Religion

==== Hinduism ====
[[File:Sree Padmanabhaswamy temple Thiruvananthapuram, kerala.jpg|thumb|The [[Padmanabhaswamy Temple]] is a significant temple of the Hindu god [[Vishnu]] in [[Thiruvananthapuram]], India.]][[Hinduism]] is also called ''Vaidika Dharma'', the ''[[dharma]]'' of the [[Vedas]],<ref name="Klostermaier2010">{{cite book|author=Klaus K. Klostermaier|title=Survey of Hinduism, A: Third Edition|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=8CVviRghVtIC|date=2010|publisher=SUNY Press|isbn=978-0-7914-8011-3|page=15|access-date=22 August 2018|archive-date=31 March 2019|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190331192043/https://books.google.com/books?id=8CVviRghVtIC|url-status=live}}</ref> although many practitioners refer to their religion as ''[[Sanātana Dharma]]'' ("the Eternal Dharma") which refers to the idea that its origins lie beyond [[human history]]. ''Vaidika Dharma'' is a [[synecdoche]] describing the similar philosophies of [[Vaishnavism]], [[Shaivism]], and [[Hindu denominations|related groups]] practiced or founded in the [[Indian subcontinent]]. Concepts most of them share in common include [[karma]], [[caste]], [[reincarnation]], [[mantra]]s, [[yantra]]s, and [[darśana]].<ref group="note">Hinduism is variously defined as a religion, set of religious beliefs and practices, religious tradition etc. For a discussion on the topic, see: "Establishing the boundaries" in Gavin Flood (2003), pp. 1–17. [[René Guénon]] in his'' [[Introduction to the Study of the Hindu doctrines]]'' (1921 ed.), Sophia Perennis, {{ISBN|0-900588-74-8}}, proposes a definition of the term religion and a discussion of its relevance (or lack of) to Hindu doctrines (part II, chapter 4, p. 58).</ref> Deities in Hinduism are referred to as [[Deva (Hinduism)|Deva]] (masculine) and [[Devi]] (feminine).<ref name="monierdevi">Monier Monier-Williams, A Sanskrit-English Dictionary" Etymologically and Philologically Arranged to cognate Indo-European Languages, Motilal Banarsidass, p. 496</ref><ref>John Stratton Hawley and Donna Marie Wulff (1998), Devi: Goddesses of India, Motilal Banarsidass, {{ISBN|978-8120814912}}, p. 2</ref><ref>William K Mahony (1997), The Artful Universe: An Introduction to the Vedic Religious Imagination, State University of New York Press, {{ISBN|978-0791435809}}, p. 18</ref> Major deities include [[Vishnu]], [[Lakshmi]], [[Shiva]], [[Parvati]], [[Brahma]] and [[Saraswati]]. These deities have distinct and complex personalities yet are often viewed as aspects of the same Ultimate Reality called [[Brahman]].<ref name=":2">[[:no:Knut A. Jacobsen|Knut Jacobsen]] (2008), Theory and Practice of Yoga : 'Essays in Honour of Gerald James Larson, Motilal Banarsidass, {{ISBN|978-8120832329}}, pp. 77-78</ref>{{refn|[a] {{cite book|title=Achieving Cultural Competency|first1=Lisa|last1=Hark|first2=Horace|last2=DeLisser|publisher=John Wiley & Sons|year=2011|quote=Three gods, Brahma, Vishnu, and Shiva, and other deities are considered manifestations of and are worshipped as incarnations of Brahman.}}
<br>[b] {{harvnb|Toropov|Buckles|2011}}: The members of various Hindu sects worship a dizzying number of specific deities and follow innumerable rites in honor of specific gods. Because this is Hinduism, however, its practitioners see the profusion of forms and practices as expressions of the same unchanging reality. The panoply of deities are understood by believers as symbols for a single transcendent reality.
<br>[d] {{cite book|year=2007|title=An Introductory Dictionary of Theology and Religious Studies|author=Orlando O. Espín, James B. Nickoloff|publisher=Liturgical Press|quote=While Hindus believe in many devas, many are monotheistic to the extent that they will recognise only one Supreme Being, a God or Goddess who is the source and ruler of the devas.}}|name=avatars|group=note}} Hinduism is one of the most ancient of still-active religious belief systems,<ref>p. 434 ''Merriam-Webster's Encyclopedia of World Religions'' By Wendy Doniger, M. Webster, Merriam-Webster, Inc</ref><ref>p. 219 ''Faith, Religion & Theology'' By Brennan Hill, Paul F. Knitter, William Madges</ref> with origins perhaps as far back as prehistoric times.<ref>p. 6 ''The World's Great Religions'' By Yoshiaki Gurney Omura, Selwyn Gurney Champion, Dorothy Short</ref> Therefore, Hinduism has been called the oldest religion in the world.