Religions of India. Religion of Ancient India (briefly)

Religion in India plays a big role in people's lives, it determines their way of life and the way of thinking. One of the oldest and, perhaps, leading is the religion of India, Hinduism, which is professed by almost the entire population of this huge country - about 80%. Hinduism does not have any one founder or "main text", which is the Quran for Muslims or the Bible for Christians. This religion in India originated so long ago that it is perhaps one of the most ancient of the existing religions in the world. The Vedas, Upanishads, Puranas are the sacred texts of Hinduism that spread far beyond India and in which the adherents of Hinduism still draw wisdom and build their lives on them.

Among the later religions of India is Buddhism. He, too, spread far beyond the borders of this country and found followers all over the world, but on this moment in India itself has fewer followers than outside of it. However, due to the infamous story of the expulsion of the Tibetan spiritual government of Buddhists and the Dalai Lama, who settled in Dharamsala, by communist China, India is considered the center of world Buddhism.

Also in India there are Christians, there are about 18 million people, and representatives of other religions. There are more and more Muslims - they are now about 13% of the total population. Many live in the northern states bordering Muslim Pakistan. Islam has been practiced here since ancient times, so it can also be considered one of the national religions of India.

India's official religion is her business card- this is Hinduism, but religion is separated from the state, India is a federal republic in its structure. Yet the role of religion in the lives of modern Indians is enormous. It affects their entire way of life, work and play. Everything important points in life, they are necessarily accompanied by appropriate ceremonies and rituals.

Ancient religions that originated in India

If you ask the question: "What is the most ancient religion in India?", Then the answer can be searched for a long time and it is unlikely that it will be found, since there are more than enough applicants for this role. This country was home to several religions that arose in ancient times. Some religions of Ancient India still exist today. Such strong movements as Hinduism and Buddhism have spread over time far beyond the borders of states and continents and now have millions of followers.

But there are other ancient religions of India, which are not so famous, but also have their adherents to this day. For example, Jainism is a religion that originated in India and has never gone beyond it. She has a lot common features with Judaism. Jains have contributed to philosophy and science. Modern Jainism imposes certain restrictions on its lay followers and very strict ones on monks. One of the wonderful vows that all Jains fulfill is the renunciation of lies and theft in all their forms. Perhaps that is why representatives of this religion often become successful businessmen - after all, you can deal with them without fear of being deceived!

Religion in India and lifestyle

Faith in India is not just words, but the way of life of the majority of the population. The main religion in India is, of course, Hinduism, one of the oldest religions to have originated in this country. Deep religiosity is one of the main features of the inhabitants of modern India. Religion in India, each person is free to determine for himself. Hindus, Christians, Muslims, Jains, Sikhs, Parsis (followers of Zoroastrianism), animists and others - they all coexist quite peacefully on the same territory.

Multiple cults, such as the worship of sacred animals, places, ancestors, are an integral part of religious life. The cult in India, for example, such as the cult of the snake, has very ancient roots, and in Everyday life Indians perform rituals associated with beliefs around him. For example, the sign of a snake can often be seen on both sides. front door dwellings of the Hindus. This is due to the fact that the snake is considered the patroness of the hearth and the embodiment of the spirit of the ancestors.

Most Indians are deeply religious. For Indians, religion is a way of life, its special way of life, nevertheless, many religions peacefully coexist in the country. In India, there are three world religions - Christianity, Islam and Buddhism, in addition to this Jainism, Sikhism, Zoroastrianism, Judaism. The most widespread is Hinduism, Hindus make up 83% of the country's population; Islam is professed by 11%; 2.3% of the population are Christians; Sikhs 2%; 0.8% of the population are Buddhist; 0.4% - Jainism and another 0.4% - other religions (these are 120,000 Zoroastrians, about 6,000 Jews and about 26,000 wild tribes professing pagan beliefs).

Hinduism

When Vysotsky sang "Hindus invented a good religion," he meant Hinduism. 85% of the Indian population are adherents of this creed. Unlike, say, Christianity, Hinduism is not a monolithic belief, but a collection of a huge number of cults, philosophical teachings, rituals and doctrines. Some elements of this religion are prevalent throughout Hindustan, while others may be the faith of a couple of villages. However, all these "mini-religions" have common foundations.

The main sacred books of Hinduism are the Vedas (Rig Veda, Sama Veda, Yajur Veda and Atharva Veda) and commentaries to them - the Upanishads, Aranyakas and Brahmanas.

