Every hindu book is written in sanskrit, and it is said that sanskrit is the language of the demigods. Which is the holy book or sacred scripture of hinduism. Hindus, in general, have not been minded to seek out definitive versions of postvedic sacred texts. Although its roots go back further, scholars typically date the creation of islam to. Vedas simple english wikipedia, the free encyclopedia. In judaism its the torah or tankh known to christians as the old testament of the bible and for christianity its primarily the new testament.
It is indias major religion, but unlike many other religions in the world, hinduism has no founder. Facts about hinduism ks3 religious studies bbc bitesize. Hinduism does not just have one sacred book but several scriptures. Religious texts are texts related to a religious tradition. Hindu scripture information about hinduism hindu heritage. Sanskrit is the oldest language in the world, the mother of all languages. The authors are called the vedas and the upanishads, and theyre mostly used by priests, but there are some like the ramayana and bhagavad gita, which a lot of. This sacred text is divided into two main sections, the old testament and the new testament which are then further divided into various books. Hinduism as both a global religion and a form of nationalism are discussed. Bhagvad gita is also a very vital book of the hindus. Holy book synonyms, holy book pronunciation, holy book translation, english dictionary definition of holy book. The most ancient sacred texts of the hindu religion are written in sanskrit and called the vedas. Some religious texts are accepted or categorized as canonical, some n. According to pew research center, 94% of the world population of hindus live in india.
Shruti works are considered to have been heard and transmitted by earthly sages, as contrasted to smriti, or that which is remembered by ordinary human. In fact they gave hinduism the name vaidika dharma, one of its old names. Apr 03, 20 the puranas are holy books of hinduism that date back to gupta empire in ancient india. Vedas are the literature of foremost importance in hinduism. Nov 04, 2008 the aryans gave hinduism its priestly language, sanskrit. The epic of gilgamesh from sumer, although only considered by some scholars as a religious text, has origins as early as 2150 bce, and stands as one of the earliest literary works that includes various mythological figures and themes. In this article, we detail the two different categories these texts are organized into, shruti and smriti, and overview the most popular of the hindu texts. Here are some facts about hinduism, the main religion of the indian subcontinent, and one of the most popular religions worldwide. Oct 29, 2015 this book provides a muchneeded thematic and historical introduction to hinduism, the religion of the majority of people in india. Information on hinduism for kids primary homework help.
More than 1 billion people consider themselves hindus, and 85% of all hindus live in india. Hinduism does not have a single holy book that guides religious practice. Like the taoist tao te ching, the buddhist dhammapada, the sikh adi granth, the jewish torah, the christian bible and the muslim koranthe veda is the hindu holy book. Hinduism is not based on a strict set of rules, it is not based on a single holy book, and it wasnt founded. The book contains 270 pages and is divided in 57 small easytoread chapters, containing authentic information about all the important aspects of hindu religion, culture, and philosophy. However, all of these texts can be broadly classified as vedas veydthus. Five of the hindu holy books are the rig veda, bhagavad gita, sama veda. Hindus can choose to be polytheistic, pantheistic, monotheistic, monistic, agnostic, atheistic or humanist. Hinduism is diverse on ideas on spirituality and traditions, but has no ecclesiastical order, no unquestionable religious authorities, no governing body, no prophets nor any binding holy book. The veda, which means wisdom, is comprised of four ancient and holy scriptures which all hindus revere as the revealed word of god. Hinduism is the third largest religion in the world, as well as the worlds oldest religion. The scriptures of the vedas are meant to guide hindu believers in their daily lives.
The common authoritative religious texts for all hindus are the vedas. The main holy book of the hindus is the mahabharata and the ramayana. The vedas are the four holiest books of the by mankind to the next, perhaps over thousands of years each book has four major kinds of text the samhitas mantras and benedictions, the aranyakas text on rituals, ceremonies, sacrifices and symbolicsacrifices, the brahmanas commentaries on rituals, ceremonies and sacrifices, and the upanishads texts discussing meditation, philosophy. The aryans gave hinduism its priestly language, sanskrit. The primary sacred texts, known as the vedas, were. Hinduism holy book important books and writings of hinduism. It is believed that hinduism dates back to 500010,000 bc. Other holy scriptures in hinduism are called the upanisads, the smrutis, the puranas, the ramayana and the mahabharata. Judaism and christianity have a scripture or holy book. Hindu texts are manuscripts and historical literature related to any of the diverse traditions. The vedas scriptures guide hindus in their daily life.
