Hinduism: Difference between revisions

'''Hinduism''' ({{IPAc-en|ˈ|h|ɪ|n|d|u|ɪ|z|əm}}),<ref>{{cite Merriam-Webster|Hinduism|access-date=19 April 2021}}</ref> also known as '''''[[Sanātana Dharma]],''''' is an [[Indian religions|Indian religion]] or ''[[dharma]]'', a religious and universal order or way of life by which followers abide.{{refn|group=note|name="definition"}}{{refn|group=note|name="dharma"}} As a religion, it is the [[Major religious groups|world's third-largest]], with over 1.2–1.35 billion followers, or 15–16% of the global population, known as [[Hindus]].<ref>{{Cite web|date=2021|title=Hindu Countries 2021|url=https://worldpopulationreview.com/country-rankings/hindu-countries|access-date=2 June 2021|website=World Population Review}}</ref><ref group="web" name="pewforum_Hinduism" /><ref name="gordonconwell.edu" group="web" /> Hinduism has been called the [[history of religion|world's oldest religion]] still practised, though some debate remains.<ref>{{cite web |title=Which Religion Is the Oldest? |url=https://www.britannica.com/story/which-religion-is-the-oldest |website=Britannica |publisher=The Editors of Encyclopaedia Britannica |access-date=6 July 2023}}</ref>

The word ''Hindu'' is an [[exonym]]{{sfn|Siemens|Roodt|2009|p=546}}{{sfn|Leaf|2014|p=36}}{{refn|group=note|name="Hindu_term"}} although many practitioners refer to their religion as ''[[Sanātana Dharma]]'' ({{lang-sa|सनातन धर्म|lit='the Eternal Dharma'}}) which refers to the idea that its origins lie beyond [[human history]], as revealed in the [[Hindu texts]]—but its usage is modern.{{sfn|Knott|1998|pp=3, 5}}{{sfn|Hatcher|2015|pp=4–5, 69–71, 150–152}}{{sfn|Bowker|2000}}{{sfn|Harvey|2001|p=xiii}}{{refn|group=note|name="Knott_sanatana dharma"}} Another [[endonym]] is ''Vaidika Dharma'',<ref name=SmithBK1998>{{cite journal |last=Smith |first=Brian K. |title=Questioning Authority: Constructions and Deconstructions of Hinduism |journal=International Journal of Hindu Studies |volume=2 |issue=3 |pages=313–339 |year=1998 |doi=10.1007/s11407-998-0001-9 |jstor=20106612 |s2cid=144929213}}</ref>{{sfn|Sharma|Sharma|2004|pp=1–2}}{{sfn|Klostermaier|2014|p=2}}{{sfn|Klostermaier|2007b|p=7}}<ref name=Sharma1985a /> the dharma related to the [[Vedas]].<ref>{{Cite web|title=View Dictionary|url=https://sanskritdictionary.com/scans/?col=1&img=mw1022.jpg |access-date=19 November 2021 |website=sanskritdictionary.com}}</ref>

Hinduism is a diverse system of thought marked by a range of [[Hindu philosophy|philosophies]] and shared concepts, [[Samskara (rite of passage)|rituals]], [[Hindu cosmology|cosmological systems]], [[Hindu pilgrimage sites|pilgrimage sites]], and shared textual sources that discuss [[God in Hinduism|theology]], [[metaphysic]]s, [[Hindu mythology|mythology]], Vedic [[yajna]], [[yoga]], [[Āgama (Hinduism)|agamic]] rituals, and [[Hindu temple|temple building]], among other topics.{{sfn|Michaels|2004}} Prominent themes in Hindu beliefs include the four [[Puruṣārtha]]s, the proper goals or aims of human life; namely, [[dharma]] (ethics/duties), [[artha]] (prosperity/work), [[kama]] (desires/passions) and [[moksha]] (liberation/freedom from the passions and the [[Saṃsāra#In Hinduism|cycle of death and rebirth]]),<ref name="Bilimoria 2007 p. 103">{{harvnb|Bilimoria|Prabhu|Sharma|2007}}; see also {{harvnb|Koller|1968}}.</ref>{{sfn|Flood|1996|p=7}}{{sfn|Flood|1997|p=11}} as well as [[karma]] (action, intent and consequences) and [[saṃsāra]] (cycle of death and rebirth).{{sfn|Klostermaier|2007|pp=46–52, 76–77}}{{sfn|Brodd|2003}} Hinduism prescribes the eternal duties, such as honesty, refraining from injuring living beings (''[[Ahimsa|ahiṃsā]]''), patience, forbearance, self-restraint, virtue, and compassion, among others.<ref name="EB-sanatana dharma" group="web" /><ref>{{Cite book |last1=Dharma |first1=Samanya |title=History of Dharmasastra |last2=Kane |first2=P. V. |volume=2 |pages=4–5}} See also {{harvnb|Widgery|1930}}</ref> Hindu practices include worship ([[Puja (Hinduism)|puja]]), fire rituals ([[Homa (ritual)|homa/havan]]), devotion ([[bhakti]]), fasting ([[vrata]]), chanting ([[japa]]), meditation ([[Dhyana in Hinduism|dhyāna]]), sacrifice ([[Yajna|yajña]]), charity ([[dāna]]), selfless service ([[sevā]]), learning and knowledge ([[jñāna]]), recitation and exposition of scriptures ([[pravacana]]), homage to one's ancestors ([[śrāddha]]), family-oriented [[Sanskara (rite of passage)|rites of passage]], annual [[List of Hindu festivals|festivals]], and occasional pilgrimages ([[yatra]]). Along with the various practices associated with [[yoga]], some Hindus leave their social world and material possessions and engage in lifelong [[Sannyasa]] ([[Hindu monasticism|monasticism]]) in order to achieve [[moksha]].<ref name="ellinger70">{{Cite book |last=Ellinger |first=Herbert |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=pk3iAwAAQBAJ |title=Hinduism |publisher=Bloomsbury Academic |year=1996 |isbn=978-1-56338-161-4 |pages=69–70}}</ref>

Hindu texts are classified into [[Śruti]] ("heard") and [[Smriti|Smṛti]] ("remembered"), the major scriptures of which are the ''Vedas'', the ''[[Upanishads]]'', the ''[[Puranas|Purānas]]'', the ''[[Mahabharata|Mahābhārata]]'', the ''[[Ramayana|Rāmāyana]]'', and the ''[[Agama (Hinduism)|Āgamas]]''.{{sfn|Klostermaier|2007|pp=46–52, 76–77}}<ref>{{Cite book|last=Zaehner|first=R. C.|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=eWuezQEACAAJ|title=Hindu Scriptures|publisher=[[Penguin Random House]]|year=1992|isbn=978-0-679-41078-2|pages=1–7|author-link=Robert Charles Zaehner}}</ref> There are six [[Āstika and nāstika|āstika]] schools of [[Hindu philosophy]], who recognise the authority of the Vedas, namely [[Samkhya|Sānkhya]], [[Yoga (philosophy)|Yoga]], [[Nyaya|Nyāya]], [[Vaisheshika]], [[Mīmāṃsā|Mimāmsā]], and [[Vedanta|Vedānta]].<ref name="Matthew Clarke 2011 28">{{Cite book |last=Clarke |first=Matthew |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=DIvHQc0-rwgC&pg=PA28 |title=Development and Religion: Theology and Practice |publisher=Edward Elgar Publishing |year=2011 |isbn=978-0-85793-073-6 |page=28 |access-date=11 February 2015 |archive-date=29 December 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201229174115/https://books.google.com/books?id=DIvHQc0-rwgC&pg=PA28 |url-status=live }}</ref><ref>{{Cite book |editor-last=Holberg |editor-first=Dale |title=Students' Britannica India |year=2000 |volume=4 |publisher=Encyclopædia Britannica India |isbn=978-0-85229-760-5 |page=316}}</ref><ref>{{Cite book |last=Nicholson |first=Andrew |title=Unifying Hinduism: Philosophy and Identity in Indian Intellectual History |publisher=Columbia University Press |year=2013 |isbn=978-0-231-14987-7 |pages=2–5}}</ref> While the [[Puranic chronology]] presents a genealogy of thousands of years, starting with the Vedic ''rishis'', scholars regard Hinduism as a fusion{{refn|group=note|name="Lockard-fusion"}} or synthesis{{sfn|Samuel|2008|p=193}}{{refn|group=note|name="Hiltebeitel-synthesis"}} of [[historical Vedic religion#Brahmanism|Brahmanical orthopraxy]]{{refn|group=note|name="Brahmanism"}} with various Indian cultures,<ref name="various cultures">{{harvnb|Hiltebeitel|2002|p=12}}; {{harvnb|Flood|1996|p=16}}; {{harvnb|Lockard|2007|p=50}}</ref>{{refn|group=note|name="fusion"}} having diverse roots{{sfn|Narayanan|2009|p=11}}{{refn|group=note|name="roots"}} and no specific founder.{{sfn|Fowler|1997|pp=1, 7}} This [[Hindu synthesis]] emerged after the Vedic period, between {{Circa|500}}{{sfn|Hiltebeitel|2002|p=12}}–200{{sfn|Larson|2009}} BCE and c. 300 CE,{{sfn|Hiltebeitel|2002|p=12}} in the period of the [[Second Urbanisation]] and the early [[History of Hinduism#Hindu synthesis and Classical Hinduism (c. 200 BCE – 1200 CE)|classical period of Hinduism]], when the [[Indian epic poetry|Epics]] and the first Purānas were composed.{{sfn|Hiltebeitel|2002|p=12}}{{sfn|Larson|2009}} It flourished in the [[Medieval India|medieval period]], with the [[Decline of Buddhism in the Indian subcontinent|decline of Buddhism in India]].{{sfn|Larson|1995|pp=109–111}}

Currently, the four major [[Hindu denominations|denominations]] of Hinduism are [[Vaishnavism]], [[Shaivism]], [[Shaktism]], and the [[Smarta tradition]].{{sfn|Bhandarkar|1913|p=}}{{sfn|Tattwananda|n.d.|p=}}{{sfn|Flood|1996|pp=113, 134, 155–161, 167–168}}{{sfn|Lipner|2009|pp=377, 398}} Sources of authority and eternal truths in the Hindu texts play an important role, but there is also a strong Hindu tradition of questioning authority in order to deepen the understanding of these truths and to further develop the tradition.<ref name="frazierintrop2">{{Cite book |last=Frazier |first=Jessica |url=https://archive.org/details/continuumcompani00fraz |title=The Continuum companion to Hindu studies |date=2011 |publisher=Continuum |isbn=978-0-8264-9966-0 |location=London |pages=[https://archive.org/details/continuumcompani00fraz/page/1 1]–15 |url-access=limited}}</ref> Hinduism is the most widely professed faith in [[Religion in India|India]],{{sfn|Hiltebeitel|2002|p=3}} [[Religion in Nepal|Nepal]], [[Religion in Mauritius|Mauritius]] and in [[Hinduism in Bali|Bali]], [[Hinduism in Indonesia|Indonesia]].{{sfnm|1a1=Gonda|1y=1975|1p=|2a1=Bakker|2y=1997|2p=|3a1=Howe|3y=2001|3p=|4a1=Stuart-Fox|4y=2002|4p=}} Significant numbers of Hindu communities are found in other countries of [[Hinduism in South Asia|South Asia]], in [[Hinduism in Southeast Asia|Southeast Asia]], in the [[Hinduism in the West Indies|Caribbean]], [[Arab states of the Persian Gulf|Gulf states]], [[North America]], [[Hinduism in Europe|Europe]], [[Hinduism in Oceania|Oceania]], [[Hinduism in Africa|Africa]], and [[Hinduism by country|other regions]].<ref>{{Cite book |last=Vertovec |first=Steven |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=FRVTAQAAQBAJ |title=The Hindu Diaspora: Comparative Patterns |publisher=Routledge |year=2013 |isbn=978-1-136-36705-2 |pages=1–4, 7–8, 63–64, 87–88, 141–143}}</ref><ref>{{Spaced en dash space}}{{Cite web|date=18 December 2012|title=Hindus|url=http://www.pewforum.org/2012/12/18/global-religious-landscape-hindu/|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200209012719/https://www.pewforum.org/2012/12/18/global-religious-landscape-hindu/|archive-date=9 February 2020|access-date=14 February 2015|website=Pew Research Center's Religion & Public Life Project}}<br />{{Spaced en dash space}}{{Cite web|date=18 December 2012|title=Table: Religious Composition by Country, in Numbers (2010)|url=http://features.pewforum.org/grl/population-number.php?sort=numberHindu|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130201224548/http://features.pewforum.org/grl/population-number.php?sort=numberHindu|archive-date=1 February 2013|access-date=14 February 2015|website=Pew Research Center's Religion & Public Life Project}}</ref>

 

The word ''Hindū'' is derived from [[Indo-Aryan language]] [[Sanskrit]]{{sfn|Flood|1996|p=3-6}} root ''Sindhu'',{{sfn|Flood|1996|p=6}}{{sfn|Parpola|2015|loc="Chapter 1"}} believed to be the name of the [[Indus River]] in the northwestern part of the [[Indian subcontinent]].{{sfn|Singh|2008|p=433}}{{sfn|Flood|1996|p=6}}{{refn|group=note|The Indo-Aryan word ''Sindhu'' means "river", "ocean".{{sfn|Flood|2003|p=3}} It is frequently being used in the [[Rigveda]]. The Sindhu-area is part of [[Āryāvarta]], "the land of the Aryans".}}

Among the earliest known records of 'Hindu' with connotations of religion may be in the 7th-century CE Chinese text ''Record of the Western Regions'' by [[Xuanzang]],{{sfn|Sharma|2002}} and 14th-century Persian text ''Futuhu's-salatin'' by 'Abd al-Malik [[Isami (historian)|Isami]].{{refn|group=note|name="Hindu_term"}} Some 16–18th century [[Bengali language|Bengali]] [[Gaudiya Vaishnavism|Gaudiya Vaishnava]] texts mention ''Hindu'' and ''Hindu dharma'' to distinguish from Muslims without positively defining these terms.<ref>{{Cite journal |last=O'Conell |first=Joseph T. |year=1973 |title=The Word 'Hindu' in Gauḍīya Vaiṣṇava Texts |volume=93 |pages=340–344 |journal=Journal of the American Oriental Society |issue=3 |doi=10.2307/599467 |jstor=599467}}</ref> In the 18th century, the European merchants and colonists began to refer to the followers of [[Indian religions]] collectively as Hindus.<ref name="amp.scroll.in">{{Cite web|url=http://scroll.in/article/801580/a-short-note-on-the-short-history-of-hinduism|title=A short note on the short history of Hinduism|first=Mukul|last=Dube|website=Scroll.in|date=10 January 2016 }}</ref><ref name=Sweetman2003>{{Cite book |last=Sweetman |first=Will |title=Mapping Hinduism: 'Hinduism' and the Study of Indian Religions, 1600–1776 |publisher=Otto Harrassowitz Verlag |year=2003 |isbn=978-3-931479-49-7 |pages=163, 154–168}}</ref>{{Refn|In the contemporary era, the term Hindus are individuals who identify with one or more aspects of Hinduism, whether they are practicing or non-practicing or ''[[Laissez-faire]]''.<ref>{{cite book|first=Bryan|last=Turner|year=2010|title=The New Blackwell Companion to the Sociology of Religion|publisher=John Wiley & Sons|isbn=978-1-4051-8852-4|pages= 424–425}}</ref> The term does not include those who identify with other Indian religions such as Buddhism, Jainism, Sikhism or various animist tribal religions found in India such as ''Sarnaism''.<ref>{{cite book|first=James|last=Minahan|year=2012|title=Ethnic Groups of South Asia and the Pacific: An Encyclopedia|isbn=978-1-59884-659-1|pages=97–99}}</ref> The term Hindu, in contemporary parlance, includes people who accept themselves as culturally or ethnically Hindu rather than with a fixed set of religious beliefs within Hinduism. One need not be religious in the minimal sense, states [[Julius J. Lipner|Julius Lipner]], to be accepted as Hindu by Hindus, or to describe oneself as Hindu.{{sfn|Lipner|2009|p=8}}|group=note}} The use of the English term "Hinduism" to describe a collection of practices and beliefs is a fairly recent construction. The term ''Hinduism'' was first used by [[Raja Ram Mohun Roy|Raja Ram Mohan Roy]] in 1816–17.{{sfn|Singh|2008|p=433}} By 1840s, the term "Hinduism" was used by those Indians who opposed British colonialism, and who wanted to distinguish themselves from Muslims and Christians.{{sfn|Flood|1996|p=6}}{{sfn|Klostermaier|2010|p=17}}{{sfn|Doniger|2014|p=5}}{{sfn|Parpola|2015|p=5}} Before the British began to categorise communities strictly by religion, Indians generally did not define themselves exclusively through their religious beliefs; instead identities were largely segmented on the basis of locality, language, [[Varna (Hinduism)|varna]], [[jāti]], occupation, and sect.{{sfn|Doniger|2014|p=3}}{{refn|group=note|In [[D. N. Jha]]'s essay ''Looking for a Hindu identity'', he writes: "No Indians described themselves as Hindus before the fourteenth century" and "Hinduism was a creation of the colonial period and cannot lay claim to any great antiquity."<ref name="amp.scroll.in"/> He further wrote "The British borrowed the word 'Hindu' from India, gave it a new meaning and significance, [and] reimported it into India as a reified phenomenon called Hinduism."<ref>{{Cite web|title=Short note on the short history of Hinduism|date=10 January 2016 |url=https://amp.scroll.in/article/801580/a-short-note-on-the-short-history-of-hinduism}}</ref>}}

Hinduism includes a diversity of ideas on [[Spirituality#Hinduism|spirituality]] and traditions, but has no ecclesiastical order, no unquestionable religious authorities, no governing body, no prophet(s) nor any binding holy book; Hindus can choose to be [[Polytheism|polytheistic]], [[Pantheism|pantheistic]], [[Panentheism|panentheistic]], [[Pandeism|pandeistic]], [[Henotheism|henotheistic]], [[Monotheism|monotheistic]], [[Monism|monistic]], [[Agnosticism|agnostic]], [[Atheism|atheistic]] or [[Humanism|humanist]].<ref name=Lipner2009p8>{{harvnb|Lipner|2009|p=8}} Quote: "[...] one need not be religious in the minimal sense described to be accepted as a Hindu by Hindus, or describe oneself perfectly validly as Hindu. One may be polytheistic or monotheistic, monistic or pantheistic, henotheistic, panentheistic, pandeistic, even an agnostic, humanist or atheist, and still be considered a Hindu."</ref><ref>{{Cite book |title=Encyclopedia of Violence, Peace and Conflict |publisher=Academic Press |year=2008 |isbn=978-0-12-369503-1 |editor-last=Kurtz |editor-first=Lester}}</ref><ref>MK Gandhi, ''[http://www.mkgandhi.org/ebks/essence_of_hinduism.pdf The Essence of Hinduism]'' {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150724045756/http://www.mkgandhi.org/ebks/essence_of_hinduism.pdf |date=24 July 2015 }}, Editor: VB Kher, Navajivan Publishing, see page 3; According to Gandhi, "a man may not believe in God and still call himself a Hindu."</ref> According to Doniger, "ideas about all the major issues of faith and lifestyle – vegetarianism, nonviolence, belief in rebirth, even [[Caste system in India|caste]] – are subjects of debate, not [[dogma]]."{{sfn|Doniger|2014|p=3}}

