Divya Dham

Written by Douglas Peters

Introduction

Nestled in the warehouse district in the Woodside section of Queens, there exists a truly remarkable Hindu temple, almost invisible to the outside world.  For a long time, the only things marking this temple as something different from all of the commercial warehouses surrounding it are a few hand painted, unobtrusive signs hanging outside the main entrance.  These signs let the visitor know that they have reached Divya Dham, a building that was once an electronics factory, and now is a major Hindu temple in New York City.

Over the course of the spring semester, January to May 2003, I have conducted a research project of Divya Dham in conjunction with a course being taught at Columbia University, Hinduism Here.  Through field research (visiting the temple, observing religious practices, and speaking with those directly involved with the temple), assigned readings, and class discussion, this course was designed to understand the state of the Hindu Diaspora in New York City and the greater metropolitan area.

The purpose of this paper is to present a physical introduction to Divya Dham.  I will give the reader a written ·tour· of the temple, describing the statues and exhibits Divya Dham displays to its visitors, along with some ·blueprints· as an appendix to help the reader visually.  Accompanying this tour will be various stories and interpretations that go along with all of the displays, both from oral accounts by devotees at the temple and through my own independent research and analysis.  Finally, throughout the paper, I will specifically be looking at three different subjects that have interested me all through my research.

Before continuing, however, I must introduce those at the temple who have been most helpful to me in conducting my research.  There were two on-site brahmacaris at the temple during my study of Divya Dham, Vidur and Govind, who gave me initial tours and helped in the understanding of some of the areas of worship.  I met once with Swami Jagdishwaranandji, who was the founder of Divya Dham and also the Geeta temple in Queens.  The last person I must mention is Kuldip Bahl, who was a lay devotee living at the temple and assisting in its maintenance over the course of my visits.  I spent the most time with Kuldip, who always had time to discuss various aspects of the temple and assisted me in the understanding of their use and meaning.

The first of the three subjects that I focused on during my time at Divya Dham deals with the topic of authenticity.  By authenticity, I mean what makes the displays and exhibits at Divya Dham ·Hindu·?  By tracing the sources of the materials and statues in the temple, among other displays that the temple presents, I hope to show a connection between Divya Dham and India on a physical level.  Any of the statues in the temple could have been made in America or anywhere else, but the temple chose to import everything directly from India at great cost to maintain what I call an ·authentic· connection with the home of Hinduism.

The second subject I will focus on is the representation of the Goddess figure throughout the temple.  On my first visit to Divya Dham, I was amazed at how often the Goddess was portrayed in the various statues and displays.  Upon my mentioning it to Kuldip, he said that the Goddess figure is important and unique in the Hindu tradition.  He encouraged me to pay attention to this aspect of the temple because it was a topic ·very close to my heart·, as he put it.  Kuldip said many temples throughout India are dedicated to just the feminine forms (i.e., Kali, Durga, etc.).  However, in America, Divya Dham was one of the first temples to put such an emphasis on this aspect, especially as will be discussed below concerning the display of the 51 Peethas (as Divya Dham is the only temple outside of India to have such a display.)  Respect to the female form is often overlooked in the worship of Abrhamic religions, so it is interesting to note that not only does this temple represent the Goddess, it does so in abundance.  For, ·as Diana Eck has commented about Indian ways of thinking, ·If something is important, it is important enough to be repeated, duplicated, and seen from many angles.[1]

The final subject I will analyze in this paper is the dual function of Divya Dham.  It was designed for two specific purposes: to be a house of worship and to educate those interested in the Hindu tradition.  Devotees come to Divya Dham in order to practice their faith.  However Divya Dham also welcomes anyone, including non-practitioners,  with a serious interest in understanding Hinduism.

This paper is organized around the different sections of the Divya Dham temple.  During my visits, I found it conducive to analyze the temple according to the various structural divisions I felt were existent between the rooms and chambers in the temple.  The largest connecting areas on the first floor can be examined as three separate chambers.  I also analyze a specific detail of one of the chambers, namely, the main altar in chamber 2.  The rest of the divisions in the paper are made by analyzing rooms that are separate and distinct from the three main chambers.  The final section of my paper deals with the future plans of Divya Dham.

Lastly, before we begin the ·tour·, I would like to mention again that this paper has been written between January and May of 2003.  Divya Dham is continually changing, moving various displays and adding new displays as they come or are donated.  It is important to remember that this is a view of Divya Dham as a physical space within a certain time period.

 

Main Chamber 1

As you come through the main entrance of Divya Dham, the first thing that should come to your attention is the sheer immensity of the temple.  The designers of Divya Dham did an excellent job converting the immense space of the warehouse into an extensive house of worship where it is possible for large numbers of devotees to congregate.  As an information sheet for the temple states, the downstairs prayer hall alone is 41,000 square feet, an enormous amount of room to hold festivals, mass worship, or even individual worship that could accommodate many individuals at one time.

