BHARATIYA
TEMPLE OF LANSING:
QUESTIONS
AND ANSWERS
February
1, 2010
Bharatiya Temple
of Lansing
955 Haslett Road
Haslett, Michigan 48840
Temple Phone: 517-339-6337; the
Temple has no Fax.
Temple
website: http://lansingtemple.org
Contact: Mr. Manohar Naga, Chairperson,
Board of Trustees
(Cell
phone: 517-290-1610; e-mail: NManohar@durgam.com)
BROAD
OUTLINE
1. How did the idea originate? -
Motivation/Needs - Brief Background
The Bharatiya Temple of Lansing had its origin in the desires
of a few people around 1980 to build a temple in the Lansing area. There were about 100 Hindu families living in
and around Lansing at that time, some of them since the 1960s. The need for having a place where they could
worship the Divine and also preserve their cultural heritage was acutely
felt. The initiative to build the temple
was initially led by Sudhakar Kulkarni,
Shrikumar Poddar, and Prakash Kapoor.
2. How many people were involved with the
project to start with?
The
three Founding Trustees named above, and a group of some 20 families who
supported the idea of a temple right from the beginning.
3. Did it start with hired premises or a plot of
land/built up area acquired/bought for the Temple?
We
never had hired premises. During
1983-88, intensive (and ultimately successful) efforts were made by the Board
members to acquire land for the construction of the Temple. In December 1988, the land on which the
present structure of the Temple stands was purchased. After making land improvements, site
development, and construction of sidewalk, the Sanctum of the Temple was
completed in April 1992 and the deity of Shri Ganesha was installed there. This deity, gifted to the
Hindu community of Lansing by Satguru Sivaya Subramuniyaswami of Hawaii
in November 1982, remained in the home of Usha and Sudhakar Kulkarni for 10 years
(1982-92) and was worshipped there by the community. Also, during the years 1982 through 1993, a
monthly Satsang (prayer meeting) was held at the
homes of different devotees.
4. Did the local authorities cooperate by making
land available at a cheaper rate?
The
local authorities were cooperative and gave us some insider tips. For example, they were the ones who suggested
that we buy the land where the Temple now stands, because a church was coming
up in an adjacent plot and the area was being re-zoned. The owner of the land gave us a discount on
the price.
5. Composition of Indian communities involved in
the project?
A broad
cross section of the Lansing-area Indian community, coming from all the regions
of India, was involved.
6. What was the attitude of neighboring
communities/City council?
The
City council by and large supported the temple project from the beginning. The neighboring community initially had
reservations, but after a dialog was initiated with some of its
representatives, its attitude became positive.
It took educational effort on our part to convince the community that we
were a peaceful people who just wanted to worship in our own way.
FUNDS
7. Through
donations/fundraising/endowment?
Through
donations, fund-raising, and a bank loan of (initially) $ 200,000 from Old Kent
Bank without any personal guarantee.
8. How long did the process of acquisition of
funds take place?
This is
an ongoing process; it took 12 years for substantial funds to be
collected. Only a small amount of the
needed funds was collected between 1981 and 1992; major donations, as well as
the $ 200,000 bank loan, came in 1993.
The Temple had a debt of about $300,000 in 1998 and progressively
reduced this amount over the next several years, becoming debt-free in
2002. In the fall of 2003, the Temple
assumed a new debt (mortgage) of about $100,000 upon the purchase of a second
home to accommodate the priest families.
9. Is the temple associated with any other
temples/institutions/organizations in India or in the US?
No.
10. Did any donations in cash/kind come from
India?
No.
CONSTRUCTION
AND ARCHITECTURE
11. When did it begin? In how many stages?
There
have been three stages so far. The
construction of a small, one-room structure, to serve as the Sanctum, was
started in May 1991 and completed in April 1992. The extension of the Sanctum to include a
large Hall, restrooms, and kitchen facilities, was completed in the first week
of March 1994; that was when we had a fully functional Temple. The third stage was the addition of 1,670 square feet
of space, so as to extend the sanctum, have a structure strong enough to
support a Shikhara, and provide for a library and a
coat room. In the expanded sanctum area,
seven garbha-grihas
(mandirs)
for the seven groups of deities were constructed under the direction of
renowned temple architect Shilpakalamani Muthiah Sthapathi of
Chennai. Construction of this third
stage began in mid-1997 and was completed in November 1998 with the
installation of three Shikharas atop the Sanctum
area. With the Temple having become debt-free towards the end of 2002, we are
revisiting the issue of starting on a fourth stage when sufficient funds are
collected for that purpose. We hope to
replace the present make-shift arrangement for performing Havans
(offerings through fire) with a proper Yagnashala;
establish the Navagrahas (planetary deities)
properly; expand the dining facilities; and possibly add an auditorium.