Hinduism as it is commonly known can be subdivided into a number of major currents. Of the historical division into six [[darsanas]] (philosophies), two schools, [[Vedanta]] and [[Yoga (philosophy)|Yoga]], are currently the most prominent.<ref name="Matthew Clarke 2011 28" /> Classified by primary deity or deities, four major Hinduism modern currents are [[Shaivism]] (Shiva), [[Vaishnavism]] (Vishnu), [[Shaktism]] (Devi) and [[Smarta Tradition|Smartism]] (five deities treated as equals).{{sfn|Bhandarkar|1913|p=}}{{sfn|Tattwananda|n.d.|p=}}{{sfn|Flood|1996|pp=113, 134, 155–161, 167–168}}{{sfn|Lipner|2009|pp=377, 398}} Hinduism also accepts numerous divine beings, with many Hindus considering the deities to be aspects or manifestations of a single impersonal absolute or ultimate reality or God, while some Hindus maintain that a specific deity represents the supreme and various deities are lower manifestations of this supreme.{{sfn|Flood|1996|p=14}} Other notable characteristics include a belief in the existence of [[Ātman (Hinduism)|ātman]] (Self), [[reincarnation]] of one's ātman, and karma as well as a belief in dharma (duties, rights, laws, conduct, virtues and right way of living), although variation exists, with some not following these beliefs.{{Citation needed|date=February 2023}}

Michaels distinguishes three Hindu religions and four forms of Hindu religiosity.{{sfn|Michaels|2004|p=21}} The three Hindu religions are "Brahmanic-Sanskritic Hinduism", "folk religions and tribal religions", and "founded religions".{{sfn|Michaels|2004|p=22}} The four forms of Hindu religiosity are the classical "karma-marga",{{sfn|Michaels|2004|p=23}} [[Jnana yoga|jnana-marga]],{{sfn|Michaels|2004|p=24}} [[bhakti yoga|bhakti-marga]],{{sfn|Michaels|2004|p=24}} and "heroism", which is rooted in [[Sannyasa#Warrior ascetics|militaristic traditions]]. These militaristic traditions include Ramaism (the worship of a hero of epic literature, [[Rama]], believing him to be an incarnation of Vishnu)<ref>{{Cite web|title=Definition of RAMAISM|url=https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/Ramaism|access-date=28 October 2020|website=www.merriam-webster.com|language=en|archive-date=29 December 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201229174144/https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/Ramaism|url-status=live}}</ref> and parts of [[Hindu nationalism|political Hinduism]].{{sfn|Michaels|2004|p=23}} "Heroism" is also called [[Vīrya (Hinduism)|virya-marga]].{{sfn|Michaels|2004|p=24}} According to Michaels, one out of nine Hindu belongs by birth to one or both of the Brahmanic-Sanskritic Hinduism and Folk religion typology, whether practicing or non-practicing. He classifies most Hindus as belonging by choice to one of the "founded religions" such as Vaishnavism and Shaivism that are moksha-focussed and often de-emphasize Brahman priestly authority yet incorporate ritual grammar of Brahmanic-Sanskritic Hinduism.{{sfn|Michaels|2004|pp=21–22}} He includes among "founded religions" [[Buddhism]], [[Jainism]], Sikhism that are now distinct religions, [[Syncretism|syncretic]] movements such as [[Brahmo Samaj]] and the [[Theosophical Society]], as well as various "[[Guru]]-isms" and new religious movements such as [[Maharishi Mahesh Yogi]] and [[ISKCON]].{{sfn|Michaels|2004|pp=22–23}}

According to the editors of the [[Encyclopædia Britannica]], ''{{IAST|Sanātana Dharma}}'' historically referred to the "eternal" duties religiously ordained in Hinduism, duties such as honesty, refraining from injuring living beings (''[[ahimsa|ahiṃsā]]''), purity, goodwill, mercy, patience, forbearance, self-restraint, generosity, and asceticism. These duties applied regardless of a Hindu's class, caste, or sect, and they contrasted with [[Bhagavad Gita#Svadharma and svabhava|svadharma]], one's "own duty", in accordance with one's class or caste (varṇa) and stage in life ([[puruṣārtha]]).<ref name="EB-sanatana dharma" group="web">{{Cite encyclopedia |title=Sanatana dharma {{!}} Hinduism |encyclopedia=Encyclopædia Britannica |url=https://www.britannica.com/EBchecked/topic/665848/sanatana-dharma |access-date=17 November 2016}}</ref> In recent years, the term has been used by Hindu leaders, reformers, and nationalists to refer to Hinduism. Sanatana dharma has become a synonym for the "eternal" truth and teachings of Hinduism, that transcend history and are "unchanging, indivisible and ultimately nonsectarian".<ref name="EB-sanatana dharma" group="web" />

Whatever the case, many Hindu religious sources see persons or groups which they consider as non-Vedic (and which reject Vedic [[Varnasrama Dharma|varṇāśrama]] – 'caste and life stage' orthodoxy) as being heretics (pāṣaṇḍa/pākhaṇḍa). For example, the ''[[Bhagavata Purana|Bhāgavata Purāṇa]],'' an extremely influential Hindu Puranic source, considers Buddhists, Jains as well as some [[Shaivism|Shaiva]] groups like the [[Pashupata Shaivism|Paśupatas]] and [[Kapalika|Kāpālins]] to be pāṣaṇḍas (heretics).<ref>Valpey, Kenneth Russell; Gupta, Ravi Mohan (2013). ''The Bhāgavata Purāṇa, sacred text and living tradition'', p. 146. Columbia University Press.</ref>

 

Raja Rammohan Roy is known as the father of the [[Hindu Renaissance]].<ref name="hindu1">{{Cite book |last=Young |first=Serinity |title=Hinduism |publisher=Marshall Cavendish |year=2007 |isbn=978-0-7614-2116-0 |page=[https://archive.org/details/hinduism0000youn/page/87 87] |quote=Rammohun Roy Father of Hindu Renaissance. |url=https://archive.org/details/hinduism0000youn |access-date=19 February 2015 |url-access=registration}}</ref> He was a major influence on Swami Vivekananda, who, according to Flood, was "a figure of great importance in the development of a modern Hindu self-understanding and in formulating the West's view of Hinduism".{{sfn|Flood|1996|p=257}} Central to his philosophy is the idea that the divine exists in all beings, that all human beings can achieve union with this "innate divinity",{{sfn|Flood|1996|p=258}} and that seeing this divine as the essence of others will further love and social harmony.{{sfn|Flood|1996|p=258}} According to Vivekananda, there is an essential unity to Hinduism, which underlies the diversity of its many forms.{{sfn|Flood|1996|p=258}} According to Flood, Vivekananda's vision of Hinduism "is one generally accepted by most English-speaking middle-class Hindus today".{{sfn|Flood|1996|p=259}} Sarvepalli Radhakrishnan sought to reconcile western rationalism with Hinduism, "presenting Hinduism as an essentially rationalistic and humanistic religious experience".{{sfn|Flood|1996|p=249}}

The term ''Hinduism'' was coined in Western ethnography in the 18th century,<ref name=Sweetman2003 />{{refn|group=note|''Hinduism'' is derived from Persian ''hindu-'' and the ''[[:wikt:-ism|-ism]]'' suffix. It is first recorded in 1786, in the generic sense of  "polytheism of India".<ref group=web>{{etymonline|Hinduism}}</ref>}} and refers to the fusion{{refn|group=note|name="Lockard-fusion"}} or synthesis{{refn|group=note|name="Hiltebeitel-synthesis"|{{harvnb|Hiltebeitel|2002|p=12}}: "A period of consolidation, sometimes identified as one of 'Hindu synthesis', 'Brahmanic synthesis', or 'orthodox synthesis', takes place between the time of the late Vedic Upanishads ({{Circa|500 BCE}}) and the period of Gupta imperial ascendency (c. 320–467 CE)."}}{{sfn|Samuel|2008|p=193}} of various Indian cultures and traditions,<ref name="various cultures" />{{refn|group=note|name="fusion"}} with diverse roots{{sfn|Narayanan|2009|p=11}}{{refn|group=note|name="roots"}} and no founder.{{sfn|Fowler|1997|pp=1, 7}} This [[Hindu synthesis]] emerged after the Vedic period, between {{Circa|500}}{{sfn|Hiltebeitel|2002|p=12}}–200{{sfn|Larson|2009}} BCE and c. 300 CE,{{sfn|Hiltebeitel|2002|p=12}} in the period of the [[Second Urbanisation]] and the early classical period of Hinduism, when the [[Indian epic poetry|Epics]] and the first Puranas were composed.{{sfn|Hiltebeitel|2002|p=12}}{{sfn|Larson|2009}} It flourished in the [[Medieval India|medieval period]], with the [[Decline of Buddhism in the Indian subcontinent|decline of Buddhism in India]].{{sfn|Larson|1995|pp=109–111}} Hinduism's tolerance to variations in belief and its broad range of traditions make it difficult to define as a religion according to traditional Western conceptions.{{sfn|Turner|1996a|p=275}}

Some academics suggest that Hinduism can be seen as a category with "fuzzy edges" rather than as a well-defined and rigid entity. Some forms of religious expression are central to Hinduism and others, while not as central, still remain within the category. Based on this idea [[Gabriella Eichinger Ferro-Luzzi]] has developed a 'Prototype Theory approach' to the definition of Hinduism.<ref>{{Cite book |last=Ferro-Luzzi |title=Hinduism Reconsidered |publisher=Manohar |year=1991 |editor-last=Sontheimer |editor-first=G.D. |location=Delhi |pages=187–195 |chapter=The Polythetic-Prototype Approach to Hinduism |editor-last2=Kulke |editor-first2=H.}}</ref>

[[File:Ganesh ji in Murshidabad.jpg|thumb|[[Ganesha]] is one of the best-known and most worshipped deities in the [[Hindu deities|Hindu pantheon]].{{Cn|date=June 2023}}]]

Hindu beliefs are vast and diverse, and thus Hinduism is often referred to as a family of religions rather than a single religion.<ref group="web">{{Cite web |title=Hinduism |url=https://www.history.com/topics/religion/hinduism |access-date=23 April 2020 |website=History.com |date=30 September 2019 |archive-date=29 December 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201229174138/https://www.history.com/topics/religion/hinduism |url-status=live }}</ref> Within each religion in this family of religions, there are different theologies, practices, and sacred texts.<ref group="web">{{Cite web |title=Basics of Hinduism |publisher=Kauai's Hindu Monastery |url=https://www.himalayanacademy.com/readlearn/basics/fourteen-questions/ |access-date=23 April 2020 |archive-date=29 December 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201229174156/https://www.himalayanacademy.com/readlearn/basics/fourteen-questions/ |url-status=live }}</ref><ref>{{Cite book |last1=Dasgupta |first1=Surendranath |title=A history of Indian philosophy (part 1) |last2=Banarsidass |first2=Motilall |year=1992 |page=70}}</ref><ref>{{Cite book |last=Chande |first=M.B. |title=Indian Philosophy in Modern Times |publisher=Atlantic Publishers & Dist. |year=2000 |page=277}}</ref><ref>{{Cite encyclopedia |last=Culp |first=John |date= 2008 |entry=Panentheism |editor=Edward N. Zalta |encyclopedia=The Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy |edition=Summer 2017 |entry-url=https://plato.stanford.edu/archives/sum2017/entries/panentheism/ |access-date=29 December 2020 |archive-date=29 December 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201229174122/https://plato.stanford.edu/archives/sum2017/entries/panentheism/ |url-status=live }}</ref><ref group="web">{{Cite web |date=15 June 2004 |title=Is Hinduism monotheistic? |website=The Oxford Centre for Hindu Studies |url=https://ochs.org.uk/news/hinduism-monotheistic |access-date=23 April 2020 |archive-date=29 December 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201229174152/https://ochs.org.uk/news/hinduism-monotheistic |url-status=live }}</ref> Hinduism does not have a "unified system of belief encoded in a declaration of faith or a [[creed]]",{{sfn|Flood|1996|p=6}} but is rather an umbrella term comprising the plurality of religious phenomena of India.{{sfn|Smith|1963|loc=pp. 65–66: "My point, and I think that this is the first step that one must take towards understanding something of the vision of Hindus, is that the mass of religious phenomena that we shelter under the umbrella of that term, is not a unity and does not aspire to be."}}{{sfn|Halbfass|1991|pp=1–22}} According to the [[Supreme Court of India]],

Part of the problem with a single definition of the term ''Hinduism'' is the fact that Hinduism does not have a founder.{{sfn|Flood|1996|pp=1, 7}} It is a synthesis of various traditions,<ref>{{harvnb|Lockard|2007|p=50}}; {{harvnb|Hiltebeitel|2002|p=12}}</ref> the "Brahmanical orthopraxy, the renouncer traditions and popular or local traditions".{{sfn|Flood|1996|p=16}}

The [[Hindutva]] movement has extensively argued for the unity of Hinduism, dismissing the differences and regarding India as a Hindu-country since ancient times.<ref>{{Cite book|last=Hansen|first=Thomas Blom|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=SAqn3OIGE54C|title=The Saffron Wave: Democracy and Hindu Nationalism in Modern India|year=1999|publisher=[[Princeton University Press]]|isbn=978-1-4008-2305-5|page=[https://books.google.com/books?id=SAqn3OIGE54C&q=hindutva+in+modern+india 77]|language=en}}</ref> And there are assumptions of political dominance of [[Hindu nationalism]] in [[India]], also known as ''<nowiki/>'Neo-Hindutva'<nowiki/>''.<ref>{{Cite journal|last1=Anderson|first1=Edward|last2=Longkumer|first2=Arkotong|date=2 October 2018|title='Neo-Hindutva': evolving forms, spaces, and expressions of Hindu nationalism|journal=Contemporary South Asia|volume=26|issue=4|pages=371–377|doi=10.1080/09584935.2018.1548576|issn=0958-4935|doi-access=free}}</ref><ref>{{Cite journal|last=Chacko|first=Priya|date=2019c|title=Marketizing Hindutva: The state, society, and markets in Hindu nationalism|url=https://www.cambridge.org/core/journals/modern-asian-studies/article/abs/marketizing-hindutva-the-state-society-and-markets-in-hindu-nationalism/92243742C585CD73910BA63030F6A655|journal=Modern Asian Studies|language=en|volume=53|issue=2|pages=377–410|doi=10.1017/S0026749X17000051|hdl=2440/117274|s2cid=149588748|issn=0026-749X|hdl-access=free}}</ref> There have also been increase in pre-dominance of [[Hindutva]] in [[Nepal]], similar to that of [[India]].<ref>{{Cite web|title=As Nepal Strives to Become More Inclusive, Are Muslims Being Left Behind?|url=https://www.worldpoliticsreview.com/insights/24085/will-an-incident-of-anti-muslim-violence-upend-nepals-bid-for-inclusivity|access-date=2 March 2021|website=www.worldpoliticsreview.com|date=30 January 2018 |language=en}}</ref> The scope of Hinduism is also increasing in the other parts of the world, due to the cultural influences such as [[Yoga]] and [[Hare Krishna movement]] by many missionaries organisations, especially by [[Iskcon]] and this is also due to the migration of [[Indian Hindus]] to the other nations of the world.{{sfn|Hatcher|2015|p=239}}<ref>{{Cite journal|last1=Berg|first1=Travis Vande|last2=Kniss|first2=Fred|date=2008|title=ISKCON and Immigrants: The Rise, Decline, and Rise Again of a New Religious Movement|journal=[[The Sociological Quarterly]]|volume=49|issue=1|pages=79–104|doi=10.1111/j.1533-8525.2007.00107.x|issn=0038-0253|jstor=40220058|s2cid=146169730}}</ref> Hinduism is growing fast in many [[Hinduism in the West|western nations]] and in some [[Hinduism in Africa|African nations]].{{Refn|* Hinduism is the fastest growing religion in [[Hinduism in Russia|Russia]], [[Hinduism in Ghana|Ghana]] and [[Hinduism in the United States|United States]]. This was due to the influence of the [[ISKCON]] and the migration of [[Hindus]]  in these nations.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://scroll.in/article/700557/how-iskcon-took-hinduism-to-the-us-heartland|title=How ISKCON took Hinduism to the US heartland|access-date=9 April 2021|website=scroll.in|date=17 January 2015 }}</ref>

* [[Hinduism in the West|In western nations]], the ''growth of Hinduism'' has been very fast and is the second fastest growing religion in [[Europe]], after [[Islam]].<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.erg.su.se/polopoly_fs/1.329209.1492613166!/menu/standard/file/Hinduism%20in%20Europe_Abstracts.pdf|title=Hinduism in Europe|website=[[Microsoft Word]]|date=28 April 2017|access-date=9 April 2021}}</ref>|name=ty78|group=note}}

[[File:Halebid3.JPG|thumb|right|Temple wall panel relief sculpture at the [[Hoysaleswara Temple]] in [[Halebidu]], representing the [[Trimurti]]: [[Brahma]], [[Shiva]] and [[Vishnu]]]]

Prominent themes in Hindu beliefs include (but are not restricted to) Dharma (ethics/duties), [[samsara|{{IAST|saṃsāra}}]] (the continuing cycle of entanglement in passions and the resulting birth, life, death, and rebirth), Karma (action, intent, and consequences), moksha (liberation from attachment and saṃsāra), and the various yogas (paths or practices).{{sfn|Brodd|2003}} However, not all of these themes are found among the various different systems of Hindu beliefs. Beliefs in moksha or saṃsāra are absent in certain Hindu beliefs, and were also absent among early forms of Hinduism, which was characterized by a belief in an [[Afterlife]], with traces of this still being found among various Hindu beliefs, such as [[Śrāddha]]. [[Ancestor worship]] once formed an integral part of Hindu beliefs and is today still found as an important element in various Folk Hindu streams.<ref name="A.M. Boyer 1901">A.M. Boyer: ''Etude sur l'origine de la doctrine du samsara.'' Journal Asiatique, (1901), Volume 9, Issue 18, S. 451–453, 459–468</ref><ref name="Yuvraj Krishan 1997">Yuvraj Krishan: . ''Bharatiya Vidya Bhavan'', 1997, {{ISBN|978-81-208-1233-8}}</ref><ref name="Laumakis">{{Cite book |last=Laumakis |first=Stephen J. |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=_29ZDAcUEwYC |title=An Introduction to Buddhist Philosophy |year=2008 |publisher=Cambridge University Press |isbn=978-1-139-46966-1 |language=en}}</ref><ref name="Hayakawa 2014">{{Cite book |last=Hayakawa |first=Atsushi |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=w7LtAgAAQBAJ |title=Circulation of Fire in the Veda |date=2014 |publisher=LIT Verlag Münster |isbn=978-3-643-90472-0 |language=en}}</ref><ref name="Sayers">{{Cite book |last=Sayers |first=Matthew R. |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=3AOBwiZBjRMC |title=Feeding the Dead: Ancestor Worship in Ancient India |year=2013 |publisher=OUP USA |isbn=978-0-19-989643-1 |language=en}}</ref><ref name="repositories.lib.utexas.edu">{{Cite thesis |title=Feeding the ancestors: ancestor worship in ancient Hinduism and Buddhism |url=https://repositories.lib.utexas.edu/handle/2152/3945 |date=May 2008 |degree=Thesis |first=Matthew R. |last=Sayers}}</ref><ref name="Sayers 182–197">{{Cite journal |last=Sayers |first=Matthew R. |date=June 2015 |title=The Śrāddha : The Development of Ancestor Worship in Classical Hinduism: The Śrāddha |url=https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/rec3.12155 |journal=Religion Compass |language=en |volume=9 |issue=6 |pages=182–197 |doi=10.1111/rec3.12155}}</ref>

