My OperaReligion in India
Wednesday, September 20, 2006 11:16:40 AM
Религиите в Индия
Индуизъм
Преди три хиляди години диви арийски племена нахлули в Индия от север и се установили в района на сегашен Пенджаб. Тези племена вече имали добре организирана религия и жреци, които заемали високо място в обществената йерархия. В по-голямата си част тяхната религия се състояла от митове, поеми и химни. С течение на времето повечето от тях били събрани в свещени книги на санскритски език. Те се делят на две групи: СРУТИ (разсъждения) и СМИТРИ (спомени). Срути съдържа химни, поеми и молитви, докато Смитри се състои от притчи и правила.
Индуизмът е смесица от религията на тези племена и местните религии, изповядвани в Индия отпреди 3000 години. Днес той има повече от 400 милиона последователи по света, най-вече в Индия, както и хиляди разновидности, защото индуизмът е гъвкава религия. При все, че всички индуси вярват в БРАМА, абсолютната движеща сила на Вселената, те също така вярват в много по-второстепенни свръхестествени същества, които са различни за различните райони. Има няколко основни индуистки начала, общи за всички последователи на тази религия.
Превъплъщения. Всички индуисти вярват в превъплъщението. Това означава, че след смъртта душата преминава в друга форма на живот, и то многократно, докато не се освободи от този цикъл. Три неща са необходими за освобождаването на душата: философия (или знание), религиозни дела и молитви или медитация.
Кастово деление. Повечето последователи на индуизма приемат една строга система на класово деление, наречена кастова. Според нея всеки човек трябва да заеме онова място в живота, което му е отредено по рождение. Невъзможно е да се премине от една каста в друга. Все пак индусите като цяло допускат, че принципът КАРМА (според делата) оказва влияние на тяхната съдба в различните превъплъщения.
Индуистки секти
Има три основни индуистки секти. Те се кланят на някои от по-второстепенните богове.
ВИШНУ. Сектата, която се прекланя пред Вишну, пазителя на живота, се дели всъщност на 10 по-малки секти, защото Вишну е бог с 10 различни превъплъщения. Всяка верска общност или отделен вярващ индивид в дадено населено място може да избира между Мация рибата, Карма костенурката, Вараха глигана, Нарасимха човека-лъв, Ваман джуджето, Парасурама принца със секира, Рама принца, Кришна първия мъдрец, Буда последния мъдрец или Калки мъдреца на бъдещето.
Четиридневния празник Дивали, с който започва индуската Нова година, е в чест на бога Вишну и съпругата му Лакшми, богинята на плодородието.
ШИВА. Шива е бог, почитан най-вече от кашмирците и тамилите. Той е бог с две лица. Наречен Разрушителят, той често е изобразяван като страшна фигура, заобиколена от зли демони. В същото време понякога го представят като животворна сила със спокойно и любещо лице.
ШАКТИ. Тя е майка - богиня, почитана в Бенгалия и Асам. Шакти също е богиня с много лица. Гневна и отмъстителна, тя се появява като Кали или Дарга - зла стара жена, възседнала демон. Но тя се явява и като благодетелка - красива млада жена, известна като Парвати или Ума. Празникът Дасера, който се провежда всяка година в края на септември и трае 10 дни, е в чест на превъплъщението на Шакти като лошата боганя Дарга.
Други индийски религии
В индийския регион съществуват и други религии, включително ислямът и християнството. Тук са се зародили още три религии, които впоследствие са се разпространили и по други места.
СИКХИТЕ. Сикхската религия е възникнала през XV в. Създадена е от един учител, или гуру, на име НАНАК. Тя съчетава елементи от исляма и индуизма, като има и някои свои специфични принципи. Свещените книги на сикхизма се наричат Гуру Грант Сахиб.
Сикхските деца отбелязват пълнолетие с церемония, която ги въвежда в Халса - общността на чистите. Момчетата получават името Синг (лъв), а момичетата - Каур (принцеса). Ортодоксалните сикхи трябва да имат дълга коса и брада (кеш), да носят гребен (канга) и сабя (кирпан), а също къси гащи (кача) и лента (кара). Сикхите се смятат за много добри воини.
ДЖАЙНИТЕ. Джайнизмът е много толерантна религия. Джайните вярват, че всички живи същества имат душа и не бива да им се причинява вреда. Те не ядат месо. Най-ревностните последователи отместват насекомите от пътя си, за да не ги настъпят, и носят маски, за да не погълнат случайно някое летящо насекомо. Подобно на индуистите, те вярват в прераждането, но не вярват в никакви богове. Това в което вярват, е вечната Вселена, от която всички живи твари са неразделна част.
ПАРСИТЕ. Парсите са наследили религията си от древната ЗОРОАСТРИЙСКА религия в Персия (сега Иран), възникнала преди около 2600 години. Те вярват в един бог - АХУРА МАЗДА. Живот след смъртта е възможен за онези, които са били добри и почтени хора приживе. Свещен огън гори непрекъснато в техните храмове. Парсите не погребват мъртъвците си, защото смятат, че смъртта като дело на злото ще оскверни земята. Те поставят умрелите на високи кули, където хищните птици ги изяждат.
Religions in India
India known as the land of spirituality and philosophy, was the birthplace of some religions, which even exist today in the world.
The most dominant religion in India today is Hinduism. About 80% of Indians are Hindus. Hinduism is a colorful religion with a vast gallery of Gods and Goddesses. Hinduism is one of the ancient religions in the world. It is supposed to have developed about 5000 years ago. Later on in ancient period other religions developed in India.
Around 500 BC two other religions developed in India, namely, Buddhism and Jainism. Today only about 0.5% of Indians are Jains and about 0.7% are Buddhist. In ancient times Jainism and specially Buddhism were very popular in India. Indians who accepted Buddhist philosophy spread it not only within the Indian sub-continent but also to kingdoms east and south of India.
These three ancient religions, Hinduism, Buddhism and Jainism, are seen as the molders of the India philosophy. In 'modern' period new religions were also established in India.
One comparatively new religion in India is Sikhism and it was established in the 15th century. About 2% of Indians are Sikhs. There were other attempts to create new religions in India but they did not always succeed. For example, a Moghul emperor, Akbar, who reigned between 1556 - 1605, tried to establish a new religion, Din- E- Elahi, but it did not survive. There are other religious philosophies whose believers see themselves as a separate religion, but they do not always get this recognition. For example Lingayat of south India see themselves as a different religion, while others see them as a sect of Hinduism. There are also some tribal communities who demand to be recognized as separate religion from Hinduism. In the 19th century some Hindu reformers tried to remodel Hinduism to adjust it to modern period.
Along with the religions that developed in India, there are followers of non- Indian religions. The largest non-Indian religion is Islam. They are about 12% of India's population. Christians are more then 2% of India's population. There are also Zoroastrians who even though make less then 0.01% of India's population, are known around India. There are also a few thousand Jews in India. Judaism and Christianity might have arrived in India before they arrived in Europe.
India History
India in the past - its rulers
Different parts of India have different histories and legends. Indians in different parts of the country look at their past from a different point of view than Indians in other parts of India. Indian history has a past of over thousands of years. The Hindus record their religious history at over millions of year. They believe that the world is created and destroyed every few million years. Religious Hindus and some Hindu historians record their present history at over 7000 years. This belief is different from the accepted general history which claims Indian history to be shorter than 5000 years.
