Author: skurien

I returned to the BAPS Shri Swaminarayan Mandir on Sunday, May 1st to interview a leader from this temple. I was expecting to speak to the pujari, but he actually referred me to someone else, Dr. Mahindra, since he’s knowledgeable about Hinduism. Dr. Mahindra was actually excited to speak to me because he loves teaching others about this religion.

Before I ask him any questions, he gives me an introduction of the BAPS organization. BAPS stands for “Bochasanwasi Akshar Purushottam Sanstha.” The first mandir of this organization was inaugurated in Bochasan, Gujarat, hence the word “Bochasanwasi,” which means ‘based in Bochasan.’ “Akshar Purushottam” refers to the Hindu doctrine of worshipping Bhagwan Swaminarayan (Purushottam), and His devotee, Akshar. “Sanstha” is the Sanskrit word for ‘organization.’

Dr. Mahindra goes on and talks about the BAPS mandirs in America. This particular mandir is known as a ‘Hari Mandir’ because it is not a traditional temple for rituals but a hub for activities, such as Sunday Sabha, bhajan, kirtana, etc. There are over 450+ such temples in the world. There are 5 traditional BAPS mandirs in the U.S: Atlanta, Toronto, Chicago, Houston, Los Angeles, and a new one is being built in New Jersey. The largest mandir is in Delhi.

He also talks about the classes that take place at this mandir. “Activities are geared towards age – keeping up with the Swaminarayan scriptures.” The age range is from 5-35 years old. In addition, there are audio/video presentations shown here as well as language programs for kids. These classes explain why it is important to continue this way of life. The Scriptures are called the Vachnamrut, which is a dialogue between Bhagwan Swaminarayan and his disciples in a question/answer format with authenticity of time, day, and place. This also details the steps to moksha as well. There’s another religious text known as Shikshapatri, which is the code of conduct for one’s way of life. Lastly, there’s another text titled, Swamini Vato, which are day-to-day accounts of the Lord’s devotee, Aksharmurti Gunatitanand Swami. It also is used as a simplified form of the Vachnamrut.

Differences in America and India:

(Dr. Mahindra): Hinduism gives a traditional family-oriented life, but it also tells us that there is more – a spiritual element. In America, there are some goods and bads. Equality is a good thing because classes exist in India, but here, it’s not supposed to be that way. Everyone is considered equal. Unfortunately, there is some opposition to put up a temple because some are ignorant of the various religions, but after understanding it, they are more accepting. For this particular mandir, we didn’t need to worry about any opposition at all.

When you come here to America, culture is different. People get diverted to the American culture, but luckily, because of the mandirs in America, people have been keeping up with the traditions. If someone is firm in mind, they can survive and continue with the traditions. Within homes, a lot has changed as well. In India, each home would usually have a puja room, but in America, only a few have enough space to make a puja room. Living in New York makes it a reason to let things go. No meat, no onion or garlic, no eggs and gelatin are supposed to be consumed.  Because we’re in the United States, people tend to conform to the American culture. Fortunately, in India, there are vegan restaurants that help maintain one’s vegetarianism. Language is also restricted because we’re conflicted with the English language here, which is used more than Gujurati.

Besides my Holi temple visit, I went back to the BAPS Shri Swaminarayan Mandir in Yonkers on April 24th at 4:30pm. Based on the schedule,  Sundays are dedicated to the assembly meetings for everyone at the temple. These assemblies, or “sabha,” are divided into different groups based on age: Bal/Balika, Kishore/Kishori, Yuvati, Mahila, and Satsang. The Bal/Balika group refers to the elementary school kids and Kishore/Kishori group refers to the middle school kids. These classes are separated by gender. “Bal” and “Kishore” refer to the boys, while “Balika” and “Kishori” refer to the girls. In addition, the other three groups are referring to the adult groups, which are also separated by age. The boys are downstairs, while the girls are upstairs. These assemblies usually occur between 3:00pm – 6:30pm. When I went to the temple at 4:30, I sat in the Satsang Sabha, which consisted of the adult males and females. It was similar to the Holi event because everyone was singing “bhajans,” or devotional songs in Gujarati. I didn’t understand the songs at all since there wasn’t any translation, but I recognized words such as “Shri Swaminarayan Bhagwan ni Jai,” which is a phrase the Gujaratis say to praise their god. [Also, this phrase is also used as a greeting to the elders by touching their feet.]

