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Hinduism has been variously defined as a religion, a religious tradition, a set of religious beliefs, and "a way of life". [ 69 ] [ note 1 ] From a Western lexical standpoint, Hinduism, like other faiths, is appropriately referred to as a religion.
Hinduism – predominant and indigenous religious tradition of the Indian Subcontinent. [1] Its followers are called Hindus , who refer to it as Sanātana Dharma [ 2 ] ( Sanskrit : सनातनधर्मः , lit.
Monotheism is the belief in a single creator God and the lack of belief in any other Creator. [58] [59] Different sects of Hinduism may or may not posit or require such a belief, as religion is considered a personal belief in Hinduism and followers are free to choose the different interpretations within the framework of karma and samsara.
The historical Vedic religion, also called Vedicism or Vedism, and sometimes ancient Hinduism or Vedic Hinduism, [a] constituted the religious ideas and practices prevalent amongst some of the Indo-Aryan peoples of the northwest Indian subcontinent (Punjab and the western Ganges plain) during the Vedic period (c. 1500–500 BCE).
The Brahmanism of the Dharmaśāstra and the smritis underwent a radical transformation at the hands of the Purana composers, resulting in the rise of Puranic Hinduism, [35] "which like a colossus striding across the religious firmanent soon came to overshadow all existing religions". [181] Puranic Hinduism was a "multiplex belief-system which ...
Hindu religious practices include devotion , worship , sacrificial rites , and meditation and yoga. Hinduism has no central doctrinal authority and many Hindus do not claim to belong to any denomination. However, scholarly studies notify four major denominations: Shaivism, Shaktism, Smartism, and Vaishnavism.
The Vedas are ancient Sanskrit texts of Hinduism. Above: A page from the Atharvaveda. The Vedas (/ ˈ v eɪ d ə z / [4] or / ˈ v iː d ə z /; [5] Sanskrit: वेदः, romanized: Vēdaḥ, lit. 'knowledge'), sometimes collectively called the Veda, are a large body of religious texts originating in ancient India.
Within Hinduism, a key understanding of faith is maintaining trust in the scriptures. Hindus believe that it is not possible to understand or experience god directly with human senses, and so god's presence is inferred through descriptions in the scriptures. [3] An example of this can be seen in Bruhadaranyak Upanishad 3.8.9: