Home›Hinduism›All HinduismBrowse ByAll HinduismThe major schools and sects of Hinduism, distinguished by the deity taken as supreme, by philosophy, and by the path emphasised: devotion, knowledge, action or disciplined practice. Hinduism has no single founder, creed or governing body, so its divisions are traditions of practice and lineage rather than denominations in the Western sense.FactsLearn MoreAll HinduismSourcesComments (0)Reader Challenges (0)FactsOverviewWhat Defines This GroupingWell-attestedThe sampradayas and philosophical schools of Hinduism, distinguished by which form of the divine is taken as supreme and by the path emphasised - devotion, knowledge, action or disciplined practice. Hinduism has no founder, no creed and no governing body. 2OriginsOrigin of the NameWell-attestedSampradaya means what is handed down: the Indian term names a lineage of transmission from teacher to disciple, which denomination translates only loosely. 3DirectoryCategoryWell-attestedDenominations 1Learn MoreThe traditions within Hinduism This group holds the major sects and philosophical traditions within Hinduism, which is less a single church than a family of related traditions sharing common texts, deities and practices. Its principal streams are defined chiefly by which form of the divine they place at the centre. The browser will find Vaishnavism (devotion to Vishnu and his avatars), Shaivism (devotion to Shiva), Shaktism (devotion to the Goddess), and Smartism, along with the philosophical schools such as Advaita Vedanta. The entries describe each tradition's chosen deity, texts and characteristic practice.All HinduismFilter Results17 entriesPolityAllCentralised Corporate Polity (1)Decentralised Polity (4)Guru Lineage Polity (6)Matha Lineage Polity (4)Monastic Lineage Polity (1)Originated InAllAssam (1)Bengal (1)Gujarat (1)India (3)Indian Subcontinent (1)Karnataka (1)Kashmir (1)New York (1)Origin EraAll800 BCE (1)200 BCE (1)300 (1)400 (1)700 (1)800 (1)900 (2)1000 (1)1100 (1)1486 (1)1907 (1)1965 (1)Parent DenominationAllGaudiya Vaishnavism (1)Shaivism (3)Shaktism (1)Parent ReligionAllHinduism (12)Founded ByAllBasava (1)Gorakhnath (1)Shastriji Maharaj (1)Practice StatusAllIn active religious use (1)Living tradition, practised today (12)Sexuality PositionAllSame-sex orientation or practice is held to bar full membership or participation (1)Liturgical LanguageAllSanskrit (11)Vernacular Language (7)Ordination PracticeAllAuthority conferred by initiation rather than by ordination (6)Office passes by descent (6)Open to women and men (1)Ordination is into a monastic order, not to a congregation (1)Restricted to men (4)Varies between provinces or member bodies (1)Show ResultsBrowseCompareSelect all 17BAPS Swaminarayan SansthaHinduismGaudiya VaishnavismHinduismISKCON (Hare Krishna)HinduismKashmir ShaivismHinduismLingayatismHinduismNath SampradayaHinduismNimbarka SampradayaHinduismPushtimargHinduismSamkhyaHinduismShaivismHinduismShaktismHinduismShri VidyaHinduismSmartismHinduismSri VaishnavismHinduismSwaminarayan SampradayaHinduismVaishnavismHinduismWarkari SampradayaHinduismSources1. Divinity Atlas Directory Taxonomy, First Edition Category Treetier 1Category: Denominations2. An Introduction to Hinduismtier 1Gavin Flood, Cambridge University Press, 1996What Defines This Grouping: The sampradayas and philosophical schools of Hinduism, distinguished by which form of the divine is taken as supreme and by the path emphasised - devotion, knowledge, action or disciplined practice. Hinduism has no founder, no creed and no governing body.View the Source3. Encyclopedia of Hinduismtier 1Denise Cush, Catherine Robinson and Michael York (eds.), Routledge, 2008s.v. sampradayaView the SourceDivinity Atlas Directory Prose, First Edition Category Descriptionstier 1Comments (0)No comments yet. Be the first to share a thought.Sign in to join the discussion.Reader Challenges (0)No disputes yet. Spotted an error or a better source? Open the first one.Sign in to dispute this or suggest a correction.