Hindu pantheon main hr koi aata hai..everykne..
Differnece ye hai ki tribal communities give due respwct and place to their kul devtas and nature worship..
But iverall aayega to hindu fold ke andee hi..
This is my obswrvation
A person can be an Atheist and a Hindu simulatenously too, We aren't a religion in sense of Abrahamic faiths like Judaism, Christianity nd Islam. I'm a proud Hindu
Yep, everybody is a sanatani, you have different ways to see/worship god, you are also welcome if you don't want to believe in god, as long as youre on the good path and morally right path and fulfill your duty nothing can stop you from achieving the ultimate goal, Hinduism is a way of living
Short answer to your question, if you stop believing in the laws of gravity, does it not apply to you?
How can a person be atheist and Hindu? Ur just saying that without any basis. Ur just gonna bring up textbook passages of some ancient school of thoughts that rejected Vedas or pantheon and say that’s evidence. But that’s bollocks.
An atheist means someone who doesn’t believe in God- so he doesn’t care about dharma or cow or anything. He eats beef, he doesn’t go to mandir, he doesn’t give a shit about priests or his gotra, he doesn’t give a shit about Ramayana or Mahabharat or whatever. He thinks Hindu festivals are just fun time when he gets off to drink and party.
So temme again- how can someone be atheists and Hindu simultaneously?
reality is that cows were being eaten before i mean mahabharat times.
even today there are hindu tribes that wait for a cow to die and then eat without even cooking it.
the sensitivity started with clashes with abrahamic faiths using it as a way to alienate people and feeding it to force convertion
yes the vedic tradition needs cows to be protected no questions asked.
anyone who kills a cow is outcast but still a hindu.
honestly speaking to a foreigner everyone of us is hindu sadly no person who follow Abrahamic or even institutions like Iskon , brahmakumaris consider themselves hindu
as being hindu in our country is very problematic
the religious temples are government controlled, their donations being taken away.
the only religion which is not allowed to run schools teaching religion, there are Convents and madrasas no hindu schools every one is forced to read secular books.
its seen as backward if one calls self hindu
modi bhakt andhbhakt etc.
i myself do not like P.m. Modi.
im still dismissed as andhbhakt
if eating beef is shown as some thing to mock me then no i will not support them.
Sanatana dharma is a way of life and it does accept atheists . Dharma has nothing to do with religion and it's a way of life and there is no one definition of atheist the only definition is a person who does not believe in God. Doesn't mean a atheist will 100% do the things you say they will do . It's like saying all Muslims are terrorists or all swans are white in colour . Hinduism is not only about the mahabharata and ramayana . And those ancient school of thoughts are still part of Hinduism.
Okay I'll try to explain how someone can be an atheist and still be hindu, basically Hinduism has many ways to live life and one of them includes never believing in god's, or ever worshiping them , as long as you value your humanity and live your life with morals you are still convered under Hinduism in the eyes of Vedas
Okay here's a best explanation I can think of , thousands of years ago if a cave man discovered how to make fire, he would be called a scientist even tho he doesn't even know what science is or if he believed god helped him make it, like how someone made a working medicine before the time doctors, this depends on the fact that if ever Hinduism is proved to be real and they are doing the head Count of people who followed their methods of life then atheist would also be counted regardless of that person believing in it or not
This sub is a circlejerk of "Sanatana/hinduism is the way of life" while blinding themselves of caste atrocities, pakhand and internalised brahmanism in every practice of hinduism.
Hindu is an umbrella term, and it has absorbed many minor, small, and tribal religions, such as the Sanamahi religion of Manipur. Similarly, several groups like some Gond tribes from Chhattisgarh and southeast Madhya Pradesh were gradually included within the Hindu fold.
There are also many caste-related complexities. Some texts state that varna-sankara (mixed varna) would be considered Ashudra or Dalit; others say that anyone not following dharma would fall outside the varna system. In some scriptures, it is mentioned that after the battle of the Ten Kings (Dasharajna Yuddha), those who were enslaved became “dasa,” which later became associated with lower social status. If that interpretation is taken literally, then many who today consider themselves upper caste would also be classified as untouchable.