Common to most Hindus is also the desire to deserve the best incarnation in the next life, which requires doing good deeds and observing the restrictions established by religion and caste.

Hindus can pray at home, where there is often a separate room for this. They enter the temples to ask God for something and receive his blessing. Temple prayer (puja) can be a simple request, or it can be a complex ritual performed with a priest. In this case, the statue of the deity is sprinkled with milk, water or sandal juice, and treats are offered to it. The puja ends with the reception of a consecrated food.

The Hindu pantheon is huge, but several more common and significant gods can be distinguished. These include Vishnu (guardian of the world order), Shiva (god of vitality and sexuality), Ganesha (god of learning), Durga (slayer of demons), Lakshmi (goddess of beauty and luck), etc. However, in many villages, people worship local deities who bring good luck if they are prayed for, and get angry if they are forgotten.

Hinduism identifies 5 main points of human life that deserve celebration and gratitude to the gods. These are birth, initiation (the rite of reaching maturity), marriage, death and cremation. Marriage is of particular importance.

Islam

Islam is much less widespread in the Hindustan than Hinduism; it is practiced by 14% of the population. However, mosques throughout the country testify to the importance of this religion. If earlier the tension between Muslims and Hindus reached the point of mass slaughter and mutual desecration of shrines (Muslims slaughtered cows, and Hindus played loud music near mosques), now the communities live quite peacefully. They even adopted some of the eating habits each other: Muslims, out of respect for Hindus, do not eat beef, and Hindus, in turn, do not touch pork.

Of all the currents of Islam, the teachings of the Sufis were closest to the Indians. The devotees of Shiva and Vishnu easily accepted the desire for personal intimacy with God promoted by the latter. Moreover, the Sufis, unlike the fundamentalist Muslims, did not deny music. And in religious rites It plays an important role in India. In India, there are many dargakhs - shrines built on the graves of Sufi saints. The most popular dargah is the Deva Sharif, near Lucknow.

In general, Indian Islam is no different from Islam in all other countries. Namaz (daily prayer) is performed 5 times a day. Muslims gather for common prayer on Friday (except for the Mumbai sect of the Druze, who pray on Thursday).

Buddhism

Today Buddhism is not widespread in India. But a long time ago, in the so-called. "Age of Buddha" he was one of the dominant religions in India and had many followers. It was then that many remarkable cultural monuments were created, such as the Sanchi stupa and the caves of Ajanta and Ellora. Nowadays Buddhists are mainly concentrated in Ladakh and Sikkim.

Some aspects, such as samsara and karma, were borrowed by Buddhism from Hinduism. However, the ultimate goal of a Buddhist is to attain nirvana. Conventionally nirvana can be considered the cessation of rebirth, clarity of consciousness and pure happiness.

Like any other ancient religion, Buddhism has changed significantly, and by now there are a huge number of schools and teachings. Tibetan Buddhism is the most widespread in India. This is due to the proximity of Tibet, as well as to the fact that it is in India that the Dalai Lama is now, forced to flee from the Chinese aggression. The Dalai Lama is not only a spiritual leader. He heads the Tibetan government in exile.

Most of the Tibetan refugees live in the Dharamsala area. Hollywood stars like Steven Seagal have visited this place more than once to express support for the Tibetans, and at the same time to raise their popularity. Dharamsala is now India's largest center for the study of Buddhism.

Sikhism

This relatively young religion is most widespread in the state of Punjab, where the majority of the population is Sikh. Sikhs believe that God is one and all religions simply lead to his knowledge in different ways. Actually, they consider God to be the absolute Truth, beauty and goodness.

The actual founder of Sikhism is Guru Nanak. He founded a small cult in which he preached his teachings. Nanak condemned mysticism, ancestor cult, caste and gender discrimination. In his opinion, anyone can achieve enlightenment. The 8 gurus who followed him completed the formation of a holistic religion. They combined all the major hymns in the book Adi Granth, founded the city of Amritsar and built the Golden Temple.

In contrast to the traditional view of Indians as peaceful and calm people, Sikhs are quite warlike. This is due to the fact that over the centuries they have been forced to defend their faith with weapons in their hands. As a result, they have developed a society in which strength and courage are especially respected. Now the Sikhs are part of the so-called. "Khalsu" or "brotherhood". The goals of this brotherhood are to fight for freedom, help the poor, and protect the faith. Members of the brotherhood renounce tobacco, dogma and superstition, and also wear "5 k": "kesh" (uncut hair), kangha (comb), kirpan (sword), kara (steel bracelet) and kachha (short pants). Even during the British rule, the Sikhs were considered the best soldiers in India, for their military traditions. However, violence in Sikhism is considered legal only when all other methods have failed.

