Religious thinkers of India
Encyclopedia
India
India
India , officially the Republic of India , is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by geographical area, the second-most populous country with over 1.2 billion people, and the most populous democracy in the world...

has been home to a large number of religious thinkers and spiritualists. A major reason for this has been the tolerant and liberalist traditions inbuilt in ancient Indian society. Another reason is the huge diversity of people found here. A majority of the religious thinkers have advocated themselves as reformers and not as prophets or founders of new religions.

The most important religious figures include Buddha
Gautama Buddha
Siddhārtha Gautama was a spiritual teacher from the Indian subcontinent, on whose teachings Buddhism was founded. In most Buddhist traditions, he is regarded as the Supreme Buddha Siddhārtha Gautama (Sanskrit: सिद्धार्थ गौतम; Pali: Siddhattha Gotama) was a spiritual teacher from the Indian...

, Mahavira
Mahavira
Mahāvīra is the name most commonly used to refer to the Indian sage Vardhamāna who established what are today considered to be the central tenets of Jainism. According to Jain tradition, he was the 24th and the last Tirthankara. In Tamil, he is referred to as Arukaṉ or Arukadevan...

 and Guru Nanak Dev
Guru Nanak Dev
Guru Nanak was the founder of the religion of Sikhism and the first of the ten Sikh Gurus. The Sikhs believe that all subsequent Gurus possessed Guru Nanak’s divinity and religious authority, and were named "Nanak" in the line of succession.-Early life:Guru Nanak was born on 15 April 1469, now...

. Buddha and Guru Nanak were the founders of the Buddhist and Sikh religions, Mahavira, the last and 24th Jain Tirthankara was the reviver and reformer of the Jain religion propagated by previous 23 Tirthankaras.

Buddhism

  • Mahakasyapa
    Mahakasyapa
    Mahākāśyapa or Kāśyapa was a brahman of Magadha, who became one of the principal disciples of Śākyamuni Buddha and who convened and directed the first council. Mahākāśyapa is one of the most revered of the Buddha's early disciples, foremost in ascetic practices...

     – patriarch of the Buddhist sangha
    Sangha
    Sangha is a word in Pali or Sanskrit that can be translated roughly as "association" or "assembly," "company" or "community" with common goal, vision or purpose...

  • Nagarjuna
    Nagarjuna
    Nāgārjuna was an important Buddhist teacher and philosopher. Along with his disciple Āryadeva, he is credited with founding the Mādhyamaka school of Mahāyāna Buddhism...

     – Mahayana
    Mahayana
    Mahāyāna is one of the two main existing branches of Buddhism and a term for classification of Buddhist philosophies and practice...

     philosopher, known for sunyata
  • Asoka – royal patron
  • Bodhidharma
    Bodhidharma
    Bodhidharma was a Buddhist monk who lived during the 5th/6th century AD. He is traditionally credited as the transmitter of Ch'an to China, and regarded as the first Chinese patriarch...

     – 28th patriarch, founder of Zen
    Zen
    Zen is a school of Mahāyāna Buddhism founded by the Buddhist monk Bodhidharma. The word Zen is from the Japanese pronunciation of the Chinese word Chán , which in turn is derived from the Sanskrit word dhyāna, which can be approximately translated as "meditation" or "meditative state."Zen...

    , introducing Buddhism to China
    China
    Chinese civilization may refer to:* China for more general discussion of the country.* Chinese culture* Greater China, the transnational community of ethnic Chinese.* History of China* Sinosphere, the area historically affected by Chinese culture...

     and East Asia

Hinduism

  • Adi Shankaracharya
  • Ramanujacharya
  • Madhvacharya
    Madhvacharya
    Madhvācārya was the chief proponent of Tattvavāda "Philosophy of Reality", popularly known as the Dvaita school of Hindu philosophy. It is one of the three most influential Vedānta philosophies. Madhvācārya was one of the important philosophers during the Bhakti movement. He was a pioneer in...

  • Vedanta Desika
    Vedanta Desika
    Vedanta Desika was a Sri Vaishnava Guru. He was a poet, devotee, philosopher and master-teacher...

