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Hinduism Among its roots is the historical Vedic religion of Iron Age India, and as such Hinduism is often stated to be the "oldest religious tradition" or "oldest living major tradition."[3][4][5][6] It is formed of diverse traditions and types and has no single founder.[7] Hinduism is the world's third largest religion after Christianity and Islam, with approximately a billion adherents, of whom about 905 million live in India.[8] Other countries with large Hindu populations can be found across southern Asia. Hinduism's vast body of scriptures is divided into Sruti ("revealed") and Smriti ("remembered"). These scriptures discuss theology, philosophy and mythology, and provide information on the practice of dharma (religious living). Among these texts, the Vedas and the Upanishads are the foremost in authority, importance and antiquity. Other major scriptures include the Tantras, the Agama, the Pura?as and the epics Mahabharata and Ramaya?a. The Bhagavad Gita, a treatise from the Mahabharata, spoken by Krishna, is sometimes called a summary of the spiritual teachings of the Vedas.[9] The Persian term (Middle Persian Hinduk, New Persian Hindu) entered India with the Delhi Sultanate and appears in South Indian and Kashmiri texts from at least 1323 CE,[13] and increasingly so during British rule. Since the end of the 18th century the word has been used as an umbrella term for most of the religious, spiritual, and philosophical traditions of the sub-continent, excluding the distinct religions of Sikhism, Buddhism, and Jainism.
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