Examine the Distinctive Features of the World Religion Called Hinduism

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Examine the distinctive features of the world religion called Hinduism Hinduism or Sanatana Dharma, as it is known to those who follow it, is one of the main religions of the world, with around 900 million followers. Sanatana Dharma is Sanskrit for ‘The eternal right way of living’. The word ‘Hindu’ was the name for those who lived on the other side of the river Indus, which was used by the Persians. Hinduism is an old and diverse religion with many different beliefs and practices. In this essay I will be looking at what sets Hinduism apart from other religions including in this, its origins, beliefs and worship. Hinduism is the world’s oldest religion; historians have followed it back 5,000-6,000 years. The religion is said to originate from several different sources. These sources comprise of the Indus valley civilisation, The Aryans, The tribal people of Adivasis and Dravidian culture. As well as having influences from many different groups, Hinduism has also influenced other groups, namely the religions Jainism, Sikhism and Buddhism. Hinduism has been said to be not just a religion, but a way of life and it encompasses many different Indian traditions. Hindu’s are monotheists; this means that they believe in one God (Who they call ‘Brahman’), which is not all that different from many other current religions. However, in Hinduism, this God has many names and forms (Causing the common misconception that they are polytheists). Hindus say their God has an infinite amount of names and forms but which are all part of the same one God. These ‘Gods’ can be male or female or even part animal with multiple arms or heads; they are not supposed to look like humans. They also believe that a part of Brahman (God) lives inside of each of us and they call this ‘Atman’. The three most important forms of their God are Brahman (The creator), Vishnu (The preserver) and

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