Home›Dharmic (Polytheistic)›DenominationsBrowse ByDenominationsThis page groups religions by how many internal denominations or branches they have split into over time. Wikipedia notes that Protestantism alone, having separated from the Catholic Church in the Reformation, "is split into thousands of denominations." Browsing this way lets a visitor see which traditions have stayed largely unified and which have fragmented into many distinct bodies.FactsLearn MoreDenominationsSourcesComments (0)Reader Challenges (0)FactsStatusStanding as a Comparative CategoryWell-attestedContested: polytheistic sits badly on traditions whose own theologians argue for one reality behind many forms, and whose schools disagree about whether the deities are distinct beings, aspects of one, or both at once. 2OverviewWhat Defines This GroupingWell-attestedTraditions of Indian origin whose practice is addressed to many deities, understood by some schools as distinct beings and by others as aspects of one reality. The classification describes how the tradition is practised. 2DirectoryCategoryWell-attestedReligions 1Learn MoreDharmic traditions with many gods This group gathers Dharmic religions of a polytheistic character: Indian-origin traditions that share the framework of dharma, karma and rebirth while recognising many deities, whether as distinct powers or as aspects of one reality. The browser will find the traditions the atlas classes here, chief among them the many-deity worship of Hinduism in its broad sense. The entries describe each within the wider Dharmic family, noting how the tradition relates its many gods to its philosophy.DenominationsFilter Results12 entriesAdherents Today MinimumAll6,630,000 (1)Bankruptcy FilingsAll1 (1)Basis of the Membership FigureAllChurch-Reported Rolls (2)Independent Survey (1)Basis of the Wealth FigureAllAudited Annual Report (1)Date of Separation End YearAll1966 (1)Date of Separation Start YearAll1966 (1)Defining Doctrinal PositionAllA perfected, deathless body attained through hatha yoga (1)Achintya bhedabheda: inconceivable oneness and difference (1)Achintya bhedabheda: inconceivable oneness and difference (1)Advaita: the self and Brahman are not different (1)Five deities worshipped as forms of one Brahman (1)Samkhya: purusha and prakriti as two irreducible principles, with no god as either, distinct from the dvaita-dual value's God-and-soul dualism (1)Shiva as the supreme reality (1)Shiva as the supreme reality (2)The Goddess as the supreme reality (1)The Goddess as the supreme reality (1)Vishishtadvaita: non-duality qualified by real distinctions (1)Vishnu as the supreme reality (2)GovernanceAllA single central governing body over the whole movement (1)Authority in a living teacher and their succession (5)Authority in monastic seats (mathas) and their heads (4)Authority through monastic ordination lineage and its seats (1)No central authority (4)How the Expectation Is EnforcedAllCustomary Norm (1)Liturgical LanguageAllSanskrit (11)The vernacular (6)Membership Figure As OfAll2015-01-01 (1)2019-01-01 (1)2019-07-03 (1)OrdinationAllAuthority conferred by initiation rather than by ordination (6)Office passes by descent (6)Open to women and men (1)Restricted to men (4)Varies between provinces or member bodies (1)Origin Period End YearAll600 (1)900 (2)1137 (1)1200 (3)1300 (1)1534 (1)1966 (1)Origin Period Start YearAll800 BCE (1)200 BCE (1)300 (1)400 (1)700 (1)800 (1)900 (2)1000 (1)1100 (1)1486 (1)1965 (1)Position on SexualityAllSame-sex orientation or practice is held to bar full membership or participation (1)Settlement TotalAll9,500,000 (1)Status TodayAllLiving tradition, practised today (12)Traditional CountAllTen Mahavidyas, the ten great wisdoms (1)Wealth Figure As Of YearAll2024 (1)Show ResultsBrowseCompareGaudiya VaishnavismDenominations1 entryISKCON (Hare Krishna)Denominations1 entryKashmir ShaivismDenominations1 entryLingayatismDenominations1 entryNath SampradayaDenominations1 entrySamkhyaDenominations1 entryShaivismDenominations1 entryShaktismDenominations1 entryShri VidyaDenominations1 entrySmartismDenominations1 entrySri VaishnavismDenominations1 entryVaishnavismDenominations1 entrySources1. Divinity Atlas Directory Taxonomy, First Edition Category Treetier 12. An Introduction to Hinduismtier 1Gavin Flood, Cambridge University Press, 1996View 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.