Hinduism in the Maldives
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File:XRF-the don hiyala & alifulhu story.jpg]]
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Evidence suggests that Hinduism had a presence in the ancient Maldives. Hinduism may have marginally existed during the Buddhist period of the islands but disappeared sometime later during that same period. Traces of its influences are still found in modern Maldivian culture and art.
History
Evidence indicates that Hinduism may have had a presence in the ancient Maldives.{{Cite journal |last=Mohamed |first=Naseema |date=2005 |title=Note on the Early History of the Maldives |url=http://dx.doi.org/10.3406/arch.2005.3970 |journal=Archipel |volume=70 |issue=1 |pages=7–14 |doi=10.3406/arch.2005.3970 |issn=0044-8613}} Archaeological remains survive from the 8th or 9th century CE portraying Hindu deities such as Shiva, Lakshmi and the sage Agastya.Xavier Romero-Frias, The Maldive Islanders, A Study of the Popular Culture of an Ancient Ocean Kingdom. Barcelona 1999, {{ISBN|84-7254-801-5}}
It is not known why the last Buddhist king embraced Islam. The importance of the Arabs as traders in the Indian Ocean by the 12th century may partly explain why this king acted. He adopted the Muslim title and name (in Arabic) of Sultan (discarding the old Divehi title of Maha radun or Ras Kilege) Muhammad al Adil, initiating a series of six Islamic dynasties consisting of 84 sultans and sultanas that lasted until 1932, when the sultanate became elective.
According to Merinid traveller Ibn Batuta, the person responsible for this conversion was Muslim visitor Abu al Barakat from Morocco. However, a Maldivian tradition says that he was a Persian saint from Tabriz called Yusuf Shamsuddin. He is also referred to as Tabrizugefaanu. His venerated tomb stands on the grounds of the Friday Mosque, or Hukuru miski, in Malé. Built in 1656, this is the oldest mosque in the Maldives.History of the Maldives
Demography and status
Officially no native Maldivians are Hindus. The state religion is Sunni Islam and conversion is not allowed. Maldivian customs laws prohibit import of any idol for the purpose of worship.[https://www.maldiveshighcommission.uk/index.php/maldives/customs-information/111-visit-maldives#:~:text=It%20is%20prohibited%20for%20tourists,illegal%20drugs%20into%20the%20country VISIT MALDIVES, Customs Information, High Commission of the Republic of Maldives to the United Kingdom][https://maldivesindependent.com/business/maldives-resort-ordered-to-remove-idols-139554 Maldives resort ordered to remove ‘idols’, July 28, 2018] Various sources give the number of Hindu adherents in the Maldives as over 1,000 as of 2015. These figures might represent foreign workers and residents.{{Historical populations
|title = Historical Population
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|source ={{cite web|url=http://www.religiousintelligence.co.uk/country/?CountryID=46|title=Country Profile: Maldives (Republic of Maldives)|access-date=14 February 2015|archive-url=https://archive.today/20070616092301/http://www.religiousintelligence.co.uk/country/?CountryID=46|archive-date=June 16, 2007}}{{cite web|url=http://www.globalreligiousfutures.org/countries/maldives#/?affiliations_religion_id=0&affiliations_year=2010®ion_name=All%20Countries&restrictions_year=2016|title=Religions in Maldives|website=globalreligiousfutures.org|access-date=February 2, 2022|archive-date=May 22, 2016|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160522204137/http://www.globalreligiousfutures.org/countries/maldives#/?affiliations_religion_id=0&affiliations_year=2010®ion_name=All%20Countries&restrictions_year=2016|url-status=dead}}{{cite web|url=https://www.thearda.com/internationalData/countries/Country_140_2.asp|title=Maldives, Religion And Social Profile|website=thearda.com|access-date=February 2, 2022}}
|2007|29
|2010|1097
|2015|1820
}}
{{static row numbers}}
| class="wikitable sortable static-row-numbers static-row-header-text" |
| Year
! Percent ! Increase |
|---|
| 2007
| 0.01% | style="background:" | - |
| 2010
| 0.3% | style="background: green" | +0.29% |
| 2015
| 0.4% | style="background: green" | +0.1% |
Folklore
Maldivian folklore contains legends about the sage Vashishta, known locally as Oditan Kalēge, a mighty sorcerer. Oditan Kalēge's wife is the beautiful Dōgi Aihā who possesses a fiery temperament and is as powerful a sorceress as her husband. Her name is derived from the Sanskrit word Yogini.
Among Maldivian folklore in which the spirit and sorcery theme are not essential, the most significant is perhaps "Don Hiyalā and Alifulhu". This story about two good-looking lovers is a much changed, Maldivian version of the Rāmāyana. Despite the apparent dissimilarities, the common sequential structureVladimir Propp, Morphology of the Folktale, Austin, Texas, 1984, {{ISBN|0-292-78376-0}} linking the elements of the Maldivian story with the Indian epic (the heroic married couple, the wicked and powerful king, the kidnapping of the beautiful heroine, etc.) Based on Ramayana it is related to Hinduism and the religious landscape of South Asia in general. This is hardly unexpected, for all South and Southeast Asian countries have local Rāmayāna variations and the Maldives is part of South Asian culture.
See also
{{Portal|Hinduism|Maldives}}
Notes
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References
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= Sources =
- Asian Variations in Ramayana. Edited by K.R. Srinivasa Iyengar. Sahitya Akademi. Delhi (1983).
- Xavier Romero-Frias, The Maldive Islanders, A Study of the Popular Culture of an Ancient Ocean Kingdom. Barcelona (1999), {{ISBN|84-7254-801-5}}
- Doń Hiyala āi Alifulu. Abdullah Sādigu, Mulī. Novelty Press. Malé (1996).
External links
- [https://web.archive.org/web/20060527023652/http://www.maldivesculture.com/histor01.html Maldives History – original records, articles and translations]
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