Hinduism

Overview

Hindus often call their religion Sanatana Dharma, "the eternal way". At its centre are a few key ideas:

• Dharma: duty and moral order.
• Karma: the law of cause and effect of actions.
• Samsara: the cycle of birth and death.
• Moksha: liberation from that cycle.

Believers can choose the path that suits them: devotion to a personal god (bhakti), knowledge and meditation, or right action. Worship includes prayer at home and in temples, colourful festivals such as Diwali and Holi, and pilgrimage to the Ganges and other holy places.

Origins and History

Hinduism's roots lie in Vedic culture, which developed in northern India from about 1500 BCE, and perhaps also in traditions of the earlier Indus Valley civilisation. The Vedas began as hymns for sacrificial ritual. The later Upanishads added philosophical reflection on the nature of the self (atman) and its relation to ultimate reality (Brahman). In the classical period the great epics and the Puranas were composed, and worship of gods such as Vishnu, Shiva and the goddess Devi took shape.

Development and Branches

Hinduism developed in continual dialogue and competition with Buddhism and Jainism. Medieval bhakti movements stressed personal love of God, sometimes bypassing the priestly class. In the 19th century a reform movement began, led by figures such as Ram Mohan Roy and Vivekananda. Later Mahatma Gandhi led a nonviolent struggle for India's independence, inspired by Hindu principles. At the same time Hindutva, Hindu nationalism, emerged and is today a major political force in India.

How It Spread and Grew

🗺️ Maps of how the five largest religions spread →

Hinduism grew mainly within the Indian subcontinent, through natural increase and the gradual absorption of local traditions. According to Pew, the number of Hindus worldwide grew by about 12% from 2010 to 2020, in line with the world population, so their share stayed at about 14.9%; few people join or leave the religion. They are 79.8% of India's population (about 966 million, 2011 census) and 81.2% of Nepal's (2021 census). In the past it also spread to Southeast Asia through trade and kingdoms, which is how the Angkor Wat temple in Cambodia was built, and the island of Bali in Indonesia still has a Hindu majority today. In modern times it reached Britain, the US, the Caribbean and Africa with the Indian diaspora. Yoga and meditation, which come from Indian traditions, have spread worldwide, mostly in secular form.

Influence on the World

Mathematics (the concept of zero and numerals that reached Europe via the Arab world), philosophy, yoga and Ayurveda, literature and epics, music and dance. The idea of nonviolence (ahimsa), as practised by Gandhi, influenced Martin Luther King Jr. and civil rights movements around the world.

What Draws Believers (Strengths)

• Tolerance of many paths: "Truth is one; the wise call it by many names" (Rigveda).
• Great personal freedom in choosing how to worship.
• Philosophical, meditative and artistic richness.
• A deep connection between religion, family, nature and the calendar.

Criticism and Challenges

• The caste system: this is the main criticism. The hierarchy, given religious justification in some texts, excluded Dalits (formerly called "untouchables") for generations. Indian law now bans caste discrimination, but it persists in practice.
• Harm to women: critics point to historical practices such as sati, the burning of widows (banned in 1829), and child marriage.
• Politicisation: there is concern today about the politicisation of religion and harm to minorities.

Human Life, War and Peace – What It Teaches

• Ahimsa (non-harm) is a supreme moral value in many texts and underlies the vegetarianism common in India.
• On the other hand, the dharma of the warrior class (kshatriya) requires fighting a just war. This is the background of the Bhagavad Gita.
• Ancient rules of war, in the Mahabharata and the Laws of Manu, forbid harming an unarmed person or someone who has surrendered.
• The sanctity of life extends to animals, especially the cow.
• Compared with other religions: Sanctity of Life Across Religions

Religion, Power and Violence

Violence in the name of religion: Hinduism did not spread mainly by conquest, but both history and the present include religiously motivated violence:

• Hindu–Muslim riots, including the violence of the 1947 Partition of India between Hindus, Sikhs and Muslims. Estimates of the dead range from several hundred thousand to about two million, on both sides.
• The demolition of the Babri Masjid in Ayodhya in 1992 by a Hindu nationalist mob. In the riots that followed across India an estimated 2,000 people were killed, most of them Muslims.
• The Gujarat riots of 2002, which broke out after a train fire at Godhra killed 59 people, most of them Hindu pilgrims. According to official figures 1,044 people were killed in the riots (790 Muslims and 254 Hindus); independent groups estimate about 2,000.
• Violence by nationalist groups against Muslims and Christians.
• Caste-based violence.

The other side:

• The Bhagavad Gita deals with the duty to fight, but many, Gandhi among them, read it as an allegory of inner struggle.
• Ahimsa is a central value.
• Gandhi, who led one of history's largest nonviolent movements, was murdered in 1948 by a Hindu nationalist who opposed his conciliatory stance towards Muslims and Pakistan.

When believers were victims:

• In the Middle Ages Hindu temples were destroyed and looted in campaigns of conquest, for example the Somnath temple by Mahmud of Ghazni (1026). Historians debate the scale and how far the motives were religious rather than economic and political.
• In the Bangladesh Liberation War (1971) Hindus were among the main victims of the Pakistani army, and many fled to India.
• In 1989–1990 most Kashmiri Hindus (Pandits) fled the Kashmir Valley after threats and killings by Islamist militias.