Origin of Hindu Religion - 2457 Words

A Hindu ( pronunciation (help ·info), Devanagari: à ¤ ¹Ã  ¤ ¿Ã  ¤ ¨Ã  ¥ Ã  ¤ ¦Ã  ¥ ) is an adherent of Hinduism, a set of religious, philosophical and cultural systems that originated in the Indian subcontinent. The vast body of Hindu scriptures, divided into Ã…Å¡ruti (revealed) and Smriti (remembered), lay the foundation of Hindu beliefs, which primarily include dhà ¡rma, kà ¡rma, ahimsa and saá ¹Æ'sÄ ra. VedÄ nta and yoga are one of the several core schools of Hindu philosophy, broadly known as the SanÄ tana Dharma. The word Hindu is at times attributed to all persons professing Hinduism, Jainism, Buddhism or Sikhism as is used in the Constitution of India.[1] With more than a billion adherents, Hinduism is the worlds third largest religion. The vast majority of Hindus,†¦show more content†¦The Vedas are the oldest sacred books of Hinduism and lay the foundation of several schools of Hindu thought.[21] The Upanishads refers to those scriptures which form the core teachings of the VedÄ nta philosophy.[22] Adi Shankaras commentaries on the Upanishads led to the rise of Advaita Vedanta, the most influential sub-school of Vedanta. In the holy text Merutantra,the word Hindu is defined as Hinani Gunani Dushyanti iti Hindu.Meaning that Gunani that which destroys the inferior raja-tama components or gunas is a Hindu.Thus, to be a Hindu is to follow a way of life that enhances the spiritually pure sattva component and sattva predominant qualities like love, courage, humility, expansiveness, etc.and overcomes the spiritually impure raja-tama predominant attitude like anger, lust, jealousy, greed, attachment, pride etc. Hinduism consists of several sects and denominations, of which Vaishnavism and Shaivism are by far the most popular.[23] Other aspects include folk and conservative Vedic Hinduism. Since the 18th century, Hinduism has accommodated a host of new religious and reform movements, with Arya Samaj being one of the most notable Hindu revivalist organizations. Due to the wide diversity in the beliefs, practices and traditions encompassed by Hinduism, there is no universally accepted definition on who a Hindu is, or even agreement on whether term Hinduism represents aShow MoreRelatedOrigin of Hindu Religion2468 Words   |  10 PagesA Hindu ( pronunciation (help ·info), Devanagari: à ¤ ¹Ã  ¤ ¿Ã  ¤ ¨Ã  ¥ Ã  ¤ ¦Ã  ¥ ) is an adherent of Hinduism, a set of religious, philosophical and cultural systems that originated in the Indian subcontinent. The vast body of Hindu scriptures, divided into Ã…Å¡ruti (revealed) and Smriti (remembered), lay the foundation of Hindu beliefs, which primarily in clude dhà ¡rma, kà ¡rma, ahimsa and saá ¹Æ'sÄ ra. VedÄ nta and yoga are one of the several core schools of Hindu philosophy, broadly known as the SanÄ tana Dharma. The word Hindu isRead MoreHinduism, Islam, And Hinduism Essay1205 Words   |  5 Pagesgraces that make a society prosper. 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