Hinduism (Sanskrit - Sanātana (eternal) Dharma also known as Vaidika (Vedic) Dharma) is a religion or philosophy that originated from the Indian subcontinent and nearby surrounding areas. The term Hinduism is heterogeneous, as Hinduism consists of several schools of thought. It encompasses many religious rituals that widely vary in practice, as well as many diverse sects and philosophies. Many Hindus, influenced by Advaita philosophy, venerate an array of deities, considering them manifestations of the one supreme monistic Cosmic Spirit, Brahman, while many others focus on a singular concept of Brahman (God), as in Vaishnavism, Saivism and Shaktism.["Concept of God"]
Hinduism is the third largest religion in the world, with approximately 900 million adherents (2005 figure), of whom approximately 890 million live in India.[* "Adherents"] It is also the oldest known religion in the world today. Unlike many other religions, Hinduism has no main founder, and no main holy city.[Osborne, E: "Accessing R.E. Founders & Leaders, Buddhism, Hinduism and Sikhism Teacher's Book Mainstream.", page 9. Folens Limited, 2005][Klostermaier, K:"A Survey of Hinduism", page 1. SUNY Press, 1994.]. It also has no single holy book — its original scriptures were the four Vedas, but as time has passed, many other scriptures have also emerged.
Etymology
The term
Hindu is derived from
Sindhu (, i.e. the
Indus River in particular, or any river in general).
["Meaning of Hindu" ] In the
Rig Veda, the
Indo-Aryans mention their land as
Sapta Sindhu (the land of the seven rivers of the northwestern
Indian subcontinent, one of them being the Indus). This corresponds to
Hapta-Hendu in the
Avesta (
Vendidad: Fargard 1.18)—the sacred scripture of
Zoroastrianism of
Iran. The term was used for people who lived in the Indian subcontinent around or beyond the
Sindhu.
More on
[ Hinduism ]
Hinduism
Hinduism - Twitter Search#India #nagpur Dr. Ambedkar converted to Buddhism here after being disillusioned with Hinduism.tumunathan (tumunathan) Tue, 29 Dec 2009 07:18:30 -0000
#India #nagpur Dr. Ambedkar converted to Buddhism here after being disillusioned with Hinduism.
RT @jnsbmi: 300 Christians of 120 Families Brought back to Hinduism http://bit.ly/5FExVHbbirju2007 (bbirju2007) Tue, 29 Dec 2009 07:07:31 -0000
RT @jnsbmi: 300 Christians of 120 Families Brought back to Hinduism http://bit.ly/5FExVH
As 2009 draws to a close, do you ponder what God, Buddha and Hinduism mean? http://bit.ly/ItsAllAnIllusionebooster (ebooster office) Tue, 29 Dec 2009 07:06:31 -0000
As 2009 draws to a close, do you ponder what God, Buddha and Hinduism mean? http://bit.ly/ItsAllAnIllusion
RT @jnsbmi: 300 Christians of 120 Families Brought back to Hinduism http://bit.ly/5FExVHascendantasia (S Singh) Tue, 29 Dec 2009 06:59:51 -0000
RT @jnsbmi: 300 Christians of 120 Families Brought back to Hinduism http://bit.ly/5FExVH
300 Christians of 120 Families Brought back to Hinduism http://bit.ly/5FExVHjnsbmi (Jiggs) Tue, 29 Dec 2009 06:56:33 -0000
300 Christians of 120 Families Brought back to Hinduism http://bit.ly/5FExVH
@abidiar yes the vulgar emails that go out that hate on every shia. there were discussions that maybe she never left hinduismkingrahat (Rahat) Tue, 29 Dec 2009 05:36:49 -0000
@abidiar yes the vulgar emails that go out that hate on every shia. there were discussions that maybe she never left hinduism
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Karma to Grace - Christian view of Hinduism and Hindu concepts of karma, self-realization, and yoga meditation. Life stories of conversion from karma to grace. Hinduism and Christ compared and contrasted.
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Myth of One Hindu Religion exploded - Former Hindu asserts that Hinduism was invented in the 19th century and brackets several distinct, mutually hostile religions into one umbrella.