Hinduism – A Mysterious Beast, Brahman And Other Hindu Gods

The best way to illustrate the diversity of Hinduism is through the story of ‘A Mysterious Beast,’ where an elephant comes to the Land of the Blind and the king sends his courtiers to find out what it is. Each man describes a different part of the elephant, all are correct in what they describe, but only in part in comparison to the whole Students learn, as with the elephant, Hinduism is made up of many parts.

There are thousands of gods and goddesses whom Hindus may worship, all with their own special individual characteristics, which allow followers to choose their own deities. Many believe all these gods and goddesses are different aspects of the unchanging ultimate supreme Brahman.

These worksheets include a game which explains how each part of the elephant is described by the blind men and asks the students to explain how this is linked to the Hindu religion. Then, individually, or in groups, the students will create a poster which can come together to show as many of the Hindu god and goddesses as possible – possibly about 30 depending in the size of your class (!). A brief description and image of the gods Ganesh, Shiva, Durga, Lakshmi and Vishnu are included.