assassins were later executed, they became heroes
to Sikhs.
Sikhs had largely been confined to India until
the 20th century. Their migration outward was in
part motivated by the same factors that sent other
groups to the West, but was also stimulated by the
tensions created in the Punjab as the community
revived. Many Sikhs targeted by the government
for their activity as Sikh nationalists migrated
to continue their efforts from a base outside
India. Before immigration was curtailed, several
thousand Sikhs immigrated to western Canada
and the United States. Others took advantage of
regulations that allowed free movement through
the British Commonwealth to settle in the United
Kingdom.
Migration by Sikhs into the United States
increased considerably after anti-Asian immigra-
tion laws were rescinded in 1965. Today, several
hundred thousand Sikhs reside in North America.
American Sikhs hosted Sikh leaders in 1984 for
the founding of the World Sikh Organization,
which took place in New York City. As the Ameri-
can Sikh community grew, it organized the Sikh
Foundation in the 1970s, which has more recently
been succeeded by the Sikh Council of North
America. The council seeks to coordinate and pro-
vide communication among the many gurudwaras
across the continent.
As the Sikh community expanded in the
1970s, it was faced with a new and different phe-
nomenon. A man popularly known as Yogi BHAJAN
arrived in Los Angeles and claimed to be a Sikh
teacher, but also a teacher of HATHA and KUNDALINI
and TANTRIC yoga. He organized a movement of
mostly young adult men and women, which he
called the Sikh Dharma, though it was better
known through its educational arm, the HEALTHY,
HAPPY, HOLY ORGANIZATION (3HO). After a period
of controversy, the Sikh Dharma was recognized
as a valid expression of Sikhism, but because of
its growth through conversion of individual mem-
bers, rather than growth through heredity, it has
remained a separate organization.
Further reading: W. Owen Cole, Teach Yourself Sikhism
(Chicago: NTC Publishing Group, 1994); K. S. Dug-
gal, The Sikh People Yesterday and Today (New Delhi:
UBSPD, 1993); Max Arthur Macauliffe, The Sikh Reli-
gion, Its Gurus, Sacred Writings and Authors, vols. 1–6
(New Delhi: S. Chand, 1985); Nikky-Guninder Kaur
Singh, Sikhism (New York: Facts On File, 1993); H. S.
Singha and Satwant Kaur, Sikhism: A Complete Introduc-
tion (New Delhi: Hemkunt Press, 1994).Singapore
Indian migrants began to arrive in what was Brit-
ish Malaya during the 19th century, primarily
with the intent of finding employment on the sug-
arcane and rubber plantations that British entre-
preneurs had established. The Crown Colony of
Singapore served as an initial point of arrival for
Indian migrants, most of whom quickly moved
north. However, many chose to stay on the island.
Most were from lower-caste families, and more
than 60 percent from Tamil Nadu state. By 1900
some 16,000 had arrived.
By the beginning of the 20th century, four
Hindu temples had been established in Singapore.
The oldest of these, Sri Mariammam, was started
in 1827; the present structure was erected in
1843 and dedicated to the goddess MARIYAMMAN,
revered for her healing powers. In 1905, after
complaints of mismanagement affecting a variety
of religious institutions, administration of the
temples was turned over to the Mohammedan
and Hindu Charitable Endowments Board. That
board continued to exist until 1969, when it was
split into two boards, one for each religion. In
1915, a second structure, the Hindu Advisory
Board, was established to advise the government
on Hinduism. Both boards continue to the pres-
ent. In the meantime the number of temples had
grown to around 30 and the number of Hindus
of Indian extraction had risen to about 225,000.
The Indian community is now the third largest
ethnic group in Singapore behind the Chinese
and Malays.Singapore 415 J