Introduction » The term Hinduism
The English term Hinduism was coined by British writers in the first
decades of the 19th century and became familiar as a designator of
religious ideas and practices distinctive to India with the publication
of books such as Hinduism (1877) by Sir Monier Monier-Williams, the
notable Oxford scholar and author of an influential Sanskrit dictionary.
Initially it was an outsiders’ term, building on centuries-old usages of
the word Hindu. Early travelers to the Indus valley, beginning with the
Greeks and Persians, spoke of its inhabitants as “Hindu” (Greek: ‘indoi),
and, in the 16th century, residents of India themselves began very
slowly to employ the term to distinguish themselves from the Turks.
Gradually the distinction became primarily religious rather than ethnic,
geographic, or cultural.
Since the late 19th century, Hindus have reacted to the term Hinduism
in several ways. Some have rejected it in favour of indigenous
formulations. Those preferring Veda or Vedic religion want to embrace an
ancient textual core and the tradition of Brahman learning that
preserved and interpreted it. Those preferring sanatana dharma (“eternal
law”) emphasize a broader tradition of belief and practice (such as
worship through images, dietary codes, and the veneration of the cow)
that is not necessarily mediated by Brahmans (members of the highest
social class who are usually priests). Still others, perhaps the
majority, have simply accepted the term Hinduism or its analogues,
especially hindu dharma (Hindu moral and religious law), in various
Indic languages.
Since the early 20th century, textbooks on Hinduism have been written
by Hindus themselves, often under the rubric of sanatana dharma. These
efforts at self-explanation have been intended to set Hinduism on a par
with other religious traditions and to teach it systematically to Hindu
youths. They add a new layer to an elaborate tradition of explaining
practice and doctrine that dates to the 1st millennium bce. The roots of
this tradition can be traced back much farther—textually, to the schools
of commentary and debate preserved in epic and Vedic writings from the
2nd millennium bce; and visually, through artistic representations of
yakshas (luminous spirits associated with specific locales and natural
phenomena) and nagas (cobralike divinities), which were worshipped from
about 400 bce. The roots of the tradition are also sometimes traced back
to the female terra-cotta figurines found ubiquitously in excavations of
sites associated with the Indus valley civilization (3rd–2nd millennium
bce) and sometimes interpreted as goddesses. In recognition of this
ancient tradition of self-explanation, present-day Hindus often assert
that theirs is the world’s oldest religion.
Introduction » General nature of Hinduism
More strikingly than any other major religious community, Hindus
accept—and indeed celebrate—the organic, multileveled, and sometimes
internally inconsistent nature of their tradition. This expansiveness is
made possible by the widely shared Hindu view that truth or reality
cannot be encapsulated in any creedal formulation, a perspective
expressed in the Hindu prayer “May good thoughts come to us from all
sides.” Thus, Hinduism maintains that truth must be sought in multiple
sources, not dogmatically proclaimed.
Anyone’s view of the truth—even that of a guru regarded as possessing
superior authority—is fundamentally conditioned by the specifics of
time, age, gender, state of consciousness, social and geographic
location, and stage of attainment. These multiple perspectives enhance a
broad view of religious truth rather than diminish it; hence, there is a
strong tendency for contemporary Hindus to affirm that tolerance is the
foremost religious virtue. On the other hand, even cosmopolitan Hindus
living in a global environment recognize and value the fact that their
religion has developed in the specific context of the Indian
subcontinent. Such a tension between universalist and particularist
impulses has long animated the Hindu tradition. When Hindus speak of
their religious identity as sanatana dharma, a formulation made popular
late in the 19th century, they emphasize its continuous, seemingly
eternal (sanatana) existence and the fact that it describes a web of
customs, obligations, traditions, and ideals (dharma) that far exceeds
the Western tendency to think of religion primarily as a system of
beliefs. A common way in which English-speaking Hindus often distance
themselves from that frame of mind is to insist that Hinduism is not a
religion but a way of life.
Introduction » The five tensile strands
Across the sweep of Indian religious history, at least five elements
have given shape to the Hindu religious tradition: doctrine, practice,
society, story, and devotion. These five elements, to adopt a typical
Hindu metaphor, are understood as relating to one another as strands in
an elaborate braid. Moreover, each strand develops out of a history of
conversation, elaboration, and challenge. Hence, in looking for what
makes the tradition cohere, it is sometimes better to locate central
points of tension than to expect clear agreements on Hindu thought and
practice.
Introduction » The five tensile strands » Doctrine
The first of the five strands of Hinduism is doctrine, as expressed in a
vast textual tradition anchored to the Veda (“Knowledge”), the oldest
core of Hindu religious utterance, and organized through the centuries
primarily by members of the learned Brahman class. Here several
characteristic tensions appear. One concerns the status of the One in
relation to the Many—issues of polytheism, monotheism, and monism.
Another tension concerns the disparity between the world-preserving
ideal of dharma and that of moksha (release from an inherently flawed
world). A third tension exists between individual destiny, as shaped by
karma (the influence of one’s actions on one’s present and future
lives), and the individual’s deep bonds to family, society, and the
divinities associated with these concepts.
Introduction » The five tensile strands » Practice
The second strand in the fabric of Hinduism is practice. Many Hindus, in
fact, would place this first. Despite India’s enormous diversity, a
common grammar of ritual behaviour connects various places, strata, and
periods of Hindu life. While it is true that various elements of Vedic
ritual survive in modern practice and thereby serve a unifying function,
much more influential commonalities appear in the worship of icons or
images (pratima, murti, or arca). Broadly, this is called puja (“honouring
[the deity]”). It echoes conventions of hospitality that might be
performed for an honoured guest, especially the giving and sharing of
food. Such food is called prasada (Hindi, prasad: “grace”), reflecting
the recognition that when human beings make offerings to deities, the
initiative is not really theirs. They are actually responding to the
generosity that bore them into a world fecund with life and possibility.
The divine personality installed as a home or temple image receives
prasada, tasting it (Hindus differ as to whether this is a real or
symbolic act, gross or subtle) and offering the remains to worshipers.
Consuming these leftovers, worshipers accept their status as beings
inferior to and dependent upon the divine. An element of tension arises
because the logic of puja and prasada seems to accord all humans an
equal status with respect to God, yet exclusionary rules have often been
sanctified rather than challenged by prasada-based ritual. Specifically,
lower-caste people and those perceived as outsiders or carriers of
pollution have historically been forbidden to enter certain Hindu
temples, a practice that continues even today.
Introduction » The five tensile strands » Society
The third strand that has served to organize Hindu life is society.
Early visitors to India from Greece and China and, later, others such as
the Persian scholar and scientist al-Bīrūnī, who traveled to India in
the early 11th century, were struck by the highly stratified (if locally
variant) social structure that has come to be called familiarly the
caste system. While it is true that there is a vast disparity between
the ancient vision of society as divided into four ideal classes
(varnas) and the contemporary reality of thousands of endogamous
birth-groups (jatis, literally “births”), few would deny that Indian
society is notably plural and hierarchical. This fact has much to do
with an understanding of truth or reality as being similarly plural and
multilayered—though it is not clear whether the influence has proceeded
chiefly from religious doctrine to society or vice versa. Seeking its
own answer to this conundrum, a well-known Vedic hymn (Rigveda 10.90)
describes how, at the beginning of time, a primordial person underwent a
process of sacrifice that produced a four-part cosmos and its human
counterpart, a four-part social order comprising Brahmans (priests),
Kshatriyas (nobles), Vaishyas (commoners), and Sudras (servants).
The social domain, like the realms of religious practice and
doctrine, is marked by a characteristic tension. There is the view that
each person or group approaches truth in a way that is necessarily
distinct, reflecting its own perspective. Only by allowing each to speak
and act in such terms can a society constitute itself as a proper
representation of truth or reality. Yet this context-sensitive habit of
thought can too easily be used to legitimate social systems based on
privilege and prejudice. If it is believed that no standards apply
universally, one group can too easily justify its dominance over
another. Historically, therefore, certain Hindus, while espousing
tolerance at the level of doctrine, have practiced intolerance—i.e.,
caste discrimination—in the social realm. Responding to such oppression,
especially when justified by allegedly Hindu norms, lower-caste groups
have sometimes insisted, “We are not Hindus!” Yet their own communities
may enact similar inequities, and their religious practices and beliefs
often continue to tie them to the greater Hindu fold.