Jainism

Unlike the warlike Sikhs, the Jains elevate nonviolence to the absolute. Many of them wear a scarf around their mouths (so as not to accidentally swallow any insect), and the road in front of them is swept with a special broom (so as not to crush anyone).

Jains are quite small - only 0.5% of the country's population (although 0.5% of one and a half billion, that's decent). However, they are quite widespread. Many aspects of Jainism, including rituals and some holy places, are similar to Hindu ones, as a result of which there has never been any conflict between adherents of these religions.

However, even among the small number of Jains, there are differences in the interpretation of dogmas. The first group of Jains is called “Digambaras” (“dressed in space”), who believe that an enlightened ascetic is obliged to give up clothes, and a woman cannot achieve liberation from reincarnation. The second is called Shvetambaras. They recognize gender equality and avoid radicalism.

An interesting feature of Jainism is its philosophical idea of ​​"anekanatavada". Anekanatavada is difficult process looking at something from 7 different points of view. This not only helps to distract from violence, but also develops critical thinking and mental flexibility.

India- a country with a mysterious and incomprehensible culture for most Europeans. The culture of this country has always been inextricably linked with its religion. Approximately 80% (about 850 million people) of the population here profess Hinduism - the most massive and oldest religion in Asia. The period from the III-II centuries. BC NS. to VIII-VI centuries. BC NS. those main components were formed, from which the worldview system of Hinduism subsequently grew.

All subsequent Indian culture was formed around this system. Hinduism still preserves the laws and foundations of life established from ancient times, bringing traditions and customs that originated at the dawn of history into modern times.

The article is quite interesting ... but it should be noted that it was written

adherent Krishna…

Hinduism (Vedism)

India's national religion is Hinduism... The name of the religion comes from the name of the Indus River, on which the country is located. This name was introduced by the British. The Hindus themselves call their religion SANATANA DHARMA (maintaining eternal divine order). This word refers to the eternal activities of the eternal living entities in relationship with the eternal Supreme Lord.

Sanatana dharma, as already mentioned, is called the eternal duties of a living entity. Explaining the meaning of the word sanatana Sripada Ramanujacarya said that sanatana is "that which has neither beginning nor end."

The meaning of the word "religion" is somewhat different from the concept sanatana-dharma... The word "religion" carries the idea of ​​faith, and faith, as you know, can be changed. Some of us today may believe in one way, and tomorrow stop believing in it and start believing in something else. Meanwhile sanatana-dharma call an activity that cannot be changed. For example, one cannot take away from water that it is liquid, just as heat cannot be separated from fire. Similarly, the eternal living entity cannot be taken away from his eternal activities. That which has no beginning or end cannot be something sectarian, for it cannot be limited by any framework. Those who are themselves members of a sect may mistakenly consider sanatana-dharma sect, however, having studied this issue deeply enough and considered it from the standpoint modern science, we will see that sanatana-dharma- this is the duty of all people in the world, or rather, all living beings in the universe.

Any belief outside the category sanatans, you can find the beginning in the annals of world history, while sanatana-dharma does not have a historical beginning, for it eternally remains with a living being... The authoritative sastras say that the living entity is never born or dies. Living being eternal and indestructible, it continues to exist even after the death of the mortal material body... Explaining the concept sanatana-dharma, we should try to understand the meaning of this word (sometimes translated as "religion") based on the meaning of its Sanskrit root. Dharma is a quality that is eternally inherent in an object. It is known that heat and light are attributes of fire; fire devoid of heat and light is not fire. Likewise, we must identify the essential quality of the living entity that is inseparable from him. This quality should be eternally inherent in a living being. This is what constitutes his eternal religion.

When Sanatana Goswami asked Sri Caitanya Mahaprabhu about svarupa(own form, nature, character) of a living entity, the Lord replied that svarupa or the living entity's constitutional position - service to the Supreme Personality of Godhead... By analyzing this statement of Lord Caitanya, we can see that every living entity is constantly serving someone. One living entity always serves others - in different ways, in different qualities, taking pleasure in this. Animals serve people as servants serve masters, A serves master B, B serves master C, who in turn serves master D, and so on. We see how friends serve each other, how a mother serves her son, a wife serves her husband, a husband serves his wife, and so on endlessly. Continuing this observation, we will make sure that all living beings, without exception, serve someone... Politicians present their programs to voters to convince them of their ability to serve, and voters cast their votes in the hope that politicians will serve the public well. The seller serves the buyer, and the worker serves the capitalist. The capitalist serves the family, and the family serves the state. Thus, there is not a single living being that does not serve others, and it is safe to conclude that service is the eternal attribute and eternal religion of all living beings.

