BAPS Hindu Mandir held an Online Prayer Assembly as a part of the HCHF ‘Pray for Humanity’ Initiative

Over a thousand families and more than five thousand participants from Africa, UK, US, Australia, India and Gulf Countries joined a virtual online prayer assembly held by the BAPS Hindu Mandir and the Hindu Community in support of the Higher Committee for Human Fraternity’s (HCHF) noble “Prayers for Humanity” initiative. Thousands more continued to provide their own personal prayers through the prayer.mandir.ae website making this a truly interactive event.

The hour long live assembly starting at 7:30 pm began with an address by His Holiness Pujya Mahant Swami Maharaj, the spiritual leader of the BAPS Swaminarayan Sanstha. He praised the various governments and frontline forces for their tireless service to humanity. He added “to make it possible for everyone to overcome this outbreak smoothly, the government, medical system, doctors, nurses, para-medic forces and the police are working hard, day and night by risking their own lives for us.” Mahant Swami Maharaj then advised that it was each and everyone’s duty to abide by the government regulations. “Maximum adherence to this lockdown is the only way to save ourselves, our families, our community and our country. It’s a request to support this noble cause initiated by our Government with utmost discipline and diligence. Directions and safety measures issued by the medical system are for our betterment and hence should be followed. He finally offered prayers to the Almighty to help the world to overcome this pandemic as early as possible.

The programme continued with prayers from various Indian communities using a variety of languages from the Indian Subcontinent. Guest speakers included Pradeep Kumar Rath President – Odia Samaj Abu Dhabi (OSA), Mr. Ravi Kale who spoke a prayer in Marathi and Mr. Shiv Kumar who offered his prayers in Malayalam. All viewers and participants were able to understand and follow each heartfelt prayer by the thoughtful subtitles provided in English. Devotional songs were also sung by different groups including the Iskon youth prayer group who also thanked the UAE government and the frontline teams for helping the citizens of the UAE to remain safe. This was followed by a heartfelt prayer in a video presentation. Pujya Brahmavihari Swamiji, the head of the BAPS Hindu Mandir in Abu Dhabi provided the closing remarks for the night’s prayers.

Pujya Brahmavihari Swami, extended his gratitude to the rulers of the UAE and the UAE Government for their continued efforts to bring the global community together in praying for the swift resolution of the COVID-19 pandemic.

Sadhu Brahmavihari Swami further stated: “If a call for global prayers can unite millions of people across countries, communities and cultures; across race, religion and regions, into a single united human family, then I wonder… the rewards of these prayers, what can they do?”

He added “Unity has a way of summing up all the strengths of human beings. Imagine if all the inventions, brilliance and intelligence of mankind; from every country and every individual; from all ages; if they are united, then we are in a position to face any crisis and any calamity”.

He finished his address with a prayer from the Yajurveda, an ancient Sanskrit scripture primarily referred to for praying by stating “let us pray not just for humanity but for the whole of creation. Our Earth is our only home and harmony is our only hope”. He ended with the words of HH Pramukh Swami Maharaj “In the joy of others lies our own, so let us live together for one another.” The online prayers were concluded by a touching gesture of lighting a lantern or candle as a symbol of hope and prayer for the world.

Over two thousand families and more than five thousand participants from more than 56 countries joined a virtual online prayer held by the BAPS Hindu Mandir in Abu Dhabi. The webcast assembly was in support of the Higher Committee for Human Fraternity’s (HCHF) noble “Prayers for Humanity” initiative.

The hour long live assembly starting at 7:30 pm began with an address by Param Pujya Mahant Swami Maharaj and continued with prayers from various Indian communities. Guest speakers included Pradeep Kumar Rath of the Odia Samaj, Mr. Ravi Kale who spoke a prayer in Marathi, Mr. S. Venkatesh who shared a prayer in Tamil, and Mr. Shiv Kumar who offered his prayers in Malayalam. All viewers and participants were able to understand and follow each heartfelt prayer by the thoughtful subtitles provided in English. Devotional songs were also sung by different groups including BAPS youth who sang in Gujarati and Hindi and the ISKCON youth prayer group who also thanked the UAE government and the frontline teams for helping the citizens of the UAE to remain safe. This was followed by a heartfelt prayer video. Pujya Brahmavihari Swamiji, the head of the BAPS Hindu Mandir in Abu Dhabi provided the closing remarks for the night’s prayers.

Pujya Brahmavihari Swami, extended his gratitude to the rulers of the UAE and the UAE Government for their continued efforts to bring the global community together in praying for the swift resolution of the COVID-19 pandemic.

The online prayers were concluded by a touching gesture of lighting a lantern or candle as a symbol of hope and prayer for the world.

Along with the assembly, more than 1300 people from across the globe submitted personal prayers in various languages through the online portal at prayer.mandir.ae.

External Links

https://gulfnews.com/uae/uae-residents-join-faith-leaders-in-praying-for-early-end-to-covid-19-1.71500159

https://www.business-standard.com/article/pti-stories/coronavirus-temples-churches-in-uae-hold-online-prayers-to-help-people-keep-calm-120032800718_1.html