Lesson video

Hi, my name's Mrs. Charalambous, and welcome to today's lesson.

I've got a really great lesson planned for you, so I hope that you are ready.

The lesson today is called The Story of Waiting for God, Deeper Meanings from the unit Hindus.

What do Hindu stories teach about life and the world? Let's begin.

By the end of today's lesson, you'll be able to explain some deeper meanings of the story of waiting for God.

Let's look at the keywords that will help with our learning today with my turn, your turn.

Greeting.

Greeting.

How people say hello or welcome someone when you meet them.

Namaste.

Namaste.

A Hindu greeting recognising the divine within all.

Respect.

Respect, Being kind and treating others in a good way.

I hope this helps with today's learning.

Your lesson outline looks a little bit like this.

The story of waiting for God, deeper meanings.

Let's begin with cycle one, how do people greet others? Aisha explains why we use stories in religious education.

Aisha says, "We can better understand people's worldviews by listening to their important stories and thinking about the deeper meanings of these stories.

We can also look at the difference the story makes to people today." In this lesson, we will be using the story of waiting for God to help us better understand Hindu worldviews.

What are these people doing? Hmm.

Take a moment to think about what you can see.

That's right.

That person is waving, and the two in the middle are hugging each other, and this is also a greeting.

We'll find more out about this one later.

All around the world, people greet each other in different ways.

Aisha says, "Some people greet each other with handshakes, hugging, and bowing.

I like to wave at my friends." Greetings are how people say hello or welcome someone when you meet them.

How do you greet people when you see them? Take a moment to think about that before sharing some of your answers.

Let's check our understanding with this multiple choice question.

What is a greeting? a, a type of food people eat, b, a game people play, c, a way to say hello or welcome someone.

Take a moment before I reveal the answer.

That's right.

A greeting is a way to say hello or welcome someone.

Well done if you got that answer correct.

Let's carry on.

Jun says, "I say hello to my parents and give them a hug to greet them.

It makes me feel loved and happy." Andeep says, "I like saying, 'Hi, how are you?' when I see my friends.

It shows I care about them and want to be kind." Jun and Andeep have been having a discussion about how they greet others and how people welcome them.

How does it feel when someone greets you kindly? You can share your thoughts with me now if you like.

Thank you for sharing your ideas.

I think when someone greets us kindly, it makes us feel welcome, valued, and happy.

It shows that they respect us and care about us.

That's why greetings are important.

They help build kindness and connections between people.

Just like we feel good when someone greets us warmly, we can make others feel the same way by greeting them with kindness too.

Let's check our understanding with this multiple choice question.

What are some ways people greet each other? Pick two choices.

a, waving, b, closing eyes and staying silent, c, playing with hair, d, shaking hands.

Have a moment to think before you reveal your two answers.

That's right.

It's a, waving, and d, shaking hands.

Well done if you've got that answer correct.

Let's move on.

People around the world greet each other in many ways.

Some greetings are more than just saying hello.

They show respect and meaning.

In Japan, people bow when they greet each other.

Bowing shows politeness and respect.

And they bow their heads like this.

Some bows are small and quick, but deeper bows show more respect.

People also bow to say thank you or sorry.

What a nice tradition there.

In Maori culture, New Zealand, people greet each other with a hongi.

The hongi is when two people press their noses together.

It shows respect and connection between people.

The hongi is called the sharing of breath, showing that both people are part of the same community.

Another great tradition there.

Why do people greet each other? Let's have a moment to think about this multiple choice question.

Is it a, to complain, b, to show respect, or c, to be rude? Take a moment to think before I share the answer.

That's right.

It's to show respect.

People greet each other to show respect.

Well done if you got that answer correct.

Let's carry on.

Het is a British Hindu.

Hi, Het.

Het says, "In Hindu Dharma worldview, we have a special greeting.

It is called namaste.

It is a sign of respect and kindness.

Namaste means the spark of God in me bows to the spark of God in you.

When I say namaste, I press my palms together like this." True or false time.

You can do thumbs up for true and thumbs down for false.

Namaste means I wave to you.

True or false? Hmm.

Take a moment to think before I share the answer.

That's right.

It's false.

Why? Would you like to share with me? Namaste means the spark of God in me bows to the spark of God in you.

Well done if you got that answer correct.

Let's carry on.

Task A.

Write one greeting from around the world from the lesson.

In your answer, think about what the greeting is and where it is used.

Why do you like this greeting? You could use sentence starters like this.

