Questions tagged [india]

India, officially the Republic of India,also called as Bhārat (भारत) in Sanskrit, is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by area, the second-most populous country with over 1.2 billion people, and the most populous democracy in the world.

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What is the truth behind the practice of Sati? How is it related to Hinduism?

Many people use the practice of Sati (सती) as a weapon against Hinduism to point out that it is full of bad practices. I have heard that it was limited to one particular community in one of the states ...
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19 votes
1 answer
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Why all Avatar's and Grantha's references happened only in India and not elsewhere?

This is more merely an outside question. Many have a conscious feeling that why all Devas, Avataras and incidents written on our text books are confined to Indian Mediterranean, mostly North region of ...
Mr. K's user avatar
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21 votes
8 answers
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What attributes of Hinduism allowed it to survive centuries of proselytisation by Muslims and Christians?

To start with, no hard feelings against anyone who subscribes to Islam or Christianity. When the Muslims invaded 'Iran' or 'Egypt' they were able to convert the whole population to Islam in a few ...
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8 votes
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What was the true reason behind the practice of Child Marriage?

In our country Child marriages were done in Hinduism at Large Level and still continuing in a small level. Many people were against this child marriage with scientific basis that it is Bad and was ...
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4 answers
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Did Jesus visit Jagannath Temple of Puri? [closed]

Levi H. Dowling wrote the book The Aquarian Gospel of Jesus the Christ. The title of section VI is: Life and Works of Jesus in India, here is an extract: "And Jesus was accepted as a pupil in the ...
Sebastien Palcoux's user avatar
8 votes
2 answers
882 views

What is the origin of Namaskar? What does it signify?

Namaskar or Namaste is the traditional way of greeting/praying in India. Also in temples we use the same gesture to pray to the Lords. As Hinduism is hiding many unknown facts in it's rituals, curious ...
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7 votes
1 answer
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Did sports/athletics games and competitions exist in mythological and ancient India?

I was the reading origins of the ancient Olympics and realized that athletics was not a just part of ancient Greek history but also a part of their religious mythology. I could not find athletics in ...
Swami Factanand's user avatar
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In which Mahayuga and Manvantara, did King Bharatha, after whom India is called Bhārath, live?

Vishnu Purana says: उत्तरं यत्समुद्रस्य हिमाद्रेश्चैव दक्षिणम् । वर्षं तद् भारतं नाम भारती यत्र संततिः ।। uttaraṃ yatsamudrasya himādreścaiva dakṣiṇam varṣaṃ tadbhārataṃ nāma bhāratī yatra santatiḥ ...
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How is "Patriotism" seen from the Hindu Dharma perspective?

Are there any scriptures (Dharma Shastra-s) or Hindu saints who have talked about patriotism? Related: This post discusses specific to Kshatriya class, Martyr concept in Hinduism
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Why Bharata Varsha (India) alone is called Karma Bhoomi?

According to Vishnu Purana, In Jambu-dwípa, Vishnu, consisting of sacrifice, is worshipped, as the male of sacrificial rites, with sacrificial ceremonies: he is adored under other forms ...
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What is the Kanya region of Bharatavarsha, identified as the only residence of the four castes?

Lalla's Shishyavriddhida Tantra is a Hindu astronomical work dating to the 8th century. In this excerpt from the Shishyavriddhida Tantra, Lalla describes the geography of Bharatavarsha, i.e. the ...
Keshav Srinivasan's user avatar
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1 answer
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Why Lord Vishnu incarnates only in Bharata Varsha (India)?

One question raised in my mind, why lord Vishnu incarnates only in Bhartha Varsha (India)? It is little bit confusing for me, because I can't find any valid resources. Please provide some evidence ...
Shree Krishna's user avatar
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3 answers
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Is there any description of Bharatavarsha in Hindu Scriptures?

I've read about Bharatavarsha in many books, but only found the origin of the term Bharatavarsha. Is there a description of Bharatavarsha (i.e., what constitutes Bharatavarsha), in a holy book?
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1 answer
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What was the population of India in the age of Lord Krishna?

What was the population of India in the age of Lord Krishna? Was it still overcrowded like it is now? We all know its overpopulated now but was it the same previously?
Pratik Joshi's user avatar
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1 answer
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Did Max Müller say any positive things about India and Hinduism?

Here is a citation, about Indian culture in general: If I were to look over the whole world to find out the country most richly endowed with all the wealth, power, and beauty that nature can bestow—...
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20 votes
2 answers
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Authenticity of Sanskrit Verses containing the word "HINDU"

We all know that the word Hindu is a Persian word for the Sindu river and was later used to refer to the region to other side of the Sindu river as Hindustan which then became India. But this page ...
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7 votes
1 answer
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Why there is gap of 15 days in Shravan Maas of North Indians and Maharashtrians?

I'm pretty much aware of Shravan Maas, we don't eat non-veg and alcohol; some people don't even shave but why there is a gap of 15 days in Shravan Maas of North Indians and Maharashtrians?
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6 votes
2 answers
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Why is ravana still worshipped in a few places till today despite being the demon king?

I have seen in films, heard tales about how in south India many people worship ravana, surely they must be following a different folklore version which edifies ravana but isn't Ramayana an universally ...
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Are Puranas rewritten or original?

How many Puranas are there actually and do we have the original ones with us? Most of them are translated by Western scholars who don't even know Sanskrit.
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5 votes
2 answers
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Which places in India does the authentic "pitru vidhi" happen?

Pitru Vidhi mainly deals with doing ceremony for one's own paternal family ancestors. Usually this leads to their peace. If not done properly then these same ancestors will create minor/major family ...
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Was education free in ancient India?

In ancient India, we had world famous educational institutions like Takshsila, Nalanda and Benaras etc. My question: How was the education system in ancient India? Institutions willing to provide free ...
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5 votes
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What is the reason behind use of crackers for temple festivals? [closed]

We generally see in temple festivals that use of crackers is a star-attraction. It always attracts a huge crowd. But it may prove fatal too as it is a risk using huge amount of crackers at a time. Do ...
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5 votes
1 answer
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What was the name of 'Hindustan' before 'Bharat'?

Well I know that 'Hindustan' was called 'Bharat' after the name of king Bharat, but curious to know what was the ancient name prior to that?
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4 votes
3 answers
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When did Hinduism spread to south India?

By etymology the word Hindu refers to people living near Sindhu riverbed. So Hindus must have been in North India initially. How and when did Hinduism spread to southern India? Before Hinduism spread ...
user13107's user avatar
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4 votes
0 answers
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Any evidence of Ram Temple in Ayodhya being destroyed before Babri Masjid? [duplicate]

I am looking for clarity on the case, argument or evidence of destruction (non-existence) of the Ram temple in Ayodhya before the Babri Masjid. That is, is there any source that talks about the ...
Naveen's user avatar
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4 votes
1 answer
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Reference to China in Manusmṛti?

In his column What exactly is the Manusmriti?, Devdutt Pattanaik says the Manu mentions China. Which verse(s) is he referring to? Manusmriti was composed roughly around 200 CE (Common Era). We know ...
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4 votes
2 answers
923 views

Why did India lose to foreign invaders? [closed]

There have been many self proclaimed god men and mystics in India. Most claimed to have supernatural powers. I myself am an astrologer who studied Jyotisha. Why couldn’t astrologers predict the fall ...
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1 answer
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What is the legend of the Bāhudā river?

How did the Bāhudā river near Kanipakam, Andhra Pradesh, India get its name? Is there a story behind it? Is the river mentioned in any of the scriptures?
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