Index| Group | Where | Number of Adherents |
% of total pop. |
Number of congreg./ churches/ units |
Number of countries |
Year | Source | Quote/ Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Santeria | New York | 300,000 | - | - | - | 1998 | *LINK* web site: Ontario Consultants on Religious Tolerance | - |
| Santeria | North America | 500,000 | - | - | - | 1996 | Occhiogrosso, Peter. The Joy of Sects: A Spirited Guide to the World's Religious Traditions. New York: Doubleday (1996); pg. 361. | "Santeria developed over the past 200 years in Cuba, but with the exodus of over a million Cubans following the Cuban revolution of 1959, it has spread to Canada and the United States. There it has been embraced by several hundred thousand Cuban emigrants and other members of the Caribbean American community and is spreading to other African American and Hispanic communities as well. " |
| Santeria | USA | 800,000 | - | - | - | 1998 | "Cuba's Next Revolution " in Christianity Today (Jan. 12, 1998); pg. 23. | "...as many as 3 million Cubans may be involved [in Cuba]... Santeria has spread throughout he Caribbean and to the United States, where there are an estimated 800,000 devotees of different nationalities. " |
| Santeria | world | - | - | - | - | 1993 | Brandon, George. Santeria from Africa to the New World: Dead Sell Memories. Bloomington and Indiana: Indiana University Press (1993); pg. 1-2. | "In global context Santeria belongs to the transatlantic tradition of Yoruba religion, a religious tradition with millions of adherents in Africa and the Americas, and should be seen as a variant of that tradition, just as there are regional and doctrinal variants within the Christian, Buddhist, and Islamic religious traditions. Santeria is a New World neo-African religion with a clear dual heritage. Its component traditions include European Christianity... traditional African religion... and Kardecan spiritism... " |
| Santeria | world | - | - | - | 3 countries |
1996 | Occhiogrosso, Peter. The Joy of Sects: A Spirited Guide to the World's Religious Traditions. New York: Doubleday (1996); pg. 361. | "Santeria... is the name given to the complex indermixture of Yoruba and Catholic beliefs and practices in Cuba... Santeria developed over the past 200 years in Cuba, but with the exodus of over a million Cubans following the Cuban revolution of 1959, it has spread to Canada and the United States. There it has been embraced by several hundred thousand Cuban emigrants and other members of the Caribbean American community and is spreading to other African American and Hispanic communities as well. " |
| Santi Asoke - monastic | Thailand | 120 | - | 5 units |
- | 1996 | *LINK* Heikkila-Horn, Marja-Leena. "Two Paths to Revivalism in Thai Buddhism: The Dhammakaya and Santi Asoke Movements " in Temenos 32 (1996), 93-111. (Viewed online, Temenos web site, 30 Jan. 1999). | "The Asoke group has five centres in Thailand: Santi Asoke on the outskirts of Bangkok, Pathom Asoke outside the city of Nakhon Pathom, and Sisa Asoke, Sali Asoke and Sima Asoke in the provinces of Sisaket, Nakhon Sawan and Nakhon Ratchasima, respectively... At the moment the group includes about 100 monks and more than 20 nuns. There are also thousands of volunteers living in the temple compounds. " |
| Sanussi Order | Africa | - | - | - | - | 1910 | Crim, Keith (ed.). The Perennial Dictionary of World Religions. San Francisco: Harper Collins (1989). Reprint; originally published as Abingdon Dictionary of Living Religions, 1981; pg. 723. | "The pro-Ottoman but politically quiescent Sanusiyya, for example, were victimized by the manipulation of French and Italian forces, first having to curtail and then later redirect their activities prior to the outbreak of World War I. " |
