Hinduism

Rather than one religion, Hinduism is an umbrella of related traditions (Shaivism, Vaishnavism, Shaktism, the Smarta tradition and others), crossed by philosophical schools such as Advaita Vedanta, with no central authority deciding who belongs. Many Hindus call it Sanatana Dharma, “the eternal order”. Buddhists, Jains and Sikhs share many of its roots but regard their paths as separate.

Two armies face each other across a field. The warrior Arjuna sees cousins and teachers in the opposing ranks, lowers his bow and refuses to fight. His charioteer, the god Krishna in human form, answers him; the dialogue runs to 700 verses, and the answer turns out to be about how to live. That is the Bhagavad Gita: a farmer quotes it, so does a CEO, and Gandhi called it his mother. The verses below are careful paraphrases, not exact translations.

Sattva brings clarity and calm, rajas desire and restlessness, tamas heaviness and apathy. All three live in everyone, and the balance between them shifts through the day.

“Don't hurt people” is the usual rule. Ahimsa (अहिंसा) is broader: words count too, and so do thoughts; a harsh word wounds both the one it is aimed at and the one who says it. Hence vegetarianism for many Hindus, the habit of trying a peaceful solution before a forceful one, and gentleness towards yourself: it is hard to be kind to the world while at war with yourself.

Satya (सत्य) means truth, in a more demanding sense than “don't lie”: a way of life built on dropping pretence and being who you are. The age when truth ruled everywhere is called Satya Yuga; by traditional reckoning we live in Kali Yuga, the age of conflict, where truth comes harder, and still remains the guiding star.

Moksha (मोक्ष) is liberation from samsara (संसार), the endless cycle of birth and death. Every action (karma) creates consequences that bind the soul (atman) to new lives; action done without clinging to its fruits loosens the knot. Liberation is not escape from life but clear seeing: taking part without clinging. It is not the pursuit of peace but peace found by leaving the chase.

Behind the thousand gods is one reality, Brahman (ब्रह्म): the ground from which everything arises. Some schools see it as an impersonal absolute, others as the supreme God in person: Vishnu, Shiva or the Goddess. Each person reflects it as atman, the inner self. One influential school, Advaita (अद्वैत, “non-duality”), goes further: the lines between me and you, human and nature, matter and spirit are relative, and the sense of separation is maya (माया); the world is not what it seems. See a spark of Brahman in everyone, and it becomes easier to accept people as they are.

Hindu scripture is a library rather than one book, rooted in the word veda (वेद), “knowledge”. It has two wings: Shruti, “what was heard”, is revelation the sages received in meditation; Smriti, “what was remembered”, is the human-made texts that build on it (epics, Puranas, law books). In short, Shruti is the source code, and Smriti the documentation and stories that make it usable.

Each Veda has four layers, from ritual to philosophy: hymns (samhitas), ritual manuals (brahmanas), “forest books” for hermits (aranyakas) and the Upanishads, where attention turns from ritual to the search for meaning.