Hinduism
(4%) in Singapore
Vividly contrasted with
Buddhism, Islam, or Christianity, people always visualize
Hinduism as a ritualistic religion. Hinduism does not rely on
one founding figure as Jesus Christ for Christianity, Siddharta
Gautama for Buddhism, and Mohammed for Islam, but it is a
religion with many gods and goddesses. In addition, the sacred
scriptures have no forceful influence to its observers as the
Bible or Quran do to their religious followers. Only the Vedas
are considered as the holy texts, but they are not used as a
guidebook for one's conduct in modern India.
Hinduism was brought into
Singapore by Indians. Four out of five of early Indian migrants
were Hindu, mostly the Tamils from Southern India. According to
its religious functions shown mostly through sacred rituals, it
is unquestionably considered as a primitive and magical
religion. Hindus also tend to state that people do not turn or
proselytize to be Hindu, but are originally born to be Hindu.
The growth of Hinduism in Singapore depends on the migration of
social groups as well as on the newly-born children from Hindu
families rather than performances of missionaries.
The lifestyle of Hindus is so
much influenced by religion, evidenced by various rituals.
Furthermore, Hindu families have altars or prayer rooms in their
houses for daily religious practice.
The Hindu temples are the place
where the Hindus publicly express their belief and faith in
addition to carrying out the rituals and other religious
practices. Today, there are twenty-four Hindu temples in
Singapore. The two of these are the Sri Mariamman Temple in
South Bridge Road and the Sri Srinivasa Perumal Temple in
Sarangoon, both of which have become the national monuments.
Due to the social assistance
from the government, two organizations were established for
dealing with Hindu religious affairs:
1) The Hindu Endowments Board, set up in 1967
2) The Hindu Advisory Board
The former one administers and
manages four temples:
- The Sri Mariamman Temple
- The Sri Srinivasa Perumal
- The Sri Sivan
- The Sri Vairavimada Kaliamman
Many religious festivals and
events, such as Thaipusam (penitential Kawadi procession),
Thimithi (fire-walking ceremony), and Navarathiri (nine nights'
prayer) are carried out at the Hindu temples.
While the Hindu Advisory Board
deals with the government on cases concerning the Hindu religion
and customs and on matters affecting the general welfare of the
Hindu community.
Whenever Hindus suffer sickness
or difficulty, they often supplicate for assistance from their
particular divinity, vowing to perform a ritual performance if
the recovery finally happens. Vows to a divinity may range from
fruit to meat, and meat to the construction of the temples.
In contemporary Singapore,
Hinduism is typically represented through its religious devotion
in showing respect by actions such as fire walking, a
breathtaking, spectacular ritual, or Kawadi that attracts the
visitors around the world. These religious ceremonies are widely
mentioned in every Singapore's tourist pamphlets.
Related Articles about
Religion in Singapore:
This article is authored and
copyrighted by
Royal Exclusive Travel
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