Origins
There is no definite, clear point when Hinduism was born. It has vague roots in the Indus River Valley civilizations of Harappa and Mojendo-Daro, but these connections could be coincidence. The first true roots of Hinduism are seen when the Indo-Aryans migrated to the Indus River Valley. The Indo-Aryans compiled the Vedas, ancient texts which all branches of Hinduism consider essential.
The name "Hindu" comes from the Sanskrit word for "Indus" - "Sindhu." |
History
The Hindu tradition does not have a particular year or even century of birth. Hinduism is one of the largest and oldest religious traditions in the world.
The Indo- Aryans migrated to the Indus River Valley around 6000 BCE. They composed poems and manuals on rituals and philosophy. For a while they were not written down, but passed down as stories told from generation to generation. Many Hindus think of their earliest history as being recorded in these Indo-Aryan compositions, called Veda, or "knowledge," composed by about 1000 B.C.E
Many scholars believe that the beginning of Hinduism developed with the Indus River Valley civilizations. The river valley civilizations such as the Harappa and Mohenjo-Daro have evidence that suggest that Hinduism was used as the religion such as the worshiping of a god similar to the Hindu deity, Shiva.
In the fourth century C.E. the Gupta dynasty in India paved the way for the growth of Hinduism by encouraging the building of Hindu temples and the composition of literary works.
Throughout the nineteenth and twentieth centuries, Hinduism began to spread around the world. With the abolition of slavery, people hired Hindus to work for them. As soon as they had enough money, the Hindu workers built temples.
The Indo- Aryans migrated to the Indus River Valley around 6000 BCE. They composed poems and manuals on rituals and philosophy. For a while they were not written down, but passed down as stories told from generation to generation. Many Hindus think of their earliest history as being recorded in these Indo-Aryan compositions, called Veda, or "knowledge," composed by about 1000 B.C.E
Many scholars believe that the beginning of Hinduism developed with the Indus River Valley civilizations. The river valley civilizations such as the Harappa and Mohenjo-Daro have evidence that suggest that Hinduism was used as the religion such as the worshiping of a god similar to the Hindu deity, Shiva.
In the fourth century C.E. the Gupta dynasty in India paved the way for the growth of Hinduism by encouraging the building of Hindu temples and the composition of literary works.
Throughout the nineteenth and twentieth centuries, Hinduism began to spread around the world. With the abolition of slavery, people hired Hindus to work for them. As soon as they had enough money, the Hindu workers built temples.