"My father is the first person in 150 years, to build a temple with his own personal money in this town" she explained. ".....So the temple is not owned by the priests, which is usually the case, but is independent, which means that it will enjoy complete autonomy and the priests will not have any say in how it is run". Her father had made his money out of building contracts and this was his latest project. We sat on chairs in the attached garden. It was 6 p.m. and some of the heat had gone out of the day - a low wall separated this green space from the dusty streets Her little pug puppy, Romeo, tore round the huge expanse of lawn, as fast as his short legs would carry him.
The three storey temple overlooked the garden and was complete, except for the interior finishing. She had given me a guided tour and explained that the statue of the God would be installed next month. "This room here is where the God will sleep - he will be washed and put into his nightclothes and this is where his food will be prepared. Once the main statue is enthroned, it will be fixed and kept behind a screen except for specific times of day when it will be revealed.. But our family god is small and portable and will represent the main god, in the day to day activities of the temple".
As we sat in the welcome cool of the evening, with the pink oleanders and yellow tackoma bushes, in the background, I listened to her describing the rituals which would take place and the procession at the temple's inauguration in April, with elephants, camels and other animals. It was difficult to believe that she had lived in Los Angeles for 17 years and had only just returned to India with her two children. I marveled at how deeply rooted the Hindu culture is and how it is accepted with such faith. I struggled to find a rational explanation for what she described..
The importance of patronage, reminded me of the Florentine families during the Renaissance, except that Catholics owed allegiance to the Pope, whereas here, the relationship between the God and the family was direct. "Only a few of us will be allowed to touch the statue before it becomes fixed and has the life of the God instilled into it - after that nobody may touch it - it will be sacred and inviolate"
In the lengthening shadows, I wondered at things visible and invisible. The pug raced back and pulled at her dupatta and so we threw his ball and watched him joyfully race and retrieve, in a tireless game.
The three storey temple overlooked the garden and was complete, except for the interior finishing. She had given me a guided tour and explained that the statue of the God would be installed next month. "This room here is where the God will sleep - he will be washed and put into his nightclothes and this is where his food will be prepared. Once the main statue is enthroned, it will be fixed and kept behind a screen except for specific times of day when it will be revealed.. But our family god is small and portable and will represent the main god, in the day to day activities of the temple".
As we sat in the welcome cool of the evening, with the pink oleanders and yellow tackoma bushes, in the background, I listened to her describing the rituals which would take place and the procession at the temple's inauguration in April, with elephants, camels and other animals. It was difficult to believe that she had lived in Los Angeles for 17 years and had only just returned to India with her two children. I marveled at how deeply rooted the Hindu culture is and how it is accepted with such faith. I struggled to find a rational explanation for what she described..
The importance of patronage, reminded me of the Florentine families during the Renaissance, except that Catholics owed allegiance to the Pope, whereas here, the relationship between the God and the family was direct. "Only a few of us will be allowed to touch the statue before it becomes fixed and has the life of the God instilled into it - after that nobody may touch it - it will be sacred and inviolate"
In the lengthening shadows, I wondered at things visible and invisible. The pug raced back and pulled at her dupatta and so we threw his ball and watched him joyfully race and retrieve, in a tireless game.
