Introduction to Hinduism and it's 3 sub-religions: Buddhism, Jainism, Sikhism:

Small text on Hinduism and India's History:
Hinduism has no roots of its own. It evolved in a long time from the teachings of many saints like Buddha, Mahaveera, and others. Hinduism's old name is Sanatan Dharma. Hinduism has strict old rules and regulations which exist to this day. Hinduism can also be known as Brahmanism. Some historians say that Hinduism started about 3000 years ago with the coming of the Aryans from the central Asia and south Russia. Old local people and Vedas say that Hinduism first came into existence about 400,000 years ago, This can be true or a local myth. Ramayana tells that king Ram when finding his wife Sita (Who was abducted by King Ravana); Came into contact with ape-men and took their help on defeating King Ravana of Lanka. Is this a myth? The ape-men could have existed on this earth about 400,000 years ago! Some say that ape-men were villagers/fighters from the east Asia. Hinduism is the oldest surviving religion in the world and it's practices are as old as the oldest civilizations in this world. Hinduism spread to all Asia! From ancient Persian empire to India, from India to Indonesia. Hinduism's sub-religion such as Buddhism spread to as far east as Japan, Korea, Vietnam and other countries. Read all the contents below to have more knowledge on Hinduism and it's sub-religions. Hinduism has a long history of spiritual practices.

Hinduism has many gods and goddesses but the main god is the supreme Vishnu (The preserver) and is in the male form. There are many common gods such as Indra  (God of Rain and Thunder and is the king of all the common Gods, Some say Indra's another name is Zeus), Vaayu (God of air), Agni (God of fire), Surya (God of sun and light). Other main gods of worship are Shiva (God of Destruction and the creator of Doom's Day), Brahma (The creator). There are also avatars of Vishnu such as Prince Ram (Existed before Crishna), Crishna (Krishna, local people say he existed about 2-3 thousand years ago. No one's sure!), Buddha (Existed before Yeshua). The most important written records of the ancient people like Aryans are 4 Vedas. The life and culture of the early Aryans are written in two greatest poems. The first one is Ramayana (Story of Price Ram). Mahabharata (Story of the Bharata clan, this is the world's longest poem written in ancient Sanskrit). North Indian culture is a mixture of Persian, Greek, Indian cultures while South Indian Culture is of Dravidian origin. The last of the Hindu kings of North India was Prithvi Raj Chauhan. He was Rajput and was defeated by the Arab invaders who invaded from the western boundaries. Hindu people regularly go to the temples and worship there. Pure Hindus do not eat non-VEG. A dead Hindu must be burnt if his soul has to be released from the dead body otherwise his soul will not get Moksha (freedom from Rebirth). This is also somewhat true for sub-religions of Hinduism; Its a true fact to know that this ceremonial is as old as Homo-Sepian species itself!. There is also the presence of Shatan (Arab word, also pronounced as Satan (Yahudi word). Shatan (The Devil) is the king of the underworld and the evil. King Ravana was the demon king who hated Human beings and kill them to establish the empire of the darkness. Vishnu came to the earth in the Avatar of Ram to end the empire of Dark beings and also to establish the rule of good. King Ravana's dark spirit was purified by the god and given the Moksha after being killed by Rama. In my knowledge, according to the texts, The empire of darkness will come to earth one last time and then, God Vishnu will end this empire once and for all and purify the Earth and reestablish the empire of the good when Kalyuga (Time of Science and machines in which we all are living) is completed. When the empire of the dark power is defeated by the god. Earth will be renewed and the time will start again. Hinduism has its default holy symbol which is a true Swastika and can be seen in all the temples. Almost all the local Hindus in India believe in different Hindu gods and deities. Many people worship mother Durga who is also known as Shakti; Many people worship Rama and Krishna individually or both. Like there is a default sentence to sing and speak for the Vashnavite Hindus 'Hare Rama Hare Krishna' and 'Hare Rama Hare Rama Rama Rama Hare Hare, Hare Krishna Hare Krishna Krishna Krishna Hare Hare'. Hinduism is of course a true spiritual religion and is the oldest and purest of all religions on Earth. There are many myths attached to old rig-Vedic Aryans who lived in India about 2 thousand years before Yeshua( Isa Messhiah or Jesus) and Siddharth Gautam. Biggest myth tell us that Aryans had many missiles and rockets and guns which were much more advanced than the current technology weapons. Some people believe that alien beings visited earth at the time of Aryans and made friendship to the Indian people and gave them these advanced weapons and powers. Is it the truth? In Mahabharata, Heroes have missile weapons. Only one missile can disintegrate the life of a whole continent! whoof! It's so true that we can see that happen in the Mahabharata poem. Ramayana was composed by different individuals in the length of many centuries! It has many big chapters. Hinduism has a very old Vedic cast system which has disunited Indian people to this day. Cast system was first strictly practiced by Rig-Vedic Aryans who hated Dravidians and did not wanted to integrate with the Indigenous local populations of Indian Sub-Continent. As Aryans migrated into North India, they killed the local populations which consisted of Dravidians, Mongoloids, others; made them slaves and peasants. Aryans made distance from Dravidians because Aryans were fair skinned people and Dravidians were dark and black skinned people. As time passed and the golden era of North India came (Era of Mahabharata and other tales). Aryans begin to get mixed into the local populations of India and integrated with Indigenous. Most Dravidians were pushed into South India and North East India such as Bihar and Utter Pradesh and Bangladesh. Almost all of the the South India was Dravidian populated till this day. In the golden age of Aryan Rule of India, vast populations of West Asia, Central Asia, Middle East migrated into North India because of attraction to the great wealth and prosperity in North India at that time. Most fair skinned people got mixed with the local populations of North India and produced Brown, Light Brown, Fair skinned new generations. Vast populations of Persia and Middle East which migrated into North India lived and integrated into North Indian states such as Haryana, Punjab, Jammu and Kashmir, Delhi. Till now most North Indians who have Western ancestry have fair skin and very attractive features. Most North Indians Speak Punjabi language which is a mixture of Middle Eastern, Persian, Aryan Languages. South India has its own Dravidian languages which are far different from North Indian languages. Punjabis have different casts or sir names which are passed by their ancestors. India's Highest classes and  casts are of Punjabis.

