Most of the Mahtam Sikh (or Rai Sikh) in the Punjab are migrants from Pakistan. They claim to have 36 clans (gotras), including the Goge, Sarari, Kachure, Badwal, Book and Hakwan. The traditional occupations of the Mahtam Sikh were farming, hunting wild boars, fishing and liquor distillation.
Today they are primarily farmers, but many are engaged in other trades as well. They maintain cordial relationships with the scheduled castes and other artisan and service castes of the nearby villages.
Most of the Mahtm Sikhs (or Rai Sikh) in India's Punjab are migrants from Pakistan.
Many Mahtam Sikhs now follow the religious teachings of a man named Radha Soami, which has led to less alcoholism and more vegetarianism.
Sikhism originated from a 15th century teacher named Guru Nanak Dev as a reform movement. He rejected the Hindu caste system, taught that all people were equal and that all have equal access to God. The Sikh God is formless, without gender and is to be found in everyone. One gets closer to God by living a good life and by practicing charity. Like Hindus, Sikhs believe in reincarnation and the law of karma; you reap what you sow in your previous life. Like Muslims, the Sikhs worship only one God.
One may recognize a Sikh man by his distinctive turban. All the 10 great Sikh gurus wore turbans. Sikh teaching mandates that a person not cut his or her hair. They worship their holy book, the Granth Sahib, which is a collection of hymns.
There are roughly the same number of Sikhs as there are Jews in the world, but Sikhs are most concentrated in Punjab, their homeland. However, you will find smaller numbers of Sikhs all over the world. Many of the best Indian restaurants in the West are owned and operated by Sikhs.
Lack of workers able to carry the gospel message accurately is an ongoing problem throughout South Asia.
Pray the gospel will be proclaimed widely and effectively via gospel radio in the Punjabi languages spoken in Punjab state and beyond.
There are a number of former Sikhs in Punjab who now follow Christ. Pray they will take his great name to the Mahtam community. Pray for a movement of God's Spirit throughout Punjab. There are encouraging developments already.
Scripture Prayers for the Mahtam (Sikh traditions) in India.
Profile Source: Joshua Project |
Global Prayer Digest: 2010-10-23 |
Global Prayer Digest: 2011-10-03 |
Global Prayer Digest: 2020-05-21 |
Global Prayer Digest: 2020-08-11 |
People Name General | Mahtam (Sikh traditions) |
People Name in Country | Mahtam (Sikh traditions) |
Pronunciation |
mah-TAHM
|
Alternate Names | Mahatam; Mahatma; Matheran; Mohtam; Rai Sikh; महटाम (सिख ट्रेडिशन्स) |
Population this Country | 643,000 |
Population all Countries | 643,000 |
Total Countries | 1 |
Indigenous | Yes |
Progress Scale | 1 ● |
Unreached | Yes |
Frontier People Group | No |
GSEC | 3 (per PeopleGroups.org) |
Pioneer Workers Needed | 13 |
People ID | 18131 |
ROP3 Code | 113638 |
Country | India | |||||||||||||||
Region | Asia, South | |||||||||||||||
Continent | Asia | |||||||||||||||
10/40 Window | Yes | |||||||||||||||
National Bible Society | Website | |||||||||||||||
Persecution Rank | 11 (Open Doors top 50 rank, 1 = highest persecution ranking) | |||||||||||||||
Total States on file | 24 | |||||||||||||||
Largest States (only 15 largest shown) |
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Districts | Interactive map, listing and data download | |||||||||||||||
Specialized Website | South Asia Peoples |
Country | India |
Region | Asia, South |
Continent | Asia |
10/40 Window | Yes |
National Bible Society | Website |
Persecution Rank | 11 (Open Doors top 50 rank, 1 = highest persecution ranking) |
Total States | 24 (only 20 largest shown) |
Punjab 498,000 | |
Haryana 33,000 | |
Rajasthan 24,000 | |
Delhi 24,000 | |
Uttar Pradesh 19,000 | |
Uttarakhand 8,000 | |
Maharashtra 7,600 | |
Madhya Pradesh 4,200 | |
Jammu and Kashmir 3,400 | |
Chandigarh 3,200 | |
Jharkhand 1,700 | |
West Bengal 1,400 | |
Himachal Pradesh 1,300 | |
Chhattisgarh 1,200 | |
Gujarat 1,200 | |
Website | South Asia Peoples |
Primary Religion: | Other / Small |
Major Religion ▲ | Percent * |
---|---|
Buddhism |
0.00 %
|
Christianity (Evangelical Unknown) |
1.58 %
|
Ethnic Religions |
0.00 %
|
Hinduism |
0.00 %
|
Islam |
0.00 %
|
Non-Religious |
0.00 %
|
Other / Small |
98.42 %
|
Unknown |
0.00 %
|
* From latest India census data. Current Christian values may substantially differ. |
Primary Language | Punjabi, Eastern (418,000 speakers) | ||||||||||||
Language Code | pan Ethnologue Listing | ||||||||||||
Language Written | Yes ScriptSource Listing | ||||||||||||
Total Languages | 13 | ||||||||||||
Secondary Languages |
|
Primary Language | Punjabi, Eastern (418,000 speakers) |
Language Code | pan Ethnologue Listing |
Total Languages | 13 |
Secondary Languages | |
Hindi 84,000 | |
Bagri 30,000 | |
Haryanvi 3,400 | |
Kumaoni 600 | |
Dogri 600 | |
Marwari 300 | |
Kangri 200 | |
Garhwali 100 | |
Dhundari 100 | |
Awadhi 80 | |
Gujarati 40 | |
Pahari-Potwari: Punchhi 40 | |
People Groups | Speaking Punjabi, Eastern |
Primary Language: Punjabi, Eastern
Bible Translation ▲ | Status (Years) |
---|---|
Bible-Portions | Yes (1818-1954) |
Bible-New Testament | Yes (1815-2011) |
Bible-Complete | Yes (1959-2021) |
Bible-NT Audio | Online |
Possible Print Bibles | |
---|---|
Amazon | |
World Bibles | |
Forum Bible Agencies | |
National Bible Societies | |
World Bible Finder | |
Virtual Storehouse |
Photo Source |
(Representative photo) Sandeep Singh - Pixabay |
Map Source | People Group Location: Omid. Other geography / data: GMI. Map Design: Joshua Project |
Profile Source | Joshua Project |
Data Sources | Data is compiled from various sources. Learn more. |