The seven basic principles

The Sanathana Dharma ,over hundreds of years, from 2000 BC to 800 AD, absorbed the entire population of the Indian Subcontinent into its fold , simply by accepting all their indiviudal customs , traditions , habits , beliefs etc as part of a greater religion . Thus india became a salad bowl of religious traditions with every denomination or community ( presently over 4000) having its unique identity within the greater frame work of Hinduism .Thus the Sanathana Dharma is a salad bowl and not a melting pot !! Nobody was forced to accept one particular system . However despite all their diversity , they are all broadly agreed on some fundamental principles .
These are
1. That God ( Brahman) exists , is eternal , and is one perfect universal power and being , but has many names and forms , and cannot be described ,but has to be experienced through spirituality ,
2. That the spiritual tradition embodied in the Shruti or Vedas is the ultimate authority for the Sanathana Dharma ( Hinduism ),
3. That the universe is eternal, infinite and cyclical , ( the wheel of time ); and that we ( individual souls )find ourselves repeatedly reborn in the toils of Samsara ( the worldly trials and tribulations , pitfalls of desire and sorrow, the cycle of birth and death ) ,due to our past Karma (or actions ),
4. That there is a triple path of Karma , Bhakti and Jnana ie (a. right action and duty , b . devotion ,
and c . knowledge and wisdom through reasoning ) which can lead us out of the coils of rebirth in Samsara ,and lead us to the perfection of God ,
5. That those who wish to be liberated and free , should cultivate the five cardinal virtues of purity ( sattva ), self control ( sama and dama ), detachment(vairagya ), truth (Satyam )and non violence (ahimsa) , in their various forms and become a Dharmatma , or a noble spiritual person ,
6. And further , the individual has to concentrate on his/her Ista Devata ( or form of God that appeals to him/her), (or meditate and contemplate the formless ), according to their Adhikara ( or moral and spiritual competence and understanding ) , and accquire the grace of God,or the infinite spirit ,
7. And that ultimate freedom , liberation, and true peace lies in becoming eternally free from the cycles of birth and death, and entering the world of the infinite , or Universal spirit or God ( Brahman) .