In Punjabi, the most highest ranked cast is 'Bhalla', Next is 'Khanna', 'Kapoor', 'Phull', 'Arora', 'Batra', 'Anand', 'Bhatia'; The last ranked cast is 'Singh'. The First five cast people have ancestors of Persian, Middle Eastern origin. The last cast is a local cast mostly given to Sikhs and locals. These casts have the most highest rankings in all of India. Casts were given to the people according to their jobs and works in the past. First four casts mentioned are of Kshitriya (Warrior) class. Others are mixed. Cast play an important role in India to this day. There are also many unknown casts which are known as Schedule Cast. This cast has no known ancestry of any kind. Most of Schedule Cast people are of Dravidian origin. Schedule Cast people live mostly in Bihar, Utter Pradesh, Bengal and other East Indian and South Indian States. These people were hated and ignored by upper classes in the past but now Government Of India has given them some special rights to live on but still very much less. Schedule Cast is the lowest in the cast system of India. People who belong to this cast are mostly be hated and tortured by the upper classes. This practice is very bad as it disunites the Indians to very extend. Common middle class Hindus are strong believers in old practices of Hinduism but for the upper classes and rich people there is mixture of western and Indian kind of practices. Poorer people are just ignored by all. Hindus are strictly prohibited of eating or killing cattle. This religious law was set by priests in the period of Emperor Asoka. Before this religious law was enacted, Hindus like Aryans ate NON-VEG consisting mostly cattle meat. This led to more than half extinction of cattle. Priests and local populations got very terrified to see that more cattle were being killed than more were being born. Cattle was used for milking and for irrigation at that time. Priests with the help from local kings and warlords enacted the strict ban on killing and eating cattle. Books and other religious texts were reedited to add this ordinance to the religion. This led to the satisfactory protection for the cattle until the arrival of Moslems from the west. Asoka as you probably know was one of the greatest of the Mauryan emperors of most of the Indian subcontinent. Maurya was the dynasty founded by Chandragupta Maurya. This dynasty started after the invasion of Sikander. Sikander (Alexander the great) invaded North Western provinces of the Indian  Subcontinent. He defeated King Porus of Kashmir but granted his kingdom back to him. Sikander than planned to invade most powerful standalone empire of all the Asia at that time! The Magadhan Empire of North India. Magadhan empire consisted of more than 100,000 armored elephants, more than 500,000 legionaries and Hoplites, more than 50,000 cavalry and infantry archers, more than 50,000 other cavalry and ranked experienced units. This army was so huge that Sikander's army was nothing compared to it! Magadhan army was paid regularly and it was strictly disciplined. Local people were taxed very heavily to satisfy the need for maintaining this huge army. Nabouring kingdoms were forced to regularly pay tributes to this empire.  Sikander's army got horrified and confused by hearing about the Magadha's power and totally refused to invade the borders of the Magadhan Empire. Alexander tried very much to convey his army but failed. He then turned back to his homeland and left Selacus Nikator as the governor of his North West Indian provinces. In Magadha, there arose a man whose name was 'Chandragupta Maurya'. He killed the emperor of the Magadhan empire and seized the throne. He then became the first Mauryan Emperor of India. Brahmanism flourished in the ages of Mauryan dynasty. Emperor Asoka Maurya converted himself to Buddhism and patronized Buddhism. Buddhists and Jains lived hormonally with Hindus in the reign of Asoka the great.

