Hinduism

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Hinduism (Sanskrit/Devanagari: हिन्दू धर्म, Hindū Dharma, also known as सनातन धर्म, Sanātana Dharma) is a religion that originated on the Indian subcontinent. Hinduism encompasses many religious beliefs, traditions, practices, and denominations. Most Hindus believe in a One Supreme Cosmic Spirit called Brahman that may be worshiped in many forms, represented by individual deities such as Vishnu, Shiva and Shakti. Hinduism centers around a variety of practices that are meant to help one experience the Divinity that is everywhere and realize the true nature of the Self.

Hinduism is the third largest religion in the world, with approximately 1 billion adherents (2005 figure), of whom about 890 million live in India. Other countries with large Hindu populations include Nepal, Bangladesh, Indonesia, Pakistan, Sri Lanka and Malaysia.

Considered to be the oldest extant religion in the world, Hinduism has no single founder and is based on a number of religious texts developed over many centuries that contain spiritual insights and practical guidance for religious life. Among such texts, the Vedas are the most ancient, and theoretically the most sacred and supreme scriptural authority. Other important scriptures include Upanishads (which are part of the Vedas), the eighteen Purāṇas and the epics: the Mahābhārata and the Rāmāyaṇa. The Bhagavad Gītā, which is contained within the Mahābhārata, is a widely studied scripture that is seen as summarizing the spiritual teachings of the Vedas.

Etymology

The Persian term 'Hindu' is derived from Sindhu (Sanskrit: सिन्धु, i.e. the Indus River in particular, or any river in general). In the Rig Veda—the foundation of Hinduism—the Indo-Aryans mention their land as Sapta Sindhu (the land of the seven rivers of the northwestern Indian subcontinent, one of them being the Indus). This corresponds to Hapta-Hendu in the Avesta (Vendidad: Fargard 1.18)—the sacred scripture of Zoroastrianism of Iran. The term was used for people who lived in the Indian subcontinent around or beyond the Sindhu.

Read more at Wikipedia.org