Purusharthas refers to the objectives of human life. Classical Hindu thought accepts four proper goals or aims of human life, known as Puruṣārthas – [[Dharma]], [[Artha]], [[Kama]] and [[Moksha]].<ref name="Bilimoria 2007 p. 103" />{{sfn|Flood|1997|p=11}}

==== Dharma (moral duties, righteousness, ethics) ====

{{blockquote|Nothing is higher than Dharma. The weak overcomes the stronger by Dharma, as over a king. Truly that Dharma is the Truth (''Satya''); Therefore, when a man speaks the Truth, they say, "He speaks the Dharma"; and if he speaks Dharma, they say, "He speaks the Truth!" For both are one.|[[Brihadaranyaka Upanishad]]|1.4.xiv<ref>[[Charles Johnston (Theosophist)|Charles Johnston]], The Mukhya Upanishads: Books of Hidden Wisdom, Kshetra, {{ISBN|978-1-4959-4653-0}}, p. 481, for discussion: pp. 478–505</ref><ref>Paul Horsch (Translated by Jarrod Whitaker), "From Creation Myth to World Law: The early history of Dharma", ''Journal of Indian Philosophy'', Vol 32, pp. 423–448, (2004)</ref>}}

==== Artha (the means or resources needed for a fulfilling life) ====

Artha is the virtuous pursuit of means, resources, assets, or livelihood, for the purpose of meeting obligations, economic prosperity, and to have a fulfilling life. It is inclusive of political life, diplomacy, and material well-being. The artha concept includes all "means of life", activities and resources that enables one to be in a state one wants to be in, wealth, career and financial security.{{sfn|Koller|1968}} The proper pursuit of artha is considered an important aim of human life in Hinduism.{{sfn|Lochtefeld|2002a|pp=55–56}}<ref name="bruces">Bruce Sullivan (1997), ''Historical Dictionary of Hinduism'', {{ISBN|978-0-8108-3327-2}}, pp. 29–30</ref>

 

==== Kāma (sensory, emotional and aesthetic pleasure) ====

Kāma (Sanskrit, [[Pali]]: काम) means desire, wish, passion, longing, and pleasure of the [[senses]], the aesthetic enjoyment of life, affection and love, with or without sexual connotations.<ref>{{Cite journal |last=Macy |first=Joanna |year=1975 |title=The Dialectics of Desire |journal=Numen |volume=22 |issue=2 |pages=145–160 |doi=10.2307/3269765 |jstor=3269765}}</ref><ref name="mmwse">Monier Williams, [http://www.ibiblio.org/sripedia/ebooks/mw/0300/mw__0304.html काम, kāma] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20171019211540/http://www.ibiblio.org/sripedia/ebooks/mw/0300/mw__0304.html |date=19 October 2017 }} ''Monier-Williams Sanskrit English Dictionary'', p. 271, see 3rd column</ref>

 

 

In Hinduism, kama is considered an essential and healthy goal of human life when pursued without sacrificing dharma, artha and moksha.<ref>See:

==== Mokṣa (liberation, freedom from suffering) ====

Moksha ({{Lang-sa|मोक्ष|translit=mokṣa}}) or mukti ({{Lang-sa|मुक्ति|links=no}}) is the ultimate, most important goal in Hinduism. Moksha is a concept associated with liberation from sorrow, suffering, and for many theistic schools of Hinduism, liberation from [[samsara]] (a birth-rebirth cycle). A release from this eschatological cycle in the afterlife is called moksha in theistic schools of Hinduism.<ref name="vanbuitenen" />{{sfn|Rinehart|2004|pp=19–21}}<ref>{{Cite book|last=Long|first=J. Bruce|title=The concepts of human action and rebirth in the Mahabharata|publisher=University of California Press|year=1980|isbn=978-0-520-03923-0|editor-last=O'Flaherty|editor-first=Wendy D.|chapter=2 Karma and Rebirth in Classical Indian Traditions}}</ref>

 

Due to the belief in Hinduism that the [[Atman (Hinduism)|Atman]] is eternal, and the concept of [[Purusha]] (the cosmic self or cosmic consciousness),<ref>{{Cite book |title=The Far East and Australasia, 2003 – Regional surveys of the world |publisher=[[Routledge]] |year=2003 |isbn=978-1-85743-133-9 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=e5Az1lGCJwQC&pg=PA39 |page=39 |access-date=29 December 2020 |archive-date=29 December 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201229174155/https://books.google.com/books?id=e5Az1lGCJwQC&pg=PA39 |url-status=live }}</ref> death can be seen as insignificant in comparison to the eternal Atman or Purusha.<ref>{{Cite book |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=58UZWWzqglMC |title=Hindu spirituality – Volume 25 of Documenta missionalia |publisher=Editrice Pontificia Università Gregoriana |year=1999 |isbn=978-88-7652-818-7 |page=1 |access-date=29 December 2020 |archive-date=29 December 2019 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20191229001010/https://books.google.com/books?id=58UZWWzqglMC |url-status=live }}</ref>

The meaning of ''moksha'' differs among the various Hindu schools of thought.

 

[[Advaita Vedanta]] holds that upon attaining moksha a person knows their essence, or self, to be pure consciousness or the witness-consciousness and identifies it as identical to [[Brahman]].<ref name=karlpotter /><ref name=klausklost />

 

The followers of [[Dvaita]] (dualistic) schools believe that in the afterlife moksha state, individual essences are distinct from Brahman but infinitesimally close, and after attaining moksha they expect to spend eternity in a [[loka]] (heaven).{{Cn|date=June 2023}}

 

More generally, in the theistic schools of Hinduism moksha is usually seen as liberation from saṃsāra, while for other schools, such as the monistic school, moksha happens during a person's lifetime and is a psychological concept.{{sfn|Deutsch|2001}}<ref name="karlpotter">{{Cite journal|last=Potter|first=Karl H.|date=1958|title=Dharma and Mokṣa from a Conversational Point of View|journal=Philosophy East and West|volume=8|issue=1/2|pages=49–63|doi=10.2307/1397421|jstor=1397421|issn=0031-8221}}</ref><ref>{{Cite journal|last=Ingalls|first=Daniel H. H.|date=1957d|title=Dharma and Moksha|url=https://cup.columbia.edu/wp-content/uploads/2017/12/Philosophies-of-Happiness-Supplementary-Notes.pdf|journal=Philosophy East and West|volume=7|issue=2|pages=41–48|doi=10.2307/1396833|jstor=1396833}}{{dead link|date=July 2021 |bot=InternetArchiveBot |fix-attempted=yes }}</ref><ref name="danielingails">{{Cite book|last=Pal|first=Jagat|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=y48QAQAAIAAJ&q=Dharma+and+Moksha|title=Karma, Dharma and Moksha: Conceptual Essays on Indian Ethics|date=2004|publisher=Abhijeet Publications|isbn=978-81-88683-23-9|language=en}}</ref><ref name="klausklost">{{Cite book|last=Klostermaier|first=Klaus|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=x6gvAAAAIAAJ&q=Mok%E1%B9%A3a+and+Critical+Theory|title=Philosophy East & West|date=1985|publisher=[[University Press of Hawaii]]|pages=61–71|author-link=Klaus Klostermaier}}</ref>

 

According to Deutsch, moksha is a transcendental consciousness of the perfect state of being, of self-realization, of freedom, and of "realizing the whole universe as the Self".{{sfn|Deutsch|2001}}<ref name="karlpotter" /><ref name="danielingails" /> ''Moksha'' when viewed as a psychological concept, suggests [[Klaus Klostermaier]],<ref name="klausklost" /> implies a setting free of hitherto fettered faculties, a removing of obstacles to an unrestricted life, permitting a person to be more truly a person in the fullest sense. This concept presumes an unused human potential of creativity, compassion and understanding which had been previously blocked and shut out.{{Cn|date=June 2023}}

 

Due to these different views on the nature of moksha, the [[vedanta|Vedantic school]] separates this into two views – ''[[jivanmukta|Jivanmukti]]'' (liberation in this life) and ''[[videha mukti|Videhamukti]]'' (liberation after death).<ref name="klausklost" /><ref>{{Cite journal |last=von Brück |first=M. |year=1986 |title=Imitation or Identification? |journal=Indian Theological Studies |volume=23 |issue=2 |pages=95–105}}</ref><ref>{{Cite book|last=Fort|first=Andrew O.|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=iG_J96ALMZYC&q=Jivanmukti+in+Transformation|title=Jivanmukti in Transformation: Embodied Liberation in Advaita and Neo-Vedanta|date= 1998|publisher=[[SUNY Press]]|isbn=978-0-7914-3904-3}}</ref>

''Karma'' translates literally as ''action'', ''work'', or ''deed'',<ref>{{Cite book |last=Apte |first=Vaman S |url=https://archive.org/details/studentsenglishs00apte_271 |title=The Student's English-Sanskrit Dictionary |publisher=Motilal Banarsidas |year=1997 |isbn=978-81-208-0300-8 |edition=New |location=Delhi}}</ref> and also refers to a Vedic theory of "moral law of cause and effect".<ref>{{Cite book |last=Smith |first=Huston |year=1991 |title=The World's Religions: Our Great Wisdom Traditions |location=San Francisco |publisher=Harper |isbn=978-0-06-250799-0 |page=64 |author-link=Huston Smith |url-access=registration |url=https://archive.org/details/worldsreligions000smit}}</ref><ref>Karl Potter (1964), "The Naturalistic Principle of Karma", ''Philosophy East and West'', Vol. 14, No. 1 (April 1964), pp. 39–49</ref> The theory is a combination of (1) causality that may be ethical or non-ethical; (2) ethicization, that is good or bad actions have consequences; and (3) rebirth.<ref name="wdointro">Wendy D. O'Flaherty (1980), ''Karma and Rebirth in Classical Indian Traditions'', University of California Press, {{ISBN|978-0-520-03923-0}}, pp. xi–xxv (Introduction) and 3–37</ref> Karma theory is interpreted as explaining the present circumstances of an individual with reference to his or her actions in the past. These actions and their consequences may be in a person's current life, or, according to some schools of Hinduism, in past lives.<ref name=wdointro /><ref>Karl Potter (1980), in ''Karma and Rebirth in Classical Indian Traditions'' (O'Flaherty, Editor), University of California Press, {{ISBN|978-0-520-03923-0}}, pp. 241–267</ref> This cycle of birth, life, death and rebirth is called ''[[saṃsāra]]''. Liberation from saṃsāra through moksha is believed to ensure lasting [[Ānanda (Hindu philosophy)|happiness]] and [[Peace#Hinduism|peace]].{{sfn|Radhakrishnan|1996|p=254}}<ref>{{Cite book |last=Vivekananda |first=Swami |title=Jnana Yoga |publisher=Kessinger Publishing |year=2005 |isbn=978-1-4254-8288-6 |author-link=Swami Vivekananda |pages=301–302}} (8th Printing 1993)</ref> Hindu scriptures teach that the future is both a function of current human effort derived from free will and past human actions that set the circumstances.<ref>{{Cite book|last=Chapple|first=Christopher Key|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=QSrzLfyHvxYC&q=Karma+and+Creativity|title=Karma and Creativity|date= 1986|publisher=[[SUNY Press]]|isbn=978-0-88706-250-6|pages=60–64}}</ref> The idea of [[reincarnation]], or [[saṃsāra]], is not mentioned in the early layers of historical Hindu texts such as the ''Rigveda''.<ref>{{cite journal |last=Boyer |first=A. M. |year=1901 |title=Etude sur l'origine de la doctrine du samsara |journal=Journal Asiatique |volume=9 |issue=18 |pages=451–453, 459–468}}</ref><ref>{{cite book |last=Krishan |first=Yuvraj |title=Bharatiya Vidya Bhavan |year=1997 |isbn=978-81-208-1233-8}}</ref> The later layers of the ''Rigveda'' do mention ideas that suggest an approach towards the idea of rebirth, according to Ranade.{{sfn|Laumakis|2008|pp=90–99}}<ref>{{cite book |last=Ranade |first=R. D. |url=https://archive.org/stream/A.Constructive.Survey.of.Upanishadic.Philosophy.by.R.D.Ranade.1926.djvu/A.Constructive.Survey.of.Upanishadic.Philosophy.by.R.D.Ranade.1926#page/n181/mode/2up |title=A Constructive Survey of Upanishadic Philosophy |publisher=Bharatiya Vidya Bhavan |year=1926 |pages=147–148 |quote=...&nbsp;in certain other places [of Rigveda], an approach is being made to the idea of Transmigration. ... There we definitely know that the whole hymn is address to a departed spirit, and the poet [of the Rigvedic hymn] says that he is going to recall the departed soul in order that it may return again and live.}}</ref> According to Sayers, these earliest layers of Hindu literature show ancestor worship and rites such as ''sraddha'' (offering food to the ancestors). The later Vedic texts such as the ''Aranyakas'' and the ''Upanisads'' show a different soteriology based on reincarnation, they show little concern with ancestor rites, and they begin to philosophically interpret the earlier rituals.<ref>{{cite book |last=Sayers |first=Matthew R. |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=3AOBwiZBjRMC |title=Feeding the Dead: Ancestor worship in ancient India |publisher=Oxford University Press |year=2013 |isbn=978-0-19-989643-1 |pages=1–9}}</ref><ref>{{cite thesis |first=Matthew Rae |last=Sayers |title=Feeding the ancestors: ancestor worship in ancient Hinduism and Buddhism |degree=PhD |publisher=University of Texas |url=https://repositories.lib.utexas.edu/handle/2152/3945 |page=12}}</ref><ref>{{cite journal |last=Sayers |first=Matthew R. |date=1 November 2015 |editor-last=McGovern |editor-first=Nathan |title=Feeding the Dead: Ancestor worship in ancient India |url=https://academic.oup.com/jhs/article/8/3/336/2358466 |journal=The Journal of Hindu Studies |volume=8 |issue=3 |pages=336–338 |doi=10.1093/jhs/hiv034 |issn=1756-4255}}</ref> The idea of reincarnation and karma have roots in the [[Upanishads]] of the late [[Vedic period]], predating the [[Buddha]] and the [[Mahavira]].<ref name="damienkeown32">{{cite book |last=Keown |first=Damien |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=_QXX0Uq29aoC |title=Buddhism: A very short introduction |publisher=Oxford University Press |year=2013 |isbn=978-0-19-966383-5 |pages=28, 32–38}}</ref>{{sfn|Laumakis|2008}}

 

Hinduism is a diverse system of thought with a wide variety of beliefs<!--systems listed at 'Definitions' above-->;<ref name="Lipner2009p8" /><ref>{{Cite book |last=Chakravarti |first=Sitansu |title=Hinduism, a way of life |publisher=Motilal Banarsidass |year=1991 |isbn=978-81-208-0899-7 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=J_-rASTgw8wC&pg=PA71 |page=71 |access-date=29 December 2020 |archive-date=13 April 2017 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170413105302/https://books.google.com/books?id=J_-rASTgw8wC&pg=PA71 |url-status=live }}</ref><ref group="web">{{Cite encyclopedia |last=Smart |first=Ninian |year=2007 |title=Polytheism |encyclopedia=Encyclopædia Britannica |url=https://www.britannica.com/eb/article-38143/polytheism |access-date=5 July 2007 |archive-date=5 August 2011 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110805040843/http://www.britannica.com/EBchecked/topic/469156/polytheism |url-status=live }}</ref> its concept of God is complex and depends upon each individual and the tradition and [[Hindu philosophy|philosophy]] followed. It is sometimes referred to as [[God in Hinduism|henotheistic]] (i.e., involving devotion to a single god while accepting the existence of others), but any such term is an overgeneralization.{{sfn|Michaels|2004|p=xiv}}<ref>{{Cite web |last=Gill |first=N.S |title=Henotheism |url=http://ancienthistory.about.com/cs/egyptmyth/g/henotheism.htm |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070317151629/http://ancienthistory.about.com/cs/egyptmyth/g/henotheism.htm |archive-date=17 March 2007 |access-date=5 July 2007 |publisher=[[About.com|About, Inc]]}}</ref>

| caption_align     = center

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| title             = [[Hindu deities|Gods and Goddesses]] in Hinduism

| image1           = Vishnu Kumartuli Park Sarbojanin Arnab Dutta 2010.JPG

| alt1             = Vishnu

| caption1         = [[Vishnu]]

| image2           = Brahma on hamsa.jpg

| alt2             = Brahma

| caption2         = [[Brahma]]

| image3           = MurudeshwarStatue.JPG

| alt3             = Shiva

| caption3         = [[Shiva]]

| image4           = Durga idol 2011 Burdwan.jpg

| alt4             = Shakti

| caption4         = [[Shakti]]