  • Manavala Mamuni
  • Ayya Vaikundar
    Ayya Vaikundar
    Ayya Vaikundar , according to Akilattirattu Ammanai , a scripture of the Ayyavazhi, was a Manu Avatar of Narayana, incarnated as Muthukutty or Mudisoodum Perumal, a Nadar of Swamithoppe, Tamil Nadu Ayya Vaikundar , according to Akilattirattu Ammanai (or Akilam), a scripture of the Ayyavazhi, was...

     – Initiator of Ayyavazhi
    Ayyavazhi
    Ayyavazhi is a dharmic belief system that originated in South India in the 19th century. It is cited as an independent monistic religion by several newspapers, government reports and academic researchers. In Indian censuses, however, the majority of its followers declare themselves as Hindus...

    ; Social reformer.
  • Chaitanya Mahaprabhu
    Chaitanya Mahaprabhu
    Chaitanya Mahaprabhu was a Vaishnava saint and social reformer in eastern India in the 16th century, believed by followers of Gaudiya Vaishnavism to be the full incarnation of Lord Krishna...

  • Ram Mohan Roy
    Ram Mohan Roy
    Raja Ram Mohan Roy was an Indian religious, social, and educational reformer who challenged traditional Hindu culture and indicated the lines of progress for Indian society under British rule. He is sometimes called the father of modern India...

     – Initiator of the Brahmo Samaj
    Brahmo Samaj
    Brahmo Samaj is the societal component of the Brahmo religion which is mainly practiced today as the Adi Dharm after its eclipse in Bengal consequent to the exit of the Tattwabodini Sabha from its ranks in 1859. It was one of the most influential religious movements responsible for the making of...

     movement, which aimed at developing a universal religion in the nineteenth century.
  • Swami Dayananda – Founder of the Arya Samaj
    Arya Samaj
    Arya Samaj is a Hindu reform movement founded by Swami Dayananda on 10 April 1875. He was a sannyasi who believed in the infallible authority of the Vedas. Dayananda emphasized the ideals of brahmacharya...

    , a version of Hinduism which is opposes the ideologies of polytheism, idolatry, iconolatry, animal sacrifice, ancestor worship, pilgrimage, priestcraft, the belief in avatars or incarnations of God, the hereditary caste system, untouchability
    Untouchability
    Untouchability is the social practice of ostracizing a minority group by segregating them from the mainstream by social custom or legal mandate. The excluded group could be one that did not accept the norms of the excluding group and historically included foreigners, nomadic tribes, law-breakers...

     and child marriage on the grounds that all these lack Vedic sanction.
  • Swami Vivekananda
    Swami Vivekananda
    Swami Vivekananda , born Narendranath Dutta , was the chief disciple of the 19th century mystic Ramakrishna Paramahansa and the founder of the Ramakrishna Math and the Ramakrishna Mission...

     – A disciple of Ramakrishna
    Ramakrishna
    Ramakrishna , born Gadadhar Chattopadhyay , was a famous mystic of 19th-century India. His religious school of thought led to the formation of the Ramakrishna Mission by his chief disciple Swami Vivekananda – both were influential figures in the Bengali Renaissance as well as the Hindu...

    , he started the Ramakrishna Mission
    Ramakrishna Mission
    Ramakrishna Math and Ramakrishna Mission are twin organizations which form the core of a worldwide spiritual movement known as Ramakrishna Movement or Vedanta Movement. The Ramakrishna Mission is a philanthropic, volunteer organization founded by Ramakrishna's chief disciple Swami Vivekananda on...

    , a monastic movement with great stress on humanitarian work.
  • Sri Aurobindo
    Sri Aurobindo
    Sri Aurobindo , born Aurobindo Ghosh or Ghose , was an Indian nationalist, freedom fighter, philosopher, yogi, guru, and poet. He joined the Indian movement for freedom from British rule and for a duration became one of its most important leaders, before developing his own vision of human progress...

     – Yoga
    Yoga
    Yoga is a physical, mental, and spiritual discipline, originating in ancient India. The goal of yoga, or of the person practicing yoga, is the attainment of a state of perfect spiritual insight and tranquility while meditating on Supersoul...

     guru, who proposed yogic tantra
    Tantra
    Tantra , anglicised tantricism or tantrism or tantram, is the name scholars give to an inter-religious spiritual movement that arose in medieval India, expressed in scriptures ....

    s to attain divine bliss.
  • Jagadguru Swami Sathyananda Saraswathi
    Swami Sathyananda Saraswathi
    Swami Sathyananda Saraswathi also known as Chenkottukonam Swamiji, was a Hindu spiritual teacher, orator, historian and religious scholar. He was the founder of Hindu Aikya Vedi, and remained its chairman until his death....

