Modern
1947 – present
The Republic, Partition and after — the civilization in its living present.
HinduAll Hindu →
- AhimsaAhimsa is the principle of non-harm to living beings, central to Jain ethics and important in…
- AkharasAkharas are monastic-martial orders of Hindu ascetics, organized into Shaiva, Vaishnava, and…
- Asaf Jahi dynastyThe Asaf Jahi Nizams ruled Hyderabad from 1724 to 1948, the largest and richest princely stat…
- Bangladesh Liberation WarThe Bangladesh Liberation War was the 1971 conflict in which East Pakistan, led by the Awami…
- BAPS templesBAPS (Bochasanwasi Akshar Purushottam Swaminarayan Sanstha) is a Hindu monastic and cultural…
- Barsana HoliLathmar Holi, also called Barsana Holi, is a distinctive pre-Holi festival observed in the Br…
- Brahma KamalBrahma Kamal is the common name for Saussurea obvallata, a rare, night-blooming high-altitude…
- BrahmachariniBrahmacharini is the second of the Navadurga, the nine forms of the goddess Durga worshipped…
- Chaitra and Sharad NavratriNavratri is a nine-night Hindu festival honouring the goddess Durga, observed twice a year in…
- ChandraghantaChandraghanta is the third of the Navadurga, the nine forms of the goddess Durga invoked on s…
- Char DhamChar Dham refers to a set of four major Hindu pilgrimage sites — Badrinath, Dwarka, Puri, and…
- DelhiDelhi is the capital of India and one of the longest continuously inhabited urban regions in…
- Denominations of HinduismShaivism, Vaishnavism, Shaktism, and Smartism are the four major devotional traditions (sampr…
- DhanterasDhanteras, or Dhanatrayodashi, is the first of the five days of Diwali, observed on the thirt…
- Dīvālī and Rāma's returnIn North Indian tradition the lamps of Dīvālī mark the night Ayodhyā lit itself for Rāma's re…
- DiwaliDiwali, or Deepavali ("row of lamps"), is a five-day festival of lights observed by Hindus, J…
- Diwali 2024 calendarThis entry records the five-day Diwali calendar as observed in 2024, when Dhanteras fell on 2…
- DussehraDussehra, or Vijayadashami, is a Hindu festival observed on the tenth day of the bright fortn…
- Hanumān worship and the Hanumān CālīsāHanumān is among the most widely worshipped deities in India, approached for strength, courag…
- HinduismHinduism is the world's oldest continuously practiced major religious tradition and the domin…
- Hinduism: basic beliefsA survey of the beliefs shared, in varying form, across most Hindu traditions: the doctrines…
- Hinduism: frequently asked questionsA reference set of commonly asked questions about Hindu belief, deities, sacred texts, ritual…
- HoliA major Hindu festival marking the arrival of spring and the triumph of good over evil, celeb…
- JanmashtamiJanmashtami (Krishna Janmashtami) is the Hindu festival marking the birth of Krishna, the eig…
- Jati, varna and gotraJati, varna, and gotra are three distinct traditional frameworks for social classification an…
- JhulelalJhulelal is the patron deity of the Sindhi community, worshipped by Sindhi Hindus as an incar…
- KalaratriKalaratri is the seventh of the nine forms of Durga worshipped during Navaratri, a fierce asp…
- KanwariyasKanwariyas are Hindu devotees of Shiva who undertake the Kanwar Yatra, an annual pilgrimage o…
- KatyayaniKatyayani is a warrior form of the Hindu goddess Durga, worshipped on the sixth day (Shashthi…
- Khatu ShyamKhatu Shyam is a Hindu deity worshipped chiefly in Rajasthan as a form of Barbarika, a Mahabh…
- Krishna JanmabhoomiKrishna Janmabhoomi is a temple complex in Mathura, Uttar Pradesh, venerated as Krishna's bir…
- Kullu DussehraKullu Dussehra is a week-long Hindu festival held at Dhalpur in the Kullu Valley of Himachal…
- Kumbh MelaThe Kumbh Mela is a Hindu mass pilgrimage and ritual bathing festival held on a rotating cycl…
- KushmandaKushmanda is the fourth of the Navadurga, the nine forms of the goddess Durga worshipped acro…
- The Lakṣmaṇa-rekhāThe Lakṣmaṇa-rekhā is the protective line Lakṣmaṇa is said to have drawn around the hermitage…
- Maha Kumbh Mela 2025The Maha Kumbh Mela 2025 was a Hindu pilgrimage festival held at the Triveni Sangam in Prayag…
- Maha ShivaratriMaha Shivaratri, the 'Great Night of Shiva,' is a Hindu festival observed on the fourteenth n…
- MahagauriMahagauri is the eighth of the Navadurga, the nine forms of the goddess Durga worshipped on s…
- Mahasu DevtaMahasu Devta is a group of four brother deities worshipped as ruling gods (devtas) across the…
- MoirangMoirang was one of the principalities of the Manipur valley before Ningthouja unification, th…
- Names for IndiaIndia has been known by a range of names across history and languages — including Bharata, Hi…
- NavratriNavratri is a nine-night Hindu festival cycle centered on the worship of the goddess Durga an…
- Neem Karoli BabaNeem Karoli Baba (c.
