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Hinduism has been called the "oldest religion" in the world, [a] but scholars regard Hinduism as a relatively recent synthesis [2] [3] [4] of various Indian cultures and traditions, [2] [3] [5] with diverse roots [6] and no single founder, [7] [b] which emerged around the beginning of the Common Era.
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).
Religion has been a factor of the human experience throughout history, ... initially attracting some 380,000 Dalit converts from Hinduism. 1959: ...
Hinduism is the world's third-largest religion, with approximately 1.20 billion followers, or around 15% of the global population, known as Hindus. [ 25 ] [ web 2 ] [ web 3 ] It is the most widely professed faith in India , [ 26 ] Nepal , Mauritius , and in Bali , Indonesia . [ 27 ]
Historically, the roots of Buddhism lie in the religious thought of Iron Age India around the middle of the first millennium BCE. [5] This was a period of great intellectual ferment and socio-cultural change known as the Second Urbanisation, marked by the growth of towns and trade, the composition of the Upanishads and the historical emergence of the Śramaṇa traditions.
The Vedic religion evolved into Hinduism and Vedanta, a religious path considering itself the 'essence' of the Vedas, interpreting the Vedic pantheon as a unitary view of the universe with 'God' (Brahman) seen as immanent and transcendent in the forms of Ishvara and Brahman.
The religion "defies our desire to define and categorize it". [123] A Hindu may, by his or her choice, draw upon ideas of other Indian or non-Indian religious thought as a resource, follow or evolve his or her personal beliefs, and still identify as a Hindu. [65]
The history of religion is the written record of human religious feelings, thoughts, and ideas. This period of religious history begins with the invention of writing about 5,200 years ago (3200 BCE). [ 1 ]