Religion in Bangladesh: The Bangladeshi constitution granted freedom of religion and established a fundamental right in which all Bangladeshi citizens have equal rights irrespective of religions but according to the Bangladeshi constitution Islam is recognized as the state religion of Bangladesh.
As of the 2011 census, Muslims account for 90% of the population, while Hindus account for 8.5% and the rest 1%. A survey in late 2003 confirmed that religion is the first choice by citizens for self-identification. Bangladesh recognizes only Islam, Hinduism, Christianity and Buddhism.
Islam
The Muslim population in Bangladesh is 146.0 million, which constitutes 90% of the population in the country. The Constitution of Bangladesh declares Islam as the state religion. Bangladesh is the country with the third largest Muslim population. Muslims are the dominant community in the country and they make up the majority of the population in all eight divisions of Bangladesh.
The overwhelming majority of Muslims in Bangladesh are Bengali Muslims at 88%, but a small proportion of them, 2%, are Bihari Muslims and Assamese Muslims. The majority of Muslims in Bangladesh are Sunni, but there is also a small Shia community. There is also a small Ahmadiyya community. Shias are mostly Shia people living in the region, although these Shias are few in number.
About 1,000,000 people in Bangladesh follow the Theravada branch of Buddhism. Bangladesh It is about 0.6% of the population of Bangladesh.
Buddhism
In antiquity, the region of present-day Bangladesh was the center of Buddhism in Asia. Buddhist civilisation, including philosophy and architecture, traveled from Bengal to Tibet, Southeast Asia and Indonesia. The Buddhist architecture of Cambodia, Indonesia and Thailand, including the Angkor Wat temple and Borobudur Vihara, is believed to have been inspired by the ancient monasteries of Bangladesh, such as the Somapura Mahavihara.
Strange though it may seem now in such an overwhelmingly Muslim country, Buddhism has been no small player in the country’s history and culture.
Hindu Religion
Hinduism is the second largest religious affiliation in Bangladesh, comprising approximately 8.96% of the population according to the Bangladesh Bureau of Statistics for the 2011 Bangladesh census. In terms of population, Bangladesh is the third largest Hindu state in the world after India and Nepal.
According to estimates by the Bangladesh Bureau of Statistics (BBS), there were 17 million Hindus in Bangladesh as of 2015. In nature, Bangladeshi Hinduism resembles forms and rituals of Hinduism in the neighboring Indian state of West Bengal, with which Bangladesh (known as East Bengal) was united until the partition of India in 1947.
The vast majority of Hindus in Bangladesh are Bengali Hindus. Ritual bathing, vows and pilgrimages to sacred rivers, mountains and temples are common practice in Bangladeshi Hinduism. An ordinary Hindu will worship in the shrines of the Muslim PIR, without being concerned with the religion to which the place is affiliated. Hindus have expressed many holy men and penance for their physical captives.
Some believe that they derive spiritual benefit simply by seeing a great holy man. Durga Puja, held in September–October, is the most important festival of Bangladeshi Hindus and is widely celebrated in Bangladesh.