- Partition of IndiaThe Partition of India in 1947 divided British India into the independent dominions of India…
- PunditPandit, from the Sanskrit paṇḍita meaning "learned," is a title for a scholar or expert that…
- PunjabPunjab, the "Land of Five Rivers" straddling the India-Pakistan border in the northwestern su…
- Raksha BandhanRaksha Bandhan (Rakhi) is a Hindu festival, kept on the full moon of the lunar month of Shrav…
- Rām NavamīRām Navamī is the Hindu festival of Rāma's birth, kept on the ninth day of the bright half of…
- The Rāma pilgrimage circuitThe places of the Rāmāyaṇa form a pilgrimage geography running the length of India — Ayodhyā,…
- Ramanand Sagar's RamayanRamanand Sagar's television Ramayan, broadcast on Doordarshan from 1987, was watched by audie…
- The Rāmānandī sampradāyaThe Rāmānandīs are the largest order of Vaiṣṇava ascetics in northern India, devoted to Rāma…
- Rāma-rājyaRāma-rājya is the reign of Rāma described at the end of the Rāmāyaṇa — a kingdom without want…
- The Rāmāyaṇa in culture and religionThe Rāmāyaṇa has shaped Indian religion, literature, art and performance more thoroughly than…
- The Rāmāyaṇa in dance and mask-dramaThe Rāmāyaṇa is the central repertoire of classical and folk performance across South and Sou…
- RāmlīlāRāmlīlā is the annual public staging of the Rāmāyaṇa across northern India, played over days…
- The Rāmnāmī SamājThe Rāmnāmīs are a community of the Chhattisgarh plains, founded in the late nineteenth centu…
- Sacred animals in HinduismSacred animals in Hinduism are creatures accorded ritual reverence or mythological significan…
- Sanatana DharmaSanātana Dharma ("eternal law" or "eternal duty") is a Sanskrit term used, especially since t…
- Shah dynasty of NepalThe Shah dynasty ruled Gorkha from 1559 and Nepal from 1769 until the monarchy was abolished…
- ShailaputriShailaputri is the first of the nine forms of Durga (Navadurga) worshipped on the opening nig…
- Shakti PithasThe Shakti Pithas are a network of Hindu pilgrimage sites, numbered variously at 51 or 108, e…
- Sharad NavratriSharad Navratri is the principal autumn observance of Navratri, a nine-night Hindu festival h…
- Shraddha and Pitru PakshaShraddha is the Hindu ritual of offering food and libations to deceased ancestors, performed…
- SiddhidatriSiddhidatri is the ninth and final form of Durga in the Navadurga sequence, worshipped on the…
- Sītā's ordeal and the epic's own doubtsSītā's treatment after the war — the public repudiation, the fire, the banishment and her fin…
- SkandamataSkandamātā, mother of Skanda, is the fifth of the Navadurga — the nine forms of the goddess D…
- Syncretism in Indian religionsSyncretism in Indian religions refers to the historical blending of doctrines, deities, saint…
- Taj Mahal origin controversyThe Taj Mahal origin controversy refers to a set of disputed and, in several cases, discredit…
- VaranasiVaranasi, traditionally known as Kāśī or Banaras, is a city on the Ganga in Uttar Pradesh reg…
- Vinayak Damodar SavarkarVinayak Damodar Savarkar was a nationalist revolutionary, writer and political ideologue whos…
- YogaYoga is a body of Indian spiritual and physical disciplines, rooted in Vedic ritual and Upani…
VedicAll Vedic →
- Jati, varna and gotraJati, varna, and gotra are three distinct traditional frameworks for social classification an…
- Shraddha and Pitru PakshaShraddha is the Hindu ritual of offering food and libations to deceased ancestors, performed…
- YogaYoga is a body of Indian spiritual and physical disciplines, rooted in Vedic ritual and Upani…
BuddhistAll Buddhist →
- AhimsaAhimsa is the principle of non-harm to living beings, central to Jain ethics and important in…
- Bodh GayaBodh Gaya in Bihar is where the Buddha is held to have attained awakening beneath the bodhi t…
- Buddha PurnimaBuddha Purnima, also called Vesak or Buddha Jayanti, is the major Buddhist festival held on t…
