Hinduism is not a Religion

In my opinion Hinhu is not a religion as per the English definition of religions. As per the oxford dictionary meaning of Religion is  worship  superhuman  God  gods other one A particular system of faith  worship and also A pursuit  devotion in Wikipedia encyclopedia someone has explained in more descriptive manner  beliefs cultural systems world views  humanity  narratives symbols sacred histories  meaning of life origin of life, or the Universe cosmos  human nature morality ethics religious laws, or a preferred lifestyle .Actually saying these definitions and meanings are fit for many religions of the world but it does not stand true for Hinduism or we can say they are insufficient to explain Hinduism. Simple reason Hinduism has many belief systems and all of them are different from other belief. Even the basic platform of belief is different in different systems of belief so if we try to frame a definition of Hinduism it would be difficult and if we at all frame it also it will not stand good for other religions of the world.

One more thing I would like to state here that Hinduism has different belief system but these systems do not group or classify people for example four basic types of Hinduism

Shaivasm these are followers of shiva in all or some of the forms of Shiva which can be further devided into Pashupata Shaivism, Shaiva Siddhanta, Kashmir Shaivism, Siddha Siddhanta, Lingayata, Shiva Advaita next is

Vaisnavism people follow some or other manifestation or incarnation of Vishnu, in Vaishnavism Lord Vishnu is considered

as the supreme being. The cause, sustainer and destroyer of all worlds. Vishnu is considered both in the form and as the formless infinite one Lakshmi sampradaya, Brahma sampradaya, Rudra sampradaya, Kumara sampradaya, Krishna Sampradaya and Ram Snheyi Sampradaya

Shaktism (Shakteya) In Shaktism, Shakti (mother divine) is considered as the supreme being. and all other (female/male) forms are considered the manifestation of the supreme.

Smartism (Smarta) Smarta tradition joins all the above three traditions and worships absolute god in the form of Shiva, Vishnu, Shakti and other forms as well. Smarta tradition has higher reverence for Vedas and upanishads

This is not all

Shrautism word Shrauti comes from Shruti, Shrauti means the tradition of Shrutis. Shrauti tradition gives higher importance to practices from the earlier portion of Vedas. 

Saurism In Saurism, Surya (sun god) is worshipped as the form of supreme being. This sect comes from the vedic traditions

Ganapatism The supreme being is worshipped through the form of Lord Ganesha.

Kabir panthi Teachings of Guru Kabir form the basic structure of Kabir Panthi, It has wide variety of Practices and wide variety of followers.

Aghor panth It is a branch of Shaivism, an usual adherent of this sect is a wandering monk whose main purpose in life is to attain god through simple living

Tantrik panth Practice of Tantras is advocated for one's development on the path of self realization

That’s not all there are sum binary or subdivisions like Samkhya: A logic oriented tradition where enquiry into consciousness and mind are of importance Yoga: Unification with the consciousness is achieved through Meditation, contemplation and other body mind controlling practices Nyaya: In this tradition primary importance is given to Logical thinking Vaisheshika: Vaisheshika is based on understanding the nature of objects, i.e all objects can be further divided into atoms and these atoms are responsible for everything happening in the universe Mimāṃsā: Enquiry into the nature of Dharma Vedanta: Knowledge is given primary importance and obviously knowledge of Vedas and upnishadas.

Even if I say this is complete no there are many other belief systems for which I will have to write a book on sects practices and beliefs of Hinduism.

On understanding these many traditions and belief systems  we easily make conclusions that hindu society is devided into so many parts and the answer is no. That’s where the problem lies when we talk about religion or sects we immediately come to a conclusion that a certain group of people believe on something and a name to it. When we talk about Hinduism here we differ from all the religions of the world. We can follow one tradition or many of them its on individual choice.  Even family bondage of belief is flexible for example I might be a beliver of Krishna and follow Shrimad Bhagwad geeta as a sacred book, as per my belief I will try to teach my way of thinking to my son and daughter but they may follow Shaivism but while following shivism they will not condemn my belief and even they may follow both. Even if they do not follow any of the system and belive that yoga or meditation is the only way to reach to all mighty still they are followers of Hinduism. There is even a possibility that at any part of my life I start following Ganpatism and continue following Vaishnivism as well.  

So we can not devide Hindu in sacts and there is no group of people following certain tradition.

There is one more thought process where people call Hinduism as a religion of particular geographical area that is South east asia of the modern world and  Jambudweep as per the ancient theory of seven islands. But I doubt on this theory also as defiantly name Hinduism comes from this theory only but Hinduism did not require any name as in ancient world only one Dharma was followed and when there is only one way is assigned there is no need for naming the same. So defiantly the name has come to picture when foreigners entered India and found that there is a civilization following different way of worship which is different from there traditions and customs they thought of giving some name to this particular people and they named them Hindus.

Again as the name was given with an intention of Geographical area we can not boud such a great Dharma (Hinduism) to geographical boundaries. Now again the point comes how to define Religion so that Hinduism should become a part of it and the only answer is Hinduism is not a religion.

To understand further lets go into depth, Hindu Dharma is one of the oldest Religion in the world According to historians, the origin of Hinduism dates back to 5,000 or more years. According to scholars, the evolution of Hinduism may be divided into three periods: the ancient (6500 BCE-1000 AD). Hinduism is commonly thought to be the oldest Dharma (Religion)  in the history of human civilization. The exact dates are still not clear.

Hinduism has been called the "oldest religion" in the world,  and some practitioners and scholars refer to it as Sanātana Dharma, "the eternal law" or the "eternal way" beyond human origins. Scholars regard Hinduism as a fusion or synthesis of various cultures which depict not only a certain geographical area but includes whole world and traditions,  with diverse roots and no founder. This "Hindu synthesis" started to develop between 500 BCE and 300 CE, after the Vedic times.

Prominent themes in Hindu beliefs include (but are not restricted to), the four Puruṣārthas, the proper goals or aims of human life, namely Dharma (ethics/duties of a human being), Artha (prosperity/work required to fulfill worldly duties), Kama (work to keep the world going on) and Moksha (Salvation or freedom from the cycle of birth and rebirth, or a way by which our eternal energy or atma takes its real path and gets ammolgomated with ); karma(action, intent and consequences), samsara (cycle of rebirth), and the various Yogas (paths or practices to attain moksha).^[15][16]Hindu practices include rituals such as puja (worship) and recitations, meditation, family-oriented rites of passage, annual festivals, and occasional pilgrimages. Some Hindus leave their social world and material possessions, then engage in lifelong Sannyasa(ascetic practices) to achieve moksha

Hindu religion does not only teach to be near to god, it is the only religion which has ways  which can lead you to understanding and finding God in its real form. That’s true and surprising; In most of the other religions the founder of the religion found God but, to his or her disciples the religion has always taught the way of living, and offering prayers to supreme power but not the way to reach that all mighty or that supreme power. Hinduism is the only faculty in the world which teaches about Moksha or amelgmation with Paramatma or supreme God head.
That is why I call Hinduism as ocean and other religions like rivers and streams. It is the most complex and most simple and easy and flexible way of living.