176-465: Hinduism is the second largest religion in Bangladesh , as according to the 2022 Census of Bangladesh , approximately 13.1 million people responded that they were Hindus , constituting 7.95% out of the total population of 165.15 million people. In terms of population, Bangladesh is the third-largest Hindu populated country of the world, after the neighboring countries of India and Nepal . Hinduism
352-515: A Dyushi or a Nungtang , a Hajong shaman. Bastu pujâ, being one of the traditional festivals, does not involve idol worship and is celebrated in an area outside the village premises, called Bastu hali or Bastu than . In Bastu pujâ tortoises and pigeons are sacrificed for Bastu dyao . Another festival is called chormaga in Mymensingh and chorkhila in India. Chorkhila is celebrated during
528-470: A Persian geographical term for the people who lived beyond the river Indus (Sanskrit: Sindhu )", more specifically in the 6th-century BCE inscription of Darius I (550–486 BCE). The term Hindu in these ancient records is a geographical term and did not refer to a religion. The word Hindu is found as heptahindu in Avesta – equivalent to Rigvedic sapta sindhu , while hndstn (pronounced Hindustan )
704-408: A daidi gusti was liable to observe a state of pollution called swâ for three days when the news of the death of any of his daidi gusti was heard and he was to be purified by performing certain religious rites. Unlike the nikni system, the daidi system had no division and it did not become a cause for the development of any kind of clan, class or group in the society. It was to see, similar to
880-441: A "single world religious tradition" was also popularised by 19th-century proselytising missionaries and European Indologists, roles sometimes served by the same person, who relied on texts preserved by Brahmins (priests) for their information of Indian religions, and animist observations that the missionary Orientalists presumed was Hinduism. These reports influenced perceptions about Hinduism. Scholars such as Pennington state that
1056-538: A 55-year period from 1947 to 2001, professor Sachi Dastidar of the State University of New York calculates that well over 49 million Hindus are missing today from Bangladesh. According to a report published by a local daily newspaper of Bangladesh, the Hindu population in the country has reduced by 1 million between 2001 and 2011 period. Ergo in the absence of partition in 1947 and other events that followed , It
1232-431: A Hajong village, except for the house of an Udhikâri , all other houses are almost similar in pattern with different sizes. The scenario of having an earthen plinth and two thatched roofs on both sides is common in every Hajong village. Bamboos and timbers are used occasionally. Floors are earthen and walls are made of split bamboo plastered with cow dung. Mak Mas (January- February) and Phalgun Mas (February- March) are
1408-416: A Hindu life, namely acquiring wealth ( artha ), fulfilment of desires ( kama ), and attaining liberation ( moksha ), are viewed here as part of "dharma", which encapsulates the "right way of living" and eternal harmonious principles in their fulfilment. The use of the term Sanātana Dharma for Hinduism is a modern usage, based on the belief that the origins of Hinduism lie beyond human history, as revealed in
1584-438: A Hindu". According to Wendy Doniger , "ideas about all the major issues of faith and lifestyle – vegetarianism, nonviolence, belief in rebirth, even caste – are subjects of debate, not dogma ." Because of the wide range of traditions and ideas covered by the term Hinduism, arriving at a comprehensive definition is difficult. The religion "defies our desire to define and categorize it". Hinduism has been variously defined as
1760-492: A Hindu's class, caste, or sect, and they contrasted with svadharma , one's "own duty", in accordance with one's class or caste ( varṇa ) and stage in life ( puruṣārtha ). In recent years, the term has been used by Hindu leaders, reformers, and nationalists to refer to Hinduism. Sanatana dharma has become a synonym for the "eternal" truth and teachings of Hinduism, that transcend history and are "unchanging, indivisible and ultimately nonsectarian". Some have referred to Hinduism as
1936-421: A category with "fuzzy edges" rather than as a well-defined and rigid entity. Some forms of religious expression are central to Hinduism and others, while not as central, still remain within the category. Based on this idea Gabriella Eichinger Ferro-Luzzi has developed a 'Prototype Theory approach' to the definition of Hinduism. To its adherents, Hinduism is a traditional way of life. Many practitioners refer to
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#17327717077182112-495: A distinct Hindu identity in the interaction between Muslims and Hindus, and a process of "mutual self-definition with a contrasting Muslim other", which started well before 1800. Michaels notes: As a counteraction to Islamic supremacy and as part of the continuing process of regionalization, two religious innovations developed in the Hindu religions: the formation of sects and a historicization which preceded later nationalism ... [S]aints and sometimes militant sect leaders, such as
2288-703: A fourth of the state's seats. Starting from the 2014 Lok Sabha elections , the BJP has made the issue of Hindu Bangladeshi immigrants a core part of its strategy in West Bengal. An estimation shows that around 30 million Bangladeshi origin low-caste Hindu refugees live in different parts of West Bengal specially in southern districts namely North 24 Parganas , South 24 Parganas , Nadia and other smaller pockets of North and South Bengal , they are having an influence in over 70 assembly constituencies and are eagerly waiting to acquire Indian citizenship through CAA which
2464-694: A great appeal in the West , most notably reflected in the popularisation of yoga and various sects such as Transcendental Meditation and the Hare Krishna movement . Hinduism is the world's third-largest religion, with approximately 1.20 billion followers, or around 15% of the global population, known as Hindus . It is the most widely professed faith in India , Nepal , Mauritius , and in Bali , Indonesia . Significant numbers of Hindu communities are found in
2640-775: A large chunk of Bengali settlers who took refuge in Tripura from Bangladesh (former East Pakistan). The influx of the Bengali Hindus increased during the Bangladesh Liberation War and around at that time of (1971), India have received 10 million refugees from East Pakistan- mostly 80% being Hindus, and after Bangladesh become independent, nearly 1.5 million of Bengali Hindu refugees decided to stay back in India particularly in West Bengal and other North Eastern states majorly in Assam and Tripura. Census data show
2816-473: A large scale in retribution for their perceived support of the opposition Awami League. Hundreds were killed, many were raped, and thousands fled to India. The events were widely seen as a repercussion against the razing of the Babri Mosque in India. Prominent political leaders frequently fall back on "Hindu bashing" in an attempt to appeal to extremist sentiment and to stir up communal passions. In one of
2992-407: A local daily newspaper of Bangladesh, the Hindu population in the country has reduced by nearly one million between 2001 and 2011 period. The reduction mainly happened in nine districts – Bhola , Barisal , Jhalokati , Pirojpur , Bagerhat , Narail , Gopalganj , Rajbari and Manikganj . The United States Commission on International Religious Freedom have said that Hindus constitute merely 7% of
3168-413: A member of the dove clan hinting indirectly that he had married his own sister. The inner intention or significance of this was to direct or make each Hajong to be particularly familiar with his own clan so that he could avoid marrying a girl belonging to his own nikni due to his ignorance. Marriage within one's own nikni was strictly prohibited on the grounds that genealogically a girl from the same nikni
3344-406: A paradigmatic example of Hinduism's mystical nature". Pennington, while concurring that the study of Hinduism as a world religion began in the colonial era, disagrees that Hinduism is a colonial European era invention. He states that the shared theology, common ritual grammar and way of life of those who identify themselves as Hindus is traceable to ancient times. All of religion is contained in
3520-417: A reason of spirit but fantasy and creative imagination, not conceptual but symbolical, not ethical but emotive, not rational or spiritual but of cognitive mysticism. This stereotype followed and fit, states Inden, with the imperial imperatives of the era, providing the moral justification for the colonial project. From tribal Animism to Buddhism, everything was subsumed as part of Hinduism. The early reports set
3696-455: A religion, a religious tradition, a set of religious beliefs, and "a way of life". From a Western lexical standpoint, Hinduism, like other faiths, is appropriately referred to as a religion. In India, the term (Hindu) dharma is used, which is broader than the Western term "religion," and refers to the religious attitudes and behaviours, the 'right way to live', as preserved and transmitted in
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#17327717077183872-488: A shared context and of inclusion in a common framework and horizon". Brahmins played an essential role in the development of the post-Vedic Hindu synthesis, disseminating Vedic culture to local communities, and integrating local religiosity into the trans-regional Brahmanic culture. In the post- Gupta period Vedanta developed in southern India, where orthodox Brahmanic culture and the Hindu culture were preserved, building on ancient Vedic traditions while "accommoda[ting]
4048-469: A single whole the diverse philosophical teachings of the Upanishads, epics, Puranas, and the schools known retrospectively as the 'six systems' ( saddarsana ) of mainstream Hindu philosophy." The tendency of "a blurring of philosophical distinctions" has also been noted by Mikel Burley . Hacker called this "inclusivism" and Michaels speaks of "the identificatory habit". Lorenzen locates the origins of