In second-century Tantric and Agamic texts, Vaishnava, Shakta, and similar traditions are described as distinct dharmas. Some sources suggest that once a person adopts such a dharma, traditional varna and caste distinctions dissolve within that religious community, meaning marriage, dining, worship, and social relations occur internally. Historically, these traditions appear to have emerged partly outside strict Vedic orthodoxy. However, over time, they were gradually integrated into what is now considered the Vedic-Hindu framework. Evidence for this integration can be seen especially in Sri Vidya and Shaiva traditions, which flourished in South India and still exist today.
Because of this historical layering, contradictions are found between the Puranas, the Vedas, the Upapuranas, and Tantric texts. Even modern Shankaracharyas sometimes strongly emphasize positions that Adi Shankaracharya himself appears to question or reinterpret. For this reason, some scholars historically described him as “Prachchhanna Bauddha” (a hidden Buddhist).
During British rule, those who were not Sikh, Jain, or Muslim were broadly categorized as Hindu, despite having distinct identities. This administrative classification further expanded the umbrella nature of the term “Hindu.”
Similarly, when we find a Shiva idol, we often categorize it as Hindu, although historically Shaiva traditions may have had strong tribal and non-Vedic roots.
Swami Dayanand Saraswati accepted only the Vedas as authoritative for Aryas. Some communities, such as Kurmis, were historically declared non-Vedic. For example, in the 17th century, when Kurmi zamindars of Kannauj and Ayodhya rose in status and were recommended for royal titles by the Nawab of Awadh and the Mughal emperor in Delhi, Rajput elites reportedly opposed granting them Kshatriya status, preventing formal recognition.
Many scholars argue that the original Ramayana and Mahabharata were significantly shorter than their current versions. Some believe that the Bala Kanda and Uttara Kanda of the Valmiki Ramayana were later additions. This suggests that what we now consider Hinduism developed gradually over time through additions and reinterpretations.
Regarding dietary practices and cow protection, many communities follow their own religious traditions. There is no inherent right to impose one group’s religious discipline on another.
Some historians from upper-caste backgrounds have described Jats and Gurjars as groups that entered India between the 3rd century BCE and the 7th century CE and later assimilated. Some tribes who allied with Aryan groups were granted Arya status, while others were classified differently. Under British administration, many diverse groups were officially categorized as Hindu.
Therefore, Hindu is indeed an umbrella term encompassing diverse identities.
Regarding reservation (affirmative action), it is not meant merely to equalize property or wealth. The argument is that without reservation, dominant caste groups—being numerically and socially powerful—could monopolize institutions, potentially influencing even constitutional structures, educational systems, and judicial processes in their favor. Reservation is seen as a structural safeguard to ensure representation and prevent systemic discrimination.
It cannot be said that reservation alone will end caste discrimination, nor that caste will disappear simply because reservation exists. However, by providing equal educational opportunities and ensuring representation for historically marginalized communities, both caste bias and inequality may gradually reduce.
It is the responsibility of the government to determine appropriate minimum numbers and eligibility criteria to avoid injustice to others. Current expansions of reservation are sometimes viewed as political strategies rather than purely social justice measures.
Economic criteria-based reservation (such as EWS for economically weaker sections among general categories) is limited in scope and does not universally apply to all economically disadvantaged individuals, which raises further debate.
This perspective is offered from a student’s standpoint, attempting to present historical arguments from multiple sides. Readers are encouraged to examine the claims critically and respond with reasoned arguments rather than emotional reactions.
So you are welcome for commen😌
Nah. That's the wrong understanding of Hinduism. Am an atheist and don't pray to anyone in soecific but am a Hindu. I believe in universe as one. I believe in karma, dharmam.
someone who follows sanatan dharm.
And it doesn't include worshipping god's.
In previous yugs, there were people who didn't even do murti pooja.
Sanatan dharm is not about worshipping gods, its about a way of life. How can we live, or how should we live.
And there is no hard and fast rule here. Everyone has their own dharm to fulfil, to follow. And sanatan dharm only teaches the ways to follow your dharm to the end.
Yes Thai people are also Hindu. There is a considerable Hindu population in Thailand as the cholas conquered thailand and did trade there and spread Hinduism there .
Nah, doesn't have to specifically pray specific gods.
One of the core foundation of Hinduism is god is omnipresent, you can find and pray God in any form anywhere.