I learned that (hums) is a way to greet people in (hums).

I like this greeting because.

Pause the video here so you have plenty of time to write about the greeting that you've chosen.

When you're ready, press play for some feedback.

Task A feedback time.

Write one greeting from around the world from the lesson.

In your answer, think about what the greeting is and where it is used and why do you like this greeting.

Your answers may look like this.

I learned that the hongi is a way to greet people in Maori culture, New Zealand.

I like this greeting because it shows respect and brings people closer together.

Well done for your hard work so far.

Let's carry on.

The story of waiting for God, deeper meanings, cycle two.

Why is greeting others important in Hindu Dharma? Het says, "In Hindu Dharma, stories come to life through practises we do every day.

I use namaste to say hello or goodbye.

I also use it when I'm praying to God.

It's my sign of respect to others and God.

One story that reminds me of this is a story of the woman waiting for God." A woman prepared her home because she was waiting for God to visit.

During the day, two strangers came to her door, but she told them to go away.

That night, God told her that he had come in the form of those visitors.

The woman realised that God is in everyone.

Let's check our understanding about the story.

What did the woman realise about God? a, God is in everyone, b, God likes food, c, God didn't visit her.

Take a moment here to think about your answer before I reveal it to you.

That's right.

It's a, she realised that God is in everyone.

Let's carry on.

Het says, "The story of waiting for God helps me answer the big question, who is God? It teaches me that God is inside every living being.

The woman thought God was something different and unexpected.

She did not realise God was in all the people who visited her." Dhanu has a Hindu worldview.

Hi, Dhanu.

She thinks about the deeper meaning of the story.

"This story reminds me of a Hindu saying, God lives in the heart of every being.

This is found in the Bhagavad Gita.

I think this means we should treat all people with kindness because God is inside them." Let's check our understanding so far with this multiple choice question.

Some Hindus believe they should treat others with respect and kindness because a, their parents told them to, b, God lives in the heart of every being, or c, it makes them rich.

Take a moment to think about your answer before I tell you.

That's right.

Some Hindus believe they should treat others with respect and kindness because, b, God lives in the heart of every being.

Well done if you've got that tricky question correct.

Let's carry on.

A traditional Hindu belief is to treat guests as if they were gods.

This belief is called Atithi Devo Bhava, which means the guest is God.

The story helps remind Hindus that every visitor should be treated as God.

Let's check our understanding with true or false.

Hindus believe they should treat guests like God.

True or false? That's right.

It's true.

Why? That's right.

This belief is called Atithi Devo Bhava.

This translates to the guest is like God.

Well done if you got that answer correct.

Let's carry on.

Het says, "In my family, when guests come to our house, we always say namaste.

We offer them food and make sure they feel welcome.

My parents say that treating guests kindly makes God happy.

How do you welcome people in your home? Would you like to share some of the ways with me? I like to say, "Hello, how are you? Come in" And then I also offer them maybe a drink and a snack.

It makes them feel like I want them to be around me and that I appreciate them visiting me.

Well done for sharing your answers too.

Let's carry on.

Dhanu says, "The woman thought she had to wait for God, but she was mistaken.

When anyone comes to my house, I try to treat them as if they were God and show them respect and kindness.

This is what the story means to me." How do you feel when someone treats you with respect? Would you like to share with me now? Thank you for sharing.

When someone treats me with respect, I feel warm and happy and I do feel respected back.

I also respect them back because they've treated me kindly, and I want to show the same back to them as well.

It makes you feel good.

Task B.

Imagine Laura is coming to visit you.

There she is behind the door.

How would you treat her? What could you do to make her feel honoured and respected? Take a moment here to really think about this answer, and when you're ready, press play for some feedback.

Your answers may have included, "If Laura came to visit me, I would smile and say hello to make her feel welcome.

I would offer her a seat and ask if she would like a drink.

I would share my toys or books with her so she feels happy and would listen carefully when she talks and be kind so she feels respected." Would you like to share some of your answers with me? Great job with task B.

Well done.

Let's look at our summary together for today's learning of the story of waiting for God deeper meanings.

We learned today that a deeper meaning of the waiting for God story is that God is inside every living being.

The practise of the namaste greeting is a symbol that all humans have God within them.

Most Hindus believe that everyone should be treated with a respect.

A traditional Hindu belief is to treat guests as if they were Gods.

Well done for today's lesson.

I know that you've tried really hard, and I hope to see you soon.

Bye for now.