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Believer
22 January 2011, 01:33 AM
Today I made my first visit to the Saiva Siddhanta Mandir on the island of Kauai. It is located in a breathtakingly tranquil corner of the island along the river Wailua. As you enter the temple complex, the first deity that you see is that of Ganeshji in a small open air shrine inside the entrance. The winding pathway from the entrance leads you to the temple. Outside the temple is Nandi facing a bronze murti of Lord Shiva in the inner sanctum. As you enter the temple, on the left side behind you is a large protrait of the founder of the temple and on the right side behind you is his murti and a large replica of the trishul with damroo. On the two sides are 108 small murtis of Lord Shiva, 54 on each side. Straight up is a Lingam in the center and Lord Shiva's bronze murti on a raised alter behind the Lingam. On the left side of the main alter is a small alter of Lord Ganesh, with a bell hanging overhead for you to ring and say a prayer. On the right side, I believe is another small alter of Lord Shiva, with a bell hanging overhead. The priest conducted a puja at the alter, then came to the back to offer puja to Gurudev and finally stepped out to offer puja to Nandi. Following my inbuilt intuition for tradition, I requested the priest for some vibhuti, which he gladly provided but did not apply to my forehead as is normally done in Hindu temples that I am used to. I applied the vibhuti on my forehead and wore it with pride. I shared it with others in our group and with some more Indians who had come to visit the mandir. Since I was not on the mainland, I let the vibhuti dot on my forehead stay when I drove away, for all to see without feeling embarrassed or feeling that I might be asked to explain it to a nosy stranger.

The current mandir is a temporary one, with the larger, final version under construction. They are working on it as the funds become available.

The gift shop had murtis of Lord Shiva and also of Gurudev for sale. A bronze replica of the temple under construction is to be placed on the hand of a large murti of Lord Hanuman to be installed near that temple. This replica was sitting in the gift shop and needed a sponser. There were lot of books on Shivaism, packets of incense, bottles of honey, various stones, japa-malas and many other sundry things for sale in the store. The cash register counter was being handled by two older Western ladies, who had gone the extra mile to dress in traditional Indian clothes, one in a sari and the other in a salwar-kameez.

When a weekly guided tour of the campus ended, I overheard a devote saying that they were always short handed on the tour conductors. I thought of volunteering EMji for the job :), but I don't even know his name, much less his contact info. So EMji, there is a job waiting for you in Kauai.

Overall, it was a very pleasant experience, knowing how Hinduism was flourishing in this remote corner of the world. To blend in with their environment though, they call it the Saiva Siddhanta Church.

giridhar
22 January 2011, 01:56 AM
Today I made my first visit to the Saiva Siddhanta Mandir on the island of Kauai. It is located in a breathtakingly tranquil corner of the island along the river Wailua. As you enter the temple complex, the first deity that you encounter is that of Ganeshji inside the entrance. The winding pathway from the entrance leads you to the temple. Outside the temple is Nandi facing a bronze murti of Lord Shiva in the inner sanctum. As you enter the temple, on the left side behind you is a large protrait of the founder of the temple and on the right side behind you is his murti and a large replica of the trishul with damroo. On the two sides are 108 small murtis of Lord Shiva, 54 on each side. Straight up is a Lingam in the center and Lord Shiva's bronze murti on a raised alter behind the Lingam. On the left side of the main alter is a small alter of Lord Ganesh, with a bell hanging overhead for you to ring and say a prayer. On the right side, I believe is another small alter of Lord Shiva, with a bell hanging overhead. The priest conducted a puja at the alter, then came to the back to offer puja to Gurudev and finally stepped out to offer puja to Nandi. Following my inbuilt tradition, I requested the priest for some vibhuti, which he gladly provided but did not apply to my forehead as is normally done in Hindu temples that I am used to. I applied the vibhuti on my forehead and wore it with pride. I shared it with others in our group and with some more Indians who had come to visit the mandir. Since I was not on the mainland, I let the vibhuti dot on my forehead stay when I drove away, for all to see without feeling embarrassed or feeling that I might be asked to explain it to a nosy stranger.

The current mandir is a temporary one, with the larger, final version under construction. They are working on it as the funds become available.

The gift shop had murtis of Lord Shiva and also of Gurudev for sale. A bronze replica of the temple under construction is to be placed on the hand of a large murti of Lord Hanuman to be installed near that temple. This replica was sitting in the gift shop and needed a sponser. There were lot of books on Shivaism, packets of incense, bottles of honey, various stones, japa-malas and many other sundry things for sale in the store. The checkout counter was being handled by two older ladies, who had gone the extra mile to dress in traditional Indian clothes, one in a sari and the other in a salwar-kameez.

When a weekly guided tour of the campus ended, I overheard a devote saying that they were always short handed on the tour conductors. I thought of volunteering EMji for the job :), but I don't even know his name, much less his contact info. So EMji, there is a job waiting for you in Kauai.

Overall, it was a very pleasant experience, knowing how Hinduism was flourishing in this remote corner of the world. To blend in with their environment though, they call it the Saiva Siddhanta Church.