Introduction » The five tensile strands » Story
Another dimension drawing Hindus into a single community of discourse is
narrative. For at least two millennia, people in almost all corners of
India—and now well beyond—have responded to stories of divine play and
of interactions between gods and humans. These stories concern major
figures in the Hindu pantheon: Krishna and his lover Radha, Rama and his
wife Sita and brother Lakamana, Shiva and his consort Parvati (or, in a
different birth, Sati), and the Great Goddess Durga, or Devi as a slayer
of the buffalo demon Mahisasura. Often such narratives illustrate the
interpenetration of the divine and human spheres, with deities such as
Krishna and Rama entering entirely into the human drama. Many tales
focus in different degrees on genealogies of human experience, forms of
love, and the struggle between order and chaos or between duty and play.
In generating, performing, and listening to these stories, Hindus have
often experienced themselves as members of a single imagined family.
Yet, simultaneously, these narratives serve to articulate tensions.
Thus, the Ramayana, traditionally a testament of Rama’s righteous
victories, is sometimes told by women performers as the story of Sita’s
travails at Rama’s hands. South Indian performances may emphasize the
virtues of Rama’s enemy Ravana as equal to or even surpassing those of
Rama himself. And in North India lower-caste musicians present religious
epics such as Alha or Dhola in terms that reflect their own experience
of the world rather than the upper-caste milieu of the great Sanskrit
religious epic the Mahabharata, which these epics nonetheless echo. To
the broadly known pan-Hindu, male-centred narrative traditions, these
variants provide both resonance and challenge.
Introduction » The five tensile strands » Devotion
There is a fifth strand that contributes to the unity of Hindu
experience through time: bhakti (“sharing” or “devotion”), a broad
tradition of a loving God that is especially associated with the lives
and words of vernacular poet-saints throughout India. Devotional poems
attributed to these inspired figures, who represent both genders and all
social classes, have elaborated a store of images and moods to which
access can be had in a score of languages; bhakti verse first appeared
in Tamil in South India and moved northward into other regions with
different languages. Individual poems are sometimes strikingly similar
from one language or century to another, without there being any trace
of mediation through the pan-Indian, distinctly upper-caste language
Sanskrit. Often, individual motifs in the lives of bhakti poet-saints
also bear strong family resemblances. With its central affirmation that
religious enthusiasm is more fundamental than rigidities of practice or
doctrine, bhakti provides a common challenge to other aspects of Hindu
life. At the same time, it contributes to a common Hindu heritage—even a
common heritage of protest. Yet certain expressions of bhakti are far
more confrontational than others in their criticism of caste, image
worship, and the performance of vows, pilgrimages, and acts of
self-mortification.
Introduction » Central conceptions
In the following sections, various aspects of this complex whole will be
addressed, relying primarily on a historical perspective of the
development of the Hindu tradition. This approach has its costs, for it
may seem to give priority to aspects of the tradition that appear in its
earliest extant texts. These texts owe their preservation mainly to the
labours of upper-caste men, especially Brahmans, and often reveal far
too little about the perspectives of others. They should be read,
therefore, both with and against the grain, with due attention paid to
silences and absent rebuttals on behalf of women, regional communities,
and people of low status—all of whom nowadays call themselves Hindus or
identify with groups that can sensibly be placed within the broad Hindu
span.
Introduction » Central conceptions » Veda, Brahmans, and issues of
religious authority
For members of the upper castes, a principal characteristic of Hinduism
has traditionally been a recognition of the Veda, the most ancient body
of Indian religious literature, as an absolute authority revealing
fundamental and unassailable truth. The Veda is also regarded as the
basis of all the later shastra texts, which stressed the religious
merits of the Brahmans—including, for example, the medical corpus known
as the Ayur Veda. Parts of the Veda are quoted in essential Hindu
rituals (such as the wedding ceremony), and it is the source of many
enduring patterns of Hindu thought, yet its contents are practically
unknown to most Hindus. Still, most Hindus venerate it from a distance,
and groups who reject its authority outright (such as Buddhists and
Jains) are regarded by Hindus as deviating from their common tradition.
Another characteristic of much Hindu thought is its special regard
for Brahmans as a priestly class possessing spiritual supremacy by
birth. As special manifestations of religious power and as bearers and
teachers of the Veda, Brahmans have often been thought to represent an
ideal of ritual purity and social prestige. Yet this has also been
challenged, either by competing claims to religious authority—especially
from kings and other rulers—or by the view that Brahmanhood is a status
attained by depth of learning, not birth. Evidence of both these
challenges can be found in Vedic literature itself, especially the
Upanishads (speculative religious texts that provide commentary on the
Vedas), and bhakti literature is full of vignettes in which the
small-mindedness of Brahmans is contrasted with true depth of religious
experience, as exemplified by poet-saints such as Kabir and Ravidas.
Introduction » Central conceptions » Doctrine of atman-brahman
Most Hindus believe in brahman, an uncreated, eternal, infinite,
transcendent, and all-embracing principle. Brahman contains in itself
both being and nonbeing, and it is the sole reality—the ultimate cause,
foundation, source, and goal of all existence. As the All, brahman
either causes the universe and all beings to emanate from itself,
transforms itself into the universe, or assumes the appearance of the
universe. Brahman is in all things and is the self (atman) of all living
beings. Brahman is the creator, preserver, or transformer and reabsorber
of everything. Hindus differ, however, as to whether this ultimate
reality is best conceived as lacking attributes and qualities—the
impersonal brahman—or as a personal God, especially Vishnu, Shiva, or
Shakti (these being the preferences of adherents called Vaishnavas,
Shaivas, and Shaktas, respectively). Belief in the importance of the
search for a One that is the All has been a characteristic feature of
India’s spiritual life for more than 3,000 years.
Introduction » Central conceptions » Karma, samsara, and moksha
Hindus generally accept the doctrine of transmigration and rebirth and
the complementary belief in karma. The whole process of rebirth, called
samsara, is cyclic, with no clear beginning or end, and encompasses
lives of perpetual, serial attachments. Actions generated by desire and
appetite bind one’s spirit (jiva) to an endless series of births and
deaths. Desire motivates any social interaction (particularly when
involving sex or food), resulting in the mutual exchange of good and bad
karma. In one prevalent view, the very meaning of salvation is
emancipation (moksha) from this morass, an escape from the impermanence
that is an inherent feature of mundane existence. In this view the only
goal is the one permanent and eternal principle: the One, God, brahman,
which is totally opposite to phenomenal existence. People who have not
fully realized that their being is identical with brahman are thus seen
as deluded. Fortunately, the very structure of human experience teaches
the ultimate identity between brahman and atman. One may learn this
lesson by different means: by realizing one’s essential sameness with
all living beings, by responding in love to a personal expression of the
divine, or by coming to appreciate that the competing attentions and
moods of one’s waking consciousness are grounded in a transcendental
unity—one has a taste of this unity in the daily experience of deep,
dreamless sleep.
Introduction » Central conceptions » Dharma and the three paths
Hindus disagree about the best way (marga) to attain such release. The
Bhagavadgita (“Song of the Lord”; c. 100 ce), an extremely influential
Hindu text, presents three paths to salvation: the karma-marga (“path of
duties”), the disinterested discharge of ritual and social obligations;
the jnana-marga (“path of knowledge”), the use of meditative
concentration preceded by long and systematic ethical and contemplative
training (Yoga) to gain a supraintellectual insight into one’s identity
with brahman; and the bhakti-marga (“path of devotion”), love for a
personal God. These ways are regarded as suited to various types of
people, but they are interactive and potentially available to all.
