The epic of gilgamesh from sumer, although only considered by some scholars as a religious text, has origins as early as 2150 bce, and stands as one of the earliest literary works that includes various mythological figures and themes. Sruti literally means that what is revealed and smriti means that what is remembered. Hinduismintroduction wikibooks, open books for an open. May 10, 2020 here at the hinduism section of, we aim at presenting the original works that lay the foundations of hinduism. These hindus are not the name that is being generated or propagated it is.
Other holy scriptures in hinduism are called the upanisads, the smrutis, the puranas, the ramayana and the mahabharata. Most forms of hinduism are henotheistic, which means they worship a single deity, known as brahman, but still recognize other gods and goddesses. Hindu sacred literature is the most ancient of the living literatures of the world. What does it mean to be baptized by the holy spirit. But why is it that people dont really have a good answer when asked, what is hinduism. Hence, sruti is what ancient hindu saints heard during deep meditation.
You can view a list of all subpages under the book main page not including the book main page itself, regardless of whether theyre categorized, here. Hinduism hindu holy books explanation sheet teacher made. First, lets distinguish between two types of hindu literature. The body of sacred literature in hinduism is vast and diverse enough to write volumes on. Some of the other holy works and books of hinduism. Sunita f hinduism, indian, hindi, marathi, nepali means well conducted, wise, derived from the sanskrit prefix su meaning good combined with. Indeed the term hindu is found nowhere in the vedic scriptures, nor can it be found in any classical texts of sanatana dharma. All are available for purchase on click book images for details. Religionfacts does not necessarily endorse the contents of these books. All these are reference texts, which gives us an insight and knowledge about our life as a whole.
They also help to preserve the religious dimensions of family and society. Family the importance of hindu names a proper name is a childs lasting connection to our ancient heritage dr. The meaning of each of the approximately 20,000 names in the volume is extensively discussed and information on sources and usage is also provided the purpose of the work is two fold. The bhagavad gita by krishnadwaipayana vyasa, the upanishads by anonymous, the gita way secret recipe to achieve the purpose.
The importance of hindu names hinduism today magazine. Since 1979 the international magazine hinduism today has been producing a treasury of educational features on all aspects of sanatana dharma. The rigveda is the foundational holy book of ancient hinduism, which essentially served as a source for everything that came after it. When we find a book with content that contains a match for your search terms, well link to it in your search results. Around 1750 bc aryan invaders from central asia settled in north west india and introduced their own religious. That is why devi who is known by different names like durga, lakshmi, saraswati and so. How many holy books are in hinduism and what are their. It is possible the name you are searching has less than five occurrences per year. The vedas are scriptures that the hindu people use as a guide to daily and religious life. Online books on hinduism, hindu religion, hindu culture. In traditional hinduism, the vedas are considered divine in origin and are assumed to be revelations from god.
Introduction there are two kinds of sacred writings in hinduism. In fact they gave hinduism the name vaidika dharma, one of its old names. The upanishads are also called as vedantas or the end of the vedas. Here, i will give only a brief introduction to the holy books of hinduism. Holy books in hinduism the galaxy of hindu literature is very vast and voluminous. Social security administration public data, the first name hinduism was not present.
Important books and writings of hinduism hindu bhagavad. The book, which was first published in 1947, has now been rearranged in a more convenient form, with useful additions here and. Because hinduism is an amalgam of popular religious traditions developed over thousands of years, the term official as opposed to unofficial can only be applied loosely. The vedas, upanishads, puranas, and brahmanas granth are the four sacred books in hindu religion. The name hinduism, he argues was wrongly given to the varied series of indian religious facts as if these formed one system of doctrines. While we have the main vedas, upanishads, the mahabharata in several translations we also present newer commentaries, anthologies. See also whats at your library, or elsewhere broader terms.
Scholars regard hinduism as a fusion or synthesis of various indian. A concise explanation of the main hindu holy books. Religion is a way of life in india, where hinduism is practiced by over eighty percent of the population. Jan 07, 2009 the dhammapada is a good book and actually the bhagavad gita is more buddhism than hinduism. Some of the other holy works and books of hinduism are stories and epic poems. The relative authority of religious texts develops over time and is derived from the ratification. What name is given to the four holy books of the hindus. The most holy of the hindu books is written in sanskrit and is referred to as the vedas. As per the vedantic embodiments hinduism is monotheistic. The book is made up of chapters and is divided into two conceptual parts. The upanishads are a collection of hindu texts which contain some of the central philosophical concepts of hinduism.