The sruti, the divinely inspired holy books of hinduism, were written at different times, in different places, by different people, and for different reasons. There are a number of scriptures and holy books in hinduism. Smriti texts provide information that helps hindus better understand the shruti. The holy books of world religions sacred texts in world. The puranas are holy books of hinduism that date back to gupta empire in ancient india. Hindus value many sacred writings as opposed to one holy book. Before the existence of vedas, hinduism was of somewhat primitive type. This expansiveness is made possible by the widely shared hindu view that truth or reality cannot be encapsulated in any creedal formulation, a perspective expressed in. According to the hindus, darsan is a twoway flow of vision. A concise explanation of the main hindu holy books. They got their present form between 1200200 bce and were. Hinduism unlike islam, christianity and judaism, does not have a single holy book, but many ancient texts and scriptures.
What is heard in hinduism, the mostrevered body of sacred literature, considered to be the product of divine revelation. May 11, 20 hinduism attaches a very special value to the the darsan a sanskrit word meaning sight, of gurus, leaders, saintly persons and even holy places and holy images. The bhagavad gita composed between 500 bce and 100 ce, the mahabharata is an. Roughly 95 percent of the worlds hindus live in india. Hinduism simple english wikipedia, the free encyclopedia. The primary sacred texts, known as the vedas, were composed around 1500 b. Hinduism definition hindu religion, gods, beliefs, history. More strikingly than any other major religious community, hindus acceptand indeed celebratethe organic, multileveled, and sometimes pluralistic nature of their traditions. Flood traces the development of hindu traditions from ancient origins and the major deities to the modern world. The shruti refers to the body of most authoritative, ancient religious texts, believed to be eternal.
They also help to preserve the religious dimensions of family and society. Aug 20, 2019 islam is the second largest religion in the world after christianity, with about 1. Others have preferred vedic religion, using the term vedic to refer not only to the ancient religious texts known as the vedas but also to a fluid corpus of sacred. Hindus can choose to be polytheistic, pantheistic, panentheistic, pandeistic, henotheistic, monotheistic, monistic, agnostic, atheistic or. Several months after the buddhas death, a period known as mahaparinibbana, 500 scholars and disciples of the buddha who had attained arahantphala, buddhisms highest level of sainthood, convened to discuss the preservation of the buddhas teachings. Hinduism definition, hindu religion, gods, beliefs, history, holy book definition hinduism is commonly thought of as a religion, but this is an inaccuracy, it is a way in which most of the people of india who are not muslim live.
Hinduism is the third largest religion in the world. Feb 18, 2017 the most sacred scriptures of hinduism are the vedas books of knowledge, a collection of texts written in sanskrit from about 1200 bce to 100 ce as sruti revealed texts, the vedas are regarded as the absolute authority for religious knowledge and a test of hindu orthodoxy both jains and buddhists reject the vedas. The scholars formed the first council, a group whose purpose was to preserve the buddha. The oldest veda is called the rig veda and was written in sanskrit a language. These are the most ancient religious texts which define truth for hindus. There is no single scripture as it is in other religions like christianity and islam. Hinduism hindu holy books explanation sheet teacher made. However, the puranas are supposed to be complied by muni vyasa. One of the oldest known religious texts is the kesh temple hymn of ancient sumer, a set of inscribed clay tablets which scholars typically date around 2600 bce. Today, with about 900 million followers, hinduism is the thirdlargest religion behind christianity and islam. Hinduism includes a diversity of ideas on spirituality and traditions, but has no ecclesiastical order, no unquestionable religious authorities, no governing body, no prophets nor any binding holy book. Rather, there is a huge array of different sacred texts. The upanishads are also called as vedantas or the end of the vedas. The most holy of the hindu books is written in sanskrit and is referred to as the vedas.
These texts are glorious tales of the hindu trinity brahma, vishnu and maheshwar shiva. Holy book definition of holy book by the free dictionary. The veda is a rather unusual collection of literature. The bhagavad gita, or song of the lord is part of the sixth book of the mahabharata, the worlds longest poem. Instead, hinduism has a large body of spiritual texts that guide.
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