Hinduism and Christianity are religions which are among the five major religions in the
world. They are practiced and have presence in almost every region in the world. Hinduism is
majorly practiced in India and originates from there as well. Christianity on the other hand
traces its origin to the Middle East (Province of Judea) contrary to Hinduism; Christianity is
practiced in almost all the continents with the west and the Middle East commanding a major
following. Further, the two religions are considered to spread faster and receive entry into new
regions than other major religions. This essay seeks to explore these two religions by looking at
four factors of concern, i.e. religion and nationalism, life of the founder, value of the material
world, view of afterlife. The four components will be looked into so as to bring out the
similarities as well as differences that exist between these two regions.
Hinduism is considered the world oldest religion, there is no exact year on the records as
to when it started but it is believed to be more than 400million years old. Hinduism started in
India with a group people called Aryans. When Aryans Conquered India the mixture of Aryans’
religion and that of the locals resulted in Hinduism. Hindus are majorly polytheists; they worship
several gods, though some claim to be monotheists, worshipping of other deities in line with
their main deity is not forbidden (Dhavamony, 2002). Christianity on the other hand started in
the 1 st century in the Middle East presently Israel. The founder of Christianity is Jesus Christ who
lived for around thirty years before dying and resurrecting in the third day before going to
heaven. It is becoming clear that whereas Hinduism was started by a group of people, Aryans,
Christianity was started by one being Jesus Christ.
Life of the founder
Christianity was founded in 1 st century and it was founded by Jesus Christ who is the son
of Trinity, Father, Son, and The Holy Ghost. Hinduism of the other hand has no specific founder;
it came about as a result of the invasion of Aryans. Aryans are therefore believed to be the
originators of the Hinduism idea. People of India did not embrace a single god; instead they have
several gods under their religion, which include; Brahma who is the creator of the world, Vishnu,
the world’s creator, and Siva the world’s destroyer. Hindus Worship and celebrate different
deities on different occasions and seasons. Aryans, which is the critical group that influenced the
formation of Hindu according to record about them, exhibited life of seclusion and violence
(Dhavamony, 2002). They are recorded to have conquered different kingdoms and chiefdoms on
their way to central India where the start and the spread of Hindu began at. It believed that in
every community they conquered they thought them to worship their deities. In all the victories
they won, they gave credit to their deities, more specifically, Sativa, who is god the destroyer.
Contrary to Hinduism experiences and forceful conversion of followers, Christianity is
never forced to people. The founder of Christianity is Jesus Christ who was born and lived in the
Middle East, presently Israel, in the 1 st century. Jesus Christ was born through the conception of
the Holy Spirit. Jesus grew up just like any other child but he had divineness in the way he
handled things, a good example given in the bible is when he was barely eight yet he knew the
scriptures. Jesus was crucified and died at the age of thirty, his death lasted for three days before
he resurrected and was he went to heaven. Before he died, Jesus did a lot of miracles including
healing the sick, casting out demons, calming the storm among many other miracles. Christian’s
holy book, The Bible, records that Jesus is yet to come for the second time and for this second
time, he is not coming to save but he is coming to judge the world. Christians can be forgiven
every wrongdoing when they confess their sins and proclaim Jesus. Contrary to Christians,
Hindus believe that their deities cannot forgive a wrong, sin, committed by a human being,
Hindus holy book, The Vedas, records that a wrong, sin, committed by a human being will be
upon them and will come as a judgment in the next life (Dhavamony, 2002).
Religion and Nationalism
On the aspect of nationalism, Hinduism has a strong following within the members of the
Indian origin. Christianity on the other hand, apart from the religion having its origin in the
middle east, it has no specific ethnic group or race who claim ownership but it is being practiced
all over the world. According to 2013’s report on population of religious groups and their
concentrations, Hindu religion commands a following of about 900million people; Christianity is
being practiced by more than 2.5 billion people all over the world. The concentration of
Christians is spread all over the world across all the continents. Concentration of Hinduism,
contrary to Christianity, has its 95% of its followers in two continents, India, 80% and China,
Tibet, Taiwan and other Asian countries, 15%. The remaining 5% of the Hindus are spread all
over the world (Dhavamony, 2002). Hinduism is practiced majorly by Indians and it is the
national religion of India. Christianity is practiced by almost all races, ethnic groups and tribes.