4224-468: A theistic ontology of creation, other Hindus are or have been atheists . Despite the differences, there is also a sense of unity. Most Hindu traditions revere a body of religious or sacred literature , the Vedas, although there are exceptions. These texts are a reminder of the ancient cultural heritage and point of pride for Hindus, though Louis Renou stated that "even in the most orthodox domains,
4400-576: A tolerable bride price called pon or khalti . The Hajongs have a very rich culture. Hajong culture has greatly influenced and has had a tremendous impact on the language, clothing, and culture of other tribes like the Koches of Meghalaya, Banais, and Dalus. Hajong women can be easily identified by their brightly striped red dress called Pathin . Traditionally, and in many present-day villages, women are accomplished weavers who weave their own dresses. The Hajongs make it compulsory for every woman to know
4576-571: A widespread perception that Bangladeshi Hindus are disloyal to the state. Also, the right-wing parties claim the Hindus to be backing the Awami League . As widely documented in international media, Bangladesh authorities have had to increase security to enable Bangladeshi Hindus to worship freely following widespread attacks on places of worship and devotees. After bombings in Bangladesh by
4752-443: A worldwide appeal, transcending national boundaries and, according to Flood, "becoming a world religion alongside Christianity, Islam and Buddhism", both for the Hindu diaspora communities and for westerners who are attracted to non-western cultures and religions. It emphasises universal spiritual values such as social justice, peace and "the spiritual transformation of humanity". It has developed partly due to "re-enculturation", or
4928-933: Is 6474. During the 2019 Bangladesh elections, eight houses belonging to Hindu families on fire in Thakurgaon alone. In April 2019, two idols of Hindu goddesses, Lakshmi and Saraswati, have been vandalized by unidentified miscreants at a newly constructed temple in Kazipara of Brahmanbaria. In the same month, several idols of Hindu gods in two temples in Madaripur Sadar Upazila which were under construction were desecrated by miscreants. In 2021, many temples and houses of Hindus were broken and vandalized after an attack on them on Narendra Modi visit to Bangladesh by Hefazat-e-Islam and other radical groups as anti-Modi protests . Similarly, there were attacks on Hindus in 2020, after some of them supported France after
5104-533: Is about 2.75% of country's total population, were have not been counted by the Bangladesh Bureau of Statistics (BBS) for 2022 census. Moreover, around 2.75% of undercount was reported in the case of Muslims against 2.68% of followers of other religions. At the same time, Indigenous activists of Bangladesh have claimed that Ethnic minorities have been undercounted in Bangladesh's latest census. Hindu temples and shrines are more or less distributed all across
5280-460: Is an umbrella term for a range of Indian religious and spiritual traditions ( sampradaya s ) that are unified by the concept of dharma , a cosmic order maintained by its followers through rituals and righteous living, as first expounded in the Vedas . The word Hindu is an exonym , and while Hinduism has been called the oldest religion in the world, it has also been described by
5456-639: Is commonly known can be subdivided into a number of major currents. Of the historical division into six darsanas (philosophies), two schools, Vedanta and Yoga , are currently the most prominent. The six āstika schools of Hindu philosophy, which recognise the authority of the Vedas are: Sānkhya , Yoga , Nyāya , Vaisheshika , Mimāmsā , and Vedānta . Classified by primary deity or deities, four major Hinduism modern currents are Vaishnavism (Vishnu), Shaivism (Shiva), Shaktism (Devi) and Smartism (five deities treated as equals). Hinduism also accepts numerous divine beings, with many Hindus considering
Hinduism in Bangladesh - Misplaced Pages Continue
5632-534: Is estimated that Hindu population have came down to a mere 7%. Malaun (from Arabic ملعون, meaning "accursed") is a pejorative term for Bengali Hindus , most commonly used in Bangladesh by Bengali Muslims . Hindus and others have been regularly and systematically persecuted, such as during the Bangladesh genocide , Bangladesh Liberation War and numerous recurring massacres of civilians where rapes were also used as weapon . Active perpetrators of genocide, ethnic cleansing and rapes of Hindus in Bangladesh include
5808-450: Is estimated the present-day Bangladeshi hindu population would be approximately 63.13 million or 28%, well above the current population of 12.73 million or 8.5%, as reported in the Bangladesh 2011 census . After the 1960s, most of the migration was lower caste – a trend that has continued to till this day. As per a BJP estimate, Bangladeshi Hindu immigrants are a significant presence in 75 Assembly constituencies – making up approximately
5984-464: Is found in a Sasanian inscription from the 3rd century CE, both of which refer to parts of northwestern South Asia. In Arabic texts, al-Hind referred to the land beyond the Indus and therefore, all the people in that land were Hindus. This Arabic term was itself taken from the pre-Islamic Persian term Hindū . By the 13th century, Hindustan emerged as a popular alternative name of India , meaning
6160-667: Is impossible to separate them. The present religious customs practised by the Hajongs can be considered an amalgation of their folk religion and Hinduism, as it was not seen to conflict with the rites of their traditional animistic religion, giving birth to a new variety of syncretic Hinduism. No information is available as to how the Hajongs came under the influence of Hinduism in the long past as no written records exist to this effect. Only an attempt can be made with reference to their religious traditions, customs, conventions, etc., some of which are still being followed by Hajongs and also in
6336-553: Is necessarily religious" or that Hindus have a universally accepted "conventional or institutional meaning" for that term. To many, it is as much a cultural term. Many Hindus do not have a copy of the Vedas nor have they ever seen or personally read parts of a Veda, like a Christian, might relate to the Bible or a Muslim might to the Quran. Yet, states Lipner, "this does not mean that their [Hindus] whole life's orientation cannot be traced to
6512-402: Is not strictly adhered to by unmarried women. Every household has a traditional loom called bana ; there are two kinds of traditional looms, salbana and sipnibana . The sipnibana is operated solely with hands and does not require the use of feet. Women of this tribe chiefly wear pathin , a wrap-around skirt that covered the upper and lower part of the body from the bust till the calf of
6688-408: Is now Bangladesh has consistently decreased as a percentage of the population, from 28% in 1941 to 13.5% at the time of Bangladesh's founding in 1974, and reducing further to 7.9% in 2022 . Bangladesh Census authority have found that since from the last 50 years, about 7.5 million (75 lakhs) Hindus have left the country due to religious persecution and discrimination. As per as 2016 official figures, it
6864-514: Is rather an umbrella term comprising the plurality of religious phenomena of India. According to the Supreme Court of India , Unlike other religions in the World, the Hindu religion does not claim any one Prophet, it does not worship any one God, it does not believe in any one philosophic concept, it does not follow any one act of religious rites or performances; in fact, it does not satisfy
7040-506: Is similar to the Indian state of West Bengal, where Hindus also consume fish, eggs, chicken, and mutton. There are also some vegetarians as well. There are also non-Bengali Hindus in Bangladesh, majority of the Hajong , Rajbongshi people and Tripuris in Bangladesh are Hindus. According to the 2001 Bangladesh census , there were around 11.82 million Hindus in Bangladesh constituting 9.6% of
7216-403: Is still the legal definition of a Hindu today. Hindu beliefs are vast and diverse, and thus Hinduism is often referred to as a family of religions rather than a single religion. Within each religion in this family of religions, there are different theologies, practices, and sacred texts. Hinduism does not have a "unified system of belief encoded in a declaration of faith or a creed ", but
Hinduism in Bangladesh - Misplaced Pages Continue
7392-505: Is the second-largest religion in 61 out of 64 districts of Bangladesh, but there is no Hindu majority district in Bangladesh. In October 2022, the Government of Bangladesh proclaimed that it is dedicated to ensuring the safety and security of the Hindu minority community, after attacks on Hindu temples during religious pujas , Hindu communities, temples, mandirs , and pandals . In nature, Bangladeshi Hinduism closely resembles
7568-513: Is the earliest self-designation of Hinduism. According to Arvind Sharma , the historical evidence suggests that "the Hindus were referring to their religion by the term vaidika dharma or a variant thereof" by the 4th-century CE. According to Brian K. Smith, "[i]t is 'debatable at the very least' as to whether the term Vaidika Dharma cannot, with the proper concessions to historical, cultural, and ideological specificity, be comparable to and translated as 'Hinduism' or 'Hindu religion'." Whatever
7744-693: Is the largest tradition of Hinduism. Vaishnavism is the devotional religious tradition that worships Vishnu and his avatars, particularly Krishna and Rama. The adherents of this sect are generally non-ascetic, monastic, oriented towards community events and devotionalism practices inspired by "intimate loving, joyous, playful" Krishna and other Vishnu avatars. These practices sometimes include community dancing, singing of Kirtans and Bhajans , with sound and music believed by some to have meditative and spiritual powers. Temple worship and festivals are typically elaborate in Vaishnavism. The Bhagavad Gita and
