How HINDUISM is different from other Religions

How HINDUISM is different from other Religions

It would be easy to understand the difference of HINDUISM if you actually know what Hinduism is:

”HIMDUISM is a way of life” and is not just a religion - "Supreme Court"

Hinduism is not one uniform religion established by one person or group. It is a collection of numerous principles and rituals which are probably practised simultaneously during its formation years.

Hinduism is a SANATANA DHARM (Sanatana = Endless/Eternal/Everlasting). Hinduism is mainly about how to lead your life, it doesn't comprise only about how you pray to God, when God punishes you, or when God forgives you.

So to sum up: The modern form of Hinduism is actually a mixture of teachings from Vedas plus teachings of Rishis and some great Saints and Regional Customs and Traditions. Hinduism changes with time without disturbing its basic teachings and different deities, which Hindu worship.

Now let's focus on the difference

Ø  Core of Hinduism is neither theism nor atheism. It is actually truth seeking and tolerance.

Atheist: He has not seen God, so he does not believes in it. As his experience enhance, he would accept what he realises. That is a path of honesty and this is Hinduism.

Theist: He sees God in everything and hence believes in God. That is also a path of honesty and this is Hinduism.

Yajurveda (1/5) states: "I accept truth and reject falsehood at every moment with best of my intentions."

Truth is what our mind can accept with logic and emotions

So an honest atheist is as much a Hindu as an honest theist.

If one honestly believes atheism is the way, then there is no Hell in Hinduism for him.                                                                                                                       

And this makes Hinduism different from Abrahamic beliefs.
Abraham is traditionally considered to be the first Jew and to have made a covenant with God. Because Judaism, Christianity and Islam all recognize Abraham as their first prophet, they are also called the Abrahamic religions

So, irrespective of your religion, if you are honest and non-imposing of your religious beliefs, you are a HINDU.

Ø  According to Hinduism, God resides in the soul of every living beings, and everywhere in this universe. The God is the power/energy, which can control everything and God is the cause of every change. Scientifically too, it is proved, the force/energy behind the biggest Solar system and the smallest Micro system "ATOM" has the same power.

But according to other religion, God is in heaven and he never comes on Earth or near to any living beings directly.

Ø  Hinduism is always ready to accept truth, that means it is not declaring any truth as the final one. All are invited to redefine the knowledge which is required to understand the form of God.

But other religions don't accept any change in their religion especially Islam.

Ø  According to Hinduism all disciples are equal to God. It gives complete freedom and never restricts human thinking power. It always welcome diversified thinking and logic to attain the truth. It always promote positive thinking. HE is always a friend, guardian, mother and father like positions

But other/some religions try to fear their disciples to keep a quiet attitude by the name of God and try to keep a boundary with all other thoughts. Moreover they want a dominant power on their disciples- Least freedom.

Ø  Hinduism is quite different from other world religions. For example, if you are a Muslim you will read the Koran. If you were a Christian, you will read the Bible. However, if you are a Hindu, you would read variety of texts. The knowledge base is enormous.

Ø  I am not sure if one can be a Muslim if he out rightly rejects Quran, or one can be a Christian and out rightly rejects Bible. But yes, one can be Hindu even if he out rightly reject the Vedas, so far he has done so with best of his intellects and intent.

Ø  It is the Oldest religion.

If you are looking for a proof, tell me who is the founder of Hinduism. This is the most asked question about Hinduism. It is so obvious because all other religions in this world have founders. E.g. Christianity was founded by Jesus Christ, Islam by Hazrat Mohammad Paigambar, Buddhism by Gautama Buddha and so on.

The answer is- there is no single founder of Hinduism as Hinduism was not founded as a religion. It was a culture basically flourished in India, which later took the form of a great religion.

Theoretically, we do have a founder. Vedas  are believed to be imparted from God to human beings and were carried forward through teacher-disciple tradition. So, as Vedas are created by God, we can say that God, Himself, is the founder of Hinduism.

Now just imagine someday Lord Jesus Christ is proved to be a fictional character, then, what happens. Entire Christianity religion would fall. But this could never be the case with Hinduism.

Ø  Worshipping many Deities/Idols

Some people say, this number goes into millions while others say it is infinite. But what is the point of so many Gods. Why not simple have one God like other religions and be done with it. After all, we live in one world. Don't we? Hindus have peaceful Gods, Fighter Gods, Gods who have given up worldly affairs, Gods who represent money, Gods who presides over villages and city and Gods who stands for love, Gods for knowledge as well as Gods who symbolises animals and birds. Such diversity is odd when the idea is prevailing that there could be only one supreme power as described by the monotheistic religions.

Now understand this.

In any group of people there is diversity of nature. One person wants peace, while the other is aggressive and another is contempt to pursue knowledge. Some may find attraction with the nature while others may promote Love. There will be even those who have nothing to do with any of these categories.

If we place this diverse group of individuals under one God, someone or the other will always be left out. If the God means peace then the warriors gets left out. If God wants devotion then the atheist does not belong. There neither is and nor can there ever be one fix solution for all these kinds of problem and  this is why Hindus prefer to have vast amounts of choice when choosing Gods. No matter what's the individual's choice there is a God for him to follow. No one is left out. Everyone belongs somewhere. At the end of the day any God is bound to be an image of his or her devotee. What one finds in divine is often a reflection of his needs. The world is a diverse place with many realities. The reason Hindus have many Gods  because Hinduism appreciates and acknowledges this diversity.

Proud to be a HINDU