Hindus believe that all living creatures have a Self. This true "Self" of every person, is called the ''[[Atman (Hinduism)|ātman]]''. The Self is believed to be eternal.{{sfn|Monier-Williams|1974|pp=20–37}} According to the monistic/pantheistic ([[Nondualism|non-dualist]]) theologies of Hinduism (such as [[Advaita Vedanta|Advaita Vedanta school]]), this [[Ātman (Hinduism)|Atman]] is indistinct from [[Brahman]], the supreme spirit or [[Ultimate reality|the Ultimate Reality]].<ref name="bhaskaranandaessential">{{Harvnb | Bhaskarananda|1994}}</ref> The goal of life, according to the [[Advaita Vedanta|Advaita school]], is to realise that [[Jiva|one's Self]] is identical to [[Paramatman|supreme Self]], that the supreme Self is present in everything and everyone, all life is interconnected and there is oneness in all life.{{sfn|Vivekananda|1987}}<ref>John Koller (2012), ''Routledge Companion to Philosophy of Religion'' (Editors: Chad Meister, Paul Copan), Routledge, {{ISBN|978-0-415-78294-4}}, pp. 99–107</ref><ref>Lance Nelson (1996), "Living liberation in Shankara and classical Advaita", in ''Living Liberation in Hindu Thought'' (Editors: Andrew O. Fort, Patricia Y. Mumme), State University of New York Press, {{ISBN|978-0-7914-2706-4}}, pp. 38–39, 59 (footnote 105)</ref> [[Dualism (Indian philosophy)|Dualistic]] schools ([[Dvaita Vedanta|Dvaita]] and [[Bhakti]]) understand [[Brahman]] as a Supreme Being separate from [[Ātman (Hinduism)|individual Selfs]].<ref name="R Prasad 2009 pages 345-347">R Prasad (2009), ..A Historical-developmental Study of Classical Indian Philosophy of Morals'', Concept Publishing, {{ISBN|978-81-8069-595-7}}, pp. 345–347</ref> They worship the Supreme Being variously as [[Vishnu]], [[Brahma]], [[Shiva]], or [[Shakti]], depending upon the sect. God is called ''[[Ishvara]]'', ''[[Bhagavan]]'', ''[[Parameshwara (god)|Parameshwara]]'', ''[[Deva (Hinduism)|Deva]]'' or ''[[Devi]]'', and these terms have different meanings in different schools of Hinduism.{{sfn|Eliade|2009|pp=73–76}}{{sfn|Radhakrishnan|Moore|1967|pp=37–39, 401–403, 498–503}}{{sfn|Monier-Williams|2001}}

Hindu texts accept a polytheistic framework, but this is generally conceptualized as the divine essence or luminosity that gives vitality and animation to the inanimate natural substances.<ref name="Wallin1999p64" /> There is a divine in everything, human beings, animals, trees and rivers. It is observable in offerings to rivers, trees, tools of one's work, animals and birds, rising sun, friends and guests, teachers and parents.<ref name="Wallin1999p64" /><ref>{{Cite book |last=Berntsen |first=Maxine |url=https://archive.org/details/experienceofhind00zell |title=The Experience of Hinduism: Essays on Religion in Maharashtra |publisher=State University of New York Press |year=1988 |isbn=978-0-88706-662-7 |pages=[https://archive.org/details/experienceofhind00zell/page/n45 18]–19 |url-access=registration}}</ref><ref>[https://archive.org/stream/thirteenprincipa028442mbp#page/n301/mode/2up Taittiriya Upanishad] Thirteen Principal Upanishads, Robert Hume (Translator), pp. 281–282;<br />Paul Deussen, ''Sixty Upanishads of the Veda'', Volume 1, Motilal Banarsidass, {{ISBN|978-81-208-1468-4}}, pp. 229–231</ref> It is the divine in these that makes each sacred and worthy of reverence, rather than them being sacred in and of themselves. This perception of divinity manifested in all things, as Buttimer and Wallin view it, makes the [[Vedas|Vedic]] foundations of Hinduism quite distinct from [[animism]], in which all things are themselves divine.<ref name="Wallin1999p64" /> The animistic premise sees multiplicity, and therefore an equality of ability to compete for power when it comes to man and man, man and animal, [[man and nature]], etc. The [[Vedas|Vedic]] view does not perceive this competition, equality of man to nature, or multiplicity so much as an overwhelming and interconnecting single divinity that unifies everyone and everything.<ref name="Wallin1999p64">{{Cite book |last1=Buttimer |first1=Anne |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=zUHFyGQcJxgC |title=Nature and Identity in Cross-Cultural Perspective |last2=Wallin |first2=L. |publisher=Springer |year=1999 |isbn=978-0-7923-5651-6 |pages=64–68}}</ref><ref>{{Cite book |last=Mabry |first=John R. |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=qWVsNYQ5Gh4C |title=Noticing the Divine: An Introduction to Interfaith Spiritual Guidance |publisher=New York: Morehouse |year=2006 |isbn=978-0-8192-2238-1 |pages=32–33}}</ref><ref>{{Cite book |last1=Samovar |first1=Larry A. |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=lsYaCgAAQBAJ |title=Communication Between Cultures |last2=Porter |first2=Richard E. |last3=McDaniel |first3=Edwin R. |publisher=Cengage |year=2016 |isbn=978-1-305-88806-7 |pages=140–144 |display-authors=etal}}</ref>

Both theistic and atheistic ideas, for epistemological and metaphysical reasons, are profuse in different schools of Hinduism. The early [[Nyaya]] school of Hinduism, for example, was non-theist/atheist,<ref>John Clayton (2010), ''Religions, Reasons and Gods: Essays in Cross-cultural Philosophy of Religion'', Cambridge University Press, {{ISBN|978-0-521-12627-4}}, page 150</ref> but later [[Nyaya]] school scholars argued that God exists and offered proofs using its theory of logic.<ref>Sharma, C. (1997). A Critical Survey of Indian Philosophy, Delhi: Motilal Banarsidass, {{ISBN|978-81-208-0365-7}}, pp. 209–210</ref><ref>{{Cite journal |last=Reichenbach |first=Bruce R. |date=April 1989 |title=Karma, causation, and divine intervention |journal=Philosophy East and West |volume=39 |issue=2 |pages=135–149 [145] |doi=10.2307/1399374 |jstor=1399374 |url=http://ccbs.ntu.edu.tw/FULLTEXT/JR-PHIL/reiche2.htm |access-date=29 December 2009 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20091027070413/http://ccbs.ntu.edu.tw/FULLTEXT/JR-PHIL/reiche2.htm |archive-date=27 October 2009}}</ref> Other schools disagreed with Nyaya scholars. [[Samkhya]],<ref>{{Cite book |last=Rajadhyaksha |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=ihkRAQAAIAAJ |title=The six systems of Indian philosophy |year=1959 |page=95 |quote=Under the circumstances God becomes an unnecessary metaphysical assumption. Naturally the Sankhyakarikas do not mention God, Vachaspati interprets this as rank atheism. |access-date=2 July 2015 |archive-date=1 January 2016 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160101025131/https://books.google.com/books?id=ihkRAQAAIAAJ |url-status=live }}</ref> Mimamsa<ref name=Coward2008p114>{{harvnb|Coward|2008|p=114}}: "For the Mimamsa the ultimate reality is nothing other than the eternal words of the Vedas. They did not accept the existence of a single supreme creator god, who might have composed the Veda. According to the Mimamsa, gods named in the Vedas have no existence apart from the mantras that speak their names. The power of the gods, then, is nothing other than the power of the mantras that name them."</ref> and [[Carvaka]] schools of Hinduism, were non-theist/atheist, arguing that "God was an unnecessary metaphysical assumption".<ref group="web">[https://archive.org/stream/thesamkhyaphilos00sinhuoft/thesamkhyaphilos00sinhuoft_djvu.txt Sāṁkhyapravacana Sūtra] I.92.</ref>{{sfn|Sen Gupta|1986|p=viii}}<ref>{{Cite book |last=Neville |first=Robert |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=ThLR13JpCWsC |title=Religious truth |year=2001 |isbn=978-0-7914-4778-9 |page=51 |quote=Mimamsa theorists (theistic and atheistic) decided that the evidence allegedly proving the existence of God was insufficient. They also thought there was no need to postulate a maker for the world, just as there was no need for an author to compose the Veda or an independent God to validate the Vedic rituals. |access-date=2 July 2015 |archive-date=1 January 2016 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160101025131/https://books.google.com/books?id=ThLR13JpCWsC |url-status=live }}</ref> Its [[Vaisheshika]] school started as another non-theistic tradition relying on naturalism and that all matter is eternal, but it later introduced the concept of a non-creator God.<ref>A Goel (1984), ''Indian philosophy: Nyāya-Vaiśeṣika and modern science'', Sterling, {{ISBN|978-0-86590-278-7}}, pp. 149–151</ref><ref>Collins, Randall (2000), ''The sociology of philosophies'', Cambridge, MA: The Belknap Press of Harvard University Press, {{ISBN|978-0-674-00187-9}}, p. 836</ref>{{sfn|Klostermaier|2007|pp=337–338}} The [[Raja yoga|Yoga]] school of Hinduism accepted the concept of a "personal god" and left it to the Hindu to define his or her god.<ref>{{Cite book |last=Burley |first=Mikel |author-link=Mikel Burley |title=Classical Samkhya and Yoga – An Indian Metaphysics of Experience |publisher=Routledge |year=2012 |isbn=978-0-415-64887-5 |pages=39–41}};<br />{{Cite book |last=Pflueger |first=Lloyd |title=Person Purity and Power in Yogasutra, in Theory and Practice of Yoga |publisher=Motilal Banarsidass |year=2008 |isbn=978-81-208-3232-9 |editor-last=Knut Jacobsen |pages=38–39}};<br />{{Cite book |author-link1=K. T. Behanan |last=Behanan |first=Kovoor T. |title=Yoga: Its Scientific Basis |publisher=Dover |year=2002 |isbn=978-0-486-41792-9 |pages=56–58}}</ref> Advaita Vedanta taught a monistic, abstract Self and Oneness in everything, with no room for gods or deity, a perspective that Mohanty calls, "spiritual, not religious".<ref>Knut Jacobsen (2008), ''Theory and Practice of Yoga: Essays in Honour of Gerald James Larson'', Motilal Banarsidass, {{ISBN|978-81-208-3232-9}}, pp. 77–78</ref> Bhakti sub-schools of Vedanta taught a creator God that is distinct from each human being.<ref name="R Prasad 2009 pages 345-347" />

Authority and eternal truths play an important role in Hinduism.<ref name="frazier1415">{{Cite book |last=Frazier |first=Jessica |url=https://archive.org/details/continuumcompani00fraz |title=The Continuum companion to Hindu studies |date=2011 |publisher=Continuum |isbn=978-0-8264-9966-0 |location=London |pages=[https://archive.org/details/continuumcompani00fraz/page/14 14]–15, 321–325 |url-access=limited}}</ref> Religious traditions and truths are believed to be contained in its sacred texts, which are accessed and taught by sages, gurus, saints or avatars.<ref name=frazier1415 /> But there is also a strong tradition of the questioning of authority, internal debate and challenging of religious texts in Hinduism. The Hindus believe that this deepens the understanding of the eternal truths and further develops the tradition. Authority "was mediated through [...] an intellectual culture that tended to develop ideas collaboratively, and according to the shared logic of natural reason."<ref name=frazier1415 /> Narratives in the [[Upanishads]] present characters questioning persons of authority.<ref name=frazier1415 /> The [[Kena Upanishad]] repeatedly asks ''kena'', 'by what' power something is the case.<ref name=frazier1415 /> The [[Katha Upanishad]] and Bhagavad Gita present narratives where the student criticizes the teacher's inferior answers.<ref name=frazier1415 /> In the [[Shiva Purana]], Shiva questions Vishnu and Brahma.<ref name=frazier1415 /> Doubt plays a repeated role in the Mahabharata.<ref name=frazier1415 /> [[Jayadeva]]'s [[Gita Govinda]] presents criticism via [[Radha]].<ref name=frazier1415 />

Hinduism has no central doctrinal authority and many practising Hindus do not claim to belong to any particular denomination or tradition.{{sfn|Werner|2005|pp=13, 45}} Four major denominations are, however, used in scholarly studies: ''Shaivism'', ''Shaktism'', ''Smartism'', and ''Vaishnavism''.{{sfn|Bhandarkar|1913|p=}}{{sfn|Tattwananda|n.d.|p=}}{{sfn|Flood|1996|pp=113, 134, 155–161, 167–168}}{{sfn|Lipner|2009|pp=377, 398}} These denominations differ primarily in the central deity worshipped, the traditions and the [[soteriology|soteriological]] outlook.<ref name="sskumar">SS Kumar (2010), ''Bhakti – the Yoga of Love'', LIT Verlag Münster, {{ISBN|978-3-643-50130-1}}, pp. 35–36</ref> The denominations of Hinduism, states Lipner, are unlike those found in major religions of the world, because Hindu denominations are fuzzy with individuals practicing more than one, and he suggests the term "Hindu polycentrism".{{sfn|Lipner|2009|pp=371–375}}

 

There are no census data available on demographic history or trends for the traditions within Hinduism.<ref>[http://www.pewforum.org/2012/12/18/global-religious-landscape-hindu/ The global religious landscape: Hindus] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200209012719/https://www.pewforum.org/2012/12/18/global-religious-landscape-hindu/ |date=9 February 2020}}, Pew Research (2012)</ref> Estimates vary on the relative number of adherents in the different traditions of Hinduism. According to a 2010 estimate by Johnson and Grim, the Vaishnavism tradition is the largest group with about 641 million or 67.6% of Hindus, followed by Shaivism with 252&nbsp;million or 26.6%, Shaktism with 30&nbsp;million or 3.2% and other traditions including Neo-Hinduism and Reform Hinduism with 25&nbsp;million or 2.6%.{{sfn|Johnson|Grim|2013|p=400}}<ref>See also {{harv|Klostermaier|2007|p=199}} </ref> In contrast, according to Jones and Ryan, Shaivism is the largest tradition of Hinduism.{{sfn|Jones|Ryan|2007|p=474}}{{refn|group=note|According to {{harvnb|Jones|Ryan|2007|p=474}}, "The followers of Vaishnavism are many fewer than those of Shaivism, numbering perhaps 200 million."{{sfn|Jones|Ryan|2007|p=474}}{{dubious|date=February 2022}}}}

Vaishnavism is the devotional religious tradition that worships Vishnu{{Refn|group=note|sometimes with [[Lakshmi]], the spouse of Vishnu; or, as Narayana and Sri;{{sfn|Beck|2005|p=65 and Chapter 5}}}} and his avatars, particularly Krishna and Rama.{{sfn|Bryant|Ekstrand|2004|pp=15–17}} The adherents of this sect are generally non-ascetic, monastic, oriented towards community events and devotionalism practices inspired by "intimate loving, joyous, playful" ''Krishna'' and other Vishnu avatars.<ref name=sskumar /> These practices sometimes include community dancing, singing of [[Kirtan]]s and [[Bhajan]]s, with sound and music believed by some to have meditative and spiritual powers.{{sfn|Bryant|Ekstrand|2004|pp=38–43}} Temple worship and festivals are typically elaborate in Vaishnavism.<ref>{{Cite book |last1=Nettl |first1=Bruno |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=ZOlNv8MAXIEC |title=The Garland Encyclopedia of World Music: South Asia: the Indian subcontinent |last2=Stone |first2=Ruth M. |last3=Porter |first3=James |last4=Rice |first4=Timothy |publisher=Routledge |year=1998 |isbn=978-0-8240-4946-1 |pages=246–247 |access-date=21 February 2016 |archive-date=11 October 2017 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20171011163910/https://books.google.com/books?id=ZOlNv8MAXIEC |url-status=live }}</ref> The Bhagavad Gita and the Ramayana, along with Vishnu-oriented Puranas provide its theistic foundations.<ref>{{harv|Espín|Nickoloff|2007|pp=1441, 376}}</ref> Philosophically, their beliefs are rooted in the dualism sub-schools of Vedantic Hinduism.{{sfn|Bryant|Ekstrand|2004|pp=40–43}}{{sfn|Bryant|2007|pp=357–358}}

[[Smartism]] centers its worship simultaneously on all the major [[Hindu deities]]: Shiva, Vishnu, Shakti, Ganesha, [[Surya]] and [[Kartikeya|Skanda]].{{sfn|Flood|1996|p=113}} The Smarta tradition developed during the (early) Classical Period of Hinduism around the beginning of the Common Era, when Hinduism emerged from the interaction between Brahmanism and local traditions.{{sfn|Hiltebeitel|2002}}{{sfn|Flood|1996}} The Smarta tradition is aligned with Advaita Vedanta, and regards [[Adi Shankara]] as its founder or reformer, who considered worship of God-with-attributes ([[Saguna Brahman]]) as a journey towards ultimately realizing God-without-attributes (nirguna Brahman, Atman, Self-knowledge).<ref name="williamw">{{Cite book |last=Wainwright |first=William |title=Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy |url=http://stanford.library.usyd.edu.au/entries/concepts-god/ |publisher=Stanford University |year=2012 |chapter=Concepts of God |access-date=17 June 2015 |archive-date=23 March 2015 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150323084508/http://stanford.library.usyd.edu.au/entries/concepts-god/ |url-status=live }}</ref><ref>{{Cite book |last=Murthy |first=U |title=Samskara |url=https://archive.org/details/samskarariteford0000anan |publisher=Oxford University Press |year=1979 |isbn=978-0-19-561079-6 |page=[https://archive.org/details/samskarariteford0000anan/page/n150 150]}}</ref> The term ''Smartism'' is derived from Smriti texts of Hinduism, meaning those who remember the traditions in the texts.<ref name=lancenelson /><ref name="williamsonp89">{{cite book|first=L |last=Williamson |year=2010 |title=Transcendent in America: Hindu-inspired Meditation Movements as New Religion |publisher=New York University Press |isbn=978-0-8147-9450-0 |page=89}}</ref> This Hindu sect practices a philosophical Jnana yoga, scriptural studies, reflection, meditative path seeking an understanding of Self's oneness with God.<ref name=lancenelson /><ref>{{Cite book |last=Milner |first=Murray |title=Status and Sacredness |url=https://archive.org/details/statussacredness00miln |publisher=Oxford University Press |year=1994 |isbn=978-0-19-508489-4 |pages=[https://archive.org/details/statussacredness00miln/page/194 194]–197}}</ref>

 

Hinduism is traditionally a multi- or [[Polyethnicity|polyethnic]] religion. On the [[Indian subcontinent]], it is widespread among many [[Indo-Aryan peoples|Indo-Aryan]], [[Dravidian peoples|Dravidian]] and other [[South Asian ethnic groups]],{{sfn|West|2010}} for example, the [[Meitei people]] ([[Tibeto-Burman languages|Tibeto-Burman]] ethnicity in the northeastern Indian state [[Manipur]]).{{sfn|Singh|2004}}

 

In addition, in antiquity and the [[Middle Ages]], Hinduism was the [[state religion]] in many Indianized kingdoms of Asia, the ''[[Greater India]]''{{snd}}from Afghanistan ([[Kabul]]) in the West and including almost all of [[Southeast Asia]] in the East ([[Cambodia]], [[Vietnam]], [[Indonesia]], partly [[Philippines]]){{snd}}and only by 15th century was nearly everywhere supplanted by Buddhism and Islam,{{sfnm|1a1=Cœdès|1y=1968|1p=|2a1=Pande|2y=2006|2p=|3a1=Acri|3a2=Creese|3a3=Griffiths|3y=2011|3p=}}<ref name="spread">{{cite encyclopedia|title=The spread of Hinduism in Southeast Asia and the Pacific|encyclopedia=[[Encyclopædia Britannica]] Online|url=https://www.britannica.com/topic/Hinduism/The-spread-of-Hinduism-in-Southeast-Asia-and-the-Pacific}}</ref> except several still Hindu minor [[Austronesian peoples|Austronesian]] ethnic groups, such as the [[Balinese people|Balinese]]{{sfnm|1a1=Gonda|1y=1975|1p=|2a1=Bakker|2y=1997|2p=|3a1=Howe|3y=2001|3p=|4a1=Stuart-Fox|4y=2002|4p=}} and [[Tenggerese people]]{{sfnm|1a1=Hefner|1y=1989|1p=|2a1=Kinney|2a2=Klokke|2a3=Kieven |2y=2003|2p=}} in Indonesia, and the [[Chams]] in Vietnam.{{sfnm|1a1=Phuong|1a2=Lockhart|1y=2011|1p=|2a1=Pande|2y=2006|2p=231}} Also, a small community of the Afghan [[Pashtuns]] who migrated to India after [[partition of India|partition]] remain committed to Hinduism.<ref>{{cite news |url=http://www.thehindu.com/news/national/tattooed-blue-skinned-hindu-pushtuns-look-back-at-their-roots/article22645932.ece |title=Tattooed 'blue-skinned' Hindu Pushtuns look back at their roots |author=Haider, Suhasini |date=3 February 2018 |website=[[The Hindu]] |access-date=9 February 2020}}</ref>

