Origins / Roots of Hinduism
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Hinduism originally means "River of the Indus Valley". Even though there isn't a specific date when Hinduism was found, such meaning deriving from the name of the religion allowed historians to date this religion as far back as 1500 B.C. There is no specific founder either, but historians believe that Aryans brought the Hindu sacred text 'Vedas' to the Indus Valley civilization, starting the religion. All the gods of the Hindu originate from natural forces like the sun and the rain, and this religion bloomed in India. It is still extremely popular in India as it is the third most worshipped religion in the world; temples as well as home shrines are traditionally used by Hindu families. Hinduism grew out of many different teachings in India and their interpretation of the four 'Vedas'.
History of the religion
As mentioned, Hinduism does not have an origin and is simply a makeup of different teachings in India. However, it is true that the religion started when the Aryans brought the 'Vadas' into the Indus Valley civilizations. Later the caste system was adopted from the Aryans as well. Then, in about 500 B.C Mahavira founded Jainism, a religion that grew out of the Hindu religion. The majorities of Hindus live in Inda; the place where the Aryans first came to bring the Vedas book. It is believed that the Vedas were orally passed down by Brahma and people were prohibited from writing them down. The hindu law only permits certain persons to hear the Vedas recited, therefore the Vedas were not found in written form and are surrounded by mystery. Nevertheless, the Vedas are known as Sruti or Shruti which means 'that which is heard', and it was not until today that the Vedas was written and published. In addition, because the Vedas was written in Sanskirt, a language that was illegible to those outside of India, the religion was unable to spread as the other religions did. Not only that, the Vedas cannot be translated to other languages. Later, based on the four Vedas Hindues made laws, concepts and ceremonies for the Indian culture.