In general Indian history different kingdoms were established in different parts of India, some by foreign invaders. The first known invaders of India were Aryans (also mentioned sometimes as Indo-Aryans). It is believed that the Aryans arrived in north India somewhere from Iran and southern Russia at around 1500 B. C. The Aryans fought and pushed the local people called Dravidians southwards. The Aryans are referred to in Indian history as fair skinned people who pushed the dark skinned Dravidians southwards (see also Aryans and Dravidians - a controversial issue).
The north Indians are considered to be the descendants of the Aryans and the south Indians are considered descendants of the Dravidians. Even today the most basic division of the Indian society is of north Indian Aryans and south Indian Dravidians. But this division isn’t proper. Many Indians emigrated from one part of India to other parts of India and not all local people of north India were pushed southwards by the Aryans. Some stayed and served the Aryans and others moved to live in the forests and the jungles of north India. There were also other foreign immigrations and invaders who arrived mainly in north India. Many Dravidians consider themselves as original Indians and their culture as the original culture of India. They also feel that their culture is discriminated by the north Indians (see also Regional parties).
After the Aryans many others invaded India. Alexander the Great and other Greeks arrived in India. The ancient Persian Empire expanded its boundaries up to India. But the Persian Empire like Alexander the Great, didn’t arrive to the center of present India but to present day Pakistan and up to the borders of present India. But there were other Greeks who arrived in India and established kingdoms in India. Others to arrive in ancient India were Scythians, Kushans and Huns. These invaders also established some kingdoms in India. At a much later period there were Muslim invaders - Turks, Arabs, Afghans and others. And of course the Europeans - Portuguese, Danish, Dutch, French and English. In between Indians also established their own kingdoms and empires. These different kingdoms fought among themselves to expand their kingdom boundaries. But never in Indian history was there a kingdom that ruled the whole of India. These different kingdoms that were established in different parts in India created different aspects of Indian history for different regions of India.
Different regions of India adore different heroes and empires from India’s past. For example people from Maharashtra in west India adore the Maratha Empire which was created in Maharashtra and ruled over large parts of India in the 17th and 18th century. Their most respected hero is Shivaji who created the Maratha Empire. People of Tamil Nadu have their own Tamil originated heroes and empires like the Chola Empire that ruled south India and some parts of north India between the 9th to 13th century. For some period the Cholas also reigned over parts of south Asia, including Sri Lanka, and some islands now parts of Malaysia and Indonesia. At other periods in Indian history other empires were established from Tamil Nadu among them the Pandya Empire and the Pallava Empire.
Two famous empires from Bihar in north-east India were Gupta and Maurya Empires, which ruled most of north India and large parts of south India. One of the Mauryan Emperors, Asoka, had perhaps the largest Indian Empire which covered almost the whole of present India. The Maurya Empire existed somewere between 4th century B. C. till 1st century B. C. The Gupta Empire existed between 4th century A. D. till 7th century A. D.
There were many other empires which were established at different periods in different parts of India and reigned over large parts of India. In south India the Vijayanagar Empire was established in the 14th century. In central India the Bahmani Empire was also established in the 14th century. Alongside with the empires, there were also small kingdoms which ruled on small parts of India. In present day Rajasthan there were many such kingdoms and their rulers belonged to the Rajput caste. The Rajputs even today symbolize the warrior castes of India. These kingdoms sometimes were completely independent and at other times acted as autonomies of bigger empires. Some of these kingdoms came into existence after a collapse of bigger empire and sometimes after a mutiny in a bigger empire. The Bahmani Empire broke up into five kingdoms. The world famous Moghul Empire from the Delhi-Agra region collapsed into many small kingdoms and into Maratha Empire.
The Moghuls are perhaps the most famous of the Indian Empires which ever existed. At their height they controlled the whole of north India, present day Pakistan and large parts of south India. In their empire they had many kings and rulers who were subjected to them. In west India, there were many local rulers who were subjected to the Moghul Empire. These rulers of West India were called Maratha (or Maharatha). Till the Moghul Empire, different Maratha rulers acted sometimes as independent rulers and at other times subjected to different larger kingdoms or empires including the Moghuls.
When Aurangzeb attained the Moghul throne, the empire began its first step towards collapsing. Aurangzeb was a religious and fanatic Muslim. He tried to enforce Islam and Islamic law on his citizens. As a result the Marathas under the leadership of Shivaji revolted and declared independence. Shivaji was also nominated emperor of the Marathas. The Marathas enlarged their empire by taking control over more Moghul territories and other rulers territories.
After Shivaji’s death in 1680 the Maratha people had lot of interior crisis. Sometimes the different Maratha parties acted as one power and at other times as separate independent powers sometimes fighting each other. After Aurengzeb’s death in 1707 the Moghuls started collapsing into separate independent kingdoms even though there was always a acting Moghul Emperor. In this period of chaos in the Moghul and Maratha empires, some European powers – English, French, Dutch, Danish and Portuguese - began controlling Indian territories.
Among these European powers the Portuguese arrived first in India in 1498 via sea after they had circled the whole of the African continent. The Portuguese had to circle the whole of African continent because in those days the Muslim Ottoman Empire of Turkey which ruled the middle east caused lots of problems to European Christian merchants who tried to pass through their land. Therefore the Europeans tried to find other routes to reach India. Columbus tried to get to India while sailing westwards from Europe. Columbus presumed that because the earth is round he would eventually get to India while sailing westwards, instead he found the continent of America whose existence was not known then to the Europeans. Columbus thought that he had arrived in India and called the natives Indians.
The Europeans came to India because of commercial reasons. The Indian sub-continent was then world famous for its spices. Local rulers leased to the Europeans, land so that they could build factories. Later on the Europeans got permits from local leaders to build forts around their factories. The Europeans then established forces to protect their interests. The next step of the European was occupying Indian land with these armies and so one of the European powers, the British, became the rulers of India.
The British control of India was a result of several factors. The Portuguese who along with their business tried to enforce Roman Catholicism on Indian(including the Syrian Christians) were defeated by local rulers sometimes in collaboration with Protestant European powers. But still the Portuguese remained in India with small pockets. Their main center in India was Goa. The Dutch and the Danes left India for their reasons. The two main European powers that remained in India were British and French. These two powers tried different ways to control India and to defeat each other.
The kingdoms of India, especially in north India, sought with the collapse of the Moghul Empire, patronage of another Empire. The French and the British both tried to fill this place. The British succeeded more than the French in convincing the local leaders. But not all Indian rulers were interested in British patronage or British rule on Indian soil. The Sikhs in north India, Marathas rulers in west India and kingdom of Mysore in south India were among those who opposed the British rule.
The British succeeded in defeating the Indian rulers (some of whom got also French assistance against the British) and became the rulers of India. But the French like the Portuguese remained in India with small pockets and both these powers remained in India even after the British left India in 1947.