After removing your shoes by the main entrance and passing the ·office· areas (still under construction) on your left, you notice a bell hanging just inside where the main chamber starts, suspended from the ceiling.  A person entering the temple is supposed to ring this bell for two reasons.  First, it announces your arrival at the temple.  Second, it wakes up the gods whom you are there to see.  Continue past the bell and on your left you come to the first display of a deity.  This display is of the God Siva along with his animal vehicle, the bull Nandi.  Siva is begging for food from the incarnation of the Goddess in the form of Annapurna (·full of food·).  One of the main purposes of this display is to give the viewer a sense of humility.  Even Siva, ·the Lord of the whole Universe[2], is begging for food, thus fulfilling his role as a mendicant.

This statue is also an excellent starting point for two of the subjects I intend to analyze throughout the paper, authenticity and the Goddess image.  The statue was originally constructed in the holy city of Benares, India.  After its completion, it was shipped to the Divya Dham temple.  Note that it was fully completed in Benares before it was shipped, and was installed in the temple exactly as it appears.  This develops from a desire to present as authentic a temple as possible outside of India.  Even though the temple has been established outside of India, the developers wanted it to have as Indian a feel as possible.  As such, all of the statues were constructed back in India and shipped to the US.  There are also numerous other images and artifacts brought back from India, such as water and flame (to be discussed below), that are installed throughout the temple.  The end result is that the worshipper or viewer can actually feel that he/she is in an Indian temple due to the authentic Indian art and images.  Also, the fact that all of the statues were constructed in India brings a physical connection to the temple from the home land of all of these deities and traditions, as the very stone from which the deities are shaped was originally cut in India.

The second subject, that of the Goddess figure, is very prominent in this display.  Annapurna is the deity who is full of food.  It is to her that Siva, ·Lord of the whole Universe·, must pray in order to receive food.  I felt that this statue·s purpose was very religious and humbling, showing us that even the most powerful being must be modest and beg in order to fulfill their own personal dharma in life.  Thus, it is not necessarily meant as a sign that one figure is more powerful or higher in status than another, as both main figures are merely fulfilling their roles in the cosmic schema of Hindu mythology.  However, one could interpret this display as being a sign of female empowerment, as the Goddess here is not just an equal to Siva, she is his superior, who will provide him with food, the sustenance of life Siva needs in order to survive.

Before moving on, let us examine briefly the way in which these statues are depicted.  Every statue in Divya Dham is done in exquisite detail, leaving nothing out.  All of the deities represented here are represented in anthropomorphic fashion—even even the monkey god Hanuman.  An important detail that must not be overlooked on these statues is that their eyes all remain open.  As Diana Eck has said, ·In the Hindu view, not only must the gods keep their eyes open, but so must we, in order to make contact with them, to reap their blessings, and to know their secrets.·[3]  Every statue presented can be looked at and connected with by every devotee.  This is why it is so important that an authentic feel be maintained in the temple.  If the devotee cannot really believe that he/she is in a holy place connected with India, then no connection can be made with the deities.

Moving past this first display, we are confronted with a donation box, the first of many throughout the temple.  They are constant reminders that we are in a holy place that can only be supported through the offerings of the people.  This temple is not owned by a private entity or corporation.  Rather, it is a humble attempt to bring religion and knowledge to those who seek them.  These donation boxes are part of most of the displays, and a few are spread out separate from exhibits in order to fill up certain spaces in the temple that are still not completed.  This donation box fills up space between the first display, described above, and the first main area dedicated to those who support the temple through donations.  Past the display box and continuing for the rest of the chamber on this wall are a collection of posters depicting various religious deities and stories.  Each poster carries with it the name of a person or family who donated $151 to Divya Dham.  This area was not yet completed during my visits, but some of the posters were already being displayed in a large case set up in this section of the temple.

Continuing clockwise through the chamber, we come to the next display in the first chamber, that of the Trimurti, or three forms/images.  This is a large  statue depicting the trinity godhead: Brahma, Visnu, and Siva.  As Vasudha Narayanan writes about American Hindu thinking generally, ·The supreme being is seen as a trinity.  Just about every educated Hindu seems to consider the ·trinity· as the most important feature of the ·godhead··[4].  This statue then represents three of the main gods of the Hindu tradition: Brahma, who created the universe in this cycle of existence; Visnu, who preserves the universe; and Siva, who will destroy the universe at the end of this age, awaiting for Brahma to come create it once again.  Once again, this statue was created in India, and is actually a specific replica of an existing murti in a temple at Elephanta Caves in the western part of the country near Bombay.