7920-724: The Agamas such as the Pancaratrika to be invalid because it did not conform to the Vedas. Some Kashmiri scholars rejected the esoteric tantric traditions to be a part of Vaidika dharma. The Atimarga Shaivism ascetic tradition, datable to about 500 CE, challenged the Vaidika frame and insisted that their Agamas and practices were not only valid, they were superior than those of the Vaidikas. However, adds Sanderson, this Shaiva ascetic tradition viewed themselves as being genuinely true to
8096-631: The 2024 Bangladesh quota reform movement , Hindu temples, businesses and homes were attacked by mobs upset with how many Hindus in the country were seen as supporting the deposed Hasina's Awami League party, something that was alleged to have upset more conservative Islamist political groups. As of August 8, 2024, a school teacher was reported dead and 45 injured, with 45 out of the country's 64 districts having at least one attack on Hindu individuals or property. Protesters protected Hindu temples and communities from extremists. Hinduism Traditional Hinduism ( / ˈ h ɪ n d u ˌ ɪ z əm / )
8272-495: The Enemy Property Act was rampant during Mujib's rule, and as per the research conducted by Abul Barkat of Dhaka University , the Awami League party of Sheikh Mujib was the largest beneficiary of Hindu property transfer in the past 35 years of Bangladeshi independence. This was enabled considerably because of the particular turmoil and displacement suffered by Bangladeshi Hindus, who bore the disproportionate burnt of
8448-453: The Hindu texts . Sanātana Dharma refers to "timeless, eternal set of truths" and this is how Hindus view the origins of their religion. It is viewed as those eternal truths and traditions with origins beyond human history– truths divinely revealed ( Shruti ) in the Vedas , the most ancient of the world's scriptures. To many Hindus, Hinduism is a tradition that can be traced at least to
8624-653: The Murder of Samuel Paty . In the October of the same year there had been a severe communal violence in Bangladesh against the Bengali Hindus, after the video of Quran desecration at the Durga Puja pandals was spread in which more than 120 Hindu temples were vandalized and nearly 7 Hindus were killed. It was described by The New York Times as "worst communal violence in years". According to Dr. Abul Barkat, no Hindus will be left in Bangladesh 30 years from now if
8800-788: The Pakistani Military , Al Badr , Al Sham , East Pakistan Central Peace Committee , Razakars , Muslim League , Jamaat-e-Islami , and the Urdu -speaking Biharis . According to the United States Commission on International Religious Freedom (USCIRF), Hindus are among those persecuted in Bangladesh, with hundreds of cases of "killings, attempted killings, death threats, assaults, rapes, kidnappings, and attacks on homes, businesses, and places of worship" on religious minorities in 2017. Hindu temples in Bangladesh have also been vandalised. The Pakistani census has found that
8976-632: The South-West Garo Hills District of Meghalaya and Bangladesh border. They also live in the Dhubri and Goalpara districts of lower Assam, Dhemaji, and other districts of upper Assam into Arunachal Pradesh. In Bangladesh, Hajongs are found in the northern Dhaka division, although there are unconfirmed reports of some Hajong living in Chittagong division . The narrow strip of borderland that stretches from Sherpur district in
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#17327717077189152-476: The Theosophical Society , as well as various " Guru -isms" and new religious movements such as Maharishi Mahesh Yogi , BAPS and ISKCON . Inden states that the attempt to classify Hinduism by typology started in the imperial times, when proselytising missionaries and colonial officials sought to understand and portray Hinduism from their interests. Hinduism was construed as emanating not from
9328-546: The United States Department of State 2023 Report on International Religious Freedom: Bangladesh reported. Women are also prohibited from inheriting property under the civil laws for Hindus, the report said. A survey conducted during the year by Research Initiatives in Bangladesh and MJF showed that 26.7% of Hindu men and 29.2% of Hindu women would like to obtain a divorce but did not do so because of existing laws. The Hindu community has many similar issues as
9504-574: The Vaidika dharma . The word 'Vaidika' in Sanskrit means 'derived from or conformable to the Veda' or 'relating to the Veda'. Traditional scholars employed the terms Vaidika and Avaidika, those who accept the Vedas as a source of authoritative knowledge and those who do not, to differentiate various Indian schools from Jainism, Buddhism and Charvaka. According to Klaus Klostermaier, the term Vaidika dharma
9680-1286: The Vedas , the Upanishads , the Puranas , the Mahabharata (including the Bhagavad Gita ), the Ramayana , and the Agamas . Prominent themes in Hindu beliefs include karma (action, intent and consequences), saṃsāra (the cycle of death and rebirth) and the four Puruṣārthas , proper goals or aims of human life, namely: dharma (ethics/duties), artha (prosperity/work), kama (desires/passions) and moksha (liberation/freedom from passions and ultimately saṃsāra ). Hindu religious practices include devotion ( bhakti ), worship ( puja ), sacrificial rites ( yajna ), and meditation ( dhyana ) and yoga . Hinduism has no central doctrinal authority and many Hindus do not claim to belong to any denomination. However, scholarly studies notify four major denominations: Shaivism , Shaktism , Smartism , and Vaishnavism . The six Āstika schools of Hindu philosophy that recognise
9856-468: The case markers in Hajong. Hajongs are known for their woven dresses. Hajongs are known for their weaving and handicrafts; their skilled activities are still preserved and passed on through the ages from generation to generation, though there might be minuscule changes in lifestyle with the influence of western way of life. Weaving constitutes an important integral household work for the women and most of
10032-437: The nikni system, that there should be no daidi relationship between the proposed bride and the groom. If it was found that both of them or their families were daidi bhagi or daidi gusti to each other, the proposal was to be immediately dropped. The Hajongs are divided into five geographical clans called jwar . Hajongs belonging to each jwar speak a different dialect of Hajong called rao . These clans are named after
10208-457: The pizza effect , in which elements of Hindu culture have been exported to the West, gaining popularity there, and as a consequence also gained greater popularity in India. This globalisation of Hindu culture brought "to the West teachings which have become an important cultural force in western societies, and which in turn have become an important cultural force in India, their place of origin". The Hindutva movement has extensively argued for
10384-494: The "land of Hindus". Among the earliest known records of 'Hindu' with connotations of religion may be in the 7th-century CE Chinese text Record of the Western Regions by Xuanzang , and 14th-century Persian text Futuhu's-salatin by 'Abd al-Malik Isami . Some 16–18th century Bengali Gaudiya Vaishnava texts mention Hindu and Hindu dharma to distinguish from Muslims without positively defining these terms. In
10560-545: The "orthodox" form of Hinduism as Sanātana Dharma , "the eternal law" or the "eternal way". Hindus regard Hinduism to be thousands of years old. The Puranic chronology , as narrated in the Mahabharata , Ramayana , and the Puranas , envisions a timeline of events related to Hinduism starting well before 3000 BCE. The word dharma is used here to mean religion similar to modern Indo-Aryan languages , rather than with its original Sanskrit meaning. All aspects of
10736-614: The 18th century, the European merchants and colonists began to refer to the followers of Indian religions collectively as Hindus. The use of the English term "Hinduism" to describe a collection of practices and beliefs is a fairly recent construction. The term Hinduism was first used by Raja Ram Mohan Roy in 1816–17. By the 1840s, the term "Hinduism" was used by those Indians who opposed British colonialism, and who wanted to distinguish themselves from Muslims and Christians. Before
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#173277170771810912-570: The 19th and 20th centuries by Hindu reform movements and Neo-Vedanta, and has become characteristic of modern Hinduism. Beginning in the 19th century, Indian modernists re-asserted Hinduism as a major asset of Indian civilisation, meanwhile "purifying" Hinduism from its Tantric elements and elevating the Vedic elements. Western stereotypes were reversed, emphasising the universal aspects, and introducing modern approaches of social problems. This approach had great appeal, not only in India, but also in
11088-607: The Bangladesh Liberation War, and around one hundred devotees were murdered. Under the provisions of the Enemy Property Act, it was determined that ownership of the property could not be established as there were no surviving members to claim inherited rights, and the land was handed over to the Dhaka Club . Secondly, state-authorized confiscation of Hindu owned property under the provisions of
11264-603: The Brahmanic-Sanskritic Hinduism and Folk religion typology, whether practising or non-practicing. He classifies most Hindus as belonging by choice to one of the "founded religions" such as Vaishnavism and Shaivism that are moksha-focussed and often de-emphasise Brahman (Brahmin) priestly authority yet incorporate ritual grammar of Brahmanic-Sanskritic Hinduism. He includes among "founded religions" Buddhism , Jainism , Sikhism that are now distinct religions, syncretic movements such as Brahmo Samaj and
11440-471: The British began to categorise communities strictly by religion, Indians generally did not define themselves exclusively through their religious beliefs; instead identities were largely segmented on the basis of locality, language, varna , jāti , occupation, and sect. "Hinduism" is an umbrella-term, referring to a broad range of sometimes opposite and often competitive traditions. The term "Hinduism"
