UTAH: Settled by Mormon pioneers in 1849, Provo Municipal Council and Utah County Commission in the state of Utah launched their meetings with Hindu invocations for the first time on September 18. The invocations contained verses from the world’s oldest existing scripture.
Rajan Zed, President of Universal Society of Hinduism, delivered the invocations from ancient Sanskrit scriptures before the County Commission and Municipal Council. After Sanskrit delivery, he read the English translation of the prayers. Sanskrit is considered a sacred language in Hinduism and root language of Indo-European languages.
Wearing saffron attire, a ruddraksh mala (rosary), and traditional sandal paste tilak (religious mark) on the forehead, Zed sprinkled few drops of water from river Ganga of India, considered holy by Hindus, around the podium before the prayers. Utah County Commission Chair Larry Ellertson and Provo Municipal Council Chair Laura H. Cabanilla welcomed and thanked Zed.
Zed recited 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 started and ended the prayers with “Om”, the mystical syllable containing the universe, which in Hinduism is used to introduce and conclude religious work.
Reciting from Brahadaranyakopanishad, Zed said, “Asato ma sad gamaya, Tamaso ma jyotir gamaya, Mrtyor mamrtam gamaya”, which he then translated as, “Lead me from the unreal to the Real, Lead me from darkness to Light, and Lead me from death to Immortality.” Reciting from Bhagavad-Gita, he urged Council members and commissioners to keep the welfare of others always in mind.
Utah County boasts of 172 listings on National Register of Historic Places. Prominent people associated with it include actor Robert Redford, television inventor Philo Farnsworth, Olympic medalist Shauna Rohbock and boxer Jack Dempsey.
India Post News Service
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