It is said that during the reign of Asoka, there was no crime at all! all people were equally rich with their houses filled with gold and food. Milk rivers flowed. All people were happier and enjoyed their age very much. People loved their king. After Asoka's death, empire begin to break up. The wealth of India attracted western kingdoms and empires such as the Roman Empire, Turks, Mongols, Persians, Banzantines, The Caliphate of Arabs, and others. This is a true fact that India was known as the Golden Sparrow in the past because India was the wealthiest and most prosperous place in the world in the past but lacked most of the military and technological advancements. In the past and to this day most of the Hindu women are laden with gold and platinum jewelry every time. In the past Indian kingdoms used Gold and silver as a local material for minting high value coins. Copper and nickel coins were also used as low value currencies. Some names of the high value coins used in the past were Pagoda (South India), Mohur (North and South), Ashraffi (Mostly North India), Dinar (Arab word), Ruppia (similar value to Mohur; New name is Rupee), etc. Some Persian, Roman, Arab coins are also found in the excavations in North India, It means that these coins came into India through Silk route and were sometimes used as credits and trading currency but were not in vast circulations. North India was the center of Trading between all of the West and the East. Most of the Indians in the Christ's millennium, wore silk robes from China, and lived in high standards, lived luxurious life. Silk traded from China was given the name 'China Patta'. China was given the name 'Chinna' by the Indians. Arabs gave the name 'Hindustan' to India. Romans gave 'Inde' or 'Indi' (India) names to India in the past. Romans were attracted to the wealth of India but never invaded India because of the fear of the Turks and Arabs who were the biggest and the strongest barriers between India and Rome. Delhi was the capitol of the Indian empires for many centuries. Delhi's old name was Indrapratha (Name given by Aryans). Delhi was given many names later. It is said that Delhi was reestablished and was razed to the grounds more than 10 times by the invaders from the North West. Now New Delhi is the supreme capitol of India and is also the most powerful place in the South Asia. Before Moslems invaded Delhi, It was the Hindu province of many Rajput rulers. Last Hindu Rajput ruler of Delhi was Prithvi Raj Chauhan. His fort was razed to the ground by the Moslems. The fort remains still exist in the South Delhi's region of Saket and Lado Sarai. Near the fort stands the tall Kutab Minar which was constructed as a victory tower by Turkish Slave rulers to commemorate the victory by the Turks on Hindu Rajput rulers and seizer of Seat of power of Rajputs that was Delhi itself.

Seizer of Delhi started the Moslem rule of most of India. Rajputs were the Hindu warrior clans who fought with each other to control North India. Disunity between the Rajput kingdoms led to the victory of Moslems. There was constant conflicts going on between Delhi Sultanate and Mongols in the era of Turkish Slave Dynasty. Something more was going to happen in the South India which would change the course of the History of India and also the world. European presence was going to be felt for the first time in India! In about 1400's, Portugal ships landed on the ports of Calicut, India. Their caption was Vasco Da Gama. India. Moslem traders of India disliked him. He sailed back to Portugal with loads of spices, treasure. A direct Europe to India sea route was now discovered. Before this sea route was discovered, Europe was becoming weaker by the Turks who controlled land routes to India and dominated much of the Europe and Middle East. This route was to become a landmark of History of the world.