| Sanussi Order | Middle East | - | - | - | - | 1992 | Ovendale, Ritchie. The Longman Companion to The Middle East since 1914. London & New York: Longman (1992); pg. 221. | "Sanussi Order (Sanussis) (Sanussiyya): A Sunni religious order founded in Mecca in 1837. Stated intention to return to the teaching of the Koran. Influence considerable amongst the Bedouin in Cyrenaica (Libya). Led by King Idris tried to reach a compromise with Italy, but failed in 1922 and the order was banned by the Italians in 1930. Helped Idris take over first Cyrenaica then the whole of Libya in 1951. Influence declined after Gaddafi coup of 1969. " |
| Saoch | Cambodia | 500 | - | - | - | 1981 | Gall, Timothy L. (ed). Worldmark Encyclopedia of Culture & Daily Life: Vol. 3 - Asia & Oceania. Cleveland, OH: Eastword Publications Development (1998); pg. 539-540. | Chapter about Mountain Mon-Khmer Groups: "The Saoch numbered about 500 in 1981. They are located in southwest Cambodia and are closely related to the Pear and the Chong. "; Pg. 540: The people of the hill tribes continue the traditional beliefs and practices of their ancestors... "; Pg. 540: Saoch are included in the "Pearic " group of tribes. |
| Saora | India | - | - | - | - | 1981 | Crim, Keith (ed.). The Perennial Dictionary of World Religions. San Francisco: Harper Collins (1989). Reprint; originally pub. as Abingdon Dictionary of Living Religions, 1981; pg. 707. | "South Asian Tribal Religions... Tribes speaking Munda languages and extending over parts of Madhya Pradesh, Bihar, and Orissa include the Santal, Ho, Gadaba, Bondo, and Saora. " |
| Sara | Central African Republic | - | - | - | - | 1995 | Haskins, J. From Afar to Zulu. New York: Walker Pub. (1995); pg. 191-7. | Table: Add'l African Cultures |
| Sara | Chad | - | - | - | - | 1995 | Haskins, J. From Afar to Zulu. New York: Walker Pub. (1995); pg. 191-7. | Table: Add'l African Cultures |
| Sara | world | - | - | - | 2 countries |
1995 | Haskins, J. From Afar to Zulu. New York: Walker Pub. (1995); pg. 191-7. | Table: Add'l African Cultures; "Central African Republic, Chad " |
| Sarakole | Mauritania | - | - | - | 1 country |
1995 | Haskins, J. From Afar to Zulu. New York: Walker Pub. (1995); pg. 191-7. | Table: Add'l African Cultures |
| Sarekat Islam | Indonesia | 350,000 | 90.00% | - | - | 1916 | Williams, Lea E. Southeast Asia: A History; New York: Oxford University Press (1976); pg. 172. | "Sarekat Islam came into being in 1912... the organization was able to address itself to some 90% of the people of the archipelago and, in fact, enlisted over 350,000 members in its first four years. " |
| Sarvastivada Buddhism | Cambodia | - | - | - | - | 550 C.E. | Fischer-Schreiber, Ingrid, et al. The Encyclopedia of Eastern Philosophy & Religion: Buddhism, Hinduism, Taoism, Zen. Shambhala: Boston (English: pub. 1994; orig. German: 1986); pg. 51. | "Buddhism in Cambodia: This region was in contact with a Sanskrit tradition of Buddhism in the 3rd century C.E., probably that of the Sarvastivada school, which reached its zenith in the 5th and 6th centuries. " |
| Sarvastivada Buddhism | India | - | - | - | - | -250 B.C.E. | Crim, Keith (ed.). The Perennial Dictionary of World Religions. San Francisco: Harper Collins (1989). Reprint; originally pub. as Abingdon Dictionary of Living Religions, 1981; pg. 151. | "During Asoka's council (around 250 B.C.) the Sthaviras spawned the Sarvastivadins and the Vibhajyavadins. The Sarvastivadins migrated to northwest India, becoming sophisticated scholastics, known for their theory that 'everything exists' and for their careful analysis of Buddhist philosophy. " |
| Sarvastivada Buddhism | Indonesia | - | - | - | - | 650 C.E. | Fischer-Schreiber, Ingrid, et al. The Encyclopedia of Eastern Philosophy & Religion: Buddhism, Hinduism, Taoism, Zen. Shambhala: Boston (English: pub. 1994; orig. German: 1986); pg. 53. | "In the 7th century Sumatra and Java were already important study centers for Buddhism... The dominant current was Mahayana; in addition, however, there were also Hinayana communities, which probably belonged to the Sarvastida school... " |
