Hindu/Religious VS. Spiritual/Dharmic/Vedic - Gym, Puja, Design
Since when did the word “RELIGION” or “RELIGIOUS” start to freak people out? It boggles my mind.
If a Muslim says they are religious they are immediately branded as a “Terrorist”
If a Christian says they are religious they are immediately branded as a “Bible-thumping, right-wing, converting, Trump lover”
If a Hindu says they are religious they are immediately branded as a “Cow piss drinking, right-wing, Modi lover”
All my life I have been fascinated by faith and religions. My father in the late 1960s was a fresh immigrant to the United States (he landed in NYC) along with a few other aunties/uncles, through their hard work/dedication, the first Hindu Temple in the USA was built in 1970 the incredibly beautiful https://nyganeshtemple.org/
Dad moved out west to California, met Mom, got married, had me & my sister, and built the incredibly fascinating “woke” https://www.livermoretemple.org/ I watched in awe and fascination as super-talented artisans/sculptors came from India to build this beautiful temple that grew from a small tent to the humungous structure it is today. My father and his friends were “woke” long before it was “cool” to do so. Why? Because they built a Hindu Temple of inclusiveness, a place where all people of all backgrounds would feel welcomed and free to worship in peace. This temple has both North and South Indian architecture - Lord Shiva’s gopuram (Temple tower) is North Indian architecture, Lord Vishnu’s is in the traditional South Indian style, there are black granite deities (South Indian), while Lord Krishna, Durga, & Ram Parivar are all made of marble (traditions of the North). AND a famous Muslim musician, sarod legend Ustadh Ali Akbar Khan did the groundbreaking ceremony. YES, you read that right!
A Muslim musician’s name is carved on a traditional giant Hindu Temple in the USA!
I’ve felt the call of the divine since I was a small child, have a very personalized relationship with God, spirituality for me is a way of life. Hinduism is the oldest living religion in the world yet is still misunderstood/misrepresented in the west, ex: a negative connotation is that Hindus are idol worshipers. The correct term for the statues/deities is “murti,” a symbolic representation of the divine. Before the CA temple was consecrated, some of these murtis stayed at my house in our puja room –an area that you dedicate just for worship. As a 4-year-old child, these deities, I thought were my friends. Just as I would play with my Barbies/stuffed toys, I fed them, dressed them, played, had tea parties! When they moved back to the consecrated temple, I threw a temper tantrum, yelling: you took my friends away and kicked my dad in the shins (oops)!
I realized these murtis were essential in my journey in faith, symbolizing love, faith, devotion: my respect, adoration, admiration for my faith grew with age. My parents raised us with equal love, respect, and adoration for all FAITHS, we attended Gurudwara, attended many church services, and celebrated Eid (I grew up in a neighborhood with a large Pakistani and Afghani community). We also traveled extensively around the world, always being drawn to houses of worship wherever we went, whether it was a church, mosque, temple, or synagogue. I was taught to respect, love, adore, and admire different ways of worship and faith. I still have a rosary ring from the Vatican City blessed by his holiness the Pope, no matter how many times I’ve lost it (dropped in a gondola, lost in the hotel, etc.) it somehow always finds its way back to me! As a child I was fascinated by Greek & Roman Mythology, and used to carry my book of Myths everywhere I went!
We lived the core principle of “EKAM SAT” or all is one!
My name means music in Sanskrit, am classically trained in South Asian performing arts whose roots lie in worship. Thanks to my mom I can sing many hymns, chant numerous mantras, in a variety of different languages! Music and dance make me feel closer to the divine. When we moved to New Mexico, there was no Hindu Temple, my father became the resident priest, leading pujas (prayer rituals) for our small community of Indian families in the school gymnasium.