11616-456: The Hajongs are gamsa similar to the Assamese gamosa and pasra, an embroidered light shawl. Buksuli is the traditional shirt used by men. Hajong women, both young and old, prefer to adorn themselves with traditional ornaments. The majority of the Hajong ornaments are made of silver ; while the use of gold , ivory , coral , and conch shells have been observed too. Traditionally, all of
11792-569: The Hajongs organised a Kshatriya Sanmelan for the welfare of the community and to enforce the observation of their traditions. It is believed that the original heartland of the Hajongs in Garo Hills was in the area lying mostly along the Northeast and Southwest foothills of Garo Hills and part of the southern foothills of Khasi and Jaintia Hills. This wide and plain switch of land in the foothills, half encircling these two hills falls partly in
11968-412: The Hindu community were killed and 31 fell victims to enforced disappearance 782 Hindus were either forced to leave the country or threatened to leave, and besides this, 23 were forced to get converted into other religions and at least 25 Hindu women and children were raped, while 235 temples and statues were vandalized during the year. The total number of atrocities happened with the Hindu community in 2017
12144-494: The Hindu percentage declined from 18.5% to 13.5%. The Hindu population was significantly impacted by the 1964 East Pakistan riots and 1971 East Pakistan genocide , which primarily targeted Bengali Hindus . An estimated 10 million East Pakistanis sought refuge in India, with 80% being Hindus. Approximately 8 million Hindus fled to various parts of India during the 1971 Bangladesh Liberation War to escape persecution by Pakistani armies and Islamic militias . After Independence, it
12320-503: The Hindu percentage has continued to decline, forming 8.5% of the population as of 2011. The fall in the share of total population has been attributed to outward migration, and the fertility rate for Hindus remaining consistently lower than Muslims (2.1 versus 2.3 as of 2014). The Bangladesh genocide of 1971 also disproportionately targeted Hindus. According to the Bangladesh Bureau of Statistics report, Khulna division has
12496-419: The Hindu population has decreased from 13.21% in 2011 to 12.98% in 2022. Mymensingh division has the lowest percentage of people belonging to the Hindu community at (3.92%) as of 2022. According to 2022 census, there are 43 Upazila's with Hindu percentage above 20%. They are listed below according to percentage. Dacope Upazila is the only Hindu majority Upazila in Bangladesh. The Hindu population in what
12672-555: The Hindu population in East Pakistan declined drastically from 28% in 1941 to 22% in 1951. The 1946 Noakhali massacre , occurring before the partition, and the 1950 East Pakistan riots , which took place after the Partition of Bengal , were among the most severe anti-Hindu riots in the region's history. Between the 1961 and 1974 censuses , the Hindu population increased by only 300,000, from 9.3 million to 9.6 million, while
12848-586: The Islamic fundamentalists, the government has taken steps to strengthen the security during various minority celebrations, especially during Durga Puja and Rathayatra. In October 2006, the United States Commission on International Religious Freedom published a report titled 'Policy Focus on Bangladesh,' which said that since its last election, 'Bangladesh has experienced growing violence by religious extremists, intensifying concerns expressed by
13024-715: The Liberation War, and most of the Bengali Hindu-owned businesses were permanently destroyed. The historic Ramna Kali Temple in Dhaka and the century-old Rath at Dhamrai were demolished and burned down by the Pakistani Army. In the first constitution of the newly independent country, secularism and equality of all citizens irrespective of religious identity were enshrined. On his return to liberated Bangladesh, Sheikh Mujibur Rahman in his first speech to
13200-463: The Marathi poet Tukaram (1609–1649) and Ramdas (1608–1681), articulated ideas in which they glorified Hinduism and the past. The Brahmins also produced increasingly historical texts, especially eulogies and chronicles of sacred sites (Mahatmyas), or developed a reflexive passion for collecting and compiling extensive collections of quotations on various subjects. The notion and reports on "Hinduism" as
13376-626: The Muslim journalist and human rights activist Shahriyar Kabir was arrested on charges of treason on his return from India where he had been interviewing Hindu refugees from Bangladesh; this was by the Bangladesh High Court and he was subsequently freed. The fundamentalists and right-wing parties such as the BNP and Jatiya Party often portray Hindus as being sympathetic to India, and transferring economic resources to India, contributing to
13552-477: The Muslims and the largest concentration of Hindus can be found in and around Shankhari Bazaar of the old city. In 2013, Amnesty International reported that the rise of more explicitly Islamist political formations in Bangladesh during the 1990s had resulted in many Hindus being intimidated or attacked, and that fairly substantial numbers were leaving the country for India. In 1901, Hindus constituted 33% of
13728-649: The Pakistan army's genocide, as well documented by international publications such as Time magazine and the New York Times , and by the declassified Hamoodur Rahman Commission report. This caused much bitterness among Bangladeshi Hindus, particularly given the public stance of the regime's commitment to secularism and communal harmony. President Ziaur Rahman abandoned the constitutional provision for secularism and began to introduce Islamic symbolism in all spheres of national life (such as official seals and
13904-610: The Ramayana, along with Vishnu-oriented Puranas provide its theistic foundations. Hajong people The Hajong people are an ethnic group of Northeast India and northern parts of Bangladesh . The majority of the Hajongs are settled in India and are predominantly rice-farmers. They are said to have brought wet-field cultivation to the Garo Hills , where the Garo people used slash and burn method of agriculture. Hajong have
14080-511: The Tibeto-Burman family. The phonology of Hajong has 23 consonant phonemes, 8 vowel phonemes, and 2 approximants that have some characteristics of consonants namely /w/ and /j/ which act as diphthongs, it includes vowel harmony and the devoicing of final consonants. According to one of the several hypotheses, the Hajong language has Sino-Tibetan origins that were relexified by Old Bengali ; and some hints of its origin may be shown through
14256-516: The Vedanta, that is, in the three stages of the Vedanta philosophy, the Dvaita, Vishishtâdvaita and Advaita; one comes after the other. These are the three stages of spiritual growth in man. Each one is necessary. This is the essential of religion: the Vedanta, applied to the various ethnic customs and creeds of India, is Hinduism. — Swami Vivekananda This inclusivism was further developed in
14432-458: The Vedas or that it does not in some way derive from it". Though many religious Hindus implicitly acknowledge the authority of the Vedas, this acknowledgment is often "no more than a declaration that someone considers himself [or herself] a Hindu," and "most Indians today pay lip service to the Veda and have no regard for the contents of the text." Some Hindus challenge the authority of the Vedas, thereby implicitly acknowledging its importance to
14608-446: The Vedas, or were invalid in their entirety. Moderates then, and most orthoprax scholars later, agreed that though there are some variations, the foundation of their beliefs, the ritual grammar, the spiritual premises, and the soteriologies were the same. "This sense of greater unity", states Sanderson, "came to be called Hinduism". According to Nicholson, already between the 12th and the 16th centuries "certain thinkers began to treat as
14784-403: The Vedic period, between c. 500 to 200 BCE , and c. 300 CE , in the period of the second urbanisation and the early classical period of Hinduism when the epics and the first Purānas were composed. It flourished in the medieval period , with the decline of Buddhism in India . Since the 19th century, modern Hinduism , influenced by western culture , has acquired
14960-467: The Vedic tradition and "held unanimously that the Śruti and Smṛti of Brahmanism are universally and uniquely valid in their own sphere, [...] and that as such they [Vedas] are man's sole means of valid knowledge [...]". The term Vaidika dharma means a code of practice that is "based on the Vedas", but it is unclear what "based on the Vedas" really implies, states Julius Lipner. The Vaidika dharma or "Vedic way of life", states Lipner, does not mean "Hinduism
15136-721: The West's view of Hinduism". Central to his philosophy is the idea that the divine exists in all beings, that all human beings can achieve union with this "innate divinity", and that seeing this divine as the essence of others will further love and social harmony. According to Vivekananda, there is an essential unity to Hinduism, which underlies the diversity of its many forms. According to Flood, Vivekananda's vision of Hinduism "is one generally accepted by most English-speaking middle-class Hindus today". Sarvepalli Radhakrishnan sought to reconcile western rationalism with Hinduism, "presenting Hinduism as an essentially rationalistic and humanistic religious experience". This "Global Hinduism" has
15312-552: The ancient Vedic era. The Western term "religion" to the extent it means "dogma and an institution traceable to a single founder" is inappropriate for their tradition, states Hatcher. Sanātana Dharma historically referred to the "eternal" duties religiously ordained in Hinduism, duties such as honesty, refraining from injuring living beings ( ahiṃsā ), purity, goodwill, mercy, patience, forbearance, self-restraint, generosity, and asceticism. These duties applied regardless of