| Sarvastivada Buddhism | Myanmar | - | - | - | - | 450 C.E. | Fischer-Schreiber, Ingrid, et al. The Encyclopedia of Eastern Philosophy & Religion: Buddhism, Hinduism, Taoism, Zen. Shambhala: Boston (English: pub. 1994; orig. German: 1986); pg. 50. | "After the 5th century, there is evidence of a flourishing Buddhist life in Burma. Activity of the Theravada and that of another school (probably the Sarvastivada)... can be documented. " |
| Sarvastivada Buddhism | world | - | - | - | - | -150 B.C.E. | Fischer-Schreiber, Ingrid, et al. The Encyclopedia of Eastern Philosophy & Religion: Buddhism, Hinduism, Taoism, Zen. Shambhala: Boston (English: pub. 1994; orig. German: 1986); pg. 129. | "The Hinayana enumerates the traditions of 18 schools that developed out of the original community... Two other schools that splintered from the Sthaviras are the Sarvastivada, out of which, around 150 B.C.E., came the Sautrantikas, and the Vibhajyavadins, who see themselves as orthodox Sthaviras. Out of this last school arose the Theravada, Mahishasakas, and Kashyapiyas; from the Mahishasakas came the Dharmaguptakas. " |
| Satanism | Australia | 2,091 | 0.01% | - | - | 1996 | *LINK* Parliament of Australia web site; page: "Census 96: Religion " (viewed 18 Dec. 1999) | Self-identification, from 1996 govt. census. [Listed in table as "Satanism "] |
| Satanism | Canada | 300 | - | - | - | 1996 | *LINK* web page: "Satan: Prince of the World " (1998). By Gene Taylor, Anderson County Sheriff's Office. | "Membership estimates are unreliable and hard to determine. One estimate indicates just over 300 Satanists in Canada and as many as 20,000 in the U.S. The Church of Satan does not release its membership information (www.pe.net, 1996) " |
| Satanism | France | - | - | - | - | 1895 | Crim, Keith (ed.). The Perennial Dictionary of World Religions. San Francisco: Harper Collins (1989). Reprint; originally pub. as Abingdon Dictionary of Living Religions, 1981; pg. 658. | "The Satanism of the nineteenth and twentieth centuries is a product of the occultism and 'decadence' of late romanticism and shares its mood, vividly portraye in its Satanist aspects in J. K. Huysmans' novel La-Bas ('Down There'). The theatrical 1890s French Satanist cult represented there has been more or less duplicated in a number of modern European and American groups. " |
| Satanism | New Zealand | 240 | 0.01% | - | - | 1986 | *LINK* web site: "VisionNet Census " (created by a Protestant group); (viewed 9 Jan. 1999); original source: Statistics New Zealand | Data taken from New Zealand national censuses, based on self-identification, down to denominational level. Total 1986 NZ population: 3,263,228. |
| Satanism | New Zealand | 645 | 0.02% | - | - | 1991 | *LINK* web site: "VisionNet Census " (created by a Protestant group); (viewed 9 Jan. 1999); original source: Statistics New Zealand | Data taken from New Zealand national censuses, based on self-identification, down to denominational level. Total 1991 NZ population: 3,373,853. |
| Satanism | New Zealand | 903 | 0.02% | - | - | 1996 | *LINK* web site: "VisionNet Census " (created by a Protestant group); (viewed 9 Jan. 1999); original source: Statistics New Zealand | Data taken from New Zealand national censuses, based on self-identification, down to denominational level. Total 1996 NZ population: 3,616,633. |
| Satanism | United Kingdom | 5,500,000 | 10.00% | - | - | 1993 | Harvey, G. "Satanism in Britain Today " in Journal of Contemporary Religion. Vol. 10, No. 3, October 1995; pg. 284. | "It has been alleged that 10 per cent of the population of Britain are Satanists (that is about five and a half million people) and that at least one (unnamed) member of the Royal Family is a Satanist (Jim Phillips, in Thomas, 1993)... Logan calls Phillips' claim 'outlandish'... There are alleged to be Satanists in every profession, social class, age group, interest group, and in every other division and subdivision of British society. Most spiritual traditions other than evangelical Christianity have been accused of being Satanic either in inspiration or in practice. Not only is feminism 'Satanic' but some seemingly quiet 'unliberated' housewives are alleged to be Satanists. People whose grandmothers read horoscopes in their newspapers, even casually, may be possessed by Satan. Children who play with Carebears or read C.S. Lewis's Narnia tales are in the company of those who play their heavy-metal records backwards to hear Satanic messages. " |