I watched my father get up at 430 am every day, go to the gym, shower, do his puja/prayers, take the BART train to work (this was the same ritual for 38 years). In the evenings he would light the lamp in our puja room, give thanks and then have dinner. Growing up my parents always hosted pujas at home celebrated festivals like Hanuman Jayanthi, Ganesha Chaturthi, and Navarathri. I will always value, cherish, and remember these beautiful memories of puja! I adore everything about it from preparing, performing, chanting, songs, music, flower garlands, decorations, and dance. Puja is what makes Hinduism vastly different than other faiths. Puja, also spelled pooja or poojah, is ceremonial worship, ritualistic prayer, ranging from brief daily rites in the home to elaborate temple rituals. The word puja is derived from the Dravidian language pu (“flower”). In its simplest form, puja usually consists of making an offering of flowers or fruit to God. Puja is performed because Hindus believe the all-mighty divine is seated right in front of them (we invite the Divine to inhabit the murti), we welcome them with food, song, water, adornments, etc. It is a way to express love and form a relationship with the all mighty divine.
During high school (everyone had an EMO faze LOL) I used to feel so misunderstood I would find solace in Fremont Temple, a church converted to a Hindu Temple. There was the steeple, church pews, and Lord Jesus & Mother Mary’s photos still hung on the wall next to Lord Ganesha, Shiva, Hanuman, Kali, etc., they were given the same respect and adoration as the Hindu deities, complete with “tilaks” “viboothi” “chandanam” (marks of divinity) on their foreheads and wore flower garlands!
I always took pride in the fact that Hinduism is free of judgment accepts all, sees all religions as EQUAL, as stated by the Sanskrit principles: Vasudhaiva Kutumbakam “The world is one family!” “Ekam Sat”, “All is one, paths are many, all faiths are one, lead to same divine” Ohm Loka Samastah Sukhino Bhavantu “May all beings everywhere be happy/free, may the thoughts, words, actions of my own life contribute in some way to that happiness and freedom for all”
All my life I have been told that I am “too religious” that I act like an old lady and hang out in temples.
I used to get so angry and lash out “Would you rather I be barhopping, getting shit-faced & sniffing coke??!”
That got a lot of the Indian American community to shut up! LOL
As an adult, I understand and reflect on what I call the “Immigrant Parent” mentality. They worked so hard leaving their native countries to make a better life for their children in the USA. They were too busy working hard and saving money to send their kids to top IV leagues, faith, spirituality, religion took a back seat. They wanted us to focus on studies and have a better life than they did, it all stems out of love!
When I moved to NYC to attend Parsons School of Design (it was unheard of at that time for an Indian American girl to move cross country to study fashion, good Indian girls only moved across the USA to Ivy leagues to study finance, medicine, law, or engineering) I was the only Hindu, Indian American in my class. My best friends were Jews, Catholics, Christians, and Muslims.
In college no matter how hard we partied Saturday night (I LOOOOVE my techno DJs from Japan!), my Christian friends would be at church in the morning, I would haul myself out to Queens to attend Ganesha Puja from Manhattan (a whole day affair)! I was always the only Indian American kid at the temple which is mostly attended by aunties, uncles, grandmas, and grandpas, I never saw folks my age, if they were there they were from India, not born and raised in the west like me.
After graduating I began to work extensively in the world of beauty, fashion, luxury, skateboarding, galleries (I was always the only Hindu / Indian American working in any of these industries). If there were any “Indian, Hindu” folks they were in IT. I never really had anyone to share my “Hinduness” with.
I was the former head designer for the Metropolitan Museum of Art, where I had a chance to further deepen my understanding of the iconography of Hindu deities/sculptures and increased my knowledge of the spiritual significance behind their physical attributes
My ritual every day remained the same: Gym, Shower, Puja, Work - just like my Dad!
The show Jersey shore came out and the catchphrase: Gym, Tan, Laundry was coined.
Mine is GYM, PUJA, DESIGN - every day!
Then came the yoga fitness craze, wellness, mindfulness, meditation, and the onslaught of SOCIAL MEDIA!
There is a “hipster” Ganesha Temple in Soho, NYC where I volunteered for years to help Eddie the founder (a white Jewish man who went to India when he was 17 to study yoga, fell in love with Lord Ganesha, built this space as a yoga studio/temple) with all puja rituals. I call it “hipster” because Eddie is a celebrity yoga instructor (Madonna, Gwyneth Paltrow, Russell Brand, The Beastie Boys, etc.) were all his students and frequently attended Ganesha and Shiva Puja. Eddie encouraged all his students to attend puja because yoga came from Hinduism. Most of the folks who attended had tattoos, beards, wore plaid, were of many different nationalities/backgrounds (few Indians/Indian Americans) very very different than the community at the Flushing Ganesha Temple!