12. How long did it take to construct
the temple?
See
#11. We have had a fully functional Temple since
March 1994. It took 12 years of effort
(1982-94) from conception to completion.
13.
Details about the architecture along with plans?
The
design made in 1997 by master architect Muthiah Sthapathi for the sanctums for the various murtis was constrained by the fact that the Temple building
already existed. The sanctums are in the
style of atmaartha griham
(a "private" shrine in one's own home). He also designed a beautiful entrance gate (Maha Dwaaram). The three shikharas
on top of the building were done by the William Reichenbach
Company of Lansing and are constructed of steel frame and coated with
water-proof stucco, and as such require minimum maintenance. On top of each shikhara
is mounted a golden Kalasha on a copper base.
14. Where are the architects based - India/US?
The
architect for the stage-2 building (completed in 1994) was Vijay Vasantgadkar, who is based in Windsor, Canada. All the traditional temple architectural
features we have were designed in 1997 by Shilpakalamani
Muthiah Sthapathi of
Chennai, India, and executed in 1998.
15. Where did the artisans come from: in India or
US?
Civil
work for all the stages of the construction was done by local
construction-company crews. The temple
architectural features were implemented by six shilpis
provided by Muthiah Sthapathi. They came from India (Chennai) and stayed in
Lansing for 11 months to do their work.
16. Are all the phases of construction complete?
Essentially,
yes. But we hope to replace the present make-shift arrangement for performing Havans (offerings through fire) with a proper Yagnashala; establish the Navagrahas
(planetary deities) properly; expand the dining facilities; and possibly add an
auditorium.
17. Difficulties faced if any?
There
were two difficulties, besides the difficulty of collecting needed funds.
(a)
Getting visas from the US Consulate in Chennai for the visit of the six
artisans was a very prolonged and frustrating process that almost derailed our
plans to have the Pratishtha of the murtis in the summer of 1998. The dialog with the Consulate went on for
about 4 months, in late 1997 and early 1998, and the visas were issued only
after the Temple hired an immigration attorney and the Chair of the Temple
Board made a special trip to India to meet with the US Consular officers.
(b) The
Indian style of architecture was initially not allowed by the Township (even in
1993, when they approved the stage-2 expansion), but later (in 1997) we were
allowed to go ahead with the installation of the Shikharas.
18. Architectural style? Inspiration for the style? From where?
In
1993, a small group of devotees, including representatives from the Board of
Trustees, visited various temples in USA and Canada and thereby gathered ideas
for the style of the temple. They liked
a temple in Toronto and chose the architect (Vijay Vasantgadkar)
who had designed it to design our Temple.
Mr. Vasantgadkar made several designs for the
building, and one of them was chosen by the community at a town meeting. That was in 1993. In 1997, Muthiah Sthapathi provided the inspiration and the design for the
sanctums. They are in the style of atmaartha griham (a
"private" shrine in one's own home).
DEITIES
19. How were the deities chosen? Were these deities commonly worshipped by the
community in the area?
The
deities were chosen to represent the three main traditions of Hinduism: Shaivism, Vaishnavism, and Shaktism. The chosen
deities also met the worship preferences of the members of the community.
20. Who are the deities?
Sri Ganesha, Sri Karttikeya, Sri Uma-Maheshwara, Sri Amba Mata,
Sri Rama Parivar, Sri Radha-Krishna,
and Sri Venkateswara.
21.
Where did the deities come from?
The
deity of Sri Ganesha was a gift to the Hindu
community of Lansing by Satguru Sivaya
Subramuniyaswami of Hawaii and may have been made in
India. All the other deities were made
in India and shipped over in the second half of 1994. The deities of Sri Kartikeya,
Sri Uma-Maheswara, and Sri Venkateswara
are of black granite in the South Indian style and were made in Bangalore and Tirupati, while the deities of Sri Amba
Mata, Sri Rama Parivar, and Sri Radha-Krishna
are of white marble in the North Indian style and were made in Jaipur and Bombay.
22. How was the Pratishtha
done? Did any priest come from India for
this purpose?
The Prana Pratishtha of the deities
was celebrated on a grand scale as a 5-day event during June 10-14, 1998. A Yagnashaala was
set up on the Temple grounds for this purpose.
There were 7 participating priests, but none came from India. Besides our own two priests, 5 others came
from other temples in the US.
23. Apart from the main temple devoted to the
main deity/deities, are there any secondary temples? If so, for whom?