| Satanism | United Kingdom | 3,000 | - | 36 units |
- | 1994 | Harvey, G. "Satanism in Britain Today " in Journal of Contemporary Religion. Vol. 10, No. 3, October 1995; pg. 284. | "The 1994 UK Christian Handbook estimates around 300 'active' Satanists, a total community of 3000 with about 13 full time leaders and 36 'buildings/groups' (Brierley, 1994: 281). " |
| Satanism | United Kingdom | 10,000 | - | - | - | 1994 | Harvey, G. "Satanism in Britain Today " in Journal of Contemporary Religion. Vol. 10, No. 3, October 1995; pg. 284. | "It has been alleged that 10 per cent of the population of Britain are Satanists (that is about five and a half million people)... (Jim Phillips, in Thomas, 1993)... Logan calls Phillips' claim 'outlandish' but misquotes Brierley [who claimed 300 active and a total community of 3,000] in order to allege a total of 10,000 British Satanists (Logan, 1994: 158). " |
| Satanism | United Kingdom | - | - | - | - | 1994 | Harvey, G. "Satanism in Britain Today " in Journal of Contemporary Religion. Vol. 10, No. 3, October 1995; pg. 284. | "...there are Satanists in Britain. There are six groups who between them have less than 100 members... Logan (1994) mentions other groups, but includes non-Satanic magical orders, spoofs designed to upset Christians (including some of what he reports of conversations with real Satanists) and the delusions of Satan-obsessed Christians. " |
| Satanism | United Kingdom | 100 | - | 6 units |
- | 1995 | Harvey, G. "Satanism in Britain Today " in Journal of Contemporary Religion. Vol. 10, No. 3, October 1995; pg. 284. | "Real numbers. In brief, the answer is that there are Satanists in Britain. There are six groups who between them have less than 100 members. There are more people who read Satanist magazines or have bought books by Satanists, e.g. Anton LeVey's Satanic Bible (1969). Again they are few in number compared to the scare-estimate. A larger number of people--some adolescents--name themselves Satanists, but belong to no formal or organised Satanic group. " |
| Satanism | USA | 15,000 | - | - | - | 1972 | Godwin, John. Occult America; Garden City, NY: Doubleday & Company, Inc. (1972); pg. 229. | "No official census has yet been taken of this country's devil worshipers. But according to the meager statistics available, they must number somewhere between ten and fifteen thousand. " |
| Satanism | USA | 100,000 | - | - | - | 1982 | Petersen, William J. Those Curious New Cults in the 80s. New Canaan, Connecticut: Keats Publishing (1982); pg. 88. | "Today the Satanist movement has been estimated at about one hundred thousand in America, although an estimate is hardly any more than a guess. " |
| Satanism | USA | 20,000 | - | - | - | 1996 | *LINK* web page: "Satan: Prince of the World " (1998). By Gene Taylor, Anderson County (South Carolina) Sheriff's Office. | "Membership estimates are unreliable and hard to determine. One estimate indicates just over 300 Satanists in Canada and as many as 20,000 in the U.S. The Church of Satan does not release its membership information (www.pe.net, 1996) " |
| Satanism | USA | 20,000 | - | - | - | 1998 | *LINK* web site: Ontario Consultants on Religious Tolerance (viewed circa Nov. 1998); "last updated October 1998 " | Table: "'Other Than Christian' Organizations "; "Some of the following data were estimated from North American figures: "; For estimate of Satanism, note intable says "A wild guess " |
