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{{Short description|none}}
{{Infobox religious group
| group = Hinduism in Mauritius
| flag = File:Aum_Om_red.svg
| flag_size = 50px|
| image = Statue_Durga_Mata.jpg
| image_size = 200px
| image_alt =
| image_caption = [[Durga]] in Ganga Talao
| population = {{circa|591,319}} (2022 census) ('''47.87%''' of total population)
|languages= {{Plain list|
* '''Sacred''': [[Sanskrit]] and [[Old Tamil]]
* '''Majority''': [[Bhojpuri language|Bhojpuri]]-[[Awadhi language|Awadhi]], [[Hindi language|Hindi]]-[[Urdu language|Urdu]], [[Marathi languages|Marathi]], [[Tamil language|Tamil]], [[Telugu language|Telugu]], [[Mauritian Creole]], [[English language|English]], [[French language|French]] and [[Languages of South Asia|other South Asian languages]]
}}
| religions = '''[[Hinduism]]''' '''Majority''' [[Sanātana Dharma]] '''Minority''' [[Arya Samaj in Mauritius|Arya Samaj]] and Others
}}

[[Hinduism]] came to [[Mauritius]] when [[Indian people|Indians]] were brought as indentured labourers to [[Isle de France (Mauritius)|French Mauritius]] and later, in much larger numbers, to [[British Mauritius]]' plantation fields and neighbouring islands in the [[Indian Ocean]].<ref>{{cite book|author=Meenakshi Thapan|title=Transnational Migration and the Politics of Identity|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=1cjiKF_VucYC|year=2005|publisher=SAGE Publications|isbn=978-0-7619-3425-7|pages=65–67}}</ref><ref name="ht">{{cite web |url= http://www.hinduismtoday.com/modules/smartsection/item.php?itemid=3759|title= The Hindus of Mauritius|access-date=2007-04-25 |date=2003|last=Malik|first=Rajiv|work=Hinduism Today|publisher=Himalayan Academy}}</ref> These immigrants primarily came from what are now the [[India|Indian States]] of [[Bihar]], [[Uttar Pradesh]], [[Jharkhand]], [[Maharashtra]], [[Tamil Nadu]], [[Telangana]] and [[Andhra Pradesh]] and the [[Madhesh Province]] of [[Nepal]].<ref name="Younger2009p3">{{cite book |author=Paul Younger |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=F0X9eLq57ocC |title=New Homelands: Hindu Communities in Mauritius, Guyana, Trinidad, South Africa, Fiji, and East Africa |publisher=Oxford University Press |year=2009 |isbn=978-0-19-974192-2 |pages=3–8, 30–31, 53–54}}</ref><ref name="CIATONGA">{{cite web |title=Africa: Mauritius |url=https://www.cia.gov/the-world-factbook/countries/mauritius/ |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210109090348/https://www.cia.gov/the-world-factbook/countries/mauritius |url-status=dead |archive-date=January 9, 2021 |access-date=9 July 2020 |publisher=CIA The World Factbook}}</ref>

Hinduism is the largest religion in [[Mauritius]], accounting for approximately 47.87% of the current population according to the 2022 census.<ref>{{Cite web | url=https://statsmauritius.govmu.org/Documents/Census_and_Surveys/Census2022/HPC_TR_Vol2_Demography_Yr22.pdf | title=2022 Housing and population census - Republic of Mauritius | website=statsmauritius.govmu.org}}</ref> As such, Mauritius has the third largest percentage of Hindus in the world, after [[Nepal]] and [[India]], and remains the only country in [[Africa]] where Hinduism forms a plurality of the population.

