Originally posted by :prince world |
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to dipankar-
secular ... who ? hinduism ? .......
......... I was showing mirror to hinduism.
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@ prince world,
What ever you said in this thread doesn't reflect as a mirror to Hindunism, but shows your some kinds of Hatred towards Hindunism & it's beliefs.
Remember, if arguments & views of the low sides are seeked against a Religion & it's beliefs, then neither the Quran nor the Bible too can escape it.
What do you call yourself ? A Muslim who live in India ? That's your lowfall of observation, for you have seldom understood the true meaning of Hundinusm & it's secularism.
What's a HINDU and what's Hindunism ? Why is it Secular ? Understand these first...
The word "Hindu" is NOT a Sanskrit word. It is NOT found in any of the thousands of native dialects and languages of India. Neither it is a religious word. It is a secular word whose origin is rooted in the language of the ancient Persians, who supposedly shared some common ancestry with the ancient Indians.
It was practically unknown in India till the medieval period, although it was used in several countries outside the Indian subcontinent from earlier times. It is said that the Persians who were familiar with the Indian subcontinent, used to refer to the Indus river as Sindhu, a major river that still flows in the northwestern region of the Indian subcontinent, partly in India and partly in Pakistan. However due to linguistic barriers, they could not pronounce the letter "S" correctly in their native tongue and mispronounced it as "H." Thus, for the ancient Persians, the word "Sindhu" became "Hindu."
The Indus people who lived on the banks of the river Indus were known to the outside world by the same name. The ancient Persian Cuneiform inscripttions and the Zend Avesta refer to the word "Hindu" as a geographic name rather than a demographic or religious name. When the Persian King Darious 1 extended his empire up to the borders of the Indian subcontinent in 517 BC, some Hindus became part of his empire and army. Thus for a very long time the ancient Persians referred to the people of the Indian subcontinent as Hindus. The ancient Greeks and Armenians followed the same pronunciation. Gradually the name stuck.
Interestingly the word "India" has the same origin as the Hindus. Those who feel appalled at the idea of someone referring to all Indians as Hindus should read this. Just as the ancient Persians and probably Sumerians mispronounced the word Sindhu, the ancient Greeks used to mispronounce the river Sindhu as "INDOS". When Alexander invaded India, the Macedonian army referred to the river as Indus and the land east of the river as India. The Greek writers who wrote about Alexander preferred to use the same name.
For the Arabs the land became Al-Hind.
The Muslim rulers and travelers who came to India during the medieval period referred the Indian subcontinent as "HINDUSTAN" and the people who lived there as HINDUS.
The British continued the practice and referred in the beginning all the natives as Hindoos. Later THEY began using the word more as a religious term to distinguish them from Muslims as well as Christians,. At the same time they used the word "Indian" in a wider and more secular context to refer all the people who were native to the land. The distinction suited them well to lump all natives as Indians to distinguish them from the rest of their colonial subjects for administrative purposes, while the word Hindoo served them well to implement their policy of divide and rule within India.
For a long time for the native Indians, the Indian subcontinent was Bharata, the land founded by the famous King Bharata, the progenitor of the Bharata clan. Literally translated, the word "Bharata" meant lover of knowledge and the people inhabiting the land considered themselves as such. They believed the religion they followed was an eternal religion and called it as "sanatana dharma," which meant the same.
It is interesting to note that the word is neither Sanskrit nor Dravidian and did not originate in India. It was not used by Indians in their descripttions or writings till the 17th century. The original definition of the word Hindu, is any one who lives in the subcontinent is a Hindu and whatever religion he or she practices is Hinduism. The word Hindu is a secular word and literally translated it means Indian and the word Hinduism denotes any religion or religions that are practiced by the multitude of people living in the land beyond the river Indus.
In today's India, the word Hindu & Hindunism is mostly misunderstood and misused. Many people have no idea how these words came into existence. The Indus river, with which the word is associated, now flows mostly in Pakistan although it originates in India. It is no more part of the native pride. It is almost forgotten or overlooked and its place is being taken over by the river Ganga.
Source, if you are interested in further reading on the subject :
* Definition and Distinguishing Features of Hinduism
* The History, Antiquity and Chronology of Hinduism
* Origin, Definition and Introduction to Hinduism
* Hinduism, origins, roots, antecedents, in search of the source.
* Hinduism-in search of a true definition
* An over view of Hinduism
* Hinduims is a way of life - the true meaning.
* Herodotus account of India