| Satanism | world | 3,000 | - | - | - | 1971 | Long, Robert Emmet (ed.). Religious Cults in America (The Reference Shelf: Volume 66 Number 4), New York: The H. W. Wilson Co. (1994). [Orig. source: Article by J. Gordon Melton. From appendix A of The Cult Experience, Cleveland, OH: The Pilgrim Press (1982)]; pg. 84. | "Although there are many thousands of Neo-Pagans, there have never been more than 2,000 or 3,000 Satanists and that was in the early seventies, at the height of the popularity of Anton LeVey's Church of Satan. " |
| Satanism | world | 3,000 | - | - | - | 1972 | Melton, J. Gordon & Robert L. Moore. The Cult Experience: Responding to the New Religious Pluralism. New York: The Pilgrim Press (1984 [3rd printing; 1st printing 1982]); pg. 135. | "Although there are many thousands of Neo-Paans, there have never been more than 2,000 or 3,000 Satanists and that was in the early seventies, at the height of the popularity of Anton LeVey's Church of Satan. " |
| Satanism | world | - | - | - | - | 1981 | Crim, Keith (ed.). The Perennial Dictionary of World Religions. San Francisco: Harper Collins (1989). Reprint; originally pub. as Abingdon Dictionary of Living Religions, 1981; pg. 658. | "Ideologically, Satanists seem to be divided into three groups. Some modern Satanists regard the Judeo-Christian devil as actually the true deity of this world, synonymous with the life force and the 'healthy' natural impulses, and God as a sinister being who piously urges an unwholesome repression of nature and the flesh. For the most 'liberal' wing of Satanism, represented by LaVey, the whole Satanist symbol system is little more than a myth and ritual to help people accept their carnal and materialist sides without guilt. For others Satan is indeed the prince of evil whom they embrace for his own sake, and in hope of reward after death in his dark domain. " |
| Satanism | world | - | - | - | - | 1994 | *LINK* Hexham, Irving. Concise Dictionary of Religion. Carol Stream, USA: InterVarsity Press (1994). (v. online 6 Oct. 1999) | "SATANISM: ESOTERIC religious GROUPS and individuals who WORSHIP SATAN... Satanic groups include the CHURCH OF SATAN, and various RITUAL MAGIC organizations. " |
| Satanism - active | United Kingdom | 300 | - | - | - | 1994 | Harvey, G. "Satanism in Britain Today " in Journal of Contemporary Religion. Vol. 10, No. 3, October 1995; pg. 284. | "The 1994 UK Christian Handbook estimates around 300 'active' Satanists... " |
| Sathya Sai Baba | Australia | - | - | 103 units |
- | 1995 | *LINK* Ireland, Rowan. Web site: La Trobe University, Bundoora, Australia; web page: "New Religious Associations in Australia ", written January 1998. (Viewed 4 July 1999). | "The Sathya Sai Movement... The movement arrived in Australia in the mid 1970s. As of January 1995 the Sai Organisation had 103 centres in Australia, and approximately 5000 world wide. " |
| Sathya Sai Baba | Barbados | - | - | 1 unit |
- | 1998 | *LINK* tourism page: "Fun Barbados " | Barbados Religion page: church listing. "Currently there are around 60 Anglican churches that can be found on the island and over the years many other denominations have joined and can be found list below. " |
| Sathya Sai Baba | Denmark | 100 | - | - | - | 1996 | *LINK* Rothstein, Mikael. "Patterns of Diffusion and Religious Globalization: An Empirical Survey of New Religious Movements " in Temenos 32 (1996), 195-220. (Viewed online, Temenos web site, 30 Jan. 1999) | "Corresponding figures, i.e. a dedicated membership of 30 to 150 in Denmark, are found in groups such as Brahma Kumaris, Elan Vital, Soka Gakkai and Sahaj Marg according to their own information. Even the followers of Sathya Sai Baba, who has millions of disciples around the world, number less than 100 dedicated members in Denmark. " |