As important as this display is, there are some who believe that the Trimurti is more misleading as an image than most assume.  Narayanan continues:

Brahma has no more than a walk-on part [in the original Hindu mythologies] and an extremely important person – the Goddess – is left out of this picture·The uninitiated western audience after listening to this is left to believe that Brahma the creator is very important and that the Destroyer could not be very good.  In other words, it is my impression that statements about the trinity mislead more than inform, obscure more than clarify about the Hindu tradition.[5]

 

Here, the importance of the Goddess, although not implicit in the Trimurti, as stressed by Narayanan, reminds us that whereas these deities are important as represented in this display, they are not all there is to the Hindu tradition.  One may not stop with creator, preserver, and destroyer and simply ignore all else.  The Goddess is specifically brought up as being distinctly lacking from these Trimurti images by Narayanan.

Past the Trimurti, we come to the final area and display in this first main chamber.  The entire southern wall is dedicated to the image of the Siva linga, the round stone that is the symbol of Siva.  In this fenced off area, there are two gigantic lingas that are honored by the brahmacaris who manage the temple in their daily arti (worship).  This arti is the third of three artis that are performed every day, twice a day, at the temple.  The lingas are cleaned with water, dried off, and then the brahmacari will apply three lines of ash, the symbol of Siva.  Prayers will be uttered over the arti, and then other devotees may present themselves before the linga and offer their own worship.  In front of one of the lingas there is a statue once again of Nandi, the vehicle of Siva.  Behind these two giant lingas there is a wall which has an impressive display of 1,008 smaller lingas (in 84 rows of 12), representing the 1,008 names of Siva, as explained to me by the brahmacari Vidur.  Again, all of these lingas are imported from India, so they were shaped by traditional Indian artists from Indian stone, thus transplanting physically some of the landscape of India which is now used in the daily arti.

On the end of this fenced off area is the largest Siva linga in the temple.  It is worth mentioning how heavy this linga is—28 tons, as the brahmacari Govind mentioned—as one realizes that it was shipped all the way from India to New York.  It is not specifically used in any particular arti, but may simply be worshipped on its own.  Within this area, behind the colossal linga, there is a replica of a holy well in Benares.  This is another attempt at bringing aspects of India physically to this temple in New York by replication, much like the trimurti described above.  This well presents to the viewer one of the ways water, a sacred symbol in the Hindu tradition, might be obtained for devotion to the Siva linga.  ·Water – as a substance without shape – reminds us of the potential (pralaya) that all things have before they assume name and form, before they become unalterable.·[6]  The fact that the well is a replica of one in Benares is also of note, as Benares is one of the holy cities in India.  Finally in this area, there is a portrait of Siva, Parvati, and Ganesha.  Parvati is Siva·s consort, and Ganesha is their child.  Thus, I felt this divine family was represented here with the giant linga in order to emphasize the connection between the lingas and Siva.

One final set of displays to mention in this first main chamber is various lists of names and pots of water that are hung or displayed on the fence surrounding the Siva lingas.  These pots of water contain water from the holy rivers of India, another example of India being physically brought to Divya Dham.  This water establishes a connection to the holy rivers, and even a drop of water from one of these rivers is enough to sanctify any amount of water from any source added to it.  Thus, putting one drop of the river Ganges in a pitcher of water makes the whole pitcher just as sacred as if you filled it at the river Ganges itself.

The lists hanging on the fence are mainly educational and are used to inform visitors of some of the sacred areas in India (although worshippers may read through the lists to help them in their devotions to the jyotirlingas or other areas of the temple.)  One list names the 12 auspicious jyotirlingas: Kedar Nath, Vishwanath, Vaidhya Nath, Onkareshawar, Mahakaal, Somnath, Nageshawar, Triyakambhkeshawar, Bhimashankar, Mallikarjun, Rameshawar, and Dhrisreshanar (which are also inscribed in Sanskrit on the side of the colossal linga).  Another list gives the reader the names of the 7 Holy Parvats (mountains): Himalayas, Vindhyachal, Mahendar, Malygiri, Sahayadari, Raiwatak, and Arravali.  The 7 Holy Rivers in India are listed here as: Ganga, Yamuna, Godawari, Narmada, Kaveri, Sindhu, and Sarasvati.  Kuldip mentioned that the final river on this list, Sarasvati, actually no longer exists in India as it has supposedly dried up.  However, ·time and again, the Rig Veda refers to the mysterious river·which has long ceased to exist.·[7] Kuldip told me the founders of Divya Dham used this text as sufficient reason to include the Sarasvati in their list of sacred rivers.

Besides the main entrance, there are two other exits in the first main chamber.  One is a ramp on the south side of the wall by the colossal Siva linga that leads to the upstairs, living quarters, and an immense model of the Himalayas elsewhere in the temple.  As another option, a devotee may move east through the temple, under archways reminiscent of Indian architecture, to the second main chamber of the temple.  This is the way we will now proceed.

Main Chamber 2

On your left upon entering the second main chamber, on the north side of the temple, you will notice an entrance to what appears to be a cave.  This is a replica of the Vaisno Devi cave in India, which we will examine below.  Continuing along the north wall, you will also notice the main altar of the Divya Dham temple, which will also be examined below in a section unto itself.  We will begin our tour of this chamber with the moving display of the river Ganges just past the main altar in the north-east corner.