    Hindu
    Hindu
    Hindu refers to an identity associated with the philosophical, religious and cultural systems that are indigenous to the Indian subcontinent. As used in the Constitution of India, the word "Hindu" is also attributed to all persons professing any Indian religion...

     Spiritual teacher,authentic authority on Hinduism
    Hinduism
    Hinduism is the predominant and indigenous religious tradition of the Indian Subcontinent. Hinduism is known to its followers as , amongst many other expressions...

    ,pioneer in Ram Janmabhumi movement and founder of Hindu Aikya Vedi
    Hindu Aikya Vedi
    The Hindu Aikya Vedi or Hindu Ikyavedi or Hindu United Front is a "platform to bring all Hindu organizations together", active in the state of Kerala in India. The group is dedicated to bringing in various sections in Kerala Hindu society such as the Nairs and the Ezhavas under a single umbrella...

  • Sri Narayana Guru – Social reformer who worked for the upliftment of people from the lower caste in Kerala
    Kerala
    or Keralam is an Indian state located on the Malabar coast of south-west India. It was created on 1 November 1956 by the States Reorganisation Act by combining various Malayalam speaking regions....

    .


Other important figures include Basava
Basava
Basava was a philosopher and a social reformer. He is also called Vishwa Guru and Bhakti-Bhandari. His teachings and preachings which are universal, go beyond all boundaries of belief systems...

, Rabindranath Tagore
Rabindranath Tagore
Rabindranath Tagore , sobriquet Gurudev, was a Bengali polymath who reshaped his region's literature and music. Author of Gitanjali and its "profoundly sensitive, fresh and beautiful verse", he became the first non-European Nobel laureate by earning the 1913 Prize in Literature...

, Mahatma Gandhi
Mahatma Gandhi
Mohandas Karamchand Gandhi , pronounced . 2 October 1869 – 30 January 1948) was the pre-eminent political and ideological leader of India during the Indian independence movement...

 and Vinayak Damodar Savarkar
Vinayak Damodar Savarkar
Vināyak Dāmodar Sāvarkar was an Indian freedom fighter, revolutionary and politician. He was the proponent of liberty as the ultimate ideal. Savarkar was a poet, writer and playwright...

.

Islam

  • Moinuddin Chishti
    Moinuddin Chishti
    Sultan-ul-Hind, Moinuddin Chishti was born in 1141 and died in 1230 CE. Also known as Gharīb Nawāz "Benefactor of the Poor" , he is the most famous Sufi saint of the Chishti Order of the Indian Subcontinent. He introduced and established the order in South Asia...

     – He started the Chishti Order
    Chishti Order
    The Chishtī Order is a Sufi order within the mystic branches of Islam which was founded in Chisht, a small town near Herat, Afghanistan about 930 CE. The Chishti Order is known for its emphasis on love, tolerance, and openness. The doctrine of the Chishti Order is based on walāya, which is a...

     in India.
  • Fariduddin Ganjshakar – Another Sufi saint in the Chishti order whose teachings have also been included in Sikhism.
  • Amir Khusro
    Amir Khusro
    Ab'ul Hasan Yamīn ud-Dīn Khusrow , better known as Amīr Khusrow Dehlawī , was an Indian musician, scholar and poet. He was an iconic figure in the cultural history of the Indian subcontinent...

     – A Sufi poet, and disciple of Nizamuddin Auliya
    Nizamuddin Auliya
    Sultan-ul-Mashaikh, Mehboob-e-Ilahi, Hazrat Shaikh Khwaja Syed Muhammad Nizamuddin Auliya , also known as Hazrat Nizamuddin, was a famous Sufi saint of the Chishti Order in the Indian Subcontinent, an order that believed in drawing close to God through renunciation of the world and service to...

    , he is credited with being the founder of both Hindustani classical music and Qawwali (the devotional music of the Sufis).
  • Ahmad Sirhindi
    Ahmad Sirhindi
    Imām Rabbānī Shaykh Ahmad al-Farūqī al-Sirhindī was an Indian Islamic scholar from Punjab, a Hanafi jurist, and a prominent member of the Naqshbandī Sufi order. He is described as Mujaddid Alf Thānī, meaning the "reviver of the second millennium", for his work in rejuvenating Islam and opposing...

