“"Hinduism" is largely a fiction, formulated in the 18th and 19th
centuries out of a multiplicity of sub-continental religions, and
enthusiastically endorsed by Indian modernisers. Unlike Muslims, "Hindus"
have tended to borrow more than reject, and it has now been reconfigured
as a global rival to the big three monotheisms. In the process, it has
abandoned the tradition of toleration which lie in its true origins.” -Pankaj Mishra
"The term Hinduism ... [ was ] introduced in about 1830 AD by
British writers. " [Encyclopedia Britannica, 20 `Hinduism' 519 ]
"The term Hindu was first imposed on south Asian nations by the
Afghan dynasty of Ghori in the 12th century; this term was never
used in south Asia prior to the Muslim era and is not even found in
early (pre-12th century AD) Brahmanical or Buddhist texts. Such a
term and concept has no historical depth in any social, religious,
ethnic or national sense past the 12th century when Mohammed Ghori
for the first time named his conquered subjects Hindus." [G. Singh,
Sakasthan and India, Toronto, 1999, p. 20]
"Hinduism, as a faith, is vague, amorphous, many-sided, all things
to all men. It is hardly possible to define it, or indeed to say
definitely whether it is a religion or not, in the usual sense of
the word." [Jawaharlal Nehru, The Discovery of India, New Delhi,
1983, p.75]
"Frankly speaking, it is not possible to say definitely who is a
Hindu and what Hinduism is. These questions have been considered
again and again by eminent scholars, and so far no satisfactory
answer has been given." [Swami Dharma Theertha, History of Hindu
Imperialism, Madras, 1992, p. 178]
"Hinduism defies definition... It has no specific creed." [Khushwant
Singh, India: An Introduction, New Delhi, 1990, p. 19]
"The more Hinduism is considered, the more difficult it becomes to
define it in a single phrase... A Hindu may have any religious
belief or none." [Percival Spear, India: A Modern History, Michigan,
1961, p.40]