Christianity is a national religion of Vatican with the main Christian Catholic group
commanding the lion’s share of support. In the US most of the Christians belong to the
mainstream protestant churches which have some differences of principle with the Roman
Catholics which is the national religion of Vatican. The split between the Protestants and the
Roman Catholic came about in 15 th century during the times of Martin Luther (Jones, 1898). The
cause of the difference has been identified as due to the issues church leadership and procession
of worship. Mainstream Protestants believe that they do not have to confess their sins to fellow
man (priest) but they ought to confess their sins to Jesus Himself who according to them has a
direct intervention. Hinduism being practiced majorly by people of Indian dissent, it has some
strong has listed some acts as abomination, one of the act is the eating of meat and more
specifically pork. This makes most of the Indians who practice the religion vegetarian by default
since their religion forbids meat eating.
Value/view of the Material world
Christians view material world as a blessing from God, according to Christians, When
God created Heaven and Earth He gave man dominion over everything on the surface of the
earth, with instructions that he should subdue and make them multiply. It is therefore a strong
believe to the Christians that everything that is material wise is meant for man’s use. The Holy
Bible, which is the holy book of Christians, however, cautions Christians against creed and
excessive love for material things. God is to be put above all the material things that man has
under his possession, love for material things above God is termed as a sin according to the
Christians holy book The Bible (Worldviews Comparison, 2008).
Hindus on the other hand to a greater degree agree that material things are given by their
god, who created heaven and earth, referred to as god Brahma. They also believe that for them to
live a good life they must have Karma which is dedication to doing good. According to Hindus
holy book Vedas, the source of sufferings and evil in the world is due to man’s quest to satisfy
their desire for material things (Dhavamony, 2002). They therefore strongly advocate against
excessive strive for material gains so that they cannot partake of the scourge facing others in the
world. According to Hindus material things are given by Brahma. It is therefore the duty of every
Hindu to ask Brahma for material blessing. Additionally Hindus practice Karma, which is an
exercise of depriving oneself the good things and preserving themselves to doing good things to
other people apart from taking part in the celebrations of their gods’ holidays.
View of the Afterlife
Christians believe in life after death so are Hindus on reincarnation. The difference lies in
what one becomes or goes after death or upon resurrection. According to Christians, there is
resurrection of the death and then it is followed by judgment upon which the righteous are taken
to heaven while those who died while sinners together with those who are still alive in the time
of the resurrection will face eternal condemnation together with the devil, Satan. Hindus believe
on reincarnation, that one goes through a circle of birth and death (Dhavamony, 2002). Their
holy book, Vedas, states that when a man does good deeds while alive upon reaching Karma,
highest level of goodness, he will be reborn a more better being than the one he was before, to
them life never ends. A person who dies after doing a lot of bad and evil in and does not reach
Karma, such a person will be reborn in a being of despised animals such a dog or a pig.
To Hindus, some animals that exist in form of despised animals were human who did not
attain Karma in the previous life therefore earning them a form of punishment of being born in
that nature. Contrary to Christians, Hindus do not have faith in heaven and hell. Christian
believe in the presence of heaven and hell, heaven is signifies God’s presence and it is therefore
a place of righteousness, holiness, and a place of eternal glory (Dhavamony, 2002). Hell on the
other hand according to Christians it is a place of mourning, sheer punishment, and eternal
condemnation. Scholars of theological comparative studies have come out strongly to link
Christians eternal condemnation to the Hindus punishment meted those who do not meet or
perform Karma while they are still alive in the state of human being.
The argument however lacks support from Hindu Gurus and Christian Clergy who
support the positions within their holy books. Christians believe that after judgment their bodies
will be transformed and they will be given a body that will never die. This form of a being will
be given to both those who will be raptured, taken to heaven, and those who will be eternally
condemned. Those who will be condemned according to Christians will be thrown into the
eternal fire where they will feel pain eternally. Hindus do not believe in the presence of Satan,
instead when infirmities face human beings, it is due to displeasure of god, Sativa, who is
referred to as god the destroyer of life, this god has a right to take human life at her own
pleasure.
Hindus believe that when Sativa is not happy she can only be pleased when she kills the
number of human beings that will make her happy, sativa can send a fellow human being to
execute fellow human beings as per the Hindus (Dhavamony, 2002). Contrary to the haphazard
view and treatment of life by the Hindus, Christians hold life as sacred. Bible terms the taking
away of another person’s life a sin and it is only God who can punish such a person. Christians
view all sins, wrongs, as similar before the eyes of God, Hindus view wrongdoing differently.