Nevertheless, people declare their belonging to this or that faith, depending on time, place and circumstances, and therefore declare themselves to be Hindus, Muslims, Christians, Buddhists, or members of some other sect. All these names have nothing to do with sanatana-dharme... A Hindu, having changed his faith, can become a Muslim, a Muslim - a Hindu, and a Christian - someone else. But under any circumstances, the change of faith does not in any way affect the eternal activity of a living entity in service to others. Whether we are Hindus, Muslims or Christians, we always serve someone. Thus, declaring himself an adherent of a particular faith, a person is not talking about sanatana-dharme. Sanatana dharma every one is service.

Actually, we are all connected with the Supreme Lord in a service relationship. We cannot be happy on our own, just as no part of our body can be happy without the cooperation of the stomach. A living entity cannot be happy unless he is engaged in the transcendental loving service of the Supreme Lord.

The main directions of Hinduism:

- Advaita Vedanta(Smartism) is an ancient brahminical tradition reformed by Shankara in the ninth century. Smarta (smartist) is a follower of the classic smriti, especially the Dharma Shastras, Puranas and Itihas. Smartists revere the Vedas and respect the Agamas.
- Shaivism- the tradition of worshiping Lord Shiva. Shaivism is widely practiced throughout India and beyond, especially in Nepal and Sri Lanka.

- Shaktism- this is one of the three main directions in Hinduism, along with Vishnuism and Shaivism, the core of which is the cult of the Mother Goddess, the feminine principle, personified in the forms of various Hindu Goddesses and, above all, the wife of Shiva, known as Devi, Kali, Durga, Parvati and others.

- Vishnuism (Vaishnavism), one of the two main (along with Shaivism) directions of Hinduism, which is based on the cult of Vishnu and associated Gods (primarily Krishna and Rama). Vishnu and his avatars are benevolent deities associated with popular solar fertility cults. Vishnuism is spread mainly in Northern India. In Vishnuism, already in the middle of the 1st millennium BC. NS. a monotheistic tendency emerged and a doctrine was created bhakti - personal love and devotion to God... Preacher bhakti- South Indian philosopher and religious reformer Ramanuja (died 1137) founded the Sri Vaishnava school, which is still the largest of the Vaishnava schools.

All branches of Vaishnavism are distinguished by their adherence to monotheism. The beliefs and practices of this tradition, especially such key concepts as bhakti and bhakti yoga, are based on such Puranic texts as Bhagavad-gita, Vishnu Purana, Padma Purana and Bhagavata Purana.

- Saura- worship of the Sun God Surya. The main worshipers of God Surya on planet Earth are the Japanese 🙂

- Ganapatya- Hindu religious tradition of worshiping Ganesha (God of prosperity and wisdom). The cult of Ganesha for many Hindus complements the worship of other deities.

Sometimes you can hear that there are 33 million Gods in India, but this number often includes many names of the same God or Goddess - for example, Vishnu is known under a thousand names, and a prayer to him is considered to be a listing of these names aloud or silently. In addition, there are deities involved with Vishnu, not to mention Shiva and his wife, and this creates the impression of the presence of millions of Gods.

On the streets, they sell many iconic, printed vivid images of the same divine incarnations of Vishnu in the printing house. One of these incarnations of Vishnu, namely Krishna, became the most popular. The cult of Krishna, as it were, stood out as an independent religion, taking one of the leading places within Hinduism. The names of Rama and Krishna in India are associated with the appearance of outstanding works of literature: Rama is the hero of the ancient epic poem "Ramayana", and many lyric poems and songs are dedicated to Krishna, some of which, along with "Ramayana", were included in the fund of treasures of world literature.

Jainism

The founder of Jainism is the Kshatriya Vardhamana, who lived in the 6th century. BC. Until the age of 30, he led the life of a layman, and then left the world and wandered for many years. Having reached the highest knowledge and received the title of Mahavira Jina, which means "great hero", he preached a new faith for many years, turning many disciples into it. Throughout years his teachings were transmitted in the oral tradition, but in the IV or III century. BC. At the All-Jain Cathedral in the city of Patalipura, an attempt was made to create a written canon. This attempt ended with a split of the Jains into two groups: Digambarov(dressed in light) and shvetambarov(dressed in white). The divergences between these schools affected some elements of ritual, living conditions of believers and the community as a whole, but agreement on basic issues remained.