All the
deities in the Temple have equal status and they are all located in a common
sanctum area. There is no designated chief deity. Also, till 1999, there were no secondary
temples or sanctum areas. In 1999, at
the request of the Lansing-area Jain families, a separate sanctum was completed
in the Temple building for installing Jain murtis. A Svetambar murti of Bhagvan Mahavir (37" high, made of marble) and a Digambar murti of Bhagwan Parsvanath (9" high,
made of ashtadhatu) arrived from India in December 1999,
and were consecrated during Memorial Day weekend in 2000 (May 26-29, 2000).
Jain devotees conduct a Puja
on the 4th Sunday of every month at 11 AM and Arati
every evening at 7:30 PM.
24. Costume/jewelry of deities? Does it change with festivals?
There
is not a great deal of jewelry: the deities wear gold chains, and the goddesses
also have mangal sutras. The dresses are changed weekly, but the
jewelry remains the same.
PRIESTS/DEVOTEES
25. Number of priests? Where do they come from - India or locally
based?
We have
presently one priest, Sri Surendra Bhardwaj (Shastriji), who joined
us at the end of May 2002. He came from Delhi. A second priest from India will
join us later this year. Having two priests makes it possible to cater to the
needs of individual families for priest services in their homes without
compromising the needs of the Temple.
26.
Languages spoken by them?
Shastriji speaks
Hindi, Sanskrit, Punjabi, Haryani, Rajasthani, and some English.
27. How many devotees/people visit per day?
Daily,
about 25 to 30. On weekends, about 40 to 50.
On first Sundays of each month, when we have a Satsang, about 150.
On third Sundays of each month, when we have Havans,
about 100. On major festival days, 250
to 400.
MAJOR
FESTIVALS/ACTIVITIES/RITUALS
28. Major festivals celebrated?
Makara Sankranti, Maha Sivaratri, Srirama Janmotsavam, Mahavir Jayanti, Krishna Janmashtami, Ganesh Chaturthi, Navaratri, Diwali, Skanda Shashti, Gita Jayanti.
29. Day-to-day activities?
Temple
is open for worship on weekdays from 9 AM to 1 PM and from 5 PM to 9 PM. On weekends, the hours are 9 AM to 2 PM and 5
PM to 9 PM. There are pujas daily, both in the morning and in the evening.
30. Daily rituals (worship/arati)
and the kind of rituals - what language rituals are conducted in?
The
daily schedule of Pujas is:
Sunday:
Shri Ganesha Abhishekam at 9:30 AM (45 minutes)
Monday: Shri Rudra Abhishekam at 9:30 AM (45 minutes) and at 7 PM (75 mins.)
Tuesday: Shri Kartikeya Abhishekam at 9:30 AM (45 minutes); Shri
Kartikeya and Shri Hanuman
Prayer-Chanting and Puja at 7:15 PM (45 minutes).
Saturday: Shri Venkateswara
Suprabhatam at 9:30 AM (45 minutes), Shri Venkateswara Abhishekam at 10:15 AM (45 minutes), and Navagraha Devata Abhishekam at 11 AM (75 minutes).
On Sankatahara Chaturthi
days (see Religious Calendar), Shri Ganesha Abhishekam
is performed at 7:15 PM.
Daily: Abhishekam for Bhagavan
Mahavir at 10:30 AM.
The
rituals are all conducted in Sanskrit.
Usually, during the evening pujas, there is
singing of bhajans by devotees in various Indian
languages.
31. What kind of music accompanies the rituals?
No
music accompanies the rituals. Only mantras.
32. What priest services are offered, and what
are the rates?
The
priests provide services for all 16 samskaras (rites of passage), both in the Temple (where
appropriate) and in the homes of individual families. The rates and regulations
concerning priest services are posted here.
33. What does the temple do to foster the arts
(cultural activities)?
Devotional
music and classical dance programs are organized frequently at the Temple. Celebrations of major festivals provide
occasions for members of the community, particularly our youngsters, to exhibit
their talents in dance, music, and variety entertainment.
34. Are
the premises used by any other organizations/institution/Indian community
members? E.g. teaching, hosting community functions, marriages, etc.
As the
focal point of the Indian community in the greater Lansing area, the Temple
premises are used extensively by various groups in the community. Activities include: Shishu
Vihar class for children aged 4-6; Bala Vihar class for children
aged 6-12; Hinduism class for middle- and high-schoolers;
Hindi class for people with little or no prior exposure; Bharata
Natyam classes for children and adults; Bhagavad Gita class; and yoga classes. For private functions like marriages and upanayanams, the Temple facilities are available on a
rental basis for members. About 5 to 8 weddings per year have been conducted in
the Temple since 1996.
35.
What kind of prasad (sanctified food) is served?