== Demographics ==
{| class="wikitable"
|-
! Year
! Percentage
! Change
|-
| '''1871'''
| '''51.97%'''
| -
|-
| '''1881'''
| '''55.99%'''
| style="background: #00A300" | '''+4.02%'''
|-
| '''1891'''
| '''56.10%'''
| style="background: lightgreen" | '''+0.11%'''
|-
| '''1901'''
| '''55.62%'''
| style="background: pink" | '''-0.48%'''
|-
| '''1911'''
| '''54.26%'''
| style="background: pink" | '''-1.36%'''
|-
| '''1921'''
| '''52.70%'''
| style="background: pink" | '''-1.56%'''
|-
| '''1931'''
| '''50.37%'''
| style="background: red" | '''-2.33%'''
|-
| '''1941'''
| '''47.26%'''
| style="background: red" | '''-3.11%'''
|-
| '''1951'''
| '''46.97%'''
| style="background: pink" | '''-0.29%'''
|-
| '''1961'''
| '''47.55%'''
| style="background: lightgreen" | '''+0.58%'''
|-
| '''1971'''
| '''49.56%'''
| style="background: #2EB82E" | '''+2.01%'''
|-
| '''1981'''
| '''50.65%'''
| style="background: lightgreen" | '''+1.09%'''
|-
| '''1991'''
| '''50.63%'''
| style="background: pink" | '''-0.02%'''
|-
| '''2001'''
| '''49.64%'''
| style="background: pink" | '''-0.99%'''
|-
| '''2011'''
| '''48.54%'''
| style="background: pink" |
'''-1.10%'''
|-
|'''2022'''
|'''47.87%'''
| style="background: pink" | '''-0.67%'''
|}

==History==
{{Historical populations
|type =
|footnote =
|1871 | 132,652
|1881 | 202,281
|1891 | 209,079
|1901 | 206,131
|1911 | 202,716
|1921 | 201,895
|1931 | 202,192
|1944 | 203,709
|1952 | 241,660
|1962 | 332,851
|1972 | 421,707
|1983 | 506,486
|1990 | 535,028
|2000 | 585,210
|2011 | 600,327
|2022 |591,319|align=left}}The European colonial powers banned slave capture and trading in the first half of the 19th century. The [[British Empire]] banned them in the early decades of the 19th century. However, demand kept rising for low cost, high intensity labor in colonial plantations of sugarcane, cotton, tobacco and other cash crops. The British Empire substituted the slave labour supplies from [[Africa]] with indentured labour supplies from [[Indian subcontinent|India]].<ref name="Younger2009p4">{{cite book|author=Paul Younger|title=New Homelands: Hindu Communities in Mauritius, Guyana, Trinidad, South Africa, Fiji, and East Africa |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=F0X9eLq57ocC |year=2009|publisher=Oxford University Press|isbn=978-0-19-974192-2|pages=3–4}}</ref><ref>{{cite book|author=Steven Vertovik (Robin Cohen, ed.)|title=The Cambridge survey of world migration|year=1995|pages=[https://archive.org/details/cambridgesurveyo00robi/page/57 57–68]|publisher=Cambridge University Press |isbn=978-0-521-44405-7|url-access=registration|url=https://archive.org/details/cambridgesurveyo00robi/page/57}}</ref>

Indentured people brought from India were primarily Hindus, but also Muslims and Christians. They were subject to [[Indentured servant|indenture]], a long-established form of contract which bound them to forced labour for a fixed term; apart from the fixed term of servitude, this resembled slavery.<ref>{{cite book|title=New System of Slavery|first= Hugh | last=Tinker| year=1993| isbn=978-1-870518-18-5| publisher= Hansib Publishing, London}}</ref> The first ships carrying indentured labourers from India left in 1836.<ref name=britain1>{{cite web|title=Forced Labour| year=2010| publisher=The National Archives, Government of the United Kingdom| url= http://www.nationalarchives.gov.uk/pathways/blackhistory/india/forced.htm}}</ref> [[Sugarcane]], a crop that is native to India, does not grow in the cold latitudes such as those found in Europe, but grows in tropical latitudes. It was grown in large colonial tropical plantations to meet the growing European and American demand. It is these sugarcane and other tropical cash crop plantations that brought the indentured Hindus and other migrants from India to [[Republic of Mauritius|Mauritius]], and other tropical colonies such as [[Fiji]], [[Jamaica]], [[Trinidad]], [[Martinique]], [[Suriname]] among others.<ref name=britain1/>