At the end of the sabha, from 6:30 – 7:30, the aarti ritual was conducted. This was the same as the aarti ritual from Holi. During the aarti ritual, the plates were decorated with paint and on top of the plate, the candles, or “divo,” were soaked in ghee. The plates were separated between male and female. Each side had 5 different plates. After the pujari led the aarti, there was a “asthak” session, which is recognized as the “prayer” session. The men and women prostrated on the floor to the gods in a form of respect. This is known as “dandvat.” I noticed that even the little girls and boys did the same thing, and it’s surprising that they actually understand the meaning of what they’re doing. This is all due to the sabhas these children attend every week, which are classes that teach them the meaning of their religion and what rules to abide by. After that, there was dinner, or “prashad,” which consisted of vegetarian food.

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The Mandir schedule is: Daily Aarti is at 7:00am and 6:30pm and Daily Darshan Timings are at 7am – 12:15pm and 4:00pm to 8:00pm. I learned from this experience that the gods are considered ‘real people.’ I noticed that the deities were wearing a different outfit from the last time I came to the temple, and when I asked someone the reason why, she said that they’re treated as if they have life in them. The pujari brushes their teeth, bathes them, and dressed them in new clothes everyday. During 12:15 and 4:00pm, the gods are given their lunch and time is given for the gods to have an afternoon nap. I was intrigued by this concept especially when she told me that they’re bathed and their teeth are brushed each morning.

The Highest Leader of the Swami Narayan believer is His Divine Holiness Pramukh Swami Maharaj. He is known as “Bapa,” or Father, by his followers. He built over 500 temples all over the world. He also initiated over 800 saints. They don’t accept women or wealth. They don’t even glance or talk to women, nor do they touch money. If a woman wanted to ask the saints/Bapa a question, they would have to have a male to ask them for her. This is why there is a gender distinction, in order to stay focused and not stray away in their spiritual path, or else this will increase the lust in them. However, if the saints/Bapa do end up looking at a girl, they would have to fast the whole day. It’s interesting how strict the rules are for the Bapa, the saints, and the believers follow.

Also, men and women dress differently. The men wear “jabho lenghas,” and most of them are usually white. The women wear “salwar kameez.” On special occasions, the men wear “shirvanis” and the women wear “saris” or “cholis.” Everyone knows one another here and they all speak the same language — Gujarati.

History: This mandir was started in 2004. Prior to that, they attended the Flushing BAPS temple. However, due to the location differences, the rituals were done at houses in Westchester. With the opening of this mandir, it makes it easier for everyone to come together and worship the deities.

Administrative Structure: The Highest Leader is Pramukh Swami Maharaj. Under him are the over 800 saints. Below them are the Mandir Coordinator and Pujari of each mandir throughout the world. With a particular mandir, there are special coordinators for departments such as: Facilities, Balika Coord., Audio/Visual Coord., etc. These are volunteer based positions. No one is paid for their involvement/position in the temple. Pramukh Swami usually appoints the people to become saints and at times, the pujaris are hereditary.

The main teaching of the Swami Narayans is that there are two important people in the world: The Lord Himself and his guru. In this case, their guru is Pramukh Swami.

On March 20th, I decided to visit BAPS Shri Swaminarayan Mandir in Yonkers, NY because they were celebrating Holi. When I called this Gujurati mandir on March 18th, they said that they don’t play with colors on Holi. Instead, they have a “Satsang,” which is a sort of an assembly where everyone gets together from 4pm till 6:30pm. They listen/read scriptures and reflect upon its meaning and try to apply it in their own lives. After that, they have “aarti” and “mahaprasad” (dinner). The expected amount of people in attendance was 200 people.

On March 20th, I didn’t know what to expect at all. From the outside, it seemed like a regular 3 story building. In the front, there were large white doors. I was hesitant to open the door since I have no idea what the interior is like. Since I was wearing Indian clothes, I felt that it was easy for me to blend with the crowd. So, with that thought, I opened the door, and I entered a room. The first thing I notice is the next room in front of me. It looks like an auditorium which can fit over 300 people and realized that that was the temple area itself.

