(Hindu) Denominations

[johny smith]

Shaivism, names the oldest of the four sects of Hinduism. Followers of Shaivism, called "Shaivas," and also "Saivas" or "Saivites," revere Shiva as the Supreme Being. Shaivas believe that Shiva is All and in all, the creator, preserver, destroyer, revealer and concealer of all that is. Shaivism is widespread throughout India, Nepal, and Sri Lanka, mostly. Notable areas of the practice of Shaivism also include parts of Southeast Asia like Malaysia, Singapore, and Indonesia.

 

[johny smith]

Vaishnavism is a tradition of Hinduism, distinguished from other schools by its worship of Vishnu or his associated avatars, principally as Rama and Krishna, as the original and supreme God. This worship in different perspectives or historical traditions addresses monotheistic God under the names of Narayana, Krishna, Vasudeva or more often "Vishnu", and their associated avatars. It is principally monotheistic in its philosophy, but not exclusive, although the Vaishnavas teach that Shiva, the main God of many Hindus is only a servant of their god Vishnu. Its beliefs and practices, especially the concepts of Bhakti and Bhakti Yoga, are based largely on the Upanishads, and associated with the Vedas and Puranic texts such as the Bhagavad Gita, and the Padma, Vishnu and Bhagavata Puranas. The followers of Vaishnavism are referred to as Vaishnava(s) or Vaishnavites. A large percentage of Hindus are Vaishnavas, with the vast majority living in India.

 

[johny smith]

Shaktism ("doctrine of power" or "doctrine of the Goddess") is a denomination of Hinduism that focuses worship upon Shakti or Devi the Hindu Divine Mother as the absolute, ultimate Godhead. It is, along with Shaivism and Vaisnavism, one of the three primary schools of Hinduism. Shaktism regards Devi ("the Goddess") as the Supreme Brahman itself, the "one without a second", with all other forms of divinity, female or male, considered to be merely her diverse manifestations. In the details of its philosophy and practice, Shaktism resembles Shaivism. However, Shaktas (Sanskrit: Sakta, practitioners of Shaktism, focus most or all worship on Shakti, as the dynamic feminine aspect of the Supreme Divine. Shiva, the masculine aspect of divinity, is considered solely transcendent, and his worship is usually relegated to an auxiliary role.

 

[johny smith]

Smartism (or Smarta Sampradaya, Smarta Tradition, as it is termed in Sanskrit) is a denomination of the Hindu religion. The term Smarta refers to adherents who follow the Vedas and Shastras. They mainly follow the Advaita Vedanta philosophy of Adi Shankara. But there have been instances when they have advocated or followed other philosophies. In Sanskrit, Smarta means "relating to memory, recorded in or based on the Smrti, based on tradition, prescribed or sanctioned by traditional law or usage, from the root smr ("remember"). Smarta is a vriddhi derivation of Smriti just as Srauta is a vriddhi derivation of Sruti.

 

[johny smith]

Here is the folder of the Hindu religions.

http://wocrapture.svn.sourceforge.n.../Assets/Modules/Rapture/Hindu.tar.gz?view=tar