The Indo-Aryan [[Kalash people]] in Pakistan traditionally practice an indigenous religion which some authors characterise as a form of [[ancient Hinduism]].{{sfn|Michael|2004}}{{sfn|West|2010|p=[{{Google books|id=pCiNqFj3MQsC|plainurl=y|page=357|keywords=|text=}} 357]|loc=quote: "The Kalasha ... religion is a form of Hinduism that recognizes many gods and spirits and has been related to the religion of the Ancient Greeks, who mythology says are the ancestors of the contemporary Kalash... However, it is much more likely, given their Indo-Aryan language, that the religion of the Kalasha is much more closely aligned to the Hinduism of their Indian neighbors that to the religion of Alexander the Great and his armies."}}

: {{lang|sa|वेदः स्मृतिः सदाचारः स्वस्य च प्रियमात्मनः । एतच्चतुर्विधं प्राहुः साक्षाद्धर्मस्य लक्षणम् ॥}}<ref group=web>{{cite web |url=http://www.vedagyana.info/maha-puranas-telugu/bhavishya-purana/brahma-parva/?chapter=7 |script-title=te:ఏడవ అధ్యాయము – 7. వివాహ ధర్మ వర్ణనము |trans-title=Chapter 7 – 7. Description of Marriage |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200610234713/http://www.vedagyana.info/maha-puranas-telugu/bhavishya-purana/brahma-parva/?chapter=7 |archive-date=10 June 2020}}</ref>

''Shruti'' (lit. that which is heard){{sfn|Rinehart|2004|p=68}} primarily refers to the ''Vedas'', which form the earliest record of the Hindu scriptures, and are regarded as eternal truths revealed to the ancient sages (''[[rishi]]s'').{{sfn|Flood|2003|p=4}} There are four ''Vedas'' – ''[[Rigveda]]'', ''[[Samaveda]]'', ''[[Yajurveda]]'' and ''[[Atharvaveda]]''. Each Veda has been subclassified into four major text types – the [[Samhita]]s (mantras and benedictions), the [[Aranyakas]] (text on rituals, ceremonies, sacrifices and symbolic-sacrifices), the [[Brahmanas]] (commentaries on rituals, ceremonies and sacrifices), and the Upanishads (text discussing meditation, philosophy and spiritual knowledge).{{sfn|Flood|1996|pp=35–39}}<ref>A Bhattacharya (2006), ''Hindu Dharma: Introduction to Scriptures and Theology'', {{ISBN|978-0-595-38455-6}}, pp. 8–14; George M. Williams (2003), Handbook of Hindu Mythology, Oxford University Press, {{ISBN|978-0-19-533261-2}}, p. 285</ref><ref>Jan Gonda (1975), ''Vedic Literature: (Saṃhitās and Brāhmaṇas)'', Otto Harrassowitz Verlag, {{ISBN|978-3-447-01603-2}}</ref> The first two parts of the Vedas were subsequently called the ''{{IAST|Karmakāṇḍa}}'' (ritualistic portion), while the last two form the ''{{IAST|Jñānakāṇḍa}}'' (knowledge portion, discussing spiritual insight and philosophical teachings).<ref>{{harvnb|Roer|1908|pp=1–5}}; "The Vedas are divided in two parts, the first is the karma-kanda, the ceremonial part, also (called) purva-kanda, and treats on ceremonies; the second part is the jnana kanda, the part which contains knowledge, also named uttara-kanda or posterior part, and unfolds the knowledge of Brahma or the universal Self."</ref>{{sfn|Werner|2005|pp=10, 58, 66}}{{sfn|Monier-Williams|1974|pp=25–41}}<ref name="Olivelle1998Introduction">{{cite book |last=Olivelle |first=Patrick |year=1998 |title=Upaniṣads |publisher=Oxford University Press |isbn=978-0-19-282292-5 |chapter=Introduction}}</ref>

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Since the 19th-century Indian modernists have re-asserted the 'Aryan origins' of Hinduism, "purifying" Hinduism from its Tantric elements{{sfn|Lorenzen|2002|p=33}} and elevating the Vedic elements. Hindu modernists like Vivekananda see the Vedas as the laws of the spiritual world, which would still exist even if they were not revealed to the sages.{{sfn|Vivekananda|1987|loc=Volume I|pp=6–7}}{{sfn|Harshananda|1989}}

 

[[Tantra]] are the religious scriptures which give prominence to the female energy of the deity that in her personified form has both gentle and fierce form. In Tantric tradition, [[Radha]], [[Parvati]], [[Durga]] and [[Kali]] are worshipped symbolically as well as in their personified forms.<ref>{{Cite book |last=Balfour |first=Edward |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=3U0OAAAAQAAJ&dq=worship+radha&pg=PA62 |title=The Cyclopædia of India and of Eastern and Southern Asia: Commercial, Industrial and Scientific, Products of the Mineral, Vegetable, and Animal Kingdoms, Useful Arts and Manufactures |date=1885 |publisher=B. Quaritch |pages=60 |language=en}}</ref>  The ''Agamas'' in Tantra refer to authoritative scriptures or the teachings of Shiva to Shakti,{{sfn|Jones|Ryan|2007|p=13}} while ''Nigamas'' refers to the Vedas and the teachings of Shakti to Shiva.{{sfn|Jones|Ryan|2007|p=13}} In Agamic schools of Hinduism, the Vedic literature and the Agamas are equally authoritative.<ref>{{Cite book |last=Dhavamony |first=Mariasusai |title=Hindu Spirituality |publisher=Gregorian University and Biblical Press |year=1999 |isbn=978-88-7652-818-7 |pages=31–34}}</ref><ref>{{Cite book |last=Smith |first=David |title=The Dance of Siva: Religion, Art and Poetry in South India |url=https://archive.org/details/danceofsivarelig0000smit |publisher=Cambridge University Press |year=1996 |isbn=978-0-521-48234-9 |page=[https://archive.org/details/danceofsivarelig0000smit/page/116 116]}}</ref>

Sādhanā is derived from the root "sādh-", meaning "to accomplish," and denotes a means for the realization of spiritual goals. Although different denominations of Hinduism have their own particular notions of sādhana, they share the feature of liberation from bondage. They differ on what causes bondage, how one can become free of that bondage, and who or what can lead one on that path.{{sfn|Klostermaier|2007|pp=36–37}}<ref>NK Brahma, Philosophy of Hindu Sādhanā, {{ISBN|978-8120333062}}, pp. ix–x</ref>

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| footer           = A home shrine with offerings at a regional [[Vishu]] festival (left); a priest in a temple (right)

One form of daily worship is aarti, or "supplication," a ritual in which a flame is offered and "accompanied by a song of praise".<ref name=":0">{{Cite book|last=Lutgendorf|first=Philip|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=fVFC2Nx-LP8C&q=hanuman's+tale|title=Hanuman's Tale: The Messages of a Divine Monkey|year=2007|publisher=Oxford University Press|isbn=978-0-19-804220-4|page=401|language=en|access-date=29 December 2020|archive-date=29 December 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201229174158/https://books.google.com/books?id=fVFC2Nx-LP8C&q=hanuman%27s+tale|url-status=live}}</ref> Notable aartis include [[Om Jai Jagdish Hare]], a [[Hindi language|Hindi]] prayer to [[Vishnu]], and [[Sukhakarta Dukhaharta]], a [[Marathi language|Marathi]] prayer to [[Ganesha]].<ref>{{Cite book|title=Ganesh, the benevolent|date=1995|publisher=Marg Publications|editor=Pal, Pratapaditya |isbn=81-85026-31-9|location=Bombay|oclc=34752006 }}</ref><ref>{{Cite book|last=Raj|first=Dhooleka S.|title=Where Are You From?: Middle-Class Migrants in the Modern World|date=2003|publisher=University of California Press|isbn=978-0-520-23382-9 |jstor=10.1525/j.ctt1pn917}}</ref> Aarti can be used to make offerings to entities ranging from deities to "human exemplar[s]".<ref name=":0" /> For instance, Aarti is offered to [[Hanuman]], a devotee of God, in many temples, including [[Balaji Mandir (disambiguation)|Balaji temples]], where the primary deity is an incarnation of [[Venkateswara|Vishnu]].<ref>{{Cite book|last=Lutgendorf|first=Philip|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=fVFC2Nx-LP8C&q=hanuman's+tale|title=Hanuman's Tale: The Messages of a Divine Monkey|year=2007|publisher=Oxford University Press|isbn=978-0-19-804220-4|pages=23, 262|language=en|access-date=29 December 2020|archive-date=29 December 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201229174126/https://books.google.com/books?id=fVFC2Nx-LP8C&q=hanuman%27s+tale|url-status=live}}</ref> In [[Swaminarayan Sampradaya|Swaminarayan]] temples and home shrines, aarti is offered to [[Swaminarayan]], considered by followers to be supreme God.<ref>{{Cite book|last=Williams|first=Raymond Brady|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=ODdqDwAAQBAJ&q=an+introduction+to+swaminarayan+hinduism|title=Introduction to Swaminarayan Hinduism|year= 2018|publisher=Cambridge University Press|isbn=978-1-108-42114-0|pages=84, 153–154|language=en|access-date=29 December 2020|archive-date=29 December 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201229174204/https://books.google.com/books?id=ODdqDwAAQBAJ&q=an+introduction+to+swaminarayan+hinduism|url-status=live}}</ref>

Other personal and community practices include puja as well as aarti,{{sfn|Lochtefeld|2002a|p=51}} kirtan, or bhajan, where devotional verses and hymns are read or poems are sung by a group of devotees.<ref group="web">{{Cite encyclopedia |year=2015 |title=Puja |encyclopedia=Encyclopædia Britannica |url=https://www.britannica.com/topic/puja |access-date=16 June 2015 |archive-date=29 December 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201229174151/https://www.britannica.com/topic/puja |url-status=live }}</ref><ref>{{Cite book |last=DeNapoli |first=Antoinette |title=Real Sadhus Sing to God |publisher=Oxford University Press |year=2014 |isbn=978-0-19-994003-5 |pages=19–24}}</ref> While the choice of the deity is at the discretion of the Hindu, the most observed traditions of Hindu devotion include Vaishnavism, Shaivism, and Shaktism.<ref>{{Cite book |last=Reinhart |first=Robin |title=Contemporary Hinduism: ritual, culture, and practice |url=https://archive.org/details/contemporaryhind0000unse_x1k0 |year=2004 |isbn=978-1-57607-905-8 |pages=[https://archive.org/details/contemporaryhind0000unse_x1k0/page/35 35]–47}}</ref> A Hindu may worship multiple deities, all as henotheistic manifestations of the same ultimate reality, cosmic spirit and absolute spiritual concept called Brahman.{{sfn|Prentiss|2014}}{{sfn|Sharma|2000|pp=72–75}}<ref name="avatars" /> Bhakti-marga, states Pechelis, is more than ritual devotionalism, it includes practices and spiritual activities aimed at refining one's state of mind, knowing god, participating in god, and internalizing god.{{sfn|Prentiss|2014|pp=22–29}}<ref>{{Cite book |title=Encyclopedia of Religion |publisher=Thomson Gale |year=2005 |isbn=978-0-02-865735-6 |editor-last=Jones |editor-first=Lindsay |volume=2 |pages=856–857}}</ref> While bhakti practices are popular and easily observable aspect of Hinduism, not all Hindus practice bhakti, or believe in god-with-attributes (''saguna Brahman'').<ref>{{Cite book |last=Robinson |first=Bob |title=Hindus meeting Christians |publisher=OCMS |year=2011 |isbn=978-1-870345-39-2 |pages=288–295 |postscript=;}}<br />{{Cite book |last=Vroom |first=Hendrick |title=No Other Gods |url=https://archive.org/details/noothergodschris0000vroo |publisher=Eerdmans Publishing |year=1996 |isbn=978-0-8028-4097-4 |location=Cambridge |pages=[https://archive.org/details/noothergodschris0000vroo/page/68 68]–69}}</ref><ref>{{Cite book |last=Smart |first=Ninian |title=The Yogi and the Devotee |publisher=Routledge |year=2012 |isbn=978-0-415-68499-6 |pages=52–80}}</ref> Concurrent Hindu practices include a belief in god-without-attributes (''[[nirguna Brahman]]''), and god within oneself.<ref>{{Cite book |last=Ardley |first=Jane |title=Spirituality and Politics: Gandhian and Tibetan cases, in The Tibetan Independence Movement |publisher=Routledge |year=2015 |isbn=978-1-138-86264-7 |pages=ix, 98–99, 112–113 |postscript=;}}<br />{{Cite book |last=Mitchell |first=Helen |title=Roots of Wisdom: A Tapestry of Philosophical Traditions |year=2014 |isbn=978-1-285-19712-8 |pages=188–189}}</ref><ref>{{Cite book |last=Bhavasar |first=SN |title=Hindu Spirituality: Postclassical and Modern |publisher=Motilal Banarsidass |year=2004 |isbn=978-81-208-1937-5 |editor-last=Sundararajan |editor-first=K. R. |pages=28–29 |editor-last2=Mukerji |editor-first2=Bithika}}</ref>

[[File:Deepawali-festival.jpg|thumb|right|The festival of lights, [[Diwali]], is celebrated by Hindus all over the world.]]

[[File:Hindus in Ghana celebrating Ganesh Chaturti.jpg|thumb|[[Hinduism in Ghana|Hindus in Ghana]] celebrating [[Ganesh Chaturthi]] (2021)]]

[[File:Holi Festival of Colors Utah, United States 2013.jpg|thumb|[[Holi]] being celebrated at the [[Sri Sri Radha Krishna Temple (Spanish Fork)|Sri Sri Radha Krishna Temple]] in [[Utah, United States]] (2013)]]

{{div col start|colwidth=20em}}

Pilgrimage sites of Hinduism are mentioned in the epic Mahabharata and the [[Puranas]].{{Sfn|Kane|1953|p=561}}{{Sfn|Eck|2012|pp=7–9}} Most Puranas include large sections on ''Tirtha Mahatmya'' along with tourist guides,<ref>{{Cite book |last=Glucklich |first=Ariel |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=KtLScrjrWiAC |title=The Strides of Vishnu: Hindu Culture in Historical Perspective: Hindu Culture in Historical Perspective |publisher=Oxford University Press |year=2008 |isbn=978-0-19-971825-2 |page=146 |quote='''Quote:''' The earliest promotional works aimed at tourists from that era were called ''mahatmyas'' [in Puranas].}}</ref> which describe sacred sites and places to visit.{{Sfn|Kane|1953|pp=559–560}}{{sfn|Holm|Bowker|2001|p=68}}{{sfn|Rocher|1986|p={{page needed|date=October 2020}}}} In these texts, [[Varanasi]] (Benares, Kashi), [[Rameswaram]], [[Kanchipuram]], [[Dwarka]], [[Puri]], [[Haridwar]], [[Sri Rangam]], [[Vrindavan]], [[Ayodhya]], [[Tirupati]], [[Mayapur]], [[Nathdwara]], twelve [[Jyotirlinga]] and [[Shakti Pitha]] have been mentioned as particularly holy sites, along with geographies where major rivers meet (''sangam'') or join the sea.{{Sfn|Kane|1953 |pp=553–556, 560–561}}{{Sfn|Eck|2012|pp=7–9}} [[Kumbh Mela]] is another major pilgrimage on the eve of the solar festival [[Makar Sankranti]]. This pilgrimage rotates at a gap of three years among four sites: [[Prayag Raj]] at the confluence of the [[Ganges]] and [[Yamuna]] rivers, [[Haridwar]] near source of the [[Ganges]], [[Ujjain]] on the [[Shipra]] river and [[Nashik]] on the bank of the [[Godavari]] river.{{sfn|Eck|2013|pp=152–154}} This is one of world's largest mass pilgrimage, with an estimated 40 to 100 million people attending the event.{{sfn|Eck|2013|pp=152–154}}{{Sfn|Klostermaier |2010|p=553, note 55}}<ref group="web">{{Cite web |last=Taylor |first=Alan |date=14 January 2013 |title=Kumbh Mela: The Largest Gathering on Earth |url=https://www.theatlantic.com/photo/2013/01/kumbh-mela-the-largest-gathering-on-earth/100438/ |website=The Atlantic |access-date=14 November 2017 |archive-date=29 December 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201229174128/https://www.theatlantic.com/photo/2013/01/kumbh-mela-the-largest-gathering-on-earth/100438/ |url-status=live }}<br />{{Cite news |last=Memmott |first=Mark |date=14 January 2013 |title=Biggest Gathering On Earth' Begins In India; Kumbh Mela May Draw 100 Million |url=https://www.npr.org/sections/thetwo-way/2013/01/14/169313222/biggest-gathering-on-earth-begins-in-india-kumbh-mela-may-draw-100-million |website=NPR |access-date=5 April 2018 |archive-date=29 December 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201229174326/https://www.npr.org/sections/thetwo-way/2013/01/14/169313222/biggest-gathering-on-earth-begins-in-india-kumbh-mela-may-draw-100-million |url-status=live }}</ref> At this event, they say a prayer to the sun and bathe in the river,{{sfn|Eck|2013|pp=152–154}} a tradition attributed to [[Adi Shankara]].{{Sfn|Dalal|2010|loc=chapter Kumbh Mela}}

{{Main page|Hindu art}}

{{See also|Astronomical basis of the Hindu calendar}}

{{Main page|Hindu calendar}}

 

 

 

[[File:12BCM11.jpg|thumb|Priests performing ''Kalyanam'' (marriage) of the holy deities at [[Bhadrachalam Temple]], in [[Telangana]]. It is one of the temples in India, where ''Kalyanam'' is done everyday throughout the year.{{Citation needed|date=June 2023}}|left]]

[[File:Hindu Symbols2.png|thumb|Some of the most prominent Hindu symbols: Om (left) and the Swastika (right)]]

