Hinduism
हिंदू धर्म
Hinduism is the world's oldest major religion, with roots in the Indus Valley Civilization (c. 1500 BCE) and a philosophical framework centered on dharma (duty), karma (action), and moksha (liberation). It encompasses diverse practices, deities, and paths united by shared texts (Vedas, Upanishads, epics) and the belief in eternal cycles of creation and destruction.
Key facts
- Hinduism has approximately 1 billion adherents globally, with ~99% in India.
- The four main paths to liberation are: Karma Yoga (duty), Bhakti Yoga (devotion), Raja Yoga (meditation), and Jnana Yoga (knowledge).
- The Trimurti represents the three aspects of ultimate reality: Brahma (creator), Vishnu (preserver), and Shiva (destroyer/transformer).
- Sacred texts form a hierarchy: Shruti (heard—Vedas, Upanishads) and Smriti (remembered—epics, Puranas, dharma-shastras).
- India's Constitution explicitly acknowledges secularism while recognizing Hinduism's foundational role in Indian civilization.
Details
Hinduism emerged in the Indian subcontinent around 1500 BCE with Aryan migrations and Indus Valley influences. The religion's philosophical evolution is documented across four major periods: the Vedic age (ritual-focused), the Upanishadic age (philosophical inquiry), the Classical age (epics and Puranas), and the Medieval-Modern period (devotional movements and reform). Central to Hindu thought is the cycle of samsara (rebirth), where karma from past lives determines present circumstances, and dharma guides ethical living across four life stages (ashram): student, householder, forest-dweller, and renunciate. Hinduism emphasizes plurality—multiple valid paths to the divine, multiple acceptable gods, and flexibility in practice. This tolerance enabled Hinduism to absorb influences while maintaining continuity through millennia. In contemporary India, Hinduism intersects deeply with national identity, festivals (Diwali, Holi), and cultural practices, though modern Hindu societies grapple with orthodoxy, social reform, and secularism.