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As people created more efficient systems of communication and more complex governments in early civilizations, they also developed what we now call religion.

Why did all civilizations adopt some sort of religion and how did these religions spread over vast regions? I know that by 1200 BCE, there were developed cities in most parts of the world. Having examined some early writing from the city of Sumer in Mesopotamia, we know that people had already conceived of gods that looked out for them and the welfare of their crops and cities. But the world religions we know of — Hinduism, Judaism, Buddhism, Christianity, and Islam — were bigger than a single city or even a single region of the world. In fact, these religions have survived for thousands of years, and all of them seem to have developed around the same time. Since people do not appear to have lacked for religious life on a local scale from very early times, why did several large-scale belief systems emerge between 1200 BCE and 700 CE? In fact, why did all the major world religions appear in that era? One way that religion was spread throughout the different civilizations was on the Silk Road. As people traveled the Silk Road to trade their goods, they were also introduced to different religions.

The Geography of Ancient India

Geographically, India has it all. If you were to travel around India, you could climb snowcapped mountains, cross wide grassy plains, hack through dense tropical forests, sail down mighty rivers, and skirt around sun-scorched deserts. You might travel under a bright blue sky or get soaked by seasonal rains.

Mountains. Rivers, and Monsoons

Present-day India, Bangladesh, Bhutan, Nepal, and Pakistan made up the large landmass, or subcontinent, of South Asia. This diamond-shaped landmass was originally an island. However, 40 million years ago the large moving plates on which the continents lie drove the subcontinent into Asia. As the lands collided, they pushed Earth's crust upward to form the Himalaya, a 1,500-mile mountain range.

The Himalaya are the world's highest mountains. Many Himalayan peaks rise about 24,000 feet. Thirty peaks, including Mount Everest--Earth's highest peaks, including Mount Everest--Earth's highest point--are over 25,000 feet high.

On either side of the Himalaya lie lower mountain ranges, including the Hindu Kush, which separates what was once northwest India from present-day Afghanistan. These northern mountains form a natural barrier against invaders. The Arabian Sea, Indian Ocean, and Bay of Bengal have provided further protection. The Decan Plateau, which contains smaller mountain systems, makes up much of southern India.

The two major rivers of northern India, the Indus and the Ganges, both start in the Himalaya. Like the Tigris and the Euphrates in Mesopotamia, these rivers provide water for irrigation and deposit fertile soil for farming.

Strong seasonal winds called monsoons have long been an important element of the subcontinent's climate. These winds bring a dry season in winter. In summer, they bring a wet season with heavy rainfall.

Indus River Valley

Physical characteristics of the Indus River Valley offered nearly ideal conditions for agriculture. The valley's fertile soil and plentiful water supply most likely encouraged nomadic herdsmen to settle there and farm. Villages emerged. Then, around 2500 BCE, some villages grew into cities--and a civilization developed.

Hinduism^[1]

Unlike other religious traditions, Hinduism does not originate in a single founder, a single book, or a single point in time. It contains many different beliefs, philosophies, and viewpoints, not always consistent with each other. These apparent contradictions strike only those who are not familiar with this tradition: the Hindu insight claims that the Oneness expresses itself in many different forms.

Hinduism is often labeled as a religion, but it is actually more than that: it is a vast and complex socio-religious body that, in a way, reflects the complexity of Indian society. A rich geography, many languages and dialects, lots of different creeds, racial diversity, all these elements have shaped Hinduism and made it so heterogenic. The lack of unifying overall religious authority and the total absence of a book claiming supreme truth and dogmas have contributed to the diversity of Hinduism as well. It is fair to mention that even the texts we find in Hinduism that claim some sort of divine inspiration do not declare their view to be better than any other and they all exist together in a tolerant fashion. The many manifestations of Hinduism go from highly intellectual philosophies concerning numerous and puzzling metaphysical concerns, many rituals, mental and physical exercises such as Yoga to simple, almost childlike, tales and legends.

This tradition has come down to us from prehistoric times. The foundations of Hinduism can be found in the teachings of anonymous ancient sages or rishis, which were originally transmitted orally. We know very little about Hinduism beyond what can be learned from the Vedas, a collection of hymns and other ritual texts composed in different periods. These texts contain a lot of material including the teachings of the early stages. The oldest evidence of religious practices in India dates back approximately to 5500 BCE. It is a mistake to reduce all early Hinduism to Vedic religion: there were many other non-Vedic religious traditions in early Hinduism which have left no early texts and that can be known to some extent by archaeological evidence.

^[1] This passage is excerpted from a work by Cristian Violatti which is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution License. The original work is available at http://www.ancient.eu/hinduism/.

Introduction to Hinduism

Hinduism is the religion of the majority of people in India and Nepal. It also exists among significant populations outside of the subcontinent and has over 900 million adherents worldwide.

In some ways Hinduism is the oldest living religion in the world, or at least elements within it stretch back many thousands of years. Yet Hinduism resists easy definition partly because of the vast array of practices and beliefs found within it. It is also closely associated conceptually and historically with the other Indian religions Jainism, Buddhism, and Sikhism.

Unlike most other religions, Hinduism has no single founder, no single scripture, and no commonly agreed set of teachings. Throughout its extensive history, there have been many key figures teaching different philosophies and writing numerous holy books. For these reasons, writers often refer to Hinduism as 'a way of life' or 'a family of religions' rather than a single religion.