Fresh
fruits, raisins, and nuts are served for the daily Prasad. Vegetarian meals during
festivals and other big gatherings.
36. Any commerical
activities allowed inside the premises?
No.
MEMBERSHIP
37. Membership of Temple?
About
100 families are dues-paying members of the Temple. About 500 to 600 Hindu families, plus some
large percentage of the 300 students of Indian origin studying at Michigan
State University, visit the Temple quite regularly. These families come not only from the greater
Lansing area but also from cities in Michigan as far away as 60 or 70 miles
(e.g. Grand Rapids, Kalamazoo, Jackson).
That is because these other cities do not have Temples of their own.
38. Who
can become a member of the Bharatiya Temple of
Lansing?
Any
individual or family subscribing to the objectives of the Temple and submitting
the necessary dues and donations.
39.
What is the annual membership dues?
Any
individual or family wishing to become a member must have:
a.
Donated a total of $ 250 (excluding membership dues) to this Temple in their
lifetime, and
b. Paid
annual membership of $ 150 (family) or $ 75 (individual).
In
order to be eligible to vote in a particular year, dues must be paid by June 30
of that year. We have strictly complied
with this policy in the recent past and will continue to adhere to it in the
future.
40. Are
there any exceptions to this policy?
Life
members, which includes an individual or family who
has donated a total of $10,000 (excluding membership dues) in their lifetime to
the Temple, as well as honorary members, need not pay annual membership dues.
41.
What are the benefits of membership?
Membership
in this great institution is a privilege.
It primarily provides you and your spouse (family membership) the right
to vote in the election of the Board of Trustees and therefore a voice in the
administration of Temple activities. It
also allows you to rent the Temple facility for private functions such as
weddings, birthday parties, etc.
42. Who
can serve as a Trustee?
(a)
Life member;
(b) Any
individual or family who has donated a total of $ 1000 in their lifetime to
this Temple and has paid the annual membership dues.
43.
What type of payments made to the Temple are tax-deductible?
Bharatiya Temple
is a tax-exempt organization under Sec. 501(c)(3) of
Internal Revenue Code. Our Tax Exempt ID
number is 38-2399465; Michigan Incorporation Number is 881-085. We must use the tax-exempt status wisely and
follow all regulations. IRS regulations
state that any donations made to the Temple in cash or kind to the extent that
the donor does not receive any value of goods or services back from the Temple
are tax-deductible.
The
following payments help the Temple activities but do not qualify for tax
deductions as a contribution under the current IRS regulations: (These are just
some examples.)
—Purchase
of tickets for Temple-sponsored cultural events. However, if you sponsor the program to defer
the cost, it will be a tax-deductible item.
—Cost
of advertisement placed in Temple brochure.
—Purchase
or rental of library books or videos
—Any
amount paid towards services such as Sunday school, Temple rental etc.
44. Do
I get a receipt for my contributions?
Majority
of the work done at the Temple is handled by volunteer workers. It is not cost effective or possible to send
a receipt for every contribution we receive.
Consistent with IRS regulations, we will mail you a receipt only when
your contribution exceeds $ 250 per donation.
For donations less than $ 250, your canceled check will be your
receipt. We also publish in the January
issue of the Temple newsletter a list of all donors for the previous calendar
year.
PUBLICATIONS
45. Does the Temple have a newsletter/journal/publication/website?
We mail
out a newsletter to about 900 families/individuals every 3 months. Its contents are mostly news items about
upcoming events at the Temple. There is
no other publication. We also maintain
an e-mail list of some 1000 devotees and send out information about Temple
events several times each month.
Two
comprehensive brochures were published on the occasion of the Hindu and the
Jain Prana Pratishtha
ceremonies in 1998 and 2000, respectively, and a commemorative book was
published in February 2009 to mark the 80th birthday of the
community's Guru, Dr. K.S. Sripada Raju.
Maha Prana Pratishtha Brochure (June 1998), 176 pages;
Jain Prana Pratishtha Mahotsav Brochure (May
2000), 100 pages.
Selected Speeches and Writings of K.S. Sripada Raju
(February 2009), 75 pages.
The
Temple has a website: http://lansingtemple.org.
MEMBERS
OF THE BOARD OF TRUSTEES FOR 2010
The
nine-member Board of Trustees of the Temple for 2010 consists of:
Manohar
Naga, Chairperson
Ashim Aggarwal, Vice-Chairman
Rajiv
Das, Secretary
Smruti
Shah, Treasurer
Srinivas Kandula, Executive Board Member
Sudhakar Kulkarni, Executive Board Member
Kishor Mokashi, Executive Board Member
Jai Tripathi, Executive Board Member
One
vacancy