Hinduism is a very broad term for the religious practices and doctrines of the Indian people. This tradition is believed to have begun circa 1800 BCE with religious poems known as the Vedas. Hinduism is best known in the West through the doctrines of Advaita, the belief that there is only one ultimate reality. Advaitans, however, worshipped a range of icons that represented the separate manifestations of the ultimate Brahman. After the decline of Vedic religion, bhakti devotional cults arose, and remain a predominant form of Hindu worship up through the modern era.

The Religion, Scriptures, and Spirituality series describes the beliefs, religious practices, and the spiritual and moral commitments of the world’s great religious traditions. It also describes a religion’s way of understanding scripture and discusses its relationship to society.

As one of the world’s most ancient civilizations, India presents a rich mosaic of political, religious, and cultural influences. In 1947, this vast region was split; Pakistan was created to separate Muslims from Hindus, and millions died. Strife and political troubles continue to plague India.

The World’s Political Hot Spots Series explains the basis of conflicts in some of the world’s most politically sensitive areas. Many of these regions are in today’s headlines, and tensions recently have become violent in virtually all of them. Each presentation covers up to ten centuries of background, revealing how and why today’s problems occur.