15488-480: The archaic names of the areas in the foothills and the plains of Garo Hills. Among these clans, the Barohajari clan is named after the area where the twelve thousand Hajongs from Hajo had first settled in Garo Hills. The five jwar s are listed below: Hajongs are predominantly Hindu. All Hindu Customs are adhered to right from the time of birth. Hindu beliefs have been interwined with their original culture and it
15664-467: The art of weaving, which is regarded as a qualification for a woman for marriage. The Hajongs are a group of agrarian people , most of their cultural practices, folklore and traditions are related to their agricultural practices. Hajongs are skilled in woodwork and basketry , they make all of their farming tools and household items themselves. In addition to the implements needed for rice farming, Hajong households have many bamboo fishing implements. In
15840-447: The authority of the Vedas are: Samkhya , Yoga , Nyaya , Vaisheshika , Mīmāṃsā , and Vedanta . While the traditional Itihasa-Purana and its derived Epic-Puranic chronology present Hinduism as a tradition existing for thousands of years, scholars regard Hinduism as a fusion or synthesis of Brahmanical orthopraxy with various Indian cultures, having diverse roots and no specific founder. This Hindu synthesis emerged after
16016-508: The case, many Hindu religious sources see persons or groups which they consider as non-Vedic (and which reject Vedic varṇāśrama – 'caste and life stage' orthodoxy) as being heretics (pāṣaṇḍa/pākhaṇḍa). For example, the Bhāgavata Purāṇa considers Buddhists, Jains as well as some Shaiva groups like the Paśupatas and Kāpālins to be pāṣaṇḍas (heretics). According to Alexis Sanderson ,
16192-435: The central deity worshipped, the traditions and the soteriological outlook. The denominations of Hinduism, states Lipner, are unlike those found in major religions of the world, because Hindu denominations are fuzzy with individuals practising more than one, and he suggests the term "Hindu polycentrism". There are no census data available on demographic history or trends for the traditions within Hinduism. Estimates vary on
16368-424: The classical "karma-marga", jnana-marga , bhakti-marga , and "heroism", which is rooted in militaristic traditions . These militaristic traditions include Ramaism (the worship of a hero of epic literature, Rama , believing him to be an incarnation of Vishnu) and parts of political Hinduism . "Heroism" is also called virya-marga . According to Michaels, one out of nine Hindu belongs by birth to one or both of
16544-435: The colonial polemical reports led to fabricated stereotypes where Hinduism was mere mystic paganism devoted to the service of devils, while other scholars state that the colonial constructions influenced the belief that the Vedas , Bhagavad Gita , Manusmriti and such texts were the essence of Hindu religiosity, and in the modern association of 'Hindu doctrine' with the schools of Vedanta (in particular Advaita Vedanta) as
16720-712: The constitutional preamble). Zia brought back the multi-party system thus allowing organizations such as Jamaat-e-Islami Bangladesh (an offshoot of the Islamist Jamaat-e-Islami in Pakistan) to regroup and contest elections. In 1988, President Hussein Mohammed Ershad declared Islam to be the State Religion of Bangladesh. Although the move was protested by students and left-leaning political parties and minority groups, to this date neither
16896-470: The context of the religious atmosphere found to have prevailed in those days in the place where their forefathers were lioving and from where they are said to have migrated. There are two documented sections among the Hajongs, Khatal and Hajong . The main difference between these two sections is that the Khatal s prohibits the use and preparation of rice beer . It is observed that among these two sections,
17072-841: The countries of South Asia , in Southeast Asia , in the Caribbean , Middle East , North America , Europe , Oceania , Africa , and other regions . The word Hindū is an exonym , and is derived from the Sanskrit root Sindhu , believed to be the name of the Indus River in the northwestern part of the Indian subcontinent . The Proto-Iranian sound change *s > h occurred between 850 and 600 BCE. According to Gavin Flood , "The actual term Hindu first occurs as
17248-655: The country if current immigration rates continue further. With migration into West Bengal, the 1947 partition of Bengal significantly altered religious demographics in the eastern segment of the province, which later became Bangladesh. Violence also saw an uptick in the 1950s and 1960s in what had then become East Pakistan (present-day-Bangladesh), leading to large numbers of upper caste Bengali Hindus migrating to West Bengal , Assam and Tripura with official Indian government records indicating 2,519,557 (Hindu) refugees crossed into India from East Bengal between 1941 and 1951. Utilizing demography studies and other methods over
17424-420: The country's population. Another theory suggest that Bangladesh will have at least 180-200 million population by 2050, out of which there will be around 8.51-9.25 million Hindus living in this nation, thus constituting only 4% after the beginning of half-century. On average, annually 230,612 Hindus were leaving Bangladesh for India permanently. So between (2024–2050), It is estimated that 5,995,912 Hindus will leave
17600-419: The country's religious minorities'. The report further stated that Hindus are particularly vulnerable in a period of rising violence and extremism, whether motivated by religious, political or criminal factors, or some combination. The report noted that Hindus had multiple disadvantages against them in Bangladesh, such as perceptions of dual loyalty concerning India and religious beliefs that are not tolerated by
17776-668: The country. The Kantaji Temple is an elegant example of an 18th-century temple. The most important temple in terms of prominence is the Dhakeshwari National Temple , located in Dhaka. This temple along with other Hindu organizations arranges Durga Puja and Krishna Janmaashtami very prominently. The other main temples of Dhaka are the Ramakrishna Mission , Ramna Kali Temple , Joy Kali Temple , Laxmi Narayan Mandir , Swami Bagh Temple and Siddheswari Kalimandir. Many Hindu temples have suffered from
17952-609: The cultural influences such as Yoga and Hare Krishna movement by many missionaries organisations, especially by ISKCON and this is also due to the migration of Indian Hindus to the other nations of the world. Hinduism is growing fast in many western nations and in some African nations . Hinduism has no central doctrinal authority and many practising Hindus do not claim to belong to any particular denomination or tradition. Four major denominations are, however, used in scholarly studies: Shaivism , Shaktism , Smartism , and Vaishnavism . These denominations differ primarily in
18128-540: The current rate of "exodus" continues as on an average 632 people from the minority community leave the Muslim-majority country each day. From 1964 to 2013, around 11.3 million Hindus left Bangladesh due to religious persecution and discrimination which means on an average 632 Hindus left the country each day and 230,612 annually, he said at the book launch ceremony at the Dhaka University (DU). During
18304-729: The degree of Hinduisation varies. There are differences even among the Khatal s themselves. The Khatal s are divided into Bastom and Khutri . The hereditary Udhikâri or the priest class, the Hajong equivalent of the Hindu Brahmin , belong to the Bastom section while the Khutri class is the Hajong counterpart of the Kshatriya class. The Hajong section of the society observes both traditional and Hindu customs; this section does not have any special name as they are believed to practice
18480-648: The deities to be aspects or manifestations of a single impersonal absolute or ultimate reality or Supreme God , while some Hindus maintain that a specific deity represents the supreme and various deities are lower manifestations of this supreme. Other notable characteristics include a belief in the existence of ātman (self), reincarnation of one's ātman, and karma as well as a belief in dharma (duties, rights, laws, conduct, virtues and right way of living), although variation exists, with some not following these beliefs. June McDaniel (2007) classifies Hinduism into six major kinds and numerous minor kinds, in order to understand
18656-474: The early Sanskrit texts differentiate between Vaidika, Vaishnava, Shaiva, Shakta, Saura, Buddhist and Jaina traditions. However, the late 1st-millennium CE Indic consensus had "indeed come to conceptualize a complex entity corresponding to Hinduism as opposed to Buddhism and Jainism excluding only certain forms of antinomian Shakta-Shaiva" from its fold. Some in the Mimamsa school of Hindu philosophy considered
18832-416: The election of 2001, when a right-wing coalition including two Islamist parties ( Jamaat-e-Islami Bangladesh and Islami Oikya Jote ) led by the pro-Islamic right wing Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP) came to power, many minority Hindus and liberal secularist Muslims were attacked by a section of the governing regime. Thousands of Bangladeshi Hindus were believed to have fled to neighbouring India to escape
19008-643: The establishment of a Hindu self-identity took place "through a process of mutual self-definition with a contrasting Muslim Other". According to Lorenzen, this "presence of the Other" is necessary to recognise the "loose family resemblance" among the various traditions and schools. According to the Indologist Alexis Sanderson , before Islam arrived in India, the "Sanskrit sources differentiated Vaidika, Vaiṣṇava, Śaiva, Śākta, Saura, Buddhist, and Jaina traditions, but they had no name that denotes