| Sathya Sai Baba | Germany, West | 400 | - | - | - | 1987 | Clarke, Peter B. The New Evangelists: Recruitment, Method and Aims of New Religious Movements, London: Ethnographics (1987); pg. 10 to 14. | "Another more detailed assessment for West Germany covering many more movements concludes that well over one million people are involved or 'influenced' by new religions, with a 'full-time' membership of 64,200. The estimated full time membership for 12 of these movements is: " [table]; [listed in table as "Sai Baba "] |
| Sathya Sai Baba | India | 3,000,000 | - | - | - | 1994 | Neusner, Jacob (ed). World Religions in America: An Introduction; Louisville, KY: Westminster/John Knox Press (1994); pg. 195. | "...he has a purported following in India of two to three million. Currently Satya Sai Baba maintains three major centers in the United States (Los Angeles, San Francisco, and Phoenix). " |
| Sathya Sai Baba | United Kingdom: Britain | - | - | 50 units |
- | 1987 | Bishop, Peter & Michael Darton (editors). The Encyclopedia of World Faiths: An Illustrated Survey of the World's Living Faiths. New York: Facts on File Publications (1987); pg. 207. | "Members of the Shri Sathya Sai Baba Fellowship have their own temples... In Britain alone, the number of Shri Sathya Sai centres has grown to over 50 since the early 1790s. " |
| Sathya Sai Baba | United Kingdom: Britain | 10,000 | - | - | - | 1987 | Clarke, Peter B. The New Evangelists: Recruitment, Method and Aims of New Religious Movements, London: Ethnographics (1987); pg. 10 to 14. | Table with following columns: Movement; Total Membership; Full-Time Members; P/T Members; Sympathizers.; For this study Clarke "approached researchers & observers in the field of new religions [& org./church reps.] to obtain their opinions & any hard... data "; listed in table as "Sathya Sai Baba " |
| Sathya Sai Baba | United Kingdom: Britain | 4,000 | - | - | - | 1999 | Chryssides, George. Exploring New Religions. London, U.K.: Cassells (1999). [Original source of British figure: email from Kishor Kumar of the UK Sai organization] | "I have selected the best available [statistics], providing a range where adjudication is impossible... Sai Baba: Britain: 4,000 active devotees linked to a Sai Centre (1999); World 10,000,000 " |
| Sathya Sai Baba | USA | - | - | 3 units |
- | 1994 | Neusner, Jacob (ed). World Religions in America: An Introduction; Louisville, KY: Westminster/John Knox Press (1994); pg. 195. | "...he has a purported following in India of two to three million. Currently Satya Sai Baba maintains three major centers in the United States (Los Angeles, San Francisco, and Phoenix). " |
| Sathya Sai Baba | world | - | - | - | - | 1981 | Crim, Keith (ed.). The Perennial Dictionary of World Religions. San Francisco: Harper Collins (1989). Reprint; originally pub. as Abingdon Dictionary of Living Religions, 1981; pg. 319. | "One of India's most popular faith healers and prophets, Satya Sai Baba (b. 1926 as Satya Narayan), has achieved an American following through his international organization, Spiritual Advancement of the Individual Foundation, Inc. " |
| Sathya Sai Baba | world | - | - | - | - | 1981 | Crim, Keith (ed.). The Perennial Dictionary of World Religions. San Francisco: Harper Collins (1989). Reprint; originally pub. as Abingdon Dictionary of Living Religions, 1981; pg. 659. | "Satya Sai Baba (Hindu; 1926 - ). More than through his teachiing, Satya Sai Baba is famous because of his miracles... He was born November 23, 1926 in the village of Putaparti in Andhrapradesh State in South India. On May 23, 1940 he proclaimed himself Sai Baba reincarnated... His special powers linked him with the nearly as well-known miracle-worker Sai Baba of Shirdi, Maharashtra, who died in 1918... In recent years Satya Sai Baba has turned his attention to the problems of Indian society as a whole... At the same time, he has an international following--including Westerners... " |