Here I found myself teaching “white people” (I don’t know how else to phrase this LOL), Sanskrit prayers, hymns, chants, explaining the spiritual significance behind puja. I taught those who had never had any exposure to Hinduism, who weren’t born into the faith, who were eager and appreciative to learn. It was my pleasure and honor to teach what I love! I got 80 white people to sing Mahishaswara Mardini Sostram (Prayer to Goddess Durga), ya everyone’s pronunciation was wacky, but who cares! God accepts all prayers done with love, devotion, pure of heart, and the right intention!
NYU heard about my work at the hipster temple, they had never heard of someone like me (Hindu, Indian American, born and raised in the west, Puja Queen, able to explain Sanskrit scriptures in English) and asked me to be the Hindu Chaplain. I have served since 2016. The word “chaplain” does not exist in Eastern religions, I was so confused about what my role was, then I met the incredible Imam Khalid Latif (Sunni Imam, founder of the Islamic Center at NYU. I’ve never met anyone who was my age, shared my cultural background (he’s Pakistani American (India/Pakistan were one nation once, our cultures are pretty much the same!) who took pride in his religion, loved it so much he became an IMAM and faith leader! Through Khalid’s guidance, support, and encouragement I built the NYU Hindu Center, became Chaplain for Columbia University, took part in many interfaith dialogues, panels, and conversations, and was awarded “Chaplain of the Year” by Chelsea Clinton for my interfaith initiatives.
I wanted to QUIT being Hindu Chaplain (I don’t get PAID for chaplaincy, I do it because I love my faith) many times because I was extremely frustrated with the animosity between Hindus & Muslims that the media portrays, hatred spewing from right-wing Hindu American organizations when in reality one should watch Khalid and I shove Insomnia chocolate chip cookies in our faces, a Sunni Imam and his Hindu sister, (who can eat more cookies?) it’s hysterical. Or Khalid at his computer writing his Halaqas, and me seated next to him watching the Aarti live stream from Flushing Temple! My friendship with Khalid inspired this art piece:
https://www.ihsanishan.com/shop-online/urdu-calligraphy-emojis-dua-prayer-by-imam-khalid-latif
Right-wing Hindu crazies/groups have said hurtful things to me saying “oh he’s trying to convert you to Islam” which is complete BULLSHIT. Imam Khalid has been instrumental in training me to become a “Hindu faith leader” I’ve been honored to be on NPR, CNN, NBC news outlets speaking about what Hinduism truly is, a faith of inclusiveness, equality, and service to mankind.
My family is South Indian, we never suffered the trauma of partition (1947) of the North. I grew up loving my Muslim neighbors and never saw the difference between us, AND (see above a MUSLIM musician) did the groundbreaking ceremony at the Hindu Temple my father built! Unfortunately, the media always focuses on negativity and North India and the animosity between Hindus and Muslims. They never show the interconnectedness, harmony, peace, and unity of South India. It’s very frustrating because the roots also lie in RACISM! South Indians are darker-skinned, North Indians are lighter, there are more North Indian origin people in the United States than South Indians.
Becoming Chaplain was the first time I ever spoke about “Being Hindu”. It was never an identifying mark for me, not something I went around proclaiming, I’ve always lived my faith, I JUST WAS, Gym, Puja, Design, every single day! Hinduism can not be “compartmentalized” I find it fascinating/ interesting that Hinduism is the only religion in the world that sees God as an almighty father, mother, friend, sibling, beloved, etc. – gives one full freedom to view the divine the way that feels right to them, multitude/diverse ways of practices, thinking, cultures, scriptures, equality, LGBTQI+/minority/women's rights, etc. There's always something new to learn, discover, be inspired by, enhances my creativity.
With the onslaught of social media (Facebook/Instagram) I see many Indian Americans confusing Hindu Faith with being “Indian” “Desi” or “Brown”. Many Indian Americans (those born and raised in the USA with India-born immigrant parents) refer to themselves as “Vedic” “Dharmic” “Spiritual” to distance themselves from the word “Hindu”.
