How much hinduism has evolved since its origins ?
There is a hymn in Hinduism there is recited in one of the rites following the birth of a son, in the ceremonies for the foundation of a temple, and in the purification rites of renewal. The Hymn is that of the cosmic man, Purusha, who was dismembered by the gods to create the cosmos (RgV 10.90) The myth of dismemberment is a common theme among the Indo-Aryan peoples. “The man has a thousand heads, a thousand eyes a thousand feet. …When they divided the Man, into how many parts did they apportion him?….His mouth became the Brahmin; his arms were made into the Warriors, his thighs the People, and from his feet the Servants were born”. It can be seen that the hymn provides a mythical explanation of the 4 varnas (castes). The Brahmins speak the word of the sacred hymns and came from the mouth; the Kshatriyas are the warriors and come from the strength of the arms; the Vaisyas for the manual work and so come from the thighs; the Sudras come from the feet. (The untouchables or dalits). The
EVOLUTION OF THE HINDU DHARMA The evolution of Hindu Dharma may be divided into three periods: the ancient (6500 BC-1000 AD), the medieval (1000-1800 AD) and the modern (1800 AD to present). The Ancient Period is characterised by the worship of Shiva (Pashupati) during the Harappan times; the composition of the early Rig Vedic hymns; the Epic Period during which the Ramayana and Mahabharata were composed; period of Sage Vishvamitra, in whose reign a majority of the Vedic hymns were composed; the Yajur and Atharva Vedas were composed around 2400 BC; the Bhagwad Gita was compiled between BC 500-200; Nyaya, Sankhya, and Brahma Sutras were recorded, which later gave birth to six popular schools of Hindu philosophy and final versions of Puranas, Tantras and other sectarian literature were developed (200-750 AD). Development of six popular schools of religious thought, establishment of Shankara’s Advaita Vedanta and the decline of Buddhism are the main landmarks of this period (750-1000 AD).