The Hindus and non-Hindus who accepted indentured labour contracts and were brought to Mauritius faced difficult conditions in India. [[Poverty in India#Before Independence|Poverty in colonial India]], [[Starvation diet|starvation]], [[Epidemic|epidemics]] and severe periodic [[Famine in India|famines]] in [[British Raj]] were rampant during colonial rule.<ref name="Northrup1995p62">{{cite book|author=David Northrup|title=Indentured Labor in the Age of Imperialism, 1834-1922|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=kS84AAAAIAAJ&pg=PA62|year=1995|publisher=Cambridge University Press|isbn=978-0-521-48047-5|pages=62–67}}</ref><ref name="Emmer1986">{{cite book|author=Pieter C. Emmer|title=Colonialism and Migration; Indentured Labour Before and After Slavery |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=cudhBAAAQBAJ |year=1986|publisher=Springer |isbn=978-94-009-4354-4|pages=194–199, for context see 187–199|chapter=Chapter 9: The meek Hindu, the recruitment of Indian indentured labourers for service overseas}}</ref> Millions of Indians died from mass starvation during the 19th-century British India.<ref name="Davis2002p6">{{cite book|author=Mike Davis|author-link=Mike Davis (scholar)|title=Late Victorian Holocausts: El Nino Famines and the Making of the Third World|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=2LjYUY3LHkoC|year=2002|publisher=Verso Books|isbn=978-1-78168-061-2|pages=6–11, 54–59, 167–173}}</ref> The extreme circumstances broke families, villages and triggered migrations. By 1839, Mauritius already had 25,000 Indians working in slave-like conditions in its colonial plantations, but these were predominantly men since colonial labour laws prevented women and children from accompanying them. In the 1840s, a severe shortage of cheap labour in British plantation colonies led to the systematic shipment of a large number of Indian indentured labourers to Mauritius, both men and women, particularly from the ports of [[Port of Kolkata|Calcutta]], [[Bombay Port|Bombay]] and [[Madras Port|Madras]]. The Hindus and non-Hindus of India who arrived in Mauritius were a small percentage of the over 30 million indentured Indian workers shipped around the colonial world between the 18th and early 20th century (many of whom returned after serving for years on plantations).<ref name="Marriott2016">{{cite book|author=Michael Mann|editor=John Marriott |title=The Ashgate Research Companion to Modern Imperial Histories| url=https://books.google.com/books?id=zs3OCwAAQBAJ | year=2016| publisher=Routledge|isbn=978-1-317-04251-8|chapter=Chapter 16: Circulation and Migration}}</ref>

By the time Mauritius gained independence from the British Empire, a majority of its population were of Indian heritage. About 70% of Mauritius' total population is of Indian origin. Those who identify as Hindu constitute about 48% of the total population, and make up about 69% of those of Indian origin.<ref>{{cite book|author=Patrick Eisenlohr|title=Little India: Diaspora, Time, and Ethnolinguistic Belonging in Hindu Mauritius|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=QFzcGV9FlxgC|year=2006|publisher=University of California Press|isbn=978-0-520-24879-3|pages=7–8}}</ref>

