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By Kalyani Giri

HOUSTON: Satguru Bodhi-natha Veylanswami, the highly respected spiritual leader of the Kauai Hindu Monastery, will be visiting this city as the keynote speaker at the Sri Krishna Jan-mashtami celebration hosted by Hindus of Greater Houston at the George R. Brown Convention Center (GRBCC) on August 29, 2009. The swami, who assumed the sacrosanct mantle of heritage of the ancient Nandinatha Sam-pradaya lineage from his guru Sat-guru Sivaya Subramuniyaswami in 2001, is an engaging scholarly speaker and a keen proponent of Hinduism and its age-old tradi-tions. During his brief stay here, Bodhinatha, as he is affectionately addressed, will also address the community on Diversity and Uni-ty in Hinduism – Religion and the Media at the India House on Sun-day, August 30. The swami’s wry sense of humor, down-to-earth manner, empathy, and his ability to explain the tenets of Hinduism in simple vocabulary have won him a wide audience among the youth globally. Both events are open to the community.

Bodhinatha heads a monas-tic order at the island’s 458-acre headquarters in Kauai’s pictur-esque hill and dales landscape. Fashioned from hand-hewn stone and reclining resplendently on the premises is the exquisite Iraivan Temple, which is nearing comple-tion. The monastery/temple is also the abode of Hinduism Today, the internationally renowned van-guard magazine on Hindu thought and practices; Bodhinatha pens the editorial column and heads publication of the authoritative quarterly and the monks track its development and oversee the con-tributions of correspondents from all over the world.

When my family and I visited the temple in 2007, it was compel-ling and humbling to witness the single-minded commitment of the monks to fulfilling the vision of the monastery’s founder, Sivaya Subramuniyaswami. A veritable paradise within a paradise, the roll-ing landscape was magical with carved icons of the gods appearing unexpectedly amidst lush foliage and unusual flowers - a dancing Nataraja here, and a portly Gane-sha there. Rudraksha trees thrived copiously. The monks tended the gardens with loving care, planting fruits and vegetables. While still in its infancy, the riveting temple structure showed promise of be-ing a place of enlightenment, pu-rity, peace, and healing.

Preceding Satguru Bodinatha Veylanswami’s arrival in Houston, IANews conducted an interview with the prolific leader. We asked Hindu youth, age range 8 – 22, in this city’s Indo American com-munity to voice their everyday concerns which we in turn relayed to Bodhinatha. The following are excerpts from that exclusive inter-view:

all my friends are american caucasian, Hispanic, and afri-can american. How do i Help tHem understand Hindu values?

SBV - Do some research on the conservative values within the world’s many cultures to have a better sense of what are consid-ered “traditional values” in them

and see what you find out. You will probably be surprised, for example, in how many cultures arranged marriage exists and un-chaperoned dating is considered improper. Culture has to do with carrying forward values from one generation to the next. The more this is considered crucial, the more conservative a culture tends to be.

i find at times tHat i am tHe only Brown-sKinned person in my Group of friends. will i ever quit identifyinG myself By tHe color of my sKin?

SBV - When everyone else is of one ethnicity and you are of another, it is natural to feel self-conscious about how you are dif-ferent e.g. being brown-skinned. However, the United States is a multi-ethnic society. When you have a chance to mix more with a diverse group of ethnicities, you will naturally feel less self-con-scious.

i attempted to read tHe ma-HaBHaratHa (tHanKfully in enGlisH!), i found lapses in morality prevalent, sucH as a woman HavinG many HusBands, and tHese two Groups of Guys fiGHtinG witH eacH otHer. i tHouGHt tHis was aGainst tHe concept of dHarma.

SBV - To give any Hindu scrip-ture a fair chance, it is preferable to study it with a qualified teacher who can answer questions such as the excellent ones you are asking. Studying it on your own easily raises doubts. This is true of any book in the world which is that old. Times have changed, and the ancient cultural context needs to be properly explained by a knowl-edgeable person to really give the book the chance it deserves.

tHe priests don’t seem to care. i tHinK tHey come to america witH an aGenda - mayBe to enjoy a materialistic way of life. if we asK tHem questions, tHey patronize us. do tHe tem-ples really Hold answers?

SBV - Most priests are trained only to perform ceremonies in the temple. Many have received eight years or more of training to become skilled in their priestly craft. However, most have little or no training in presenting the philosophy of Hinduism. This is left to others who have such titles as pundit or swami. The pundits and swamis are the individuals to approach for the knowledge of Hinduism you seek. Attending temples without any knowledge of how they work can be a frus-trating and unrewarding effort. Clearly, knowledge about the in-

ner workings of the temple and the pujas help us find more fulfill-ment in temple attendance.

How is it tHat Hindus are Be-inG converted to cHristianity so easily in india, wHen my par-ents are always preacHinG aBout How Great our reliGion is?

