SRI SAI BABA PRANA PRATHISHTAPANA CEREMONY - NEW JERSEY, USA

[rOhit beHaL]

LAWRENCE: Dedication Sunday a major Hindu Event.

"SRI SHIRDI SAI BABA PRANA PRATHISHTAPANA CEREMONY - NEW JERSEY, USA"
By Natalie Lescroart, Staff Writer
Posted: Monday, June 22, 2009 7:04 PM EDT

   LAWRENCE — A Hindu priest will summon God into a stone statue of the Indian guru and saint Shirdi Sai Baba as the Radha Krishna Temple concludes its momentous Pranpratishtha event that is expected to draw participants from throughout central New Jersey on Sunday.

   Fifteen to 20 volunteers helped to carry the idol onto the temple grounds June 7 to mark the commencement of the “Adhivasam,” or purification of the sculpture.

   The nonprofit temple at 357 Lawrence Station Road, which Yogesh Sharma founded in 2001, is one of several providing central New Jersey’s growing Indian-American population with places for worship, spiritual guidance and cultural events.

   The June 28 ceremony is being viewed as particularly significant, as Pranpratishtha ceremonies occur very infrequently. This one is believed to be a first for the area.

   Ms. Sharma said that she and some of her volunteers felt that it would benefit the community to bring a physical representation of their Hindu heritage and faith to Radha Krishna Temple.

   ”This is the true representation of India,” said Sujata Kumar, a temple volunteer. “I am involved here because I want my kids to see something they might not otherwise see.”
   The temple contacted a sculptor in Japiur, India, to have a murthi, or sacred image, of Shirdi Sai Baba made and shipped to Lawrenceville.
According to Ms. Kumar, the marble idol stands 5 feet tall and weighs an estimated 3 tons.

   Many believe that Shirdi Sai Baba, who lived in the late 19th and early 20th centuries, performed countless miracles and worked to reconcile the differences between Hinduism and Islam. Ms. Kumar, a devotee of Baba, explained that they specifically chose him for the Pranpratishtha because of his insistence on the notion that God is one, and because of his efforts to create a communal harmony between sects and religions.

   Ms. Kumar explained that Baba’s unwavering respect for life complements the objectives of the temple.
   ”This is a 21st century temple,” said Ms. Kumar. “It’s like a melting pot. All different sects of Hinduism are here and coming together.”

   Only after devotees of the idol immerse and bathe him in sacred substances—water, milk, and grains— rest him in new garments and flowers on a specially prepared bed and place gems and gold beneath his feet can the marble sculpture be placed and ready for worship.

   This Saturday the temple will take the last steps in the purification of the idol, including the placement of the flowers and the gems, before the final idol placement, or the Murthi Sthapana, on Sunday at 11:30 a.m. According to ancient Vedic rituals, members of the temple will call to God and awaken him within the Murthi.

Unless irreparably broken, the statue will remain indefinitely in place and available for worship on the temple grounds.

   Ms. Sharma and Ms. Kumar invited anyone interested, regardless of his or her religion, to experience the Murthi Sthapana and to donate generously.

   ”When you have faith, you can come here and see him,” Ms. Kumar said.
   Ms. Kumar, who left India in 1990, stressed that the Hindu religion establishes an accepting “community” and a family of believers.
Before Ms. Sharma founded the Radha Krishna temple, Ms. Kumar had felt that she was missing her family in America.

   ”What I missed here was my family,” she said. “At the temple, I found a bigger family.”

   Ms. Sharma said that there were other temples in the region before she began Radha Krishna, many Hindus in the Lawrence area would worship at home rather than drive to a temple outside the community.
   Now at Radha Krishna Temple, worshippers can attend nightly “aarti” prayer services lead in song by the temple’s new priest, Raja Gopal.

   While Ms. Sharma and Ms. Kumar are happy to have Radha Krishna, they believe that the Hindu community would thrive in New Jersey even without the buildings and the idols.

   ”Hinduism stays in the heart, not just in the temples,” said Ms. Kumar.