==Languages==
The majority language spoken by Hindus, like with any other ethnic group on the island, is [[Mauritian Creole]]. [[Mauritian Bhojpuri]], [[Marathi language|Marathi]], [[Tamil language|Tamil]] and [[Telugu language|Telugu]] are still spoken but have been in sharp decline as mother tongue but are taught as ancestral languages in public schools.<ref name=eisenlohr51>{{cite book|author=Patrick Eisenlohr|title=Little India: Diaspora, Time, and Ethnolinguistic Belonging in Hindu Mauritius|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=QFzcGV9FlxgC|year=2006|publisher=University of California Press|isbn=978-0-520-24879-3|pages=51–55}}</ref> Politically active Hindus have attempted to preserve [[Hindi]] by calling it their [[mother tongue]] and [[Indigenous language|ancestral language]], erasing differences between Bhojpuri and Hindi, despite the fact that the latter language was never spoken natively in Mauritius. Most Hindus mainly use Mauritian Creole in their daily lives – a [[French-based creole languages|French-based creole]] language that developed on the island in the colonial era, through contact between various groups, including Indians and Africans.<ref>{{cite book|author=Patrick Eisenlohr|title=Little India: Diaspora, Time, and Ethnolinguistic Belonging in Hindu Mauritius|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=QFzcGV9FlxgC|year=2006|publisher=University of California Press|isbn=978-0-520-24879-3|pages=72–73}}</ref>

Mauritius produces many [[Bhojpuri language]] television programs on the [[Mauritius Broadcasting Corporation]], the state-owned TV channel.<ref name="eisenlohr67">{{cite book |author=Patrick Eisenlohr |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=QFzcGV9FlxgC |title=Little India: Diaspora, Time, and Ethnolinguistic Belonging in Hindu Mauritius |publisher=University of California Press |year=2006 |isbn=978-0-520-24879-3 |pages=67–69, 207–208}}</ref> Hindus in Mauritius that widely use Bhojpuri reside in the rural south and the north-central region near [[:fr:La Nicolière|La Nicolière]]. They primarily hail from the [[Indo-Gangetic Plain|Gangetic plain regions]] of western [[Bihar|Bihar State]] and eastern [[Uttar Pradesh|Uttar Pradesh State]] of [[India]], and their mother tongue is a modified form – a [[Koiné language|koiné]] – of the original Bhojpuri language that is spoken in India by the [[Bhojpuri people]].<ref name="Hollup 1994 297">{{cite journal | last=Hollup | first=Oddvar | title=The Disintegration of Caste and Changing Concepts of Indian Ethnic Identity in Mauritius | journal=Ethnology | volume=33 | issue=4 | year=1994 | pages=297–316 | doi=10.2307/3773901 | doi-access=free | jstor=3773901 }}</ref>

==Social stratification and caste system==
The first [[Hindus]] that settled in Mauritius did not observe the [[Caste system in India|caste system]] and [[Inter-caste|inter-caste restrictions]] have been unimportant in Mauritius.<ref>{{cite journal | last=Grieco | first=Elizabeth M. | title=The Effects of Migration on the Establishment of Networks: Caste Disintegration and Reformation among the Indians of Fiji | journal=International Migration Review | volume=32 | issue=3 | year=1998 | pages=704–736 | doi=10.2307/2547769 | jstor=2547769 | pmid=12293998 }}</ref> Most scholars observe that this may be because "the economic and political conditions in the host societies where Indian indentured labourers were introduced had conditions that were not conducive to the maintenance of caste", and that caste was not a principle of social organisation as all Indian labourers ([[Coolie|Coolies]]) were "doing the same kind of work and sharing the same living conditions".<ref>{{cite journal | last=Jayawardena | first=Chandra | title=Migration and Social Change: A Survey of Indian Communities Overseas | journal=Geographical Review | volume=58 | issue=3 | year=1968 | pages=426–449 | doi=10.2307/212565 | jstor=212565 | bibcode=1968GeoRv..58..426J }}</ref>