This display is an enormous representation of the Hindu story relating the origin of the Ganges river.  As the legend goes, King Sagara, an ancient ruler whose name in Sanskrit connects him with the ocean (sagara), was childless.  After retiring to Mount Kailasa, a great sage named Bhrigu granted him his wish of children.  Between his two wives, King Sagara had 60,001 children.  After all of his children die in a terrible accident, the king learns that they would only attain heaven when the water from the Ganges falls to Earth to purify their ashes.  The king could not succeed at this task, and generations passed before the great Bhagirath was born.  Bhagirath forfeited his kingdom to retire to the Himalayas, where he spent years in penance and ascetic practice.  The gods were pleased, and finally released the river to Earth.  Siva caught the river as it fell from heaven, otherwise the river would have crushed the earth, and he released the Ganges from his hair into the mountains.  The river divided into many streams, one of which followed Bhagirath back home, purifying the ashes of his ancestors and sending them all to heaven.[8]

This scene consists of a giant section of the Himalayas, from which the Ganges descends.  At the foot of the mountain, there is a large statue of Siva.  When a switch is pressed on one side of the display, water begins to spout from the top of Siva·s head.  The water continues through the mountain before coming out of the mouth of a cow, Gomukh, the origin of the Ganges.  This part of the display is symbolic of the actual origin of the Ganges at a place called Gomukh, “the mouth of the cow.”  At Siva·s feet there is a statue of Bhagirath, the mendicant who begged Siva to release the water.  Thus, the story is told in one simple diorama that the viewer can understand.  Surrounding Siva and Sri Bhagirath there are many images of animals, plants, and shells, representing the life-giving power of the Ganges river.

At the top of the display, there is an image of the Goddess.  This representation is given to show the Goddess as a mother, who superintends the origin of the river.  While watching the water pass through the diorama, I interpreted the scene as meaning that it is from Siva that the water begins, but it is only with the supervision of the Goddess that the water may give life.  Hence, it is from a union between the male deity, Siva, and the mother Goddess together that the River Ganges truly begins, and the harmony of male and female unity are symbolized in this display.  None of the brahmacaris mentioned that this was a correct interpretation of the display, but none mentioned that it was wrong either.  I was quite happy with the way that they let a viewer of the temple decide for themself what each statue might mean.

Just past the Ganges display, there is a wood cut out of the deity Ganesha, the son of Parvati and Siva.  Ganesha is traditionally the first god to be worshipped at a temple as he is the god of beginnings.  As such, his image is found throughout the temple, in his own shrines as well as part of other big displays such as the main altar.  This gives the devotee the opportunity to worship Ganesha first at various parts of the temple and then move to whichever deity that devotee will next worship.  As Ram Chandra Pandey explains in a book published by Divya Dham itself, ·The devotees of Siva may worship Ganesha first then Siva, the devotees of Rama and/or Krsna may worship Ganesha and then Rama and/or Krsna and the devotees of Durga may worship Ganesha first and then Devi.·[9]  The fact that this particular image is made out of wood gives the temple another means to connect with Mother India.  The lingas and other statues were made out of stone and various other materials.  This statue, being made of wood, gives the devotee a chance to worship Ganesha in another material form.

Next to Ganesha there is the exit to the Vaisno Devi cave which runs behind the entire north wall behind the main altar and Ganges river display.  Upon exiting the cave, the first image a devotee comes in contact with is that of Bhairav, the demon form of Siva.  This is a replica of the original shrine near the Bhairav temple in India.  While I was inquiring about this aspect of Siva, Kuldip, the lay devotee in residence at Divya Dham, related a story about the original temple back in India.  Bhairav is a demon, but he is represented here in order to show devotees and those interested in Hinduism alike the various forms that the gods may take, in this case Siva.  Kuldip went on to note that at the original temple in India, the prasad (offering) that one is supposed to make to Bhairav is liquor, an intoxicant usually shunned by strict followers of Hinduism.  This display in itself expresses to the viewer one of the inherent paradoxes that gives Hinduism its many forms.

Behind Bhairav and stretching down the entire eastern wall of this chamber are a multitude of pictures relating the stories of the Ramayana and Mahabharata.  These are the two great Indian epics, and are studied both as religious and literary texts.  These stories teach the reader about the following of dharma, the stories of some of the major gods in the Hindu tradition (Hanuman, Rama, Krsna, etc.), and one spic, the Mahabharata, also contains one of the most famous Indian religious texts studied around the world, the Bhagavad-Gita.  By studying these pictures, one can recognize some of the greatest religious scenes which take place within these epic stories.  However, some knowledge of the stories is necessary to truly understand the pictures, as they merely represent various important scenes throughout the texts but do not explain the texts themselves.