Good visit by you !!
have always wanted to ask u .. who is ur avataar picture ?? have seen it cant recognize... hmmm.. :headscratch:

Eastern Mind
22 January 2011, 06:41 AM
Vannakkam Believer:

Glad you enjoyed it. Here are some pictures to go along with your verbal snapshot.

http://www.himalayanacademy.com/ssc/hawaii/tour/

Aum Namasivaya

Adhvagat
22 January 2011, 02:52 PM
Thank you for the great description! :o


To blend in with their environment though, they call it the Saiva Siddhanta Church.

http://www.etymonline.com/index.php?term=church

Ramakrishna
22 January 2011, 04:38 PM
Namaste Believerji,

Great description, thanks for sharing. Sounds like a great experience. The Kauai monastery is definitely on my list to visit, or more specifically pilgrimage. Maybe I'll end up visiting there before I save up enough money to go to Mother India...

Jai Sri Ram

saidevo
22 January 2011, 10:12 PM
namaste Believer.

Nice description. EM, is that the James Bond actor Pierce Brosnan in photograph no.37? What's he doing there? Trust the Hollywood wouldn't exploit the picturesque Hindu temples in the US the way the Tamizh film industry does, staging ugly group dances on the banks of the temple pond, and as a Tomb Raider film did to the Angkor Wat temple in Cambodia.

Believer
23 January 2011, 01:31 AM
Just an update, today we took a propeller plane ride over the entire island of Kauai and got a bird's eye view of the temple property. The gold covered domes of the would be temple were glistening in the noon-time Sun and looked so majestic. May this marvel of a temple be completed soon!

'Wings Over Kauai' is the company that operates the tour flight business. Any of you who get a chance to go there and plan to take the flight, send me a note for more details.

Alise
23 January 2011, 01:48 AM
Namaste,

Amazing description, Believer! (:

Saidevo, Pierce Brosnan visited monastery in 2003.
http://www.himalayanacademy.com/taka/past/2003/February/February_19_2003/ :) [thank you for noticing and I searched & found :)]

Have a wonderful day,
~Alice

Eastern Mind
23 January 2011, 05:27 AM
namaste Believer.

Nice description. EM, is that the James Bond actor Pierce Brosnan in photograph no.37? What's he doing there? Trust the Hollywood wouldn't exploit the picturesque Hindu temples in the US the way the Tamizh film industry does, staging ugly group dances on the banks of the temple pond, and as a Tomb Raider film did to the Angkor Wat temple in Cambodia.

Vannakkam Saidevo: Yes, as Sweet Alisija mentioned, that is Pierce Brosnan. He lives on Kauai, so maybe that has something to do with it. There have in fact been several famous celebrities drop in, not as official celebrity visits, but as well wishers or just curious like the public tour groups held about 3 times a month, or on the tour groups just like ordinary citizens. But usually there is little mention of it, as the last thing anyone needs there is paparazzi following some Hollywood star. Usually its a mellow sneak in, sneak out process. Many other spiritual gurus also visit now and then in the promotion of Hindu Solidarity, one of HA's primary focuses.

But Hollywood does go about looking for excellent picturesque sites to shoot, and once the monastery did allow a small shooting in a particular spot with the promise that they would leave everything as it was when they arrived. But that promise was broken, so the monastery rightfully initiated a policy that they wouldn't allow it any more. So the beauty will never be seen in some Hollywood movie. If you want to see it, you have to visit. But the whole island has many natural picturesque spots.

Aum Namsivaya

Eastern Mind
23 January 2011, 05:42 AM
Just an update, today we took a propeller plane ride over the entire island of Kauai and got a bird's eye view of the temple property. The gold covered domes of the would be temple were glistening in the noon-time Sun and looked so majestic. May this marvel of a temple be completed soon!

'Wings Over Kauai' is the company that operates the tour flight business. Any of you who get a chance to go there and plan to take the flight, send me a note for more details.

Vannakkam Believer: If you have the time, rent a 4 wheel drive, and head west on the southern route right to very end. The last 10 k of road is very rough so most rental car companies won't allow you to go on that road with ordinary cars. But the 10 k long, 300 m wide beach at the end is absolutely spectacular. I'm green (envy green) right now. Hope you found the two Indian restaurants as well. Keep enjoying Kauai! The free walk to the top of the sleeping giant near Kapaa is also fairly amazing. Not to mention the many many beaches. I could ramble for awhile. Oh yeah, hit the farmer's markets too. :)

Aum Namasivaya

sunyata07
23 January 2011, 05:56 AM
Namaste Believer,

What a beautiful account of the Kauai monastery! Thanks so much for sharing. It sounds like an incredible place to visit. Hope to go there someday, too.

Om namah Shivaya

NayaSurya
23 January 2011, 06:22 AM
Believer, put your feet in Hanalei Bay for me?<3

Ramakrishna
26 January 2011, 12:14 AM
But usually there is little mention of it, as the last thing anyone needs there is paparazzi following some Hollywood star. Usually its a mellow sneak in, sneak out process.

Namaste,

I just pictured in my mind a paparazzi following some Hollywood star into a Hindu monastery :eek:

It's a good thing there's little mention of it, because a paparazzi would definitely try to follow them in. Or at least try to.

Jai Sri Ram

Eastern Mind
26 January 2011, 05:37 AM
Vannakkam Ramakrishna: I think its easier when some of the celebs just live there. Its a relatively small island population wise, and the locals pretty much leave them (the celebs) alone. The monastery is only open at the front for the public 3 hours a day, and its pretty limited to the gift shop, and there are lots of signs indicating where you can or cannot go.

Of course Julia Roberts was followed while filming in India. The Hindu authorities could have refused it and forced the Hollywood guys to build an authentic set. Money talks. It certainly makes me understand the bans on 'just anybody' going into Hindu temples. I know if my temple was taken over for a movie shot, I'd be expressing disbelief and protest.

Aum Namasivaya