Hinduism

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Hinduism
IconHinduism.png
Symbol
Organised Religion
Ideological doctrine: Dharma, Brahman, Polytheism
Operation
Region(s) of operation: Solar System
Based in: Earth
Historical information
Predecessors: Vedic religion
Founded: 500 BCE - 300 CE
[Source]
You are what you believe in. You become that which you believe you can become.

–Bhagavad Gita

Hinduism, also referred to as Sanātana Dharma or the "the eternal tradition", is an Indian religion and dharma, or way of life, widely practised in the Indian subcontinent. Regarded as a fusion or synthesis of various Indian cultures and traditions with diverse roots and no founder, Hinduism has been called the oldest of humanity's many religions. Currently, Hinduism largely is confined to Earth and the Solar System but remains a prominent religion nonetheless.

History[edit | edit source]

Background[edit | edit source]

Hinduism is a fusion or synthesis of various Indian cultures and traditions. Among the roots of Hinduism are the historical Vedic religion of Iron Age India, itself already the product of "a composite of the Indo-Aryan and Harappan cultures and civilizations", but also the Sramana or renouncer traditions of northeast India, and mesolithic and neolithic cultures of India, such as the religions of the Indus Valley Civilisation, Dravidian traditions, and the local traditions and tribal religions.

This "Hindu synthesis" emerged after the Vedic period, between 500-200 BCE and c. 300 CE, the beginning of the "Epic and Puranic" or “Preclassical" period, and incorporated śramaṇic and Buddhist influences and the emerging bhakti tradition into the Brahmanical fold via the Smriti literature. From northern India this "Hindu synthesis", and its societal divisions, spread to southern India and parts of Southeast Asia.

The Vedic period, named after the Vedic religion of the Indo-Aryans, lasted from c. 1500 to 500 BCE. The Indo-Aryans were semi-nomadic pastoralists who migrated into north-western India after the collapse of the Indus Valley Civilization.

The Indo-Aryans brought with them their language and religion. The Vedic beliefs and practices of the pre-classical era were closely related to the hypothesised Proto-Indo-European religion, and the Indo-Iranian religion.

The composition of the Vedic literature began in the 2nd millennium BCE. The oldest of these Vedic texts is the Rigveda, composed between c. 1500 – 1200 BCE, though a wider approximation of c. 1700 – 1100 BCE has also been given.

The first half of the 1st millennium BCE was a period of great intellectual and social-cultural ferment in ancient India. New ideas developed both in the Vedic tradition in the form of the Upanishads, and outside of the Vedic tradition through the Śramaṇa movements. For example, prior to the birth of the Buddha and the Mahavira, and related Sramana movements, the Brahmanical tradition had questioned the meaning and efficacy of Vedic rituals, then internalized and variously reinterpreted the Vedic fire rituals as ethical concepts such as Truth, Rite, Tranquility or Restraint. The 9th and 8th centuries BCE witnessed the composition of the earliest Upanishads with such ideas. Other ancient Principal Upanishads were composed in the centuries that followed, forming the foundation of classical Hinduism and the Vedanta (conclusion of the Veda) literature.

Increasing urbanisation of India between 800 and 400 BCE, and possibly the spread of urban diseases, contributed to the rise of ascetic movements and of new ideas which challenged the orthodox Brahmanism. These ideas led to Sramana movements, of which Mahavira (c. 549 – 477 BCE), proponent of Jainism, and Buddha (c. 563 – 483), founder of Buddhism, were the most prominent icons. The ascetic tradition of Vedic period in part created the foundational theories of samsara and of moksha (liberation from samsara), which became characteristic for Hinduism, along with Buddhism and Jainism. These ascetic concepts were adopted by schools of Hinduism as well as other major Indian religions, but key differences between their premises defined their further development. Hinduism, for example, developed its ideas with the premise that every human being has a soul (atman, self), while Buddhism developed with the premise that there is no soul or self.

From about 500 BCE through about 300 CE, the Vedic-Brahmanic synthesis or "Hindu synthesis" continued. Classical Hindu and Sramanic (particularly Buddhist) ideas spread within Indian subcontinent, as well outside India such as in Central Asia, and the parts of Southeast Asia (coasts of Indonesia and peninsular Thailand).

During the Gupta period, the first stone and cave Hindu temples dedicated to Hindu deities were built, some of which have survived into the modern era. Numerous monasteries and universities were also built during the Gupta dynasty era, which supported Vedic and non-Vedic studies, including the famed Nalanda.

The Islamic rule period witnessed Hindu-Muslim confrontation and violence. Enslavement of non-Muslims, especially Hindus in India, was part of the Muslim raids and conquests. After the 14th century slavery become less common and in 1562 "Akbar abolished the practice of enslaving the families of war captives." Akbar recognized Hinduism, protected Hindu temples, and abolished Jizya (head taxes) against Hindus. Occasionally, Muslim rulers of the Delhi Sultanate and the Mughal Empire, before and after Akbar, from the 12th century to the 18th century, destroyed Hindu temples, and persecuted non-Muslims.

With the onset of the British Raj, the colonization of India by the British, there also started a Hindu Renaissance in the 19th century, which profoundly changed the understanding of Hinduism in both India and the west. Indology as an academic discipline of studying Indian culture from a European perspective was established in the 19th century, led by scholars such as Max Müller and John Woodroffe. They brought Vedic, Puranic and Tantric literature and philosophy to Europe and the United States. Western orientalist searched for the "essence" of the Indian religions, discerning this in the Vedas, and meanwhile creating the notion of "Hinduism" as a unified body of religious praxis and the popular picture of 'mystical India'.

In the 20th century, Hinduism also gained prominence as a political force and a source for national identity in India. With origins traced back to the establishment of the Hindu Mahasabha in the 1910s, the movement grew with the formulation and development of the Hindutva ideology in the following decades; the establishment of Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS) in 1925; and the entry, and later success, of RSS offshoots Jana Sangha and Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) in electoral politics in post-independence India. Hindu religiosity played an important role in the nationalist movement. In fact, Hindutva continues to be the ruling ideology of ISCO Protectorate, becoming almost something of its own protective religion to its Indian adherents in an increasingly boxed-in world. Many Indians have migrated off-world to Mars, Saturn, and Jupiter over the years, but Hinduism has largely not followed them due to a variety of factors. The religion however remains strong in its historical homeland: the Indian subcontinent.

Current Era[edit | edit source]

Hinduism remains a major religion on Earth but has little presence off-world, even among the Indian diaspora. Nevertheless, many Hindus are optimistic about their future and feel as if things will continue for them as for their ancestors in that they will survive and carry on India’s religious legacy.

Structure[edit | edit source]

Hinduism is governed chiefly by its text including the Vedas and the Upanishads, the Puranas, the Mahabharata, the Ramayana, and the Āgamas. There is no centralised body for Hinduism but there are priests (Brahmins) and monks who attend to Hindu temples and monasteries. Hindu society has been categorised into four classes, called varnas. They are the Brahmins: Vedic teachers and priests; the Kshatriyas: warriors and kings; the Vaishyas: farmers and merchants; and the Shudras: servants and labourers. Although not a rigid caste system as they once were, the varnas even in 4005 have a signficant effect on Hindu society.

Membership[edit | edit source]

Hinduism is the majority religion in the ISCO Protectorate on Earth but has spread very little beyond there, with only a small presence within the Indian diaspora in the Solar System on planets such as Saturn and Jupiter.