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Prayers in US for quick resolution of temple crisis

As terrorists continue to hold devotees hostage at the Akshardham temple in Gandhinagar, those active in the Hindu community in the United States have been feverishly engaged in organizing prayer meetings in temples across the country to express their sympathy and solidarity.

Radhesh Patel, public relations coordinator at the Bochasanwasi Shri Akshar Purushottam Swaminarayan Sanstha in Atlanta, has been on the phone since 6 am. Immediately after he read about the attack in Gandhinagar on the Internet, he began to contact Hindu organizations around the country to inform them of the situation and consider holding special events in commiseration of the victims.

“Everyone was disturbed by the news. It is the biggest temple in India, you know. There is a sentiment of fear and anger,” Patel told rediff.com

But Patel said the main purpose of the prayer, that he expects to be attended by more than a thousand people, is “peace for people who lost their lives.”

“No one will be allowed to speak,” he said. “We do not want to provoke any tense situation. In such a situation, people get excited and overwhelmed and we don’t want them to say anything that goes against Hinduism.”

Patel, an insurance agent, said he would conduct his office work from the temple, where he is currently getting in touch with other members to inform them of the incident and the prayer meeting. He is being assisted by 20 other volunteers, who rushed to the temple after hearing the news to offer help.

Similar prayer meetings are being held at almost all the 27 Swaminarayan temples in the country. Kalpesh Patel, a board member of the temple in Bartlett, Illinois, said the community in Chicago is by now well-acquainted with the ‘unfortunate news.’ The Bartlett temple will hold a meeting for peaceful resolution of the situation at 7 pm.

However, the biggest problem facing the Indian community in the US, said Kalpesh Patel, was the lack of information on the incident. “We are experiencing a communication gap with India and this makes it very difficult to formalize our event.”

Biren Gandhi, BAPS coordinator in San Jose, California, reiterates the same dilemma. “There is nothing being reported authentically at this point. Different people are throwing up different numbers. And the entire communication facility between the US and Gujarat seems to have been cordoned off. People have been continuously calling since the last three hours and we have very little to inform them.”

If you are in the US and need more information on a prayer meeting around your area, please call 1-732-744-1744.

The Temple Attack: Complete Coverage

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