I was looking around in the first room and I noticed that everything was separated by gender. In the room that I was standing in, there was a shelf titled “Ladies Shoes” and a stairway for the Ladies to go downstairs. On the other side of the room, there was a shelf and a stairway dedicated to the “Gentlemen” only. I didn’t expect that there would be gender distinctions at the temple. So, I took off my shoes and placed it in the cubby and stepped into the temple area.   It was 3:50pm and there weren’t a lot of people there at the time. A woman who looked like she was 25 years old came up to me and asked if I was someone new. I replied ‘yes’ and I told her that I have an ethnography project for my Hinduism class. She introduced herself as Kruti and offered to help me to understand the procedures of this day. I felt so relieved!

The picture shows the gods in the “sinhasan,” the actual temple area. In the picture, it is not covered. However, when I got there, the sinhasan was entirely covered becaue the “pujari” (priest) was offering food to the gods.  In this picture, there are 4 sets of gods. From the left, the first set is Shri Shivaji, Shri Parvatiji, and their son, Shri Ganeshji. The second set shows Shri Krishnaji with his flute and Shri Radhaji.  In this picture, you can see that there are tubes tucked in Shri Krishna’s shawl. Those tubes are called “pichkari” and yellow colored water are filled in these tubes. The yellow comes from a flower known as “kesudo” and the color itself is known as “rang.” The third set of gods are Purna Purushottam and Shri Bhagwan Swaminarayan (the god whom this temple is name after.)  The last set of gods are Shri Ramji, Shri Sitaji, and Shri Hanumanji.  It seems like these are the gods whom the Gujurati community pray to each week.

Kruti told me that they don’t usually play with colors because in America, the tradition is not accepted as much. So, people just apply “kumkum” (red powder) on other people’s faces. However, this didn’t happen today.  Holi is a special holiday in India because it celebrates the arrival of Spring. In the Bhagavad Gita, 10th teaching, vs. 31, Krishna commemorates Spring as the best of all seasons. Holi comes from the Sanskrit word “Holaaka,” which means roasted grain. So, Holi is the offering of the newly harvested grain to the gods. In addition, the day after spring, or Holi, is considered Fuldol or Pushpadolotsav. “Pushpa” means flower and this represents the festival of flowers and colors. On this day, the devotees place the “murti” (the divine image of God) on a “hindolo,” or a swing, made of flowers, and then, they swing him. They also offer special food items known as “fagwaa,” which includes popcorn, dates, and roasted chickpeas.

After Kruti gave me a history about the festival of Holi and Fuldol, the Satsang started. In the auditorium, there was a 2 feet high wooden blocks that were lined up in the middle, which represented the dividing line between the men and the women. We were all seated and facing the stage. There were four men seated on the stage with instruments and microphones in front of them.  I was seated right behind the wooden blocks. The four men were leading the song session where the glorify and praise Shri Bhagwan Swaminarayan, the festival of Holi and Fuldol, etc. I wondered why it was only men on stage, and Kruti told me that women are not allowed on stage during the assemblies. After the song session, we were shown videos of people in India celebrating Holi in the city of Sarangpur. Every year, there is a mega Holi event led by His Divine Holiness Pramukh Swami Maharaj, the highest spiritual leader in the Gujurat community. 100,000 devotees attended this event in Sarangpur. Videos were shown from this event. The men were all in the front, while the ladies stayed in the back. I noticed that once again, there was a gender distinction. Only the men were allowed to get showered in the yellow colored water. The ladies are not hit with the colored water at all.

During the sabha, everyone sang songs and were clapping with the beat. It was evident how everyone was showing bhakti and veneration to their gods. The instruments used during this session were the “tabla” (small drum) and a “kartal” (a handheld tambourine). After this, we took part in “aarti,” which is a form of puja in which light wicks of fire are soaked in ghee and these lamps are offered to the gods. The silver plate is decorated with paint and with this plate, we move it in a circle back and forth, and then we pass it on to the next person. Kruti asked me to do it as well. I felt awkward doing it but it was a great experience. After the aarti, we all were invited to the “mahaprasad,” or dinner. It was a light dinner of rice, nan, and vegetarian food. We even had “fagwaa” with popcorn, dates, and roasted chickpeas. Once again, there was separation between the men and women during dinner.

Overall, I would like to say I had a great experience there. I learned so much in this one day. As an Indian myself, I have seen Hindu festivals from a distance in my own village in India. Since I’m a Christian, I’m not allowed to take part in it. However, this opportunity at the mandir made it possible for me to understand and take part in the festival of Holi and Fuldol.