Hinduism is the predominant and indigenous religious tradition[1] of South Asia. Hinduism is often referred to as Sanātana Dharma (a Sanskrit phrase meaning "the eternal law") by its adherents.[2][3] Generic "types" of Hinduism that attempt to accommodate a variety of complex views span folk and Vedic Hinduism to bhakti tradition, as in Vaishnavism. Hinduism also includes yogic traditions and a wide spectrum of "daily morality" based on the notion of karma and societal norms such as Hindu marriage customs.
Hinduism is formed of diverse traditions and has no single founder.[4] Among its roots is the historical Vedic religion of Iron Age India, and as such Hinduism is often called the "oldest living religion"[5][Full citation needed] or the "oldest living major religion".[6][7][8][9]
Demographically, Hinduism is the world's third largest religion, after Christianity and Islam, with more than a billion adherents, of whom approximately 1 billion live in India.[10][11] Other significant populations are found in Nepal (23 million), Bangladesh (14 million) and the Indonesian island of Bali (3.3 million).
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