<ref>{{Cite journal |author1=Babary, Abrar |author2=Zeeshan, Mahwish |title=Reminiscent of Hinduism: An Insight of Katas Raj Mandir |url=https://d1wqtxts1xzle7.cloudfront.net/37458369/EJSS__30_REMINISCENT_OF_HINDUISM_AN_INSIGHT_OF_KATAS_RAJ_MANDIR_Aftab_Chaudhrys_conflicted_copy_2015-04-29-with-cover-page-v2.pdf?Expires=1669503265&Signature=I~TyyMPSWigzUm~PSf6wtc9ZkJonPeGFd9TNfh3RWD7xfeNBXX1oBsuba0VIRR~yn4TbjllmNc2EIdjmc3PRPv5UXKaUNSrbjs4HA6ULwg6FInDXfVjOdSAkAk62Yp06Q7S~dRr52ao1euNu8YUNY8tp-KUkJzlOJxwQSgZhJz78Ql388BwiXHmrRf1ApJE87J98awqVlzRfo9wufG-xeDfCzQ4jkrpXpKeYFup0mFlcJg9phn5YF35CrQ2rnVxuuN3xRBKwbkGR3iSR1wLrjoyJxKqrQNDyM6upOiddLPRHDVZd2YiwfC5Ep4F3l77KUzicDuavMds6JhUdFSLQbg__&Key-Pair-Id=APKAJLOHF5GGSLRBV4ZA |journal=The Explorer: Journal of Social Sciences |volume=1 |issue=4 |page=122 |access-date=23 February 2023 |archive-date=26 November 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20221126215653/https://d1wqtxts1xzle7.cloudfront.net/37458369/EJSS__30_REMINISCENT_OF_HINDUISM_AN_INSIGHT_OF_KATAS_RAJ_MANDIR_Aftab_Chaudhrys_conflicted_copy_2015-04-29-with-cover-page-v2.pdf?Expires=1669503265&Signature=I~TyyMPSWigzUm~PSf6wtc9ZkJonPeGFd9TNfh3RWD7xfeNBXX1oBsuba0VIRR~yn4TbjllmNc2EIdjmc3PRPv5UXKaUNSrbjs4HA6ULwg6FInDXfVjOdSAkAk62Yp06Q7S~dRr52ao1euNu8YUNY8tp-KUkJzlOJxwQSgZhJz78Ql388BwiXHmrRf1ApJE87J98awqVlzRfo9wufG-xeDfCzQ4jkrpXpKeYFup0mFlcJg9phn5YF35CrQ2rnVxuuN3xRBKwbkGR3iSR1wLrjoyJxKqrQNDyM6upOiddLPRHDVZd2YiwfC5Ep4F3l77KUzicDuavMds6JhUdFSLQbg__&Key-Pair-Id=APKAJLOHF5GGSLRBV4ZA |url-status=dead }}</ref>

* {{Cite web |ref=none |last1=Delgado |first1=Christopher L. |last2=Narrod |first2=Claire A. |last3=Tiongco |first3=Marites |date=24 July 2003 |title=Growth and Concentration in India |website=Policy, Technical, and Environmental Determinants and Implications of the Scaling-Up of Livestock Production in Four Fast-Growing Developing Countries: A Synthesis |url=http://www.fao.org/3/x6170e09.htm |quote=An analysis of consumption data originating from National Sample Survey (NSS) shows that 42 percent of households are vegetarian, in that they never eat fish, meat or eggs. The remaining 58 percent of households are less strict vegetarians or non-vegetarians. |access-date=29 December 2020 |archive-date=29 December 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201229174129/http://www.fao.org/3/x6170e09.htm |url-status=live }}

* {{cite web |ref=none |last=Goldammer |first=Ted |title=Passage to India |publisher=USDA Foreign Agricultural Service |url=http://www.fas.usda.gov/htp/highlights/2001/india.pdf |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090619160055/http://www.fas.usda.gov/htp/highlights/2001/india.pdf |archive-date=19 June 2009 }}

* {{cite web |ref=none |url=http://www.ers.usda.gov/amberwaves/February04/Features/ElephantJogs.htm |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20061228214808/http://www.ers.usda.gov/amberwaves/february04/features/elephantjogs.htm |archive-date=28 December 2006 |title=The Elephant Is Jogging: New Pressures for Agricultural Reform in India |last=Landes |first=Maurice R. |date=February 2004 |website=Amber Waves |quote=Results indicate that Indians who eat meat do so infrequently with less than 30% consuming non-vegetarian foods regularly, although the reasons may be economical. }}</ref> Those who eat meat seek [[Jhatka]] (quick death) method of meat production, and dislike [[Halal]] (slow bled death) method, believing that quick death method reduces suffering to the animal.<ref>{{Cite book |last1=Gregory |first1=Neville |title=Animal Welfare and Meat Production |last2=Grandin |first2=Temple |publisher=CABI |year=2007 |isbn=978-1-84593-215-2 |pages=206–208}}</ref><ref>{{Cite book |last=Das |first=Veena |title=The Oxford India companion to sociology and social anthropology |publisher=Oxford University Press |year=2003 |isbn=978-0-19-564582-8 |volume=1 |pages=151–152}}</ref> The food habits vary with region, with Bengali Hindus and Hindus living in [[Himalayas|Himalayan regions]], or river delta regions, regularly eating meat and fish.<ref>{{Cite book |last1=Grover |first1=Neelam |title=Cultural Geography, Form and Process, Concept |last2=Singh |first2=Kashi N. |year=2004 |isbn=978-81-8069-074-7 |page=366}}</ref> Some avoid meat on specific festivals or occasions.<ref>{{Cite book |last=Jagannathan |first=Maithily |title=South Indian Hindu Festivals and Traditions |publisher=Abhinav |year=2005 |isbn=978-81-7017-415-8 |pages=53, 69 |postscript=;}} {{cite book|first=Pyong Gap |last=Min |year=2010 |title=Preserving Ethnicity through Religion in America |publisher=New York University Press |isbn=978-0-8147-9586-6 |page=1}}</ref> Observant Hindus who do eat meat almost always abstain from beef. Hinduism specifically considers [[Zebu|Bos indicus]] to be sacred.<ref>{{cite journal|doi=10.3390/ani8050064|title=The Sheltering of Unwanted Cattle, Experiences in India and Implications for Cattle Industries Elsewhere|author=Uttara Kennedy, Arvind Sharma and Clive J.C. Philips|journal=Animals|year=2018|volume=8|issue=5|page=64|pmid=29701646|pmc=5981275|doi-access=free}}</ref><ref>{{cite book|title=India's scared cow|url=http://spraakdata.gu.se/taraka/SacredCow.pdf|author=Marvin Harris}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.iucn.org/sites/dev/files/import/downloads/preliminary_literature_review_on_sacred_species__3_.pdf|title=Preliminary Literature Review On Scared Species|author=Gloria Pungetti, Anna Maclvor|access-date=24 July 2021|archive-date=24 July 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210724135557/https://www.iucn.org/sites/dev/files/import/downloads/preliminary_literature_review_on_sacred_species__3_.pdf|url-status=dead}}</ref> The [[cow]] in Hindu society is traditionally identified as a caretaker and a maternal figure,{{sfn|Walker|1968|p=257}} and Hindu society honours the cow as a symbol of unselfish giving,{{sfn|Richman|1988|p=272}} selfless sacrifice, gentleness and tolerance.<ref name="ajai16P pg62">{{cite journal|title= Stewards of Creation Covenant: Hinduism and the Environment |last=Mansingh|first=Ajai|journal=Caribbean Quarterly|year=2016|volume=41|issue=1|publisher=A Journal of Caribbean Culture|page=62|url=https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/abs/10.1080/00086495.1995.11672075|doi=10.1080/00086495.1995.11672075}}</ref>

There are many Hindu groups that have continued to abide by a strict [[vegetarian]] diet in modern times. Some adhere to a diet that is devoid of meat, eggs, and seafood.<ref>{{Cite book |last=Williams |first=Raymond |title=An Introduction to Swaminarayan Hinduism |url=https://archive.org/details/introductiontosw0000will |publisher=Cambridge University Press |year=2001 |edition=1st |location=Cambridge |page=[https://archive.org/details/introductiontosw0000will/page/159 159]|isbn=978-0521652797 }}</ref> Food affects body, mind and spirit in Hindu beliefs.<ref name="Vasudha">{{Cite book |last=Narayanan |first=Vasudha |title=A Concise Introduction to World Religions |url=https://archive.org/details/conciseintroduct00oxto |publisher=Oxford University Press |year=2007 |editor-last=Oxtoby |editor-first=Willard G. |location=New York |chapter=The Hindu Tradition |isbn=978-0-19-542207-8 |editor-last2=Segal |editor-first2=Alan F.}}</ref><ref name="Rosen">{{Cite book |last=Rosen |first=Steven |title=Essential Hinduism |url=https://archive.org/details/essentialhinduis00stev |publisher=Praeger Publishers |year=2006 |edition=1st |location=Westport |page=[https://archive.org/details/essentialhinduis00stev/page/n211 188]}}</ref> Hindu texts such as [[Shandilya Upanishad|Śāṇḍilya Upanishad]]<ref name="KN Aiyar 1914 pages 173-176">{{Cite book |last=Aiyar |first=KN |title=Thirty Minor Upanishads |publisher=Kessinger Publishing |year=1914 |isbn=978-1-164-02641-9 |pages=173–176 |chapter=22}}</ref> and [[Hatha Yoga Pradipika|Svātmārāma]]<ref name="svatmaram">{{Cite book |last1=Svatmarama |url=https://archive.org/stream/hathayogapradipika/hatha_yoga_pradipika#page/n219/mode/2up |title=The Hathayogapradīpikā of Svātmārāma |last2=Brahmananda |year=2014 |at=verse 1.58–63, pp. 19–21}}</ref><ref>{{Cite book |last=Lorenzen |first=David |url=https://archive.org/details/kapalikaskalamuk0000lore/page/186 |title=The Kāpālikas and Kālāmukhas |date=1972 |publisher=University of California Press |isbn=978-0-520-01842-6 |pages=[https://archive.org/details/kapalikaskalamuk0000lore/page/186 186–190]}}</ref> recommend [[Mitahara]] (eating in moderation) as one of the [[Yamas]] (virtuous Self restraints). The Bhagavad Gita links body and mind to food one consumes in verses 17.8 through 17.10.<ref name="ckc">{{Cite book |last=Chapple |first=Christopher Key |title=The Bhagavad Gita|edition=25th Anniversary |url=https://archive.org/details/bhagavadgitatwen00sarg |publisher=State University of New York Press |year=2009 |isbn=978-1-4384-2842-0 |pages=[https://archive.org/details/bhagavadgitatwen00sarg/page/641 641]–643}}</ref>

Some Hindus such as those belonging to the [[Shaktism]] tradition,<ref>{{Cite book |last=Smith |first=Harold F. |title=Outline of Hinduism |date=2007 |publisher=Read Books |isbn=978-1-4067-8944-7 |chapter=12}}</ref> and Hindus in regions such as [[Bali]] and [[Nepal]]{{sfn|Fuller|2004|p=83|loc="Chapter 4"}}<ref>{{Cite book |editor-last=Gouyon |editor-first=Anne |title=The natural guide to Bali: enjoy nature, meet the people, make a difference |first=Bumi Kita |last=Yayasan |year= 2005 |publisher=Equinox Publishing (Asia) |isbn=978-979-3780-00-9 |page=51 |chapter=The Hidden Life of Bali |access-date=12 August 2010 |chapter-url=http://bookshop.blackwell.co.uk/jsp/welcome.jsp?action=search&type=isbn&term=9793780002 |archive-date=26 July 2011 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110726113644/http://bookshop.blackwell.co.uk/jsp/welcome.jsp?action=search&type=isbn&term=9793780002 |url-status=live }}</ref> practise [[Animal sacrifice in Hinduism|animal sacrifice]].{{sfn|Fuller|2004|p=83|loc="Chapter 4"}} The sacrificed animal is eaten as ritual food.<ref>{{Cite book |last=Gwynne |first=Paul |title=World Religions in Practice: A Comparative Introduction |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=tdsRKc_knZoC&pg=RA5-PT75 |publisher=John Wiley & Sons |year=2011 |isbn=978-1-4443-6005-9 |page=5 footnote 16}}</ref> In contrast, the [[Vaishnava]] Hindus abhor and vigorously oppose animal sacrifice.<ref>{{Cite book |last=Olcott |first=H.S. |title=The Theosophist |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=jKBVAAAAYAAJ&pg=PA146 |publisher=Theosophical Publishing House |year=1906 |volume=XXVII |pages=146 with footnote}}, Quote: "It is well known that Vaishnavas abhor animal sacrifice. In this province, like nearly all Bengalis, they celebrate [[Durga Puja]], but their ceremonies are bloodless".</ref>{{sfn|Fuller|2004|pp=101–102, Quote: "Blood sacrifice was a clear case in point, (,,,) sacrifice was a barbarity inconsistent with Hinduism's central tenet of non-violence. [...] Contemporary opposition to animal sacrifice rests on an old foundation, although it also stems from the very widespread influence of reformism, whose antipathy to ritual killing has spread well beyond the self-consciously nationalist political classes".}} The principle of non-violence to animals has been so thoroughly adopted in Hinduism that animal sacrifice is uncommon<ref>{{harvnb|Nicholson|2010|p=169}}, Quote: "The acceptance of the principle of non-violence has been so through that animal sacrifice among Hindus today is uncommon, and many Indians are of the opinion that such things as cow slaughter were never practiced in [[History of India|ancient India]]".</ref> and historically reduced to a vestigial marginal practice.<ref>{{Cite book |last=Bekoff |first=Marc |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=AmgYIBQ-XKkC&pg=PA482 |title=Encyclopedia of Animal Rights and Animal Welfare |edition=2nd |publisher=ABC-CLIO |year=2009 |isbn=978-0-313-35256-0 |page=482}}</ref>

{{For|list of temples|List of Hindu temples}}

{{multipleimage

| perrow           = 2

| total_width       = 335

| footer            = Clockwise from top-left: [[Kandariya Mahadeva Temple]], [[Madhya Pradesh]]; [[Chennakeshava Temple, Somanathapura|Chennakeshava Temple]], [[Karnataka]]; [[Jagannath Temple, Puri]], [[Odisha]];[[Brihadisvara Temple, Thanjavur|Thanjavur Brihadisvara Temple]], [[Tamil Nadu]]; [[Padmanabhaswamy temple]], [[Kerala]]; [[Swaminarayan Mandir, Vadtal|Swaminarayan Mandir]], [[Vadtal]], [[Gujarat]].

| image1           = Khajuraho - Kandariya Mahadeo Temple.jpg

| image2           = Somanathapura Keshava temple altered.JPG

| image3           = Shri Jagannatha Temple.jpg

| image4           = Le temple de Brihadishwara (Tanjore, Inde) (14354574611).jpg

| image5           = Sree Padmanabhaswamy temple Thiruvananthapuram, kerala.jpg

| image6           = Vadtal-temple.jpg

Hinduism's varied history{{sfn|Brodd|2003}} overlaps or coincides with the development of religion in the Indian subcontinent since the [[Iron Age in India|Iron Age]], with some of its traditions tracing back to [[prehistoric religion]]s such as those of the Bronze Age [[Indus Valley Civilisation]]. It has thus been called the "[[oldest religion]]" in the world.{{refn|group=note|For instance Fowler: "probably the oldest religion in the world"{{sfn|Fowler|1997|p=1}}}} Scholars regard Hinduism as a synthesis{{sfn|Lockard|2007|p=50}}{{sfn|Hiltebeitel|2002|p=12}} of various Indian cultures and traditions,{{sfn|Hiltebeitel|2002|p=12}}{{sfn|Flood|1996|p=16}}{{sfn|Lockard|2007|p=50}} with diverse roots{{sfn|Narayanan|2009|p=11}} and no single founder.{{sfn|Osborne|2005|p=9}}{{refn|group=note| Among its roots are the [[Historical Vedic religion|Vedic religion]]{{sfn|Flood|1996|p=16}} of the late [[Vedic period]] and its emphasis on the status of Brahmans,{{sfn|Samuel|2010|pp=48–53}} but also the religions of the [[Indus Valley Civilisation]],{{sfn|Narayanan|2009|p=11}}{{sfn|Lockard|2007|p=52}}{{sfn|Hiltebeitel|2002|p=3}} the śramaṇa{{sfn|Gomez|2013|p=42}} or renouncer traditions{{sfn|Flood|1996|p=16}} of [[Maurya Empire|east India]],{{sfn|Gomez|2013|p=42}} and "popular or [[Adivasi|local traditions]]".{{sfn|Flood|1996|p=16}}}}

Historically, in various periods, Hindu communities existed in [[Central Asia]] that influenced all current branches of Hinduism by first introducing many vital beliefs and [[theological]] elements.<ref>{{Cite book |last=Frankopan |first=Peter |title=The Silk Roads: A New History of the World |year= 2017 |publisher=[[Vintage Books]] |isbn=978-1-101-94633-6 |series= |location=New York |pages=xv–xvi |author-link=Peter Frankopan}}</ref>

[[File:Shore temple, mahabalipuram.jpg|thumb|The Hindu [[Shore Temple]] at [[Mahabalipuram]] was built by [[Narasimhavarman II]].|left]]

Hinduism under both Hindu and [[Islamic rulers in South Asia|Islamic]] rulers from {{Circa|{{CE|1250–1750}}}},<ref>Blackwell's History of India; Stein 2010, page 107</ref><ref>Some Aspects of Muslim Administration, Dr. R.P.Tripathi, 1956, p. 24</ref> saw the increasing prominence of the Bhakti movement, which remains influential today. The [[Colonial India|colonial period]] saw the emergence of various [[Hindu reform movements]] partly inspired by western movements, such as [[Unitarianism]] and [[Theosophy (Blavatskian)|Theosophy]].{{sfn|Sharma|2002|p=27}} In the [[Kingdom of Nepal]], the [[Unification of Nepal]] by [[Shah dynasty]] was accompanied by the Hinduization of the [[Nepal|state]] and continued till the {{Circa|1950s}}.<ref name="Vir 1988 https://books.google.com/books?id=yEHODCDK-8kC&pg=PA56 56">{{Cite book|last=Vir|first=Dharam|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=yEHODCDK-8kC&pg=PA56|title=Education and Polity in Nepal: An Asian Experiment|date=1988|publisher=Northern Book Centre|isbn=978-81-85119-39-7|pages=[https://books.google.com/books?id=yEHODCDK-8kC&pg=PA56 56]|language=en}}</ref>{{failed verification|date=June 2022}} [[Indian people|Indians]] were hired as plantation labourers in [[British colonial|British colonies]] such as [[Fiji]], [[Mauritius]], [[Trinidad and Tobago]].<ref>{{cite book |last1=Younger |first1=Paul |title=New homelands: Hindu communities in Mauritius, Guyana, Trinidad, South Africa, Fiji, and East Africa |date=2010 |publisher=Oxford University Press |location=Oxford |isbn=978-0195391640 |pages=3–17 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=2oI8DwAAQBAJ |access-date=4 June 2022}}</ref> The [[Partition of India]] in 1947 was along religious lines, with the [[India|Republic of India]] emerging with a Hindu majority.{{sfnm|1a1=Sharma|1y=2003|1pp=176–189|2a1=Thapar|2y=1993|2pp=239–241}} During the 20th century, due to the [[Indian diaspora]], Hindu minorities have formed in all continents, with the largest communities in absolute numbers in the [[Hinduism in the United States|United States]],<ref>{{Cite web|title=The remarkable political influence of the Indian diaspora in the US|url=https://www.lowyinstitute.org/the-interpreter/remarkable-political-influence-indian-diaspora-us|access-date=17 March 2021|website=www.lowyinstitute.org}}</ref> and the [[Hinduism in the United Kingdom|United Kingdom]].<ref>{{Cite web|date=2 March 2006|title=UK Hindu population to be studied|url=https://www.hindustantimes.com/india/uk-hindu-population-to-be-studied/story-QBEF77yew4tdgiEEICZgHM.html|access-date=17 March 2021|website=Hindustan Times}}</ref>