| Sathya Sai Baba | world | - | - | - | - | 1991 | *LINK* Wilson, Andrew (ed). "The World Religions and their Scriptures " in World Scripture. International Religious Foundation, 1991. (viewed 9 July 1999) | "new sects and movements in Hinduism both in India and the West, for example, the Sri Aurobindo Ashram, the Theosophical Society, Arya Samaj, Brahmo Samaj, Ananda Marga, Transcendental Meditation, the International Society for Krishna Consciousness (Hare Krishna), and movements centering on Meher Baba, Sathya Sai Baba, Bhagwan Rajneesh, and others " |
| Sathya Sai Baba | world | 10,000,000 | - | 1,200 units |
137 countries |
1993 | *LINK* web site: New Religious Movements (University of Virginia); web page: "Shirdi Sai Baba " (viewed 17 Feb. 1999); [Orig. source: Rigopoulos, Antonio. 1993. The Life and Teachings of Sai Baba of Shirdi. New York: State University of New York.] | "In 1993, Rigopoulos reported that there were close to ten million devotees (p. 377). Today, there are 1,200 Sai Baba Centers for promoting the religion in 137 different countries. Another source says that there are over 6500 Sai Baba Centers in different countries. A few gurus such as Narayana Baba made several trips to Europe and the United States to spread the mission of Sai Baba. Though it did not reach high popularity in the U.S., the gurus were still able to teach many of the religious concepts. (Rigopoulos, 1993: 375) " |
| Sathya Sai Baba | world | - | - | 6,500 units |
- | 1993 | *LINK* web site: New Religious Movements (University of Virginia); web page: "Shirdi Sai Baba " (viewed 17 Feb. 1999); [Orig. source: Rigopoulos, Antonio. 1993. The Life and Teachings of Sai Baba of Shirdi. New York: State University of New York.] | "In 1993, Rigopoulos reported that there were close to ten million devotees (p. 377). Today, there are 1,200 Sai Baba Centers for promoting the religion in 137 different countries. Another source says that there are over 6500 Sai Baba Centers in different countries. " |
| Sathya Sai Baba | world | - | - | 5,000 units |
- | 1995 | *LINK* Ireland, Rowan. Web site: La Trobe University, Bundoora, Australia; web page: "New Religious Associations in Australia ", written January 1998. (Viewed 4 July 1999). | "The Sathya Sai Movement... Bhagavan Sri Sathya Sai Baba is a world teacher whose mission... Born in Southern India on November 23, 1926, he began his mission at age 14 when he is reported to have demonstrated his knowledge and capabilities among the local people in the region. As time progressed his fame and reputation grew, drawing people from all over India to his presence. In the 1960s people from many Western countries began to visit Sathya Sai Baba. Today, Puttaparthi, his birthplace and principal place of residence is a centre to which millions of people on a spiritual path visit each year. Puttaparthi has Sathya Sai schools and Universities, a spiritual museum and a Super Specialty Hospital which provides advanced surgery by top volunteer specialist surgeons free of charge to those in need... As of January 1995 the Sai Organisation had 103 centres in Australia, and approximately 5000 world wide. " |
| Sathya Sai Baba | world | 10,000,000 | - | - | - | 1999 | Chryssides, George. Exploring New Religions. London, U.K.: Cassells (1999). [Original source of world full-time figure: web site: New Religious Movements (University of Virginia)] | "I have selected the best available [statistics], providing a range where adjudication is impossible... Sai Baba: Britain: 4,000 active devotees linked to a Sai Centre (1999); World 10,000,000 " |
| Satnami Chamar | India: Madhya Pradesh | - | - | - | - | 1998 | Gall, Timothy L. (ed). Worldmark Encyclopedia of Culture & Daily Life: Vol. 3 - Asia & Oceania. Cleveland, OH: Eastword Publications Development (1998); pg. 159-160. | "Chamars: Alternate Names: Untouchables; Scheduled Caste; Location: Northern India (mainly Uttar Pradesh state) "; "Chamars form one of the major occupational castes of India... In general, Chamars are Hindus... Given their low status in traditional Hindu society, it is not surprising that Chamars have been attracted to religions that downplay or reject notions of untouchability... Many are followers of devotional (bhakti) Hindu sects such as Kabir Panth. One such group is the Satnami Chamar of Madhya Pradesh. " |