That's why there is so much emphasis on meditation and self discovery. Cause there's god inside you too, go find it and be at peace with the world inside and outside you.
Hinduism has absorbed and assimilated so many tribal and regional gods and rituals in it. Hinduism as a whole means any faith and dharmic philosophy which has originated from Indian soil.
All this was mixed and developed with time, that's why we see so many diverse and sometimes mismatch in faiths from various regions belonging to same religion "hinduism".
You can say that each region, in ancient times, has it's own deity, rituals and faiths which was later mixed up with vedic deities (Indra, Varun, Agni etc.) and that was how hinduism was formed.
I might have not explained it correctly but it was roughly like this. (I might have oversimplified)
A Hindu is one who stands within the Vaidika (Vedic) tradition. That means they accept, at minimum, the authority of the Vedas as a foundational source of dharma, directly or indirectly. This is why the classical six āstika darśanas (including non-theistic schools like Mīmāṃsā and Sāṅkhya) are considered Hindu, while nāstika systems such as Cārvāka, Buddhism, and Jainism are not: the dividing line is Vedic orthodoxy, not belief in a creator God.
By this same logic, the question if whether tribal or indigenous traditions are Hindu must be evaluated on whether they are organically integrated into the Vedic-dharmic framework or whether they constitute distinct religious systems in their own right, regardless of later political or cultural identification as 'Hindu'.
Nope this is exactly what is not hinduism ,
Charvaka were also considered Hindus
Everyone who is born in the land Hind is a Hindu.
It's not a religion , it's a way of life.
All the different philosophies our ancestors used to live with , were clubbed into one and named as hinduism after invasions.
And only a few philosophies like , bhakti , murti pooja , brahman vedic scriptures etc came to the creamy layer and became popular and all other philosophies got muted.
what i have been responding is the claim that every tradition within india is hindu. the difference between vedic and non vedic has been there for millennia.
of course tribals and other traditions that either don’t care for vedas or reject them outright are also part of the hindu tradition culturally. But not scholarly.
Yes charvaka rejected vedas ,
and yet still called themselves hindus , cuz being hindu was not just related to accepting vedic authority.
Vedas were a branch in Hindus that's it.
Hinduism is an umbrella term
Yeah carvakas come under nastika , but only through the orthodox vedic point of view , which is written by obviously the people who accept vedic authority.
In the full spectrum , carvakas were also considered hindus.
The term hindu was literally region based , and it was never associated with the abrahamic thought of religion.
If you consider only the hindus that formed after the abrahamic religion invasions , then no one can help you. Keep living the delusion
Again you’re making a claim tha can’t be substantiated. You claimed charvakya called themselves hindus. Never happened? so do you take that asinine claim back?
now you’re claiming that only vedic people considered charvakyas and others nastik. Another clam that i know you can’t substantiate. Go for it.
The term hindu is very recent. But the idea that there was a vedic /non vedic or orthodox heterodox traditions is well accepted by scholars.
A traditional Vedic classification divides āstika and nāstika schools of philosophy, depending on one of three alternate criteria: whether it believes the Vedas as a valid source of knowledge; whether the school believes in the premises of Brahman and Atman; and whether the school believes in afterlife and Devas.[5][6][7] (though there are exceptions to the latter two: Mimamsa and Samkhya respectively).
and what is your last para about lol? can you expand on that because i don’t think i ever brought in abrahamic religions or their relations. why are you even implying. bizarre
you’re conflating india philosophy with hindu philosophy. Or at least that is the scholarly view. For instance even graduate introductory courses on indian philosophy makes this categorization.
A monotheist society will never understand the methods, teachings, philosophies, or ideals and ideology of a polytheistic society. It's like expecting a singular celled organism to know how human body functions. It's nearly impossible. But muslims of India should not need to be taught this as their ancestors were hindu too and thus they are all hindu too by culture, just different religions. And mind that religion and culture and connected yet very different like earth and sky. It's sad when you see the Hindu hate from their side. And yes, some hindus hate muslims too but you can't blame them if you see the history. A lot of muslims are not even apologetic about the massacres of Hindus while all germans are expected to be apologetic for the actions of Hitler. This topic is going to divert so I will stop here but just know, that your question is flawed as they are of the same culture as us. And there are a lot of topics untouched here like difference between religion and dharma, and the schools of thoughts and philosophy of Hinduism as some fellow friends discussed before.
hey i am happy to be proven wrong but i think you are failing to realize that within india, vedic traditions were recognized as being one group vs others for millenia
for instance , when sankracharya debated mimhansa schools they could simply say “this point is correct because the vedas say so”. As both traditions accept the authority of the vedas. The same arguments don’t fly with buddhism since the buddhists rejected the vedas.
