Abstract
This chapter discusses the growth and expansion of the International Society for Krishna Consciousness (ISKCON), popularly referred to as the “Hare Krishnas,” within the context of the socio-political situation in Singapore. It will focus on the interactions between the State and ISKCON and the strategies undertaken by the latter to establish its presence in Singapore. The choice of Singapore serves as a suitable exemplar of a dynamic cosmopolitan city-state composed of people from a variety of religious orientations and a democratic authoritarian government. Moreover, the availability of a range of empirical studies on religiosity in Singapore and the benefit of a rich database of policies of a four-decade rule of a single political party renders the Singapore State an ideal case study. ISKCON, which until the late 1980s was widely accepted as a world-rejecting new religious movement (NRM) both in Western and Asian societies, serves as a good example of a classic NRM that emerged during the counterculture period in the 1960s and has undergone various forms of internal and external transformations in its struggle for survival and expansion. The intersection of a new authoritarian state exercising a large measure of control over the lives of its citizens who are engaged in meeting the state’s objective of material prosperity and modernization with that of a new but traditional religious movement with monastic inclinations and whose proselytizing methods are deliberately of high public visibility promises to be a dramatic encounter. According to Rosalind Hackett, the right to express and practice one’s religion is subject to restrictions that can be imposed by the state in the interests of public order, security, and decency. Specifically the recognition of the right to proselytize in any particular context is a good indicator of respect for the range of rights related to freedom of religion and belief. It is often the minority or sectarian groups like ISKCON that are the litmus test, and therefore its measure of freedom to proselytize in Singapore will be discussed here.
This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.
Access this chapter
Tax calculation will be finalised at checkout
Purchases are for personal use only
Notes
- 1.
Chua, Communitarian Ideology and Democracy in Singapore.
- 2.
Christensen, “The Conduct of Religious Conduct,” 11.
- 3.
For example, in this volume (Chap. 11), Neena Mahadev describes how the Catholic Church in Sri Lanka has distanced itself from the charismatic elements of Christianity, such as faith-healing and praise and worship sessions, and instead engages in a performance of “sobriety” and in dialogue with Buddhist nationalist political figures to ensure continuity of their established religious space.
- 4.
Reynolds, Interactionism: Exposition and Critique, 101.
- 5.
Ibid., 7.
- 6.
A sikha is a tuft of hair kept at the back of the head by traditional Vaishnavas and Brahmins.
- 7.
“Apology for the Hindu Priest in NS Issue,” http://www.thepetitionsite.com/2/help-save-madana-mohan-das/. Accessed July 7, 2011.
- 8.
The Straits Times, July 27, 2009.
- 9.
The courts eventually permitted them to continue the public chanting. See Das (1999).
- 10.
Satsvarupa Das Goswami, Srila Prabhupada Lilamrta.
- 11.
Prominent places like airports and busy streets were selected for this. See Rochford (1985).
- 12.
I had also written to the Ministry of Home Affairs, which oversees the management of religion in Singapore to request an interview. I was hoping to get the official viewpoint on religious movements and to verify the claims made by ISKCON members. However my request was declined and I was provided with a general message which said that the government maintains a neutral position on religious matters and acts only to maintain social harmony and cohesion and that, “No one is allowed to break our laws with impunity or act in a fashion that undermines national interest on account of his religious beliefs.” This response reflects the official viewpoint that was discussed in the previous sections.
- 13.
I gathered insights into the respondents’ lives and perceptions through weekly interactions, friendships, informal conversations, and socializing, as well as from recorded interviews. Prior to conducting this research, I had already developed a personal interest in Gaudiya Vaishnavism, had begun attending programs, and had become vegetarian. The advantages of participant observation, developing friendships with devotees, and displaying a genuine personal interest in Vaishnava philosophy and culture allowed me to gain the trust of the devotees and garner deeper insights into their perspectives.
- 14.
The suffix “Das” will be used for male initiated members, as that is how they are addressed in devotee circles.
- 15.
Letter to Bali Mardan, June 2, 1971.
- 16.
Satsvarupa Das Goswami, Srila Prabhupada Lilamrta, 89.
- 17.
Janananda Das, Prabhupada in Malaysia, 26.
- 18.
To “join full-time” is a colloquial term used in ISKCON to refer to members who give up their job or studies to live and serve in the temple.
- 19.
An ISKCON member is considered to have “fallen-down” when he or she breaks one of the four regulative principles of no meat-eating, illicit sex, intoxication, and gambling.
- 20.
Tamil Murasu, October 14, 1989.
- 21.
In contrast to ISKCON, the Yiguan Dao sect formally registered itself as Tong Tou Teck Hwee in Singapore, a moral society that promotes Confucian values and Chinese culture. The group did not register as a religion at least in part due to its illegal status in China and Taiwan and the negative views held by orthodox Chinese religions. See Francis Lim Khek Ghee’s Chap. 9 in this volume.
- 22.
Religious organizations that are registered as welfare societies are not allowed to proselytize under the guise of welfare organizations, which could explain why ISKCON was not registered as a welfare society.
- 23.
A monk in the renounced order of life according to Vedic precepts.
- 24.
However a few foreign monks I interviewed revealed that they were allowed to pass through the customs in their customary robes. They were Indians.
- 25.
However respondents added that there were instances where leaders of Hindu organizations such as the Hindu Endowments Board and Hindu Advisory Board had attended ISKCON programs and had cordial meetings with the devotees. Furthermore in 1998, an ISKCON devotee spearheaded the organization of a large-scale collaborative program in which the entire Bhagavad-Gita was recited in the Srinivas Perumal temple and which involved the participation of several Hindu groups and leaders.