Although the pursuit of moksha is institutionalized in Hindu life
through ascetic practice and the ideal of withdrawing from the world at
the conclusion of one’s life, many Hindus ignore such practices. The
Bhagavadgita states that because action is inescapable, the three paths
are better thought of as simultaneously achieving the goals of world
maintenance (dharma) and world release (moksha). Through the suspension
of desire and ambition and through a taste for the fruits (phala) of
one’s actions, one is enabled to float free of life while engaging it
fully. This matches the actual goals of most Hindus, which include
executing properly one’s social and ritual duties; supporting one’s
caste, family, and profession; and working to achieve a broader
stability in the cosmos, nature, and society. The designation of
Hinduism as sanatana dharma emphasizes this goal of maintaining personal
and universal equilibrium, while at the same time calling attention to
the important role played by the performance of traditional religious
practices in achieving that goal. Because no one person can occupy all
the social, occupational, and age-defined roles that are requisite to
maintaining the health of the life-organism as a whole, universal maxims
(e.g., ahimsa, the desire not to harm) are qualified by the
more-particular dharmas that are appropriate to each of the four major
varnas: Brahmans (priests), Kshatriyas (warriors and kings), Vaishyas
(the common people), and Sudras (servants). These four categories are
superseded by the more practically applicable dharmas appropriate to
each of the thousands of particular castes (jatis). And these, in turn,
are crosscut by the obligations appropriate to one’s gender and stage of
life (ashrama). In principle then, Hindu ethics is exquisitely
context-sensitive, and Hindus expect and celebrate a wide variety of
individual behaviours.
Introduction » Central conceptions » Ashramas: the four stages of life
European and American scholars have often overemphasized the so-called
“life-negating” aspects of Hinduism—the rigorous disciplines of Yoga,
for example. The polarity of asceticism and sensuality, which assumes
the form of a conflict between the aspiration for liberation and the
heartfelt desire to have descendants and continue earthly life,
manifests itself in Hindu social life as the tension between the
different goals and stages of life. For many centuries the relative
value of an active life and the performance of meritorious works
(pravritti), as opposed to the renunciation of all worldly interests and
activity (nivriti), has been a much-debated issue. While philosophical
works such as the Upanishads emphasized renunciation, the dharma texts
argued that the householder who maintains his sacred fire, begets
children, and performs his ritual duties well also earns religious
merit. Nearly 2,000 years ago these dharma texts elaborated the social
doctrine of the four ashramas (“abodes”). This concept was an attempt to
harmonize the conflicting tendencies of Hinduism into one system. It
held that a male member of any of the three higher classes should first
become a chaste student (brahmacharin); then become a married
householder (grihastha), discharging his debts to his ancestors by
begetting sons and to the gods by sacrificing; then retire (as a
vanaprastha), with or without his wife, to the forest to devote himself
to spiritual contemplation; and finally, but not mandatorily, become a
homeless wandering ascetic (sannyasin). The situation of the forest
dweller was always a delicate compromise that remained problematic on
the mythological level and was often omitted or rejected in practical
life.
Although the householder was often extolled—some authorities,
regarding studentship a mere preparation for this ashrama, went so far
as to brand all other stages inferior—there were always people who
became wandering ascetics immediately after studentship. Theorists were
inclined to reconcile the divergent views and practices by allowing the
ascetic way of life to those who were entirely free from worldly desire
(owing to the effects of restrained conduct in former lives), even if
they had not gone through the traditional prior stages.
The texts describing such life stages were written by men for men;
they paid scant attention to stages appropriate for women. The Manu-smriti
(200 bce–300 ce; Laws of Manu), for example, was content to regard
marriage as the female equivalent of initiation into the life of a
student, thereby effectively denying the student stage of life to girls.
Furthermore, in the householder stage, a woman’s purpose was summarized
under the heading of service to her husband. What we know of actual
practice, however, challenges the idea that these patriarchal norms were
ever perfectly enacted or that women entirely accepted the values they
presupposed. While some women became ascetics, many more focused their
religious lives on realizing a state of blessedness that was understood
to be at once this-worldly and expressive of a larger cosmic well-being.
Women have often directed the cultivation of the auspicious life-giving
force (shakti) they possess to the benefit of their husbands and
families, but, as an ideal, this force has independent status.
The history of Hinduism
The history of Hinduism in India can be traced to about 1500 bce.
Evidence of Hinduism’s early antecedents is derived from archaeology,
comparative philology, and comparative religion.
The history of Hinduism » Sources of Hinduism » Indo-European sources
The earliest literary source for the history of Hinduism is the Rigveda,
consisting of hymns that were composed chiefly during the last two or
three centuries of the 2nd millennium bce. The religious life reflected
in this text is not that of Hinduism but of an earlier sacrificial
religious system, generally known as Brahmanism or Vedism, which
developed in India among Indo-European-speaking peoples. This branch of
a related group of nomadic and seminomadic tribal peoples, originally
inhabiting the steppe country of southern Russia and Central Asia,
brought with them the horse and chariot and the Sanskrit language. Other
branches of these peoples penetrated into Europe, bringing with them the
Indo-European languages that developed into the chief language groups
now spoken there.
Before they entered the Indian subcontinent (c. 1500 bce), the Vedic
people were in close contact with the ancestors of the Iranians, as
evidenced by similarities between Sanskrit and the earliest surviving
Iranian languages. Thus, the religion of the Rigveda contains elements
from three evolutionary strata: an early element common to most of the
Indo-European tribes, a later element held in common with the early
Iranians, and an element acquired in the Indian subcontinent itself
after the main Vedic migrations. Hinduism arose from the continued
accretion of further elements derived from the original non-Vedic
inhabitants, from outside sources, and from the geniuses of individual
reformers in all periods.
Present-day Hinduism contains few direct survivals from its
Indo-European heritage. Some of the elements of the Hindu wedding
ceremony, notably the circumambulation of the sacred fire and the cult
of the domestic fire itself, are rooted in the remote Indo-European
past. The same is probably true of some aspects of the ancestor cult.
The Rigveda contains many other Indo-European elements, such as ritual
sacrifices and the worship of male sky gods, including the old sky god
Dyaus, whose name is cognate with those of Zeus of ancient Greece and
Jupiter of Rome (“Father Jove”). The Vedic heaven, the “world of the
fathers,” resembles the Germanic Valhalla and seems also to be an
Indo-European inheritance.
The history of Hinduism » Sources of Hinduism » Indo-European sources
» Indo-Iranian sources
The Indo-Iranian element in later Hinduism is chiefly found in the
ceremony of initiation, or “second birth” (upanayana), a rite also found
in Zoroastrianism. Performed by boys of the three “twice-born” upper
classes, it involves the tying of a sacred cord. Another example of
Indo-Iranian influence is the Vedic god Varuna. Although now an
unimportant sea god, Varuna, as portrayed in the Rigveda, possesses many
features of the Zoroastrian Ahura Mazdā (“Wise Lord”). Indo-Iranian
influence can also be seen in the hallucinogenic sacred drink soma,
which corresponds to the sacred haoma of Zoroastrianism.
The history of Hinduism » Sources of Hinduism » Indo-European sources
» Indigenous sources
Even in the earlier parts of the Rigveda, however, the religion displays
numerous specifically Indian features. Some of the chief gods, for
example, have no clear Indo-European or Indo-Iranian counterparts.
Although some of the new features may have evolved entirely within the
Vedic framework, it is generally presumed that many of them stem from
the influence of the indigenous inhabitants. The Vedic people may never
have been in direct contact with the civilization of the Indus valley in
its prime, but the religion of the valley’s culture undoubtedly
influenced them.
The history of Hinduism » Sources of Hinduism » Non-Indo-European
sources » The Dravidian hypothesis
Features of Hinduism that cannot be traced to the Rigveda are sometimes
ascribed to the influence of the original inhabitants, who are often
vaguely and incorrectly referred to as “Dravidians,” a term that refers
to a family of languages and not an ethnic group. Some scholars have
argued that the ruling classes of the Harappa culture (c. 2500–1700
bce), or the Indus civilization, spoke a Dravidian language and have
tentatively identified their script with that of a Dravidian language.
