Siewnarainis: Origins and Subsequent Decline of the Sieunarine Panth in the Caribbean.

Based on the teachings of Swami Shiv Narayan (1716-1790), the Shivnarayan Panth encompassed of a small but ardent group of devotees in the West Indies whose population has rapidly dwindled over time.

The Shivnarayan Panth (referred to in Trinidad Bhojpuri or Caribbean Hindustani as the Sieunarine Panth or Siewnaraini Panth) was one of the minority Hindu groups established in the Caribbean in the mid-nineteenth to early twentieth century through Indian indentureship. With the passage of time and loss of the older generations, in addition to the necessity of interfaith marriages due to low population numbers, many of the Siewnaraini customs are on the verge of disappearing entirely. It is to be noted that “panth” translates to path or sect while the “Shiv” in Shivnarayan is unrelated to the Hindu deity known as Lord Shiva, a prominent holy entity in Sanatanist Hinduism and Shaivism.