Dont think of these eastern religions in the same context of western religions like christianity. The real confusion started when the name hinduism was used to indicate the religion of the indian people. Sunita f hinduism, indian, hindi, marathi, nepali means well conducted, wise, derived from the sanskrit prefix su meaning good combined with nita meaning conducted, led. A collection of handselected books on hinduism, chosen on the basis of apparent usefulness and quality. The dhammapada is a good book and actually the bhagavad gita is more buddhism than hinduism. It has been over 2500 years since buddhism emerged as a religion, and the unique holistic spiritual healing it gives has seen it getting popular in many other parts of the world. One of the oldest known religious texts is the kesh temple hymn of ancient sumer, a set of inscribed clay tablets which scholars typically date around 2600 bce. In this book the authors probe into vedic mathematics and explore if it is really vedic in origin or mathematics in content. In hinduism, what is the desire for liberation from earthly existence. Apr 03, 20 the puranas are holy books of hinduism that date back to gupta empire in ancient india. The product of several years of research, the book of hindu names is a comprehensive compilation of hindu names in current use. But the vedantic beliefs went under much transformation and became gradually polytheistic in character.
For more on hinduism holy book, sacred texts of hinduism visit important books and writings of hinduism. Hinduism is an ancient religion with diverse traditions such as vaishnavism, shaivism. Guided by the founder, satguru sivaya subramuniyaswami, the magazines editors, who are initiated monks of the kauais hindu monastery, collaborated with holy men and women and experts around the world in creating graphically rich guides to virtually. Hinduism is an indian religion and dharma, or way of life, widely practiced in the indian subcontinent and parts of southeast asia. All hindus know that some books are considered holy by everyone, and not every book written by every author becomes holy. Purana meaning ancient or old is the name of a genre or a group of related genres of indian. While we have the main vedas, upanishads, the mahabharata in several translations we also present newer commentaries, anthologies, and entirely new branches of hinduism. There are however two holy books for hinduism the mahabhrata and the ramayana.
All about hinduism is intended to meet the needs of those who want to be introduced to the various facets of the crystal that is hinduism. Yajur veda mantras and benedictions to be used during ceremonies. Hindu texts are manuscripts and historical literature related to any of the diverse traditions within hinduism. Hinduism teaches that there is no particular way or book to reach god or heaven. The guru in hinduism is a person who instructs others in religious matters and worship. Popular hinduism books meet your next favorite book. Hindus believe in the doctrines of samsara the continuous cycle of life, death, and reincarnation. Composed in vedic sanskrit hymns, the texts constitute the oldest layer of sanskrit literature and the oldest scriptures of hinduism. The man who realized god in 1993 explains the concept of what is the holy book of hinduism. Religious texts are texts related to a religious tradition. The majority of the vedas are considered the shruti, which is translated to that which is hard. Amrit pal bindra the importance of hindu names magazine web edition julyaugustseptember 2005 publications hinduism today magazine.
The word hindu comes from the name of the river indus, which flows 1800 miles. Hinduism is such an ancient religion that it had many types of beliefs and religious practices. We have a list of books ranging from the vedas, upanishads, srimat bhagwat gita, ramayana, srimat bhagawat, mahabharat, and many more. The religion of hinduism originated in northern india, near the river indus, about 4000 years ago and is the worlds oldest existing religion. Feller learn with flashcards, games, and more for free. A hindu reading list 73 books meet your next favorite book. The vedas and these other works are further divided into two sections. A few texts are shared resources across these traditions and broadly considered as hindu scriptures. This category contains pages that are part of the hinduism book. The name hinduism is a misnomer and of a foreign coinage. Among the vast body of indian sacred texts there are stories, prayers and teachings analogous to parts of the bible. The four books of the vedasrig, yajur, sama and atharvainclude over 100,000 verses. The vedas are the prime book of knowledge on which primary hindu beliefs stands. However, the puranas are supposed to be complied by muni vyasa.
Hinduism is practised by more than 80% of indias population. Hinduism has been called the oldest religion in the world, and some practitioners and scholars refer to it as sanatana dharma, the eternal tradition, or the eternal way, beyond human history. An ancient indian book dense with wisdom, the bhagavad gita is the most important and beloved spiritual text to billions of hindus. Information on hinduism for kids primary homework help. If a page of the book isnt showing here, please add text bookcat to the end of the page concerned. Where can i find a list of book club questions for the book the help. Here some powerful quotes from the gita that will give you a different perspective on life, and maybe even change the way you look at hinduism. There is something called pramana, authority, which our acharyas have recognised, and as per the acharyas a set of books are considered primary texts, whereas, other books based on these primary books can also be referred to. Followers believe there are multiple paths to reaching their god. The basis, which focuses on hinduisms history and holy texts, and the practice, which discusses philosophical ideas and specific practices such as vegetarianism, meditation, and worship. Jun 07, 2008 all hindus know that some books are considered holy by everyone, and not every book written by every author becomes holy.
