Indian religions

Indian religions are traditions that originated in the Indian subcontinent, including Hinduism, Buddhism, Jainism, and Sikhism. They developed diverse teachings and practices within overlapping historical and cultural settings.

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Hinduism: A diverse family of religious traditions that developed in the Indian subcontinent, drawing on the Vedas and many later texts and practices. The region’s largest and most internally diverse religious tradition.
Vedic religion: The religious culture of ancient Indo-Aryan communities, known chiefly through the Vedas and rituals centered on sacrifice. It supplies early textual and ritual foundations for later Hindu traditions.
Moksha: Liberation from rebirth and worldly bondage in several Indian religious traditions. It names a central goal, though traditions explain its nature and path differently.
Ātman: The self or inner essence described in several Hindu philosophical traditions as enduring or ultimately identical with reality. Its affirmation contrasts with Buddhist denials of a permanent self.
Ashoka: A Mauryan emperor of the third century BCE who supported Buddhism and promoted ethical governance through inscriptions. His patronage helped Buddhism gain visibility beyond its early communities.
Buddhism: A religious and philosophical tradition founded on the teachings of the Buddha, centered on liberation from suffering and rebirth. It emerged in ancient India and spread widely across Asia.
Śramaṇa movement: A diverse ancient Indian movement of renunciant communities that pursued liberation through disciplines outside household ritual life. Its setting included the emergence of Buddhism and Jainism.
Samsara: The recurring cycle of birth, death, and rebirth in several Indian religious traditions. The cycle gives liberation its shared point of departure.
Anattā: The Buddhist teaching that no permanent, independent self can be found in the changing components of experience. It challenges the enduring-self accounts found in some neighboring traditions.
Bhagavad Gita: A Hindu scripture presented as a dialogue between Krishna and Arjuna within the Mahabharata. It became a lasting synthesis of duty, devotion, and disciplined action.