Maybe it’s because of Modi and his right-wing agenda and the “woke” generation wants to distance themselves from him, I really don’t know! But it’s frustrating for me that the Instagram generation paints a picture of “culture” examples: chai, Bollywood, Sharukh Khan, beautiful saris/lenghas, etc. as Hinduism, when in actuality Hinduism is a FAITH just like the 3 major Abhramic religions of Christianity, Judaism, and Islam. I feel that Hinduism is not taken seriously as a faith, is misappropriated, distorted, and an ugly picture of it is painted in the media.
It’s funny how the world labels any old Indian man dressed in saffron robes as “Hindu” (associating it with negative connotations/hate-filled right-wing) while a handsome green-eyed Indian guy (light-skinned, perfectly groomed hair/beard, looks white, European accent) on Instagram as “Vedic” “Dharmic” Hot guy lived in India, in a Hindu Monastery/Temple but distances himself from the word “Hindu” Eddie is referred to as “Spiritual” yet he knows all the rites and rituals like any India-born Hindu priest at Flushing Ganesha Temple. The world is biased/obsessed with youth/looks/light skin. Instagram/Facebook is all marketing/fluff/superficial, how you “package” faith is what brings the “likes” & “cash”! It has nothing to do with “Bhakti” meaning devotion to God or the divine.
The word “spiritual” has gained popularity over being “religious” because of the media. Calling yourself “Sufi” the mystical aspect of Islam, and Rumi’s poetry (which got whiteyfied/white lens like yoga (became a fitness trend with much of the spiritual/religious aspect lost), Rumi wrote about love for the divine, Allah, not ex-boyfriends/girlfriends or wine” are shown on social media as being “cool/woke/spiritual” and while saying you're a practicing Muslim, do Namaz 5 times a day, wear a hijab, gets you labeled as a terrorist and conservative. I have a TON of Hijabi friends, they are the least conservative people I know,
open-minded/open-hearted, free-thinking, nonjudgemental, and filled with love, devotion, and compassion for the world.
I’ve seen Indian Americans constantly referring to themselves as “Brown” and “Hindu Culture” UMMM…. Latin, African, Arab, etc, communities are brown too! Brown is a SKIN COLOR it has nothing to do with being “Hindu” or “Indian”. Hinduism is A FAITH the 3rd largest in the world practiced by not ONLY Indians or those with Indian roots, but by White, Black, Russian, Latino, Japanese, Jewish, African, etc., so many different people/cultures/nationalities all identify with Hinduism!
Wikipedia defines religion: Religion is usually defined as a social-cultural system of designated behaviors and practices, morals, beliefs, worldviews, texts, sanctified places, prophecies, ethics, or organizations, that generally relates humanity to supernatural, transcendental, and spiritual elements; however, there is no scholarly consensus over what precisely constitutes a religion.
Wikipedia defines spirituality: Spirituality has developed and expanded over time, and various connotations can be found alongside each other. Traditionally, spirituality referred to a religious process of re-formation which "aims to recover the original shape of man", oriented at "the image of God" as exemplified by the founders and sacred texts of the religions of the world.
In conclusion, I don’t believe in pointing fingers or judging anyone, we ain’t GOD to do so LOL. I don’t believe we can define what faith, religion, spirituality is. I believe that everyone’s life journey is unique with twists and turns and one learns a lot of different lessons along the way and to each their own in what they choose to believe in or not to believe in. I firmly believe in LOVE (which I define as GOD) and COMPASSION (which I define as kindness to the world and to others). I love my puja/rituals/chanting/dance/music/flowers/deities/Arabic calligraphy, all of these things bring me joy/happiness/comfort and makes me feel closer to the all mighty divine. What you feel inside your heart/brain is your own, and I don’t think any amount of “explaining” “defining” on paper or “social media” can ever express that! But I do believe in RESPECT and UNDERSTANDING to bring about everlasting peace and change. #pujaqueen
PS…….. The word “Hindu” came from “Sindhu” the river that runs through modern-day Pakistan. In ancient times, Persian folks couldn’t pronounce “Sindhu” in their language so it became “Hindu”, so literally Hindu means “Those people who live on that side of the river!” With the colonization of South Asia by the British, they decided to call the extensive/diverse belief system of the people “Hinduism”. The real name for the faith is Sanātana Dharma or Eternal Truth or Eternal Way.