Largest Religion in India: Hinduism and Its Cultural Impact

When you think of the largest religion, a faith followed by over 900 million people in India, with roots stretching back more than 4,000 years. Also known as Sanatana Dharma, it doesn't have a single founder or holy book—it’s a living tradition shaped by millions of rituals, temples, and regional customs. This isn’t just about belief. It’s about how you eat, how you travel, and even how you celebrate. If you’ve ever seen a temple covered in flowers, heard chants at dawn, or watched a crowd surge toward a river during a festival, you’ve felt the pulse of this faith.

It’s no surprise that Hinduism, the dominant spiritual force in India, guiding everything from architecture to daily routines shows up everywhere in travel content. From the ancient Mundeshwari Temple, a 5,000-year-old shrine in Bihar that predates many global religions, to the massive Kumbh Mela, the world’s largest religious gathering, where over 100 million people bathe in sacred rivers, Hinduism isn’t just practiced—it’s experienced. You can’t visit India without seeing its influence. Whether it’s the way food is prepared to honor deities, the timing of temple visits based on lunar calendars, or the quiet devotion on temple steps at sunrise, this religion shapes the rhythm of daily life.

And it’s not just about ancient history. Hinduism drives modern tourism too. People come from all over the world to walk through the corridors of the most beautiful temples in India, join the chaos and wonder of temple tours, or witness the raw energy of festivals like Rath Yatra and Durga Puja. You’ll find stories here about where to go, what to expect, and how to respect local customs without feeling lost. This collection doesn’t just list facts—it shows you how the largest religion in India connects to real travel moments: the smell of incense in Varanasi, the crowd at a temple gate in Tamil Nadu, the quiet pause before offering flowers at a shrine. What you’ll find below are guides that help you move through this world—not as a tourist, but as someone who understands why it matters.