At the end of the eastern wall, we find three statues dedicated to the Goddess.  In the center is the mother Goddess in her main form as Maha Durga.  On Maha Durga·s left side, there is her form as Gayatrimata.  In the Vedas (ancient Hindu scriptures) there is a mantra known as the Gayatri mantra, which this form of the Goddess is representing.  Finally on Maha Durga·s right side is the mother Goddess in her form of Santoshi Mata.  These are the first places in the temple where the mother Goddess may be worshipped on her own, separate from the other male statues.  This shows that the mother Goddess is important not just in how she relates to the other deities, but also how she is followed and worshipped in her own right.

Coming around the wall so that we are now facing south, we come to another wooden statue, this one of Sri Krsna playing a flute.  This is another example of a wooden image created in India.  It once again allows for a worship of a deity, this time Krsna, in another form.  This is not just a different representation of Krsna’s appearance, but also a different physical representation by what he is made of.  Thus, just like Ganesha, Krsna offers a devotee another physical aspect of the land of India itself.

Next to Krsna, there is a statue of the monkey god Hanuman.  This statue is placed in this part of the temple due to its proximity to the pictures of the Indian epics.  Hanuman, named Sankatmochan in this statue, is one of the heroes of the Ramayana.  He helps Rama, an incarnation of Visnu, in saving Sita, Rama·s wife, and by destroying the demon Ravana.  Next to Hanuman there is a large open wall connecting to chamber three, but we will skip that for now to finish our discussion of the second main chamber.

Our final two statues in this chamber are on the western wall.  One is a large representation of Ganesha.  Here, Ganesha has his own shrine, and this one is made out of stone, so it differs from the wood cut of Ganesha by the Vaisno Devi cave.  Worshippers can come and view this large, colorful version of Ganesha before starting their worship throughout the temple.  In my time at the temple, this was the statue that almost all of the devotees worshipped at first.  This is because, as mentioned, Ganesha is the Lord of Beginnings.  One begins their worship at this statue and then moves on to whatever deity of which that worshipper is a devotee.

Next to Ganesha there is another statue of the Trimurti.  This is on the exact opposite side of the wall that stands behind the Trimurti in entry chamber.  These images are back to back, so that the Trimurti is present in both of the main chambers of Divya Dham.  Like the Trimurti in chamber one, it is an exact replica of a statue back in India, at the Elephanta Caves.

The final two displays to discuss in chamber two are a stage and an important shrine.  The stage is off center to the east, in the middle of the room, near the main altar.  This stage is primarily used for singing, performing music, or speaking through a worship.  When an arti is performed here, one of the brahmacaris will take the stage and play music to accompany the arti at the main altar.

Finally, next to the stage, there is a very special shrine, the only one dedicated to a specific human and not a deity in the entire temple.  This shrine is dedicated to Swami Pranavananda.  It has a picture of the swami with a small altar in front of him for the lighting of candles, lighting of incense, and other small implements to perform daily artis.  Swami Pranavananda was a great teacher in India, and it is his teachings that led to the founding of Bharat Sevashram Sangha around 1916, the organization which manages Divya Dham.  This shrine is a recent addition to the temple and was placed here because, as Kuldip told me, Swami Vidyananda thought this looked like a nice spot.  The temple is currently seeking an artist who can do justice to a sculpture of Swami Pranavananda that will take the place of the drawn picture.

 

Main Chamber 2 (Detail) – Main Altar

 

This main altar of the Divya Dham temple is a veritable ·supermarket of gods· as one of the brahmacaris I talked to lightheartedly called it.  This altar allows the devotee to view an incredible number of deities in their various forms all in one area of the temple.  Following Swami Pranavananda·s arti, this is where the second arti of the day is performed.  One of the brahmacaris goes behind a fence that is placed in front of the altar while all the worshippers stand behind the fence.  One brahmacari rings a bell in front of the altar while the brahmacari behind the fence performs the service: lighting candles, praying, blessing the devotees with water during the ritual, and handing out prasad at the end.

The reason the main altar is on this wall is because this is the north facing wall of the main chamber.  Kuldip, the lay devotee whom I was interviewing, said that north and east are auspicious directions, so when worshipping a deity, the devotee should be facing one of these two directions, ideally.  Deities are spread throughout the entire temple, so it is hard to position them so that a devotee is always facing north.  However, the important shrines (e.g., the main altar, the Vaisno Devi shrine, and Swami Pranavananda·s shrine) are all facing south or west, so that the devotees may face north or east for their worship.  While performing the arti at the linga on the south wall of the first main chamber, Vidur explained, the brahmacaris and devotees will stand on the side of the linga next to the wall so that they are facing north while performing the arti.