But there is little supporting evidence for this claim, and the presence
of Dravidian speakers throughout the whole subcontinent at any time in
history is not attested. Thus, although many aspects of Hinduism are
traceable to non-Vedic influence, not all of these aspects are borrowed
from “Dravidians.”
The history of Hinduism » Sources of Hinduism » Non-Indo-European
sources » Other sources
The Central Asian nomads who entered India in the two centuries before
and after the beginning of the Common Era might have influenced the
growth of devotional Hinduism out of Vedic religion. The Classical
Western world directly affected Hindu religious art, and several
features of Hinduism can be traced to Zoroastrianism. In more recent
centuries, the influence of Islam and Christianity on Hinduism can be
seen.
The history of Hinduism » Sources of Hinduism » Non-Indo-European
sources » The process of “Sanskritization”
The development of Hinduism can be interpreted as a constant interaction
between the religion of the upper social groups, represented by the
Brahmans, and the religion of other groups. From the time of the Vedas
(c. 1500 bce) the indigenous inhabitants of the subcontinent tended to
adapt their religious and social life to Brahmanic norms. This
development resulted from the desire of lower-class groups to rise on
the social ladder by adopting the ways and beliefs of the higher castes.
The process, sometimes called “Sanskritization,” began in Vedic times,
when non-Vedic chieftains accepted the ministrations of Brahmans and
thus achieved social status for themselves and their subjects. It was
probably the principal method by which Hinduism spread through the
subcontinent and into Southeast Asia. Sanskritization still continues in
the form of the conversion of tribal groups, and it is reflected by the
persistent tendency of low-caste Hindus to try to raise their status by
adopting high-caste customs, such as wearing the sacred cord and
becoming vegetarians, even though the castes have been officially
abolished.
If Sanskritization has been the main means of spreading Hinduism
throughout the subcontinent, the converse process, which has no
convenient label, has been one of the means whereby Hinduism has changed
and developed over the centuries. The Vedic people lived side by side
with the indigenous inhabitants of the subcontinent. The phallic emblem
of the god Shiva arose from a combination of the phallic aspects of the
Vedic god Indra and a non-Vedic icon of early popular fertility cults.
Many features of Hindu mythology and several of the lesser gods—such as
Ganesha, an elephant-headed god, and Hanuman, the monkey god—were
incorporated into Hinduism and assimilated into the appropriate Vedic
gods by this means. Similarly, the worship of many goddesses who are now
regarded as the consorts of the great male Hindu gods, as well as the
worship of individual unmarried goddesses, may have originally
incorporated the worship of non-Vedic local goddesses. Unorthodox
circles on the fringes of Brahmanic culture (probably in southern India)
were one of the important sources of the system of ecstatic devotional
religion known as bhakti. Thus, the history of Hinduism can be
interpreted as the imposition of orthoprax custom upon wider and wider
ranges of people and, complementarily, as the survival of features of
non-Vedic religions that gained strength steadily until they were
adapted by the Brahmans.
The history of Hinduism » The prehistoric period (3rd and 2nd millennia
bce) » Indigenous prehistoric religion
The prehistoric culture of the Indus valley arose in the latter
centuries of the 3rd millennium bce from the metal-using village
cultures of the region. There is considerable evidence of the material
life of the Indus people, but its interpretation remains a matter of
speculation until their writing is deciphered. Enough evidence exists,
however, to show that several features of later Hinduism may have had
prehistoric origins.
In most of the village cultures, small terra-cotta figurines of
women, found in large quantities, have been interpreted as icons of a
fertility deity whose cult was widespread in the Mediterranean area and
in western Asia from Neolithic times (c. 5000 bce) onward. This
hypothesis is strengthened by the fact that the goddess was apparently
associated with the bull—a feature also found in the ancient religions
farther west.
The history of Hinduism » The prehistoric period (3rd and 2nd millennia
bce) » Religion in the Indus valley civilization
The Harappa culture, located in what is now Pakistan, has produced much
evidence of what may have been a cult of a goddess and a bull. Figurines
of both occur, female figures being more common, while the bull appears
more frequently on the many steatite seals. A horned figure, possibly
with three faces, occurs on a few seals, and on one seal he is
surrounded by animals. A few male figurines, one apparently in a dancing
posture, may represent deities. No building has been discovered at any
Harappan site that can be positively identified as a temple, but the
Great Bath at Mohenjo-daro may have been used for ritual purposes, as
were the ghats (bathing steps on riverbanks) attached to later Hindu
temples. The presence of bathrooms in most of the houses and the
remarkable system of covered drains indicate a strong concern for
cleanliness that may have been related to concepts of ritual purity but
perhaps merely to ideas of hygiene.
Many seals show what may be religious and legendary themes that
cannot be interpreted with certainty, such as seals depicting trees next
to figures who may be divinities believed to reside in them. The bull is
often depicted standing before a sort of altar, and the horned figure
has been interpreted overconfidently as a prototype of the Hindu god
Shiva. Small conical objects have been interpreted as phallic emblems
like those that are also connected with Shiva in later Hinduism, though
they may have been pieces used in board games. Other interpretations of
the remains of the Harappa culture are even more speculative and, if
accepted, would indicate that many features of later Hinduism were
already in existence 4,000 years ago. The fact that Harappans buried
their dead with grave deposits, a practice not followed by the later
Hindus, suggests that they had some belief in an afterlife.
The history of Hinduism » The prehistoric period (3rd and 2nd millennia
bce) » Survival of archaic religious practices
Some elements of the religious life of current and past folk
religions—notably sacred animals, sacred trees (especially the pipal,
Ficus religiosa), and the use of small figurines for cult purposes—are
found in all parts of India and may have been borrowed from pre-Vedic
civilizations. On the other hand, these things are also commonly
encountered outside India, and therefore they may have originated
independently in Hinduism as well.
The history of Hinduism » The Vedic period (2nd millennium–7th century
bce)
The people of the early Vedic period left few material remains, but they
did leave a very important literary record called the Rigveda. Its 1,028
hymns are distributed throughout 10 books, of which the first and the
last are the most recent. A hymn usually consists of three sections: an
exhortation; a main part comprising praise of the deity, prayers, and
petition, with frequent references to the deity’s mythology; and a
specific request.
The Rigveda is not a unitary work, and its composition may have taken
several centuries. In its form at the time of its final edition, it
reflected a well-developed religious system. The date commonly given for
the final recension of the Rigveda is 1200 bce. During the next two or
three centuries it was supplemented by three other Vedas and still later
by Vedic texts called the Brahmanas and the Upanishads (see below
Vedas).
The history of Hinduism » Challenges to Brahmanism (6th–2nd century bce)
Indian religious life underwent great changes during the period 550–450
bce. This century was marked by the rise of breakaway sects of ascetics
who rejected traditional religion, denying the authority of the Vedas
and of the Brahmans and following teachers who claimed to have
discovered the secret of obtaining release from transmigration. By far
the most important of these figures were Siddhartha Gautama, called the
Buddha, and Vardhamana, called Mahavira (“Great Hero”), the founder of
Jainism. There were many other heterodox teachers who organized bands of
ascetic followers, and each group adopted a specific code of conduct.
They gained considerable support from ruling families and merchants. The
latter were growing in wealth and influence, and many of them were
searching for alternative forms of religious activity that would give
them a more significant role than did orthodox Brahmanism or that would
be less expensive to support.
The scriptures of the new religious movements throw some light on the
popular religious life of the period. The god Prajapati was widely
believed to be the highest god and the creator of the universe; Indra,
known chiefly as Shakra (“The Mighty One”), was second to him in
importance. The Brahmans were very influential, but there was opposition
to their large-scale animal sacrifices—on both philosophical and
economic grounds—and to their pretensions to superiority by virtue of
their birth. The doctrine of transmigration was by then generally
accepted, though a group of outright materialists—the Carvakas, or
Lokayatas—denied the survival of the soul after death. The ancestor
cult, part of the Indo-European heritage, was retained almost
universally, at least by the higher castes. Popular religious life
largely centred around the worship of local fertility divinities
(yakshas), cobra spirits (nagas), and other minor spirits in sacred
places such as groves. Although these sacred places were the main
centres of popular religious life, there is no evidence of any buildings
or images associated with them, and it appears that neither temples nor
large icons existed at the time.
