Abstract
This paper will show the history of the Hindu religion from the Brahmanistic period to the period that is so famously known as the Bhagavad Gita. By understanding the change in the Vedic position on the nature of Hindu belief, we can see how this history transforms over different periods of time. With a basic overview of the Hindu religion in this manner, we can learn how the secretive Brahmans eventually turned into a different strand of belief that became all-inclusive in the teachings of Krishna, which is espoused in the classic religious doctrine of the Bhagavad Gita. In essence, we will study the fall of the violent gods of the older Vedic orders, and seek to understand how they took more peaceful principles.

Abstract
This paper examines and explains the essential differences and similarities between Jainism and Hinduism. The paper explains that the main aspect that differentiates Jainism from Hinduism is the mode of thought in Jainism, which denies the theistic and ritualistic aspect that Hinduism incorporated into its doctrine. Another difference noted in the paper is Jainism's emphasis on liberation through self-knowledge and through the radical denial of the world and all sensual aspects associated with it. Finally, the paper notes that there are also many similarities between the two religions, one of which is the shared acceptance of Hindu gods.

From the Paper
"A comparison of these two faiths also brings attention to bear on the various interpretations of Hinduism. It should also be noted that Hinduism is not one homogeneous body of clear-cut practice and doctrine, it is in fact a complex amalgam of various interpretations and views that form a sometimes contradictory whole. Jainism also cannot be seen in isolation from the cultural and philosophical substratum from which it broke away."

Tags:buddhism, doctrine, philosophy, brahmanistic, stratification, society, ritual, theism