According to Hindus, when one does lesser wrong, the punishment will be lesser and vice versa.
following. Further, the two religions are considered to spread faster and receive entry into new
regions than other major religions. This essay seeks to explore these two religions by looking at
four factors of concern, i.e. religion and nationalism, life of the founder, value of the material
world, view of afterlife. The four components will be looked into so as to bring out the
similarities as well as differences that exist between these two regions.
Hinduism is considered the world oldest religion, there is no exact year on the records as
to when it started but it is believed to be more than 400million years old. Hinduism started in
India with a group people called Aryans. When Aryans Conquered India the mixture of Aryans’
religion and that of the locals resulted in Hinduism. Hindus are majorly polytheists; they worship
several gods, though some claim to be monotheists, worshipping of other deities in line with
their main deity is not forbidden (Dhavamony, 2002). Christianity on the other hand started in
the 1 st century in the Middle East presently Israel. The founder of Christianity is Jesus Christ who
lived for around thirty years before dying and resurrecting in the third day before going to
heaven. It is becoming clear that whereas Hinduism was started by a group of people, Aryans,
Christianity was started by one being Jesus Christ.
Life of the founder
Christianity was founded in 1 st century and it was founded by Jesus Christ who is the son
of Trinity, Father, Son, and The Holy Ghost. Hinduism of the other hand has no specific founder;
it came about as a result of the invasion of Aryans. Aryans are therefore believed to be the
originators of the Hinduism idea. People of India did not embrace a single god; instead they have
several gods under their religion, which include; Brahma who is the creator of the world, Vishnu,
the world’s creator, and Siva the world’s destroyer. Hindus Worship and celebrate different
deities on different occasions and seasons. Aryans, which is the critical group that influenced the
formation of Hindu according to record about them, exhibited life of seclusion and violence
(Dhavamony, 2002). They are recorded to have conquered different kingdoms and chiefdoms on
their way to central India where the start and the spread of Hindu began at. It believed that in
every community they conquered they thought them to worship their deities. In all the victories
they won, they gave credit to their deities, more specifically, Sativa, who is god the destroyer.
Contrary to Hinduism experiences and forceful conversion of followers, Christianity is
never forced to people. The founder of Christianity is Jesus Christ who was born and lived in the
Middle East, presently Israel, in the 1 st century. Jesus Christ was born through the conception of
the Holy Spirit. Jesus grew up just like any other child but he had divineness in the way he
handled things, a good example given in the bible is when he was barely eight yet he knew the
scriptures. Jesus was crucified and died at the age of thirty, his death lasted for three days before
he resurrected and was he went to heaven. Before he died, Jesus did a lot of miracles including
healing the sick, casting out demons, calming the storm among many other miracles. Christian’s
holy book, The Bible, records that Jesus is yet to come for the second time and for this second
time, he is not coming to save but he is coming to judge the world. Christians can be forgiven
every wrongdoing when they confess their sins and proclaim Jesus. Contrary to Christians,
Hindus believe that their deities cannot forgive a wrong, sin, committed by a human being,
Hindus holy book, The Vedas, records that a wrong, sin, committed by a human being will be
upon them and will come as a judgment in the next life (Dhavamony, 2002).
Religion and Nationalism
On the aspect of nationalism, Hinduism has a strong following within the members of the
Indian origin. Christianity on the other hand, apart from the religion having its origin in the
middle east, it has no specific ethnic group or race who claim ownership but it is being practiced
all over the world. According to 2013’s report on population of religious groups and their
concentrations, Hindu religion commands a following of about 900million people; Christianity is
being practiced by more than 2.5 billion people all over the world. The concentration of
Christians is spread all over the world across all the continents. Concentration of Hinduism,
contrary to Christianity, has its 95% of its followers in two continents, India, 80% and China,
Tibet, Taiwan and other Asian countries, 15%. The remaining 5% of the Hindus are spread all
over the world (Dhavamony, 2002). Hinduism is practiced majorly by Indians and it is the
national religion of India. Christianity is practiced by almost all races, ethnic groups and tribes.