The deity on the east side of the main altar is Hanuman, the monkey god of the Ramayana.  There are two different statues of Hanuman from different parts of India, allowing the devotee to see different aspects of Hanuman.  Next to Hanuman there is a shrine to Siva and his consort Parvati, once again, I feel, showing the unity of male and female in a divine union.  Laksmi inhabits the next part of the main altar, another aspect of the Goddess in one of her many forms.  This particular form of the Goddess is immediately next to the central and main part of the alter, Maha Durga, the mother Goddess in yet another form.  This shows the importance the mother Goddess has in the hierarchy of deities represented in this temple.  Maha Durga is worshipped as the central figure of this shrine, giving homage to the female divinity.

Laksmi and her consort Visnu inhabit the next chamber of the main altar, once again showing the unity of the male and female form in the divine.  Following them is a chamber dedicated to the four heroes of the Ramayana together: Rama, his wife Sita, his brother Lakshman, and Hanuman, the monkey god who aides Rama in rescuing Sita.  The last chamber is dedicated to Radha Krsna.  You·ll notice that the Mother Goddess inhabits the central chamber, and is surrounded on both sides by aspects of the unity of the male and female divine forms.  This whole altar is dedicated to trying to show a unity between all of the forms of the divine, in all of its incarnations, giving equal attention to both sexes.

In front of the main shrine there is an altar with many smaller representations of the various deities.  There are small brass forms of Ganesha and Durga.  This allows devotees to worship Ganesha first before worshipping the other deities at the main shrine.  It also allows the devotee to see Ganesha represented in another physical form.  First, he was wood, then stone, now, brass.  This gives the devotee various ways to perceive the divine in various forms from India.  In addition to the brass form, there is also a clay form of Ganesha here (yet another physical form for the devotees to contemplate!) with a clay form of Laksmi.  Among other deities represented here in smaller forms in front of the main altar are tiny Sivas, more Laksmis, Durgas, Ganeshas, and a picture of the Goddess.

The last image to worship in front of the main altar is the Divyajyota, or divine flame.  In 1995 and 1996, Swami Jagdishwaranandji, the founder of the Geeta temple and Divya Dham, went to India and performed a pilgrimage.  He visited various temples around India, including the original Vaisno Devi shrine, and lit candles from the eternal flames present at these auspicious locations.  He then brought the flame back to America, to present in the temple.  This was a difficult journey, as open flames were not allowed on aircraft, so the flame needed to take a long journey by land and sea to reach New York.  This long journey was worth it to the Swami, however, for in the end, he was able to present this eternal sacred flame of India at the Divya Dham temple.  Now, this authentic symbol, associated with some of the most sacred shrines of India, is present here at the Divya Dham temple, where devotees can feel that much closer to the original shrines in India by worshipping the same flame here that burns there.[10]

The last portion of the main altar to be discussed is off to the side.  This is another donation box, but it also has a few keepsakes that a devotee may take back with him.   There are many postcards within this box that a devotee may donate money to get.  They contain pictures of the various deities and incarnations throughout the temple, including the Himalayan display and the Divyajyota.

 

Main Chamber 3

 

This chamber is mostly empty, for it is this chamber that can hold the largest number of worshippers.  They may gather here at various festivals and holidays throughout the year for congregational worship.  In the future, Divya Dham might add more displays to this area, but at the moment, this area is left mostly empty for large congregations of worshippers.  However, despite its open emptiness, there are still a number of altars and displays here with clear religious merit.

To begin with, the walls in this chamber are covered with a metal plating that was fashioned in India.  The artwork gives the viewer a definite feel of being in an Indian temple rather than in a warehouse.  The plating does an excellent job covering up the original walls of the warehouse and at the same time presenting the viewer with an authentic feel.

In front of the wall on the east side of the chamber, there are a number of placards displayed for devotees and visitors to read.  These placards display all manner of information regarding the history and traditions of Hinduism.   As Pandey says, ·They import the ancient cultural heritage to modern generation.·[11]  A few examples of the type of information which these placards display are: time (solar and lunar), the lineage of the Pandavas (the heroes of the Mahabharata), the 28 hells, calendars (representing many different religions, not just Hinduism, such as the Jewish calendar, Iranian calendar, Egyptian calendar, etc.), 10 Tantric aspects, names of angels, etc.  These placards are used solely for study and contemplation, but are not divine or holy in their own right.  No one worships the placards; they are just read for the information they provide.  In the book Divya Dhama: The Heaven on the Earth, the placards are copied in both Sanskrit and English to allow people to read them at their leisure, outside of the temple.  Thus, the temple is shown to be a place of not only worship, but also discovery, allowing visitors to learn more about India and gain a deeper understanding of the traditions represented in the temple.

One of the two main displays in this section of the temple is the 9 sided circle dedicated to the nine goddesses, or forms of the Goddess.  These Goddesses are, in order: Skandmata, Katyayani, Kalratri, Mahagauri, Sidhidatri, Shailputri, Brahmacharini, Chanderghanta, and Kooshmanda.  This whole display was designed by the founders of Divya Dham, but donated by various families who are devotees of the temple, and on some of the name plates for the Goddesses, the family·s name appears beneath it as the donor.  This display·s purpose is to give another area where the Supreme Goddess may be worshipped in her many forms, and to present to the devotee the various forms that the Goddess may take.

