Early development of Hinduism through The Four Vedas

“Hinduism or Sanatana Dharma ("eternal spiritual path") began about 4000 years ago in India. It was the religion of an ancient people known as the Aryans ("noble people") whose philosophy, religion, and customs are recorded in their sacred texts known as the Vedas” (United Religions). Vedas are written in the ancient language of India, called Sanskrit. Vedas means “knowledge” or “sacred lore.” The Vedas gives great intelligence about the variety of Gods from the Vedic period, 2000 to 500 BCE (Molloy,78).

Hindus were divided by their social status, called the caste system. This made Hindus fall under one of the varnas such as Brahmin, Kshatriya, Vaishya, Shudra and the Untouchables (Strayer, 150-168). Priests and teachers were classified as Brahmins, warriors and kings were Kshatriya, merchants and landowners were known as Vaishya, peasants and serfs were classified as Shudras, and those that didn’t have a place on the caste system were defined as the untouchables because they had no social status. Hindus were unable to change their position in the caste system, until after reincarnation (Strayer, 150-168). There are scriptures such as the sacred text, The Vedas, and it leads to the fact that Brahmins empowered and dominated the top of the caste system and played specific roles in the religious lives of the people even from the start of India’s influence. Hindus became adjusted with these scared texts and grew used to it. They learned to follow religious values and traditions to have a better after life.

The word Hindu has evolved from being the word the Persians used for the Indus River in 500 BC to the accepted name for the primary religion of India this name was originally given by foreign rulers and ultimately used by Europeans in the 1500's as the official name of the religion. History plays an important part of Hinduism because new developments reinterpret an update past practices rather than end them. The Hindu religion is broke down into three periods the Vedic period, the Upanishadic period, the classical period, and the devotional period.

It is believed that Hindu traditions appeared around 1500 B.C.E. and can be traced to the ancient Aryans as they migrated into southeastern Asia. It was during this time that the Vedic hymns were composed. These hymns, called Vedas, were composed by different Brahman priests and

The second trace of Hinduism is the Aryan or Indo-Europeans, who, was said, to enter the Indic subcontinent from the North-West in migratory waves. The Indo-European is associated with the Vedic period of Indian history, which were named after a series of book or text collectively known as the Vedas; written in Sanskrit, the ancient language used back then. The performance of ritual and the

Hinduism is a very broad term that encompasses a multitude of different backgrounds, traditions, beliefs, and practices. Hinduism, as we know it today, has gone through many changes. To fully understand how Hinduism became as it is currently, knowledge of its development over the course of history is essential. This paper will demonstrate the primary shifts of its central beliefs, practices, and goals between periods of Early Vedic, Late Vedic, and Classical Hinduism.

Our text book tells us that Aryans became dominant in north India. In Sanskrit text the Indo-Aryan developed the caste and the Brahman religion. The Brahman religion developed into Hinduism. (Beck et al.) India’s caste system there is 4 caste or social levels of people. At the top there is the Bhramin which are the priests and teachers. Second is the Kshatryia which are the leaders and warriors. Third is the Vaishya which are the merchants and landowners. Fourth is the Sundra which are commoners, peasants, and servants. Not considered in the caste system is the untouchables which are the outcasts. They held the lowest valued jobs such as street sweepers, latrine cleaners, and slaughter house workers. The caste system in India forbids people from mingling with other levels of castes. What caste level you were born into you were required to stay at that level. There was no

What elements of earlier belief systems do you see integrated into Hinduism? What were the external conditions (environmental/societal/political/economic etc.) which gave rise to the origination of Hinduism? What was it about this time period? Location? Population?

Hinduism is the oldest religions. The most interesting thing about Hinduism is that they have no specific founder or date of origin. Based on their beliefs Hindu’s are divided in to two casts. In the current world, there is still a big conflict about whether Hinduism is a monotheistic religion or a polytheistic religion. Because according to Hindus believe it’s one God with many different faces. This concept regarding Gods is accepted by some scholars, but not all of them. Hinduism has four sacred text Vedas, Upanishads, Bhagavad Gita, Epics. The two most common sacred texts are the Vedas and Bhagavad Gita. The authors of all sacred texts are still unknown.

First formed as a way for the early Aryans to maintain social order over the native Dravidians, the caste system soon developed into one of the prominent beliefs on Hinduism. This

Vedas are considered to be the oldest sacred texts which have been passed from generations to

Although we do not know the exact time that Hinduism began, it is believed to be over 4,000 years old. There have been overlapping civilizations in India that may have molded the religion into what it is now (Kinnard 1). Around 2,000 B.C.E., located near the great Indus River, the Indus Valley Civilization, who worshipped many goddesses, may have been the very beginning of the shaping of Hinduism. Near the end of the Indus Valley Civilization around 1,500 B.C.E., a new society surfaced in India. Believed to be brought by the central Asian Aryans, the Vedic religion began (Kinnard). The Aryans’ practices included the sacrifice of animals and other offerings to their gods into a sacred fire. The gods they worshipped were mainly gods of nature such as the fire god and the plant god (flood). This era was the time of the Vedas, which are scriptures describing rituals to please the gods (Kinnard). Later, around 1,000 B.C.E., priests called Brahmins began to reject the materialistic ways of the Vedic tradition and began to adopt practices

Hinduism originated in India over four thousand years ago. The India-based religion lacks an individual founder. In the beginning, the term “Sanatana Dharma” erupted; but Sanatana Dharma soon transformed to “Hindu” after Islamic invasions occurred: “the Muslim invaders pronounced H for I” (Patheos), thus, the inhabitants along the Indus River were called “Hindus” as a result. The primary goal Hindus hope to achieve is to become reincarnated – thus reaching closer and closer to the state of nirvana every Hindu is called to with each transformation after death.

The Vedic age in India started around 1500 BC with the arrival of Aryans, an Indo-European tribe from central Asia near the Caspian Sea. Aryans settled along the banks of the Indus and its tributaries in the northern part of the subcontinent. Initially, it was a tribal society centred in northwest India and by 1000 BC, it spread along the Gangetic plain with the development of modern agriculture. Aryans dominated the local indigenous population and often ruled over them. Over time, the interbreeding with the local residents led to the emergence of mixed culture. The Vedic age lasted from 1500 BC to 500 BC. Agriculture and cattle rearing were the main occupations of the people. The Vedas and Upanishads were written during this period. The early Vedic beliefs formed the foundation of Hinduism. People worshipped Gods such as Indra, Agni, Varuna, Vayu, Prajapati, Vishnu, Rudra, etc. The society was divided into four castes based on the profession of the people; Brahmins, Kshatriyas, Vaishyas, and Shudras. Women had a respectable position in the society and they

The acknowledged hypothesis is that Hinduism was advanced after the chronicled meeting between the Aryans and Dravidians. Some claim that Hinduism is for the most part an Aryan culture while the others assert that it is basically a Dravidian culture. Religiously the Vedas were given by