Hinduism in Canada

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Hinduism in Canada generally originate from two distinct streams of Hindus. One from immigrants starting from Indo-Canadian pioneers of 100 years ago in British Columbia until today and the other is native converts to the various sects of the religion through the efforts of Hare Krishna and other organizations and Gurus from India during the last 50 years. According to the 2001 Census of Canada, there were 297,200 practitioners of Hindu, the vast majority (217,000) of which resided in Ontario.^[1]. Other provinces with significant Hindu populations include British Columbia (primarily around the Vancouver area) and Quebec (primarily around the Monteral area).

1 Early Hindus
2 Hindu Converts
3 Recent immigrant Hindus
4 Temple Societies
5 Reference
6 Notes
7 External links

[edit] Early Hindus

Early South Asian migration to Canada was primarily done by Punjabi Sikh individuals but within this group of early pioneers there were also many Hindus. All South Asian migrants, regardless of religion, were referred to as ‘’Hindoos’’ by the predominantly White British Columbians. These early Hindus maintained their religious traditions in an entirely hostile environment which viewed the so-called colored immigrants as a threat to the British culture and way of life prevalent at that time. These male pioneers could not marry brides from India up until the 1930s, and did not have the right to vote in Federal elections until 1947. Religious life was centered around homes and Bhajans organized by community members.

[edit] Hindu Converts

Since 1960s many westerners attracted by the world view presented in Asian religious systems including Hinduism have converted to Hinduism. Canada was no exception. Many native born Canadians of various ethnicities have converted during the last 50 years through the actions of Hare Krishna, Arya Samaj and other missionary organizations as well as due to the incessant activities of Indian Gurus such as Guru Maharaj the controversial Rajneesh, Sai Baba and others.

[edit] Recent immigrant Hindus

Due to the liberalization of Canadian immigration policies many Hindus from India, Pakistan, Bangladesh, Sri Lanka, Trinidad, Guyana and Eastern African nations such as Kenya, Uganda and Tanzania along with South Africa have arrived in the great metropolises of Montreal, Toronto and Vancouver.

[edit] Temple Societies

These communities have formed over 100 temple societies across the country that essentially functions community organizations. Some of these associations also have established private schools in Toronto to compete with secular and Catholic school boards that most Hindu students go to.