- BuddhismBuddhism is a religious and philosophical tradition founded in northern India in the 5th cent…
- Namgyal dynasty of SikkimThe Namgyal chogyals ruled Sikkim from 1642 until 1975, when a referendum abolished the monar…
- The Rāmāyaṇa in dance and mask-dramaThe Rāmāyaṇa is the central repertoire of classical and folk performance across South and Sou…
- SanghaThe sangha is the Buddhist monastic community, the third of the three refuges, and the instit…
- TheravadaTheravada is the Buddhist school dominant in Sri Lanka and mainland Southeast Asia, the only…
- TibetTibet is a high-plateau region of Inner Asia, home to the seventh-to-ninth-century Tibetan Em…
- VaranasiVaranasi, traditionally known as Kāśī or Banaras, is a city on the Ganga in Uttar Pradesh reg…
- Wangchuck dynasty of BhutanThe Wangchuck dynasty has ruled Bhutan since 1907 and is the only monarchy of the Indian Hima…
- YogaYoga is a body of Indian spiritual and physical disciplines, rooted in Vedic ritual and Upani…
JainAll Jain →
- AhimsaAhimsa is the principle of non-harm to living beings, central to Jain ethics and important in…
- DigambaraThe Digambara are one of the two principal Jain orders, holding that a fully advanced mendica…
- DiwaliDiwali, or Deepavali ("row of lamps"), is a five-day festival of lights observed by Hindus, J…
- JainismJainism is an Indian religion holding that every living thing possesses an eternal soul bound…
- MahamastakabhishekaThe Mahamastakabhisheka is the anointing of the colossal Jain image of Bahubali at Shravanabe…
- PalitanaPalitana in Gujarat is the site of Shatrunjaya hill, which carries several hundred Jain templ…
- ParyushanaParyushana is the principal Jain festival, an annual period of fasting, study, confession and…
- SallekhanaSallekhana is the Jain practice of voluntarily fasting to death when death is otherwise near,…
- ShravanabelagolaShravanabelagola is a Jain pilgrimage centre in Karnataka, dominated by the colossal image of…
- SvetambaraThe Svetambara are one of the two principal Jain orders, whose mendicants wear white cloth, w…
- YogaYoga is a body of Indian spiritual and physical disciplines, rooted in Vedic ritual and Upani…
SikhAll Sikh →
- Akal TakhtThe Akal Takht is the seat of temporal authority in Sikhism, built by Guru Hargobind at Amrit…
- Amrit SancharAmrit Sanchar is the Sikh initiation rite, in which sweetened water stirred with a double-edg…
- DiwaliDiwali, or Deepavali ("row of lamps"), is a five-day festival of lights observed by Hindus, J…
- The Five KsThe Five Ks are the articles of faith worn by initiated Sikhs — uncut hair, comb, steel brace…
- GurdwaraA gurdwara is a Sikh place of assembly, defined by the presence of the Guru Granth Sahib, and…
- GurmukhiGurmukhi is the script in which Punjabi is written in India and in which the Guru Granth Sahi…
- Guru Granth SahibThe Guru Granth Sahib is the scripture of Sikhism and, since 1708, its living Guru, a fixed c…
- Harmandir SahibThe Harmandir Sahib at Amritsar is the principal gurdwara of Sikhism, built by Guru Arjan in…
- Hemkund SahibHemkund Sahib is a Sikh shrine at over 4,300 metres in the Garhwal Himalaya, identified in th…
- Ik OnkarIk Onkar is the opening phrase of Sikh scripture, asserting one indivisible divine reality, a…
- KartarpurKartarpur on the Ravi is where Guru Nanak settled after his travels, established the first Si…
- KhalsaThe Khalsa is the order founded by Guru Gobind Singh in 1699, whose initiated members take vo…
- LangarThe langar is the free communal kitchen attached to every gurdwara, where anyone may eat, sea…
- Miri-PiriMiri-Piri is the Sikh doctrine that temporal and spiritual authority belong together, express…
- Naam SimranNaam Simran is the Sikh discipline of remembering and repeating the divine name, held by the…
