�Hinduism At A Glance

Hinduism is one of the world's oldest religions, and has over 900 million adherents worldwide. Hinduism is not a single doctrine, and there is no single founder or teacher. More..

�History of Hinduism

Hinduism has a long and complex history. It is a blend of ancient legends, beliefs and customs which has adapted, blended with, and spawned numerous creeds and practices. More..

�Hindu Scriptures

The Vedas

These are the most ancient religious texts which define truth for Hindus. They got their present form between 1200-200 BCE and were introduced to India by the Aryans. Hindus believe that the texts were received by scholars direct from God and passed on to the next generations by word of mouth. Vedic texts are sometimes called shruti, which means hearing and for hundreds, maybe even thousands of years, the texts were passed on orally. More..

�Hindu Deities

There are 33 devas (divines) that include agni, indra, varuNa, vAyu and others. There are many references to these names in the vedas. If we analyze it we could see that each one is an essential function (fire, water, air, sun etc) that supports our living in this world. So these 33 aspects are hailed in the vedas. But Hindus consider the trinity (brahma, viShNu, rudra) to be above these divines. While brahma does not get worshipped by many as the God, shiva (rudra is an aspect of Lord Shiva) and viShNu are worshipped by the Shaivites and the Vaishanavaites respectively. Along with Shaivism and Vaishnavism, shAktam, gANApatyam, kaumAram, sauram are the four religions that make up the shaNmata (six religions) on the Hinduism. More..

�Hindu Symbols

In Hinduism much importance is given to the symbols than most other religions. The Hindu symbols range from the mark one puts on the forehead to the idols of the deities that get worshipped by the ardent Hindu devotees. Each one has its own significance. More..

�Hindu Worship

Puja

Hindu worship, or puja, involves images (murtis), prayers (mantras) and diagrams of the universe (yantras). Central to Hindu worship is the image, or icon, which can be worshipped either at home or in the temple. More..

�Hindu Festivals

�Karma and Reincarnation

Reincarnation

As per Hinduism, the life on earth is not a discrete one time event. It is just one episode in the play. There would be multiple appearances (births) before the soul finally takes leave from the cycle. The birth is not just limited to being born as human, it includes the births as the animals, plants, even as the divines who rule the parts of nature ! After-all, all these things have a life. The appearance of the soul in any of such forms is called reincarnation. After so many births when the soul is freed of any more reincarnation, it is in the state of mukti or liberation. This is the ultimate state. More..