The core of the Jain doctrine is the self-improvement of the soul - jivas for achievement moksha(release).

This can be achieved by a representative of any caste, not just a brahmana, if he observes certain conditions. The task of every Jain aspiring to liberation is reduced to getting rid of karma as a sticky base, along with which all the gross matter adhering to it disappears, inclined to a constant cycle of being. To accomplish this task, the following conditions are required:

Belief in the truth of the doctrine;
- perfect knowledge;
- righteous life.

Jain vows

In fulfilling the latter condition, members of the Jain community took five basic vows:
* do not harm a living (the so-called principle ahimsa which adhered to by all Hindus, but the Jains followed it especially strictly);
* do not commit adultery;
* do not acquire (read Non-possessors and Josephites);
* be sincere and pious in speech.

To these obligatory ones were added additional vows and restrictions, leading to a reduction in the pleasures and pleasures in life.

A special layer among the Jains was made up of ascetic monks who completely break with normal life and, as it were, becoming a standard for all others. Any Jain could become a monk, but not everyone could withstand the hardships of this path. The monks had no property, they had no right to stay in one place for more than 3-4 weeks, except for the rainy season.

The monk is careful not to accidentally crush any small animal, he is limited in food, eats no more than twice a day, lives by charity; extreme form austerities is the refusal of food, death from starvation. Additional vows are quite sophisticated: absolute silence for many years; stay in the cold or in the sun; many years of being on your feet. Have Digambarov zeal and austerity reached the extreme limits. They had to use food every other day, walk completely naked (dressed in light); while moving, sweep the ground with a fan, cover your mouth with a piece of gauze so as not to inadvertently swallow an insect, etc.

The Jain community in India is famous for the construction of many temples that are unique in architecture and interior decoration. In the first centuries of our era, Jainism fell into decay, although a small and closed Jain community has survived to this day.

Buddhism

According to legend, in the same VI century, the son of the ruler of a small principality Siddhartha Gautama, known as Buddha Shakyamuni (623-544 BC), gained “enlightenment” and called for self-improvement of the soul: “ Awaken your soul and develop your self”. The Buddha's sermons penetrated the most remote corners of Asia. Buddhism advocated the equality of people by birth, which attracted not only representatives of the third estate to its side, but also the Kshatriya warriors. To the Buddhist community called sangha representatives of all varn.

At the center of Buddhism lies the doctrine of “ four noble truths»:

there is suffering, there is the cause of suffering, there is liberation from suffering, and there is a path to liberation from suffering.

The path to liberation is divided into eight steps, the passage of which leads to the destruction of ignorance and addictions, enlightens the mind, generates equanimity and tranquility, which stops suffering. Rebirth becomes impossible, which attains eternal bliss (nirvana). In early Buddhism, only a hermit monk could count on such salvation.

Layman subject to observance 5 moral principles:

- refraining from causing harm to ALL (!) living beings (ahimsa) (the first Christian commandment - DO NOT KILL! ANY LIVING BEING!),

- from lies,
- theft,
- sensual excesses,
- drinking

could only hope for a better rebirth.

The propaganda of Buddhism began under Emperor Ashoka. From the very beginning Buddhism was not a homogeneous phenomenon; there was always a struggle between schools and trends. The most ancient current is hinayana("Small chariot"), or monastic Buddhism, where the main importance is the efforts of the individual seeking to free himself from the bonds of rebirth ( samsara) and achieve final salvation (nirvana) through many intermediate incarnations. Another trend was mahayana("Big chariot"). Basic position mahayana consists in the fact that not only a hermit monk can be saved, but also any layman who observed the vows of spiritual perfection, resorting to the help of monks and gifting them. For a number of reasons, Buddhism was unable to gain a foothold in India and was forced to give up its place to Hinduism. There are now just over 6 million Buddhists in India.