Defining Hinduism

The term 'Hindu' was derived from the river or river complex of the northwest, the Sindhu. Sindhu is a Sanskrit word used by the inhabitants of the region, the Aryans in the second millennium BCE. Later migrants and invaders, the Persians in the sixth century BCE, the Greeks from the 4th century BCE, and the Muslims from the 8th century CE, used the name of this river in their own languages for the land and its people.

The term 'Hindu' itself probably does not go back before the 15th and 16th centuries when it was used by people to differentiate themselves from followers of other traditions, especially the Muslims (Yavannas), in Kashmir and Bengal. At that time the term may have simply indicated groups united by certain cultural practices such as cremation of the dead and styles of cuisine. The 'ism' was added to 'Hindu' only in the 19th century in the context of British colonialism and missionary activity.

The origins of the term 'hindu' are thus cultural, political, and geographical. Now the term is widely accepted although any definition is subject to much debate. In some ways, it is true to say that Hinduism is a religion of recent origin yet its roots and formation go back thousands of years.

Some claim that one is 'born a Hindu', but there are now many Hindus of non-Indian descent. Others claim that its core feature is the belief in an impersonal Supreme, but important strands have long described and worshipped a personal God. Outsiders often criticize Hindus as being polytheistic, but many adherents claim to be monotheists.

Some Hindus define orthodoxy as compliance with the teachings of the Vedic texts (the four Vedas and their supplements). However, still, others identify their tradition with 'Sanatana Dharma', the eternal order of conduct that transcends any specific body of sacred literature. Scholars sometimes draw attention to the caste system as a defining feature, but many Hindus view such practices as merely a social phenomenon or an aberration of their original teachings. Nor can we define Hinduism according to belief in concepts such as karma and samsara (reincarnation) because Jains, Sikhs, and Buddhists (in a qualified form) accept this teaching too.

Although it is not easy to define Hinduism, we can say that it is rooted in India, most Hindus revere a body of texts as sacred scripture known as the Veda, and most Hindus draw on a common system of values known as dharma.

· Hinduism originated around the Indus Valley near the River Indus in modern-day Pakistan.

· About 80% of the Indian population regard themselves as Hindu.

· Most Hindus believe in a Supreme God, whose qualities and forms are represented by the multitude of deities that emanate from him.

· Hindus believe that existence is a cycle of birth, death, and rebirth, governed by Karma.

· Hindus believe that the soul passes through a cycle of successive lives and its next incarnation is always dependent on how the previous life was lived.

· The main Hindu texts are the Vedas and their supplements (books based on the Vedas). Veda is a Sanskrit word meaning 'knowledge'. These scriptures do not mention the word 'Hindu' but many scriptures discuss dharma, which can be rendered as 'code of conduct', 'law', or 'duty'

· Hindus celebrate many holy days, but the Festival of Lights, Diwali is the best known.

· The 2001 census recorded 559,000 Hindus in Britain, around 1% of the population.

What did Buddha teach?

Buddha discovered Three Universal Truths and Four Noble Truths, which he then taught to the people for the next 45 years.

Three Universal Truths

1. Everything in life is impermanent and always changing.

2. Because nothing is permanent, a life based on possessing things or persons does not make you happy.

3. There is no eternal, unchanging soul and "self" is just a collection of changing characteristics or attributes.

Four Noble Truths

1. Human life has a lot of suffering.

2. The cause of suffering is greed.

3. There is an end to suffering.

4. The way to end suffering is to follow the Middle Path.

Buddha then taught people not to worship him as a god. He said they should take responsibility for their own lives and actions. He taught that the Middle Way was the way to nirvana. The Middle Way meant not leading a life of luxury and indulgence but also not one of too much fasting and hardship. There are eight guides for following the Middle path.

The Eightfold Path

1. Right understanding and viewpoint (based on the Four Noble Truths).

2. Right values and attitude (compassion rather than selfishness).

3. Right speech (don't tell lies, avoid harsh, abusive speech, avoid gossip).

4. Right action (help others, live honestly, don't harm living things, take care of the environment).

5. Right work (do something useful, avoid jobs that harm others).

6. Right effort (encourage good, helpful thoughts, discourage unwholesome destructive thoughts).

7. Right mindfulness (be aware of what you feel, think and do).

8. Right meditation (calm mind, practice meditation which leads to nirvana).

What is meditation?

Meditation is an essential practice for most Buddhists. Buddhists look within themselves for the truth and understanding of Buddha's teachings. They seek enlightenment, or nirvana, this way. Nirvana is freedom from needless suffering and being fully alive and present in one's life. It is not a state that can really be described in words -- it goes beyond words.

Meditation means focusing the mind to achieve an inner stillness that leads to a state of enlightenment.

Meditation takes many forms:

-- It can be sitting quietly beside a beautiful arrangement of rocks, contemplating beauty.

-- It can be practicing a martial art such as karate or aikido since they require mental and physical control and strong concentration.

--It can mean focusing on a riddle such as "What is the sound of one hand clapping?"

--It can be contemplating a haiku or short poem that captures a moment in time.

-- It can be in a meditation room of a monastery.

-- It can involve chanting.

-- It can involve the use of a mandala to focus attention on the invisible point at the center of interlocking triangles.

-- It can involve quietly noticing one's breath as it goes in and out. It can happen anywhere at any time.