SBV - The percentage of Hindus in India that are being converted to Christianity has always been small. Quite often this conversion takes place among the poorest of society and material benefits are part of what is being promised for c o n v e r t -ing. If the m a t e r i a l benefits are not forth-c o m i n g , many con-vert back to Hindu-ism. Lack of knowl-edge about H i n d u traditions is also a source of c o n v e r -sion. Thus, the best protection a g a i n s t conversion is to help needy Hin-dus and provide more knowledge about Hindu traditions.

do you find reliGion divi-sive? i do. i see all tHese 80 or more orGanizations in tHis city and so mucH of fiGHtinG amonG tHem - wHy can’t we Get alonG and unite and present a stronG united front?

SBV - No area of life is inher-ently divisive. It is the people who are either divisive or not. Unity can be fostered in any group, be it religious, political, economic, social or cultural. It is done by focusing on what those involved have in common rather than their differences. Hinduism is no dif-ferent—it all depends on the indi-viduals involved.

How do you explain deatH to Kids under 10 yrs. of aGe in tHe Hindu context.

SBV - Death is definitely a ma-jor challenge to deal with. It has a human, compassionate side, and a philosophical, mystical side. The human side needs to be empha-sized first, expressing compassion and helping those involved deal with grief. This can take some time, after which those involved naturally become concerned with

the philosophical, mystical side. The core concept here is that Hin-dus believe we experience many lives on Earth and many lives in the inner, heavenly worlds be-tween births. Some of our lives on Earth are long and others are short. The measure of a life is not its length, rather it is its contents—how an individual lived.

wHat do you find most com-pellinG aBout BeinG Hindu?

SBV - Hinduism has a strong mystical tradition. Mysticism is the personal experience of God. In Hinduism, mysticism is part of the mainstream of the religion, not off on the side and looked at with skepticism or disdain by many within the religion. Hindu-ism not only gives you the high-minded teaching that man is God, as found in the Upanishads. It also gives you a multitude of practices, such as meditation, whereby you can personally experience the high-minded philosophy.

isn’t Hinduism more com-plicated/complex tHan otHer world reliGions?

SBV - Yes. Let’s look at two ways in which Hinduism is defi-nitely complicated. The first is that it contains a number of dif-ferent denominations such as Saivism, Shaktism, Smartism and

Vaishnavism, each with a differ-ent concept and name for the Su-preme Being. Then, each of these denominations has a number of different philosophies. Once this denominational/philosophical di-versity of Hinduism is understood, this aspect of being complicated is no longer a source of confusion. Hinduism is also complicated in that it offers advanced practices such as meditation as described in Patanjali’s Yoga Sutras. For a comparison, in religion we have moral behavior versus medita-tion which can be compared in mathematics to arithmetic versus calculus. Just because calculus is complicated doesn’t mean it is not quite valuable for certain tasks. Likewise a complicated religious practice such as meditation is also quite valuable when pursuing cer-tain mystical goals.

wHat is your advice to younG Hindus aBout reliGion and its siGnificance in one’s life?

SBV - This is a key question and deserves a much longer an-swer than can be given here. A materialistic life has no religious goal. Only what we achieve in the world is valued. All religions add

to that a religious goal of one kind or another. The Hindu ultimate religious goal is moksha. Stated simply, we are born on Earth for the purpose of coming closer to God. After many lifetimes on Earth, our experience of God is profound enough that we are no longer born on Earth.

wHat did you feel aBout tHe many Gods? my mom tells me tHey are aspects of one God. How do i explain tHis to my friends wHo are not of tHe Hin du faitH?

SBV - Your mom has stressed the key point, which is that Hin-dus all believe in a one Supreme Being. Of course, they differ on the name of that Supreme Being and its nature. To some the Su-preme Being is Vishnu, to others Siva and so forth. Hinduism is a composite of various religious tra-ditions which have different con-cepts. The fact that these different traditions generally get along well shows how tolerant Hindus are and explains why they are so tol-erant of the world’s other religions as well.

When my friends come to my home, they see Ganeshas all over the house. The story to me is whimsical as my parents tell me about it all the time. How do I

separate facts from myths?SBV - Hindus are certainly dif-

ferent but hold many beliefs that others are realizing as the right way to look at the world.

For example, handling conflicts through nonviolent means is a core Hindu belief. Reverence for all creatures, two and four legged. Vegetarianism. As to Ganesha’s form, ancient religions such as the Greeks have Gods with animal heads. Even Christianity has an-gels with animal features. Hindus are not alone in this regard. As to separating facts from myths, that is a matter of personal perspec-tive. Some Hindus take the Pura-nas literally, whereas others con-sider them all symbolic.

The Janmashtami event is at GR-BCC on August 29 from 6.00pm – 12.00pm. For more information call Partha Krishnasamy (713) 962 8523.

The swami will deliver his speech with a slide and video pre-sentation at India House on Au-gust 30 from 4.00pm to 6.00pm. For more information call Vijay Pallod (281) 565 0001, Jugal Malani (281) 250 5243, or Urmil Shukla (936) 348 1500.

Bodhinatha Veylanswami to Deliver Keynote Speeches in Houston During the Weekend of Janmashtami Celebrations

Satguru Bodhinatha Veylanswami met Sri Meenakshi Temple officials on his previous visit to the city in 2008 Photo: Krishna Giri

Satguru Bodhinatha Veylanswami meets with Sri Meenakshi Temple officials on his previ-ous visit to the city in 2008 Photo: Krishna Giri