Hindus In South Africa

The book explores how Hinduism arrived in South Africa and has flourished in the last century and a half. It is a narrative of indentured Indians who arrived in Natal in 1860 and propagated the Hindu religion in Southern Africa for the first time. The book also details the unique practices that have emerged in South Africa and how Hinduism in the diaspora could be shaped by local social and political conditions, as well as by immigration patterns. The book reflects the diversity of Hindu practices and the survival of many village traditions that were brought to South Africa.

Describes the features of Hinduism in one of the world's largest Hindu communities outside India - South Africa. This book examines the beliefs and practices common to all Hindus, and those aspects which distinguish the main groups. It also looks at the teachings and doctrines, and aims to provide an understanding of the practice of the religion.

A comprehensive guide to three global religions that have established strong local communities in South Africa, this work is a valuable resource for scholars, students in religious studies, African studies, anthropology, and history. Beginning with a general introduction to the immigrant origins, minority status, and global connections of each tradition, the book proceeds to organize and generously annotate the literature according to religion. This volume, combined with two other annotated bibliographies, African Traditional Religion in South Africa and Christianity in South Africa (both Greenwood, 1997), will become the standard reference text for South African religions. With special attention to historical and social conditions, this work examines the distinctively South African forms of these important minority religions in South Africa. In each section, an introductory essay identifies significant themes. The bibliography annotations that follow are concise yet detailed essays, written in an engaging and accessible style and supported by an exhaustive index. The book, therefore, provides a full and complex profile of three religious traditions that are firmly located in South African history and society.

The Arya Samaj movement is essentially a religious institution but became a significant force in India's religious and secular struggle for social and cultural self-determination. Its founding in 1875 presaged the creation of independent India in 1947. This work does not attempt a detailed examination of the movement but provides an outline of its growth and philosophy in the light of the work of its founder Swami Dayanand Sarasvati. the complex of institutions and upliftment programmes initiated by the Samaj and the major historical forces which acted to shape the movement are a cause for considerable pride. The Arya Samaj was one of several socio-religious movements which were founded in the nineteenth century. It was however responsible for constructing some of the best known educational institutions in north India. The repercussions of this were felt by emigrant Indian communities in such places as mauritius, South Africa and Guyana. What started then as a small religious sect has now grown into a religious denomination of considerable influence. In South Africa the Arya Pratinidhi Sabha is one of the best known Hindu organisations wielding influence among the north Indian segment of the Hindu population.

An exploration of so-called Indian identity in South Africa and its transformations after apartheid.