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By T.M. Shultz
Lansing State Journal

Buy this photo (ROBERT KILLIPS/Lansing State Journal) Temple worship: Worshippers say prayers Saturday at a service at Bharatiya Temple in Haslett. Those at the service prayed for peace and for the victims of last week's earthquakes and tsunamis.

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Prayer service • The service at 11:30 a.m. today at Bharatiya Temple in Haslett, 955 Haslett Road, includes prayers for tsunami victims. Everyone is welcome.

HASLETT - Worshippers of various faiths sat on colorful sheets at the Bharatiya Temple of Greater Lansing on Saturday to pray for peace - and for the victims of last week's earthquake and tsunamis.

People at the service faced a corner with a metal fire pit called a havan kund, where a sacred fire burned. Tiny sparks flew periodically as clarified butter, or ghee, was sprinkled on the fire to purify it.

Rhythmic chanting of prayers in Hindi and Sanskrit filled the air to calm the mind and body.

Some of the chanters gently rocked back and forth; others placed their palms together, in a universal sign of prayer.

"We are requesting oceans - all oceans - and the earth- to please be calm and quiet," a woman explained over a microphone.

Each New Year's Day, the Hindu temple invites the public to a prayer service that focuses on universal peace and understanding. About one-fifth of those who attended Saturday weren't members of the temple, said Sudhakar Kulkarni, vice chairman of the board of trustees.

The service is typically upbeat and joyful, he said, but was tempered this year by sadness over the tragedy.

"We pray when there's no crisis," Kulkarni said. "Life has both sweet things and sorrow; we are prepared for both things. Today, we looked forward to a brighter future."

Nancy Lee of Mason, a retired teacher and a Roman Catholic, said she came to the temple because she wanted to help somehow.

When a community of the faithful - no matter what faith - gets together and prays, she said, it helps.

"If more of us did this sort of thing - participate in each other's spiritual events - it could bring us together," she said, "which is what I think God wants."

Staff writer Sharon Terlep contributed to this report. Contact T.M. Shultz at 377-1061 or tshultz@lsj.com.