Since religion informs every aspect of Indian life, whether social, political
or economic, it's worth the traveller's while to do a little prep reading. The following
capsules present a glimpse of the major religious traditions of India. One must keep in
mind though, that the principle of secularism is enshrined in the Constitution.
Hinduism, the
religion of the overwhelming majority of Indians, is as much a way of life as a formal
ritualised institutionalised religion. It has no single sacred text but a range of
scriptures. The four Vedas form the backbone of Hinduism with the earliest of these, the
Rig Veda, being the most important. It is believed that the Vedas are the product of the
direct communication between the gods and the sadhus (holy men). |
The pantheon of Hindu gods is matched in size (and often in
character too) by those of the ancient Greeks and Romans. These revered figures may
represent natural phenomena like wind (Varun), thunder and rain (Indra), fire (Agni) and
the sun (Surya). Or they may be quasi-mythical characters that appear in the Ramayana and
the Mahabharata. Shakti, which literally translates into energy, is represented as a
female form and worshipped in the forms of many goddesses. Of these Kali and Durga are the
most commonly worshipped. Lakshmi and Parvati, the goddesses of wealth and learning
respectively, are important. At the centre of this enormous pantheon are the three central
figures of Brahma, Vishnu and Shiva. Brahma is revered as The Creator, Vishnu as The
Preserver and Shiva as The Destroyer.
Like every major religion, Hinduism has also been sought to be reformed of
excessive ritualism and the stranglehold of the priestly class, the Brahmins. The Brahmo
Samaj and the Arya Samaj are two of the most influential of such reform movements.
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Muslims are the largest religious minority in India. Islam came to
India when trade links were established with the Arabs in the 8th century AD.
In the 12th century, the Mamluk Turk Qutbuddin Aibak became the first Muslim to
rule any part of India. A succession of Muslim dynasties came to rule thereafter,
predominantly in north India but sometimes even south of the Vindhya Ranges as in the
reign of the Mughal king Aurangzeb. The influence of Islam grew as many people adopted the
religion of their rulers, resulting in a culture that is characterised by beauty. New
forms of architecture, a new language - Urdu, developments in dress and design, the arts
of cuisine, music, painting and sculpture bloomed especially in northern India, but also
in the south.
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Siddhartha Gautam was born in the early 7th century BC in the town
of Lumbini (in present day Nepal), not far from the Indo-Nepal border. Born a prince of
the Sakya clan, exposure to suffering caused Siddhartha to renounce home and family and
set out in search of enlightenment. He attained enlightenment under the Bodhi tree at
Bodhgaya in Bihar, India, and came thereafter to be known as Buddha or The Enlightened
One. Buddhism, whose central tenet is Dharma or Truth, propounds the Middle Path.
Buddhism gained its popularity in the subcontinent gradually, as monks and
nuns who were taught in viharas or monasteries spread its teachings. It received a
great boost when the Mauryan emperor Ashoka embraced the religion. Today, the religion is
no longer as popular in the land it was born as it is further southeast. It’s flame
is kept burning in India today mainly by Tibetan Buddhists for whom the country has become
a refuge, and by Dalits (or lower caste Hindus) who rejected the Hindu social creed of a
rigid caste system and adopted the egalitarian Buddhist philosophy.
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Established by Vardhaman Mahavira around the same time as Buddhism, Jainism
takes its name from the word jina for conqueror. It preaches simple living and
absolutely disallows hurting another living being. Jains, then, are strict vegetarians.
Many keep their mouths covered by a piece of cloth lest they breathe in an insect or germs
and kill it. Jainism has a large following in India, especially in the west Indian states
of Rajasthan and Gujarat.
Both Jainism and Buddhism have contributed greatly to Indian culture. The
magnificent Jain Dilwara Temples in Rajasthan and the Mathura and Gandhara schools of art
inspired by the Buddha are only a few examples.
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Christianity came to India as early as the arrival of the apostle
Saint Thomas. The earliest Christian missionary though, is thought to be Saint Xavier who
came to India in 1542. India’s colonial experience ensured the spread of
Christianity, which was propagated by the Portuguese, the Dutch and the British.
Protestants, Catholics and Syrian Christians, mainly from the southern state of Kerala,
make up the Indian Christian community.
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Sikhism, another major religion born in India, evolved out of the
effort of combining the best of Hinduism and Islam. Founded by Guru Nanak in the late 15th
century AD, and influenced by Sufi Islam, Sikhism has ten gurus or teachers and, like
Islam, a holy book – the Guru Granth Sahib – as a symbol of God. Sikhism
flourished particularly in the Punjab in north India to the extent that it became a thorn
in the side of orthodox Muslims. Its persecution in Mughal times led to the formation of
the Sikh army called the khalsa. Sikh men wear the symbols of their faith on their
person; these are the kachchha (undershorts), the kanga (comb), the kirpan
(sword), the kada (steel bangle) and kesh (long hair). Of these the most
obvious is their long hair, which is tied up in a turban.
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Many Persians migrated to India in the 8th century AD, and brought
with them the ancient religion of Zarathustra or Zoroastrianism. Legend has it that
their leader requested the Hindu ruler Jadhav Rana for permission to settle in this great
land, promising that Parsis would be like sugar dissolved in a bowl of water; India being
like the bowl of water and the Parsis like sugar, dissolving unobtrusively and yet
suffusing the nation with their sweetness and spirit. Needless to say, they were allowed
to stay. The Parsis worship fire as a symbol of Ahura Mazda, the Wise Lord. |