About 500 bce asceticism became widespread, and increasing numbers of
intelligent young men “gave up the world” to search for release from
transmigration by achieving a state of psychic security. The orthodox
Brahmanical teachers reacted to these tendencies by devising the
doctrine of the four ashramas, which divided the life of the twice-born
after initiation into four stages: the brahmacharin (celibate religious
student); the grihastha (married householder); the vanaprastha (forest
dweller); and the sannyasin (wandering ascetic). This attempt to keep
asceticism in check by confining it to men of late middle age was not
wholly successful. Thereafter Hindu social theory centred on the concept
of varnashrama dharma, or the duties of the four classes (varnas) and
the four ashramas, which constituted the ideal that Hindus were
encouraged to follow.
The first great empire of India, the Mauryan empire, arose in the 3rd
century bce. Its early rulers were heterodox; Ashoka (reigned c. 265–238
bce), the third and most famous of the Mauryan emperors, was a professed
Buddhist. Although there is no doubt that Ashoka’s patronage of Buddhism
did much to spread that religion, his inscriptions recognize the
Brahmans as worthy of respect. Sentiments in favour of nonviolence
(ahimsa) and vegetarianism, much encouraged by the heterodox sects,
spread during the Mauryan period and were greatly encouraged by Ashoka.
A Brahmanic revival appears to have occurred with the fall of the
Mauryas. The orthodox religion itself, however, was undergoing change at
this time, as theistic tendencies developed around the gods Vishnu and
Shiva.
Inscriptions, iconographic evidence, and literary references reveal
the emergence of devotional theism in the 2nd century bce. Several brief
votive inscriptions refer to the god Vasudeva, who by this time was
widely worshipped in western India. At the end of the 2nd century,
Heliodorus, a Greek ambassador of King Antialcidas of Taxila (in
Pakistan), erected a large column in honour of Vasudeva at Besnagar in
Madhya Pradesh and recorded that he was a Bhagavata, a term used
specifically for the devotees of Vishnu. The identification of Vasudeva
with the old Vedic god Vishnu and, later, with Vishnu’s incarnation,
Krishna, was quickly accepted.
Near the end of the Mauryan period, the first surviving stone images
of Hinduism appear. Several large, simply carved figures survive,
representing not any of the great gods but rather yakshas, or local
chthonic divinities connected with water, fertility, and magic. The
original locations of these images are uncertain, but they were probably
erected in the open air in sacred enclosures. Temples are not clearly
attested in this period by either archaeology or literature. A few
fragmentary images thought to be those of Vasudeva and Shiva, the latter
in anthropomorphic form and in the form of a linga, or phallic emblem,
are found on coins of the 2nd and 1st centuries bce.
The history of Hinduism » Early Hinduism (2nd century bce–4th century
ce)
The centuries immediately preceding and following the dawn of the Common
Era were marked by the recension of the two great Sanskrit epics, the
Ramayana and the Mahabharata (the latter incorporating into it the
Bhagavadgita). The worship of Vishnu, incarnate as Krishna in the
Mahabharata and as Rama in the Ramayana, developed significantly during
this period (see below Epics and Puranas), as did the cult of Shiva, who
plays an active role in the Mahabharata.
The history of Hinduism » Early Hinduism (2nd century bce–4th century
ce) » The rise of the major sects: Vaishnavism, Shaivism, and Shaktism
The Vedic god Rudra gained importance from the end of the Rigvedic
period. In the Svetashvatara Upanishad, Rudra is for the first time
called Shiva and is described as the creator, preserver, and destroyer
of the universe. His followers are called on to worship him with
devotion (bhakti). The tendency for the laity to form themselves into
religious guilds or societies—evident in the case of the yaksha cults,
Buddhism, and Jainism—promoted the growth of devotional Vaishnavism and
Shaivism. These local associations of worshipers appear to have been a
principal factor in the spread of the new cults. Theistic ascetics are
less in evidence at this time, though a community of Shaivite monks, the
Pashupatas, existed by the 2nd or 3rd century ce.
The period between the fall of the Mauryan empire (c. 185 bce) and
the rise of the Gupta dynasty (c. 320 ce) was one of great change,
including the conquest of most of the area of Pakistan and parts of
western India by a succession of invaders. India was opened to influence
from the West as never before, not only by invaders but also through
flourishing maritime trade with the Roman Empire. The effects of the new
contacts were most obvious in art and architecture. The oldest
freestanding stone temple in the subcontinent has been excavated at
Taxila, near Rawalpindi, Pak. During the 1st century bce the Gandhara
school of sculpture arose in the same region and made use of Hellenistic
and Roman prototypes, mainly in the service of Buddhism. Hindu temples
of the period probably were made of wood, because no remains of them
have survived; however, literary evidence shows that they must have
existed.
By the time of the early Gupta empire the new theism had been
harmonized with the old Vedic religion, and two of the main branches of
Hinduism were fully recognized. The Vaishnavas had the support of the
Gupta emperors, who took the title paramabhagavata (“supreme devotee of
Vishnu”). Vishnu temples were numerous, and the doctrine of Vishnu’s
avatars (incarnations) was widely accepted. Of the 10 incarnations of
later Vaishnavism, however, only two seem to have been much worshipped
in the Gupta period (4th–6th century). These were Krishna, the hero of
the Mahabharata, who also begins to appear in his pastoral aspect as the
cowherd and flute player, and Varaha, the divine boar, of whom several
impressive images survive from the Gupta period.
The Shaivites were also a growing force in the religious life of
India. The sect of Pashupata ascetics, founded by Lakulisha (or
Nahulisha), who lived in the 2nd century ce, is attested by inscriptions
from the 5th century; it is among the earliest of the sectarian
religious orders of Hinduism. Representations of the son of Shiva,
Skanda (also called Karttikeya, the war god), appeared as early as 100
bce on coins from the Kushan dynasty, which ruled northern India,
Afghanistan, and Central Asia in the first three centuries of the Common
Era. Shiva’s other son, the elephant-headed Ganesha, patron deity of
commercial and literary enterprises, did not appear until the 5th
century. Very important in this period was Surya, the sun god, in whose
honour temples were built, though in modern times he is little regarded
by most Hindus. The solar cult had Vedic roots but later may have
expanded under Iranian influence.
Several goddesses gained importance in this period. Although
goddesses had always been worshipped in local and popular cults, they
play comparatively minor roles in Vedic religion. Lakshmi, or Shri,
goddess of fortune and consort of Vishnu, was worshipped before the
beginning of the Common Era, and several lesser goddesses are attested
from the Gupta period. But the cult of Durga, the consort of Shiva,
began to gain importance only in the 4th century, and the large-scale
development of Shaktism (devotion to the active, creative principle
personified as the mother goddess) did not take place until medieval
times.
The history of Hinduism » Early Hinduism (2nd century bce–4th century
ce) » The development of temples
The Gupta period was marked by the rapid development of temple
architecture. Earlier temples were made of wood, but freestanding stone
and brick temples soon appeared in many parts of India. By the 7th
century, stone temples, some of considerable dimensions, were found in
parts of the country. Originally, the design of the Hindu temples may
have borrowed from the Buddhist precedent, for in some of the oldest
temples the image was placed in the centre of the shrine, which was
surrounded by an ambulatory path resembling the path around a stupa (a
religious building containing a Buddhist relic). Nearly all surviving
Gupta temples are comparatively small; they consist of a small cella
(central chamber), constructed of thick and solid masonry, with a
veranda either at the entrance or on all sides of the building. The
earliest Gupta temples, such as the Buddhist temples at Sanchi, have
flat roofs; however, the sikhara (spire), typical of the North Indian
temple, was developed in this period and with time was steadily made
taller. The massive and tall tower of the Buddhist temple of Bodh Gaya,
which was in existence in the 7th century, represents the culmination of
Gupta temple architecture.
