Ganesha, the god with the elephant head, is one of the many Hindu deities. Other well-known gods are Brahma, Vishnu and Shiva. With 900 million followers, Hinduism is the third global religion. Only Christianity (2.1 billion) and Islam (1.1 billion) are larger. By far the most Hindus live in India, but as a result of the migration of Hindustanis to Suriname and subsequently to the Netherlands, this religion is also found there. Unlike Islam or Christianity, Hinduism does not have a founding father. A familiar metaphor to Hindus is that of Hinduism as the trunk of a tree on which all other religions grow in the form of leaves. This explains their tolerance towards other religious movements.

Just like other religions, Hinduism defines people.s identity and the culture of societies. Hindus, for example, believe that all living beings on earth are intimately connected with the Creator. That is why they have deep respect for all living things. In the past, Hindu society had the extremely hierarchical caste system, in which people were assigned from birth to one of the four castes, or belonged to the outcastes, or Pariahs. Although India has now officially abolished this system, it still sometimes leads to discrimination in practice.

In the Netherlands too, religion has had a great influence on the culture and identity of believers. For a long time the country was organized in Catholic, Protestant and secular .pillars. or vertical compartments. Due to secularisation, these pillars have largely been toppled. Nowadays 44% of the Dutch population do not adhere to a religion. At the same time, the growing following of Islam is a new phenomenon. At the end of 2007, 5% of the Dutch population was Muslim, but this religion occupies a large place in the public debate. Many immigrants cherish Islam as being essential to their identity, and tend to interpret the Koran strictly. Other Muslims seek a European interpretation of Islam. At the same time non-Islamic opinion leaders question whether Islam in its present form is compatible with the integration of migrants in Dutch society. In this way the issue of religious identity suddenly plays a part again in Dutch public debate.