The British ruled India via two administrative systems. One was ‘Provinces’ and the other ‘Princely States’. Provinces were British territories completely under British control. Princely States were states in British India with local ruler or king with honorary titles like Maharaja, Raja, Maharana, Rana, Nizam, Badshah and other titles meaning king or ruler in different Indian languages. These rulers were subjected to the British Empire.
During India’s independence in 1947 there were 562 Princely States and 11 Provinces.
World Religions
Arrival of Non-Indian religions into India
India, well known as the land of spirituality and philosophy, was the birthplace of Hinduism, Buddhism, Jainism and Sikhism among other religions. Along with the religions that developed in India, there are also followers of religions of non- Indian origins. Among these religions are Islam, Christianity, Zoroastrianism, Bahaism and Judaism. The followers of these different religions arrived in India at different times.
The largest religion of non-Indian origin is Islam. They are about 12% of India's population. Muslims who arrived in India converted Indians to Islam. Islam was spread in India through two means, peaceful and sword. The first spreaders of Islam in India were individuals who saw in spreading Islam a holy precept. They used peaceful means to convert to Islam. But most of Indians are believed to have converted to Islam through the sword, which means the Muslim invaders gave the Indians an option to choose between death and Islam. The different Muslim rulers of India also brought into their kingdoms Muslim mercenaries, businessmen and slaves from different parts of the world like Russia, Afghanistan, Turkey, Arab countries and Africa. These people remained in India, married local Indians and converted them to Islam.
Like the Muslims, the Christians, who arrived to India also converted Indians to their religion, Christianity. Christians are about 2.5% of India's population. Most of the Indians were converted to Christianity by the missionaries who arrived in India with the European powers from 15th century. Of the European powers, the Portuguese were most enthusiast to baptize Indians. But Christianity did not arrive in India with the arrival of European missionaries. It reached India almost 2000 years ago.
Christianity originates in Israel. One of the Apostles (the 12 chief disciples of Jesus), St. Judas Thomas, was a carpenter. He was brought to India by a merchant to build a temple. St. Thomas arrived in Kerala, in south India in 52 AD. He succeeded in converting local Indians to Christianity. His converts were called Syrian Christians. One assumption says that some of the Syrian Christians were actually local Jews converted by St. Judas Thomas to Christianity. The disciples of Jesus at first intended to convince the Jews to adopt the philosophy of Jesus as new Judaism. Therefore they arrived to regions where Jews had settled in the world. Among these regions where Jews had settled was India. Two Apostles are believed to have arrived in India for this purpose. St. Judas Thomas arrived in Kerala in south India and St. Bartholomew in western Maharashtra in west India.
Judaism is probably the oldest religion of non-Indian origin to arrive in India. Today there are also a few thousand Jews in India. Judaism and Christianity might have arrived in India before they reached Europe.
The different Jewish communities of India, Bene Israel, Cochini, Baghdadi and Bne Menashe claims their arrival in India in different ways and it is not always clear how they really came to India. The Bene Israel, which is the largest Jewish community of India, lived earlier in the villages of west Maharashtra. They are believed to exist in India for over 2000 years. The Cochini Jews in south India also claim that their first forefathers arrived in India over 2000 years ago during King Solomon's rule. The Bne Menashe of East India who claim to origin from the 'Lost Tribes' arrived much later in India. The Bne Menashes arrived in east India from China and Myanmar (Burma). In the late 18th century, Jews from Arab countries and Iran arrived in India because of religious persecutions in their countries. They were called collectively as Baghdadi Jews.
Two other religions that arrived in India because of religious persecutions in their countries were Zoroastrianism and Bahaism. Both of them arrived from Iran.
Zoroastrians, who even though make less then 0.01% of India's population, are well known around India. The followers of this religion are called Parsis because they arrived from Persia (Iran). The followers of this religion exiled from Iran in the 7th century AD. They arrived in Gujarat in west India. In the 20th century followers of the Bahai religion arrived in India because of religious persecution in Iran.
Religions of India
1. Hinduism
2. Buddhism
3. Jainism
4. Christianity
5. Islam
6. Zoroastrianism
7. Sikhism
8. Judaism
9. Bahá'í Faith
Hinduism
The Sri Venkateshwara temple at Tirupati is the most visited temple in India
A Jain temple in Kochi
The Nasrani Menorah, the symbol of the Knanaya community in South India.
The Jama Masjid, Delhi is one of the largest mosques in the world.
The Harimandir Sahib, known popularly as the Golden Temple, is a sacred shrine for Sikhs.
The adherents of Hinduism form the largest religious community in India, numbering approximately 900 million and comprising 80.5% of the population. About 50 million Hindus of Indian origin are living abroad (notably the USA, Fiji, Mauritius, UK and South Africa). Hinduism in India has a long and varied history. Indeed, India is the birth-place of Hinduism and the history of Hinduism is as old as that of India herself. Hinduism is a set of practices of the people of India. The word Hindu is derived from the word Sindhu and signifies a person coming from the land of the river Sindhu (i.e., India). Hinduism has origins of around 2500 BCE. Modern Hinduism has taken the form of a religion due to other religious influences. However, it is known as a "way of life" rather than a religion. It differs from other religions by the fact that it does not have a single founder, a specific theological system, a single system of morality, or a central religious organisation.
Despite attacks and invasions by various Arab and Afghan empires during and after the 7th century CE, Hinduism has survived. The reason is said to be the in-built tolerance and inclusiveness in Hinduism.
Further information: Hinduism, Hindu, and Vedic religion
Buddhism
Buddhism, known in ancient India as Buddha Dharma, originated in northern India in what is today the state of Bihar. It rapidly gained adherents during the Buddha's lifetime. It was also the religion of the rich and the upper classes and hence Up to the 9th century, Indian followers numbered in the hundreds of thousands only compared to other religions which numbered in millions. While the exact cause of the decline of Buddhism in India is disputed, it is known that the mingling of Hindu and Buddhist societies in India and the rise of Hindu Vedanta movements began to compete against Buddhism. Many believe that Hinduism's adaptation to Buddhism resulted in Buddhism's rapid decline. Also, Muslim invaders are recorded to have caused massive devastation on monasteries, libraries, and statuary, as they did on Hindu religious life. Many Indian Buddhist populations remained intact in or migrated to places like Sri Lanka, Tibet, and other Asian countries. The loss of main centers of pilgrimage and supplanting the upper class by new islamic upper class caused the decline of Buddhism in India.
Recently, a revival of Buddhism in India has made significant progress. In 1956, B. R. Ambedkar, a princely state official during the Indian struggle for independence from the United Kingdom, and thousands of his followers converted to Buddhism in protest against the caste system. Subsequent mass conversions on a lesser scale have occurred since then. Three-quarters of these "neo-Buddhists" live in Maharashtra. Alongside these converts are the Vajrayana Buddhists of Ladakh, Sikkim, and Arunachal Pradesh, a small number of tribal peoples in the region of Bengal, and Tibetan refugees. Today around 8 million Buddhists live in India.
Jainism
Jainism, along with Hinduism, Buddhism and Sikhism, is one of the four major Dharmic religions originating in India. In general, Jains are extremely well-represented despite comprising only 0.4% (around 4.2 million) of India's total population. Many of India's Jains are affluent, and almost all are well off. As such, it can be said that they hold power and wealth disproportionate to their small population. According to the India Census 2001, Jains have the highest literacy rate (In respect to religious affiliation) of 94.1% compared to the national average of 64.8%.
