Timeline of Development of Religions

The above diagram is by no means complete, but shows approximate timelines for origin and progression of some of the main religions and related belief systems.
- Hinduism is thought to be the oldest surviving religion
- Paganism also has ancient roots, and survives today in various forms
- All the main religions have suffered schisms, although I haven't shown them all on the diagram. For example, Christianity split into Catholicism and Eatern Orthodox; Buddhism split into Thereveda and Mahayana. (Islam and Jainism also have schisms).
- Many earlier religions influenced the development of later religions, to varying degrees
- For greater detail on development of occult schools in recent times, refer here
- As time passes, off-shoots emerge from the major religions. For example, there are now many different forms of Christianity, Hinduism, Buddhism.
© In the Light, 17 September, 2009 , Disclaimer, Son of Suckerfish drop-downs from HTML dog
