philosophy, and cultural practice native to and predominant in India, characterized by a belief in reincarnation and

a supreme being of many forms and natures, by the view that opposing theories are aspects of one eternal truth, and by a desire for liberation from earthly evils.

 The

core of Hinduism is the belief in Brahman, the underlying universal life force that encompasses and embodies existence. According to Hindu scriptures, one's ignorance of the true nature of the self (atman) as one with Brahman is what traps one in the cycle of endless death and reincarnation (samsara) the highest goal of Hinduism is liberation (moksha) from the karmic cycle of death and rebirth.

As the soul of man, Brahman is known as Paramatman. The Upanishads (teaching of mystic) speak of the two souls of man dwelling within him: the real soul (Paramatman) and the apparent soul (jivatman).

The Real Soul the witness consciousness, serene and detached. has been described as Self The Apparent Soul the embodied soul, the one who experience of birth and death, and is ever in quest of freedom and eternal life. the ego self--the reflection of the real soul. has been described as non-Self.

Hinduism analyzes man in terms of three bodies, five sheaths, and three states.

A human individual has three bodies:

physical

body subtle (not very noticeable or obvious) body causal (connected with the relationship between two things) body.

produced out of the gross forms of the five basic elements (ether, air, water, fire, and earth). is subject to a sixfold change: birth, subsistence, growth, maturity, decay, and death. at death the physical body perishes and its five constituent elements are dissolved.

o o

made of the subtle forms of the five basic elements that produced the physical body. the receptacle of thoughts and memories and continues to exist after death, serving as the vehicle of transmigration.

o o o

characterized by ego sense only. the highest subtle body. the storehouse of all your impressions and latent energies in you.

the physical sheath the sheath of prana (the vital air) the sheath of mind the sheath of intellect the sheath of bliss.

these sheaths are located one inside the other like the segments of a collapsible telescope. the sheath of the physical body being the outermost and the sheath of bliss being the innermost.

The sheath of the physical body o dependent on food for its sustenance and lasts as long as it can absorb nourishment. The sheath of the vital air o the manifestation of the universal vital energy. o It animates the gross body, making it inhale and exhale, move about, take in nourishment, excrete, and reproduce.

The sheath of the mind o the seedbed of all desires. o It is changeful, characterized by pain and pleasure, and has a beginning and an end. The sheath of the intellect o the seat of I-consciousness. o It is the cause of embodiment. The sheath of bliss o the main features of which are pleasure and rest. o material and subject to change.

The Upanishads mention that man experiences three states of existence

waking, dream, and deep sleep

in the waking state man remains identified with his physical body, in the dream state with his subtle body in deep sleep with his causal body.

Brahmeshananda S. The Nature of Man according to Hinduism. http://www.hinduism.co.za/natureof.htm. Retrieved on 11 January 2011.

Kinnard J. N. (2008). Hinduism Human Nature and the Purpose of Existence.http://www.patheos.com/Library/Hinduism/Beliefs/ Human-Nature-and-the-Purpose-of-Existence? Retrieved on 10 January 2011.
Sarma P. R. (2005). http://en.allexperts.com/q/Hindus-946/Viewhuman-Hindu-tradition.htm. Retrieved on 10 January 2010.