Creating of Hinduism’s Image in Religiosus-Philosophical Thoutht of the Bengal Renaissance

Based on the sources on religious-philosophical thought of the Bengal Renaissance (XIX - early XX century), author represents the process and results of creating of the Hinduism’s image by Brahmo Samaj leaders (Rammohun Roy, Debendranath Tagore, Keshubchandra Sen) and Neo-Hindu thinkers (Bankimchandra Chattopadhyay, Swami Vivekananda). Perceived from European orientalists, the term ‘Hinduism’ was filled the meanings and content by Bengal thinkers according to the epoch’s needs. For explaining of the features of the image construction method and results, multiple influences on Bengali thinkers are described, such as the influences of traditional Sanskrit education and intellectual culture, caste consciousness, Islam, Christianity, European orientalism and scientific rationalism. Using hermeneutical, axiological and comparative methods, the Bengal thinkers had created the image of Hinduism, which contained the experience of critical analysis of indigenous religious trends and the experience of creation of ‘ideal type’ (M. Weber) of native religion. General image of Hinduism has two sides in representation of positive and negative facets both for Indians and for the World.