Sikhism

It arose in India in the 16th century as a protest of small traders, artisans and peasants against the caste system and feudal oppression. Founder of Sikhism Guru Nanak recognized the one God, and considered the whole world around him to be a manifestation of the higher power of the creator. Nanak spoke out against the fanaticism and intolerance of Muslim rulers, as well as the complex ritual and caste discrimination in Hinduism. The fifth guru (there were 10 in total) Arjun compiled the "Granth" (holy book of the Sikhs), in which he included the hymns of Hindu and Muslim saints, as well as the writings of Sikh gurus, mainly Guru Nanak. Govind Singh, tenth guru (1675-1708), turned the Sikh community into a military brotherhood and named it Khalsa (pure). In order to distinguish themselves among Hindus and Muslims, Sikhs began to strictly observe the principle of the "five Ka": never cut their hair (kesh), comb them with a special comb (kangha), wear a special type of underwear (kachha), put a steel bracelet on the wrist (kara ) and always have a dagger (kirpan) with you. Currently, only Orthodox Sikhs follow this principle. All Sikh men add a special prefix to their name "singh" ("lion"). Women can add the prefix "kaur" ("lioness") to their name.

The term "Sikh" originates from the Sankrit term "Shishya" - follower, novice. The total number of Sikhs in India is about 17 million.

They perform their religious activities in their temples (gurudwaras), which are located throughout the northern regions of the country. There is no image of God in Sikh temples. The ceremony of worship is reduced to the reading of the Guru Granth Sahib. The highest shrine for the Sikhs is the “Golden Temple” in Amritsar.

Zoroastrianism

In times ancient empire Persians, Zoroastrianism was the main religion of Western Asia and in the form of Mithraism spread over the vast expanses of the Roman Empire up to Britain. After the Muslim conquest of Iran, some Zoroastrians left their homeland and settled in India. It is believed that the first group of them landed in the area of ​​the city of Diu in 766, and later they settled on the land of Sanjan (Gujarat state). Since their ancestors were from Persia, the Zoroastrians in India began to call themselves Parsis.

Now their number in the world does not exceed 130 thousand people. If we exclude from this number about 10 thousand Zoroastrians living in Iran, then almost all the rest live in India, the majority in Mumbai. The Parsis have been instrumental in transforming Mumbai into a business and prosperous port city. Despite their extremely small number, they occupy an important place in trade and industry. For the ritual practice of the Parsis, reverence for the 4 elements of the Universe is characteristic - water, fire, earth and air. This is the origin of the special burial rite of the Parsis: the bodies of the deceased are placed on the tiers of a special tower (dakma), which is commonly called the "tower of silence", where vultures eat them. Thus, the "pure" elements of the elements do not come into contact with the "unclean" corpse.

An eternal flame is constantly burning in the temples of the Parsis. Doesn't it look like anything? 🙂

Islam, Christianity

India, home to some 130 million Muslims, has the second largest Muslim population in the world. The majority of Indian Muslims are Sunnis, about 20% are Shiites. In addition, there are separate sects (for example, the Ahmadis), as well as established communities - Bohra, Ismailis, Kashmir Muslims, Memon, Mopla, etc.

Islam how religion began to spread in India after the XII century, since the expansion of campaigns to this country by the feudal rulers of neighboring and neighboring states of Iran and Afghanistan, and later countries Central Asia... Seizing part of India's lands, the new rulers often resorted to a technique attractive to many Indian poor people, announcing that all who converted to Islam, abandoning Hinduism, were completely or largely exempt from paying taxes. This gradually led to the "re-baptism" of ordinary citizens of the country into the new faith, while representatives of the nobility converted to Islam sometimes for reasons of establishing friendship and patronage from the new foreign rulers. Indian Muslims, being in many ways converted from adherents of Hinduism, to our time retain the memory of the old faith, and many attend Hindu holidays and adhere to some old customs (just like the "Orthodox" Slavs celebrate Maslenitsa and Ivan Kupala!). The spread of styles of Muslim art, the construction of world famous mosques and palaces, the production of pile carpets, the production of metal patterned enamel utensils and some other art products are associated with Islam in India. The distribution of Muslims across the states of India is extremely uneven, but in the southern states their numbers are much lower than in the northern and northwestern states.

Christianity, according to legend, reached India with the arrival of the Apostle Thomas, who is credited with the creation of the Syrian Christian Church in the south of the country. The term “Syriac” arose because the liturgy and scriptures in the Aramaic, or Syriac, language are used in worship. In the 16th century, with the arrival of the Portuguese colonialists, the process begins violent(as well as wherever it appeared!) "Christianization" of the Indians, carried out under the auspices of the papacy for several centuries. Since the 18th century in India intensifies the activities of Protestant missionaries from both Europe and the United States. Now in India there are about 20 million Christians of various directions - Catholics, Protestants, Orthodox, etc.

