The Sanatan Dharma Maha Sabha (SDMS), , colloquially known as the Maha Sabha, is the largest and most influential

Hindu Hindus (; ) are people who religiously adhere to Hinduism.Jeffery D. Long (2007), A Vision for Hinduism, IB Tauris, , pages 35–37 Historically, the term has also been used as a geographical, cultural, and later religious identifier for ...

organization in

Trinidad and Tobago Trinidad and Tobago (, ), officially the Republic of Trinidad and Tobago, is the southernmost island country in the Caribbean. Consisting of the main islands Trinidad and Tobago, and numerous much smaller islands, it is situated south of ...

. It operates 150

mandirs A Hindu temple, or ''mandir'' or ''koil'' in Indian languages, is a house, seat and body of divinity for Hindus. It is a structure designed to bring human beings and gods together through worship, sacrifice, and devotion.; Quote: "The Hind ...

, over 50

schools A school is an educational institution designed to provide learning spaces and learning environments for the teaching of students under the direction of teachers. Most countries have systems of formal education, which is sometimes compulsor ...

, and has its own radio station, Radio Jaagriti 102.7 FM, and TV channel,

TV Jaagriti TV Jaagriti is a Trinidadian and Tobagonian Hindu religious television channel, that is operated by the Central Broadcasting Services Limited, which is owned by the Sanatan Dharma Maha Sabha, a major Hindu organization in Trinidad and Tobago ...

. They also operate the Indian Caribbean Museum of Trinidad and Tobago. It was formed in 1952 when

Bhadase Sagan Maraj Bhadase Sagan Maraj (; 29 February 1920 – 21 October 1971) was a Trinidadian and Tobagonian politician, Hindu leader, civil rights activist, trade unionist, businessman, wrestler, and author. He founded the Sanatan Dharma Maha Sabha in 1952 ...

engineered the merger of the ''Sanatan Dharma Association'' and the ''Sanatan Dharma Board of Control''. An affiliated group, the

Pundits A pundit is a person who offers mass media opinion or commentary on a particular subject area (most typically politics, the social sciences, technology or sport). Origins The term originates from the Sanskrit term ('' '' ), meaning "knowle ...

' Parishad, has 200 affiliated

pundits A pundit is a person who offers mass media opinion or commentary on a particular subject area (most typically politics, the social sciences, technology or sport). Origins The term originates from the Sanskrit term ('' '' ), meaning "knowle ...

. The organisation's headquarters are located in St. Augustine. The Dharmacharya of the Maha Sabha is Pt. Dr. Rampersad Parasram, the President General is Pt. Krishna Rambally, and the Secretary General from 1977 to his death on November 16, 2019 was

Satnarayan Maharaj Satnarayan Maharaj , also known as Sat Maharaj, (; April 17, 1931 – November 16, 2019) was a Trinidadian and Tobagonian Hindu religious leader, educationalist, and civil rights activist in Trinidad and Tobago. He was the Secretary-General of t ...

, son-in-law of the founder, Bhadase Sagan Maraj. Satnarayan Mahahraj’s son Vijay Maharaj has succeeded him as the acting Secretary General. In 1881, a Sanatan Dharma Association was founded in Trinidad and Tobago in an attempt to consolidate

s and lobby on their behalf. This Association, however, was not known for any significant advances in Hindu organizational development. Other groups existed by the 1920s including the Trinidad Hindu Maha Sabha, San Feranado Hindu Sabha, and the Sanatan Dharma Prabartakh Sabha. But these, too, were not especially dynamic in shaping the course of Hindu history. The most significant advances in Hindu organizational development of these Sabhas came as a response to the Arya Samaj and its missionaries. The controversies stirred by the

Arya Samaj Arya Samaj ( hi, आर्य समाज, lit=Noble Society, ) is a monotheistic Indian Hindu reform movement that promotes values and practices based on the belief in the infallible authority of the Vedas. The samaj was founded by the sanny ...

spokesmen acted as a kind of catalyst for the leaders of the

Sanātanī ''Sanātanī'' () is a term used to describe Hindu duties that incorporate teachings from The Vedas, The Upanishads, and other Hindu religious texts and scriptures such as ''The Ramayana'' and ''The Bhagavad Gita'', which itself is often describe ...

(Orthodox Hindu) community to make greater strides towards effective organization. The Sanatan Dharma Association was incorporated by an act of Legislature in 1932. A conservative group of

s led by Pt.