Buddhism:
Buddha (Godly Being/Enlightened One) as we know him, his real name was Siddharth Gautam according to Hindu texts. He was an Aryan Hindu prince of a small kingdom in Nepal (Nepal was a Hindu province of North India in the past but now is a free country.) Buddha was of a small Aryan Hindu tribe called 'Shakya'. Siddharth lived his whole childhood inside his palace without even getting a glimpse of the outside world. One day, he got out of palace to see the outside world. Outside the palace, he saw misery, poverty, and life's truths. He realized that he is not living a true life which others outside the palace live. He got enthusiastic to get the experience of a real life. He then left the palace at night and wandered into forests. He got teachings from Hindu monks and started to fast. He became so thin that his bone shapes start to appear outside his body on his chest and his other parts. He then started to eat normally. After gaining teachings, he went to Gaya village (In Bihar, India) and gained total enlightenment (Secret of Death, Birth and life). From that time, he preached his words to the local Hindu population in India until his death.
 

Figure depicts Gautam Buddha's marble statue at Nalanda, India.

Siddharth believed that when living being dies, his soul takes another birth (Rebirth after death) and also faces his done sins and goods. Buddhism's main pilgrimage sites are Bodh Gaya (In Bihar state of India), and Varanasi (One of the holiest pilgrimage locations of Hinduism in India). Siddhartha criticized and protested against the cruel practices of Brahmanism. He did not wanted to start a new religion but after his death, his followers intended to start a new religion and succeeded. Siddhartha was very kind hearted and was a true Hindu as he regularly did Tapasya (Meditation), Yoga (Purification of Body and Soul) and other practices. He was a true saint of Hinduism. He is also called the Avatar of Vishnu (Creator). Vishnu is the main god of Hinduism. According to texts God Vishnu was first worshipped by ancient Persians. Today many Indian Hindus are named Individual Siddhartha and Gautam. We can locate that mind peace which Buddhism offers to us when we go to any of the monasteries located in Nepal, Tibet and inside India. Many Buddhist Monks from all over the world come to take part in Yagna  at Varanasi and other Hindu holy sites inside India. Even today many, ancient Hindu temples exist outside India such as the Angkor Wat Temple in Cambodia. The temple was build in 1100's to honor Hindu God Vishnu. In ancient times; most of the Asia was Hindu and practiced Brahmanism. When Buddhist missionaries preached into the far east Asia, most of the common people were converted into Buddhism but still practiced their old rituals and culture. We can say that Buddhism originated from Hinduism in India and spread across all over Asia. Even Persia cannot ignore Buddhism. Before Moslems seized the seat of power in Central Asia; most of the common people there were Hindus, Buddhists and other local religions. You have probably heard that the biggest rock statues standing at Bhamian in Afghanistan known as 'Bhamian Buddha' were destroyed by the military regime called 'Taalibaan' in Afghanistan. In ancient times, all of the afghans were Hindus and Buddhists, but when Arabs came to Afghanistan; all people were converted forcefully to Islam. If you are Buddhist living in east Asia or south, you should read Buddhist books written by Indian writers. These books contain all the important topics on history of Buddhism and Hinduism.

Buddhism (Bodh Dharma) is the most successful sub-religion of Hinduism.

Jainism:
The Jain religion takes its name from the Jina (meaning victor or conqueror), a title given to 24 great teachers called Tirthankaras (ford-makers). It evolved from Hinduism. These teachers demonstrated and taught the Jain path of purity and peace which leads to the highest spiritual liberation. Jainism may have begun in the Indus Valley civilization around 3000 B.C. Little is known about the first 22 teachers. The last two, Parsva (about 877-777 B.C.) and Mahavira (about 599-527 B.C.), lived and taught in northeastern India. Mahavira ("Great Hero"), the last of these great teachers, lived at the same time as the Gautam Buddha. Like Buddha, Mahavira rejected the two Hindu notions of the social system of caste (divisions in the Hindu social system) and the rituals of sacrifice. He was a prince, but left his home at the age of 30 to become an ascetic (a religious person who practices self-denial). He plucked out his hair, discarded his clothes, and wandered for 121/2 years, fasting and practicing severe penances in his search for truth. At the age of 42 he attained enlightenment (a state of divine experience, or understanding ultimate truth). For the next 30 years he traveled across northern India, teaching an austerely ascetic path to purity and peace. The Kalpa Sultra, a Jain book that records the lives of the teachers, records that he died at Pava (modern Bihar) at the age of 72. He left more than 500,000 followers, including 50,000 monks and nuns.

Sikhism:
Sikhism is one of the religions of India and evolved from Hinduism. Its believers call themselves Sikhs, which means disciples. Sikhs follow the teachings of 10 gurus (spiritual teachers). The Sikh holy book, the Guru Granth Sahib (Revered Book), or Adi Granth (First Book), includes the teachings of the first five gurus and the ninth guru and other non-Sikh holy men. About 16 million Sikhs live in India, the majority of them in the northern state of Punjab. Communities of Sikhs also live in the United Kingdom, the United States, Canada, Malaysia, Singapore, and East Africa.