Christianity
Christianity, according to tradition arrived in India in the first century (c.52-85AD) through the apostle Thomas. The chronicle of his mission in India is recorded in the apocryphal Gospel of Thomas, and the lesser-known Apocalypse of Thomas. In these books, Judas Thomas is regarded as the "Twin" of Jesus Christ of Nazareth, alleging that since this Thomas was identical in look to Christ, he was equal in piety. The apostle completed the conversion of a Malabar prince, and founded a church on the prince's grounds. According to the Gospel of Thomas, he later was buried in the foundation of that building, located by tradition near Mumbai (formerly Bombay).
The events of Thomas' mission in India has been explored by scholars for centuries. They question whether the event was historically accurate, or in tradition of building the Indian Christian communities growing along the Malabar coast.
Christianity was later consolidated in India, by the arrival of Syriac Jewish-Christians now known as Knanaya people in the second century A.D. This ancient ethnic Christian community of Kerala is known as Nasrani or Syrian Christian. The Nasrani people and especially the Knanaya people within the Nasranis have strong Jewish historical ties. Their form of Christianity is one of the most ancient: Syriac Christianity which is also known as the Eastern Orthodox Church and referred to in India as Saint Thomas Christians. It should be noted that the term "Saint Thomas Christians" is a loose term that many non-Nasranis Christians in Kerala are often labeled. The vast majority of Christians in Kerala are not the original Nasrani/Knanaya but indigenous local converts.[citation needed]Roman Catholicism reached India during the period of European colonization, which began in 1498 when the Portuguese explorer Vasco da Gama arrived on the Malabar coast. Christian missionary activity increased in the early 1800s. Today Christianity is the third largest religion of India making up 2 - 2.9% of the population. Christians are most prevalent in the southern states like Kerala and Tamil Nadu, northeastern states such as Nagaland, Mizoram and in western state Goa.
Islam
Islam arrived in India as early as the 8th century A.D. During the following decades, Islam contributed greatly to the cultural enhancement of an already rich Indian culture, shaping not only the shape of Northern Indian classical music (Hindustani, a melding of Indian and Middle Eastern elements) but encouraging a grand tradition of Urdu (a melding of Hindi, Arabic and Persian languages) literature both religious and secular. Among other monuments, the Taj Mahal is a gift of the Mughals. As of 2001, there are about 130 million Muslims in India who are scattered throughout the country, with the highest concentrations being in the states of Jammu and Kashmir, Kerala, West Bengal, Assam and parts of the Gangetic plain. Uttar Pradesh in the Gangetic plain has the highest population of Muslims in one state. India has the third largest population of Muslims in the world after Indonesia and Pakistan.
Zoroastrianism
Parsi Navjote ceremony (rites of admission into the Zoroastrian faith)
Main article: Parsis, the Zoroastrians of the Indian subcontinent.
Subsequent to the fall of the Persian Empire, after which Zoroastrianism was gradually supplanted by Islam, many Zoroastrians fled to other regions in the hope of preserving their religious tradition. Among them were several groups who migrated to Gujarat, on the western shores of the Indian subcontinent, where they finally settled. The descendants of those refugees are today known as the Parsis.
In contrast to their co-religionists elsewhere, in India the Zoroastrians enjoyed tolerance and even admiration from other religious communities. From the 19th century onward, the Parsis gained a reputation for their education and widespread influence in all aspects of society, partly due to the divisive strategy of British colonialism which favored certain minorities. As such, Parsis are generally more affluent than other Indians and are stereotypically viewed as among the most Anglicised and "Westernised" of Indian minority groups. They have also played an instrumental role in the economic development of the country over many decades; several of the best-known business conglomerates of India are run by Parsi-Zoroastrians, including the Tata, Godrej, and Wadia families.
As of the census of 2001, the Parsis represent approximately 0.006% of the total population of India, with a concentration in and around the city of Mumbai (previously known as Bombay). Due to a low birth rate and high rate of immigration, demographic trends project that by the year 2020 the Parsis will number only 23,000 or 0.0002% of the total population of India. The Parsis will then cease to be called a community and will be labelled a 'tribe'.
Sikhism
Sikhism, was founded in India's northwestern Punjab region about 400 years ago. As of 2001 there were 19.3 million Sikhs in India. Many of today's Sikhs are situated in Punjab, the largest Sikh province in the world and the ancestral home of Sikhs. There are also significant populations of Sikhs in the neighboring states of Haryana and New Delhi. The most famous Sikh temple is the Golden Temple, located in Amritsar, Punjab. Many Sikhs serve in the Indian Army. The current prime minister of India, Manmohan Singh, is a Sikh. Punjab is the spiritual home of Sikhs and is the only state in India where Sikhs form a majority.
Judaism
Jews in India
Trade contacts between the Mediterranean region and the west coast of India probably led to the presence of small Jewish settlements in India as long ago as the early first millennium B.C. In Kerala a community of Jews tracing its origin to the fall of Jerusalem in A.D. 70 has remained associated with the cities of Kodungallur (formerly known as Cranganore) and Kochi (formerly known as Cochin) for at least 1,000 years. The Paradesi Synagogue in Kochi, rebuilt in 1568, is in the architectural style of Kerala but preserves the ritual style of the Sephardic rite, with Babylonian and Yemenite influence as well. The Jews of Kochi, concentrated mostly in the old "Jew Town," were completely integrated into local culture, speaking Malayalam and taking local names while preserving their knowledge of Hebrew and contacts with Southwest Asia. A separate community of Jews, called the Bene Israel, had lived along the Konkan Coast in and around Bombay, Pune, and Ahmadabad for almost 2,000 years. Unlike the Kochi Jews, they became a village-based society and maintained little contact with other Jewish communities. They always remained within the Orthodox Jewish fold, practicing the Sephardrew is coolite without rabbis, with the synagogue as the center of religious and cultural life. Following trade routes established by the expansion of the British Empire, a third group of Jews, the Baghdadi Jews immigrated to India, settling primarily in Bombay and Calcutta. Many of the Baghdadi traders became wealthy and participated prominently in the economic leadership of these growing cities. As a result of religious pressure elsewhere, including the forced conversions of Mashhad (see Muslim Jew), their numbers were increased by religious refugees. The Baghdadis came mostly from the Ottoman Empire, Persia, and Afghanistan.
The population of the Kochi Jews, always small, had decreased from 5,000 in 1951 to about fifty in the early 1990s. During the same period, the Bene Israel decreased from about 20,000 to 5,000, while the Baghdadi Jews declined from 5,000 to 250. Emigration to Australia, Israel, the United Kingdom, and North America accounts for most of this decline. According to the 1981 Indian census, there were 5,618 Jews in India, down from 5,825 in 1971. The 1991 census showed a further decline to 5,271, most of whom lived in Maharashtra and Kerala.
