In the west, where the mass majority of people are part of the abrahamic faith tradition with one god, the concept of polytheism is nothing more than fantasy or. The language the aryans used and expressed their religion in was sanskrit. It was a lifestyle that flourished in ancient indian subcontinent thousands of years ago, which later took the form of what is known today as hinduism. One of the oldest of the worlds religions, hinduism dates back more than 3,000 years, though its present forms are of more recent origin. Iskcon, the international society for krishna consciousness, belongs to the vaisnava tradition of hinduism. The most holy of the hindu books is written in sanskrit and is referred to as the vedas. An ancient indian book dense with wisdom, the bhagavad gita is the most important and beloved spiritual text to billions of hindus. Five of the hindu holy books are the rig veda, bhagavad gita, sama veda, yajur veda, and athava veda. It is indias major religion, but unlike many other religions in the world, hinduism has no founder. In some cases, the sacred language is a dead language. The large majority of people who practice hinduism submit to a supreme being called vishnu or shiva. They got their present form between 1200200 bce and were introduced to. Download the bible, the holy quran, the mahabharata and thousands of free pdf ebooks on buddhism, meditation etc.
In the morning i bathe my intellect in the stupendous and cosmogonal philosophy of the bhagvat geeta, since whose composition years of the gods have elapsed, and in comparison with which our modern world and its literature seem puny and trivial. Hindus value many sacred writings as opposed to one holy book. Like the taoist tao te ching, the buddhist dhammapada, the sikh adi granth, the jewish torah, the christian bible and the muslim koranthe veda is the hindu holy book. There are a number of scriptures and holy books in hinduism. The phrase holy book for hindus takes the stance that hinduism is a religion. Hindu gods serve mankind with compassion and devotion, breathing wisdom into every aspect of life. Gheranda samhita and hatha yoga pradipika written by an unknown author. It is believed that hinduism originated in northern india, and in india today, more than 80% of the population are followers. Hindus can choose to be polytheistic, pantheistic, panentheistic, pandeistic, henotheistic, monotheistic, monistic, agnostic, atheistic or. However, the puranas are supposed to be complied by muni vyasa.
In the book of daniel, king nebuchadnezzar says several times that the spirit of the holy gods is in daniel. The vedas scriptures guide hindus in their daily life. Other holy scriptures in hinduism are called the upanisads, the smrutis, the puranas, the ramayana and the mahabharata. The vedas are the sacred texts on which hinduism is based. Sahasranama a book containing a list of names of deities. Hindus can choose to be polytheistic, pantheistic, monotheistic, monistic, agnostic, atheistic or humanist. The history of hinduism in india can be traced to about 1500 bce. They also help to preserve the religious dimensions of family and society. Hinduism is the third largest religion in the world, as well as the worlds oldest religion. Some of the other holy works and books of hinduism. The hindu religion originated in india thousands of years ago. Most of the hindu scriptures, prayers, and mantras are written in sanskrit. Sanskrit the language of the gods venkataramaniblog.
These texts are glorious tales of the hindu trinity brahma, vishnu and maheshwar shiva. Most hindu sacred texts do not have definite timelines or known authors. Did nebuchadnezzar say that the spirit of the holy gods. For instance, 17thcentury elements of the english language remain current in protestant christian worship through the use of the king james bible or older versions of the anglican book of common prayer. Sharma provides background information about the hindu gods and goddesses, such as ganesha and shiva, and the history of hinduism itself and what hindus believe. Unpanishads the upanishads are also called as vedantas or the end of the vedas. The text is addressed by the hindu god shiva to his consort parvati. Hinduism does not just have one sacred book but several scriptures. This article explores some of the varied sacred texts of this religion.
The veda, which means wisdom, is comprised of four ancient and holy scriptures which all hindus revere as the revealed word of god. For many hindus, religion is a matter of practice rather than of beliefs. Evidence of hinduisms early antecedents is derived from archaeology, comparative philology, and comparative religion. Religious traditions around the world have their respective sacred books. You should read enough of the materials presented in this section concerning the tradition of hinduism in order to understand how this tradition displays the characteristics or elements that make a. We never had an authority popepontiff, one god, one book, that dictated what qualifies as hindu and not hindu. The early vedas refer often to certain gods such as. Learn vocabulary, terms, and more with flashcards, games, and other study tools. The terms and epithets found in indian culture, that are translated as deity, varies with the. The most ancient sacred texts of the hindu religion are written in sanskrit and called the vedas. There are many sacred texts of hindus but most valuable and primary texts are vedas, composed around 1500 bce in the sanskrit language. The upanishads are also called as vedantas or the end of the vedas.
