Charities
Hindus believe that charity, or danaGenerosity, giving., is important. This is because helping others is helping BrahmanIn Hindu belief, the absolute reality that is the true essence of all existence, God., as all living things have an atmanThe essence of a being. Can refer to body, mind or soul, depending on context, but usually indicates the soul that is reborn., or piece of Brahman, within them. Selfless charitable acts are seen as examples of karma yogaA type of Hindu religious practice that involves selfless service to others..
Dana means giving and sewaSelfless service to the community. means selfless service. The concept of charity in Hinduism is about helping others without expecting something in return and because it is the right thing to do.
Hindus practise an important concept called ahimsaThe Buddhist, Hindu and Sikh principle of total non-violence, in thoughts, words and actions. , which means not harming or killing anything living. Therefore, helping to protect the environment and looking after other people and animals are very important to Hindus.
Environmental charities
The aim of the Friends of Vrindavan is to protect the forests by cleaning areas and educating people about how to look after the environment. The charity aims to join together all people who care about sacred forests.
Hindus believe that Krishna, who was Vishnu鈥檚 eighth incarnation or avatar (or avatara)The Hindu word for incarnation of a god in a human (or animal) form on Earth. The spelling 鈥榓vatara鈥 comes from the Sanskrit., lived in Vrindavan forest. Hindus believe that the forest should be looked after and protected, especially because of the industrial growth that has happened in India, which has been harming the environment.
Tree conservation is also an important movement in Hinduism. Hindus work to prevent trees being needlessly removed and arrange protests to stop them being cut down. These efforts happen in India and the UK where there are groups of Hindus.
If there is but one tree of flowers and fruit within a village, that place is worthy of your respect.
The cow protection movement
As cows are sacred animals in Hinduism, the cow protection movement is very important as it seeks to look after cows in special places called goshallaA place where cows are looked after., where they can be cared for. Cows are important as they have always provided people with everything they have needed to survive, such as milk and butter, and therefore need to be treated with respect.
Many Hindus want to follow the example set by KrishnaKrishna is the eighth avatar (an incarnation) of Vishnu., who was respectful to cows. The Bhagavad GitaThe Bhagavad Gita is one of the most revered and important Hindu texts. The Gita tells the story of Krishna鈥檚 incarnation as a chariot driver to Prince Arjuna and forms part of the Mahabharata., one of the Hindu holy books, says that cows should not be slaughtered. It says that cows are 鈥渢he mothers of all things鈥.
One of the most famous cow protection projects is at Bhaktivedanta Manor, in the UK. It was set up in 1996 in reaction to many cows being killed because of the BSEShort for bovine spongiform encephalopathy, a fatal infectious disease in cows that can be passed to humans who eat the meat of infected cows. crisis that was happening at the time. Hindus wanted to protect and look after these animals, and the manor now continues to look after cows and shelters them.