Christianity is a national religion of Vatican with the main Christian Catholic group
commanding the lion’s share of support. In the US most of the Christians belong to the
mainstream protestant churches which have some differences of principle with the Roman
Catholics which is the national religion of Vatican. The split between the Protestants and the
Roman Catholic came about in 15 th century during the times of Martin Luther (Jones, 1898). The
cause of the difference has been identified as due to the issues church leadership and procession
of worship. Mainstream Protestants believe that they do not have to confess their sins to fellow
man (priest) but they ought to confess their sins to Jesus Himself who according to them has a
direct intervention. Hinduism being practiced majorly by people of Indian dissent, it has some
strong has listed some acts as abomination, one of the act is the eating of meat and more
specifically pork. This makes most of the Indians who practice the religion vegetarian by default
since their religion forbids meat eating.
Value/view of the Material world
Christians view material world as a blessing from God, according to Christians, When
God created Heaven and Earth He gave man dominion over everything on the surface of the
earth, with instructions that he should subdue and make them multiply. It is therefore a strong
believe to the Christians that everything that is material wise is meant for man’s use. The Holy
Bible, which is the holy book of Christians, however, cautions Christians against creed and
excessive love for material things. God is to be put above all the material things that man has
under his possession, love for material things above God is termed as a sin according to the
Christians holy book The Bible (Worldviews Comparison, 2008).
Hindus on the other hand to a greater degree agree that material things are given by their
god, who created heaven and earth, referred to as god Brahma. They also believe that for them to
live a good life they must have Karma which is dedication to doing good. According to Hindus
holy book Vedas, the source of sufferings and evil in the world is due to man’s quest to satisfy
their desire for material things (Dhavamony, 2002). They therefore strongly advocate against
excessive strive for material gains so that they cannot partake of the scourge facing others in the
world. According to Hindus material things are given by Brahma. It is therefore the duty of every
Hindu to ask Brahma for material blessing. Additionally Hindus practice Karma, which is an
exercise of depriving oneself the good things and preserving themselves to doing good things to
other people apart from taking part in the celebrations of their gods’ holidays.
View of the Afterlife
Christians believe in life after death so are Hindus on reincarnation. The difference lies in
what one becomes or goes after death or upon resurrection. According to Christians, there is
resurrection of the death and then it is followed by judgment upon which the righteous are taken
to heaven while those who died while sinners together with those who are still alive in the time
of the resurrection will face eternal condemnation together with the devil, Satan. Hindus believe
on reincarnation, that one goes through a circle of birth and death (Dhavamony, 2002). Their
holy book, Vedas, states that when a man does good deeds while alive upon reaching Karma,
highest level of goodness, he will be reborn a more better being than the one he was before, to
them life never ends. A person who dies after doing a lot of bad and evil in and does not reach
Karma, such a person will be reborn in a being of despised animals such a dog or a pig.
To Hindus, some animals that exist in form of despised animals were human who did not
attain Karma in the previous life therefore earning them a form of punishment of being born in
that nature. Contrary to Christians, Hindus do not have faith in heaven and hell. Christian
believe in the presence of heaven and hell, heaven is signifies God’s presence and it is therefore
a place of righteousness, holiness, and a place of eternal glory (Dhavamony, 2002). Hell on the
other hand according to Christians it is a place of mourning, sheer punishment, and eternal
condemnation. Scholars of theological comparative studies have come out strongly to link
Christians eternal condemnation to the Hindus punishment meted those who do not meet or
perform Karma while they are still alive in the state of human being.
The argument however lacks support from Hindu Gurus and Christian Clergy who
support the positions within their holy books. Christians believe that after judgment their bodies
will be transformed and they will be given a body that will never die. This form of a being will
be given to both those who will be raptured, taken to heaven, and those who will be eternally
condemned. Those who will be condemned according to Christians will be thrown into the
eternal fire where they will feel pain eternally. Hindus do not believe in the presence of Satan,
instead when infirmities face human beings, it is due to displeasure of god, Sativa, who is
referred to as god the destroyer of life, this god has a right to take human life at her own
pleasure.
Hindus believe that when Sativa is not happy she can only be pleased when she kills the
number of human beings that will make her happy, sativa can send a fellow human being to
execute fellow human beings as per the Hindus (Dhavamony, 2002). Contrary to the haphazard
view and treatment of life by the Hindus, Christians hold life as sacred. Bible terms the taking
away of another person’s life a sin and it is only God who can punish such a person. Christians
view all sins, wrongs, as similar before the eyes of God, Hindus view wrongdoing differently.
According to Hindus, when one does lesser wrong, the punishment will be lesser and vice versa.
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