Hindu Diaspora

Hinduism outside the Indian subcontinent represents a contrasting and scattered community. From Britain to the Caribbean, diasporic Hindus have substantially reformed their beliefs and practices in accordance with their historical and social circumstances. In this theoretically innovative analysis Steven Vertovec examines: * the historical construction of the category 'Hinduism in India' * the formation of a distinctive Caribbean Hindu culture during the nineteenth century * the role of youth groups in forging new identities during Trinidad's Hindu Renaissance * the reproduction of regionally based identities and frictions in Britain's Hindu communities * the differences in temple use across the diaspora. This book provides a rich and fascinating view of the Hindu diaspora in the past, present and its possible futures.

Hinduism outside the Indian subcontinent represents a contrasting and scattered community. From Britain to the Caribbean, diasporic Hindus have substantially reformed their beliefs and practices in accordance with their historical and social circumstances. In this theoretically innovative analysis Steven Vertovec examines: * the historical construction of the category 'Hinduism in India' * the formation of a distinctive Caribbean Hindu culture during the nineteenth century * the role of youth groups in forging new identities during Trinidad's Hindu Renaissance * the reproduction of regionally based identities and frictions in Britain's Hindu communities * the differences in temple use across the diaspora. This book provides a rich and fascinating view of the Hindu diaspora in the past, present and its possible futures.

This book examines Hinduism from both a historical and contemporary perspective. It provides some interesting insights into factors that shaped and defined Hinduism in the diaspora. It also examines the challenges facing Hinduism in the twenty-first century. In recent years the growing conversions of Hindus to other religions, the complexities of caste, the impact of AIDS, and the need to reinvigorate the youth in Hindu teachings are just some of the issues that it faces. What shape and form will Hinduism take in the twenty-first century? What will Hinduism look like in the future? These relevant questions are the subject of debate and deliberations amongst religious scholars, academics and politicians. This edited collection addresses some of these questions as well as the relationship between religion and diaspora within historical and contemporary perspectives.

Description: 'Diaspora Studies have emerged as a major academic discipline in the past few decades as large groups of people have moved away from their places of birth to settle in foreign lands. This book deals with the 'Diaspora' phenomenon and in particular with the 'Hindu Diaspora Phenomenon' as we know that Hindus are now settled in more than one hundred and fifty countries around the globe. In this book the contributors reflect and examine the myriad ways in which Hindu migrants negotiate their identity in the midst of alien cultures. Some scholars deal with historical perspectives, while others use their personal experiences in foreign lands, within a broad theoretical framework, in order to highlight some negative imaging they have encountered both in educational institutions and places of work. Some others reflect on the kind of temples that Hindus have built in their adopted countries, while still others ponder on questions like the impact of 'Food' on being 'Hindu' and also on the role of 'Women' in maintaining one's religious identity. Dealing as it does with a contemporary sociological issue which will be relevant for a long time to come, this book will add one more dimension to the ongoing Diaspora studies.

Many Hindus today are urban middle-class people with religious values similar to those of their professional counterparts in America and Europe. Just as modern professionals continue to build new churches, synagogues, and now mosques, Hindus are erecting temples to their gods wherever their work and their lives take them. Despite the perceived exoticism of Hindu worship, the daily life-style of these avid temple patrons differs little from their suburban neighbors. Joanne Waghorne leads her readers on a journey through this new middle-class Hindu diaspora, focusing on their efforts to build and support places of worship. She seeks to trace the changing religious sensibilities of the middle classes as written on their temples and on the faces of their gods. She offers detailed comparisons of temples in Chennai (formerly Madras), London, and Washington, D.C., and interviews temple priests, devotees, and patrons. In the process, she illuminates the interrelationships between ritual worship and religious edifices, the rise of the modern world economy, and the ascendancy of the great middle class. The result is a comprehensive portrait of Hinduism as lived today by so many both in India and throughout the world. Lavishly illustrated with professional photographs by Dick Waghorne, this book will appeal to art historians as well as urban anthropologists, scholars of religion, and those interested in diaspora, transnationalism, and trends in contemporary religion. It should be especially appealing for course use because it introduces the modern Hinduism practiced by the friends and neighbors of students in the U.S. and Britain.

CAN THE HINDUS IN INDIA BE REACHED THROUGH DIASPORA HINDUS? The Hindu Diaspora, numbering about 50 million, is scattered from Australia, New Zealand, Malaysia, Hong Kong and Fiji in the east to Guyana, Surinam, the United States and Canada in the west. Hindus numbering about 850 million live in India. However, militant organizations make mission work impossible there and one way to reach them is through their clan and caste fellows in the Diaspora. In Christ and the Hindu Diaspora, author Paul Pathickal discusses the process of Hindu migration, the salient features of Diaspora Hinduism and ways to witness to Diaspora Hindus. By reaching Diaspora Hindus, the author believes their caste and clan fellows in India can be reached for Christ. Diaspora Hinduism is different from Hinduism in India. The old pantheistic thought cannot survive in the new lands. The new generation of young educated Hindus cannot accept the Karma doctrine and caste divisions. Secular humanism cannot fulfill the age old yearning of the Hindu for truth and value. Only the religion established by Jesus Christ, the true avatar, who came down from heaven not to annihilate a few wicked men, but to save mankind from their sins, will be able to satisfy the inner yearning of the Hindu for truth and meaning in life.

Hindu Diasporas presents the histories and religious traditions of Hindus with a South Asian ancestral background living outside of South Asia. Hinduism is a global religion with a significant presence in many countries throughout the world. The most important cause of this global expansion is migration. This book presents and analyses the most important of the geographies, migration histories, religious traditions and developments, rituals, places, institutions, and representations of Hinduism in the diasporas, capturing some of the great plurality of Hindu religious traditions. The first part of the book concentrates on the major regions in the world in which Hindu diasporas are found. The main focus is the modern period, but the book discusses also the possibility of premodern Hindu diasporas in Southeast Asia. The second part focuses on specific central themes such as Vaishnava, Shaiva, and Shakta traditions in diasporas, temples, and traditions of sacred sites and pilgrimage outside of South Asia, Hindutva organizations and the diaspora, as well as relations between Hindu diasporas and new followers of Hindu traditions. The chapters in this book show some of the global presence of the Hindu diasporas and some of the dynamic developments in multiple geographical spaces. Analysing specific spaces and themes, the chapters of the book offer a foundation for understanding the Hindu traditions in its most important global diasporic contexts and the dynamic developments around the world.

America now is home to approximately five million Hindus and Jains. Their contribution to the economic and intellectual growth of the country is unquestionable. Dharma in America aims to explore the role of Hindu and Jain Americans in diverse fields such as: education and civic engagements medicine and healthcare music. Providing a concise history of Hindus and Jains in the Americas over the last two centuries, Dharma in America also gives some insights into the ongoing issues and challenges these important ethnic and religious groups face in America today.