The Buddhists and Jains had made use of artificial caves for
religious purposes, and these were adapted by the Hindus. Hindu
cave-temples, however, are comparatively rare, and none have been
discovered from earlier than the Gupta period. In the Pallava site of
Mahabalipuram, south of Chennai (Madras), a number of small temples were
carved in the 7th century from outcroppings of rock; they represent some
of the oldest religious buildings in the Tamil country.
The history of Hinduism » Early Hinduism (2nd century bce–4th century
ce) » The spread of Hinduism in Southeast Asia and the Pacific
Hinduism and Buddhism exerted an enormous influence on the civilizations
of Southeast Asia and contributed greatly to the development of a
written tradition in that area. About the beginning of the Common Era,
Indian merchants in comparatively large numbers settled there, bringing
Brahmans and Buddhist monks with them. These religious men were
patronized by local chiefs, who converted to Hinduism or Buddhism. The
earliest material evidence of Hinduism in Southeast Asia comes from
Borneo, where late 4th-century Sanskrit inscriptions testify to the
performance of Vedic sacrifices by Brahmans at the behest of local
chiefs. Chinese chronicles attest an Indianized kingdom in Vietnam two
centuries earlier. The dominant form of Hinduism exported to Southeast
Asia was Shaivism, though some Vaishnavism was also known there. Later,
from the 9th century onward, Tantrism, both Hindu and Buddhist, spread
throughout the region.
The civilizations of Southeast Asia developed forms of Hinduism and
Buddhism that incorporated distinctive local features and in other
respects reflected local cultures, but the framework of their religious
life was essentially Indian. Stories from the Ramayana and the
Mahabharata became widely known in Southeast Asia and are still popular
there in local versions. The people of Bali (in Indonesia) still follow
a form of Hinduism adapted to their own genius. Versions of the
Manu-smriti were taken to Southeast Asia and were translated and adapted
to indigenous cultures until they lost most of their original content.
Claims of early Hindu contacts farther east are more doubtful. There
is little evidence of the influence of Hinduism on China and Japan,
which were primarily affected by Buddhism.
The history of Hinduism » Early Hinduism (2nd century bce–4th century
ce) » Indian religious influence in the Mediterranean world
Nearly as dubious as the question of Hindu influence on the religious
life of East Asia is its influence on that of the ancient Mediterranean
world. The Greek philosopher Pythagoras (c. 580–c. 500 bce) may have
obtained his doctrine of metempsychosis (transmigration, or passage of
the soul from one body to another; see reincarnation) from India,
mediated by Achaemenian (6th–4th century bce) Persia, but similar ideas
were known in Egypt and were certainly present in Greece before the time
of Pythagoras. The Pythagorean doctrine of a cyclic universe may also be
derived from India, but the Indian theory of cosmic cycles is not
attested in the 6th century bce. Nevertheless, it is known that Hindu
ascetics occasionally visited Greece. The most striking similarity
between Greek and Indian thought is the resemblance between the system
of mystical gnosis (esoteric knowledge) described in the Enneads of the
Neoplatonic philosopher Plotinus (205–270) and that of the Yoga-sutras
attributed to Patanjali, an Indian religious teacher sometimes dated in
the 2nd century ce. The Patanjali text is the older, and influence must
be suspected, though the problem of mediation remains difficult because
Plotinus gives no direct evidence of having known anything about Indian
mysticism. Several Greek and Latin writers (an example of the former
being Clement of Alexandria) show considerable knowledge of the
externals of Indian religions, but none gives any intimation of
understanding their more recondite aspects.
The history of Hinduism » The rise of devotional Hinduism (4th–11th
century)
The medieval period was characterized by the growth of new devotional
religious movements centred on hymnodists who taught in the popular
languages of the time. The new movements probably began with the
appearance of hymns in Tamil associated with two groups of poets: the
Nayanars, worshipers of Shiva, and the Alvars, devotees of Vishnu. The
oldest of these date from the early 7th century, though passages of
devotional character can be found in earlier Tamil literature.
The term bhakti, in the sense of devotion to a personal god, appears
in the Bhagavadgita and the Shvetashvatara Upanishad. In these early
sources it represents a devotion still somewhat restrained and
unemotional. The new form of bhakti, associated with singing in the
languages of the common people, was highly charged with emotion and
mystical fervour, and the relationship between worshiper and divinity
was often described as analogous to that between lover and beloved. The
Tamil saints, South Indian devotees of Vishnu or Shiva from the 6th to
the 9th century, felt an intense love (Tamil: anbu) toward their god.
They experienced overwhelming joy in his presence and deep sorrow when
he did not reveal himself. Some of them felt a profound sense of guilt
or inadequacy in the face of the divine. But the dominant emotion in
these poems is one of joy, often expressing itself in song and dance.
The poems have a strong ethical content and encourage the virtues of
love, humility, and brotherhood. The ideas of these poets, spreading
northward, probably were the origin of bhakti in northern India.
The devotional cults further weakened Buddhism, which had long been
on the decline. From time to time Hindus, especially Shaivites, took
aggressive action against Buddhism. At least two Shaivite kings—the
Hephthalite invader Mihirakula (early 6th century) and the Bengal king
Sasanka (early 7th century)—are reported to have destroyed monasteries
and killed monks. The philosophers Kumarila and Shankara were also
strongly opposed to Buddhism. In their journeys throughout India, their
biographies claim, they vehemently debated with Buddhists and tried to
persuade kings and other influential people to withdraw their support
from Buddhist monasteries. Only in Bihar and Bengal, because of the
patronage of the Pala dynasty and some lesser kings and chiefs, did
Buddhist monasteries continue to flourish. Buddhism in eastern India,
however, was well on the way to being reabsorbed into Hinduism when the
Muslims invaded the Ganges valley in the 12th century. The great
Buddhist shrine of Bodh Gaya, the site of the Buddha’s enlightenment,
became a Hindu temple and remained as such until recent times.
At the end of its existence in India, Buddhism developed in a way
that had some effect on Hinduism. Among the Buddhist Tantrists appeared
a new school of preachers, often known as Siddhas (“Those Who Have
Achieved”), who sang their verses in the contemporary languages, early
Maithili and Bengali. They taught that giving up the world was not
necessary for release from transmigration and that one could achieve the
highest state by living a life of simplicity in one’s own home. This
system, known as Sahajayana (“Vehicle of the Natural” or “Easy
Vehicle”), influenced both Bengali devotional Vaishnavism, which
produced a sect called Vaisnava-Sahajiya with similar doctrines, and the
Natha yogis (mentioned below), whose teachings influenced Kabir and
other later bhakti masters.
The history of Hinduism » Hinduism under Islam (11th–19th century) » The
challenge of Islam and popular religion
The advent of Islam in the Ganges basin at the end of the 12th century
resulted in the withdrawal of royal patronage from Hinduism in much of
the area. The attitude of the Muslim rulers toward Hinduism varied.
Some, like Fīrūz Tughluq (ruled 1351–88) and Aurangzeb (ruled
1658–1707), were strongly anti-Hindu and enforced payment of jizya, a
poll tax on unbelievers. Others, like the Bengali sultan Ḥusayn Shāh
ʿAlāʾ al-Dīn (reigned 1493–1519) and the great Akbar (reigned
1556–1605), were well-disposed toward their Hindu subjects. Many
temples, however, were destroyed by the more fanatical rulers.
Conversion to Islam was more common in areas where Buddhism had once
been strongest—Pakistan, Bangladesh, and Kashmir.
On the eve of the Muslim occupation, Hinduism was by no means sterile
in northern India, but its vitality was centred in the southern,
Dravidian-speaking areas. Throughout the centuries, the system of class
and caste had become more rigid; in each region there was a complex
hierarchy of castes strictly forbidden to intermarry or dine together,
controlled and regulated by secular powers who acted on the advice of
the court Brahmans. The large-scale Vedic sacrifices had practically
vanished, but simple domestic Vedic sacrifices continued, and new forms
of animal, and sometimes vegetable, sacrifice had appeared, especially
connected with the cult of the mother goddess.