The Knanaya and Nasrani Christian groups also have strong historical ties to Judaism.
http://www.webindia123.com/religion/index.htm
http://www.sscnet.ucla.edu/southasia/Religions/religions.html
http://countrystudies.us/india/38.htm
http://www.thetruehistoryandthereligionofindia.org/
http://www.india.com.ar/india222.html
http://geocities.com/neovedanta/a31.html
http://www.answers.com/topic/religion-in-india
http://www.pilgrimage-india.com/indian-religion/
http://www.indiasite.com/religion/
http://www.judypat.com/india/temple.htm
Индуизъм
Преди три хиляди години диви арийски племена нахлули в Индия от север и се установили в района на сегашен Пенджаб. Тези племена вече имали добре организирана религия и жреци, които заемали високо място в обществената йерархия. В по-голямата си част тяхната религия се състояла от митове, поеми и химни. С течение на времето повечето от тях били събрани в свещени книги на санскритски език. Те се делят на две групи: СРУТИ (разсъждения) и СМИТРИ (спомени). Срути съдържа химни, поеми и молитви, докато Смитри се състои от притчи и правила.
Индуизмът е смесица от религията на тези племена и местните религии, изповядвани в Индия отпреди 3000 години. Днес той има повече от 400 милиона последователи по света, най-вече в Индия, както и хиляди разновидности, защото индуизмът е гъвкава религия. При все, че всички индуси вярват в БРАМА, абсолютната движеща сила на Вселената, те също така вярват в много по-второстепенни свръхестествени същества, които са различни за различните райони. Има няколко основни индуистки начала, общи за всички последователи на тази религия.
Превъплъщения. Всички индуисти вярват в превъплъщението. Това означава, че след смъртта душата преминава в друга форма на живот, и то многократно, докато не се освободи от този цикъл. Три неща са необходими за освобождаването на душата: философия (или знание), религиозни дела и молитви или медитация.
Кастово деление. Повечето последователи на индуизма приемат една строга система на класово деление, наречена кастова. Според нея всеки човек трябва да заеме онова място в живота, което му е отредено по рождение. Невъзможно е да се премине от една каста в друга. Все пак индусите като цяло допускат, че принципът КАРМА (според делата) оказва влияние на тяхната съдба в различните превъплъщения.
Индуистки секти
Има три основни индуистки секти. Те се кланят на някои от по-второстепенните богове.
ВИШНУ. Сектата, която се прекланя пред Вишну, пазителя на живота, се дели всъщност на 10 по-малки секти, защото Вишну е бог с 10 различни превъплъщения. Всяка верска общност или отделен вярващ индивид в дадено населено място може да избира между Мация рибата, Карма костенурката, Вараха глигана, Нарасимха човека-лъв, Ваман джуджето, Парасурама принца със секира, Рама принца, Кришна първия мъдрец, Буда последния мъдрец или Калки мъдреца на бъдещето.
Четиридневния празник Дивали, с който започва индуската Нова година, е в чест на бога Вишну и съпругата му Лакшми, богинята на плодородието.
ШИВА. Шива е бог, почитан най-вече от кашмирците и тамилите. Той е бог с две лица. Наречен Разрушителят, той често е изобразяван като страшна фигура, заобиколена от зли демони. В същото време понякога го представят като животворна сила със спокойно и любещо лице.
ШАКТИ. Тя е майка - богиня, почитана в Бенгалия и Асам. Шакти също е богиня с много лица. Гневна и отмъстителна, тя се появява като Кали или Дарга - зла стара жена, възседнала демон. Но тя се явява и като благодетелка - красива млада жена, известна като Парвати или Ума. Празникът Дасера, който се провежда всяка година в края на септември и трае 10 дни, е в чест на превъплъщението на Шакти като лошата боганя Дарга.
Други индийски религии
В индийския регион съществуват и други религии, включително ислямът и християнството. Тук са се зародили още три религии, които впоследствие са се разпространили и по други места.
СИКХИТЕ. Сикхската религия е възникнала през XV в. Създадена е от един учител, или гуру, на име НАНАК. Тя съчетава елементи от исляма и индуизма, като има и някои свои специфични принципи. Свещените книги на сикхизма се наричат Гуру Грант Сахиб.
Сикхските деца отбелязват пълнолетие с церемония, която ги въвежда в Халса - общността на чистите. Момчетата получават името Синг (лъв), а момичетата - Каур (принцеса). Ортодоксалните сикхи трябва да имат дълга коса и брада (кеш), да носят гребен (канга) и сабя (кирпан), а също къси гащи (кача) и лента (кара). Сикхите се смятат за много добри воини.
ДЖАЙНИТЕ. Джайнизмът е много толерантна религия. Джайните вярват, че всички живи същества имат душа и не бива да им се причинява вреда. Те не ядат месо. Най-ревностните последователи отместват насекомите от пътя си, за да не ги настъпят, и носят маски, за да не погълнат случайно някое летящо насекомо. Подобно на индуистите, те вярват в прераждането, но не вярват в никакви богове. Това в което вярват, е вечната Вселена, от която всички живи твари са неразделна част.
ПАРСИТЕ. Парсите са наследили религията си от древната ЗОРОАСТРИЙСКА религия в Персия (сега Иран), възникнала преди около 2600 години. Те вярват в един бог - АХУРА МАЗДА. Живот след смъртта е възможен за онези, които са били добри и почтени хора приживе. Свещен огън гори непрекъснато в техните храмове. Парсите не погребват мъртъвците си, защото смятат, че смъртта като дело на злото ще оскверни земята. Те поставят умрелите на високи кули, където хищните птици ги изяждат.
Religions in India
India known as the land of spirituality and philosophy, was the birthplace of some religions, which even exist today in the world.
The most dominant religion in India today is Hinduism. About 80% of Indians are Hindus. Hinduism is a colorful religion with a vast gallery of Gods and Goddesses. Hinduism is one of the ancient religions in the world. It is supposed to have developed about 5000 years ago. Later on in ancient period other religions developed in India.
Around 500 BC two other religions developed in India, namely, Buddhism and Jainism. Today only about 0.5% of Indians are Jains and about 0.7% are Buddhist. In ancient times Jainism and specially Buddhism were very popular in India. Indians who accepted Buddhist philosophy spread it not only within the Indian sub-continent but also to kingdoms east and south of India.
These three ancient religions, Hinduism, Buddhism and Jainism, are seen as the molders of the India philosophy. In 'modern' period new religions were also established in India.
One comparatively new religion in India is Sikhism and it was established in the 15th century. About 2% of Indians are Sikhs. There were other attempts to create new religions in India but they did not always succeed. For example, a Moghul emperor, Akbar, who reigned between 1556 - 1605, tried to establish a new religion, Din- E- Elahi, but it did not survive. There are other religious philosophies whose believers see themselves as a separate religion, but they do not always get this recognition. For example Lingayat of south India see themselves as a different religion, while others see them as a sect of Hinduism. There are also some tribal communities who demand to be recognized as separate religion from Hinduism. In the 19th century some Hindu reformers tried to remodel Hinduism to adjust it to modern period.
Along with the religions that developed in India, there are followers of non- Indian religions. The largest non-Indian religion is Islam. They are about 12% of India's population. Christians are more then 2% of India's population. There are also Zoroastrians who even though make less then 0.01% of India's population, are known around India. There are also a few thousand Jews in India. Judaism and Christianity might have arrived in India before they arrived in Europe.
