India is a secular country and is dominated by people who follow different religions and adopt variable beliefs and customs. The country has a vast diversity in cultural beliefs and customs due to travelers, immigrants, traders and invaders who visited from all across the globe. The Indian religions that originated in here are broadly categorized into four types, namely, Hinduism, Buddhism, Jainism and Sikhism. Though people of other religions such as Islam, Christianity, Jewish and Zoroastrians also form a part of the population, but they are very thinly populated as compared to Hindus which account for nearly 80% of the population. Hinduism is around 5000 years old and is supposed to amongst the most ancient religions of the world. The Indian religion regards life as a continual cycle of birth, life and re-birth and are linked by a belief in karma. The diversity in the religion can be linked to a multitude of pilgrimage destinations located all across the country. The major pilgrimage places in India are the Holy shrine of Mata Vaishno Devi, Holy cave of baba Amarnath, the land of Sikh gurus Punjab, the Jagannath Dham in Puri, the abode of Sai Baba in Puttaparti and Shirdi and the Arokkiya Madha Church in Velankanni. In Hinduism, pilgrimage has a lot of significance and every sacred site is noted for its set of advantages. People also visit temples to offer prayers to different gods and goddesses in their own special ways. There are various temples in India, as religion plays an important part in the lives of people here. The major ones being, the Konark Sun temple in Orissa, Thanjavur temple in South India, Somnath temple in Gujarat and the Golden temple in Amritsar. The Sun temple is in the shape of a huge chariot drawn by seven spirited horses and depicts the art and architecture of Kalinga era. The other places of worship here are mosques, churches and gurudwaras. The Indian temples in South India have Dravidian architecture characterized by pyramid shaped temples with intricately carved stones. The followers of all the religions practice different rituals for occasions such as birth, marriage and death. These rites show great differences among regions, villages and individuals though purification ideally with water from the Holy Ganges is a common for all religious acts. All the Indian rituals are performed to please the gods and goddesses and generally take place at dawn or dusk. Some strange rituals are also practiced by people which are more superstitions that an act of religion such as, walking barefoot on burning hot firewood, men lifted off the ground by piercing sharp hooks, bullfighting and self-flagellation. Tongue cutting was followed by some tribes in front of god as a means of punishment. The Indian culture is characterized by humanity, tolerance, unity and secularism, therefore people of different caste and creed stay here as a closely knit social system. The people across the country are free to share their thoughts despite their religious affinity towards a specific religion. The Indians are noted for their humbleness, open-mindedness and spiritual inclination across the globe. It refers to the intellectual development evolved out of the physical and mental training acquired in the course of the ages in a country. Indian rituals, pilgrimage places in India, temples in India, Indian temples, Indian religion, and Indian religions.
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