Short answer
Islam and Hinduism differ at the root: Islam teaches worship of one God alone, with no images, while Hindu practice includes many deities and idols. Muslims believe Allah sent messengers to every nation, and some scholars think that may include India, but Muslims do not follow Hindu scripture. Islam requires Muslims to treat Hindus with justice and kindness and never to insult what they worship.
Worshipping idols or any being besides Allah is shirk, the gravest sin. Hindus are not People of the Book in the Hanafi school, so marriage with them and eating meat they slaughter are not permitted. Their lives, property and dignity are protected, and kindness, trade and good neighbourliness with them are permitted and encouraged.
The four schools agree on this.
Explanation
Islam is built on tawhid: Allah is one, "nor is there to Him any equivalent", and He alone is worshipped, without images or intermediaries. Hindu practice is very diverse. Some Hindu philosophy speaks of one ultimate reality, while temple worship is directed to many gods and their images. Muslims may find some common ground in the first idea, but believe worship of images contradicts the message of every prophet.
The Quran says every nation received a warner, and Muslim scholars have long taken an interest in India. The scholar al-Biruni wrote a detailed study of Indian religion and thought a thousand years ago. Some modern writers claim Hindu texts foretell the Prophet ﷺ or that early Indian sages were prophets. These claims are not established, and Muslims should treat them with caution.
- Marriage: not permitted between a Muslim and a Hindu. See can a Muslim marry a Hindu?
- Food: vegetarian food is fine; meat must be halal, and food offered to a deity is avoided.
- Festivals: see Diwali and Holi.
- Family and neighbours: kindness is a duty. When Asma's polytheist mother visited her, the Prophet ﷺ told her to keep good ties with her.
The Quran forbids insulting what others worship and sums up the relationship in one line: "For you is your religion, and for me is my religion." Muslims share their faith with wisdom and live alongside Hindus with honesty and respect. See what Islam says about other religions.
The evidence
Quran, Surah Al-Ikhlaas 112:4
وَلَمْ يَكُن لَّهُۥ كُفُوًا أَحَدٌۢ ﴿٤﴾
Nor is there to Him any equivalent."
Allah has no equal or image, the root difference with idol worship.
Quran, Surah Faatir 35:24
إِنَّآ أَرْسَلْنَٰكَ بِٱلْحَقِّ بَشِيرًۭا وَنَذِيرًۭا ۚ وَإِن مِّنْ أُمَّةٍ إِلَّا خَلَا فِيهَا نَذِيرٌۭ ﴿٢٤﴾
Indeed, We have sent you with the truth as a bringer of good tidings and a warner. And there was no nation but that there had passed within it a warner.
Every nation received a warner, though most are not named.
Quran, Surah Al-An'aam 6:108
وَلَا تَسُبُّوا۟ ٱلَّذِينَ يَدْعُونَ مِن دُونِ ٱللَّهِ فَيَسُبُّوا۟ ٱللَّهَ عَدْوًۢا بِغَيْرِ عِلْمٍۢ ۗ كَذَٰلِكَ زَيَّنَّا لِكُلِّ أُمَّةٍ عَمَلَهُمْ ثُمَّ إِلَىٰ رَبِّهِم مَّرْجِعُهُمْ فَيُنَبِّئُهُم بِمَا كَانُوا۟ يَعْمَلُونَ ﴿١٠٨﴾
And do not insult those they invoke other than Allah, lest they insult Allah in enmity without knowledge. Thus We have made pleasing to every community their deeds. Then to their Lord is their return, and He will inform them about what they used to do.
Muslims must not mock what Hindus worship.
Quran, Surah Al-Kaafiroon 109:6
لَكُمْ دِينُكُمْ وَلِىَ دِينِ ﴿٦﴾
For you is your religion, and for me is my religion."
Respect for others' faith without sharing in it.
Sahih al-Bukhari 2620
Sahih... نعم صلي أمك ...
"Yes, keep good ties with your mother."
Kindness to polytheist family members is commanded.
Where the ruling is recorded
- al-Hidaya, Kitab al-Nikah, the section on the women one may not marry. Marriage to a polytheist woman is not permitted.
- al-Hidaya, Kitab al-Dhaba'ih. An animal slaughtered by a polytheist is not halal.
Checked by our team. For a more accurate answer to your own situation, consult a scholar. Quran translation by Sahih International. Hadith Arabic from the standard editions of the six books and the Muwatta, with gradings as recorded there; the English is our own rendering. Spotted a mistake? Tell us.