Hinduism is a major religion in India. Hinduism was followed by around 79.8% of the country's population of 1.21&nbsp;billion ([[2011 Census of India|2011 census]]) (966&nbsp;million adherents).<ref>{{Cite web |title=The World Factbook |url=https://www.cia.gov/the-world-factbook/countries/india/ |access-date=6 August 2010}}</ref> Other [[Hinduism by country|significant populations]] are found in Nepal (23&nbsp;million), Bangladesh (15&nbsp;million) and the [[Hinduism in Indonesia|Indonesian]] island of [[Bali]] (3.9&nbsp;million).<ref name="bps">{{Cite web |url=https://sp2010.bps.go.id/index.php/site/tabel?tid=321&wid=0 |title=Penduduk Menurut Wilayah dan Agama yang Dianut |trans-title=Population by Region and Religion Adhered to |publisher=[[Statistics Indonesia]] |language=id |access-date=15 July 2020 |archive-date=29 December 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201229174150/https://sp2010.bps.go.id/index.php/site/tabel?tid=321&wid=0 |url-status=live }}</ref> There is also a significant population of Hindus are also present in Pakistan (4 million).<ref>{{Cite web|date=7 January 2020|title=Two years after it counted population, Pakistan silent on minority numbers|url=https://indianexpress.com/article/india/2-yrs-after-it-counted-population-pakistan-silent-on-minority-numbers-6203547/|access-date=24 June 2021|website=The Indian Express}}</ref> The majority of the Indonesian [[Tenggerese people]]{{sfnm|1a1=Hefner|1y=1989|1p=|2a1=Kinney|2a2=Klokke|2a3=Kieven |2y=2003|2p=}} in [[Java]] and the Vietnamese [[Cham people]] also follow Hinduism, with the largest proportion of the Chams in [[Ninh Thuận Province]].<ref>{{Cite web |date=22 October 2002 |title=Vietnam |url=https://2001-2009.state.gov/g/drl/rls/irf/2004/35433.htm |access-date=17 June 2014 |website=State.gov}}</ref> Hinduism is the [[Growth of religion|third fastest-growing religion]] in the world after [[Islam]] and [[Christianity]], with a predicted growth rate of 34% between 2010 and 2050.<ref>{{Cite web|last=Wormald|first=Benjamin|date=2 April 2015|title=The Future of World Religions: Population Growth Projections, 2010–2050|url=https://www.pewforum.org/2015/04/02/religious-projections-2010-2050/|access-date=4 March 2021|website=Pew Research Center's Religion & Public Life Project|language=en-US}}</ref>

 

# {{flagg|pspew|al=c|pref=Hinduism in|Nepal}}{{Spaced en dash}}81.3%<ref>{{Cite web |year=2012 |title=2011 Nepal Census Report |url=http://cbs.gov.np/wp-content/uploads/2012/11/National%20Report.pdf |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130525062716/http://cbs.gov.np/wp-content/uploads/2012/11/National%20Report.pdf |archive-date=25 May 2013}}</ref>

# {{flagg|pspew|al=c|pref=Hinduism in|India}}{{Spaced en dash}}79.8%<ref>{{Cite web |title=Population of India Today |url=https://www.livepopulation.com/country/india.html |access-date=5 August 2018 |website=livepopulation.com |archive-date=3 April 2019 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190403015935/https://www.livepopulation.com/country/india.html |url-status=live }}</ref>

# {{flagg|pspew|al=c|pref=Hinduism in|Mauritius}}{{Spaced en dash}}48.5%<ref>{{Cite web |title=Resident population by religion and sex |url=http://www.gov.mu/portal/goc/cso/file/2011VolIIPC.pdf |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131016141533/http://www.gov.mu/portal/goc/cso/file/2011VolIIPC.pdf |archive-date=16 October 2013 |access-date=1 November 2012 |publisher=[[Statistics Mauritius]] |page=68}}</ref>

# {{flagg|pspew|al=c|pref=Hinduism in|Guyana}}{{Spaced en dash}}28.4%<ref>{{Cite web |title=The World Factbook |url=https://www.cia.gov/the-world-factbook/countries/guyana/ |access-date=10 May 2011 }}</ref>

# {{flagg|pspew|al=c|pref=Hinduism in|Fiji}}{{Spaced en dash}}27.9%<ref>{{Cite web |title=The World Factbook |url=https://www.cia.gov/the-world-factbook/countries/fiji/ |access-date=10 May 2011 }}</ref>

# {{flagg|pspew|al=c|pref=Hinduism in|Bhutan}}{{Spaced en dash}}22.6%<ref>{{Cite web |title=Bhutan |url=https://www.state.gov/g/drl/rls/irf/2009/127364.htm |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20091130031858/http://www.state.gov/g/drl/rls/irf/2009/127364.htm |archive-date=30 November 2009 |website=U.S. Department of State}}</ref>

# {{flagg|pspew|al=c|pref=Hinduism in|Suriname}}{{Spaced en dash}}22.3%<ref>{{Cite web |title=Suriname |url=https://www.state.gov/g/drl/rls/irf/2009/127405.htm |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20091130031911/http://www.state.gov/g/drl/rls/irf/2009/127405.htm |archive-date=30 November 2009 |website=U.S. Department of State}}</ref>

# {{flagg|pspew|al=c|pref=Hinduism in|Trinidad and Tobago}}{{Spaced en dash}}18.2%<ref>{{Cite web |title=2011 Demographic Report |url=https://guardian.co.tt/sites/default/files/story/2011_DemographicReport.pdf |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20171019211618/https://guardian.co.tt/sites/default/files/story/2011_DemographicReport.pdf |archive-date=19 October 2017 |page=18}}</ref>

# {{flagg|pspew|al=c|pref=Hinduism in|Qatar}}{{Spaced en dash}}13.8%<ref>{{Cite journal|last1=Robin|first1=Christian Julien|last2=Gorea|first2=Maria|date=2002|title=Les vestiges antiques de la grotte de Hôq (Suqutra, Yémen) (note d'information)|url=https://www.persee.fr/doc/crai_0065-0536_2002_num_146_2_22441|journal=Comptes rendus des séances de l'Académie des Inscriptions et Belles-Lettres|volume=146|issue=2|pages=409–445|doi=10.3406/crai.2002.22441}}</ref>

# {{flagg|pspew|al=c|pref=Hinduism in|Sri Lanka}}{{Spaced en dash}}12.6%<ref>{{Cite web |year=2011 |title=The Census of Population and Housing of Sri Lanka-2011 |url=http://www.statistics.gov.lk/PopHouSat/CPH2011/index.php?fileName=pop43&gp=Activities&tpl=3 |website=Department of Census and Statistics |access-date=29 July 2013 |archive-date=24 December 2018 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20181224211239/http://www.statistics.gov.lk/PopHouSat/CPH2011/index.php?fileName=pop43&gp=Activities&tpl=3 |url-status=live }}</ref>

# {{flagg|pspew|al=c|pref=Hinduism in|Bahrain}}{{Spaced en dash}}9.8%<ref>{{Harvard citation no brackets|Marsh|2015|pp=67–94}}.</ref>

# {{flagg|pspew|al=c|pref=Hinduism in|Bangladesh}}{{Spaced en dash}}8.5%<ref>{{Cite web |title=SVRS 2010 |url=http://www.bbs.gov.bd/WebTestApplication/userfiles/Image/SVRS/SVRS-10.pdf |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20121113153533/http://www.bbs.gov.bd/WebTestApplication/userfiles/Image/SVRS/SVRS-10.pdf |archive-date=13 November 2012 |access-date=2 September 2012 |publisher=Bangladesh Bureau of Statistics |page=176 (Table P–14)}}</ref>

# {{flagg|pspew|al=c|pref=Hinduism in|Réunion}}{{spaced en dash}}6.8%{{refn|group=note|[[Réunion]] is not a country, but an independent [[France|French terretory]].}}

# {{flagg|pspew|al=c|pref=Hinduism in the|United Arab Emirates}}{{Spaced en dash}}6.6%<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://2009-2017.state.gov/j/drl/rls/irf/2007/90223.htm|title=United Arab Emirates|website=U.S. Department of State}}</ref>

# {{flagg|pspew|al=c|pref=Hinduism in|Malaysia}}{{Spaced en dash}}6.3%<ref name="cia.gov">{{Cite web |title=The World Factbook |url=https://www.cia.gov/the-world-factbook/countries/malaysia/ |access-date=10 May 2011 }}</ref>

# {{flagg|pspew|al=c|pref=Hinduism in|Kuwait}}{{Spaced en dash}}6%<ref>{{Cite web|title=Pew-Templeton: Global Religious Futures Project|url=http://www.globalreligiousfutures.org/|access-date=18 March 2021|website=www.globalreligiousfutures.org}}</ref>

# {{flagg|pspew|al=c|pref=Hinduism in|Oman}}{{Spaced en dash}}5.5%<ref>{{cite web|url= https://www.cia.gov/the-world-factbook/countries/oman/|title= Middle East OMAN|date= 22 September 2021|publisher= CIA The World Factbook}}</ref>

# {{flagg|pspew|al=c|pref=Hinduism in|Singapore}}{{Spaced en dash}}5%<ref name="2010 census Full report">{{Cite web |last=Singapore Department of Statistics |date=12 January 2011 |title=Census of population 2010: Statistical Release 1 on Demographic Characteristics, Education, Language and Religion |url=http://www.singstat.gov.sg/pubn/popn/C2010sr1/cop2010sr1.pdf |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110303155259/http://www.singstat.gov.sg/pubn/popn/C2010sr1/cop2010sr1.pdf |archive-date=3 March 2011 |access-date=16 January 2011}}</ref>

# {{flagg|pspew|al=c|pref=Hinduism in|Indonesia}}{{Spaced en dash}}3.86%<ref>{{cite web|date=2011|title=Indonesia: Religious Freedoms Report 2010|url=https://2009-2017.state.gov/j/drl/rls/irf/2010_5/168356.htm|access-date=4 March 2021|publisher=[[US State Department]]|quote=The Ministry of Religious Affairs estimates that 10 million Hindus live in the country and account for approximately 90 percent of the population in Bali. Hindu minorities also reside in Central and East Kalimantan, the city of Medan (North Sumatra), South and Central Sulawesi, and Lombok (West Nusa Tenggara). Hindu groups such as Hare Krishna and followers of the Indian spiritual leader Sai Baba are present in small numbers. Some indigenous religious groups, including the "Naurus" on Seram Island in Maluku Province, incorporate Hindu and animist beliefs, and many have also adopted some Protestant teachings.}}</ref>

# {{flagg|pspew|al=c|pref=Hinduism in|Australia}}{{Spaced en dash}}2.7%<ref>{{Cite web |last=Statistics |first=c=AU; o=Commonwealth of Australia; ou=Australian Bureau of |date=2018-01-18 |title=Media Release – Census reveals Australia's religious diversity on World Religion Day |url=https://www.abs.gov.au/AUSSTATS/[email protected]/mediareleasesbyReleaseDate/8497F7A8E7DB5BEFCA25821800203DA4?OpenDocument |access-date=2023-06-04 |website=www.abs.gov.au |language=en}}</ref>

# {{flagg|pspew|al=c|pref=Hinduism in|New Zealand}}{{Spaced en dash}}2.62%<ref>{{Cite web |title=Table 26, 2018 Census Data – Tables |url=https://www.stats.govt.nz/assets/Uploads/2018-Census-totals-by-topic/Download-data/2018-census-totals-by-topic-national-highlights.xlsx |format=xlsx |access-date=29 December 2020 |archive-date=13 April 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200413185957/https://www.stats.govt.nz/assets/Uploads/2018-Census-totals-by-topic/Download-data/2018-census-totals-by-topic-national-highlights.xlsx |url-status=live }}</ref>

# {{flagg|pspew|al=c|pref=Hinduism in|Seychelles}}{{Spaced en dash}}2.4%<ref>{{Cite web |title=The World Factbook |url=https://www.cia.gov/the-world-factbook/countries/seychelles/ |access-date=10 May 2011 }}</ref>

# {{flagg|pspew|al=c|pref=Hinduism in|Pakistan}}{{Spaced en dash}}2.14%<ref>{{Cite web|title=Population by religion in Pakistan|url=http://www.census.gov.pk/Religion.htm|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140402081116/http://www.census.gov.pk/Religion.htm|archive-date=2 April 2014|access-date=3 March 2021}}</ref>

{{div col end}}

[[File:Hindu Majority States and Provinces in South Asia.png|thumb|Hindu majority states and provinces in South Asia]]

{| class="wikitable sortable" style="text-align:center"

|+ Demographics of major traditions within Hinduism (World Religion Database, {{As of|2010|lc=y}})<ref>{{Cite web |date=January 2012 |title=Chapter 1 Global Religious Populations |url=http://media.johnwiley.com.au/product_data/excerpt/47/04706745/0470674547-196.pdf |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131020100448/http://media.johnwiley.com.au/product_data/excerpt/47/04706745/0470674547-196.pdf |archive-date=20 October 2013}}</ref>

[[Hindu]]s have experienced both historical [[religious persecution]], ongoing [[religious persecution]] and [[Social system|systematic]] violence. These occur in the form of [[Forced conversion#India|forced conversions]],<ref>{{Cite book|last=Bakshi|first=Shiri Ram|title=Kashmir: Valley and Its Culture|url=https://archive.org/details/bub_gb_U1LEY1yWmagC|publisher=Sarup & Sons|year=1997|page=[https://archive.org/details/bub_gb_U1LEY1yWmagC/page/n80 70]}}</ref><ref>{{Cite journal|last=Fisher|first=Michael H.|date=|title=A History of Modern India, 1480–1950. Edited by Claude Markovits. Translated by Nisha George and Maggy Hendry. London: Anthem Press, 2002. xvii, 593 pp. |journal=The Journal of Asian Studies|volume=62|issue=4|pages=1283–1284|doi=10.2307/3591813|jstor=3591813|s2cid=161426499|issn=0021-9118}}</ref> documented [[massacre]]s,<ref>{{Cite book|last=D'Costa|first=Bina |title=Nationbuilding, gender, and war crimes in South Asia |date=2011 |publisher=Routledge |isbn=978-0-415-56566-0 |location=London |oclc=432998155}}</ref><ref>{{Cite book|last=Zamindar|first=Vazira Fazila-Yacoobali |title=The long partition and the making of modern South Asia: refugees, boundaries, histories |date=2010 |isbn=978-0-231-51101-8 |edition=Paperback |location=New York |oclc=630927040}}</ref><ref>{{Cite book|last=Sikand|first=Yoginder |title=Muslims in India since 1947 Islamic perspectives on inter-faith relations|date=2004|publisher=RoutledgeCurzon|isbn=0-203-35474-5|location=London|oclc=1162450134}}</ref> demolition and desecration of [[Hindu temple|temples]].<ref>{{Cite book|last=Brass|first=Paul R.|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=9XGZ0kKmJx0C&q=persecution+of+hindus+by+muslims|title=The Production of Hindu-Muslim Violence in Contemporary India|year= 2011|publisher=University of Washington Press|isbn=978-0-295-80060-8|language=en|author-link=Paul R. Brass}}</ref><ref name=":1">{{Cite book|last=Jain|first=Meenakshi|title=Flight of deities and rebirth of temples: espisodes from Indian history|date=2019|isbn=978-81-7305-619-2|location=New Delhi|oclc=1091630081}}</ref> Historic persecutions of [[Hindus]] happened under [[Muslim conquest of India|Muslim rulers]]<ref name=":1" /><ref>{{cite book|last=Lal|first=Kishori Saran|title=Theory and Practice of Muslim State in India|publisher=Aditya Prakashan|year=1999|isbn=978-81-86471-72-2|pages=90–145|author-link=K. S. Lal}}</ref> and also by [[Christian Missionaries]].<ref>{{cite book|last=Priolkar|first=Anand Kakba|title=The Goa Inquisition|year=1992|publisher=South Asia Books|pages=2–67, 184|author-link=Anant Priolkar|isbn=978-0-8364-2753-0}}</ref> In the [[Mughal Period]], Hindus were forced to pay the [[Jizya]]. In [[Goa]], the [[Goa Inquisition|1560 inquisition]] by [[Portuguese India|Portuguese colonists]] is also considered one of the most brutal [[Persecution of Hindus|persecutions of Hindus]].<ref>{{Cite book|last=Souza|first=Teotonio R. De|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=vtf1eRE8FC8C&q=persecution|title=Discoveries, Missionary Expansion, and Asian Cultures|date=1994|publisher=Concept Publishing Company|isbn=978-81-7022-497-6|page=[https://books.google.com/books?id=vtf1eRE8FC8C&q=persecution 80]|language=en}}</ref> Between 200,000 and one million people, including both Muslims and Hindus, were killed during the [[Partition of India]].<ref>{{Cite web|title=Twentieth Century Atlas – Death Tolls and Casualty Statistics for Wars, Dictatorships and Genocides|url=http://necrometrics.com/20c300k.htm|access-date=5 March 2021|website=necrometrics.com}}</ref> In modern times, [[Hindus]] face discrimination in many parts of the world and also face persecution and [[forced conversion]]<ref>{{Cite web|title=Persecution of Hindus: What western media understands but won't tell you|url=https://www.mynation.com/views/persecution-of-hindus-what-western-media-understands-but-wont-tell-you-q6gdry|access-date=16 March 2021|website=Asianet News Network Pvt Ltd|language=en}}</ref> in many countries, especially in [[Pakistan]], [[Bangladesh]], [[Fiji]] and others.<ref>{{Cite web|date=15 June 1987|first1=Michael|last1=Laurence|first2=Girish|last2=Kumar|title=Lt-Colonel Rabuka throws out the allegedly 'Indian' Bavadra government in Fiji|url=https://www.indiatoday.in/magazine/international/story/19870615-lt-colonel-rabuka-throws-out-the-allegedly-indian-bavadra-government-in-fiji-798927-1987-06-15|access-date=16 March 2021|website=India Today|language=en}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web|date=18 June 2006|title=Opinion|url=http://www.dawn.com/news/1069111|access-date=16 March 2021|website=dawn.com|language=en}}</ref>

It is known that, unlike [[ethnic religion]]s, which exist almost exclusively among, for instance, the Japanese ([[Shinto]]), the Chinese ([[Taoism]]), or the Jews ([[Judaism]]), Hinduism in India and Nepal is widespread among many, both Indo-Aryan and non-Aryan ethnic groups.{{sfn|West|2010}} In addition, religious conversion to Hinduism has a long history outside India. Merchants and traders of India, particularly from the Indian peninsula, carried their religious ideas, which led to religious conversions to Hinduism outside India. In antiquity and the Middle Ages, Hinduism was the state religion in many kingdoms of Asia, the so-called [[Greater India]]: from Afghanistan (Kabul) in the West and including almost all of [[Southeast Asia]] in the East (Cambodia, Vietnam, Indonesia,{{sfnm|1a1=Gonda|1y=1975|1p=|2a1=Ramstedt|2y=2004|2p=}}<ref>{{cite book |last=Kartakusama |first=Richadiana |title=Archaeology: Indonesian Perspective |publisher=Yayasan Obor Indonesia |year=2006 |isbn=978-979-26-2499-1 |editor-last=Simanjuntak |editor-first=Truman |pages=406–419 |display-editors=etal}}</ref> partly Philippines), and only by 15th century was nearly everywhere supplanted by Buddhism and Islam.{{sfnm|1a1=Cœdès|1y=1968|1p=|2a1=Pande|2y=2006|2p=|3a1=Acri|3a2=Creese|3a3=Griffiths|3y=2011|3p=}}<ref name="spread" /> Therefore, it looks quite natural for the modern Hindu preaching in the world.

