Introduction
Demographically, Hinduism is the world’s third largest religion. In 1994 Dr. Simon Weightman, (the former head of the Department of the Study of Religions at the School of Oriental and African Studies, the University of London) and Klaus K. Klostermaier (the world-renowned authority on Hinduism and Indian history and culture), stated in a collaborative work that “Hinduism is viewed as the most complex of all of the living, historical world religions. Despite its complexity, Hinduism is not only one of the numerically largest faiths, but is also the oldest living major tradition on earth, with roots reaching back into prehistory.”
Rather than being one large monolithic “religion,” Hinduism is an umbrella under which a number of different schools of thought exist. All of them, however. have some common characteristics and foundational philosophical beliefs. Amongst these different traditions or branches, Vaishnavism is the largest branch, with hundreds of millions of adherents and countless sub-branches.
The common authoritative religious texts for all Hindus are the Vedas. Veda literally means “knowledge.” It is an immense collection of ancient Sanskrit writings divided into different categories such as the four principal Vedas (Rig, Artha Yajur, and Sama), the Upanishads, the Puranas, and famous texts such as the Bhagavad-Gita and Bhagavat Purana as well as a vast amount of works collectively known as Smriti.
Most of these works cannot be accurately dated by modern historians, who attribute the earlier works to have been recorded somewhere between 2500 and 1000 BCE. These sacred texts were originally handed down through an oral tradition and their integrity was preserved by a very complex system of chanting and memorization. According to the Vedas themselves (and something accepted by many historians), with the onset of the current era some 5000 years ago— known in Vedic terms as Kali Yuga (the iron age of quarrel and confusion)—the great literary incarnation of God known as Vedavyasa undertook the monumental task of committing all Vedic scripture to writing. This was primarily done because people no longer had the discipline and power of memorization they had in previous eras. Because of the original scripture being part of an oral tradition, all of the Vedic scriptures are songs or poetry and are often sung by Hindus around the world on special days.
All of the different schools of thought and religious belief collectively known as Hinduism accept the Vedas in total or in part as the foundation for their beliefs and practices. The Vedas are considered the ultimate authority, and if a teacher of Hinduism were to attempt to create or fabricate teachings that were outside of or contradicted Vedic scripture, then they would be challenged and defeated in argument. So there was no situation where somebody could just create their own “truth.”
Rather than being one large monolithic “religion,” Hinduism is an umbrella under which a number of different schools of thought exist. All of them, however. have some common characteristics and foundational philosophical beliefs. Amongst these different traditions or branches, Vaishnavism is the largest branch, with hundreds of millions of adherents and countless sub-branches.
The common authoritative religious texts for all Hindus are the Vedas. Veda literally means “knowledge.” It is an immense collection of ancient Sanskrit writings divided into different categories such as the four principal Vedas (Rig, Artha Yajur, and Sama), the Upanishads, the Puranas, and famous texts such as the Bhagavad-Gita and Bhagavat Purana as well as a vast amount of works collectively known as Smriti.
Most of these works cannot be accurately dated by modern historians, who attribute the earlier works to have been recorded somewhere between 2500 and 1000 BCE. These sacred texts were originally handed down through an oral tradition and their integrity was preserved by a very complex system of chanting and memorization. According to the Vedas themselves (and something accepted by many historians), with the onset of the current era some 5000 years ago— known in Vedic terms as Kali Yuga (the iron age of quarrel and confusion)—the great literary incarnation of God known as Vedavyasa undertook the monumental task of committing all Vedic scripture to writing. This was primarily done because people no longer had the discipline and power of memorization they had in previous eras. Because of the original scripture being part of an oral tradition, all of the Vedic scriptures are songs or poetry and are often sung by Hindus around the world on special days.
All of the different schools of thought and religious belief collectively known as Hinduism accept the Vedas in total or in part as the foundation for their beliefs and practices. The Vedas are considered the ultimate authority, and if a teacher of Hinduism were to attempt to create or fabricate teachings that were outside of or contradicted Vedic scripture, then they would be challenged and defeated in argument. So there was no situation where somebody could just create their own “truth.”