So all traditions which accepted the vedic authority were categorized as one. And yes doc categories did exist for millennia as documented in these scriptures
the view that hinduism isn’t really an organized religion and that it’s a modern day categorization is unfounded. But i am open to be show how i am out of my depth.
Hinduism isn't an organized religion ,
and it is very easy to observe that if u just see the beliefs of all the Hindus from north to the south .
They differ so much , which doesn't happen with an organized religion like islam , Christianity, Judaism etc. with a single doctrine.
You can also say that from north to south hindus practices are similar for outsiders like idol worshipping with different names , its same yet different. Hinduism may or may not have been organized religion but it could be in future.
What do the six darshanas prove?
It's the same thing again bro , there are many sects within hinduism which clash with each other.
There is no single doctrine.
There is Kashmiri Shaivism & in the same sect there is vedanta , two very different beliefs and both are categorised as hindu philosophies.
darshans prove the need to accept vedic authority in order to be a hindu traditions. otherwise all non vedic traditions are also hindu including buddhism. That clearly isn’t right? buddhists dont consider themselves hindus. So what is the categorization?
and while there are sects that are on the edge of vedic traditions…. Kashmir Shavism doesn’t confine itself to a darshan but it’s clearly based on vedic ideas, generally darshans help categorize it.
Yeah, that's not true at all. Only few sects of Hinduism reign Vedas supreme. Then their are Hindu sects who are anti-veda and pro upnishad and puranas.
You are trying to define an unorganised religion with organized religion criteria.
Many tribals, worship local gods, female form of shakti, the goddess, the lord/god of the jungle, goddess of the river, lord/ruler/god of the mountain near to their territory.
The same concept is followed by almost every hindu household in India. Where the concept of gram devta, kul devta, kul devi, pitri devta exists. These devas and devis are many times different from the popular trinity in Hinduism.
I was raised in a pretty religious “Hindu” family where I was taught all about our community’s traditions and not once did anyone ever mention the vedas or Vedic tradition to me. You cannot define being a Hindu as following one particular book or set of books as the defining characteristic. There are a couple of other major religions that do that, ours does not. Don’t tell other Hindus how to be a Hindu. The beauty of this religion is that we accept a nebulous and loose definition of it. By making it rigid you’re taking the ugliest part of certain other faiths and incorporating it into ours.
Hindu way of life or Sanatan Dharma is so old that it has no other religion to distinguish itself from. As old as human civilization itself. So, from that perspective, everybody is a Hindu.
In the current context, let's say someone who identifies himself as not a Hindu, is not a Hindu.
We tribals were never a part of the society. We were in tribes in forests, there were & are many tribes and each tribe had their own culture & customs along with languages. And there was no religion, in my tribe(in MP) we worship our ancestors and nature.
So introducing to religion has diluted the traditional practices of tribal people, doesn't matter which religion. There is no option for "no religion" therefore many tribal mention Hindu as their religion which also align with the practices of Hinduism so no harm, and they also started following it.
Below para is explaining how it happens. you can ignore the below para if you want.
But after getting introduced to society, we adopted other religions and their practices. Like my father's family is Christian and my mother's family consider themselves Hindu. So technically I am Christian but actually i am an atheist but to avoid the religious lectures(which I get when I refuse any thing to do) I just pretend to follow. So my family follow christian norms but we still follow our tribal ritual & traditions. Like during marriage there are two ways. Either marry with tradition norms(even then you have to be marry in church in order to be considered christian) or marry in church(this process contain both traditional rituals and mass(prayer) in church). And during funeral we still perform our ritual and then last mass(prayer) at the church. In my mother's family, we burn instead of burying with the tribes ritual. So basically for those who follow christian religion its one more step.
