Hinduphobia

Hinduphobia is the fear or hatred of Hinduism and Hindu people.

Causes
Hinduphobia, like all prejudices, is caused either by experience, indoctrination, or both.

Experience
Perhaps the victim has a bad experience with Hindu people, maybe from abusive parents or bullies who happened to be Hindus. Casteism (treating people worse because they are from a lower caste or social group) is a problem that plagues south Asia. Although it is mostly associated with Hinduism because it has a caste system (varna), it exists in Muslim and Christian communities too,

Perhaps the victim is scared of Hindu deities, because they have many arms and heads. These represent the might of the gods.

One example of a deity who is feared is Kali, or Kali Ma, the Hindu goddess of destruction, justice, and eternity. She is more well-known due to the notorious film "The Temple of Doom", where she is worshipped by a deviant cult with murder-sacrifices. The actual Kali Ma is a kind, compassionate deity who protects innocent people, but also subjects devotees to hardship to make them learn to let go of their comforts and achieve understanding spiritual enlightenment through devotion to Her.

Indoctrination
Some people are scared of Hinduism, or hate Hindu people, due to wrong ideas about the religion or its followers.

Among the things that frighten people into seeing Hinduism in the wrong way include: pollution and widespread poverty in India; abuse in Indian families, and communal violence and terrorism in South Asia. They cause people to wrongly think that "Hinduism is backwards, abusive, and poor", when it is mostly due to corruption and people corrupting Hindu teachings.

Some militant groups also teach people that Hinduism is backwards, because Hinduism practices the worship of statues as a form of devotion, and the belief in many supernatural beings. They also hate Hindus as "weak" because Hindu society is not as violent as them.

Treatment
The best way to stop Hinduphobia is exposure. One should read about what is Hinduism really like, and speak with actual Hindu people to learn more about their religion.

If Hinduphobia gets too serious, one should seek a counsellor or a psychiatrist.

Usage notes
Some authors use "Hindumisia" (as in misogyny, hatred of women, or misotheism, hatred of gods) to refer to hatred of Hinduism or Hindu people, instead of just being afraid of them.

Hindu nationalist groups, known as Hindutva, also use the word "Hinduphobia" to refer to any opposition against them, as if it is consider also as an attack towards all Hindus in general.

In such a situation, it is important to ask who or what is affected by the "Hinduphobia": is it just the Hindutva group, or is it an actual Hindu person (as in being bullied, assaulted, or threatened with violence or murder)?

Then, help the Hindu victim, through ways like donations, awareness, medical treatment, and seeking the arrest of the harrasser.

Note that Hindutva groups do not represent all Hindus, just as Christian, Muslim, or atheist extremists and bigots do not represent all people from their groups.