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Hinduism is the dominant

religion of India.

This is the Hindu symbol

for Om. It represents the

divine.

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The Aryans were nomadic invaders.

They invadedthe Indus River

Valley in 1500 B.C. Hinduism is largely

based on the religious beliefs of

the Aryans.

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The Aryans called themselves “thenoble ones”. They spoke the

Sanskrit language which is still thereligious language of Hindus and they considered the cow sacred.

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There is no single holy book in Hinduism but there are many sacredtexts like the Upanishads, the Vedas,

and the Bhagavad-Gita.

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Hindus believe inmany gods.

However, Hindusbelieve that every

god is amanifestation of a single, Supreme

Being.

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According to Hindus, all beings are part of

Brahma. It is just that most humans are

ignorant of their nature.They are trapped in an

illusion. Theyare trapped in Maya.

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Therefore, according to

Hindus, a person’s soul

must be reborn again and again until the person realizes his true

god self.

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Hindus believe in

reincarnation.

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Of course, a person’s reincarnationis based on his or her deeds. Thisbelief that what a person does in the present determines the futureis a belief called karma.

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Yes, think of karma as what goes around comes around.

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Hindus also have a caste system. A caste system is a fixed social class system. A Hindu is born into his caste

and remains in his caste a lifetime.

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Birth determines caste. If a baby isborn to Brahmin parents, the baby is a Brahmin. Of course, according to Hindus, the baby’s karma determined his birth to Brahminparents.

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Each caste has its dharma or rulesof caste. For example, a personmust marry within his caste.

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Hinduism still influences India today.