By that time, the main divinities of later Hinduism were worshipped.
Rama, the hero of the epic poem, had become the eighth avatar of Vishnu,
and his cult was growing, though it was not yet as prominent as it later
became. Similarly, Rama’s monkey helper, Hanuman, now one of the most
popular divinities of India and the most ready helper in time of need,
was rising in importance. Krishna was worshipped with his adulterous
consort, Radha. Strange syncretic gods had appeared, such as Harihara, a
combination of Vishnu and Shiva, and Ardhanarishvara, a synthesis of
Shiva and his consort Shakti.
The history of Hinduism » Hinduism under Islam (11th–19th century) »
Temple complexes
From the Gupta period onward, Hindu temples became larger and more
prominent, and their architecture developed in distinctive regional
styles. In northern India the best remaining Hindu temples are found in
the Orissa region and in the town of Khajuraho in northern Madhya
Pradesh. The best example of Orissan temple architecture is the
Lingaraja temple of Bhubaneswar, built about 1000. The largest temple of
the region, however, is the famous Black Pagoda, the Sun Temple (Surya
Deula) of Konarak, built in the mid-13th century. Its tower has long
since collapsed, and only the assembly hall remains. The most important
Khajuraho temples were built during the 11th century. Individual
architectural styles also arose in Gujarat and Rajasthan, but their
surviving products are less impressive than those of Orissa and
Khajuraho. By the end of the 1st millennium ce the South Indian style
had reached its apogee in the great Rajarajeshvara temple of Thanjavur
(Tanjore).
In the temple the god was worshipped by the rites of puja
(reverencing a sacred being or object) as though the worshipers were
serving a great king. In the important temples a large staff of trained
officiants waited on the god. He was awakened in the morning along with
his goddess; washed, clothed, and fed; placed in his shrine to give
audience to his subjects; praised and entertained throughout the day;
and ceremoniously fed, undressed, and put to bed at night. Worshipers
sang, burned lamps, waved lights before the divine image, and performed
other acts of homage. The god’s handmaidens (devadasis) performed before
him at regular intervals, watched by the officiants and lay worshipers,
who were his courtiers. These women, either the daughters of devadasis
or girls dedicated in childhood, may have also served as prostitutes.
The association of dedicated prostitutes with certain Hindu shrines can
be traced back to before the Christian era. It became more widespread in
post-Gupta times, especially in South India, and aroused the reprobation
of 19th-century Europeans. Through the efforts of Hindu reformers, the
office of the devadasis was discontinued. The role of devadasis is best
understood in the context of the analogy between the temple and the
royal court, for the Hindu king also had his dancing girls, who bestowed
their favours on his courtiers.
Parallels between the temple and the royal palace also were in
evidence in the Rathayatras (Chariot Festivals). On festival days, when
the king issued from his palace and paraded around his city, escorted by
courtiers, troops, and musicians, the god also was paraded in a splendid
procession, together with the lesser gods of the minor shrines. The god
rode on a tremendous and ornate moving shrine (ratha), which was often
pulled by large bands of devotees. Rathayatras still take place in many
cities of India. The best-known is the annual procession of Jagannatha
(“Juggernaut”), a form of Vishnu, at Puri, Orissa.
The great temples were (and still are) wealthy institutions. They
were supported by the transfer of the taxes levied by kings on specific
areas of the nearby countryside, by donations of the pious, and by the
fees of worshipers. Their immense wealth was one of the factors that
encouraged the Ghaznavid and Ghūrid Turks to invade India after the 11th
century. The temples were controlled by self-perpetuating
committees—whose membership was usually a hereditary privilege—and by a
large staff of priests and temple servants under a high priest who
wielded tremendous power and influence.
In keeping with their wealth, the great walled temple complexes of
South India were (and still are) small cities, containing the central
and numerous lesser shrines, bathing tanks, administrative offices,
homes of the temple employees, workshops, bazaars, and public buildings
of many kinds. As some of the largest employers and greatest landowners
in their areas, the temples played an important part in the economy.
They also performed valuable social functions, serving as schools,
dispensaries, poorhouses, banks, and concert halls.
The temple complexes suffered during the Muslim occupation. In the
sacred cities of Varanasi (Benares) and Mathura, no large temple from
any period before the 17th century has survived. The same is true of
most of the main religious centres of northern India but not of the
regions where the Muslim hold was less firm, such as Orissa, Rajasthan,
and South India. Despite the widespread destruction of the temples,
Hinduism endured, in part because of the absence of a centralized
authority; rituals and sacrifices were performed in places other than
temples. The purohitas, or family priests who performed the domestic
rituals and personal sacraments for the laypeople, continued to
function, as did the thousands of ascetics.
The history of Hinduism » The modern period (19th–21st century) » The
struggle for independence
The Hindu revival and reform movements of the 19th and early 20th
centuries were closely linked with the growth of Indian nationalism and
the struggle for independence. The Arya Samaj strongly encouraged
nationalism, and, even though Vivekananda and the Ramakrishna Mission
were always uncompromisingly nonpolitical, their effect in promoting the
movement for self-government is quite evident.
Religion and politics were joined in the career of Bal Gangadhar
Tilak, an orthodox Maharashtrian Brahman who believed that the people of
India could be aroused only by appeals couched in religious terms. Tilak
used the annual festival of the god Ganesha for nationalist propaganda.
His interpretation of the Bhagavadgita as a call to action was also a
reflection of his nationalism, and through his mediation the scripture
inspired later leaders, including Mahatma Gandhi.
Hindu religious concepts were also enlisted in the nationalist cause
in Bengal. In his historical novel Anandamath (1882), the Bengali writer
Bankim Chandra Chatterjee described a band of martial ascetics who were
pledged to free India from Muslim domination under the Mughal empire.
They took as their anthem a stirring devotional song written in simple
Sanskrit— "Bande Mataram" (“I Revere the Mother”)—whose title referred
both to the fierce demon-destroying goddess Kali and to India itself.
This song was soon adopted by other nationalists. Vivekananda emphasized
the need to turn the emotion of bhakti toward the suffering poor of
India. During his short career as a revolutionary, Shri Aurobindo made
much use of "Bande Mataram," and he called on his countrymen to strive
for the freedom of India in a spirit of devotion. The bhakti of the
medieval poets was thus enlisted in the cause of modern independence.
The history of Hinduism » The modern period (19th–21st century) » The
struggle for independence » Mahatma Gandhi
Much influenced by the bhakti of his native Gujarat and fortified by
similar attitudes in Christianity and Jainism, Mahatma Gandhi, the most
important leader in the movement for independence, appeared to his
followers as the quintessence of the Hindu tradition. His austere
celibate life was one that the Indian laity had learned to respect
implicitly. Gandhi’s message reached a wider public than that of any of
the earlier reformers.
Gandhi’s doctrine of nonviolence can be found in many Hindu sources,
although his beliefs were much strengthened by Christian ethical
literature and especially by the later writings of Leo Tolstoy. His
political technique of passive resistance, satyagraha, also has Indian
precedents, but here again he was influenced by Western writers such as
the American Henry David Thoreau. The chief innovations in Gandhi’s
philosophy were his belief in the dignity of manual labour and in the
equality of women. Precedents for both of these can be found in the
writings of some 19th-century reformers, but they have little basis in
earlier Indian thought. In many ways Gandhi was a traditionalist. His
respect for the cow—which he and other educated Indians understood as
the representative of Mother Earth—was a factor in the failure of his
movement to attract large-scale Muslim support. His insistence on strict
vegetarianism and celibacy among his disciples, in keeping with the
traditions of Vaishnava asceticism, also caused difficulty among some of
his followers. Still, Gandhi’s success represented a political
culmination of the movement of popular bhakti begun in South India early
in the Christian era.
