24 Havans to Seek Gayatri Devi’s Blessings, Guidance for Flood Relief

By Jawahar Malhotra

HOUSTON: After the devastating and massive floods that recently occurred in the foothills of the Himalayas, especially in the state of Uttarakhand, many groups decided to help those who had suffered from the calamity. But one group sprang into action immediately as their headquarters is located almost in the heart of the affected region.

This group – the All World Gayatri Pariwar – has a history of doing charitable work ever since it was founded in 1946 by Pandit Shriram Sharma Acharya on a small piece of land in Mathura and later established in Haridwar in 1971. The spiritual and social organization has since spread out over a large 150 acre area named Gayatri Nagar, with the headquarters known as Shantikunj, situated at the banks of the Ganges, about 4 miles from Haridwar.

Shantikunj is devoted to cultural, ethical, moral and spiritual awakening and developing divinity in mankind is its foremost and avowed goal. The AWGP aims to reach these goals by popularizing the Gayatri Mantra, Yagya and Sanskaars (sacramental rites) which invoke celestial thoughts and deeds in a process the group calls the Thought Revolution Movement. The Gayatri Mantra is highly revered and widely cited in Vedic literature and is uttered to invoke the Goddess Savitri. Yagya is the ancient ritual of offering havan samigri (herbal preparations) in fire accompanied by chanting Vedic mantras.

The AWGP has evolved into a global organization with Centers worldwide, with the vision of building a living model of a futuristic model guided by principles of human unity and equality. There are about 40 centers in the US and Canada, with a large temple in Piscataway, New Jersey. The Houston Center for Gayatri Consciousness has been for the past three years at 5645 Hillcroft, Suite 307, across from the Sai Baba Mandir in Little India, where a Shivaling satapna is scheduled for on August 9 through 11.

This past weekend, the Houston Center was visited by two roving emissaries from Shantikunj who have devoted their lives as volunteers for the cause. Onkar Lal Patidar and Pushkar Singh came to Houston from Piscataway as part of their North American tour which includes Austin, Dallas and San Antonio, to spread the gospel of the organization through the practice of yagyas, 24 of which were simultaneously performed last Saturday afternoon, July 6 at the performance hall of the ISKCON Center on West 34th Street. During the event, the two karya kartas (volunteers) sang devotional bhajans and guided the devout through the steps of the havans.

Their stay in Texas will coincide and culminate in a seven-day long Youth Camp in Hunt, near Kerrville, southwest of San Antonio, where adults and youth of all ages from the area will learn the steps and techniques towards the Thought Revolution inspired by the AWGP. These venues will also allow the groups to gather donations that can be sent towards the flood relief efforts being undertaken by the AWGP in Uttarakhand.

“There is a 24/7/365 disaster relief management team in Shantikunj,” said Garima Doshi, the Joint Secretary for the local Houston Center, who has been involved along with her husband Ketan with the group since 2006. “Of the over 1,500 people in Shantikunj Ashram, there is a team of 50 volunteers who work in seven department focused on the environment, social initiatives and so on.” Center President Bharat Tailor, Vice President Mahesh Patel, Trustee Sangeeta Tailor, Treasurer Deepak Khatri and their entire Board and volunteers are spearheading the local efforts to expand the AWGP’s programs in the Houston area.