Sahadeo Tiwari Pt. Sahadeo Tiwari (Trinidadian Hindustani: सहदेव तिवारी) was born in the village of Sarwan in Arwal district, Bihar, India on 25 February 1892. He came to Trinidad and Tobago as an indentured laborer in 1912 upon the vesse ...

, established a rival organization, the Sanatan Dharma Board of Control which was also incorporated in 1932. Each of these served to represent the interests of the Hindu community with regard to social action or issues surrounding the orthodoxy; they also served to liaise with colonial or parliamentary authorities. In 1935, in a move to demonstrate greater legitimacy, the Board became formally affiliated with the Sanatan Dharma Pratindhi Sabha based in

Lahore Lahore ( ; pnb, ; ur, ) is the second most populous city in Pakistan after Karachi and 26th most populous city in the world, with a population of over 13 million. It is the capital of the province of Punjab where it is the largest city. ...

British India The provinces of India, earlier presidencies of British India and still earlier, presidency towns, were the administrative divisions of British governance on the Indian subcontinent. Collectively, they have been called British India. In one ...

(present day

Pakistan Pakistan ( ur, ), officially the Islamic Republic of Pakistan ( ur, , label=none), is a country in South Asia. It is the world's List of countries and dependencies by population, fifth-most populous country, with a population of almost 24 ...

). Pundits and laymen throughout the island became affiliated with one or the other of the two national Hindu bodies. The Sanatan Dharma Board of Control, for example had branches in 32 villages by the late 1930s. The greatest development in the

communal activity in Trinidad and Tobago began in 1952 when under the guidance and direction of powerful Pt. Goberdhan JP of

Siparia Siparia is a town in southern Trinidad, in Trinidad and Tobago, south of San Fernando, southwest of Penal and Debe and southeast of Fyzabad. Also called "The Sand City", it was originally a non-Mission Amerindian settlement. Siparia grew to be th ...

Old Road in southern

Trinidad Trinidad is the larger and more populous of the two major islands of Trinidad and Tobago. The island lies off the northeastern coast of Venezuela and sits on the continental shelf of South America. It is often referred to as the southernmos ...

British Trinidad and Tobago The history of Trinidad and Tobago begins with the settlements of the islands by Indigenous First Peoples. Trinidad was visited by Christopher Columbus on his third voyage in 1498, (he never landed in Tobago), and claimed in the name of Spain. ...

(who acted as a representative of the Governor General of Trinidad and Tobago at difficult times) Bhadase Maraj united the Sanatan Dharma Association and the Sanatan Dharma Board of Control. In that year Maraj, a self-made millionaire and sugar union leader, merged the two

bodies, to create a much more powerful pressure group and public organization. The new organization, the Sanatan Dharma Maha Sabha, was incorporated in 1952. The Sanatan Dharma Maha Sabha's parishad, or council of pundits worked towards a complete coordination of temples activities and the standardization of ritual procedure. Relatively few structured, permanent religious groups existed in Trinidad's

Indian Indian or Indians may refer to: Peoples South Asia * Indian people, people of Indian nationality, or people who have an Indian ancestor ** Non-resident Indian, a citizen of India who has temporarily emigrated to another country * South Asia ...

villages until the advent of the Maha Sabha school building programme. Many

were constructed or affiliated in addition. In order to ensure uniform teaching and practices, the Maha Sabha published literature to be used at all schools and temples. Yet foremost on the new organization agenda was education, which its members saw as the key to promoting

unity in all parts of the country, to promulgating the faith among

future generations Future generations are cohorts of hypothetical people not yet born. Future generations are contrasted with current and past generations, and evoked in order to encourage thinking about intergenerational equity. The moral patienthood of future ge ...

s, and to provide Indians with greater opportunities for social advancement. Between 1952 and 1956 the Maha Sabha built no less than 31 schools all over the island. Today the Maha Sabha operates 42 schools in Trinidad and Tobago, over 150

, and affiliated over 200

Dharmacharyas

*Pt. Basdeo Misir (1952-1954) *Pt. Jankie Persad Sharma (1954-1977) *Pt. Sahadeo Persad Dubay Sharma (1977-1986) *Pt. Krishna Maharaj (1986-2003) *Pt. Uttam Maharaj (30 April 2005-29 November 2018) * Pt. Dr. Rampersad Parasram (5 May 2019-''present'')

External links

Maha Sabha website

References

{{Hinduism footer small Religious groups in Trinidad and Tobago Hindu organizations Hinduism in Trinidad and Tobago