Within India, archeological and textual evidence such as the 2nd-century BCE [[Heliodorus pillar]] suggest that Greeks and other foreigners converted to Hinduism.{{sfn|Sharma|2011|p=84}}<ref>{{Cite book |last1=Wick |first1=Peter |title=Religions and Trade: Religious Formation, Transformation and Cross-Cultural Exchange Between East and West |last2=Rabens |first2=Volker |publisher=Brill Academic |year=2013 |isbn=978-90-04-25528-9 |page=70 with footnotes 13 and 14}}</ref> The debate on proselytization and religious conversion between Christianity, Islam and Hinduism is more recent, and started in the 19th century.<ref name="rafiuddinahmed">{{Cite book |last=Ahmed |first=Rafiuddin |title=Religious Controversy in British India: Dialogues in South Asian Languages |publisher=SUNY Press |year=1992 |isbn=978-0-7914-0827-8 |editor-last=Jones |editor-first=Kenneth |pages=93–120 |chapter=Muslim-Christian Polemics}}</ref><ref name="ayeshajalal">{{Cite book|last=Jalal|first=Ayesha|title=Partisans of Allah: Jihad in South Asia|publisher=Harvard University Press|year=2010|isbn=978-0-674-04736-5|pages=117–146|author-link=Ayesha Jalal}}</ref>{{refn|group=note|The controversy started as an intense polemic battle between Christian missionaries and Muslim organizations in the first half of the 19th century, where missionaries such as [[Karl Gottlieb Pfander]] tried to convert Muslims and Hindus, by criticizing Qur'an and Hindu scriptures.<ref name=ayeshajalal /><ref>{{Cite book |last=Parsons |first=Martin |title=Unveiling God: Contextualising Christology for Islamic Culture |publisher=William Carey Press |year=2006 |isbn=978-0-87808-454-8 |pages=4–15, 19–27}}</ref><ref>{{Cite journal |last=Powell |first=A. A. |year=1976 |title=Maulānā Raḥmat Allāh Kairānawī and Muslim-Christian Controversy in India in the Mid-19th Century |journal=Journal of the Royal Asiatic Society of Great Britain & Ireland |volume=108 |pages=42–63 |doi=10.1017/S0035869X00133003|s2cid=162697889 }}</ref><ref>{{Cite journal |last=Powell |first=Avril |year=1995 |title=Contested gods and prophets: discourse among minorities in late nineteenth‐century Punjab |journal=Renaissance and Modern Studies |volume=38 |issue=1 |pages=38–59 |doi=10.1080/14735789509366584}}</ref> Muslim leaders responded by publishing in Muslim-owned newspapers of Bengal, and through rural campaign, polemics against Christians and Hindus, and by launching "purification and reform movements" within Islam.<ref name=rafiuddinahmed /><ref name=ayeshajalal /> Hindu leaders joined the proselytization debate, criticized Christianity and Islam, and asserted Hinduism to be a universal, secular religion.<ref name=rafiuddinahmed /><ref name=csadcock />}}

Religious leaders of some Hindu reform movements such as the [[Arya Samaj]] launched ''[[Shuddhi (Hinduism)|Shuddhi]]'' movement to proselytize and reconvert Muslims and Christians back to Hinduism,<ref name="csadcock">{{Cite book |last=Adcock |first=CS |title=The Limits of Tolerance: Indian Secularism and the Politics of Religious Freedom |url=https://archive.org/details/limitsoftoleranc0000adco |publisher=Oxford University Press |year=2014 |isbn=978-0-19-999544-8 |pages=[https://archive.org/details/limitsoftoleranc0000adco/page/n1 1]–35, 115–168}}</ref><ref>{{Cite book |last=Coward |first=Harold |title=Modern Indian Responses to Religious Pluralism |publisher=SUNY Press |year=1987 |isbn=978-0-88706-572-9 |pages=49–60}}</ref> while those such as the [[Brahmo Samaj]] suggested Hinduism to be a non-missionary religion.<ref name=arvindmr /> All these sects of Hinduism have welcomed new members to their group, while other leaders of Hinduism's diverse schools have stated that given the intensive proselytization activities from missionary Islam and Christianity, this "there is no such thing as proselytism in Hinduism" view must be re-examined.<ref name=arvindmr /><ref name=csadcock /><ref>{{Cite book |last=Viswanathan |first=Gauri |title=Outside the Fold: Conversion, Modernity, and Belief |publisher=Princeton University Press |year=1998 |isbn=978-0-691-05899-3 |pages=153–176}}</ref>

The appropriateness of conversion from major religions to Hinduism, and vice versa, has been and remains an actively debated topic in India, Nepal,{{sfn|Kim, Sebastian|2005|pp=1–29}}<ref>{{Cite book|last=Masud|first=Muhammad Khalid|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=iPzXAAAAMAAJ|title=Islamic Legal Interpretation: Muftis and Their Fatwas|publisher=Harvard University Press|year=2005|isbn=978-0-19-597911-4|pages=193–203|jstor=846021|jstor-access=free}}</ref>{{sfn|Barua|2015|loc=Ch. 2 and 8}} and in Indonesia.{{sfn|Ramstedt|2004|pp=93–108|loc=Robert Hefner. ''Hindu Reform in an Islamising Java: Pluralism and Peril''}}

* [[Ancient Iranian religion]]

{{div col end}}

* {{harvnb|Hiltebeitel|2002|p=12}}: "Brahmanical synthesis"

{{refn|group=note|name="definition"|Hinduism is variously defined as a "religion", "set of religious beliefs and practices", "religious tradition", "a way of life" {{harv|Sharma|2003|pp=12–13}} etc. For a discussion on the topic, see: "Establishing the boundaries" in {{harvnb|Flood|2003|pp=1–17}}}}

* {{harvnb|Hiltebeitel|2002}}.

{{refn|group=note|name="roots"|Among its roots are the [[Historical Vedic religion|Vedic religion]] of the late [[Vedic period]] ({{harvnb|Flood|1996|p=16}}) and its emphasis on the status of Brahmans ({{harvnb|Samuel|2008|pp=48–53}}), but also the religions of the [[Indus Valley civilisation]] ({{harvnb|Narayanan| 2009|p=11}}; {{harvnb|Lockard|2007|p=52}}; {{harvnb|Hiltebeitel|2002|p=3}}; {{harvnb|Jones|Ryan|2007|p=xviii}}) the [[śramaṇa]] or renouncer traditions of [[Maurya Empire|northeastern India]] ({{harvnb|Flood|1996|p=16}}; {{harvnb|Gomez|2013|p=42}}), with possible roots in a non-Vedic Indo-Aryan culture ({{harvnb|Bronkhorst|2007}}); and "popular or [[Adivasi|local traditions]]" ({{harvnb|Flood|1996|p=16}}) and prehistoric cultures "that thrived in South Asia long before the creation of textual evidence that we can decipher with any confidence."{{harvnb|Doniger|2010|p=66}})}}

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* {{cite encyclopedia |year=2010 |editor-surname1=Melton |editor-given1=J. Gordon |editor-surname2=Baumann |editor-given2=Martin |editor-link1=J. Gordon Melton |title=Religions of the world: a comprehensive encyclopedia of beliefs and practices |edition=2nd |location=Santa Barbara; Denver; Oxford |publisher=[[ABC-Clio]] |volume=6-volume Set |isbn=978-1-59884-203-6 |url={{Google books|id=v2yiyLLOj88C|plainurl=y|page=|keywords=|text=}}}}

* {{Cite book |surname=Michael |given=Witzel |author-link=Michael Witzel |chapter=Kalash Religion (extract from 'The Ṛgvedic Religious System and its Central Asian and Hindukush Antecedents') |editor1=A. Griffiths |editor2=J. E. M. Houben |title=The Vedas: Texts, Language and Ritual |location=Groningen |publisher=Forsten |year=2004 |pages=581–636 |chapter-url=http://www.people.fas.harvard.edu/~witzel/KalashaReligion.pdf}}

* {{cite book |editor-surname=Pande |editor-given=Govind Chandra |editor-link=Govind Chandra Pande |title=India's Interaction with Southeast Asia |series=[[Project of History of Indian Science, Philosophy and Culture|History of Science, Philosophy and Culture in Indian Civilization]], vol. 1, part 3 |year=2006 |url={{Google books |dnVuAAAAMAAJ |page= |keywords= |text= |plainurl=yes}} |location=Delhi |publisher=[[Centre for Studies in Civilizations]] |isbn=978-8187586241 }}

* {{Cite journal |last=Shults |first=Brett |year=2014 |title=On the Buddha's Use of Some Brahmanical Motifs in Pali Texts |url=http://jocbs.org/index.php/jocbs/article/view/76/96 |journal=Journal of the Oxford Centre for Buddhist Studies |volume=6 |pages=121–129 }}

* {{cite book |first=D. N. |last=Shukla |year=1993 |title=Vastu-Sastra: Hindu Science of Architecture |publisher=Munshiram Manoharial Publ. |isbn=978-81-215-0611-3}}

* {{cite book|surname=Singh |given=Kunj Bihari |year=2004 |orig-year=1963 |chapter=Manipur Vaishnavism: A Sociological Interpretation |chapter-url={{Google books|id=Mc6GAwAAQBAJ|plainurl=y|page=125|keywords=|text=}} |title=Sociology of Religion in India |editor=Rowena Robinson |series=Themes in Indian Sociology, 3 |place=New Delhi |publisher=Sage Publ. India |pages=125–132 |url={{Google books|id=Mc6GAwAAQBAJ|plainurl=y}} |isbn=0-7619-9781-4}}

* {{Citation |last=Smart |first=Ninian |author-link=Ninian Smart |year=1993 |title=The Formation Rather Tahn the Origin of a Tradition |url=http://www.basr.ac.uk/diskus/diskus1-6/SMART.txt |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131202231922/http://www.basr.ac.uk/diskus/diskus1-6/SMART.txt |archive-date=2 December 2013 |journal=DISKUS |volume=1 |issue=1 |page=1 }}

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* {{cite encyclopedia |year=2009–2015 |title=Brill's Encyclopedia of Hinduism |editor-surname=Jacobsen |editor-given=Knut A. |editor-link=Knut A. Jacobsen |display-editors=etal |volume=1–6 |location=Leiden |publisher=Brill |url=https://brill.com/view/package/9789004271289?language=en&packages=about |isbn=978-9004271289 |url-access=registration |ref=none}}

* {{cite encyclopedia|year=2018 |editor-last=Jain |editor-first=Pankaj |editor-link1=Pankaj Jain |editor2-last=Sherma |editor2-first=Rita |editor3-last=Khanna |editor3-first=Madhu |editor-link3=Madhu Khanna |entry=Hinduism and Tribal Religions |encyclopedia=Encyclopedia of Indian Religions |location=Dordrecht |publisher=Springer Netherlands |doi=10.1007/978-94-024-1036-5_541-1 |isbn=978-94-024-1036-5 |series=Encyclopedia of Indian Religions |pages=1–6 |title=Swaminarayan }}

* {{cite encyclopedia |surname=Jones |given=Constance A. |surname2=Ryan |given2=James D. |title=Encyclopedia of Hinduism |url={{Google books|id=OgMmceadQ3gC|plainurl=y|page=|keywords=|text=}} |year=2007 |location=New York |publisher=Facts On File |isbn=978-0-8160-5458-9 |series=Encyclopedia of World Religions. [[J. Gordon Melton]], Series Editor |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200402211115/https://books.google.com/books?id=OgMmceadQ3gC&pg=PR17 |archive-date=2 April 2020 |url-status=live |ref=none}}

* {{cite encyclopedia |year=1998 |surname=Klostermaier |given=Klaus K. |author-link=Klaus Klostermaier |title=A Concise Encyclopedia of Hinduism |location=London |publisher=Oneworld Publications |isbn=978-1-78074-672-2 |url={{Google books|id=DB29DwAAQBAJ|plainurl=y|page=|keywords=|text=}} |ref=none }}

* {{cite encyclopedia |editor-surname=Potter |editor-given=Karl H. |editor-link=Karl Harrington Potter |title=Encyclopedia of Indian Philosophers |url=http://faculty.washington.edu/kpotter/xencyclo.html |location=Delhi |publisher=[[Motilal Banarsidass]] |year=1970–2019 |volume=1–25 |ref=none |archive-date=1 February 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220201160007/https://faculty.washington.edu/kpotter/xencyclo.html |url-status=dead}}  Ongoing [[monographic series]] project.

* {{cite book |surname=Werner |given=Karel |author-link=Karel Werner |title=A Popular Dictionary of Hinduism |location=Surrey |publisher=Curzon Press |year=1997 |edition=Rev. |isbn=0-7007-1049-3 |url={{Google books|id=HvuQAgAAQBAJ|plainurl=y|page=|keywords=|text=}} |ref=none}}

* {{cite book |surname=Flood |given=Gavin |author-link=Gavin Flood |year=1996 |title=An Introduction to Hinduism |url={{Google books|id=KpIWhKnYmF0C|plainurl=y|page=|keywords=|text=}} |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20161129185620/https://books.google.com/books?id=KpIWhKnYmF0C |archive-date=2016-11-29 |location=Cambridge |publisher=Cambridge University Press |isbn=978-0-521-43878-0 |ref=none |url-status=live}}

* {{cite book |editor-surname=Flood |editor-given=Gavin |editor-link=Gavin Flood |title=The Blackwell Companion to Hinduism |year=2003 |place=Oxford |publisher=[[Blackwell Publishing|Blackwell]] |isbn=0-631-21535-2 |url={{Google books|id=SKBxa-MNqA8C|plainurl=y|page=|keywords=|text=}} |archive-url=https://archive.org/details/blackwellcompani00floo |archive-date=2016-11-29 |url-status=live |ref=none}}

* {{cite book |last=Fowler |first=Jeaneane D. |year=1997 |title=Hinduism: Beliefs and Practices |publisher=Sussex Academic Press |isbn=978-1-898723-60-8 |url={{Google books|id=RmGKHu20hA0C|plainurl=y|page=|keywords=|text=}} |ref=none}}{{Dead link|date=January 2023 |bot=InternetArchiveBot |fix-attempted=yes}}

* {{cite book |surname=Hiltebeitel |given=Alf |authorlink=Alf Hiltebeitel |year=2002 |orig-year=1987 |chapter=Hinduism |editor-surname=Kitagawa |editor-given=Joseph M. |editor-link=Joseph Kitagawa |title=The Religious Traditions of Asia: Religion, History, and Culture |place=London |publisher=RoutledgeCurzon |pages=3–40 |chapter-url={{Google books|id=kfyzAAAAQBAJ|plainurl=y|page=3|keywords=|text=}} |url={{Google books|id=kfyzAAAAQBAJ|plainurl=y}} |isbn=0-7007-1762-5 |ref=none}}

* {{cite book |year=2007 |surname=Klostermaier |given=Klaus K. |author-link=Klaus Klostermaier |title=Hinduism: A Beginner's Guide |publisher=Oneworld Publications |isbn=978-1-78074-026-3 |url={{Google books|id=P0VCO1900dMC|plainurl=y|page=|keywords=|text=}} |archive-date=29 December 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201229174233/https://books.google.com/books?id=P0VCO1900dMC |url-status=live |ref=none}}

* {{cite book |surname=Knott |given=Kim |year=1998 |url={{Google books|id=p4kzNzII3zAC|plainurl=y|page=|keywords=|text=}} |title=Hinduism: A Very Short Introduction |location=New York |publisher=Oxford University Press |isbn=978-0-19-160645-8 |archive-date=29 December 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201229174324/https://books.google.com/books?id=p4kzNzII3zAC&pg=PA6 |url-status=live |ref=none}}

* {{cite book |last=Parpola |first=Asko |authorlink=Asko Parpola |title=The Roots of Hinduism. The Early Aryans and the Indus Civilization |publisher=Oxford University Press |year=2015 |isbn=978-0-19-022693-0 |url={{Google books|id=DagXCgAAQBAJ|plainurl=y|page=|keywords=|text=}} |ref=none}}

* {{cite book |last=Samuel |first=Geoffrey | authorlink = Geoffrey Samuel |title=The Origins of Yoga and Tantra. Indic Religions to the Thirteenth Century |publisher=Cambridge University Press |year=2010 |ref=none}}

* {{cite book |year=2010 |surname=Klostermaier |edition=3rd |given=Klaus K. |author-link=Klaus Klostermaier |title=A Survey of Hinduism |location=New York |publisher=SUNY Press |url={{Google books|id=8CVviRghVtIC|plainurl=y|page=|keywords=|text=}} |isbn=978-0-7914-8011-3 |ref=none}}

* {{cite book |editor-last=Richards |editor-first=Glyn |year=1985 |title=A Sourcebook of Modern Hinduism |location=Surrey |publisher=Curzon Press |isbn=978-0-7007-0173-5 |ref=none}}

* {{cite encyclopedia |title=Brill's Encyclopedia of Hinduism Online |date= |editor-surname=Jacobsen |editor-given=Knut A. |editor-link=Knut A. Jacobsen |display-editors=etal |url=https://referenceworks.brillonline.com/browse/brill-s-encyclopedia-of-hinduism |url-access=subscription}}

* {{cite encyclopedia|title=Hinduism|encyclopedia=[[Encyclopædia Britannica]]|url=https://www.britannica.com/topic/Hinduism|date=29 May 2023}}

[[Category:Panentheism]]