South African Hindus host prayer meet for world peace

Three South African Hindu organisations hosted a prayer meeting here on Sunday for global peace, amidst the coronavirus outbreak.

Besides a yajnya (fire ceremony), priests and individuals from Malaysia, Singapore, Kenya, Germany, the US, Indonesia, Mauritius, Nigeria and India delivered discourses.

Groups from the participating countries rendered devotional songs and dances in Hindi, Tamil, Telugu, Gujarati, Bengali, Marathi and Sanskrit.

The prayer meeting was organised by the World Hindu Foundation, the World Hindu Pundit Organisation, and the provincial Gauteng Hindus.

Attendance at the meeting was restricted due to the COVID-19 regulations. The event was broadcast live on Facebook and YouTube.

From Varanasi, Piyush Agarwal explained the history and significance of the oldest city in the world and prayed for the success of the initiative in South Africa.

Pandit Kirit Acharya of the Melrose Temple in Johannesburg said the idea of a mass yajnya was born last year when priests in 22 countries got together to form the World Hindu Pundit Organisation.

“It is our duty to lead from the front and show unity among us, so that the message goes down to the ground, especially to unite all the Hindu temples,” the Pundit said.

The organisation has 20 members in South Africa who had worked regularly during the COVID-19 lockdown to provide assistance and guidance to devotees, he said.

"Today we gather to kindle the flame of yajnya, and chant the eternal echoes of the divine to heal a nation and a world that has been brought to its knees and now cries for hope and healing," said Swami Vedananda Saraswathie from the Arya Samaj Movement.

“Amidst the fascinating achievements of the modern era of science and technology, and improving our comfort levels, human chaos and environmental destruction have posed the greatest challenges for our well-being and most importantly, that of our home, Mother Earth.

“The result is hatred, violence, global warming and COVID-19. The world is forced to realise that the comforts provided to us by modern science and technology does not necessarily make life happier or safer. Rather, we have suffered losses incomparable,” he added.

The Swami said the way to address these issues was through Yajnya, because it is creative and constructive, not destructive.

“Yajnya is not just a ritual – it is a complete way of life. It is a noble act of piety, virtue and service.”

From Germany, Swami Vishwananda, founder of the Bhakti Marga Movement, said the yajnya by the World Hindu Foundation could bring peace and transform what was happening in South Africa and in the world.

“Wherever the smoke (of the yajnya fire) is travelling, it is bringing the same healing and the same peace to everybody, irrespective of whoever they are and whether they believe or not,” the Swami said.

Guru Somadran Padayachee of the South African Tamil Federation referred to the times before the COVID-19 pandemic as "B.C." and the current situation as "A.C."

"Before B.C., we thought we could have everything big and elaborate - big cars, big homes, and even temples would be competing with each other to see how big festivals they could have.

“After A.C, we realised that competition does not get us anywhere,” the Guru said, as he called for devotion, simplicity, love, kindness and helpfulness in service to humanity.

Joining the event by Zoom from Durban, indigenous South African Bongani Gumede, who has adopted the name Vrindavan Das as a member of the International Society of Krishna Consciousness, said humanity could benefit greatly from the yajnyas prescribed by ancient religious leaders.

Raj Kollapen of the Swami Ayappen Kshetram in Pretoria said the yajnya has scientifically proven benefits, including highlighting that human beings were interconnected to each other because the prayer was performed in groups.

“It also teaches us that there is great benefit in the concept of sharing, caring and learning from each other as we perform these rituals.

‘We learn about our dependence on Mother Nature for our very existence and from this we develop an attitude of gratitude. It is only in a grateful individual that happiness and humility can be found,” Kollapen added before listing many other benefits of the ritual.