     – He was a prominent propagator of the Naqshbandi
    Naqshbandi
    Naqshbandi is one of the major Sufi spiritual orders of Sufi Islam. It is considered to be a "Potent" order.The Naqshbandi order is over 1,300 years old, and is active today...

     Sufi order in India.
  • Syed Ahmed Khan
    Syed Ahmed Khan
    Javad-ud Daula, Arif Jang, Sir Syed Ahmed Khan, KCSI , commonly known as Sir Syed, was an Indian educator and politician, and an Islamic reformer and modernist...

  • Mirza Ghulam Ahmad
    Mirza Ghulam Ahmad
    Mīrzā Ghulām Aḥmad was a religious figure from India and the founder of the Ahmadiyya Community. He claimed to be the Mujaddid of the 14th Islamic century, the promised Messiah , and the Mahdi awaited by the Muslims in the end days...



Other important figures include Kabir
Kabir
Kabīr was a mystic poet and saint of India, whose writings have greatly influenced the Bhakti movement...

, Ali Hujwiri and Akbar.

Other important thinkers

The Sikh Gurus
Sikh Gurus
The Sikh Gurus established Sikhism from over the centuries beginning in the year 1469. Sikhism was founded by the first guru, Guru Nanak, and subsequently, all in order were referred to as "Nanak", and as "Lights", making their teachings in the holy scriptures, equivalent...

 undoubtedly were very important in propounding the tenets of Sikhism. Thomas
Thomas the Apostle
Thomas the Apostle, also called Doubting Thomas or Didymus was one of the Twelve Apostles of Jesus. He is best known for questioning Jesus' resurrection when first told of it, then proclaiming "My Lord and my God" on seeing Jesus in . He was perhaps the only Apostle who went outside the Roman...

, one of the twelve disciples of Jesus
Jesus
Jesus of Nazareth , commonly referred to as Jesus Christ or simply as Jesus or Christ, is the central figure of Christianity...

, is believed to have preached and finally died in India. Saint Francis Xavier
Francis Xavier
Francis Xavier, born Francisco de Jasso y Azpilicueta was a pioneering Roman Catholic missionary born in the Kingdom of Navarre and co-founder of the Society of Jesus. He was a student of Saint Ignatius of Loyola and one of the first seven Jesuits, dedicated at Montmartre in 1534...

 also developed a Jesuit missionary method that left a significant impression upon the missionary history of India.

We shall let a Christian historian speak about what the Portuguese did in their Indian domain. “At least from 1540 onwards,” writes Dr. T. R. de Souza “and in the island of Goa before that year, all the Hindu idols had been annihilated or had disappeared, all the temples had been destroyed and their sites and building materials were in most cases utilised to erect new Christian churches and chapels. Various viceregal and Church council decrees banished the Hindu priests from the Portuguese territories; the public practice of Hindu rites including marriage rites, was banned; the state took upon itself the task of bringing up the Hindu orphan children; the Hindus were denied certain employments, while the Christians were preferred; it was ensured that the Hindus would not harass those who became -Christians, and on the contrary, the Hindus were obliged to assemble periodically in churches to listen to preaching or to the refutation of their religion.”2

The Pope denies that St. Thomas visited south India and suggests that Portuguese pirates on a religious campaign to eradicate Hindus concocted a story to align converted Indian Christians to the Christian homeland. The Pope denies that St. Thomas visited India and that the Christian Indians owe their faith to Portuguese invaders rather than a Christian saint.

Controversy is raging in the Christian community in Kerala following recent remarks by Pope Benedict XVI that St. Thomas had preached Christianity in “western” India, from where it spread to other parts of the country, fuelling a debate whether or not the apostle had come to southern India.

The community in Kerala believes that St. Thomas came to this part of the country in A.D. 52 and had established seven churches. The community considers St. Thomas as the “Father in Faith” of Christians in India.

The present Pope had in a recent pronouncement at St. Peter's Square at the Vatican spoken of St. Thomas the Apostle, seemingly taking away from him the traditional title of “Apostle of India”.
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