19184-449: The expression of emotions among the Hindus. The major kinds, according to McDaniel are Folk Hinduism , based on local traditions and cults of local deities and is the oldest, non-literate system; Vedic Hinduism based on the earliest layers of the Vedas, traceable to the 2nd millennium BCE; Vedantic Hinduism based on the philosophy of the Upanishads , including Advaita Vedanta , emphasising knowledge and wisdom; Yogic Hinduism, following
19360-437: The extravagant ornaments belonged to the women of this tribe; men were to only wear their wedding rings called manik angthi and a gold chain. Although men can be seen wearing a red thread on their waist called bâstâ or bâitâ , lugun on their left shoulder, and rosaries made of sandalwood , golden apple and the holy basil . Married women wear conch shell bangles called haka and the wedding ring, manik angthi . Some of
19536-702: The festival. Other festivals are Kali Puja , Janmashtami , Holi , Saraswati Puja , Shivratri and Rathayatra , the most popular being the century-old Dhamrai Rathayatra . The principle of ahimsa is expressed in almost universally observed rules against eating beef. By no means are all Bangladeshi Hindus vegetarians, but abstinence from all kinds of meat is regarded as a "higher" virtue. The Priestly Caste Brahmin (pronounced Brahmon in Bengali) Bangladeshi Hindus, unlike their counterparts elsewhere in South Asia, eat fish and chicken. This
19712-438: The fields use the kompes as a banong or belt. The compes is a brocaded scarf mostly used by men, but often women use it to tie their waists. Menfolk wear a woven piece of cloth called ningti or bhijâ kapur , it is worn in the fashion of a dhoti . During winters, both men and women cover their bodies with a traditional brocaded shawl called Argon and men keep their necks warm with a kompes. Other kind of clothes used by
19888-640: The first Puranas were composed. It flourished in the medieval period , with the decline of Buddhism in India . Hinduism's variations in belief and its broad range of traditions make it difficult to define as a religion according to traditional Western conceptions. Hinduism includes a diversity of ideas on spirituality and traditions; Hindus can be polytheistic , pantheistic , panentheistic , pandeistic , henotheistic , monotheistic , monistic , agnostic , atheistic or humanist . According to Mahatma Gandhi , "a man may not believe in God and still call himself
20064-650: The first five of these as a collective entity over and against Buddhism and Jainism". This absence of a formal name, states Sanderson, does not mean that the corresponding concept of Hinduism did not exist. By late 1st-millennium CE, the concept of a belief and tradition distinct from Buddhism and Jainism had emerged. This complex tradition accepted in its identity almost all of what is currently Hinduism, except certain antinomian tantric movements. Some conservative thinkers of those times questioned whether certain Shaiva, Vaishnava and Shakta texts or practices were consistent with
20240-545: The first time since 1971, the Dhakeshwari temple. The atrocities were brought to the West's attention by many Bangladeshis, including Taslima Nasrin and her book Lajja which translated into English means "shame". Immediately after the Bangladesh Nationalist Party and its Islamic fundamentalist allies came to power in the October 2001 elections, ruling coalition activists attacked Hindus on
20416-455: The form of legends, folktales, and traditional beliefs. The Hajongs believe that their ancestral land was in Hajo area of present-day Kamrup District of Assam. The meaning of 'Hajong' can thus be comprehended as 'descendants of Hajo'. It is believed that twelve thousand Hajongs fled Hajo and settled in the northern foothills of Garo Hills ; from there, they gradually extended their settlement in
20592-444: The forms and customs of Hinduism practiced in the neighboring Indian state of West Bengal , with which Bangladesh (at one time known as East Bengal ) was united until the partition of India in 1947. The vast majority of Hindus in Bangladesh are Bengali Hindus . Goddess ( Devi ) – usually venerated as Durga or Kali – is widely revered, often alongside her consort Shiva . The worship of Shiva has generally found adherents among
20768-406: The growing dominance of patriarchy in Hajong society. Within Hajong culture, romantic love and widow remarriage was allowed. When intimacy develops between a boy and a girl without the knowledge of their parents, they are married to each other, provided that they do not belong to close maternal and paternal kinship. The exorbitant dowry system was absent in the Hajong society. The Hajongs would give
20944-622: The higher castes in Bangladesh. Worship of Vishnu (typically in the form of his Avatars or incarnation Rama or Krishna ) more explicitly cuts across caste lines by teaching the fundamental oneness of humankind in spirit. Vishnu worship in Bengal expresses the union of the male and female principles in a tradition of love and devotion. This form of Hindu belief and the Sufi tradition of Islam have influenced and interacted with each other in Bengal. Both were popular mystical movements emphasizing
21120-407: The highest decline in Hindu population of (1.33%) from 2011 to 2022 period. In 2011, 12.85% of the population of the division were Hindus. This rate has come down to 11.52% in 2022. Among the eight divisions, Khulna has the fourth highest Hindu population. According to the 2022 census, Sylhet division has the highest Hindu population of 13.5%, but the ratio was 14.05% in 2011. In Rangpur division ,
21296-573: The history of Hinduism, states Lipner. Bal Gangadhar Tilak gave the following definition in Gita Rahasya (1915): "Acceptance of the Vedas with reverence; recognition of the fact that the means or ways to salvation are diverse; and realization of the truth that the number of gods to be worshipped is large". It was quoted by the Indian Supreme Court in 1966, and again in 1995, "as an 'adequate and satisfactory definition," and
21472-554: The implementation of the Vested Property Act through which land and moveable property has been confiscated by agents acting on behalf of successive governments. Hindu family law governs the personal life of Hindus in Bangladesh. There is no known limit for the number of wives a Hindu man can take in Bangladesh so polygamy for Hindu man is legal in Bangladesh. "Under Bangladesh Hindu (civil) law, men may have multiple wives, but there are officially no options for divorce",
21648-432: The influence of the Hindu cast system is less. Hajongs are endogamous people. Marriage with a person outside of their tribe is strictly forbidden, cases of such marriages are rare. Monogamy is the prevalent form of marriage; polygyny is not prohibited, but such marriages are rare. A negotiated alliance is the usual form of marriage. In Hajong society matriarchy declined with the influence of Hinduism, leading towards
21824-400: The kan and the gao. If the pathin is observed with the stripes parallel to the horizon, the kan appears to be on the top and bottom ends of the pathin, while the gao is the larger central portion of the pathin. Red is the main colour used in the rangapathin , which is worn by young women; while middle-aged women tend to wear pathins with lesser stripes in shades of green. Women, while working on
22000-519: The largest ethnic group in the State, constituting around 60 per cent of the state population. The official number of Hindus living in Bangladesh is about 13.1 million or say 7.9% as per as 2022 census conducted by Bangladesh government authority. However, at certain times different leaders as well as Bangladesh Bureau of Statistics have given different estimates. Bangladesh Institute of Development Studies (BIDS) have found that 4.67 million people, which
22176-424: The leadership of six heads: Harang , Bhajalu , Manik , Teper , Satodol , and Manji . These six clans were named after these tribal heads. The Hajong clans were formally organised on the basis of matrilineal exogamy. They were divided into several matrilineal clans called nikni . Although, the hajongs were an endogamous tribe, clan exogamy was practised where one wasn't allowed to be wed to someone belonging to
22352-416: The leg. Women in the upper class wore a long pathin which fell down to the floor while women in the lower class wore a shorter pathin which length reaches to the ankle. The pathin is a horizontally striped, colourful, rectangular piece of cloth with alternate layers of different colours between red stripes and thick horizontal borders. The pathin, also called pate or pâthni, consists of two main sets of stripes:
22528-422: The main dwelling. There is a common courtyard in every household which is used for threshing grains after harvest. A typical Hajong household consists of the buildings listed below: The staple food is rice eaten with lentils and vegetables. For special occasions, rice is ground into fine powder and used to make steamed or fried rice cakes called pithâ . Tortoise has traditionally been the favourite meat. Some of
22704-497: The many of the victims being Hindus. From 1964 to 2013, around 11.3 million Hindus left Bangladesh due to religious persecution and discrimination, as stated by Dhaka university economist Abul Barkat . On average 632 Hindus left the country each day and 230,612 annually as reported by him. From his 30-year-long research, Barkat found that the exodus mostly took place during military governments after independence. Barkat also state's: that there should have been 28.7 million Hindus in
22880-598: The modern term Sanātana Dharma ( lit. ' eternal dharma ' ), based on the belief that its origins lie beyond human history , as revealed in the Hindu texts . Another endonym for Hinduism is Vaidika Dharma ( lit. ' Vedic dharma ' ). Hinduism entails diverse systems of thought, marked by a range of shared concepts that discuss theology , mythology , among other topics in textual sources. Hindu texts have been classified into Śruti ( lit. ' heard ' ) and Smṛti ( lit. ' remembered ' ). The major Hindu scriptures are
