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Hinduism: Brahmans
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At the heart of all sects of Hinduism is the caste system. Most of mankind is divided into four castes from birth: the priests or Brahmans, the warriors of Kshatriyas, the common people of Vaishya, and the servants of Shudras. A fifth class of people are said to be without caste, the Harijan, or untouchables. The other castes have to be careful of these, because their mere presence is spiritually polluting to members of the other castes. Whatever caste one is born in, he or she will die in. According to Hinduism all is not hopeless of those of low caste ... for if they keep their place in society and carry out what is required of them, they have the hope of being born into a higher caste in the next life.
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The earliest literary source for the history of Hinduism is the Rigveda (Rgveda), the hymns of which were chiefly composed during the last two or three centuries of the 2nd millennium BC. The religious life reflected in this text is not that of Hinduism but of an earlier sacrificial religious system, generally known as Brahmanism or Vedism, which developed in India among Aryan invaders. This branch of a related group of nomadic and seminomadic tribal peoples originally inhabiting the steppe country of southern Russia and Central Asia brought with them the horse and chariot and the Sanskrit language. Other branches of these peoples penetrated into Europe, bringing with them Indo-European languages that developed into the chief language groups now spoken there.
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Contrary to popular belief, practiced Hinduism is neither polytheistic nor strictly monotheistic. The various Hindu Gods and avatars that are worshipped by Hindus are understood as different forms of One truth, sometimes seen as beyond a mere God and as a formless Divine Ground (Brahman), akin but not limited to monism, or as one monotheistic principle like Vishnu or Shiva.
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Contrary to popular belief, true Hinduism is neither polytheistic nor monotheistic. The various gods and avatars that are worshipped by Hindus are understood as different forms which the ONE supreme god, Brahman, has taken in order to be approachable.
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The development of Hinduism can be interpreted as a constant interaction between the religion of the upper social groups, represented by the Brahmans (priests and teachers), and the religion of other groups. From the time of the Aryan invasion (c. 1500 BC) the indigenous inhabitants of the subcontinent have tended to adapt their religious and social life to Brahmanic norms. This has developed from the desire of lower-class groups to rise on the social ladder by adopting the ways and beliefs of the higher castes.
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One of the most important concepts in Upanishadic and later Hinduism is the self. There is the personal self, inside every being, which is like a spark of the universal self called Brahman. Brahman is impersonal, but in a few forms of Hinduism has a personal part too.
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Brahmans