ST THOMAS, USVI – Hindu prayers will open the Legislature of the United States (US) Virgin Islands meeting in capital Charlotte Amalie on October 30, reportedly for the first time since its creation in 1954, containing verses from world’s oldest extant scripture.
Hindu statesman Rajan Zed will deliver the invocation from ancient Sanskrit scriptures before the Legislature of the US Virgin Islands. After Sanskrit delivery, he then will read the English interpretation of the prayers. Sanskrit is considered a sacred language in Hinduism and the root language of Indo-European languages.
Zed, who is the president of Universal Society of Hinduism, will recite from Rig-Veda, the oldest scripture of the world still in common use; besides lines from Upanishads and Bhagavad-Gita (Song of the Lord), both ancient Hindu scriptures. He plans to start and end prayer with “Om”, the mystical syllable containing the universe, which in Hinduism is used to introduce and conclude religious work.
Reciting from Brahadaranyakopanishad, Rajan Zed plans to say “Asato ma sad gamaya, Tamaso ma jyotir gamaya, Mrtyor mamrtam gamaya”; which he will then interpret as “Lead us from the unreal to the real, Lead us from darkness to light, and Lead us from death to immortality.” Reciting from Bhagavad-Gita, he proposes to urge the senators and others present to keep the welfare of others always in mind.
Zed, a global Hindu and interfaith leader, has been bestowed with the World Interfaith Leader Award. Zed is on the Advisory Board of The Interfaith Peace Project, Senior Fellow and Religious Advisor to Foundation for Religious Diplomacy, etc. He has been a panelist for “On Faith”, a prestigious interactive conversation on religion produced by The Washington Post; and leads a weekly interfaith panel “Faith Forum” in a Gannett publication for over 14 years.
Hinduism, oldest and third largest religion of the world, has about 1.2 billion adherents and moksh (liberation) is its ultimate goal. There are about 3.2 million Hindus in the USA.
Legislature of the US Virgin Islands, referred to as the Senate, is a unicameral body; composed of a single house with 15 senators; which meets in the Capitol Building on the island of St Thomas. Albert Bryan Jr. is the Governor.
US Virgin Islands, an unincorporated US Territory, consists of three main islands— St Thomas, St John, St Croix. It is known for world-class, stunning white-sand beaches and crystal-clear turquoise waters.
Hindu mantras to start the day of US Virgin Islands Senate for first time