India History
India in the past - its rulers
Different parts of India have different histories and legends. Indians in different parts of the country look at their past from a different point of view than Indians in other parts of India. Indian history has a past of over thousands of years. The Hindus record their religious history at over millions of year. They believe that the world is created and destroyed every few million years. Religious Hindus and some Hindu historians record their present history at over 7000 years. This belief is different from the accepted general history which claims Indian history to be shorter than 5000 years.
In general Indian history different kingdoms were established in different parts of India, some by foreign invaders. The first known invaders of India were Aryans (also mentioned sometimes as Indo-Aryans). It is believed that the Aryans arrived in north India somewhere from Iran and southern Russia at around 1500 B. C. The Aryans fought and pushed the local people called Dravidians southwards. The Aryans are referred to in Indian history as fair skinned people who pushed the dark skinned Dravidians southwards (see also Aryans and Dravidians - a controversial issue).
The north Indians are considered to be the descendants of the Aryans and the south Indians are considered descendants of the Dravidians. Even today the most basic division of the Indian society is of north Indian Aryans and south Indian Dravidians. But this division isn’t proper. Many Indians emigrated from one part of India to other parts of India and not all local people of north India were pushed southwards by the Aryans. Some stayed and served the Aryans and others moved to live in the forests and the jungles of north India. There were also other foreign immigrations and invaders who arrived mainly in north India. Many Dravidians consider themselves as original Indians and their culture as the original culture of India. They also feel that their culture is discriminated by the north Indians (see also Regional parties).
After the Aryans many others invaded India. Alexander the Great and other Greeks arrived in India. The ancient Persian Empire expanded its boundaries up to India. But the Persian Empire like Alexander the Great, didn’t arrive to the center of present India but to present day Pakistan and up to the borders of present India. But there were other Greeks who arrived in India and established kingdoms in India. Others to arrive in ancient India were Scythians, Kushans and Huns. These invaders also established some kingdoms in India. At a much later period there were Muslim invaders - Turks, Arabs, Afghans and others. And of course the Europeans - Portuguese, Danish, Dutch, French and English. In between Indians also established their own kingdoms and empires. These different kingdoms fought among themselves to expand their kingdom boundaries. But never in Indian history was there a kingdom that ruled the whole of India. These different kingdoms that were established in different parts in India created different aspects of Indian history for different regions of India.
Different regions of India adore different heroes and empires from India’s past. For example people from Maharashtra in west India adore the Maratha Empire which was created in Maharashtra and ruled over large parts of India in the 17th and 18th century. Their most respected hero is Shivaji who created the Maratha Empire. People of Tamil Nadu have their own Tamil originated heroes and empires like the Chola Empire that ruled south India and some parts of north India between the 9th to 13th century. For some period the Cholas also reigned over parts of south Asia, including Sri Lanka, and some islands now parts of Malaysia and Indonesia. At other periods in Indian history other empires were established from Tamil Nadu among them the Pandya Empire and the Pallava Empire.
Two famous empires from Bihar in north-east India were Gupta and Maurya Empires, which ruled most of north India and large parts of south India. One of the Mauryan Emperors, Asoka, had perhaps the largest Indian Empire which covered almost the whole of present India. The Maurya Empire existed somewere between 4th century B. C. till 1st century B. C. The Gupta Empire existed between 4th century A. D. till 7th century A. D.
There were many other empires which were established at different periods in different parts of India and reigned over large parts of India. In south India the Vijayanagar Empire was established in the 14th century. In central India the Bahmani Empire was also established in the 14th century. Alongside with the empires, there were also small kingdoms which ruled on small parts of India. In present day Rajasthan there were many such kingdoms and their rulers belonged to the Rajput caste. The Rajputs even today symbolize the warrior castes of India. These kingdoms sometimes were completely independent and at other times acted as autonomies of bigger empires. Some of these kingdoms came into existence after a collapse of bigger empire and sometimes after a mutiny in a bigger empire. The Bahmani Empire broke up into five kingdoms. The world famous Moghul Empire from the Delhi-Agra region collapsed into many small kingdoms and into Maratha Empire.
The Moghuls are perhaps the most famous of the Indian Empires which ever existed. At their height they controlled the whole of north India, present day Pakistan and large parts of south India. In their empire they had many kings and rulers who were subjected to them. In west India, there were many local rulers who were subjected to the Moghul Empire. These rulers of West India were called Maratha (or Maharatha). Till the Moghul Empire, different Maratha rulers acted sometimes as independent rulers and at other times subjected to different larger kingdoms or empires including the Moghuls.
When Aurangzeb attained the Moghul throne, the empire began its first step towards collapsing. Aurangzeb was a religious and fanatic Muslim. He tried to enforce Islam and Islamic law on his citizens. As a result the Marathas under the leadership of Shivaji revolted and declared independence. Shivaji was also nominated emperor of the Marathas. The Marathas enlarged their empire by taking control over more Moghul territories and other rulers territories.
After Shivaji’s death in 1680 the Maratha people had lot of interior crisis. Sometimes the different Maratha parties acted as one power and at other times as separate independent powers sometimes fighting each other. After Aurengzeb’s death in 1707 the Moghuls started collapsing into separate independent kingdoms even though there was always a acting Moghul Emperor. In this period of chaos in the Moghul and Maratha empires, some European powers – English, French, Dutch, Danish and Portuguese - began controlling Indian territories.
Among these European powers the Portuguese arrived first in India in 1498 via sea after they had circled the whole of the African continent. The Portuguese had to circle the whole of African continent because in those days the Muslim Ottoman Empire of Turkey which ruled the middle east caused lots of problems to European Christian merchants who tried to pass through their land. Therefore the Europeans tried to find other routes to reach India. Columbus tried to get to India while sailing westwards from Europe. Columbus presumed that because the earth is round he would eventually get to India while sailing westwards, instead he found the continent of America whose existence was not known then to the Europeans. Columbus thought that he had arrived in India and called the natives Indians.
The Europeans came to India because of commercial reasons. The Indian sub-continent was then world famous for its spices. Local rulers leased to the Europeans, land so that they could build factories. Later on the Europeans got permits from local leaders to build forts around their factories. The Europeans then established forces to protect their interests. The next step of the European was occupying Indian land with these armies and so one of the European powers, the British, became the rulers of India.
The British control of India was a result of several factors. The Portuguese who along with their business tried to enforce Roman Catholicism on Indian(including the Syrian Christians) were defeated by local rulers sometimes in collaboration with Protestant European powers. But still the Portuguese remained in India with small pockets. Their main center in India was Goa. The Dutch and the Danes left India for their reasons. The two main European powers that remained in India were British and French. These two powers tried different ways to control India and to defeat each other.
The kingdoms of India, especially in north India, sought with the collapse of the Moghul Empire, patronage of another Empire. The French and the British both tried to fill this place. The British succeeded more than the French in convincing the local leaders. But not all Indian rulers were interested in British patronage or British rule on Indian soil. The Sikhs in north India, Marathas rulers in west India and kingdom of Mysore in south India were among those who opposed the British rule.
The British succeeded in defeating the Indian rulers (some of whom got also French assistance against the British) and became the rulers of India. But the French like the Portuguese remained in India with small pockets and both these powers remained in India even after the British left India in 1947.
