Religions in India

India is one of the most religious countries globally, with every religion being practiced in India. India is a secular state, meaning that no single religion is preferred over the other from a legal and government perspective. On the other hand, Hinduism is the common religion among the people, with more than 75 % of them practicing Hinduism, which translates to more than one billion of India’s total people. Other religions that follow Hinduism are Islamic, Christianity, Buddism, and Sikhism. This comes as a result of the Indian constitution giving its citizens the freedom of worship and religion.

Apart from India being the most religiously diverse country globally, its religions are some of the most ancient religions. Buddism, Hinduism, Jainism, and Sikhism have ties to India’s subcontinent, and up to date, they continue to have a large number of followers.

This article guides you through India’s religions that you must know, and if you decide to visit the country, don’t forget to get an India e-visa. For additional information, click here.

Hinduism

This is the dominating religion in India and one of the ancient religions around the world. Hinduism religion emerged in the world more than 3500 years ago. This religion contains many religious practices that differ in practices and consist of different philosophies and various sects. The religion also contains several deities manifested in only one supreme Deity called or known as the Brahman. Hinduism is also believed to be a polytheistic religion meaning that its followers believe in a universal essential tenet of the Hindu practice and belief. Hinduism is the 3^rd religion worldwide, with over one billion members; 1000 million live in India.

Christianity.

Christianity religion developed its roots in India back in the first century by a famous Christian missionary named Saint Thomas. That gentleman converted most of the Indians in the southern part of the country, and up to date, many of them are still practicing Christianity. Christianity religion in India was strengthened and enforced in the second century through the coming of Jewish-Christians who were recognized as Knanaya people. During colonization, Roman Catholicism went to India that began in the year 1498 when a famous Portuguese traveler, Vasco da Gama, arrived in the Indian land. Early in the 18^th century, missionary activities were seen to increase, and for the last few decades, Christianity is among the most common minority languages in the Indian land. Christain followers are widely spread in the Western states like Goa and the Northeastern parts such as Mizoram and the South Indian part.

Islamic

The Islamic religion was introduced to India back in the 8th century, contributing more and affected and improved other cultures. It molded the world of Indian classical music. Islamic religion in the region is believed to motivate important Persian and Arabic languages through literature, both religious and secular. According to recent research, approximately 135 million people in the Indian land follow the Islamic religion. Most of them converted to Islamic in Mughal’s time, and most of them reside in the parts of Nothern and Western India.

Sikhism

Sikhism religion started to enter the Indian land around 400 years ago. It started to have its roots in the Punjab region. According to a recent study, approximately 21 million Sikh believers live in India, and most of them live in the Punjab region. Punjab has the largest number of people who believe in Sikhism in the world. This area has the inherited homes of the Sikhs. A large number of the Sikhs have believed to have served in the Indian army. The most popular Sikh Temple in the Indian land and the entire world is the Golden Temple in Amritsar.

Buddhism

Buddhism is among the minority religion in the Indian land, with followers of 0.7 % of the total population. In the past few decades, Buddhism was widely spread in all parts of the Indian continent, but today, it is only found in the Indian Himalayan region. Currently, tIndia’sgovernment is putting more effort into promoting and improving the Indian country ties to Buddhism to encourage tourism in the region. Buddhism places of worship and religious practices are known as temples. The famous Buddhism temple in India is the Mahabodhi temple, which is located in Bodh Gaya. It is considered the most sacred shrine for Buddhism believers in India and the world.

Jainism

It is vital to note that India has the largest population in the world who are followers of the Jain religion. However, its followers and believers still make up a small number of religious beliefs in the Indian Continent, with only 0.4 % of the total population. This religion was introduced in the Indian land around 3000 BCE. Most people consider Jainism as an ancient religion. In India, there are only five million believers of the Jainism religion. A Jain temple is a place of worship among the Jainism religion. The place of worship is also known as Derasar in Rajasthan and Gujarat or Basadi in Karnataka. The most Jain temples in Indian land are the Palitana Temple in Palitana and the Ranakpur Temple Jain Temple in Ranakpur.

Zoroastrianism

Zoroastrianism has the least number of followers in the Indian land. They consist only 0.1 % of the total population of the Indian people. Their faith can be traced back to the famous prophet Zoroaster, who is believed to have lived in Iran’s current land. Zoroastrianism religion is among the oldest religions of the world.

In conclusion, other religions practiced in the Indian land are Judaism as well as Bahai religions. They take up 0.7 % of the total population in India. The total number of people who believe in the Bahai religion is not more than 4800 people. Jewish are the people who believe in Judaism religion. They are believed to have lived in India for many centuries, and Judaism is one of the oldest religions recorded on Indian authority. Currently, only 5000 Jews live in India.