This paper explores why Hinduism acts as a source of empowerment for Hindu Surinamese women in The Netherlands following Sanātan Dharm to answer the research question: ‘Why does Hinduism act as a...Show moreThis paper explores why Hinduism acts as a source of empowerment for Hindu Surinamese women in The Netherlands following Sanātan Dharm to answer the research question: ‘Why does Hinduism act as a source of empowerment for Surinamese Hindu women in the Netherlands?’ Currently it is unknown how empowered Surinamese Hindu women pursue Hinduism in The Netherlands. This research investigates the cultural and religious aspects of Hinduism they implement to their lives, why Hinduism acts as a source of empowerment for Hindu Surinamese women, how they combine their Hindu lifestyle with the Western society and how they convey Hinduism. For this, interviews were conducted with twenty women. The outcome was that most respondents express themselves by implementing life lessons from the Bhagavad Gitā. Negative aspects of Hinduism are linked to the marginalization of lower caste and women, who believe everyone should be treated equally. The results indicate that all Hindus define Hinduism not only as a way of life but also connect Hinduism to various concepts such as dharma, arth, kām, moksh and more. Some respondents are vegetarian or do vrat once a week or on religious festivities. They mostly join and celebrate religious festivities. In difficult situations, Hinduism provides guidance, and various deities, such as Durgā Mā, Kāli Mā, Pārvati Mā, Sarasvati Mā, Lakshmi Mā, and Santoshi Mā, are a source of empowerment. Hinduism also brings family together with its culture and religion and provides solace in difficult situations. Although a part of the respondents think that Hinduism is marginalizing women, we can conclude that the positive influence of Hinduism to the extent that it empowers them outweighs this negative aspect. Besides empowerment Hinduism is linked to many more values, such as energy, love, confidence, and peace.Show less
