Hinduism

• Hinduism is the world's third largest religion with around 15% of the entire population practicing the Hindu faith
• Hindu followers in India comprise the major bulk with almost 80% of the country's population adhering to the religion
• Other Asian countries with considerable Hindu faithfuls


  • Nepal (23 million)
  • Bangladesh (15 million)
  • Indonesia (3.9 million in Bali)
• Countries with substantial number of Hindus


  • Mauritius
  • Guyana
  • Fiji
  • Bhutan
  • Trinidad and Tobago
  • Suriname
  • Sri Lanka
• Hinduism was never a missionary religion unlike Christianity or Islam
• There have been proselytizing activities by Hindu missionaries in some Western cities with the changing times
• Three other religions that sprung in India have their origins in Hinduism
• Jainism and Buddhism appeared to challenge traditional Indian beliefs and practices


  Around sixth century B.C.E.
• Sikhism arose that featured Hindu and Islamic influences


  In the fifteenth century C.E.
• Hinduism


  The world's oldest organized religion that began on the Indian subcontinent with no specific moment of origin and no specific founder
• Hindu followers


  They vary in their set of beliefs and practices as they accept the pluralistic nature of their traditions
• Hinduism


  A diverse and complex religion
• Hindus


  They manifest their spirituality amidst the variety of their traditions and freedom of beliefs
• Ramakrishna Paramhansa was an Indian mystic and yogi during the 19th-century and was one of the foremost Hindu spiritual leaders of India
• Hinduism is also known for its belief in different gods and goddesses
• The term Hindu originated from the Persian word hindu (in Sanskrit sindhu) which means "river"
• The name Hinduism was given in the nineteenth century to describe the wide array of belief systems in India
• Hinduism was originally known as "Arya Dharma" or the "Aryan Way"
• There were already thriving civilizations in India, such as those discovered in the ancient Punjab city of Harappa and in Mohenjo-Daro along the Indus


  As early as 3000 B.C.E.
• The foundations of Hinduism may have originated from the customs of the early peoples of the Indus valley around 2500 B.C.E. to 1500 B.C.E., in the more advanced culture of the Dravidians, and from the Aryans who invaded northwest India around 1500 B.C.E.
• In the 1920s, archaeological excavations in the two pre-Aryan cities of Harappa and Mohenjo-Daro revealed that the natives already had a flourishing civilization with their agricultural cities characterized by well-planned streets with drainage systems
• Despite having a written language, it has not yet been deciphered, so vital information concerning Hinduism's pre-Aryan life and religious beliefs has been elusive
• Images of fertility gods and goddesses are noticeable from the artefacts recovered by archaeologists, while some figures appear in the lotus position which was later absorbed by yoga Hinduism and other sects
• Aryan conquerors moved to the Indus Valley and brought with them their own set of beliefs that eventually mingled with the religion of the natives


  Between 1750 B.C.E. and 1200 B.C.E.
• Classical Hinduism resulted in the amalgamation of Aryan and native faiths
• Aryans began to settle into cities while local leaders started organizing small kingdoms for themselves


  Around sixth century B.C.E.
• Vedas


  Oral texts brought by the Aryans, which were chiefly composed at the time they had already settled in India and blended with the natives
• Aryan religion


  • Polytheistic
  • Sacrifice was the principal form of worship to the Aryan gods, with offerings of animals and dairy products performed on altars in open spaces
• Hinduism has pre-Aryan and Aryan elements that date back to ancient times
• Shruti


  Sacred texts of Hinduism that are regarded as eternal truths passed orally until the beginning of the present age wherein there came the need to write them down
• Smriti


  Sacred writings of Hinduism that are not considered eternal truths but are based on remembered tradition
• Texts that form part of shruti


  • Vedas
  • Samhitas
  • Brahmanas
  • Upanishads
  • Sutras
• Vedas


  The four basic Vedic books, which are sacrificial hymns compiled from an earlier oral tradition
• The Vedas are the earliest known Sanskrit literature from the Brahmanic period and oldest scriptures of Hinduism
• The earliest hymns of the Vedas may have been written


  Around 2000 B.C.E. or before the arrival of the Aryans in the Indus Valley area
• The Vedas may have been written down and eventually completed


  Between 1500 B.C.E. to 400 B.C.E.
• In the great epic Mahabharata, Brahma was said to have created the Vedas
• The Rig-Veda is the most important and oldest book of the four Vedas, dating back to around 1500 B.C.E. to 1200 B.C.E.
• The Rig-Veda is the oldest work of literature in an Indo-European language and the oldest living religious literature of the world
• The Rig-Veda is a collection of over a thousand hymns and more than thousand verses dedicated to the Aryan pantheon of gods