The veda is a rather unusual collection of literature. Turning believers into nonbelievers and nonbelievers into believers. Translated from the sanskrit language, the term literary means bhagavan himself or directly. The puranas are holy books of hinduism that date back to gupta empire in ancient india. Its many sacred texts in sanskrit and vernacular languages served as a vehicle for spreading the religion to other parts of the world, though ritual and the visual.
Hindus believe that the vedas texts were received by scholars direct from. Most forms of hinduism are henotheistic, which means they worship a single deity, known as brahman, but still recognize other gods and goddesses. Hindus believe in the doctrines of samsara the continuous cycle of life, death, and reincarnation. Hinduism simple english wikipedia, the free encyclopedia. Concept of god in hinduism download important scriptures on advaita philosophynon dualism school of hinduism shankara bhashya in hindu vedic religion there is only one supreme god which exist at two different levels of reality. Hinduism is a religion with various gods and goddesses. Hinduism is diverse on ideas on spirituality and traditions, but has no ecclesiastical order, no unquestionable religious authorities, no governing body, no prophets nor any binding holy book. The vedas a collection of hymns praising the vedic gods. Sanskrit was the only language used during ancient times, but later on, many languages were born out of sanskrit and as per the necessity of time, many scriptures and prayers were also composed in other regional languages. The hindu scriptures declare that brahman the impersonal god is beyond description. The heart of hinduism text book is produced by iskcon educational services, uk. It might appear that the translation should be determined by whether.
It is believed that hinduism dates back to 500010,000 bc. In the early 21st century, more than 90 percent of the worlds hindus lived in india, and the religion had nearly one billion adherents worldwide. Another hindu holy book that deals with religious duties is law of manu or the dharma shastra. Mahabharata, one of the two sanskrit epic poems of ancient india the other being the ramayana. Vedas and upanishadas are the most authoritative amongst all hindu scriptures and holy books. This is a terrific book for anyone who has ever been interested in learning more about hinduism.
This exquisitely illustrated book presents profiles of 30 deities from the powerful triad of brahma the creator, vishnu the preserver, and shiva the destroyer, to the colorful supporting cast of gods such as ganesha and saraswati. The bhagavad gita, usually considered part of the sixth book of the mahabharata dating from about 400 or 300 b. Brahman takes on many forms that some hindus worship as gods or. The scriptures of the vedas are meant to guide hindu believers in their daily lives. But reviving the ancient language, which is so closely linked to hinduism and hindu religious texts, has always been a pet project for the bjp. The primary sacred texts, known as the vedas, were composed around 1500 b. Information on hinduism for kids primary homework help. The mahabharata is an important source of information on the development of hinduism between 400 bce and 200 ce and is regarded by hindus as both a text about dharma hindu moral law and a history. He was born on the earth to make realize the people their sin, and to know their principles of life and protect the good in this world. The earliest literary source for the history of hinduism is the rigveda, consisting of hymns that were composed chiefly during the last two or three centuries of. Hinduism definition, hindu religion, gods, beliefs, history, holy book definition hinduism is commonly thought of as a religion, but this is an inaccuracy, it is a way in. The aryans gave hinduism its priestly language, sanskrit. Hinduism does not have a single holy book, but many ancient texts and scriptures.
Followers believe there are multiple paths to reaching their god. There is no single scripture as it is in other religions like christianity and islam. Hinduism spans a wide range of beliefs such as henotheism, monotheism. Christianity has the bible, islam has the quran, judaism has the. Hinduism hindutva is guided by teachings of sananthana dharma. Here some powerful quotes from the gita that will give you a different perspective on life, and maybe even change the way you look at hinduism. In my bible theres a footnote that says this could also be translated as the spirit of the holy god. Hinduism includes a diversity of ideas on spirituality and traditions, but has no ecclesiastical order, no unquestionable religious authorities, no governing body, no prophets nor any binding holy book. Most interesting facts about hinduism sanatana dharma. Why hindus worship so many gods and goddesses is a real mystery for most people. All about hinduism is intended to meet the needs of those who want to be introduced to the various facets of the crystal that is hinduism. To people raised in other faiths, hinduism may seem very complex, but the core beliefs of hinduism are actually quite simple to understand.
Hinduism encompasses many religious beliefs, practices, and denominations. Now the hindu gods have been speaking to the folks in their nati. These are the most ancient religious texts which define truth for hindus. This sacred text is divided into two main sections, the old testament and the new testament which are then further divided into various books. In other cases, it may simply reflect archaic forms of a living language. The book, which was first published in 1947, has now been rearranged in a more convenient form, with useful additions here and. Holy scriptures are mainly comprised of the following works written in the sanskrit language. The holy books of world religions sacred texts in world. Turning believers into nonbelievers and nonbelievers into believers achuthananda, swami on. Lord krishna was living in a little town called brindavan 5000 years ago. The vedas are greatly revered by contemporary hindus as forming the foundation for their deepest beliefs.