Dharma is a key concept with multiple meanings in the Indian religions,among others. Although no single-word translation exists for dharma in English,the term is commonly understood as referring to behaviours that are in harmony with the "order and custom" that sustain life;"virtue",or "religious and moral duties". The antonym of dharma is adharma.
Hinduism is an Indian religion or dharma,a religious and universal order by which its followers abide. The word Hindu is an exonym,and while Hinduism has been called the oldest religion in the world,it has also been described as sanātana dharma,a modern usage,based on the belief that its origins lie beyond human history,as revealed in the Hindu texts. Another endonym for Hinduism is Vaidika dharma.
Hindus are people who religiously adhere to Hinduism,also known by its endonym Sanātana Dharma. Historically,the term has also been used as a geographical,cultural,and later religious identifier for people living in the Indian subcontinent.
Indian religions,sometimes also termed Dharmic religions or Indic religions,are the religions that originated in the Indian subcontinent. These religions,which include Buddhism,Hinduism,Jainism,and Sikhism,are also classified as Eastern religions. Although Indian religions are connected through the history of India,they constitute a wide range of religious communities,and are not confined to the Indian subcontinent.
Hindutva is a political ideology encompassing the cultural justification of Hindu nationalism and the belief in establishing Hindu hegemony within India. The political ideology was formulated by Vinayak Damodar Savarkar in 1922. It is used by the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS),the Vishva Hindu Parishad (VHP),the current ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) and other organisations,collectively called the Sangh Parivar.
According to the Book of Idols by the medieval Arab scholar Hisham ibn al-Kalbi,Hinduism was present in pre-Islamic Arabia. Ibn Al-Kalbi explains the origins of idol worshipping and the practice of circumambulation as rooted in India and Hinduism.
Hinduism is the main and largest religion of Nepal. In 2006,the country declared itself a secular country through democracy,after the abolition of its monarchy. According to the 2021 census,the Hindu population in Nepal is estimated to be around 23,677,744 which accounts for at least 81.19% of the country's population,the highest percentage of Hindus of any country in the world. Vikram Samvat,one of the two official calendars used in Nepal,is a solar Hindu calendar essentially the same to that widespread in North India as a religious calendar,and is based on Hindu units of time.
The Bishnoi Panth,also spelled as Vishnoi Panth,is a Hindu Vaishnava Sampradaya or Panth found in the Western Thar Desert and northern states of India. It has a set of 29 Niyamas (principles/commandments) given by Guru Jambheshwar (1451–1536). As of 2010,there are an estimated 600,000 followers of Bishnoi Panth residing in north and central India. Shree Guru Jambheshwar founded the sect at Samrathal Dhora in 1485 and his teachings,comprising 120 shabads,are known as Shabadwani. He preached for the next 51 years,travelling across India. The preaching of Guru Jambhoji inspires his followers as well as environmental protectors. The Bishnoi sect admitted members from a variety of communities including Jats,Banias,Charans,Rajputs,and Brahmins.
Guru Jambheshwar,also known as Guru Jambhoji,(1451–1536) was the founder of the Bishnoi Panth,a Hindu subsect of Vaishnavism.
Hindu law,as a historical term,refers to the code of laws applied to Hindus,Buddhists,Jains and Sikhs in British India. Hindu law,in modern scholarship,also refers to the legal theory,jurisprudence and philosophical reflections on the nature of law discovered in ancient and medieval era Indian texts. It is one of the oldest known jurisprudence theories in the world and began three thousand years ago whose original sources were the Hindu texts.
Sampradaya,in Indian origin religions,namely Hinduism,Buddhism,Jainism,and Sikhism,can be translated as 'tradition','spiritual lineage','sect',or 'religious system'. To ensure continuity and transmission of dharma,various sampradayas have the Guru-shishya parampara in which parampara or lineage of successive gurus (masters) and shishyas (disciples) serves as a spiritual channel and provides a reliable network of relationships that lends stability to a religious identity. Shramana is vedic term for seeker or shishya. Identification with and followership of sampradayas is not static,as sampradayas allows flexibility where one can leave one sampradaya and enter another or practice religious syncretism by simultaneously following more than one sampradaya. Samparda is a punjabi language term,used in Sikhism,for sampradayas.
The Swadhyaya Movement or Swadhyaya Parivara started in mid 20th-century in the western states of India,particularly Maharashtra and Gujarat. Founded by Pandurang Shastri Athavale (1920-2003),the movement emphasizes self-study (swadhyaya),selfless devotion (bhakti) and application of Indian scriptures such as the Upanishads and Bhagavad gita for spiritual,social and economic liberation.
S. N. Balagangadhara is a professor emeritus of the Ghent University in Belgium,and was director of the India Platform and the Research Centre Vergelijkende Cutuurwetenschap.
Diet in Hinduism signifies the diverse traditions found across the Indian subcontinent. Hindu scriptures promote a vegetarian dietary ideal based on the concept of ahimsa—non-violence and compassion towards all beings. According to a Pew Research Center survey,44% of Hindus say they are vegetarian.
Vishva Hindu Parishad (VHP) is an Indian far-right Hindu organisation based on Hindu nationalism. The VHP was founded in 1964 by M. S. Golwalkar and S. S. Apte in collaboration with Swami Chinmayananda. Its stated objective is "to organise,consolidate the Hindu society and to serve and protect the Hindu Dharma". It was established to construct and renovate Hindu temples,and deal with matters of cow slaughter and religious conversion. The VHP is a member of the Sangh Parivar group,the family of Hindu nationalist organisations led by the RSS.
Neo-Vedanta,also called Hindu modernism,neo-Hinduism,Global Hinduism and Hindu Universalism,are terms to characterize interpretations of Hinduism that developed in the 19th century. The term "Neo-Vedanta" was coined by German Indologist Paul Hacker,in a pejorative way,to distinguish modern developments from "traditional" Advaita Vedanta.
The Komati is a Telugu-speaking trading community which is a Vaishya community that is currently organised as a caste. They are primarily found in the Indian states of Andhra Pradesh and Telangana and in smaller numbers in neighbouring states. The members of the Komati caste are commonly engaged as moneylenders,businessmen,and shopkeepers. The community consists of many sects who are followers of Hinduism,namely the Gomata,the Thrivarnika,and the Kalinga,along with the Jaina Komatis who are followers of Jainism. Traditionally,most Komatis are vegetarian due to their belief in ahimsa (nonviolence).
Being Different:An Indian Challenge to Western Universalism is a 2011 book by Rajiv Malhotra,an Indian-American author,philanthropist and public speaker,published by HarperCollins. The book reverts the gaze of the western cultures on India,repositioning India from being the observed to the observer,by looking at the West from a Dharmic point of view.
Mukam is a village,and most sacred site of Mukam Mukti Dham temple of Bishnoi community,located on Bikaner-Jodhpur State Highway 20 about 10 mi (16.09 km) from Nokha and 40 mi (64.37 km) from Bikaner in Bikaner district in the Indian state of Rajasthan.
