 | |
| Total population | |
|---|---|
c. 6.8 million (0.49% of the population)[1][2] | |
| Regions with significant populations | |
 United States | 3,369,976 |
 United Kingdom | 1,066,894 |
 Canada | 828,195 |
 Australia | 684,002 |
 Italy | 223.000 |
 Netherlands | 180,000 |
 France | 150,000 |
 Germany | 130,000 |
 New Zealand | 123,534 |
 Spain | 75,000 |
 Switzerland | 50,000 |
 Denmark | 40,000 |
 Ireland | 33,043 |
 Portugal | 19,471 |
 Mexico | 12,601 |
 Belgium | 10,000 |
| Religions | |
| Hinduism Notable Individuals Followed mostly byconverted and immigrantHindus identified as American Hindus, European Hindus, Australian Hindus, British Hindus etc. | |
| Scriptures | |
| Bhagavad Gita andVedas | |
| Languages | |
| |
The reception ofHinduism in theWestern world began in the 19th century, at first at an academic level ofreligious studies and antiquarianinterest in Sanskrit.
During the British colonial period, the British substantially influenced Indian society, but India also influenced the western world. An early champion of Indian-inspired thought in the West wasArthur Schopenhauer who in the 1850s advocated ethics based on an "Aryan-Vedic theme of spiritual self-conquest", as opposed to the ignorant drive toward earthly utopianism of the superficially this-worldly "Jewish" spirit.[6]
In the early 20th century, Western occultists influenced by Hinduism includeMaximiani Portaz – an advocate of "Aryan Paganism" – who styled herselfSavitri Devi andJakob Wilhelm Hauer, founder of theGerman Faith Movement. It was in this period, and until the 1920s, that theswastika became aubiquitous symbol of good luck in the West before its association with theNazi Party became dominant in the 1930s. In 1920,Yogananda came to the United States as India's delegate to an International Congress of Religious Liberals convening inBoston;[7] the same year he founded theSelf-Realization Fellowship (SRF) to disseminate worldwide his teachings on India's ancient practices and philosophy ofYoga and its tradition of meditation.[8]
During the 1960s to 1970s counter-culture,Sathya Sai Baba (Sathya Sai Organization),A.C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupada (ISKCON or "Hare Krishna"),Guru Maharaj Ji (Divine Light Mission) andMaharishi Mahesh Yogi (Transcendental Meditation movement) attracted a notable western following, founding religious or quasi-religious movements that remain active into the present time. This group of movements founded bycharismatic persons with a corpus ofesoteric writings, predominantly in English, is classed as founding, proselytizing religions, or "guru-ism" by Michaels.[9]
Hatha Yoga was popularized from the 1960s byB.K.S. Iyengar,K. Pattabhi Jois and others. However, western practice of Yoga has mostly become detached from its religious or mystic context and is predominantly practicedas exercise oras alternative medicine.[10]
Substantial Hindu emigration fromIndia has taken place since the 1970s. Several million Hindus have moved fromIslamic Republic of Pakistan &People's Republic of Bangladesh toNorth America andWestern Europe to preventreligious persecution.
Jaggi Vasudev, otherwise known asSadhguru has been influential in the revival of New Age Hinduism in the West.[citation needed] By diverging from traditional ways of teaching Hinduism, Sadhguru offers aNew Age Hinduism which resonates with second-generation South-Asian Americans who are navigating the intersection of their Indian roots and Western identity.[11]
Growing out of the enthusiasm for Hinduism in 1960scounterculture, modern westernpopular culture has adopted certain elements ultimately based in Hinduism which are not now considered necessarily practiced in a religious or spiritual setting. It is estimated that around 30 million Americans and 5 million Europeans regularly practice some form ofHatha Yoga, mainlyas exercise.[12] In Australia, the number of practitioners is about 300,000.[13] In New Zealand, the number is also around 300,000.[14]
Author Kathleen Hefferon comments that "In the West, a more modernized "New Age" version of Ayurveda has recently gained popularity as a unique form of complementary and alternative medicine".[15]
"Vegetarianism,nonviolent ethics,yoga, and meditation—all have enjoyed spates of Occidental popularity in the last 40 years, often influenced by ISKCON directly, if not indirectly."[16]
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