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Hinduism (Sanskrit: Sanātana Dharma सनातन धर्म "eternal law"; in several modern Indian languages[1] also known as Hindū Dharma), is a religion that originated on the Indian subcontinent. With its foundations in the Vedic civilization, it has no known founder[2] being itself a conglomerate of diverse beliefs and traditions. It is the world's third largest religion after Christianity and Islam with approximately a billion adherents (2005 figure), of whom about 890 million live in India.[3] Other countries with large Hindu populations include Nepal, Bangladesh, Indonesia, Malaysia, Thailand, Sri Lanka and Pakistan.

Theologically Hinduism is based on a number of religious texts developed over many centuries that contain purported spiritual insights along with guidance concerning the practice of dharma, or religious life. Among such texts, the Vedas are the most ancient, and they along with the Upanishads are the most important and foundational texts for Hindu philosophy. Other important scriptures include the eighteen Purāṇas and the epics: the Mahābhārata and the Rāmāyaṇa. The Bhagavad Gītā, which is contained within the Mahābhārata, is a widely studied scripture that is seen as summarising the spiritual teachings of the Vedas.[4]

Hinduism encompasses many religious beliefs, traditions, practices, and denominations. Hinduism centres around a variety of practices that are meant to help one experience the Divinity that is everywhere and realise the true nature of the Self (atman). Most Hindus believe in a Supreme Cosmic Spirit, which may be understood in abstract terms as Brahman or which may be worshipped in personal forms such as Vishnu, Shiva or Shakti.

The Persian term Hindu is derived from Sanskrit Sindhu, i.e. the Indus River.[5] In the Rig Veda—the foundation of Hinduism—the Indo-Aryans mention their land as Sapta Sindhu (the land of the seven rivers of the northwestern Indian subcontinent, one of them being the Indus). This corresponds to Hapta-Hendu in the Avesta (Vendidad: Fargard 1.18)—the sacred scripture of Zoroastrianism of Iran. The term was used for people who lived in the Indian subcontinent around or beyond the Sindhu.[6]

Core concepts

Modern Hinduism originates from the ancient Vedic tradition (Vaidika paramparā) and other indigenous beliefs, incorporated over time. Prominent themes in Hinduism include Dharma (ethics, duties and obligations), Samsāra (rebirth), Karma (right action), and Moksha (deliverance from the cycle of birth and death). Buddhism, Jainism and Sikhism share some traits with Hinduism, because these religions originated in India and focus on self-improvement with the ultimate aim of attaining a personal, spiritual experience. They along with Hinduism are collectively known as Dharmic religions.

Concept of God

Hinduism is sometimes considered to be a polytheistic religion, but such a view tends to oversimplify a diverse system of thought with beliefs spanning monotheism, polytheism [7], panentheism, monism and arguably even atheism. For instance, the Advaita Vedanta school holds that there is only one causal entity (Brahman), which may phenomenologically manifest itself to humans in multiple forms [8] while many scholars consider Samkhya to have atheistic leanings.