ABSTRACT
This chapter will outline the present situation in the field of Hindu religious practice in the Diaspora—specifically the nineteenth-century diaspora of indentured Indians who were transported from India to mostly British colonies in the South Pacific (Fiji), Indian Ocean Islands, and adjacent African countries, as well as islands in and countries contiguous to the Caribbean. We encounter the stories of the Hindus of Fiji, Mauritius, South Africa, and Trinidad, focusing in particular on the descendants of the original nineteenth-century indentured laborers. It will become clear that each location has its own unique story to tell, shaped by such factors as the place of origin of Hindu migrants, the time and conditions of their emigration and the sociopolitical milieu of their ‘new homelands’ (Younger 2009).