The British ruled India via two administrative systems. One was ‘Provinces’ and the other ‘Princely States’. Provinces were British territories completely under British control. Princely States were states in British India with local ruler or king with honorary titles like Maharaja, Raja, Maharana, Rana, Nizam, Badshah and other titles meaning king or ruler in different Indian languages. These rulers were subjected to the British Empire.
During India’s independence in 1947 there were 562 Princely States and 11 Provinces.
World Religions
Arrival of Non-Indian religions into India
India, well known as the land of spirituality and philosophy, was the birthplace of Hinduism, Buddhism, Jainism and Sikhism among other religions. Along with the religions that developed in India, there are also followers of religions of non- Indian origins. Among these religions are Islam, Christianity, Zoroastrianism, Bahaism and Judaism. The followers of these different religions arrived in India at different times.
The largest religion of non-Indian origin is Islam. They are about 12% of India's population. Muslims who arrived in India converted Indians to Islam. Islam was spread in India through two means, peaceful and sword. The first spreaders of Islam in India were individuals who saw in spreading Islam a holy precept. They used peaceful means to convert to Islam. But most of Indians are believed to have converted to Islam through the sword, which means the Muslim invaders gave the Indians an option to choose between death and Islam. The different Muslim rulers of India also brought into their kingdoms Muslim mercenaries, businessmen and slaves from different parts of the world like Russia, Afghanistan, Turkey, Arab countries and Africa. These people remained in India, married local Indians and converted them to Islam.
Like the Muslims, the Christians, who arrived to India also converted Indians to their religion, Christianity. Christians are about 2.5% of India's population. Most of the Indians were converted to Christianity by the missionaries who arrived in India with the European powers from 15th century. Of the European powers, the Portuguese were most enthusiast to baptize Indians. But Christianity did not arrive in India with the arrival of European missionaries. It reached India almost 2000 years ago.
Christianity originates in Israel. One of the Apostles (the 12 chief disciples of Jesus), St. Judas Thomas, was a carpenter. He was brought to India by a merchant to build a temple. St. Thomas arrived in Kerala, in south India in 52 AD. He succeeded in converting local Indians to Christianity. His converts were called Syrian Christians. One assumption says that some of the Syrian Christians were actually local Jews converted by St. Judas Thomas to Christianity. The disciples of Jesus at first intended to convince the Jews to adopt the philosophy of Jesus as new Judaism. Therefore they arrived to regions where Jews had settled in the world. Among these regions where Jews had settled was India. Two Apostles are believed to have arrived in India for this purpose. St. Judas Thomas arrived in Kerala in south India and St. Bartholomew in western Maharashtra in west India.
Judaism is probably the oldest religion of non-Indian origin to arrive in India. Today there are also a few thousand Jews in India. Judaism and Christianity might have arrived in India before they reached Europe.
The different Jewish communities of India, Bene Israel, Cochini, Baghdadi and Bne Menashe claims their arrival in India in different ways and it is not always clear how they really came to India. The Bene Israel, which is the largest Jewish community of India, lived earlier in the villages of west Maharashtra. They are believed to exist in India for over 2000 years. The Cochini Jews in south India also claim that their first forefathers arrived in India over 2000 years ago during King Solomon's rule. The Bne Menashe of East India who claim to origin from the 'Lost Tribes' arrived much later in India. The Bne Menashes arrived in east India from China and Myanmar (Burma). In the late 18th century, Jews from Arab countries and Iran arrived in India because of religious persecutions in their countries. They were called collectively as Baghdadi Jews.
Two other religions that arrived in India because of religious persecutions in their countries were Zoroastrianism and Bahaism. Both of them arrived from Iran.
Zoroastrians, who even though make less then 0.01% of India's population, are well known around India. The followers of this religion are called Parsis because they arrived from Persia (Iran). The followers of this religion exiled from Iran in the 7th century AD. They arrived in Gujarat in west India. In the 20th century followers of the Bahai religion arrived in India because of religious persecution in Iran.
Religions of India
1. Hinduism
2. Buddhism
3. Jainism
4. Christianity
5. Islam
6. Zoroastrianism
7. Sikhism
8. Judaism
9. Bahá'í Faith
Hinduism
The Sri Venkateshwara temple at Tirupati is the most visited temple in India
A Jain temple in Kochi
The Nasrani Menorah, the symbol of the Knanaya community in South India.
The Jama Masjid, Delhi is one of the largest mosques in the world.
The Harimandir Sahib, known popularly as the Golden Temple, is a sacred shrine for Sikhs.
The adherents of Hinduism form the largest religious community in India, numbering approximately 900 million and comprising 80.5% of the population. About 50 million Hindus of Indian origin are living abroad (notably the USA, Fiji, Mauritius, UK and South Africa). Hinduism in India has a long and varied history. Indeed, India is the birth-place of Hinduism and the history of Hinduism is as old as that of India herself. Hinduism is a set of practices of the people of India. The word Hindu is derived from the word Sindhu and signifies a person coming from the land of the river Sindhu (i.e., India). Hinduism has origins of around 2500 BCE. Modern Hinduism has taken the form of a religion due to other religious influences. However, it is known as a "way of life" rather than a religion. It differs from other religions by the fact that it does not have a single founder, a specific theological system, a single system of morality, or a central religious organisation.
Despite attacks and invasions by various Arab and Afghan empires during and after the 7th century CE, Hinduism has survived. The reason is said to be the in-built tolerance and inclusiveness in Hinduism.
Further information: Hinduism, Hindu, and Vedic religion
Buddhism
Buddhism, known in ancient India as Buddha Dharma, originated in northern India in what is today the state of Bihar. It rapidly gained adherents during the Buddha's lifetime. It was also the religion of the rich and the upper classes and hence Up to the 9th century, Indian followers numbered in the hundreds of thousands only compared to other religions which numbered in millions. While the exact cause of the decline of Buddhism in India is disputed, it is known that the mingling of Hindu and Buddhist societies in India and the rise of Hindu Vedanta movements began to compete against Buddhism. Many believe that Hinduism's adaptation to Buddhism resulted in Buddhism's rapid decline. Also, Muslim invaders are recorded to have caused massive devastation on monasteries, libraries, and statuary, as they did on Hindu religious life. Many Indian Buddhist populations remained intact in or migrated to places like Sri Lanka, Tibet, and other Asian countries. The loss of main centers of pilgrimage and supplanting the upper class by new islamic upper class caused the decline of Buddhism in India.
Recently, a revival of Buddhism in India has made significant progress. In 1956, B. R. Ambedkar, a princely state official during the Indian struggle for independence from the United Kingdom, and thousands of his followers converted to Buddhism in protest against the caste system. Subsequent mass conversions on a lesser scale have occurred since then. Three-quarters of these "neo-Buddhists" live in Maharashtra. Alongside these converts are the Vajrayana Buddhists of Ladakh, Sikkim, and Arunachal Pradesh, a small number of tribal peoples in the region of Bengal, and Tibetan refugees. Today around 8 million Buddhists live in India.
