Hindus who hold the Vedas and Upanishads as their authority have to make sure what God according to the Vedas and Upanishads.+

All Hindus indulge in non-Vedic practice barred by the Vedas introduced by the different founders of the different sects of Hinduism at a different time, whereas the Vedic religion or Santana Dharma is ancient and has no founder.

Hinduism is not Santana Dharma or Vedic religion. Hinduism is not a religion. Rather, it is a group of castes found within India that share common beliefs while still remaining very different.

The ancient peoples of India belong to the Vedic Religion or Santana Dharma, therefore, they have nothing to do with present-day Hinduism.

The ancient peoples of the Indus Valley of Undivided India were called Hindus by Muslim invaders.

Hindu idols or deities or temples are nothing to do with the Vedic religion or Santana Dharma. Vedic people ate beef.

The Hindu practices of idol worship, temples worship, and a ban on beef-eating introduced many centuries later.

As one peeps into the annals of religious history, he finds that Hinduism which exists today is not a continuation of the Vedic religion, and it has no real historical foundation. Hinduism is of a much later origin.

As per the researchers, the two faiths the Hindu belief system has drifted miles away from the Vedic faith so that the two seem to be two distinct faiths.

It is not difficult to discover that there is no noticeable continuity of Hinduism from the Vedic religion or Santana Dharma. :

Remember:~

Swami Vivekananda: ~The masses in India cry to sixty million Gods and still die like dogs. Where are these Gods.

First, the Hindus who hold the Vedas and Upanishads as their authority have to make sure what is God according to the Vedas and Upanishads then drop all the non-Vedic Gods and non-Vedic rituals and beliefs.

Vedas and Upanishad confirm the Soul, the innermost Self, is present in the form of the Spirit or the consciousness.

There is a clear-cut idea of God in the Vedas, Upanishad, and Bhagavad Gita. And also there is a clear-cut idea of what not to worship as God in place of real God. Thus, it proves on Vedic perspective the Puranic Gods are not Vedic Gods.

Mythological stories are a myth. Mythological Gods are a myth. By worshiping mythological heroes as God, it produces only myth. There is a need to realize ‘what God supposed to be in actuality. Religion has been very influential.

Mythology is a synthesis. They are more concerned with synthesis than with truth. The attraction for synthesis is so strong that people accept it blindly without verifying their validity.

Mythology is a hodgepodge containing everything; hence it suits everyone because there is something in it for everyone. It is difficult to find any tradition whose voice is not found in the mythology.

It is difficult to find anyone who does not take solace from mythology. But for such people ‘Self’-Realization will prove very difficult Vedas says never accept another God in place of the Atman nor worship other than the Atman.

Rig Veda: ~ 'Prajnanam Brahma'- Consciousness is the ultimate reality or Brahman or God in truth. 

Do not accept any other truth other than consciousness. Consciousness is the ultimate truth,  Nothing is real but consciousness. Nothing matters but to realize the ultimate truth. Consciousness is everywhere and in everything. Let these words be inscribed in your subconscious.

Rig Veda: ~ The Atman (Soul or Spirit) is the cause; Atman is the support of all that exists in this universe. May ye never turn away from the Atman, the Self. May ye never accept another God in place of the Atman, nor worship other than the Atman." (10:48, 5)

Yajur Veda – chapter- 32:~ God is Supreme Spirit has no ‘Pratima’ (idol) or material shape. God cannot be seen directly by anyone. God pervades all beings and all directions. 

The Spirit is the root element of the universe. The Spirit is present in the form of the Soul, the Self. The Soul is present in the form of consciousness. From the Spirit, the universe comes into existence. In the Spirit, the universe resides. And into the Spirit, the universe is dissolved. The Spirit is the parent of all that is there is.

Yajurveda: ~ There is no image of God in truth. God in truth is unborn and eternal. (Chapter 32, Verse 3)

Yajurveda: ~ God in truth is nondual and pure,"

Yajurveda: ~ "They are entering darkness, those who worship the natural things (like air, water, fire, etc.), they are sinking more in darkness who worship created things." (Chapter 40, Verse 9)

Thus, Idolatry does not find any support from the Vedas.

Even Brihadaranyaka Upanishad: ~ Brahman (God in truth) is present in the form of the Athma, and it is indeed Athma itself.

Bhagavad Gita:~ “All those whose intelligence has been stolen by material desires, they worship many Gods. (7- Verse -20)

Bhagavad Gita: ~ ‘Brahmano hi pratisthaham’ ~ Brahman (God in truth) is considered the all-pervading consciousness, which is the basis of all the animate and inanimate entities and material. (14.27).

When Bhagavad Gita says, God is considered the all-pervading consciousness which is the basis of all the animate and inanimate entities and material then nothing has to be accepted as God other than consciousness.

Religious Gods are not really God. One must know God in truth.

Lord Krishna says Ch ~V: ~ “Those who know the ‘Self’ in truth.” The last two words (tattvataha) are usually ignored by pundits, but they make all the difference between the ordinary concept of God and the truth about God.

The dualistic worship of "God” is only for the ignorant populace. The God in truth is only Atman, the innermost ‘Self’. In reality, there is no duality, no differentiation. Only Atman exists.

There is a clear-cut idea of God in the Vedas, Upanishad, and Bhagavad Gita. And also there is a clear-cut idea of what not to worship as God in place of real God. Thus, it proves on Vedic perspective the Puranic Gods are not Vedic Gods.

Vedas says never to accept another God in place of the Atman, nor worship other than the Atman. Hindus assert their religion is monotheistic, even though they honor a number of Gods, including Brahma the Creator, Vishnu the Preserver, and Shiva the Destroyer. Hindus claim these various Gods are all manifestations of the oneness of the universe.

Hindu religious practices vary from place to place, but they frequently include yoga, physical and mental discipline to harmonize body and Soul, and ritual bathing. Belief in multiple Gods, the worship of idols and worship of images that are not God, the worship of sacred images, ancestor worship, pilgrimage, priest craft, the belief in avatars or incarnations of God, the hereditary caste system on the grounds that all these lacks Vedic sanction.

Hinduism indulges non-Vedic beliefs such as idolatry, ancestor worship, pilgrimages, priest craft, offerings made in temples, the caste system, untouchability, and child marriages. All these lack Vedic sanction, therefore, Hinduism is not Ancient Vedic religion or Santana Dharma.

Religious Gods are not God in truth. One must know God in truth. Those who are seeking truth have to discard inherited beliefs. There is no need to criticize their inherited religion, but it is for the seekers to realize the religion is meant for the ignorant people who are unable to grasp the real God.

Thus, it is necessary to realize what is God according to Vedas, Upanishads, and Bhagavad Gita for their own personal information. Many Gods and Goddesses with different forms and names are not of the Santana Dharma or Vedic religion.

The Vedic God is Atma. The Atma is the ‘Self’, which is present in the form of the Spirit or the consciousness. : ~ Santthosh Kumaar