The first Sikh guru, Nanak, was born into a Hindu family in 1469 and came into contact with Muslims in his early life. When he was 30 years old, Nanak had a vision of God, who gave him nectar to drink, told him he was blessed, and instructed him to teach others to rejoice in God's name. Nanak preached that there is one God who is the invisible creator and present everywhere. God does not have physical attributes, is beyond human comprehension, and has never been incarnated on earth. Nanak criticized Hindu and Muslim religious practices that he said emphasized outer forms of prayer and ritual over inner spiritual awakening. He also challenged the Hindu caste system. Nanak did not, however, entirely dismiss other religions, and writings by Hindus and Muslims are included in the Guru Granth Sahib. Nanak taught that while rituals are unnecessary, right conduct is essential. He instructed his followers to be aware of God's presence by rising early, bathing, meditating on the divine name, and directing each day's activities to God. By doing this, and by living a good and simple life, people could free themselves from the cycle of reincarnation.

According to the Sikh belief in karma, a person's actions determine whether the soul will enter the next life as a plant, animal, or human being. Only someone who reaches a higher state of spiritual development by conquering the idea of separateness from God, ceasing to be worldly-minded, and becoming aware of the inner presence of God, can be free from experiencing further earthly lives.

In 1526, Muslims from what is now Afghanistan conquered northern India. The Muslims founded the Mughal Empire. By the time of the 10th guru, Gobind Singh, the Sikhs had to defend themselves from Muslim persecution. In 1699, Gobind Singh organized his followers into a military order called the Khalsa (Pure). Sikh men and women were initiated into the Khalsa by sharing a drink of sweetened water called amrit (nectar), a symbol of loyalty to the guru and hope for a higher spiritual existence. Men took the name Singh (lion) and women the name Kaur (princess). Initiates wore the "five K's"--kesh (uncut hair), kangha (comb), kirpan (dagger or short sword), kara (steel wrist band), and kachh (breeches worn by soldiers). The ideal of the true Sikh became the "saint-soldier" of the Khalsa who combines the virtues taught by Nanak and Gobind Singh.

Before the 10th guru died, he indicated that the holy book, the Guru Granth Sahib, was to become his successor. Consequently, the Guru Granth Sahib is revered by Sikhs and readings from it form a central part of acts of worship in the gurdwara (temple or home of the guru). Devout Sikhs read or listen to hymns from the Guru Granth Sahib and other scriptures at home or at the gurdwara every morning and evening. Sikhs do not have a weekly holy day. A gurdwara may be ornate or plain and includes a hostel and a place for serving meals to the community and guests. Sikhism forbids representation of God in pictures and the worship of idols. There should be no distinction between social class or caste in the gurdwara and Sikhism has no priesthood or ordained ministry. Many gurdwaras pay a salary to a granthi to carry out such activities as reading from the scriptures and performing marriage ceremonies, but the role is purely functional. Music plays an important part in worship at the gurdwara, where musicians sing hymns accompanied by a drum, a harmonium, and other instruments. The Sikh religion forbids alcohol, tobacco, and other drugs. Men wear a distinctive turban, to keep their long hair clean and tidy, and as a symbol of Sikh identity.

In the early 1800's, the Sikh ruler Ranjit Singh established a Sikh kingdom in northern India. In 1849, the kingdom was conquered by the British, who controlled much of India. When India and Pakistan became independent nations in 1947, almost half the Sikhs lived in the area that became Pakistan. Many Sikhs emigrated to India.

By the 1960's, the Sikh community was playing a leading role in India's agriculture, business and professional work, and military life. In 1966, India made the state of Punjab smaller, leaving the Sikhs in the majority. Anandpur, where the Khalsa was founded, and the holy city of Amritsar lie in Punjab.

Many Sikhs demanded more control of Punjab. In 1984, Sikh militants occupied the Golden Temple and the surrounding sacred buildings in Amritsar. An Indian army action to remove the Sikhs caused great damage and many deaths. The government set up military rule in the Punjab, and some radical Sikh groups continued their rebellion.

                                       Original Texts by,
                                        Wonder Mage

Copyright 2002 by Big-Titan, All Rights Reserved.
Date Updated: 10/02/2002(MM/DD/YYYY)