- 26.
Julia Huang, this volume (Chap. 10).
- 27.
For example, after their ratha yathra in 2009, they submitted a report on a public Hare Krishna website titled, “Muslim MP attends Singapore Ratha Yathra 2009.” http://www.harekrsna.com/sun/news/07-09/news2830.htm. Accessed July 7, 2011.
- 28.
Dasa (2009); and Rathayatra UK, http://www.rathayatra.co.uk. Accessed July 7, 2011.
- 29.
Daniel Goh, this volume (Chap. 7).
References
Beckford, J. A. (1985). Cult controversies: The societal response to the new religious movements. London/New York: Travistock Publications.
Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupada, A. C. (1987). Srimad Bhagavatam. 1st canto (p. 10). Mumbai: Bhaktivedanta Book Trust.
Christensen, S. (2007). The conduct of religious conduct: Ambiguities of secularism in Singapore. Paper presented at the conference on secularism and beyond, Copenhagen.
Chua, B. H. (1995). Communitarian ideology and democracy in Singapore (p. 2). London/New York: Routledge.
Clammer, J. (1991). The sociology of Singapore religion: Studies in Christianity and Chinese culture. Singapore: Chopmen Publishers.
Daner, F. J. (1976). The American children of Krsna: A study of the hare Krsna movement (p. 6). New York: Holt, Rinehart and Winston.
Das, K. (1999). The great transcendental adventure. Botany: Chakra Press.
Das Goswami, S. (1983). Srila Prabhupada lilamrta: Vol. 5. Let there be a temple: India, around the world 1971–1975 (6 Vols.). Mumbai: Bhaktivedanta Book Trust.
Dasa, S. (2009, May 23). Baltimore mayor proclaims hare Krishna Ratha Yathra Day. ISKCON News. http://news.iskcon.com/node/2033/2009-05. Accessed 7 July 2011.
Giddens, A. (1984). The constitution of society (p. 88). Berkeley: University of California Press.
Goffman, E. (1959). The presentation of self in everyday life. Edinburgh: University of Edinburgh/Social Sciences Research Centre.
Gramsci, A. (1973). Letters from prison. New York: Harper and Row.
Hackett, R. I. J. (Ed.). (2008). Proselytization revisited: Rights talk, free markets and culture (p. 4). London/Oakville: Equinox Publishing.
Hunter, H., & Price, P. (2001). Regulation of religious proselytism in the United States. Brigham Young University Law Review, 2001, 537–574. http://www.law2.byu.edu/lawreview/archives/2001/2/hun6.pd
Janananda Das. (1996). Prabhupada in Malaysia. Mumbai: Bhaktivedanta Book Trust.
Johnson, G. (1976). The hare Krishna in San Francisco. In C. Glock & R. Bellah (Eds.), The new religious consciousness (pp. 31–51). Berkeley: University of California Press.
Knott, K. (2000). In every town and village: Adaptive strategies in the communication of Krishna consciousness in the UK, the first thirty years. Social Compass, 47(2), 153–166.
Kong, L. (1993). Negotiating conceptions of sacred space: A case study of religious buildings in Singapore. Transactions, Institute of British Geographers, New Series, 18(3), 342–358.
Lee, K. Y. (1979). Preface. In K. S. Goh (Ed.), Report on the ministry of education. Singapore: Ministry of Education.
Ling, T. (1987). Buddhism, Confucianism and the secular state in Singapore. Singapore: National University of Singapore.
Miliband, R. (1969). The state in capitalist society. London: Quartet.
Pereira, A. A. (2005). Religiosity and economic development in Singapore. Journal of Contemporary Religion, 20(3), 161–178.
Reynolds, L. T. (1993). Interactionism: Exposition and critique. Lanham: Rowman and Littlefield.
Rochford, E. B. (1984). Movement and public in conflict: Values, finances, and the decline of Hare Krishna. Paper presented at the southern sociological society. Knoxville.
Rochford, E. B. (1985). Hare Krishna in America. New Brunswick: Rutgers University Press.
Rochford, E. B. (1987). Dialectic processes in the development of Hare Krishna: Tension, public definition, and strategy. Paper presented at the conference on the future of new religious movements. Berkeley, CA.
Rochford, E. B. (2007). Hare Krishna Transformed. New York: NYU Press.
Sinha, V. (1999). Constituting and re-constituting the religious domain in the modern nation state of Singapore. In K. W. Kwok, L. Kong, C. G. Kwa, & B. Yeoh (Eds.), Our place in time: Exploring heritage and memory in Singapore. Singapore: Singapore Heritage Society.
Tong, C. K. (2007). Rationalizing religion: Religious conversion, revivalism and competition in Singapore society. Leiden/Boston: Brill.
Wee, V. (1989). Secular state, multi-religious society: The pattern of religion in Singapore. Paper presented at the conference on religion and authority in East and Southeast Asia, Hua Hin, Thailand.
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Corresponding author
Editor information
Editors and Affiliations
Rights and permissions
Copyright information
© 2014 Springer Science+Business Media Singapore
About this chapter
Cite this chapter
Sebastian, R. (2014). Performing Identities: State-ISKCON Interactions in Singapore. In: Finucane, J., Feener, R. (eds) Proselytizing and the Limits of Religious Pluralism in Contemporary Asia. ARI - Springer Asia Series, vol 4. Springer, Singapore. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-981-4451-18-5_8
Download citation
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-981-4451-18-5_8
Published:
Publisher Name: Springer, Singapore
Print ISBN: 978-981-4451-17-8
Online ISBN: 978-981-4451-18-5
eBook Packages: Humanities, Social Sciences and LawPhilosophy and Religion (R0)