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Hindu Dharma, popularly called Hinduism, is the religion of over a billion
Hindus, who mostly live in India, but have large populations in many other
countries. Hindu Dharma is also known as Vaidika Dharma, meaning "religion
of the Vedas," the ancient Hindu scriptures. The original name of
Hindu Dharma is Sanãtana Dharma, or "universal religion.
Unlike other religions, Hindu Dharma did not originate from a single
person, a single book, or at a single point in time. The founda-tions
of this oldest surviving religion were laid by ancient rishis (sages),
who taught their disciples the eternal principles of life they had discovered
through their meditations The rishis did not claim authorship of these
spiritual principles. Although some names are mentioned in scriptures,
nobody knows exactly who these people were or when they lived. Thus Hindu
Dharma is essentially a religion of principles rather than persons.
Hindu Dharma is analogous to a fruit tree, with its roots representing
the Vedas and the Upanishads, the thick trunk symbolizing the spiritual
experiences of numerous sages and saints, its branches representing various
theological traditions, and the fruit itself, in different shapes and
sizes, symbolizing various sects and subsects.
Although there is no hard and fast line between one period and the next,
the evolution of Hindu Dharma may be divided into three periods: the ancient
(6500 BCE-1000 AD), the medieval (1000-1800 AD), and the modern (1800
AD to present). The major evolutionary milestones during these periods
are summarized in the following table:
| Date |
Activity |
| - 6500(minus denotes BCE) |
Composition of the early Rig Vedic hymns (according to David Frawley,
a Vedic scholar from the US). Current archeological evidence shows
that Shiva worship existed in the Indus Valley Civilization in approximately
6000 BCE.1 |
| - 5000 |
Beginning of the Indus Valley Civilization of Harappa and Mohenjo-daro,
that climaxed in 3700 BCE and ended in 1500 BCE due to natural causes. |
| - 4700 |
Period of Lord Rãma and sage vãlmiki. |
| - 3138 |
The Mahãbhãrata war took place in 3138 BCE and the
Bhagavad Gîtã was recorded during this war.2 The Vãyu
Purãna (a Hindu scripture) states that Lord Krishna entered
into mahãsamãdhi (yogi's conscious exit from the body)
36 years after the war and Kaliyuga began on his mahãsamãdhi. |
| - 2609 |
Period of Sage Vishvãmitra, in whose reign a majority of
the Vedic hymns were composed. The Yajur and Atharva Vedas were composed
around 2400 BCE. |
| - 2393 |
King Bhãrata, an ancient king and sage (the 44th in the Purãnic
list of kings and sages) was born. The original name of India is Bhãrat,
after the name of this ancient king.
- 1450 End of narration of the Vedic Samhitãs. |
| - 500 to 200 AD |
The Bhagavad Gîtã was compiled between BCE 500-200.
Nyãya, Sãnkhya, and Brahma Sûtras were recorded,
which later gave birth to six popular schools of Hindu philosophy.
Buddhism and Jainism also developed during this period. |
| 200 to 750 |
Final versions of Purãnas, Tantras, and other sectarian literature
were developed. |
| 750 to1000 |
Development of six popular schools of religious thought, establishment
of Shankara's Advaita Vedãnta, and decline of Buddhism are
the main landmarks of this period. |
| 1000 to 1800 |
This period saw the rise of devotional movements led by Rãmãnuja,
Ramãnanda, Tukarãm, Guru Nãnak, Surdãs,
Chaitanya, Mirãbai, Tulsî Dãs, and many other
saints. |
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Modern Hindu Renaissance (post 1800 AD)
During the domination of India by foreign rule, many social
and religious vices appeared in Hindu society in India. There were many
leaders of the modern Hindu renaissance including the following saints,
scholars, social and religious reformers, who brought the society back
into the tradition of Hindu Dharma:
- Ram Mohan Roy (1772-1833), a social and religious reformer, and founder
of the Brahmo Samãj.
- Swami Dayãnanda (1824-1883), a saint, Vedic scholar, social
and religious reformer, and founder of the Ãrya Samãj.
- Mrs. Annie Besant (1847-1933), an Englishwoman, translated and popularized
the Bhagavad Gîtã, and established the Hindu College in
Banãras, now known as the Banãras Hindu University.
- Sri Rãmakrishna (1836-1886), a famous sage of modern times,
infused the true spirit of Hindu Dharma into his followers, who came
from all walks of life to seek his spiritual help.
- Swami Vivekãnanda (1863-1902), the beloved disciple of Sri
Rãmakrishna, elucidated Hindu Dharma in and outside of India,
and introduced the Vedãnta philosophy to the West (see Chapter
19).
- Sri Ãurobindo Ghose (1872-1950), eloquently interpreted the
basic concepts of Hindu Dharma, and expounded yoga philosophy for the
transformation of human consciousness.
- Rabindranãth Tagore (1861-1941), one of the greatest mystical
poets of the world, expounded the Upanishadic philosophy through his
songs in Gitãnjali and in many of his other works.
- Shri Sahajanand Swami (1781-1830), the founder of the Swaminarayan
movement, introducing social reforms, serving the poor and the needy,
challenging superstition, addictions and blind faith. His work concentrated
on promoting personal morality and moulding spiritual character. In
a life span of 49 years, He enriched humanity with six majestic temples,
revealed the Vedic philosophy of Akshar Purushottam worship, generated
a following of 500 renounced paramhansas and imparted deep spiritual
wisdom in the sacred scripture - Vachanamrut.
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