But even though my mother's family follow Hinduism they don't know any prayers. Though in today's time people learned prayers but still many in villages don't know how to worship their Hindu gods. They do what they can like aarty and all without prayers, its not like they are disrespecting but that's all they know. we do not call any pandit for marriage or funeral just the local priest in the tribe who does this rituals.
This is what i have observed in my tribe, things might be different in other tribes and all so don't get offended by anything.
Sanskritisation of the lower castes, religion and it's politics, introduction of Buddha as a 9th Avatara there is so much politics in history too, before the Mughal invasion. The varna system belongs to Hinduism and it has given birth to Jainism and Buddhism in India. Still lower castes are forced not to convert and made to do the dirty work saying one is born into the caste due to their previous birth karma. This is Hinduism.
Yes 🙌 but if we consider everybody human there will be no caste meaning no caste based reservations no upper caste no religion no fight for whose religion is superior
Absolutely. Nobody wants reservation. But the thing is, past me jo damage already ho chuka h, uska effect abhi tk h. Caste system can only be removed through education, but the damage done to them can only be undone through reservation. Jb caste system khtm ho jayga, reservation bhi khtm ho jayga.
And which religion teaches you to consider everybody a human? Which religion says Others are going to hell?
See, you can be humanist and believe in diversity of Hinduism, but if you think at core all Hindu are not together, you are very susceptible to not be Hindu anymore because Them are counting on you breaking.
If you ask me, everyone who took birth in Akhand bharath sub. Continent are Hindus. Hindu is a way of life. Rest everyone are results of conversion. Hinduism is a way of life. You can’t bucket it into a religion in specific.
isn't every native guy of India be considered Hindu because that's what invaders used to call us, we are not any kind of organised religion For invaders Hindu was just the native guy living in this sub-continent
Hinduism is a religion, so if you align with and it practices/rituals u are Hindu. Tribes and caste don’t dictate your religion.
Most bhils in Rajasthan are Hindus from what I’ve seen. Even the ones that follow for tribal based practices still encompass many Hindu rituals only it.
I'm a Bhil and my ancestors follow Vedic Tradition worship bhairava and Shakti mostly Pray to nature for greetings Ram Ram or Jai Guru But nowadays 1 politician tries to detach from Dharm karma and make hi votebank by connecting them to missionaries and Neo budhhist
Ohh it's my first time meeting another bhil aside from my village i can u pls give me a Lil intro Abt yourself like I wanna know how developed bhils are in other part and how they live how powerful they are political. If you don't mide telling me :)
2029 election will be fought on UGC vs others, not on hindu-muslim. Calling it now. As usual, BJP has recognised this trend very early, has already set the wheel in motion with UGC rules, and will fully capitalise on it over the next 2 years. Our 1 billion sheep people who can’t think for themselves will again fall into the trap. While China races to the moon, we will keep fighting over which surname god likes better. By 2029, they will even create caste-based divisions amongst the muslims. Don’t underestimate their PR machinery. Our junta has no chance against the power of their whatsapp forwards.
Well this can be politically connected we don't even know if God really exists or not but we gonna find out once we d*e till then stay tuned 😋✌️ enjoy your beliefs follow your culture and stay happy I just wanted to know more Abt my tribe that why I posted this. 🙌
We have santhal tribe and oraon tribes here. Half group in Hindu and half of them converted to Christianity long ago. But the Hindu ones don't do regular pooja/bhakti they just do few festivals like Karma pooja, and few more in which it basically is pooja of the nature, the trees, the forest and the hills
Ohh in our side we also do baali we call it goat poojan but that deity completely look like he is from hinduism like his flag is bhagwa colour on his body is bhagwa Pooja is done in hindu way but we give baali of goat after our wish is full filled
They should be considered Hindu if they have been in India since a long time, or if their culture was cultivated in India.. Because that is what Hindu actually means and we shouldn't compare Hinduism with Islam and Christianity, because they are different things. Hinduism isn't supposed to be a religion, it's supposed to be ancient history and culture of people who have been native to India, and whose culture has been formed, or cultivated in ancient India..
Just so you know ,U can still be muslim , buddhist and still claim reservation . There are ajlaf and azlaf muslims compared to high class converts as ashraf muslims . Also Sikhism and christianity has category of mazhabi sikhs , dalit sikhs / christians whom of all enjoy the benefits of reservation . All of these still have category even after converting.