23056-541: The month of October in South-West Garo Hills Districts of Meghalaya. During this festival, group of young people go around each house in the village, or from village to village, playing music and singing folsongs, sometimes stories from the Ramayana . The parties receive some rice or money in return for their performance. Since every person, both young and old, comes out to watch the play, this
23232-463: The most notorious utterances of a mainstream Bangladeshi figure, the immediate past Prime Minister Khaleda Zia , while the leader of the opposition in 1996, declared that the country was at risk of hearing "uludhhwani" (a Hindu custom involving women's ululation ) from mosques, replacing the azan (Muslim call to prayer) (e.g., see Agence-France Press report of 18 November 1996, "Bangladesh opposition leader accused of hurting religious sentiment"). After
23408-432: The multiple demands of Hinduism." The notion of common denominators for several religions and traditions of India further developed from the 12th century CE. Lorenzen traces the emergence of a "family resemblance", and what he calls as "beginnings of medieval and modern Hinduism" taking shape, at c. 300–600 CE, with the development of the early Puranas, and continuities with the earlier Vedic religion. Lorenzen states that
23584-517: The nation, specifically recognized the disproportionate suffering of the Hindu population during the Bangladesh Liberation War . On a visit to Kolkata , India in February 1972, Mujib visited the refugee camps that were still hosting several million Bangladeshi Hindus and appealed to them to return to Bangladesh and to help to rebuild the country. Despite the public commitment of Sheikh Mujibur Rahman and his government to re-establishing secularism and
23760-554: The only parties which have a nominal commitment to secularism. The Bangladesh Liberation War resulted in one of the largest genocides of the 20th century. While estimates of the number of casualties were 200,000–3,000,000, it is reasonably certain that Hindus bore a disproportionate brunt of the Pakistan Army's onslaught against the Bengali population of what was East Pakistan. The Pakistani Army killed many Bengali Hindus during
23936-481: The ornaments used by women are listed below Originally the Hajongs were divided into six clans. The present generation is hardly aware that this clan system had ever existed in the past. The origin of these clans are traced back to the twelve thousand Hajongs who had crossed the Brahmaputra river and entered Garo Hills from Hajo. The descendants of these twelve thousand people were divided into six groups under
24112-506: The outbreak of the 1965 India-Pakistan war , the Defense of Pakistan Ordinance , and later the Enemy (Custody and Registration) Order II , labeled Hindus as the "enemy" and expropriated their property. The 1974 census of Bangladesh showed that the population of Hindus had fallen to 13.5%. Even after independence, the Hindus were branded "Indian stooges" and untrustworthy citizens. Since 1971,
24288-831: The personal relationship of religious leaders and disciples instead of the dry stereotypes of the Brahmins or the Ulama . As in Bengali Hindu practice, worship of Vishnu frequently occurs in a small devotional society ( shomaj ). Both use the language of earthly love to express communion with the divine. In both traditions, the Bengali language is the vehicle of a large corpus of mystical literature of great beauty and emotional impact. In Bangladeshi Hinduism, ritual bathing, vows, and pilgrimages to sacred rivers, mountains, and shrines are common practices. An ordinary Hindu will worship at
24464-413: The plants, fruits, insects, etc., that their clans had been named after. The daidi or daigi system possibly began during the time when they were following the matrilineal system. Daidi actually means kinship or descent through the male or father's line. A person having a distant relation with any member of the kinship of his father's line is called a daidi bhagi or daidi gusti . A daidi bhagi or
24640-570: The politically dominant Islamic Fundamentalists of the BNP. Violence against Hindus has taken place "in order to encourage them to flee in order to seize their property". The previous reports of the Hindu American Foundation were acknowledged and confirmed by this non-partisan report. On 2 November 2006, USCIRF criticized Bangladesh for violence against minority Hindus. It also urged the Bush administration to get Dhaka to ensure
24816-457: The population in Bangladesh as per as the latest 2016 figures. Hindus in Bangladesh in the late 2000s were almost evenly distributed in all regions, with large concentrations in Gopalganj , Dinajpur , Sylhet , Sunamganj , Mymensingh , Khulna , Jessore , Chittagong and parts of Chittagong Hill Tracts . In the capital city of Dhaka , Hindus are the second-largest religious community after
24992-406: The population of Tripura's 19 Scheduled Tribes dropped from 63.77% in 1881 to 31.78% in 2011. This is attributed to the migration of 6.10 lakh Bengalis – the figure almost equal to the State's total population in 1951 – from East Pakistan (now Bangladesh) between 1947 and 1971. At present, there are around 2.2 million Bengali Hindus in Tripura (moslty having Eastern Bangladeshi origin), making them
25168-483: The population of what is now Bangladesh. In 1941, about 28% of the population were Hindus. Their proportion declined to 22% in 1951 after the Partition of India in 1947, as Hindus migrated from East Bengal to India. Wealthy Hindus who migrated lost their land and assets through the East Bengal Evacuees Act . Poor and middle-class Hindus who were left behind were targets of discriminatory new laws. At
25344-418: The population, which at the time was 123.15 million. The Bangladesh 2011 census states, that approximately 12.73 million people responded that they were Hindus, constituting 8.54% of the total 149.77 million. While 2022 Census of Bangladesh , put the number of Hindus in Bangladesh at 13.1 million out of total 165.1 million population, thus constituting 7.95% of the population. According to a report published by
25520-666: The predominantly Muslim community of Bangladesh. These include women's rights, dowry, poverty, unemployment, and others. Issues unique to the Hindu community include maintenance of Hindu culture and temples in Bangladesh. Small sects of Islamists constantly try to politically and socially isolate the Hindus of Bangladesh. Because Hindus of Bangladesh are scattered across all areas (except in Narayanganj ), they cannot unite politically. However, Hindus became sway voters in various elections. Hindus have usually voted in large mass for Bangladesh Awami League and communist parties, as these are
25696-410: The present-day Goalpara district of Assam, partly in the Garo Hills district of Meghalaya, and partly in the Mymensingh and Sylhet districts of Bangladesh. According to folklore, the Hajong habitation was said to have started from a small Hajong village called Hwârkuna Situated in the northeastern corner of the foothills of Garo Hills, and ended at another small Hajong village called Jumakuna situated in
25872-704: The protection of religious freedom and minority rights before Bangladesh's next national elections in January 2007. In 2013, the International Crimes Tribunal indicted several Jamaat members for war crimes against Hindus during the 1971 Bangladesh atrocities . In retaliation, violence against Hindu minorities in Bangladesh was instigated by the Bangladesh Jamaat-e-Islami . BJHM (Bangladesh Jatiya Hindu Mahajote) claimed in its report that in 2017, at least 107 people of
26048-643: The regimes of the BNP or Awami League has challenged this change and it remains in place. In 1990, the Ershad regime was widely blamed for negligence (and some human rights analysis allege active participation) in the anti-Hindu riots following the Babri Mosque incident in India, the largest communal disturbances since Bangladesh independence, as a means of diverting attention from the rapidly increasing opposition to his rule. Many Hindu temples, Hindu neighbourhoods and shops were attacked and damaged including, for
26224-451: The relative number of adherents in the different traditions of Hinduism. According to a 2010 estimate by Johnson and Grim, the Vaishnavism tradition is the largest group with about 641 million or 67.6% of Hindus, followed by Shaivism with 252 million or 26.6%, Shaktism with 30 million or 3.2% and other traditions including Neo-Hinduism and Reform Hinduism with 25 million or 2.6%. In contrast, according to Jones and Ryan, Shaivism
26400-400: The reverence to the Vedas has come to be a simple raising of the hat". Halbfass states that, although Shaivism and Vaishnavism may be regarded as "self-contained religious constellations", there is a degree of interaction and reference between the "theoreticians and literary representatives" of each tradition that indicates the presence of "a wider sense of identity, a sense of coherence in
26576-468: The rights of non-Muslim religious groups, two significant aspects of his rule remain controversial as relates to the conditions of Hindus in Bangladesh. The first was his refusal to return the premises of the Ramna Kali Mandir , historically the most important temple in Dhaka, to the religious body that owned the property. This centuries-old Hindu temple was demolished by the Pakistan army during
26752-467: The same nikni . It has been documented that anybody who could not tell his nikni was mocked and was said to have belonged to the Ghughu nikni , the word ghugu in Hajong means a dove , a kind of a wild pigeon. Doves breed only two offspring at a time. These two squabs grow up to mate with each other despite being siblings. Similarly, a Hajong who could not tell his own nikni was assailed wittingly to be
26928-473: The same geographic location. The Hajong language was originally a Tibeto-Burman language, but is now considered an Indo-Aryan language with Tibeto-Burman roots. It is spoken by more than 175,000 ethnic Hajongs. It is written in the Eastern Nagari script . It has a lot of Sanskrit loanwords . Hajong phonology has an extra vowel /ɯ/ which is not present in other Indo-Aryan languages, but is typical for
