Posted on 02/18/2008 7:06:06 AM PST by Alex Murphy
The Utah State Senate will begin differently today. As in other states, the Utah's Senate meeting begins with a prayer or religious rite. However, today will mark the first time a Hindu prayer has opened the Utah Senate meeting.
Rajan Zed, a Hindu chaplain, will read a prayer from the "Rig-Veda," an ancient book of Hindu scripture that dates back more than 3,000 years.
Zed will first read the prayer in Sanscrit, a language considered sacred by Hindus, and then an English translation. After the prayer, Zed will meet with Gov. Jon Huntsman Jr. and with Elder Quentin L. Cook of the Quorum of the Twelve.
However, Utah is not Zed's first stop. Zed began his mission last year when he read the prayer in the U.S. Senate. Since then, he has also offered the Hindu prayer in the Colorado, Nevada, New Mexico and California senate meetings. In Nevada and Washington, D.C., there were disturbances as some Christian groups protested.
Rajan Zed came from India and currently lives in Reno, Nev. Along with being a Hindu chaplain, he is actively involved in literally dozens of community and national organizations. Zed promotes communication between different religions and has participated on The Washington Post's religious online forum.
"All of us are looking for the truth, and dialogue brings us mutual enrichment," Zed said.
He said people need to take religion seriously. As people join in interfaith dialogue, they can be spiritually enriched and the journey will be easier, he said.
"We need to take religion very seriously," Zed said.
Hinduism is one of the world's oldest religions that is still practiced. With around 1 billion followers, it is the third largest religion in the world.
While about 900 million of the Hindu followers live in India and Nepal, there are many right here in Utah. Zed said Utah has approximately 500 Hindu families. Most live in the Utah Valley and Salt Lake County areas so they can be near Hindu temples.
Are any of the state legistlators Hindu?
oooo, How tolerant of them.
Line 47 ....
“May your guests be wealthy and worthy of golden bonus points.
May your hotel prosper with 88% occupancy throught the year”
Countdown to see how long it will take for someone to claim that 1 Hindu prayer out of 250 or so each year is somehow an oppression of Christians.. 5...4...3...2...
Do you think they wouldn't?
And if so, why do you think that?
I wonder how many times a year a Baptist preacher gives the prayer, maybe 100+?
Good point - I'll bet Utah has a lot more than 500 Baptist families living there.
"Zed said Utah has approximately 500 Hindu families. Most live in the Utah Valley and Salt Lake County areas so they can be near Hindu temples."
Well, in defense of Hindu’s internationally, Hindu’s are the only religious group other than Christians that have successfully beat back an Islamic assault on their culture. There are rivalries between Hindus and Christians in India, and I guess somewhat here in the USA, but internationally “our” interests are linked by the threat to free expression and freedom of religion posed by Islam.
THey are also highly invested in a caste system that is roughly based on skin color. GO Figure...
>> Countdown to see how long it will take for someone to claim that 1 Hindu prayer out of 250 or so each year is somehow an oppression of Christians.. <<
Depends on the content of the prayer.
"Let us pray," he began, "We meditate on the transcendental glory of the deity supreme, who is inside the heart of the earth, inside the life of the sky and inside the soul of heaven. May he stimulate and illuminate our minds.
"Lead us from the unreal to real, from darkness to light, and from death to immortality. May we be protected together. May we be nourished together. May we work together with great vigor. May our study be enlightening."
Yeah, I have a problem with that prayer. Maybe minor enough I could just keep quiet and not participate.
Of course, as Christians we would have a problem with the prayer in a religious sens, but as you said, we are free not to participate. We should, however, stand up for their right to pray at the Statehouse, just as Christians are given that right on most other days. As soon as we start saying Hindus cannot open a prayer, then others will come up and say XX denomination can’t, then another, then another, then, before you know it, prayer won’t be allowed at all. Freedom of religion is freedom for all religion. As Christians, we should stand up for this more as our entire religion is based on us making a free choice.
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