NamasteHawaii

When:
On every 3rd Sunday
of every month at Shiva Temple, Wahiawa.

Pooja Timings:
Pooja Starts at 12:00 Noon to 2:00 pm
Potluck vegetarian lunch follows after the pooja
Potluck lunch (Vegetarian): We discourage soda. Water is the best. Others are fine like papergoods, etc. We need volunteer for taking off the tent and cleaning the temple at the end of the day. If anybody wants to bring

Location:
100 California Ave.,
Wahiawa, HI 96786.
View Location Map.

Abhisekam:
Abhisekam they have to be at the temple by 12-30 pm on third Sunday.
Milk, Honey, Yogurt (no gelatin), Sugar & Ghee.

Prasadam can be payasam if not then fruits will do.

For more Information contact:
Papia Sengupta at
Ph.: (808) 395-7914

Dates to remember:

January 17, 2010
February 21, 2010
March 21, 2010 (HOLI celebration)
April 18, 2010
May 16, 2010
June 20, 2010
July 18, 2010
August 15, 2010
September 19, 2010
October 17, 2010
November 21. 2010
December 19, 2010

The Journey of Lotus

Shiva Temple – Wahiawa

Later that evening Channel 4 TV broadcast a story of the rediscovery of Healing Stone by the Hindus as their icon. The first Pooja at the sacred site was held on April 1988. It became apparent to those who attended the open air Pooja that this place was indeed special, sacred and holy.A site of 378 square feet on the right of way of California Avenue in Wahiawa. The small parcel was owned by the Financial Corporation and developed by Clifford Shin and Sons, Developers. The site was to be dedicated to the City and County of Honolulu.LOTUS negotiated a ten- year lease agreement with Mr. Clifford Shin in 1991 to use the premises of Healing Stone for worshipping Lord Shiva for a total lease rent of ten dollars. The lease agreement papers were drawn up by Mr. Manoj Chhabra, an young Indian lawyer.In March 1988, Dr. Ramanathan, Dr Shankaran, their wives and a few other friends were led to the Healing Stone site in Wahiawa by Mrs. and Mrss. Savitri and Rajan, Shivani and Roshan, who resided in Wahiawa. Savitri, Rajan, Shivani and Roshan were devotees of the Kauai Shiva temple under Subramanyam Swami also known as Gurudeva.

Gurudeva vitited the temple, he placed a copper plate under the stone which resembled Lord Ganesha. From the vibrations he felt and from the bibhutis he observed in the Healing Stone, he declared the place to be auspicious. He stated that the Healing Stone was in fact the image of Lord Shiva, the small stone on the left of Lord Shiva that of Lord Ganesha and the gray stone on the very left that of Nandi, the carrier of Lord Shiva.

LOTUS started a campaign to raise the funds and as a part of its campaign held its first cultural program. The response was overwhelming. Within months LOTUS raised almost $20,000 mostly from the Indian community in Hawaii. The cultural program was held on September 21, 1991 at the Campus Center Ballroom of the University of Hawaii, Manoa. Approximately 500 people attended the program. Vegetarian dinner cooked by the Indian Ladies were packaged in boxes and served to all the guests. From then on, LOTUS held Indian cultural program each year on a regular basis to bring in to the people of Hawaii a glimpse of Indian culture and musical heritage.

For the first few months of its inception, the Pooja at the temple was conducted by a pujari from the Kaui Shiva temple. Once a month, the priest would fly from Kauai to perform the Pooja. LOTUS decided to have their own priest as it was inconvenient and costly to bring the pujari from Kauai. Dr. Ramanath Sharma, a Sanskrit professor and linguist at the University of Hawaii Manoa offered to be the permanent priest. It became a routine that on the third Sunday of every month the Pooja for Lord Shiva was performed at the Wahiawa Healing Stone. Dr. Ramanathan became the assistant priest helped by Dr. Gopalakrishnan and others.

Although, LOTUS tried in various ways to get permit from the City and County of Honolulu to build a shed for the attendees, the City declined on the ground that the space available did not meet with the minimum standards for having a permanent structure for the congregation. LOTUS had no other choice but to improve the site as much as it could be done for the convenience of the attendees. A lease was agreed on between LOTUS and the adjacent Olive Methodist Church with the understanding that the Church will allow water to be used at the temple in return for a fee.

In 1996, LOTUS embarked on a major renovation program at the temple. The temple floor, ceiling, walls and the outside floor were to be covered with marble imported from India. Mr.Asu Sahni, an Indian businessman in Hawaii came forward to make this program a success. Not only did he bear the major portion of the renovation cost, but he also imported the marble and put his own labor to lay the marble.