| Satsuma Dojo | Australia | - | - | 1 unit |
- | 1998 | *LINK* Ireland, Rowan. Web site: La Trobe University, Bundoora, Australia; web page: "New Religious Associations in Australia ", written January 1998. (Viewed 4 July 1999). | "Satsuma Dojo (Zen Buddhism): 'Satsuma Dojo' was established by Frenchman Andre Sollier who arrived in Australia in 1970 after spending three years studying Zen in Japan. At the Satsuma Dojo, in Melbourne, Sollier teaches various activities including zazen - sitting meditation; sumi painting; ikebana - flower arranging; karate; judo and Japanese archery. " |
| Sauk | North America - Central Prairies and Woodlands | 3,500 | - | - | - | 1650 | Terrell, John Upton. American Indian Almanac. New York: Thomas Y. Crowell Co. (1974); pg. 240. | Table: "Central Prairies and Woodlands: Earliest Population Estimates " (mainly relying on James Mooney, John R. Swanson, & A. L. Kroeber) |
| Sauk | world | 3,500 | - | - | - | 1650 | Terrell, John Upton. American Indian Almanac. New York: Thomas Y. Crowell Co. (1974); pg. 240. | Table: "Central Prairies and Woodlands: Earliest Population Estimates " (mainly relying on James Mooney, John R. Swanson, & A. L. Kroeber) |
| Sautrantika Buddhism | India | - | - | - | - | 150 C.E. | Fischer-Schreiber, Ingrid, et al. The Encyclopedia of Eastern Philosophy & Religion: Buddhism, Hinduism, Taoism, Zen. Shambhala: Boston (English: pub. 1994; orig. German: 1986); pg. 309. | "Sautrantika - Skt.; Hinayana school that developed out of the Sarvastivada around 150 C.E. As its name indicated, the followers of this school draw their support only from the Sutra-pitaka... " |
| Sautrantika Buddhism | world | - | - | - | - | -250 B.C.E. | Crim, Keith (ed.). The Perennial Dictionary of World Religions. San Francisco: Harper Collins (1989). Reprint; originally pub. as Abingdon Dictionary of Living Religions, 1981; pg. 151. | "During Asoka's council (around 250 B.C.) the Sthaviras spawned the Sarvastivadins and the Vibhajyavadins... Other major groups spawned by the Sthavira tradition include the Sautrantikas and Dharmaguptakas. " |
| Sautrantika Buddhism | world | - | - | - | - | -150 B.C.E. | Fischer-Schreiber, Ingrid, et al. The Encyclopedia of Eastern Philosophy & Religion: Buddhism, Hinduism, Taoism, Zen. Shambhala: Boston (English: pub. 1994; orig. German: 1986); pg. 129. | "The Hinayana enumerates the traditions of 18 schools that developed out of the original community... Two other schools that splintered from the Sthaviras are the Sarvastivada, out of which, around 150 B.C.E., came the Sautrantikas, and the Vibhajyavadins, who see themselves as orthodox Sthaviras. Out of this last school arose the Theravada, Mahishasakas, and Kashyapiyas; from the Mahishasakas came the Dharmaguptakas. " |
| Sautrantika Buddhism | world | - | - | - | - | 150 C.E. | *LINK* Hexham, Irving. Concise Dictionary of Religion. Carol Stream, USA: InterVarsity Press (1994). (v. online 6 Oct. 1999) | "SAUTRANTIKA: a HINAYNA school of BUDDHIST PHILOSOPHY which rejected the ABHIDHARMA and taught that the STRAS alone were authoritative. It emerged during the second century. " |
| Saved Army | Illinois: Chicago | - | - | - | - | 1913 | McKinley, Edward H. Marching to Glory: The History of the Salvation Army in the United States of America, 1880-1980. San Francisco: Harper & Row (1980); pg. 115. | "1913... A.E. Kimball... wrote [about] 'present difficulty we have in connection with so many Armies.'... Chicago produced the Redeemer's Army, the Christian Army, and the Samaritan, Saved, and Volunteer Rescue Armies. These agencies, which used uniforms, flags, and brass bands wherever they could muster them, caused great confusion to the public, who naturally mistook them for The Salvation Army... " |