Jainism
Jainism, along with Hinduism, Buddhism and Sikhism, is one of the four major Dharmic religions originating in India. In general, Jains are extremely well-represented despite comprising only 0.4% (around 4.2 million) of India's total population. Many of India's Jains are affluent, and almost all are well off. As such, it can be said that they hold power and wealth disproportionate to their small population. According to the India Census 2001, Jains have the highest literacy rate (In respect to religious affiliation) of 94.1% compared to the national average of 64.8%.
Christianity
Christianity, according to tradition arrived in India in the first century (c.52-85AD) through the apostle Thomas. The chronicle of his mission in India is recorded in the apocryphal Gospel of Thomas, and the lesser-known Apocalypse of Thomas. In these books, Judas Thomas is regarded as the "Twin" of Jesus Christ of Nazareth, alleging that since this Thomas was identical in look to Christ, he was equal in piety. The apostle completed the conversion of a Malabar prince, and founded a church on the prince's grounds. According to the Gospel of Thomas, he later was buried in the foundation of that building, located by tradition near Mumbai (formerly Bombay).
The events of Thomas' mission in India has been explored by scholars for centuries. They question whether the event was historically accurate, or in tradition of building the Indian Christian communities growing along the Malabar coast.
Christianity was later consolidated in India, by the arrival of Syriac Jewish-Christians now known as Knanaya people in the second century A.D. This ancient ethnic Christian community of Kerala is known as Nasrani or Syrian Christian. The Nasrani people and especially the Knanaya people within the Nasranis have strong Jewish historical ties. Their form of Christianity is one of the most ancient: Syriac Christianity which is also known as the Eastern Orthodox Church and referred to in India as Saint Thomas Christians. It should be noted that the term "Saint Thomas Christians" is a loose term that many non-Nasranis Christians in Kerala are often labeled. The vast majority of Christians in Kerala are not the original Nasrani/Knanaya but indigenous local converts.[citation needed]Roman Catholicism reached India during the period of European colonization, which began in 1498 when the Portuguese explorer Vasco da Gama arrived on the Malabar coast. Christian missionary activity increased in the early 1800s. Today Christianity is the third largest religion of India making up 2 - 2.9% of the population. Christians are most prevalent in the southern states like Kerala and Tamil Nadu, northeastern states such as Nagaland, Mizoram and in western state Goa.
Islam
Islam arrived in India as early as the 8th century A.D. During the following decades, Islam contributed greatly to the cultural enhancement of an already rich Indian culture, shaping not only the shape of Northern Indian classical music (Hindustani, a melding of Indian and Middle Eastern elements) but encouraging a grand tradition of Urdu (a melding of Hindi, Arabic and Persian languages) literature both religious and secular. Among other monuments, the Taj Mahal is a gift of the Mughals. As of 2001, there are about 130 million Muslims in India who are scattered throughout the country, with the highest concentrations being in the states of Jammu and Kashmir, Kerala, West Bengal, Assam and parts of the Gangetic plain. Uttar Pradesh in the Gangetic plain has the highest population of Muslims in one state. India has the third largest population of Muslims in the world after Indonesia and Pakistan.
Zoroastrianism
Parsi Navjote ceremony (rites of admission into the Zoroastrian faith)
Main article: Parsis, the Zoroastrians of the Indian subcontinent.
Subsequent to the fall of the Persian Empire, after which Zoroastrianism was gradually supplanted by Islam, many Zoroastrians fled to other regions in the hope of preserving their religious tradition. Among them were several groups who migrated to Gujarat, on the western shores of the Indian subcontinent, where they finally settled. The descendants of those refugees are today known as the Parsis.
In contrast to their co-religionists elsewhere, in India the Zoroastrians enjoyed tolerance and even admiration from other religious communities. From the 19th century onward, the Parsis gained a reputation for their education and widespread influence in all aspects of society, partly due to the divisive strategy of British colonialism which favored certain minorities. As such, Parsis are generally more affluent than other Indians and are stereotypically viewed as among the most Anglicised and "Westernised" of Indian minority groups. They have also played an instrumental role in the economic development of the country over many decades; several of the best-known business conglomerates of India are run by Parsi-Zoroastrians, including the Tata, Godrej, and Wadia families.
As of the census of 2001, the Parsis represent approximately 0.006% of the total population of India, with a concentration in and around the city of Mumbai (previously known as Bombay). Due to a low birth rate and high rate of immigration, demographic trends project that by the year 2020 the Parsis will number only 23,000 or 0.0002% of the total population of India. The Parsis will then cease to be called a community and will be labelled a 'tribe'.
Sikhism
Sikhism, was founded in India's northwestern Punjab region about 400 years ago. As of 2001 there were 19.3 million Sikhs in India. Many of today's Sikhs are situated in Punjab, the largest Sikh province in the world and the ancestral home of Sikhs. There are also significant populations of Sikhs in the neighboring states of Haryana and New Delhi. The most famous Sikh temple is the Golden Temple, located in Amritsar, Punjab. Many Sikhs serve in the Indian Army. The current prime minister of India, Manmohan Singh, is a Sikh. Punjab is the spiritual home of Sikhs and is the only state in India where Sikhs form a majority.
Judaism
Jews in India
Trade contacts between the Mediterranean region and the west coast of India probably led to the presence of small Jewish settlements in India as long ago as the early first millennium B.C. In Kerala a community of Jews tracing its origin to the fall of Jerusalem in A.D. 70 has remained associated with the cities of Kodungallur (formerly known as Cranganore) and Kochi (formerly known as Cochin) for at least 1,000 years. The Paradesi Synagogue in Kochi, rebuilt in 1568, is in the architectural style of Kerala but preserves the ritual style of the Sephardic rite, with Babylonian and Yemenite influence as well. The Jews of Kochi, concentrated mostly in the old "Jew Town," were completely integrated into local culture, speaking Malayalam and taking local names while preserving their knowledge of Hebrew and contacts with Southwest Asia. A separate community of Jews, called the Bene Israel, had lived along the Konkan Coast in and around Bombay, Pune, and Ahmadabad for almost 2,000 years. Unlike the Kochi Jews, they became a village-based society and maintained little contact with other Jewish communities. They always remained within the Orthodox Jewish fold, practicing the Sephardrew is coolite without rabbis, with the synagogue as the center of religious and cultural life. Following trade routes established by the expansion of the British Empire, a third group of Jews, the Baghdadi Jews immigrated to India, settling primarily in Bombay and Calcutta. Many of the Baghdadi traders became wealthy and participated prominently in the economic leadership of these growing cities. As a result of religious pressure elsewhere, including the forced conversions of Mashhad (see Muslim Jew), their numbers were increased by religious refugees. The Baghdadis came mostly from the Ottoman Empire, Persia, and Afghanistan.
The population of the Kochi Jews, always small, had decreased from 5,000 in 1951 to about fifty in the early 1990s. During the same period, the Bene Israel decreased from about 20,000 to 5,000, while the Baghdadi Jews declined from 5,000 to 250. Emigration to Australia, Israel, the United Kingdom, and North America accounts for most of this decline. According to the 1981 Indian census, there were 5,618 Jews in India, down from 5,825 in 1971. The 1991 census showed a further decline to 5,271, most of whom lived in Maharashtra and Kerala.
The Knanaya and Nasrani Christian groups also have strong historical ties to Judaism.
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