Hinduism is the prominent religion in South Asia and has no single founder. It has three main gods who deal with the creation, the preservation, and the destruction of mankind. The goal of the religion is to break the cycle of rebirth and achieve moksha which was union with Brahman, who was the universal spirit. The only way one could achieve moksha is by working on their dharma or their moral and religious duties their whole life to hopefully get reborn into a higher caste. If dharma wasn't worked on then one could move down a caste. The energy that moved you from caste to caste is called Karma. Hindus believe in nonviolence and respectfulness towards all things. They also do not eat beef. The Hindus prayed in temples and had many shrines dedicated to different gods. These shrines were decorated with flowers and food offerings for the gods.

Hinduism

Jainism is a religion that grew from Hinduism, and was founded by Mahavira around 500 B.C. He did not believe that Brahmin priests could perform sacred religious rites by themselves. Jainism emphasized self-denial, meditation, and extreme forms if anhimsa which was the belief that all animals were sacred. They went so far to follow it they swept the ground in front of them to avoid accidentally killing an animal. They also didn't farm so that they could not hurt insects.

Jainism