- Nankana SahibNankana Sahib in Pakistani Punjab is the birthplace of Guru Nanak, marked by Gurdwara Janam A…
- Partition of IndiaThe Partition of India in 1947 divided British India into the independent dominions of India…
- PunjabPunjab, the "Land of Five Rivers" straddling the India-Pakistan border in the northwestern su…
- SevaSeva is selfless service in Sikh teaching, treated not as charity offered from above but as a…
- SikhismSikhism is the monotheistic religion founded in fifteenth-century Punjab by Guru Nanak, devel…
- Syncretism in Indian religionsSyncretism in Indian religions refers to the historical blending of doctrines, deities, saint…
- VaisakhiVaisakhi is the spring harvest festival of the Punjab and the anniversary of the founding of…
- WaheguruWaheguru is the name of God in Sikh usage, and the word most commonly repeated in the practic…
IslamicAll Islamic →
- Abul Kalam AzadAbul Kalam Azad was an Islamic scholar turned Indian nationalist leader who served as Congres…
- Asaf Jahi dynastyThe Asaf Jahi Nizams ruled Hyderabad from 1724 to 1948, the largest and richest princely stat…
- Bangladesh Liberation WarThe Bangladesh Liberation War was the 1971 conflict in which East Pakistan, led by the Awami…
- DelhiDelhi is the capital of India and one of the longest continuously inhabited urban regions in…
- Krishna JanmabhoomiKrishna Janmabhoomi is a temple complex in Mathura, Uttar Pradesh, venerated as Krishna's bir…
- Muhammad Ali JinnahMuhammad Ali Jinnah was a lawyer and politician who led the All-India Muslim League to the de…
- Partition of IndiaThe Partition of India in 1947 divided British India into the independent dominions of India…
- PunjabPunjab, the "Land of Five Rivers" straddling the India-Pakistan border in the northwestern su…
- Syncretism in Indian religionsSyncretism in Indian religions refers to the historical blending of doctrines, deities, saint…
- Taj Mahal origin controversyThe Taj Mahal origin controversy refers to a set of disputed and, in several cases, discredit…
Folk & RegionalAll Folk & Regional →
- Brahma KamalBrahma Kamal is the common name for Saussurea obvallata, a rare, night-blooming high-altitude…
- Cannabis in the HimalayaCannabis in the Himalaya refers to the wild and cultivated Cannabis populations native to the…
- Himachal PradeshHimachal Pradesh is a mountain state in northwestern India formed in stages after 1948 from a…
- JhulelalJhulelal is the patron deity of the Sindhi community, worshipped by Sindhi Hindus as an incar…
- Khatu ShyamKhatu Shyam is a Hindu deity worshipped chiefly in Rajasthan as a form of Barbarika, a Mahabh…
- Kullu DussehraKullu Dussehra is a week-long Hindu festival held at Dhalpur in the Kullu Valley of Himachal…
- Mahasu DevtaMahasu Devta is a group of four brother deities worshipped as ruling gods (devtas) across the…
- MoirangMoirang was one of the principalities of the Manipur valley before Ningthouja unification, th…
- Namgyal dynasty of SikkimThe Namgyal chogyals ruled Sikkim from 1642 until 1975, when a referendum abolished the monar…
- Syncretism in Indian religionsSyncretism in Indian religions refers to the historical blending of doctrines, deities, saint…
Other FaithsAll Other Faiths →
- Churches in IndiaChurches in India span more than nineteen centuries of Christian presence, from the Saint Tho…
- French IndiaFrench India was the set of five coastal enclaves held by France from the seventeenth century…
- Portuguese IndiaPortuguese India was the first and the last European territorial presence in the subcontinent…
Political & SecularAll Political & Secular →
- 2008 Mumbai attacksA coordinated series of shooting and bombing attacks carried out by ten Lashkar-e-Taiba gunme…
- Abul Kalam AzadAbul Kalam Azad was an Islamic scholar turned Indian nationalist leader who served as Congres…
- Asaf Jahi dynastyThe Asaf Jahi Nizams ruled Hyderabad from 1724 to 1948, the largest and richest princely stat…
