RELIGION IN INDIA
T IS IMPOSSIBLE TO KNOW THE RELIGIONS IN INDIA without understanding its
religious beliefs and practices, which have a large impact on the personal lives of most
Indians and influence public life on a daily basis. Indian religions have deep historical
roots that are recollected by contemporary Indians. The ancient culture of South Asia,
going back at least 4,500 years, has come down to India primarily in the form of
religious texts. The artistic heritage, as well as intellectual and philosophical
contributions, has always owed much to religious thought and symbolism. Contacts
between India and other cultures have led to the spread of Indian religions throughout
the world, resulting in the extensive influence of Indian thought and practice on
Southeast and East Asia in ancient times and, more recently, in the diffusion of Indian
religions to Europe and North America.
Within India, on a day-to-day basis, the vast majority of people engage in ritual actions
that are motivated by religious systems that owe much to the past but are continuously
evolving. Religion, then, is one of the most important facets of Indian history and
contemporary life.
A number of world religions originated in India, and others that started elsewhere found
fertile ground for growth there. Devotees of Hinduism, a varied grouping of
philosophical and devotional traditions, officially numbered 687.6 million people, or 82
percent of the population in the 1991 census (see table 13, Appendix). Buddhism and
Jainism, ancient monastic traditions, have had a major influence on Indian art,
philosophy, and society and remain important minority religions in the late twentieth
century. Buddhists represented 0.8 percent of the total population while Jains
represented 0.4 percent in 1991. http://www.indianchild.com/india_religion.htm
This site give specific information about each major religion and provides photos of
major religious site.
http://www.judypat.com/india/temple.htm
Religion plays an important role in the daily life of Indians. Hinduism, in particular, is extremely
complex and continuously evolving. With over 330 million Hindu deities to choose from, many of
whom are different aspects of the same deity, Hindus practice their religion in many individual
ways.




Hinduism is the largest major religion in India. Approximately 80% of the population
practices various forms of Hinduism.
The Mughals brought Islam with them when they invaded India in the 12th century.
Today, Islam is practiced by about 14% of the population.
2.4% of the population are Christians (mostly found on the southwest coastal areas and
in the northeast)
2% are Sikhs (found principally in the Punjab, although many migrated to Delhi after
partition)



0.7% are Buddhists (found mainly in the Himalayan areas)
0.5% are Jains (strongest in Gujarat, but also prominent in Rajasthan)
An additional 0.4% of the population practice other religions such as Judaism (a small
population in Goa), Zoroastrianism (confined mainly to Bombay's Parsi population), and
The Baha'i religion.
Also see:
http://countrystudies.us/india/38.htm
http://www.usp.nus.edu.sg/post/india/religion/religionov.html
http://www.india.com.ar/india222.html