The vedas are a large body of hindu texts originating in ancient india, with its samhita and brahmanas complete before about 800 bce. But the most important holy books of hinduism are the vedas. Introduction hinduism stands for the faith and the way of life most of the people who live in india. Hindu scriptures and holy books are divided mainly into two categories viz sruti and smriti. The belief system in the hindi religion is outlined from these scriptures. Where the vedas gave a foundation for the direction of hinduism, the upanishads filled in the gaps. Hindus call their religion sanatama dharma, eternal religion or eternal truth. The hindu philosophy sarvadeva namaskara kesavamprathi gattchathi means that you can worship in any way or form you choose, for all are true paths that lead to god. Scholars hesitate in defining the term hindu scriptures given the diverse nature of hinduism, but many list the bhagavad gita and the. Sruti belongs to the vedic period while smriti belongs to the postvedic period.
This holy book is written in the sanskrit language. These texts are glorious tales of the hindu trinity brahma, vishnu and maheshwar shiva. The book, which was first published in 1947, has now been rearranged in a more convenient form, with useful additions here and there, and is now released in its fifth edition. Hinduism sacred books the bhagavad gita, translated from the sanskrit, with introduction and notes revised second edition.
Hinduism is the largest and oldest religion on earth almost 5,000 years old. Lord krishna mahabharata defining mahabharata the foremost epic of hinduism vedas words of god veda not composed by humans dictated by god love this website donate for a cause hinduism holy book important books and writings of hinduism sacred text of hinduism some important books and writings on hinduism hinduism does not possess a single holy book like bible in christianity and quran in islamic dharma. Hinduism is the worlds third most popular religion, with around 750 million followers. According to jawaharlal nehru, the earliest reference to the word hindu can be traced to a tantrik book of the eighth century c. The book contains 270 pages and is divided in 57 small easytoread chapters, containing authentic information about all the important aspects of hindu religion, culture, and philosophy. Like the taoist tao te ching, the buddhist dhammapada, the sikh adi granth, the jewish torah, the christian bible and the muslim koranthe veda is the hindu holy book. Buddhism is a religion known for its rich spiritual teachings, beliefs, practices and traditions. The vedas scriptures guide hindus in their daily life. Important books and writings of hinduism hinduism holy book. Find the top 100 most popular items in amazon books best sellers. The words hindu and hinduism were used frequently by the british with the effect of focusing on the religious differences between the muslims and the people who became known as hindus.
Hinduism holy book important books and writings of hinduism. More than a billion people are followers of indias eternal faith. Five of the hindu holy books are the rig veda, bhagavad gita, sama veda, yajur. The debate over the term hinduism in the light of postorientalist critiques is just one example of how once standard academic frameworks have. Hindus holy books were edited by britishers exposed by rajiv dixit. Hinduism resource hinduism resource reference books. This is the name of several minor characters in hindu texts, and is also another name of the hindu god krishna. Here at the hinduismsection of, we aim at presenting the original works that lay the foundations of hinduism. Does hinduism have any official books like the bible. You can view a list of all subpages under the book main page not including the book main page itself, regardless of. The most ancient sacred texts of the hindu religion are written in sanskrit and called the vedas. The scriptures of the vedas are meant to guide hindu believers in their daily lives.
According to smith, this misconception was the result of the use of a christian, and more specifically, a protestant conception of religion as systems of doctrines. The upanishads are commonly referred to as vedanta, variously interpreted to mean either the last chapters, parts of the veda or the object, the highest purpose of the veda. The four vedas, upanishads, bhramanas, aranyakas and bhagavad gita make up the treasure of sruti literature. The holy book in the hindu religion is known as the vedas. The encyclopedia of hinduism contains over 900 entries reflecting recent advances in scholarship which have raised new theoretical and methodological issues as well as identifying new areas of study which have not been addressed previously. Hinduism does not just have one sacred book but several scriptures. Hinduism does not possess a single holy book like bible in christianity and quran in islamic dharma. The puranas are holy books of hinduism that date back to gupta empire in ancient india.
45 1287 611 423 794 884 433 880 9 247 388 1033 852 677 399 1239 1339 1542 1306 1631 319 1315 427 406 851 1266 1323 1295