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Which of the major religions is the oldest?
14 Answers
- ?Lv 58 years agoFavorite Answer
Hinduism. Hinduism is the world's oldest religion. just google "world's oldest religion" for proof.
The order is Hinduism, Paganism, Buddhism, Judaism, Christianity, Islam.
- 8 years ago
Do what thou wilt shall be the whole of the Law,
What do you mean by "Major?"
If you mean largeness [I think you do], then it is Hinduism, although the exact nature of "What is Hinduism," can easily be contested. The roots of Hinduism stretch back into the stone age, but the religion we are familiar wit now didn't really start to exist until about 200BCE. Before that, we likely wouldn't recognize it as the same things, as doctrines like Karma were not even present.
However, it is a religious group that changes a lot. The history of Hinduism is thus very complex, so some may say that Hinduism is older than it really is, because of it's roots in ancient Vedic religion.
Edits:
"Hinduism. Hinduism is the world's oldest religion. just google "world's oldest religion" for proof.
The order is Hinduism, Paganism, Buddhism, Judaism, Christianity, Islam."
Eh. That's really just a laymen's view. Hinduism is likely not the oldest religion, because Hinduism is not really a religion. It is a large collection of religions and ideas from the Indian Subcontinent. So, perhaps forms of it are ancient [obviously some are], but as a whole it is not.
Paganism is not a religion. It is several diverse religions, but it is not A religion. However, if we are going to count all Pagan groups as one, then it is the world's oldest religion simply by technicality.
"Which automatically makes it the true religion...logic."
Except that's a lie. Oldness is not equal to truth, and the earliest forms of what is now Hinduism would be completely unrecognizable from what you are mentioning.
Love is the law, love under Will.
- Big BillLv 78 years ago
Sanatana Dharma, the "Eternal Truth" or Hinduism as it is misnamed, is the oldest organized faith system of humanity with a written scripture, predating the advent of the Hebrews by some 10 millennium or more.
- 8 years ago
Sanatan Dharm ( now called Hinduism) There is no time on it. Recently a 12000 year old city was found near Dwarka - beat that ...
@Dviyanka, I can understand your emotions but you need to control it and answer what is required, by your logic Sanatan Dharm doesn't becomes true religion but that logic dictates that every one earth and their ancestor at some point of time were born in sanatan dharm. Follower of all religions think their religion is true. What make Sanatan Dharm unique is that your are free to choose form of God but underlines the "essentials of human society" and how should people live peacefully balanced life and in the end attain salvation. In one line Sanatan dharm underlines the required things TODO and NOT TO DO
EDIT: @Abomination - actually speaking about religion or its equivalent "Dharma" in Sanskrit, no religion is true religion or Dharma. Rather they are communities. Communities have a set of cultural and moral background and TODO which may be a not TODO in another community, but Dharma on the other hand is universal for example the Dharma of your lungs is to breath, if they don't you will die, so Dharma in Sanatan dharma was essential things todo to live a balanced life and get salvation. Thinking about good of society before yourself is Dharma because in its absence the society goes in chaos like right now. So you see the point, If you say Hinduism consists of communities I will agree but if you say Sanatan dharm is also communal, I would disagree cause it follows definition of Dharma.
read this you will get some direction
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- 8 years ago
Hinduism is the oldest still practiced and documented(scrolls and writings 5000 yrs old) but there are alot older just they have been lost and forgotten mostly
- 8 years ago
Hinduism is the oldest religion in the world it is so old we don't know who actually founded it
- Anonymous8 years ago
Sanatana Vedic Dharma. Today, Sanatana Vedic Dharma is called Hinduism as the muslims named us that just because we were across from some Sindhu river. Sanatana Vedic Dharma is trillions of years old. In western schools, they teach Hinduism to be something BC, like 5000 BCE. It's absolutely wrong. Sanatana Vedic Dharma is trillions and trillions of years old, from eras and eras ago. The newer religions are Christianity, Islam, and Judaism, and I believe Sikhism is the latest but I'm not sure.
I shouldn't expect thumbs down because I've only written a fact. But thumbs downers are cowards who can't face you and defend themselves anyways, so w.e.
@matthew - even westerns, who don't know the correct date when it started, know that Sanatana Vedic Dharma aka Hinduism is the first religion.
Which automatically makes it the true religion...logic.
Source(s): Sanatana Vedic Dharma - Anonymous8 years ago
Hinduism and various forms of paganism.