RELIGIONS OF INDIA

To an average Indian, religion and philosophy come as handy as weather to the Englishman. An evening does not pass in any town or city without a couple of discourses by pundits on the Vedas or the Gita.

It must be admitted that although spirituality is the soul of India, its manifestation on the surface has been varied, diffused and often distorted. Numerous experiences and explorations in spirituality have resulted in the formation of a variety of schools and cults, each one tending to grow rigid for the sake of its stability and longitivity. The RAMAYANA and the MAHABHARATA indeed, have been the sources of an integral satisfaction for the people of India from time immemorial. From them they have derived contentment of all their emotions: the craving for drama, fiction and philosophies of life. In India there is also the belief of reincarnation that dates back to the period of RIG VEDA.  

India has a positive Kaleidoscope of religions. There is probably more diversity of religions than any were on the earth. Apart from having representations from almost all the religions of the world, India was also the birthplace of two greatest religions of the world, namely, Hinduism and Buddhism. It was also the home to one of the oldest religions of the world, Zoroastrianism, and also to an ancient religion unique to India, Jainism.

 

DISTRIBUTION OF RELIGIONS IN INDIA

Religions	%	Figures
Hindus	82.00	687,646,721
Muslims	12.12	101,596,057
Christians	2.34	19,640,284
Sikhs	1.94	16,259,744
Buddhists	0.76	6,387,500
Jains	0.40	3,352,706
Other Religions & Persuasions	0.44	3,269,355
Miscellaneous	0.05	415,569