History and Development of Hinduism * Hinduism is the oldest and perhaps the most complex of religious systems. It is difficult to provide adequate history of Hinduism because it has no specific founder or theology. * The earliest product of Indian literature, the Rig Veda, contains the songs of the Aryan invaders who were beginning to make a home in India. Thus, Hinduism is commonly regarded as the offspring of an Aryan religion, brought into India by invaders from the north and modified by contact with Dravidian civilization. (Elliot, 1921) * The literature of Vedic Aryans is relatively ancient and full and there is no available information about old Dravidians comparable with it. Yet, some argue that it is more correct to describe Indian religion as Dravidian religion modified by the ideas of the Aryan invaders. * This is accentuated by the fact that major deities of Hinduism (Siva, Krishna, Rama, Durga), and some of its core doctrines, are either totally unknown to the Veda or obscurely indicated in it. * The chief characteristics of mature Indian religion are characteristics of an area, not of a race, and they differ from those of other ancient religions in Persia, Greece, Egypt or other Aryan lands. (Mamandram.Org, 2011) * The word “Hindu” is an incorrect term given to a follower of the Vedas. The true name of the religion is “Sanatana Dharma”, meaning “the eternal religion”. * Ancient Arabians gave rise to the term as they were referring to the followers who lived along the Sindhu River. The Arabians called this river as Indus River because they were unable to pronounce the S-sound. Thus, the people that lived along the river came to be known as Hindus. * All people living in Pakistan, India, Bangladesh, Nepal, and Bhutan are Hindus because the true definition of the word Hindu is the “people of the