However, casteism has become an integral part of Mauritian politics. The major political parties which are involved in general elections propose Hindu candidates on the basis of their castes in order to match the caste demographics of voters in each constituency and district.<ref>{{cite web |last1=G. |first1=R. |title=The fallacy of the caste system in Mauritius |date=7 June 2017 |url=https://lexpress.mu/idee/309149/fallacy-caste-system-mauritius |publisher=L'Express |access-date=2017-06-07}}</ref> Casteism is a major consideration by politicians who strictly respect this system although they tend to publicly deny its existence in Mauritius.<ref>{{cite web |title=Portrait: Atma Doolooa, un chamar fier de l'être |date=8 July 2012 |url=https://www.lemauricien.com/actualites/societe/portrait-atma-doolooa-chamar-fier-letre/119171/ |publisher=Le Mauricien |access-date=2012-07-08}}</ref> What is now known as the ''Vaish'' caste in Mauritius is a relatively recent innovation which did not exist when Coolies arrived on the island in and after 1836. In Mauritius, the term ''Vaish'' nowadays collectively refers to the sub castes Ahir, Koyri, Kurmi and Nonya.

Another relatively modern form of stratification emerged in 1983 when the [[Mauritian Militant Movement|MMM]] attempted to isolate the Hindi-speaking Hindus by inventing the new group ''TTM'' (Tamil, Telegu, Marathi). The MMM also attempted to separate the ''[[Ravived]]'' and ''Rajput'' castes from the ''Vaish'' group for political gains during the 1983 elections, but these methods failed as the MMM lost these elections after being in power for less than a year.<ref>{{cite web |title=Kurmi, Ahir, Blanc, Kurmi, Ahir, re-Ahir… |date=5 February 2017 |url=https://lexpress.mu/idee/299542/kurmi-ahir-blanc-kurmi-ahir-re-ahir |publisher=L'Express |access-date=2017-02-05}}</ref>

==Major Hindu festivals==

[[File:Mauritius Divali Diwali Lighting and Decorations 2010.jpg|thumb|]]<big>[[Hindu Festival of Lights|The Hindus in Mauritius observe major festivals, such as Divali in Port Louis above.]]</big>

* [[Maha Shivaratri|Mahashivratri]] ("The Great Night of Shiva") is one of the biggest Hindu festivals occurring on a public holiday celebrated in Mauritius mainly by [[Biharis|Bihari]] Hindus and also other Hindu communities. During this annual Hindu celebration, which takes place in the months of February and March, seven to sometimes forty days of [[fasting]] and ongoing preparations for [[pilgrimage]] to bring the [[Holy water|Ganga Jal]] from [[Ganga Talao]] finally lead up to an overnight [[vigil]] of [[Shiva|Lord Shiva]]'s worship.