27104-512: The shrines of Muslim pirs , without being concerned with the religion to which that place is supposed to be affiliated. Hindus revere many holy men and ascetics conspicuous for their bodily mortifications. Durga Puja , held in September–October, is the most important festival of Bangladeshi Hindus and it is widely celebrated amongst Bangladeshi Hindus. Thousands of pandals (mandaps) are set up in various cities, towns, and villages to mark
27280-470: The southeastern corner of the foothills of Jaintia Hills. The Hajong habitation was said to have extended only this far and no further beyond these two villages in either direction. Today, the Hajongs are spread out across northeast India and Bangladesh with the majority of the population on the India side of the border. In India, Hajongs are found in both the Garo and Khasi Hills of Meghalaya, largely along
27456-448: The southeastern direction, along the foothills of Garo Hills and Khasi-Jaintia Hills . This traditional belief about their migration is corroborated in many of the folktales of the Hajongs. According to a legend prevalent among the Hajongs, they are Suryawanshi ( Hajong :Surjobungsi) or the descendants of Surjodyao or Bila (the Sun god ) and are Kshatriyas . It is reported that, in 1939,
27632-540: The status of a Scheduled Tribe in India and they are the fourth largest tribal ethnicity in the Indian state of Meghalaya . The Hajongs belong to the Bodo-Kachari group of tribes , whose ancestors migrated from Tibet to the Brahmaputra Valley in the ancient past, from where they spread in multiple directions. The Hajongs have no recorded history and whatever historical references available are in
27808-617: The text of Yoga Sutras of Patanjali emphasising introspective awareness; Dharmic Hinduism or "daily morality", which McDaniel states is stereotyped in some books as the "only form of Hindu religion with a belief in karma, cows and caste"; and bhakti or devotional Hinduism, where intense emotions are elaborately incorporated in the pursuit of the spiritual. Michaels distinguishes three Hindu religions and four forms of Hindu religiosity. The three Hindu religions are "Brahmanic-Sanskritic Hinduism", "folk religions and tribal religions", and "founded religions". The four forms of Hindu religiosity are
27984-473: The time one can see hajong women weaving and wearing their traditional attire. This is one of the important features observed within this ethnic group and it reveals their affection for their traditional values. Hajong women feel prideful that they can weave their own clothes and also that of her children and members of the family. For maidens, the knowledge of weaving is considered a prime requisite prior to marriage, but because to Western influences this tradition
28160-447: The tradition and scholarly premises for the typology of Hinduism, as well as the major assumptions and flawed presuppositions that have been at the foundation of Indology . Hinduism, according to Inden, has been neither what imperial religionists stereotyped it to be, nor is it appropriate to equate Hinduism to be merely the monist pantheism and philosophical idealism of Advaita Vedanta. Some academics suggest that Hinduism can be seen as
28336-594: The traditional dishes are: Hajong Art includes Birapat-chitâ which are painted on a wall of the Airo Ghor by airo s on the during wedding ceremonies. In Birapat-chita also called Chan Bila Akawa the Sun, Moon, Stars, birds, boats and palanquins are painted with powdered rice ( pithli ), vermilion and kohl . Other works of art is done in the preparation of Merr for Maroi Pujâ . In Merr various Gods and Goddesses and other auspicious objects are painted, intended for
28512-461: The traditional features of a religion or creed. It is a way of life and nothing more". Part of the problem with a single definition of the term Hinduism is the fact that Hinduism does not have a founder. It is a synthesis of various traditions, the "Brahmanical orthopraxy, the renouncer traditions and popular or local traditions". Theism is also difficult to use as a unifying doctrine for Hinduism, because while some Hindu philosophies postulate
28688-409: The traditional instruments are listed below: Pusnâ is one of the most important festivals celebrated by the Hajongs marking the end of winter and the month of Pus ; It is the celebration of Makar Sankranti , with feasts lasting for a week. Hajong people celebrate Hindu festivals like Durga Puja and Kamakhya Puja. They also celebrate a few traditional festivals. Traditional rituals are performed by
28864-528: The traditional religion and have not been greatly influenced by mainstream Hinduism. The nikni system is preserved by this section of society, whereas the Khutri section follows the Hindu Gotra system. The social outcasts belong to the Dirkâ class. The Hajongs living in close proximity with larger Hindu populations have absorbed more elements of Hinduism than those who inhabit the interior areas where
29040-412: The two most favourable months for constructing a new house. During this period, they are free from agricultural works. Traditional Hajong houses consist of separate buildings centered on a courtyard. The Hajongs customarily construct four or five houses on the four sides protecting the middle portion of the courtyard. The courtyard is used as a space for religious rites. The kitchen is built separately from
29216-462: The unity of Hinduism, dismissing the differences and regarding India as a Hindu-country since ancient times. And there are assumptions of political dominance of Hindu nationalism in India , also known as ' Neo-Hindutva '. There have also been increase in pre-dominance of Hindutva in Nepal , similar to that of India . The scope of Hinduism is also increasing in the other parts of the world, due to
29392-440: The various traditions collectively referred to as "Hinduism." The study of India and its cultures and religions, and the definition of "Hinduism", has been shaped by the interests of colonialism and by Western notions of religion. Since the 1990s, those influences and its outcomes have been the topic of debate among scholars of Hinduism, and have also been taken over by critics of the Western view on India. Hinduism as it
29568-481: The violence unleashed by activists sympathetic to the new government. Many Bangladeshi Muslims played an active role in documenting atrocities against Hindus during this period. The new government also clamped down on attempts by the media to document alleged atrocities against non-Muslim minorities following the election. Severe pressure was put on newspapers and other media outside of government control through threats of violence and other intimidation. Most prominently,
29744-421: The west as far Sunamganj district in the east can be considered the southern outpost of the greater Hajong community. Hajong is classified as an Indo-Aryan language . It has some degree of similarity with Assamese and Bengali, the two IA languages spoken in the region. At the same time, certain grammatical similarities such as case marking can be found between Hajong and some Tibeto-Burman languages spoken in
29920-468: The west. Major representatives of "Hindu modernism" are Ram Mohan Roy , Swami Vivekananda , Sarvepalli Radhakrishnan and Mahatma Gandhi . Raja Rammohan Roy is known as the father of the Hindu Renaissance . He was a major influence on Swami Vivekananda, who, according to Flood, was "a figure of great importance in the development of a modern Hindu self-understanding and in formulating
30096-420: The worship of the serpent goddess Kani Diyao . Another popular folk art among the hajongs is paper cutting. Paper cuttings with elaborate designs are hung on the doors during weddings and other festive occasions. Ceremonial banana trees are often decorated with intricate paper cuttings. Traditional music includes gitâlu gahen , gupni gahen and several songs related to agriculture and religious rites. Some of
30272-528: The year 2013 instead of 12.2 million", Or, to put it another way, Hindus should have accounted for 16-18% of Bangladesh's population, not 9.7% as they do currently. According to the United States Commission on International Religious Freedom , Hindus constitute merely 7% of the population in Bangladesh as per as the latest 2016 figures. According to the Pew Research Center , Bangladesh will have 14.47 million Hindus by 2050 who will comprise 7.3% of
30448-479: Was coined in Western ethnography in the 18th century and refers to the fusion, or synthesis, of various Indian cultures and traditions, with diverse roots and no founder. This Hindu synthesis emerged after the Vedic period, between c. 500 –200 BCE and c. 300 CE , in the period of the Second Urbanisation and the early classical period of Hinduism, when the epics and
30624-416: Was considered his own sister. The exact number of nikni is not known, some have listed seventeen; while others have said that only thirteen of the nikni s could be found. The Puwachungwâ nikni was regarded as the leading clan and members of this clan would enjoy respectable positions in society. It is noted that members of some of these nikni s had developed a feeling of collateral relation with
30800-431: Was discovered that 1.5 million Hindus remained in India, while the remaining 6.5 million returned to Bangladesh. Additionally, an estimated 3.1 million Hindus who were already residing in Bangladesh chose to remain during the turmoil and survived the atrocities. It is estimated that between 300,000 and 3 million people were killed during the Bangladesh Liberation War, with 300,000 to 400,000 Bengali women being raped , with
30976-498: Was passed by Indian parliament in 2019 year for the purpose of granting them citizenship (if their religion is Hinduism, Sikhism, Jainism) as a promise criteria made by BJP in the election campaign of West Bengal earlier before the passage of that bill. An estimation shows that Assam has around 2 million Bangladeshi Hindus living in different parts of the state and are struggling to acquire Indian citizenship just like their counterparts in neighbouring West Bengal. The BJP hopes to wean away
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