The last two deities in this chamber are Jalarambaba and the four handed form of Visnu/Krsna.  This is an interactive display though, for these statues each appear between two mirrored walls.  By leaning forward

and looking into the mirror, one can see an infinite amount of images replicated through the reflections of the mirrors.  This is to represent the infinite nature of the gods, specifically Krsna as described in Book 11 of the Bhagavad-Gita, and is quite stunning in its execution.

Vaisno Devi Cave

The Vaisno Devi cave is an extreme example of authenticity in the form of an interactive display.  Although placed here purposely by the founders of Divya Dham to show its connection to the Himalayas (as the Vaisno Devi cave runs behind the diorama present in main chamber 2), I have included it here as a separate room because it forms its own

enclosed area.  This part of the temple has been designed to look like the original Vaisno Devi cave, a pilgrimage site in north India, near Jammu, Kashmir.  Because the cave is a part of the Himalayan mountain range, it has been situated in the temple behind the display where the source of the Ganges is produced by Siva in the Himalayan mountains.

The cave is literally a tunnel that devotees may walk through.  For those who do not have the means to make the actual pilgrimage to the original shrine, this aspires to be a pretty close duplicate to what the cave represents.  The walls are

made to look like they are actually made of rock, although they are constructed out of fiber-glass.  The floor, though carpeted, has bumps throughout, as if you are walking on the floor of a cave.  For those interested in making their own Vaisno Devi cave, the contractor left his name and number on the wall near the entrance to the cave.

Once one traverses the entry hallway, one comes to a chamber in the back, meant to reflect what is in the chamber of the original shrine.  Here, there is an altar on the north wall (so that devotees may face north while worshipping) displaying the three forms of the mother Goddess, once again, in anthropomorphic form.  They are Maha Kali, the Goddess in her terrifying form of death; Maha Laxmi, the Goddess in her form of wealth;

and Maha Saraswati, the Goddess in her form of learning.  Laxmi and Saraswati are both white marble statues, while Kali is represented by a different stone, painted black.  On the wall just to the east of the main altar there is a smaller shrine of the three goddesses in their forms of 3 pindas, or stones. It is this altar that presents the deities in the form they have in the original Vaisno Devi cave.  Thus, this display retains its authenticity by replicating the goddesses in their original form in India, while also ·upgrading· them to a degree by refashioning the images in a modern, anthropomorphic way so as to match the other deities throughout the rest of the temple.

Finally, in front of the altar, there is another Divyajyota.  Just like the flame at the main shrine, this one was consecrated at the original Vaisno Devi cave and thus gives the worshipper a greater sense of being at the original site.  The fact that the same eternal flame that burns in the Vaisno Devi cave of India burns in Divya Dham in Queens helps the devotee feel a closer connection to the sacred site.

Once back at the main entrance, one may continue south and up the ramp that leads to the rest of the temple.  In a small hallway that connects the upstairs, downstairs, and living quarters, there is an inconspicuous door that one may easily overlook.  The only thing that draws your eyes to this door is that it is next to a display bearing the likenesses of two human heads.  This is not a display of worship, but rather an honor bestowed to the designer (Bruce Zaccagnino) and his wife on account of what lies on the other side of the door.  Through this door, there is a gigantic model of a portion of the Himalayas.  This whole design is based on what the Himalayans might look like in the near future as roads and railroads make their way up the face of the mountain, allowing for greater numbers of pilgrims to reach the sacred heights.

The model is rife with miniature trains (that actually run!), houses, cars, and even tiny people.  Hidden away in one of the valleys, one can spot a miniature Siva linga, that is supposedly a natural formation of snow and rock on this part of the mountain.  This room is basically designed to give the viewer a sense of wonder for the area (as opposed to worship) and “It’s something for the kids”[12].  It is also an excellent example of authenticity in Divya Dham, as the viewer is mentally transported to the sacred Himalayan mountains.  Again, for those who cannot make the pilgrimage, this is a good way to at least replicate the experience.

On the walls surrounding the Himalayas, there are various exhibits giving pictures of the Himalayas as they are now and pilgrims who have made the journey.  There is also one special case in this room that holds the containers by which Swami Jagdishwaranandji transported the Divyajyota to America.  Only one of these containers is on display in the main temple, and that is in front of the main altar in chamber 2.  It is provided as visual proof of the Swami·s journey, helping to reinforce the authenticity of his pilgrimage and the origin of the Divyajyota.

