Religions in India

Religions in India
India known as the land of spirituality and philosophy was the birthplace of some religions, which even exist today in the world.
The most dominant religion in India today is Hinduism. About 80% of Indians are Hindus. Hinduism is a colourful religion.
Hinduism is a religion with different Gods and Goddesses. According to Hinduism are three Gods rules the world. Brahma: the creator; Vishnu: the preserver and Shiva: the destroyer.
Hindus believe in reincarnation. The basic belief is that a person’s fate is determined according to his deeds. These deeds in Hinduism are called ‘Karma’. A soul who does good Karma in this life will be awarded with a better life in the next incarnation. Good souls will be liberated from the circle of rebirth and get redemption, which is called ‘Moksha’ meaning freedom.
The main Hindu books are the four Vedas. They are Rig Veda, Sama Veda, Yajur Veda and Atharva Veda.
Hindus have many holy places and some rivers. Hiindus also worship and respect some animals and birds like cobra, monkeys, peacocks and cows. Hindus also respect some trees and bush trees. The famous and the most respected bush tree is Tulsi.
Jainism was born in India about the same pe

eriod as Buddhism. In many senses Jainism is similar to Buddhism. In Jainism like in Buddhism there is a belief in reincarnation. In Jainism non-violence is a main core. Jains believe that everything has a life and also include stones, sand, trees and every other thing. They are vegetarians. They won’t walk in fields where there are insects to prevent the possibility of stepping on them. They also cover their mouth to prevent the possibility of swallowing small invisible microbes.

Buddhism developed in India. Buddhism began with a prince called Siddhartha Gautama. And Siddharta was named Buddha. Buddhism emphasis non- violence. The Buddhists are vegetarians. But many Indians believe that Buddha died because he ate a sick animal. Buddhism does not haave a God. But many Buddhists keep images of Buddha. Buddha is not seen as the first prophet of the religion.
There are two main doctrines in Buddhism, Mahayana and Hinayana. Mahayana Buddhist believes that the right path of a follower will lead to the redemption of all human beings. The Hinayana believes that each person is responsible for his own fate.
About 2% of India’s population are Sikhs. Sikhism is comparatively a new religion in India. Guru Nanak was the first Guru. Af

fter him there were nine more Gurus. A Sikh place of worship is called Gurdwara. Sikhism does not support pilgrimage to holy sites because according to Sikhism, God is everywhere and not in any certain place. But Sikhism has few important sites, of which, the Hari Mandir, also known as the ‘Golden Temple’. Sikhs have five signs: uncut hair, a comb, a sword or a dagger, a bracelet on the right wrist and shorts.