Other important Hindu festivals in Mauritius include:<ref>{{cite book|author=Jan Dodd|title=Mauritius, Réunion & Seychelles|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=G_H5-2H_OcUC&pg=PA134|year=2004|isbn=978-1-74059-301-4|pages=93, 134 |publisher=Lonely Planet }}</ref>
* [[Thaipusam]] [[Kavadi Aattam|Cavadee]], honoring [[Batu Caves Murugan Statue|Lord Murugan]]/[[Kartikeya]]. This Hindu festival is particularly observed by [[Tamils|Tamil]] Hindus, hence is attributed as a public holiday to them.<ref>{{cite journal | last1=Xygalatas | first1=D. | last2=Mitkidis | first2=P. | last3=Fischer|display-authors=etal | first3=R. |title=Extreme Rituals Promote Prosociality | journal=Psychological Science | volume=24 | issue=8 | year=2013 | pages=1602–1605 | doi=10.1177/0956797612472910 | pmid=23740550| url=https://pure.au.dk/ws/files/54437983/Psychological_Science_2013_Xygalatas_0956797612472910.pdf }}</ref>
* [[Ganesh Chaturthi]], a Hindu festival occurring on a public holiday assigned to the extensive [[Marathi people|Marathi]]-speaking community, celebrates the birth of [[Ganesha|Lord Ganesha]].
* [[Shravani Mela|Shravan Maas]], an annual Hindu festival occurring during [[Shravana (month)|monsoon month]], is celebrated just like [[Maha Shivaratri|Mahashivratri]] on the island. [[Pilgrimage|Pilgrims]]/[[Devotion (group)|devotees]] fast during it and walk/travel to [[Ganga Talao]] to fetch [[Holy water|Ganga Jal]] so they can offer it on [[Lingam|Shivling]].
* [[Durga Puja in Kolkata|Durga Puja]]/[[Navaratri|Navratri]], celebrated in honour of the titular [[Durga|Goddess Durga]] over nine days and nine nights venerating her nine different forms. This Hindu festival comes twice in a year, during March to April months and October to November months.
* [[Diwali|Divali]] ("The Festival of Lights"), also known as Deepawali. This Hindu festival is a national public holiday in Mauritius. It is widely popular, cuts across ethnic barriers, with [[General Population (Mauritius)|Mauritian Christians]] observing it as well.
* [[Ugadi]]/[[Gudi Padwa]], a Hindu New Year festival occurring on a public holiday particularly observed by [[Telugu people|Telugus]] and [[Marathi people|Marathis]] respectively.
* [[Holi]] ("The Festival of Colors") is also widely popular and cuts across ethnic barriers where everyone celebrate it together. One day before it [[Holika Dahan]] is being performed together with [[Chowtal|Chawtaal]] which is an [[Indian folk music]].
* [[Rama Navami|Ram Nawmi]], celebrated in honour of the ideal King of [[Ayodhya (Ramayana)|Ayodhya]] [[Rama|Lord Rama]] who is the embodiment of a man's perfect character. Apart the [[Tamils|Tamil]] Hindus, other Hindu communities celebrate it grandly specially [[Awadhi people|Awadhis]]. Coincidently it comes together with March-April months of [[Durga Puja|Durga Nawmi]].
* [[Pongal (festival)|Pongal]]/[[Makar Sankranti]], a Hindu harvest festival dedicated to the [[Hindu deities|Sun God]] [[Surya]], particularly observed by [[Tamils|Tamil]] and [[Biharis|Bihari]] Hindus respectively. It is also known as [[Uttarayana|Uttarayan]] in other Hindu communities.
* [[Hanuman Jayanti]], a Hindu festival celebrating the birth of [[ape]] [[Hanuman|God Hanuman]] who is famous for his great devotion towards [[Rama|Lord Rama]]. On this occasion [[Hanuman Chalisa]] is being chanted 108 times.
* [[Krishna Janmashtami]], a Hindu festival celebrating the birth of [[Dvārakā|Dwarka]] King [[Krishna|Lord Krishna]]. Every year during this occasion [[ISKCON guru system|ISKCON]] organises the [[Jagannath]] [[Ratha Yatra|Rath Yatra]].

==Temples in Mauritius==

The [[International Society for Krishna Consciousness]] maintains several temples in [[Mauritius]].
<gallery mode="packed" heights="150px">
Ile maurice 1463a.jpg|[[Ganesha]]
Sagar Shiv Mandir 1.jpg|[[Sagar Shiv Mandir|Sagar Shiv Mandir, Poste de Flacq]]
Temple vers trou aux biches.JPG|[[Maheswarnath Mandir|Maheswarnath Mandir, Triolet]]
GangaTalaoLake.jpg|Temple at [[Ganga Talao]]'s [[Grand Bassin (Mauritius)|Grand Bassin]]
</gallery>

==See also==
{{Portal|Hinduism|Religion
}}
* [[Hinduism in Africa]]
* [[Religion in Mauritius]]
* [[Demographics of Mauritius]]
* [[Hindu eschatology]]

==References==
{{reflist|30em}}

== External links ==

* {{Commons category-inline|Hinduism in Mauritius}}
{{Hinduism in Africa}}

[[Category:Hinduism in Mauritius| ]]
[[Category:Religion in Mauritius]]

Hinduism in Mauritius - Revision history

FerminDodson605 at 22:56, 28 March 2026