In the dating world in the US, Asian men are the worst losers
Many hindu men have dabbled in xtianity during their teenage years
such as using americanised names and even attending church in order to fit in. Yet they find that they are still ‘sand niggers’ and cant get a date, despite being rich and educated and highly intelligent
These men have gone back to hinduism so that they can get married using the caste network

A hindu can be an atheist, an agnostic, a severe critic of hindu beliefs and practises and still be within the fold
Some even keep pictures of Jesus along with hindu gods on their family altar. The only thing that will cause him to be considered non-hindu is if he converts to an abrahamic religion.
So it takes extreme steps to be considered an apostate, whereas in abrahamic religions, minor disagreements with church doctrine will cause apostasy. A hindu can convert to sikhism, jainism, buddhism and still be considered within the hindu fold

So having established that the only thing that will cause apostasy for hindus is conversion to abrahamic religions,
we next consider why hindus dont convert to abrahamic religions

In folk history, handed down in families, abrahamic religions are considered as religions of the ‘invaders’
This is due to over 1000 years of islamic massacres and terrorism
As far as xtianity goes, there is over 300 years of inquisitions in goa, the church as a tool of colonialism, the role of the church in
separatist terrorism in north-east India, the abusive evangelical campaigns and so on

As far as caribbean hindus go, xtianity has been used as a tool of oppression against them, even today by black xtians

As far as Patels go, they are not very fluent in english, they still read gujurati language newspapers. Most are members of the swaminarayan sect, which stresses vegetarianism
Being vegetarian puts another barrier against conversion to abrahamic religions

As far as Sikhs go, the central aspect of their faith is the martyrdom of several gurus and thousands of sikhs for refusing to convert to abrahamic religions and apostasy is considered a very serious crime. Few sikhs have apostasised in the UK diaspora and same is expected in USA diaspora

Another aspect to consider is the caste blend of the US India diaspora
85% of them are upper castes and in the evangelical campaigns, upper castes are vilified

Next, being a highly educated group, they are also aware of the history and textual and doctrinal errors various religions,
and in hinduism, any claim to doctrinal perfection is considered suspect, so abrahamic religions are considered mentally stifling and claims like the ‘last prophet’ and ‘only begotten son’ are not accepted

The hindu diaspora in the caribbean, Malaysia, Fiji, and UK has a much higher retention rate

In the caribbean, they have withstood over 150 years of aggressive evangelism targeted at caribbean hindus

In both the UK and the USA, 40% of the hindu diaspora consists of Gujurati Patels, and if the Patels in the UK retain hinduism, there is no reason why Patels in the USA will also not retain hinduism

Most Hindus have ties with their family in India
If a hindu converts to an abrahamic religion, it will affect the
marraige prospects of their cousins and nephews and nieces in India and lower the prestige of their family in Indian society

Why the difference? Well, I think you hit the nail on the head when you made the analogy to “cultural (and I would add “ethnic”) Jews.” The criteria that these traditions use to define themselves over and against “the other”–their “boundaries”–are different. My wife and I often joke that one talks to new friends differently depending on where one is at. In America, the “first question” typically asked is, “What do you do?” But in India, it’s “What’s your caste?” (to which the answer would indicate not only one’s status but also family lineage and region of origin). Similarly, when talking about religion, Christians and Muslims might ask, “What do you believe?” But for Hindus, and perhaps for many “cultural/ethnic Jews,” this question may be of less significance than others.

If my case study can be extrapolated (and I think that it can), it would seem that the order of import for criteria that mark off the “boundaries” for Christians might be: 1) beliefs, 2) rituals, 3) cultural values, 4) ethnic heritage. But for Hindus, the order might run: 1) ethnic heritage, 2) cultural values, 3) rituals, 4) beliefs. Indeed a typical Hindu family is more likely to accept their child’s marriage to an Indian who has converted to Christianity than an American who has joined the Hare Krishna movement. Because in their eyes, the former is “a Hindu who worships Jesus,” while the later is “a Christian who has seen the truth of Hinduism.”

I do not know enough about Jewish identity to say too much about it, but perhaps thinking about these criteria for boundaries could help explain the fall in retension rates. It is possible that the community’s criteria have shifted in such a way, for example, that those who would have once considered themselves “agnostic/atheistic/secular Jews” or “Buddhist Jews” now merely consider themselves agnostics/atheists/secularists or Buddhists. If this is the case, my questions would be: 1) what was the cause of this shift in boundary criteria? and 2) is it possible that globalization and continued development in India will eventually effect a similar shift in the Hindu community?

1. Hinduism is NOT an organized religion like Islam or Christianity. It is A CULTURE, A WAY OF LIFE.

2. It has no hidden agenda or motive expect to spread truth.

All Hindus scriptures discuss about TRUTH and how to search after truth. Hindu scriptures state “self-realization” is the ultimate goal of every human being, whether the person is a Hindu or not.”

3. As Rig Veda 89-1 states, it welcomes truth from every side.

Beauty of Hinduism is that it accept truth from very many sources. Hinduism is the result of deep meditation of Rishis, who searched after truth through out their lives.

4. It does NOT proclaim monopoly on GOD or TRUTH or SALAVTION.

No where in the Hindu scriptures, you will read that Hindus alone have monopoly on God or salvation. Hindu scriptures state, any person who searches after truth will ultimately attain self realization, whether that person is a Hindu or not.

Voltaire in Essay on Tolerance wrote: I may disagree with what you say, but I will defend to the death, your right to say it. Hinduism is the symbolic representation of what Voltaire wrote.

Aa no bhadraah kratavo yantu vishvatah
” Let noble thoughts come to us from every side”.

5. Absolute FREEDOM OF THOUGHTS & ACTIONS is the cardinal principle of Hinduism.

Even an atheist can condemn Hinduism and later can proudly proclaim he or she is a Hindu. In fact, unlike all religions and cultures in the world, Hinduism had an atheistic philosophy called CHARVAKA philosophy founded by Charvaka who rejected existence of God. Charvaka died in bed. He was not killed by any one. He died in bed due to old age.

Ed Viswanathan
aamiahindu@yahoo.com
http://www.amiahindu.com/

* the professor got it right. it is easy to remain hindu because it is so loosely defined. there are practically no major binding rules to follow.
* being hindu doesn’t stop one from participating in other religious traditions so unless the person wants to adopt another faith that is stricter there is really no need to redefine themselves. call it having your cake and eating it too. or maybe its hedging your bets?
* to be successfully assimilated, both the majority and minority shouldn’t feel threatened by each other. for most people i know, being hindu is basically a cultural identity. for these people, as far as beliefs go, hinduism = religious pluralism which is very acceptable world view to have in this society. so the average american is ok with hindus. as for the hindus, they don’t have to worry as much about corrosion of religious identity given that it is not so concrete/stringent. this makes assimilation easier for them.
* will ethnic pride and distinctiveness fade? if things stay the way they are in america, probably. but if hindus feel threatened then it could change. that might happen if, say, india-pakistan relations got much worse and seeped into relations between hindus and muslims here. or if a new wave of religious fervor starts spreading where people want to convert hindus to christianity.