Gandhi’s mantle fell on Vinoba Bhave, one of the Mahatma’s most
devoted Maharashtrian supporters. For some years after independence,
Vinoba led a campaign of social service that culminated in the Bhudan
Yanja, a land-giving movement, which persuaded many landowners and
wealthy peasants to give fields to landless labourers. This movement had
some success in rural areas but gradually lost momentum. Although the
memory of Gandhi continues to be revered by most Indians, his policies
and principles carry little weight. The great bulk of social service is
performed by government agencies rather than by voluntary bodies,
whether Gandhian or other.
The history of Hinduism » The modern period (19th–21st century) » The
struggle for independence » The religious situation after independence
Increasing nationalism, especially after the division of India into
India and Pakistan in 1947, led to a widening of the gulf between Hindus
and Muslims. In the early 1970s Indian scholars painted the relations of
the two religions in earlier centuries as friendly, blaming alien rule
for the division of India. In Pakistan the tendency has been to insist
that Hindus and Muslims have always been “two nations” and that the
Hindus nevertheless were happy under their Muslim rulers. Neither
position is correct. In earlier times there was much mutual influence.
But the conservative element in Indian Islam gained the upper hand long
before British power was consolidated in India.
One of the pioneers of nationalism, Tilak, glorified the
Maharashtrian hero Shivaji as the liberator of India from the alien yoke
of the Mughals; and Bankim Chandra Chatterjee’s militant ascetics, who
pledged to conquer and expel the Muslims, sang a battle hymn that no
orthodox Muslim could repeat. British rulers of India did little or
nothing to lessen Hindu-Muslim tension, and their policy of separate
electorates for the two communities worsened the situation. Many leaders
of the Indian National Congress movement, such as Jawaharlal Nehru,
carried their Hinduism lightly and favoured a secular approach to
politics; the majority, however, followed the lead of Gandhi. Although
to the right of the Congress politically, the Hindu Mahasabha, a
nationalist group formed to give Hindus a stronger voice in politics,
did not oppose nonviolence in its drive to establish a Hindu state in
India.
The transfer of power in 1947 was accompanied by slaughter and
pillage of huge proportions. Millions of Hindus left their homes in
Pakistan for India, and millions of Muslims migrated in the opposite
direction. The tension culminated in the assassination of Gandhi by a
Hindu fanatic in January 1948.
The policy of the new Indian government was to establish a secular
state, and the successive governments have broadly kept to this policy.
The governments of the Indian states, however, have not been so
restricted by constitutional niceties. Some state governments have
introduced legislation of a specifically Hindu character. On the other
hand, the Congress governments have passed legislation more offensive to
Hindu traditional prejudices than anything the British Indian government
would have dared to enact. For example, all forms of discrimination
against “untouchables” (now usually referred to by euphemisms such as
“Harijans,” or “people of God,” instead of the British euphemism
“scheduled castes”) are forbidden, although it has been impossible to
enforce the law in every case. A great blow to conservatism was dealt by
legislation in 1955 and 1956 that gave full rights of inheritance to
widows and daughters, enforced monogamy, and permitted divorce on quite
easy terms. The 1961 law forbidding dowries further undermined
traditional Hinduism. Although the dowry has long been a tremendous
burden to the parents of daughters, the strength of social custom is
such that the law cannot be fully enforced.
The social structure of traditional Hinduism is slowly crumbling in
the cities. Intercaste and interreligious marriages are becoming more
frequent among the educated, although some aspects of the caste system
show remarkable vitality, especially in the matter of appointments and
elections. The bonds of the tightly knit Hindu joint family are also
weakening, a process helped by legislation and the emancipation of
women. The professional priests, who perform rituals for laypeople in
homes or at temples and sacred sites, complain of the lack of custom,
and their numbers are diminishing.
Nevertheless, Hinduism is far from dying. Mythological films, once
the most popular form of entertainment, are enjoying a renaissance.
Organizations such as the Ramakrishna Mission flourish and expand their
activities. New teachers appear from time to time and attract
considerable followings. Militant fundamentalist Hindu organizations
such as the Society for the Self-Service of the Nation (Rashtriya
Svayamsevak Sangh; RSS) are steadily growing. Such movements can be seen
as the cause or the result, or both, of persistent outbreaks of communal
religious violence between Hindus and Sikhs in North India, between
Tamil Hindus and Sri Lankan Buddhists in Sri Lanka, between Tamil
extremists and moderates in Tamil Nadu, and between Hindus and Muslims
everywhere.
The adaptability of Hinduism to changing conditions is illustrated by
the appearance in the Hindu pantheon of a new divinity, of special
utility in an acquisitive society. This is the goddess Santosi Mata,
first worshipped widely by women in many cities of Uttar Pradesh and now
worshipped throughout India, largely as the result of a popular
mythological film about her birth and the origin of her worship. The new
goddess was unheard-of a few years ago and has no basis in any Puranic
myth. Propitiated by comparatively simple and inexpensive rites
performed in the home without the intervention of a priest, Santosi, it
is believed, grants practical and obvious blessings, such as a promotion
for an overworked husband or a new household appliance. News of
Santosi’s blessings is passed from housewife to housewife, and even
moderately well-educated women have become her devotees.
On both the intellectual and the popular level, Hinduism is thus in
the process of adapting itself to new values and new conditions brought
about by mass education and industrialization. In these respects it is
responding to 21st-century challenges.
The history of Hinduism » The modern period (19th–21st century) »
Hinduism outside India
Since the latter part of the 19th century, large Hindu communities have
been established in East Africa, Malaysia, the islands of the Pacific
Ocean and the Indian Ocean, and some islands of the West Indies. Members
of these communities have adhered to their religion faithfully for
several generations. In the late 20th century they were aided by Hindu
missionaries, chiefly from the Arya Samaj or the Ramakrishna Mission.
Since World War II many Hindus have also settled in the United Kingdom,
and after 1965 many began settling in the United States. Although the
earliest migrants were comparatively uneducated, many of the émigrés of
the late 20th century were highly skilled and well-educated
professionals.
Contemporary Western culture is ready to accept Eastern religious
ideas in a way that is unprecedented since the days of the Roman Empire.
A recent manifestation of the spread of Indian religious attitudes in
the Western world is the Hare Krishna movement, officially known as the
International Society for Krishna Consciousness (ISKCON), with its
principal office in Los Angeles. This is essentially a bhakti movement,
broadly following the precedents of Caitanya (1485–1533), a mystic poet
and worshipper of Krishna whose practices have influenced devotional
Hinduism. Since its foundation by a Hindu sannyasin (wandering ascetic),
A.C. Bhaktivedanta (Prabhupada), in 1965, its growth has been
surprising, and sankirtana (devotional singing and dancing) can be seen
in the streets of New York City and London, performed by young men and
women from Christian or Jewish homes wearing dhotis and saris. These
manifestations are part of a process that began in 1784 with the first
English translation of a Hindu religious text, Charles Wilkins’s version
of the Bhagavadgita.
Hinduism is not by nature a proselytizing religion, however, in part
because of its inextricable roots in the social system and the land of
India. In the late 20th century many new gurus, such as Bhagwan Shree
Rajneesh and Satya Sai Baba, were successful in making converts in
Europe and the United States. The very success of these gurus, however,
has produced material profits that many people regard as incompatible
with the ascetic attitude appropriate to a Hindu spiritual leader; in
some cases, the profits have led to notoriety and even legal
prosecution. That Hinduism is flourishing in India is obvious; that it
has made, and can continue to make, a genuine contribution to Western
religious thought is undeniable; that the invasion of the gurus is a
part of that contribution is highly debatable.
In the early 21st century the Hindu diaspora in the United States has
greatly increased in a number of cities, and wealthy Hindu communities
have built large temples and endowed chairs in South Asian studies at
major universities. Local Hindu organizations have brought pressure on
schools to change the presentation of Hinduism in history textbooks.
Internet listserves and blogs have forged ties between Hindus throughout
the country, and globalization, which once meant the influence of
American culture on Hindus in India, has now reversed its flow, with
Yoga teachers, Bollywood movies, and a new generation of gurus such as
Anandamayi Ma bringing a particular brand of Hinduism to the United
States.
Arthur Llewellyn Basham
J.A.B. van Buitenen
Wendy Doniger
(Encyclopaedia Britannica)