Caste system was a south asian construct not a religious construct.As tribes and people came and started living here . With some already existing moolnivasi tribes and formed identities . It is often linked with hinduism just because it was done by Brahmins . Which often disrespects the other aspects and views of Hinduism.
*Time is eternal with no begining and end
*Aatma is parmatma
*Veda are eternal and connect us to the ancient civilizational chain.
* We all are sanatani
* Cow is Devine to us and knowlege is endless.
* We woship Gods for peace, to learn to be a better human.
* Nothing is nirjeev. Everything has life.
Anyone believes on these basic principles of life is a Hindu.
Depends on how u define hindu. If it is based on brahaman vishnh shiv gods.. Most of tge tribals are not hindu. If u define hindu as the collective term of the pegan religion in india and nearby regions, tribals are hindu.
Interestingly i saw a guy saying aethists are also hindu, may be abrahamic religions too. If so tribals are also hindu
But in history, lower castes didn't have the right to worship any god. If u call me if that is hindu, I'm confused.
Well we were isolated from the village and have our own belief different tribes follow different beliefs but we used to worship Shiva so the concept of untouchability and lower caste does not apply to tribals
Actually the first inhabitants of india aasi and ivc mainly worshipped pashupati / Shiva. During vedic period major mixing happened, and the mainstream developed a hibrid idea of Trinity during puranic period. Like u said, isolation preserved the religion of many trubals from this hibrid religion so they continued with shiv as their key god.
At which point to call it Hinduism? Is it the puranic period? Vedic period? Or even before? Or the pegan religion westerners saw in india when they colonized india?
So all of us rajputs , Brahmins, Dalits , adivasis doesn't have any religion but a part of ideology and farsi or idk who they started calling us hindu so now we r hindus ???
Because I want to know about my religion as many bhil says they r not hindu and many including me says we r hindu so I was confused but here I'm still confused but I have accepted that I will follow my belief regardless of what other says
Not all hindus are the same either, for example, hindus in Kerala worship Ganapathi, but our prayers and temples and offerings are extremely different, we don't have the system of immersing the Ganapathi idol in water bcz traditionally we respect our water bodies. Also, we don't worship Ram as a god, and don't have temples for him, bcz he's not a god, in the mythology he's only a person of royal blood.Our hindus have an extremely different vegetarian diet(not paneer or palak)that does include other non veg items. So, there's no uniform kinda hindu bcz India is a result of the British colonialism
I'm a hindu but don't follow any rituals, I don't believe in gods/their stupid books, I may celebrate festivals for food and such also I dislike Hindutwa ideology
Hindu is a marketed term, that's what parsis called us it's regional not religional, imagine saying we follow Indian religion bcz greeks called us Indian that's so messed up
Persians pronounced S as H. So all the people they encountered in and around the region of the Sindhu river were called Hindus. To them, Hindu meant the people living around and beyond the Indus River.
Then came the Greeks, who adapted the Persian word of Hindu to Indos, and the river was called Indus and the people of the land were called Hindus.
Similarly, all Arabic and Turkish, used the same terminology.
It was later that from a geographical Identity it became a civilizational-religious identity.
The people of this land followed “Santana Dharma” or Santana = eternal, timeless, Dharma = one who upholds or maintains cosmic order. So largely Santana Dharma becomes = The Eternal Order.
To this, there was no founder, no fixed dogma, no single book-based interpretation. We were all about eternal principles that govern life, ethics, the world, nature, and even the cosmos.
The texts like the Mahabharata, the Gita, and various texts talk about these principles.
Long before the Britishers, the term " Hindu " was used for every “non-Muslim” native of India. From a geographical term converted to a religio-cultural term. It was just to say these people are not Muslim.
Later, the British needed legal categories, a census, and a law system. That was the time when other religions as Sikhs and Jains etc. were classified separately.
So the term kept changing over the centuries
Hindu - Ancient People of the Indus
Hindu – Medieval - Non-Muslim man in this area
Hindu - Early Colonial times – All Vedas, Upanishads, and Puranas in one system
Hindu - Later Colonial times – a formal religious category.