Judaism

The first contacts of the followers of Judaism with the inhabitants of the Malabar coast of India (now the state of Kerala) date back to 973 BC. Even then, merchants from the merchant ships of King Solomon bought spices and other goods from the local population. Scholars say that soon after the Babylonian conquest of Judea in 586 BC, the Jews settled in Kranganor on the Malabar coast. In India, Judaism is widespread mainly in the states of Kerala and Maharashtra, although representatives of this religion can be found in other parts of the country.
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Almost all people living in India are deeply religious. Religion for Indians is a way of life, everyday, its special way.
India is the most multinational country, where, at the same time, on a small territory many religious movements, spiritual movements, such as Hindus - 83% of the population coexist, Muslims constitute the most significant religious minority - 11%, 2.2% - Sikhs, 2% - Christians , Buddhists are only 0.7%, most of whom have recently converted to Buddhism.

India is a multi-confessional country. This is a treasure trove of not only traditional views on faith, but also exotic beliefs, funny beliefs. If we briefly present the religion of India in numbers, the picture is as follows:

• Hinduism - 80%;
• Islam - 13%;
• Christianity - 2%;
• Sikhism - 1.9%;
• Buddhism - 0.8.

There are also Jainism, Zoroastrianism, Judaism. Traditionally, India is associated with Hinduism and Buddhism. However, statistics clearly show how differently the percentage of these religions looks.

Hinduism

To begin with, a little information: the inhabitants of India, regardless of their religious views- Indians, not Hindus, as they are often mistakenly called. Hindus (Hindus) are adherents of the main religion in India - Hinduism. Hinduism includes terms that intrigue Western people - karma, reincarnation, samsara, dharma.

The religion is based on Vedism, which dominated in ancient India. The scriptures of the Vedas have preserved the pantheon of gods, which became the basis of various currents of Hinduism, but common symbol religion has no faith. This gives rise to many legends unusual stories, funny situations for Europeans.

Marijuana in India is allowed for religious rituals associated with one of the dominant gods - Shiva. It is believed that smoking the "herb of wisdom" immerses one in meditation, helps to enlighten the mind, contemplating the "highest truth."

Buddhism

The number of Buddhists in India breaks European stereotypes about the religious basis of Indians - Buddhism is less popular than Islam, Christianity, and Sikhism. However, it was in India, according to legend, that Buddha attained enlightenment. The memory of this is kept by the main shrine of Buddhism - Bodh Gaya - a picturesque place that has gathered on its territory many temples and pilgrims from all over the world.

Indian temples - keepers of the faith

Mysticism, exoticism and even barbarism accompany the host of Indian gods and goddesses. Temples and sacred relics are located in the north and south of the country. Group tours to India help you immerse yourself in incredible religious interweaving, touch the innermost Asian secrets.

Unique travels to places of particular importance in Hinduism are made from Goa. One of these excursions is to Murdeshwar, Gokarna. These are sacred places of power and pilgrimage, charging with energy.

Here are just some of what awaits pilgrims in Murdeshwar:

• temple complex, at the head of which is the Murdeshwar temple;
• a giant statue of Shiva - in the rays of the sun, golden paint appears to be shining and delights;
• a 500-year-old granite Shiva temple with two full-size elephant statues;
• the golden chariot on which the god Krishna sits;
• 18-storey tower-gorupa - with its observation deck offers stunning views of the coast.

Gokarna (Karnataka State) is the border between Goa and the rest of India. According to legend, in this village of Brahmins, Shiva emerged from the sacred lake. An atmosphere of unity with the gods reigns here. Every ancient stone in narrow streets and in ancient temples is impregnated with spirituality. According to legend, the holy place cleanses the karma not only of Shiva's worshipers, but also of any person who has made a pilgrimage.

Visiting unique places of power, charging with light energy, is available as part of tour packages

Religion in India goes back thousands of years. Originally, Vedism was the main religion on the Indian subcontinent. At this time, the Indo-Aryan race lived here, they practiced a special religious practice described in ancient texts called the Vedas. Later, the sacred texts of the Upanishads, Mahabharata, Rig Veda were compiled. There is no exact time frame for what period the formation took place religions of ancient India... Modern scientists suggest that this took a period of one thousand to two thousand years. These terms are very conditional, since there is no possibility to rely on any reliable facts in the period of three thousand years BC. Much later. After the exodus from the Hindustan peninsula of the Aryans. Buddhism came to these territories and settled here for a long time.

