Hinduism arose over a period of time, arising from the civic religion of the Indus Valley civilization (c. B.C. 2600-1600)and the Vedic religion of the Aryans (c. B.C. 800).

It is not an easy thing to try to define Hinduism. It is a religion revealed in the ancient history of our earth, several thousand years before Christ. For Hindus the Vedas, or the epics like Ramayana, the Mahabharata, or the Bhagavad Gita are the same as the Bible is to Christians and Holy Qur'an is to Muslims. Hinduism does not have one founder, it does not have one theological system, and it consists of a variety of religious groups that have come into being over a period of  thousands and thousands of years and which gradually evolved and are evolving even today. Like every religion, it has false and enlightened teachers. As it is difficult to judge many aspects of life, society, proper conduct and opinions of a variety of people, etc., a "guru" is often chosen to help followers grasp the ancient wisdom of Gods.  In Hinduism no one can achieve liberation without approaching the Gods. Over the centuries many teachers have become generally accepted, for example, as famous Indian philosopher Adi Shankar.

The Hindu sees two general problems in existence that must be overcome. The first is kaya, which is the illusion of all that exists. Essentially pantheistic, the Hindu believes that perceptions of uniqueness and separateness are not real, and that overcoming this illusion through various paths is the basic objective. The Hindu doctrine that all of existence is a single unity may be found in the notion of Brahma. The second problem is karma. This relates directly to the Hindu belief in eternal nature of the soul and the notion that the soul reincarnates in life after life. The cycle of lives that one exists through is called samsara. Karma determines what kind of life the soul will have in the next one, based upon how the soul's life has been lived in this one.

Hinduism has developed into three basic Paths: the Way of Duty (karma margra), the Way of Knowledge (Janna margra), the Way of Devotion (Bhakti margra). These paths generally derive from a triad belief about the nature of Brahma, that Brahma creates, Vishnu preserves through the ordering principle of dharma and Siva personifies creativity and destruction. Followers of the Vishnu see this deity as incarnate in ten instances, the most popular of which is Krishna.

Depending upon which form of Hinduism one participates in, the paths of overcoming the illusion of maya and the determinism of karma is to begin to fulfill one's responsibilities in this life by cooperating in the dance of God that makes up the universe.

The method varies depending upon the Hindu's path, but basically involves performing one's duty in life, following public rituals and daily devotions, and meditating and praying (through the multitudinous forms of yoga or otherwise) in order to unite with the divine by seeing it within one's deepest state. Followers of the Vishnu (such as those who adore Krishna), or of Siva, see their method as loving and serving others, which is an act of  that brings freedom and salvation.