Gurdwaras of Africa

First ever compilation of the 57 Gurudwaras spread across 12 countries of Africa

About The BOOK

‘Gurdwaras of Africa’ is a book documenting a brief history of the Gurdwaras (Sikh religious shrines) across the African continent. There are 57 such places of worship spread across 12 countries in Africa. Designed as a coffee table book, Gurdwaras of Africa, is largely a photograph based book showcasing images from years gone by as well as the present. It attempts to showcase the establishment and development of the Sikh culture and religion in Africa.

 

The book spans over 208 pages depicting old and new photographs of each Gurdwara as well as some key events held in the last decade. For example, the 2010 train journey organised by the Kenyan Sikh council and Guru Nanak Nishkam Sewak Jatha in collaboration with the Kenyan railway authority. 

It showcases Gurdwaras in Kenya, Uganda, Tanzania, South Africa, Botswana, Zambia, Sierra Leone, Nigeria, Mauritius, Malawi, Ghana and Liberia. All these countries have a practising Sikh population. Some of these countries like Malawi have only 1 Gurdwara and barely a handful of families living there, while others like Kenya have a large diaspora of the Sikh community that boasts of 22 Gurdwaras in the country. 

The text for this book has been collected via first hand interviews of the Sikh sangat (community) of each Gurdwara and old documents plus personal diaries. Additionally, some information regarding the general history and culture in the region has been collected from open source information available online as well as a handful of books written about the region. All the sources of information have been credited in the book.

Many of the Gurdwaras in Africa were first established by the Sikh labourers and officials taken to east Africa by the British in the late 1800s and early 1900s.

Following the end of colonial rule the Sikh community members who stayed back have moved on in terms of occupations as well as geographical location spreading to different parts of Africa. Gurdwaras included in the book span almost a century, where some were built as far back as in 1901 and others have opened as recently as in April 2017.

Given the long history of the Sikh population in Africa, prominent saints and sects have also been born here, like the Sant Baba Puran Singh of Kericho and Guru Nanak Nishkam Sewak Jatha. The book documents the journey of such holy-men and his teachings.

Countries

Gurdwaras

Pages

Years Of Research

About the author.

Bhupinder Pal Singh Walia

Is one of India’s most established and awarded industrial photographers. Born in 1967, he began photography at the early age of 17 years in 1984. After spending over a decade photographing different sectors like fashion and lifestyle. He moved to industrial photography as his mainstay in 1996. In his free time he likes to document subjects related to Sikhism, travel, wildlife, heritage and culture.

His photography work has given Singh the opportunity to travel the world covering six continents and 41 countries. Photographing the industrial sector, he has documented many man made marvels like offshore oil rigs, refineries, steel smelters, gas pipelines, boilers, power plants and sugar mills through construction to operation. Singh has worked across the globe with the biggest multi-national companies and even fledging startups in his long career as a photographer and his commercial work has helped him add to his personal photo library covering some of his favourite subjects like Sikhism and Travel.

Singh’s work has been published in 17 books, whose subjects span from industrial plants and processes to Sikhism and even food and travel. He regularly contributes to trade and retail magazines while also being frequently published in over a dozen websites-  both in India and abroad

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