Source - http://centraljersey.com/articles/2009/06/22/the_princeton_packet/news/doc4a400a4793bdd744558682.txt


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"To Put Life Into Marble Idols, If Mantras Have The Power,
Imagine, If We Chant The Mantras, On Us What Divinity It Can Shower."



shOwer pOwer - roHit behal

[dwarakamai]

Rohit..
This information was much much helpful to me.. I work at lawrenceville but I never knew the existance of a temple here.
I saw this posting in time and can able to attend the cermony.Thank you so much..Baba bless you.
Om Sai Ram.

[rOhit beHaL]

"Sai Babas Idol unveiled at Lawrence Temple"
Monday, June 29, 2009
BY KRISHNAN VASUDEVAN
SPECIAL TO THE TIMES

LAWRENCE -- On an ordinary Sunday, approximately 50 people come to the morning service at the Radha Krishna temple here. Yesterday, however, over 300 people came to celebrate the unveiling of a new idol in recognition of Hindu saint, Sri Sai Baba.
The statue was unveiled at exactly 11:37 a.m., the auspicious time, according to Hindu astrology, in a ceremony called "Pranpratishtha," which translates to installation of an idol. A Hindu priest blessed the Sai Baba statue, which was installed on the temple patio, with traditional prayer ceremonies throughout the morning.
 
Once uncovered for the public, devotees had an opportunity to pour holy water on the statue as an offering of their love to the saint.
The event was especially momentous because this is the first Sai Baba statue in Mercer County for the local Hindu community.
"It will bring lot of people, a lot more people," said Dr. Prakash Sharma who co-founded the temple with his wife in 2002.
Sai Baba, which loosely translates to holy father, was born in 1838 and combined both Hindu and Muslim ideas in his religious teachings.
Along with having reportedly performed countless miracles, Sai Baba is most known for rejecting the Hindu caste system, and for bringing harmony between people of different faiths.

Lawrence mayor Pam Mount, who was one of many local politicians on hand, echoed Sai Baba's teachings in an impromptu speech. "We really appreciate the effort you've gone to to build your temple and to bring everyone together," said Mount. She added that as the temple grows in the area, the congregation will have an opportunity to teach more people about their religion as well as learn about other faiths practiced in Mercer County.
Other politicians present were Assemblywoman Linda Greenstein of the 14th District, Assemblyman Upendra Chivukula of the 17th District, and councilman-elect Kamal Khanna of West Windsor.

While the three-ton marble statue made its way from being handcrafted in Jaipur, India to a shipping yard in New York, a lot of work was done back home in preparation. For nearly three weeks volunteers built a new patio, constructed a gazebo to house the statue, and set up multiple tents for yesterday's festivities.
When the statue was ready to be erected it took nearly 20 people to roll it to its spot in the center of the gazebo. "In spite of the rains volunteers stayed here past midnight Friday night to get it together," said Tarun Mandhania, a member of the temple. The entire operation was funded by devotees of the temple, some giving up to $500 donations.
Unlike the other idols which will be installed inside the temple itself, Sai Baba will remain on the patio. "Baba used to generally stay in the open underneath a tree," said Sharma. The saint often is depicted sitting under a tree, with one hand facing out, as to bless whomever is looking at him.
The statue, which was adorned with flower garlands, was visible from both Lawrence Station road, and southbound N.J. Transit trains on the Northeast Corridor.

Sharma may be right in predicting more devotees to his temple. Though Hinduism believes that multiple gods are facets of one single power, many people focus their faiths on certain deities like Radha and Krishna. Sri Sai Baba, however, is given credence by all Hindus alike. With the nearest Sai Baba temple in Edison, Sunday morning service at the Radha Krishna temple may have a permanent uptick in devotees.

Source - http://www.nj.com/news/times/regional/index.ssf?/base/news-17/124624831253250.xml&coll=5

"To Put Life Into Marble Idols, If Mantras Have The Power,
Imagine, If We Chant The Mantras, On Us What Divinity It Can Shower."
shOwer pOwer - roHit behal

[rOhit beHaL]

"Sai Babas Idol at Lawrence Temple"
Radha Krishna Temple.
357 Lawrence Station Road,
Lawrenceville,
NEW JERSEY - 08648 (609) 737-1986
USA
http://www.radhakrishnatemple.org/





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