- Atal Bihari VajpayeeAtal Bihari Vajpayee (1924–2018) was an Indian statesman and poet who served three terms as p…
- Bangladesh Liberation WarThe Bangladesh Liberation War was the 1971 conflict in which East Pakistan, led by the Awami…
- Bharatiya Janata PartyThe Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) is a Hindu-nationalist political party founded in 1980 that…
- Bhimrao Ramji AmbedkarA jurist, economist and social reformer who led the movement for Dalit rights under colonial…
- Cannabis in the HimalayaCannabis in the Himalaya refers to the wild and cultivated Cannabis populations native to the…
- Chakravarti RajagopalachariChakravarti Rajagopalachari was a Congress leader from Madras who served as Premier of Madras…
- DelhiDelhi is the capital of India and one of the longest continuously inhabited urban regions in…
- Elections in IndiaElections in India are the process by which India, since its first general election in 1952,…
- French IndiaFrench India was the set of five coastal enclaves held by France from the seventeenth century…
- Hijacking of IC 814The hijacking of Indian Airlines Flight IC 814 was a seven-day hostage crisis beginning 24 De…
- Himachal PradeshHimachal Pradesh is a mountain state in northwestern India formed in stages after 1948 from a…
- Indian general election, 1951-52The Indian general election of 1951-52 was the first election held under India's new constitu…
- Indian martial artsIndian martial arts are a family of combat systems native to the Indian subcontinent, ranging…
- Indian National CongressThe Indian National Congress is India's oldest political party, founded in 1885 as a forum fo…
- Jawaharlal NehruJawaharlal Nehru was an Indian nationalist leader and the first Prime Minister of independent…
- Jayaprakash NarayanA socialist political leader and freedom-movement activist, prominent in the Quit India Movem…
- Khan Abdul Ghaffar KhanA Pashtun nationalist leader from the North-West Frontier Province who founded the Khudai Khi…
- Linguistic reorganisation of IndiaThe linguistic reorganisation of India was the mid-20th-century restructuring of Indian state…
- MoirangMoirang was one of the principalities of the Manipur valley before Ningthouja unification, th…
- MotihariMotihari is the headquarters town of East Champaran district in Bihar, best known as the site…
- Muhammad Ali JinnahMuhammad Ali Jinnah was a lawyer and politician who led the All-India Muslim League to the de…
- Names for IndiaIndia has been known by a range of names across history and languages — including Bharata, Hi…
- Namgyal dynasty of SikkimThe Namgyal chogyals ruled Sikkim from 1642 until 1975, when a referendum abolished the monar…
- Partition of IndiaThe Partition of India in 1947 divided British India into the independent dominions of India…
- Portuguese IndiaPortuguese India was the first and the last European territorial presence in the subcontinent…
- Rajendra PrasadRajendra Prasad was an Indian independence movement leader and Congress politician from Bihar…
- Republic DayRepublic Day is India's annual national observance on 26 January, commemorating the 1950 entr…
- Republic of IndiaThe Republic of India succeeded the British Raj in 1947 as a dominion and in 1950 as a republ…
- Sarojini NaiduSarojini Naidu was a poet and nationalist leader who became a prominent figure in the Indian…
- Shah dynasty of NepalThe Shah dynasty ruled Gorkha from 1559 and Nepal from 1769 until the monarchy was abolished…
- Vallabhbhai PatelVallabhbhai Patel was an Indian independence leader and, as the country's first Deputy Prime…
- Vinayak Damodar SavarkarVinayak Damodar Savarkar was a nationalist revolutionary, writer and political ideologue whos…
- Wangchuck dynasty of BhutanThe Wangchuck dynasty has ruled Bhutan since 1907 and is the only monarchy of the Indian Hima…