Hindu activity in Singapore is dominated by Singh See SIKHISM.
the majority Tamil-speaking community. Local temples tend to be home to devotees of both SHAIVISM and VAISHNAVISM and the major deities Singh, Charan See SANT MAT MOVEMENT. each reveres. It is also not uncommon to see Bud- dhist and even Christian images in the temples. This syncretism is promoted in line with official Singh, Guru Gobind (1666–1708) 10th Sikh government policies focused on building religious guru harmony in the very diverse religious community Guru Gobind Singh was the 10th and final Sikh of Singapore. In 1978, the community established GURU in the lineage of Guru NANAK, the founder the Hindu Center to facilitate the transmission of of SIKHISM. He established the beliefs and prac- Hinduism to the younger generation. tices that the community follows to this day, The annual life of the community in Singapore including the devotion to scripture as the only is punctuated by several festivals, all of which GURU. have become public events attended by many Gobind Rai was born on December 22, 1666, non-Hindus. Especially notable is the annual to Guru Tegh Bahadur, the ninth Sikh guru, and Thaipusam festival, a Shaivite festival celebrating Mata Gujari in Patna in Bihar state. The young the birthday of Lord Subramaniam, the younger boy was taught the language of Bihari and Guru- son of Lord SHIVA, which occurs toward the end mukhi script as a child and was schooled in the of January each year. Interestingly, this festival life and deeds of the previous gurus. He was was outlawed in India for many years because of given a comprehensive education of India: the bloody hook swinging and body piercing and Sin- historical, social, religious, and political context. gapore is one of the few places where it survives. In keeping with the Sikh tradition he was also The week-long festival culminates in an all-day trained in music, prayers, and the use of weapons. procession in which young men carry a heavy He was raised in a family who held close relations structure honoring the deity from one temple to with both Hindus and Muslims. He spent much of another through Singapore. his childhood playing on the banks of the GANGES Since the 1930s, the Hindu community in River and was said to be bold, with all the mak- Singapore has witnessed impulses for reform, ings of a leader. including resistance to BRAHMIN domination of the Guru Gobind’s father met a violent death temples, elevation of the status of women, and the when the boy was less than 10 years old; Sikhs social equity of different castes. claim he was executed by Emperor Aurangzeb, Mughal ruler of India, as part of a campaign to Further reading: Jean Pierre Mialaret, Hinduism in convert India to Islam. Controversy surrounds the Singapore: A Guide to the Hindu Temples of Singapore details, but the martyrdom of Guru Tegh Bahadur (Singapore: Asia Pacific Press, 1969); Jagat K. Motwani remains part of the Sikh belief system. et al., eds., Global Indian Diaspora: Yesterday, Today and In 1675, the family made a long journey to Tomorrow (New York: Global Organisation of People Punjab, and in November of that year Gobind of Indian Origin, 1993); K. S. Sandhu and A. Mani, Rai was initiated as the 10th Sikh guru. Although eds., Indian Communities in South East Asia (Singapore: still a child, he was said to be very self-aware. He Times Academic Press, 1993); Vineeta Sinha, A New continued to train in philosophy, politics, and God in the Diaspora? Muneeswaran Worship in Con- weaponry. The popularity of the Sikh tradition temporary Singapore (Honolulu: University of Hawaii continued to spread across India, drawing both Press, 2005). Muslim and Hindu disciples.