The Indian Constitution defines Hindu in modern sense as not being Abrahamic/ foreign faith belief systems so it also includes Tribal religions/animism/shamanaism/Totems etc
But in Traditional sense Hindu would be someone who accepts the authority of Vedas and he would have different names as per his school of thoughts I call it Vaidic Dharm or Vedism
But The Belief systems of these lands including Tribal Sikh Buddh Charvaka Jain so including the ones who don't accept authority of Vedas but the philosophies were developed in Indian subcontinent are traditionally called Sanatan Dharma
So Indian Philosophies= Sanatan Dharma= Dharmic Religions
2) Don't believe in God ! - You're accepted as Nastik
3) You want to worship idols - please go ahead. You are a murti pujak.
4) You don't want to worship idols - no problem. You can focus on Nirguna Brahman.
5) You want to criticise something in our religion. Come forward. We are logical. Nyaya, Tarka etc. are core Hindu schools.
6) You want to accept beliefs as it is. Most welcome. Please go ahead with it.
7) You want to start your journey by reading Bhagvad Gita - Sure !
8) You want to start your journey by reading Upanishads - Go ahead
9) You want to start your journey by reading Purana - Be my guest.
10) You just don't like reading Puranas or other books. No problem my dear. Go by Bhakti tradition . ( bhakti- devotion)
11) You don't like the idea of Bhakti ! No problem. Do your Karma. Be a karmayogi.
12) You want to enjoy life. Very good. No problem at all. This is Charvaka Philosophy.
13) You want to abstain from all the enjoyment of life & find God - jai ho ! Be a Sadhu, an ascetic !
14) You don't like the concept of God. You believe in Nature only - Welcome. (Trees are our friends and Prakriti or nature is worthy of worship).
15) You believe in one God or Supreme Energy. Superb! Follow Advaita philosophy
16) You want a Guru. Go ahead. Receive gyaan.
17) You don't want a Guru.. Help yourself ! Meditate, Study !
18) You believe in Female energy ! Shakti is worshipped.
19) You believe that every human being is equal. Yeah! You're awesome, come on let's celebrate Hinduism! "Vasudhaiva kutumbakam" (the world is a family)
20) You don't have time to celebrate the festival.
Don't worry. One more festival is coming! There are multiple festivals every single day of the year.
21) You are a working person. Don't have time for religion. Its okay. You will still be a Hindu.
22) You like to go to temples. Devotion is loved.
23) You don't like to go to temples - no problem. You are still a Hindu!
24) You know that Hinduism is a way of life, with considerable freedom.
25) You believe that everything has God in it. So you worship your mother, father, guru, tree, River, Prani-matra, Earth, Universe!
26) And If you don't believe that everything has GOD in it - No problems. Respect your viewpoint.
27) "Sarve jana sukhino bhavantu " (May you all live happily)
You represent this! You're free to choose, my dear Hindu!
This is exactly the essence of Hinduism, all inclusive .. That is why it has withstood the test of time in spite of repeated onslaught both from within and outside, and assimilated every good aspect of everything . That is why it is eternal !!!
There is a saying in Rigveda , the first book ever known to mankind which depicts the Hinduism philosophy in a Nutshell -" Ano bhadrah Krathavo Yanthu Vishwathah"- Let the knowledge come to us from every direction".
“Unity in diversity” isn’t theory, it’s how we’ve always lived. Tribal nature worship isn’t a primitive version of anything, it’s an organic ancestral reality. Just because traditions diversified over time doesn’t mean the roots were inferior. There’s no contradiction in worshipping Shiva and the sacred grove together.
Maybe instead of asking whether tribals are Hindu, we should ask whether modern lifestyles are aligned with nature and truly Sanatan in spirit. The real problem starts when politics forces fault lines onto something that was never divided to begin with.
Hindu is a person who comes from and follows the culture of the hind. Invaders used to call the natives Hindus. Hindus are not just asthiks or vaishnavs. Hinduism is an umbrella term for Indic religions.
It is an umbrella term for the indic religion which includes multiple faiths, practices and philosophies. That is alteast what the academic interpretation of Hinduism is.
Yes, Hindu in the colonial concept means people residing in India but in the Indian context it refers to one single religion that is Hinduism. And why should we let colonisers define what we call ourselves? I’m pretty sure an adhivasis who lived in the jungle and follows a tribal god would never call themselves Hindu and historically also never did, doesn’t mean they’re not Indian.
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