Having brought much to the new religion, Hinduism, which replaced Buddhism. This ancient religion of india clung to the local population for many centuries and is professed by the majority of the population to this day. Despite all sorts of persecutions during the occupation of these territories by various invaders. Carrying with them their beliefs. Hinduism has adapted and adapted for itself Islam and Christianity. At this time in India there are many different religions and beliefs, but the main faith is Hinduism. Almost eighty percent of the population professes it. The second largest faith is Islam, just over ten percent of believers. Then comes Christianity up to three percent. Sikhism up to two percent, Buddhism in India up to one, Jainism up to half a percent. Then there are many other religions, but their influence on the population is not great. Since ancient times, people who lived in the territory of modern India. Many different deities were worshiped and many of them have retained their influence on human minds to this day. The good news is that these contradictions do not turn into bloody wars for faith in India.

Gods and goddesses of India

Pantheon gods of India very large. Moreover, some of the deities can appear in different guises. It is quite difficult for an uninitiated person to understand all these intricacies of divine genealogies and reincarnations. Vishnu is the main deity, his title in translation from Sanskrit characterizes him as possessing all the virtues. Most often in the pictures, he is depicted as a man with four arms and blue skin. He is able to be in three hypostases in each of them, his body acquires some new property, allows him to perform the steps inherent for the gods. When Vishnu lies down to rest, a lotus flower appears from his navel. Brahma comes out of it. Brahma is the same deity as Vishnu. He is considered self-born at the very beginning of the creation of the universe. It is he who is credited with the creation of man and the creation of the first sages, to whom the first divine knowledge was transmitted. He can also be in three guises and has four arms, but his skin color already has a human and is usually depicted as a gray-haired old man whitened. In addition to four arms, he has four heads and four faces. Perhaps this is the only deity in the pantheon. Which is not portrayed, with whatever weapon in hand. More often than not, he holds books.

It is imperative to travel around India, visiting unique natural areas, many of which have retained their original appearance, in more detail:.

Shiva, another deity of the Indian pantheon, also has three hypostases, he can simultaneously be both a creator and a destroyer. Most often, four hands are depicted as a person with dazzling white skin. He holds a destructive weapon in his hands.

Lakshmi is the goddess of fortune and prosperity, the wife of Vishnu. Her usual image is a gorgeous woman with charming forms. Perched on a lotus flower. Sarasati, the wife of the god Brahma, is the patroness of the arts.

Goddess of India Rip, wife of Shiva. During his battles, he helps her husband in the form of a terrible demon devouring her husband's enemies. The divine pantheon of Hinduism is very large, in order to understand all these reincarnations, you need to be very well versed in religious dogmas. Ordinary Indians worship the chosen god, not especially going into the possibilities of his reincarnations.

All over India there is a very a large number of temples dedicated to different gods. But sometimes it may turn out that they are dedicated to the same deity. Only in a different form. After the creation of the earth and humanity on it, various gods gladly descended to people and, having assumed human form, made love to human children. These events are reflected in many epic tales of ancient India.

Different states worship different gods. There are even temples. Where various sacred animals are worshiped, including crocodiles, rats, monkeys and peacocks. Muslims living in India. Profess orthodox religion... Only here she underwent some changes due to the peculiarities of local life, became more tolerant of other beliefs. More secular. The state, where the majority of Muslims live, has many mosques and fully admits other religions on its territory.

Christianity has also adapted to the characteristics of the population living here. V Christian churches there is the same caste as in modern Indian society. A thousand-year fusion of different cultures has given rise to a unique society where everyone religions of india do not compete with each other, but serve the common goals of the state and, despite the seeming differences in dogmas, they get along well together. It can be seen that the thousand-year history of this people is making itself felt, professing patience and righteous labor for rebirth in a new body with the best qualities souls.

Yoga and Ayurveda

These concepts are not religious, but rather philosophical preachers. respectful attitude to your body and through the improvement of the body, access to a higher spiritual level. Thanks to this, you can better understand the true purpose of man and his approach to the essence of the gods. Perhaps these philosophical concepts best provide an opportunity to understand how so many different beliefs, sometimes contradicting each other, can exist together. Without conflicting with each other. Due to the fact that practicing yoga, many residents of the country strive to improve the spirit of the soul and body. They become more tolerant of the manifestations of someone else's misunderstanding. They just go their own way. Ignoring the little things.

Religions of India, video: