Hinduism in Saudi Arabia
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Hinduism is the 3rd largest religion in Saudi Arabia, followed by nearly 1.3% of total population residing in the nation. As of 2020, there were nearly 451,347 Hindus residing in Saudi Arabia, among whom most of them were from Indians and Nepalis.[1] There has been a large migration of Indians to Saudi Arabia, with the number of Hindus also witnessing a growth. Hinduism is the fastest growing religion in Saudi Arabia and has been growing since 2001.
Background
| Year | Pop. | ±% |
|---|---|---|
| 2000 | 129,640 | — |
| 2010 | 301,636 | +132.7% |
| 2020 | 451,347 | +49.6% |
| Source: [2][3][4] | ||
Saudi Arabia is an Islamic theocracy.[5] Sunni Islam is the official and State religion of the state and practice of any religion, other than Islam publicly is not allowed. Only Muslims are allowed to acquired the nationality and all of the Hindus living the nation are foreigner based Expatriate and tourism on working and tourist permit.[6]
Though in the recent years, many Indians have migrated to Saudi Arabia for employment, earlier most of them were the Muslims, but after 2001 there has been an increase in population of other religion, mainly Hindus and was also accompanied by the Nepali diaspora to Saudi Arabia, out of whom the majority were Hindus which has lead Hinduism as the fastest growing religion in Saudi Arabia.[7] Though having an adequate population of Hindus, there is no Hindu temple or any other place of worship for non-Muslims and the freedom of religion of non-Muslims is very much limited.[8]
Persecution
Like other non-Muslim religions, Hindus are not permitted to worship publicly in Saudi Arabia. There have also been some complaints of destruction of Hindu religious items by Saudi Arabian authorities.[9][10] Saudi authorities interpret Hindu icons as idols, and idol worship is strongly condemned in Islam. This is likely the foundation for the stringent position of Saudi authorities when it comes to idol worshiper religious practice.[11] Muslims are not allowed to leave Islam as it is punishable by death as apostasy. Proselytizing by non-Muslims, including the distribution of non-Muslim religious materials such as Bibles, Bhagavad Gita, and Ahmedi Books are illegal.
On 24 March 2005, Saudi authorities destroyed religious items found in a raid on a makeshift Hindu shrine found in an apartment in Riyadh.[12]
Demographics
| Year | Percent | Increase |
|---|---|---|
| 2000 | 0.6% | - |
| 2010 | 1.1% | +0.5 |
| 2020 | 1.3% | +0.2% |
See also
References
- ^ "Religions in Saudi Arabia". globalreligiousfutures.org.
- ^ "Country Profile: Saudi Arabia (Kingdom of Saudi Arabia)". Archived from the original on 27 September 2007. Retrieved 14 February 2015.
- ^ "Saudi Arabia". US State Department. Retrieved 31 March 2017.
- ^ "Religions in Saudi Arabia". globalreligiousfutures.org.
- ^ Trakic, Adnan; Benson, John; Ahmed, Pervaiz K. (22 January 2019). Dispute Resolution in Islamic Finance: Alternatives to Litigation?. Routledge. p. 172. ISBN 978-1-351-18889-0.
- ^ "Dozens of Indians apply for Saudi citizenship". gulfnews.com. Retrieved 25 September 2021.
- ^ Desk, India TV News (11 June 2015). "Hinduism fastest growing religion in Pakistan and Saudi Arabia | India TV News". www.indiatvnews.com. Retrieved 25 September 2021.
{{cite web}}:|last=has generic name (help) - ^ Human Rights Watch (9 January 2013), World Report 2013: Saudi Arabia, retrieved 25 September 2021
- ^ On 24 March 2005, Saudi Arabian authorities destroyed religious items found in a raid on a makeshift Hindu shrine found in an apartment in Riyadh. (source: Marshall, Paul. Saudi Arabia's Religious Police Crack Down. Freedom House)
- ^ Hindus in the Middle East Gautam Raja (June 2001) Belief Net
- ^ Marsh, Donna (11 May 2015). Doing Business in the Middle East: A cultural and practical guide for all business professionals. Little, Brown Book Group. ISBN 9781472135674. Retrieved 28 February 2020.
- ^ Marshall, Paul. "Saudi Arabia's Religious Police Crack Down". Archived from the original on 22 May 2006. Retrieved 30 January 2007.. Freedom House
