Worship of non-Vedic Gods, the idol worship, and temple worship, introduced many centuries later, are not of Vedic origin.+

Worship of non-Vedic Gods, the idol worship, and temple worship, introduced many centuries later, are not of Vedic origin.

Hinduism is not a religion, but more a way of life. The term "Hinduism" is used to label the entire Indian people.

Hinduism indulges non-Vedic beliefs such as idolatry, ancestor worship, pilgrimages, priestcraft, offerings made in temples, the caste system, untouchability, and child marriages. All these lack Vedic sanctions; therefore, Hinduism is not the Ancient Vedic religion or Santana Dharma.

All Hindus engage in non-Vedic practices barred by the Vedas, which were introduced by the different founders of the various sects of Hinduism at different times. In contrast, the Vedic religion, also known as Santana Dharma, is ancient and has no founder.

Hinduism is not the Santana Dharma or the Vedic religion. Hinduism is not a religion; rather, it is a group of religions found within India that share common beliefs while still remaining very different.

The ancient peoples of India belong to the Vedic religion or Santana Dharma; therefore, they have nothing to do with present-day Hinduism. The ancient peoples of the Indus Valley of Undivided India were called Hindus by Muslim invaders.

Hindu idols or deities or temples have nothing to do with the Vedic religion or the Santana Dharma. Vedic people ate beef. The Hindu practices of idol worship, temple worship, and a ban on beef-eating were introduced many centuries later.

ISH Upanishads: - By worshiping gods and goddesses, you will go after death to the world of gods and goddesses. But will that help you? The time you spent there was wasted, because if you were not there, you could have spent that time moving forward towards Self-knowledge, which is your goal. In the world of gods and goddesses, you cannot do that, and thus, you go deeper and deeper into darkness.

How can you worship the Absolute? That implies two ~ the worshiper and the worshiped, whereas the Absolute is nondual. One can worship his idea of the Absolute only or realize his unity with it when he can’t worship it as apart.

The Upanishads say in effect that: ~ If you believe that the ‘the Soul, the innermost Self’ is one and God (Brahman) is another, you cannot understand Truth.

If people have believed false Gods propagated by religion over millions of years, the length of time does not prove it is God in truth.

Bhagavad Gita:~ ‘All those whose intelligence has been stolen by material desires, they worship many gods. (7- Verse -20)

Bhagavad Gita: ~ Brahmano hi pratisthaham ~ Brahman (God in truth) is considered the all-pervading consciousness, which is the basis of all the animate and inanimate entities and material. (14.27).

When the Bhagavad Gita says, God is considered the all-pervading consciousness, which is the basis of all the animate and inanimate entities and material, then nothing has to be accepted as God other than consciousness.

Swami Vivekananda:~ The masses in India cry to sixty million Gods and still die like dogs. Where are these Gods?

Prohibition of idol worship in Yajurveda: ~

Orthodox claims that idolatry in India does not mean anything horrible. Idolatry in no way helps undeveloped minds to grasp the spiritual truth.

It is the ignorant people who indulge in idolatry and rituals even though they are highly qualified with university degrees.

Yajur Veda – chapter- 32:~ God is the Supreme Spirit, has no ‘Pratima’ (idol) or material shape. He cannot be seen directly by anyone. He pervades all beings and all directions.

Yajurveda: ~ There is no image of God in truth. God in truth is unborn and eternal. (Chapter 32, Verse 3)

Yajurveda: ~ God in truth is nondual and pure" (Chapter 40, Verse)

Yajurveda: ~ "They are entering darkness, those who worship the natural things (like air, water, fire, etc.), they are sinking more in darkness who worship created things." (Chapter 40, Verse 9)

Thus, Idolatry does not find any support from the Vedas.

Yajurveda: ~ "They are entering darkness, those who worship the natural things (like air, water, fire, etc.), they are sinking more in darkness who worship created things." (Chapter 40, Verse 9)

As one peeps into the annals of religious history, he finds that Hinduism, which exists today, is not a continuation of the Vedic religion, and it has no real historical foundation. Hinduism is of a much later origin.

As per the researchers, the two faiths in the Hindu belief system have drifted miles away from the Vedic faith, so that the two seem to be two distinct faiths. It is not difficult to discover that there is no noticeable continuity of Hinduism from the Vedic religion or the Santana Dharma

The distinctive characteristics of the Hindu belief system cannot be traced in Vedic literature. Besides, although the Vedas are revered as sacred texts, there are many people in India who do not know what ‘belief in the Vedas’ means. In most cases, the acquaintance of the Hindus with the Vedas is limited to the few hymns that are recited in temples and household liturgies.

Max Müller says: ~ “The religion of the Veda knows no idols; the worship of idols in India is a secondary formation, a degradation of the more primitive worship of ideal Gods."

Hindus are idol worshipers of a large number of Gods and Goddesses, whereas the Vedas declare God is ‘ONE’ and that God is Atman.  : ~ Santthosh Kumaar