Upstairs and the rest of the Temple

The upstairs is at this point incomplete.  There are many rooms that Divya Dham has yet to develop.  At this point, only two rooms are functional.  The first is the wedding hall.  Here is an attempt by Divya Dham to create an authentic looking temple wedding hall where people may cement their vows of love in a traditional Hindu wedding service.  The hall is decorated with many colorful carpets and wall coverings and has an altar at one end where the ceremony may take place.  The hall is 7,500 feet and may be rented out by devotees.  One of the colors that stands out in this hall is red, for ·red is an auspicious color associated with the blood of life, and thus is the color of a bride’s clothing.”[13]

The other room in use is one of the most finely executed displays in the temple.  In a final homage to the mother Goddess, Swami Jagdishwaranandji had 51 replicas of the Goddess installed in separate compartments in this room.  These deities all have their own set of clothes, which are changed throughout the months as the year progresses.  Each day a special arti is held in this room in honor of these incarnations.

The 51 Goddess replicas are a direct tribute to the 51 Shakti Peethas throughout India.  According to legend, the mother Goddess was in the form of Sati, a wife of Siva.  She died

of a broken heart while at a sacrifice being conducted by her father, who insulted her by omitting her hustand from the guiest list, thus causing her death.  Siva came to the sacrifice after hearing the news and completely broke up the ritual.  He decapitated Sati·s father out of rage.  He then proceeded to take his dead wife and wandered all over the earth with her in a mad dance.  Brahma, Visnu, and another god Sani entered the dead body of Sati and broke it apart bit by bit, so as to release Siva from his mourning.  Her body came apart in 51 pieces, and wherever they landed became a holy place, or a Peetha.[14]  This is where the idea came for the room of 51 goddesses.  Swami Jagdishwarnandji even published a book dedicated to the 51 sacred sites and explaining their purpose and location.  By using this book as your guide, you may worship all 51 Peethas in one place (recognizing each one and its counterpart in India), the only place where all 51 Peethas are located together outside of India.  This final tribute to the mother Goddess is an extreme display of the respect the Divya Dham temple has for this divine figure.

In the main hallway connecting the upstairs, downstairs, and Himalayan model of the temple, there are two large pictures just recently saved from the basement, where the temple stores many images and displays that are not ready to be presented yet.  One of the pictures is a beautiful representation of what might be the “Sun” temple in India, as Kuldip guessed, although which exact temple it is representative of has yet to be determined.

The picture hanging next to it is a representation of the Banyan tree.  This is traditionally accepted as an auspicious and sacred symbol, as Banyan trees are believed never to die.  There are many throughout India, including one near the famous mausoleum, the Taj Mahal.  The Bhagavad-Gita mentions the Banyan tree in a metaphor of the world. At Divya Dham, it is a metaphor for Hinduism.  The tree has many branches, symbolic of the different traditions in Hinduism.  However, all the branches are just parts of the same tree.  Divya Dham accepts all the different traditions as the same.  As one pujari said, “Dharma protects those who protect dharma.”  Thus, as long as one has faith, that is all one needs to be accepted as a devotee here.

Finally, there are the living quarters.  This is a series of rooms in the back of the ground floor of the temple that allow the brahmacaris and visiting lay devotees (such as Kuldip) to live while maintaining the temple.  Of course, these rooms are not open to the visitors of the temple.  Rest assured that the brahmacaris have everything they need—from bedrooms, to bathrooms, to a fully functioning full sized kitchen to serve their needs.

Future Plans

 

Divya Dham is not just a temple.  It is also an educational center.  One does not have to be a practicing Hindu to reap the benefits of visiting this temple.  All that is required is an open and inquisitive mind.  Although Divya Dham is not currently teaching any classes, it has plans in the future for teaching classes on various texts (such as the Bhagavad-Gita), yoga, and Indian languages (namely, Sanskrit and Hindi).

Also, Divya Dham does not just want to be labeled as a Hindu temple, but as a pluralist site where people of all religions can come together and learn about each others traditions.  There are plans for rooms dedicated to the different world traditions.  At this time, the next two rooms planned are for Christianity and Judaism.  One example of a display currently being planned is for the Judaism room, where the Ten Commandments are going to be inscribed on the trunk of an elephant.  Plans for these rooms are already under way, and the temple has even received contributions from various people of both the Christian and Jewish faiths for the construction of these rooms.

Conclusion

Divya Dham is a true modern miracle for the advancement of learning in religion.  It is a place where people from all backgrounds in Hinduism may come and worship.  However, it is also a place where people from other faiths may come to observe, ask questions, and gain a deeper understanding of those they share the city and its surrounding area with.

Divya Dham has gone to great lengths to make this temple as authentic as possible.  All of the statues and displays in the temple cost in excess of 17 million dollars.  They could have been designed and constructed for lower costs here in the US, but to maintain an actual connection with the home of Hinduism, everything that a worshipper sees and comes in contact with was shipped from India.

Also, the temple shows us a notable facet of the Hindu religion, that of the female deity, the Goddess.  From an incredible amount of displays dedicated just to the Goddess, including the main altar, to various displays showing the union of the male and female form, to displays showing the dominance of the female form (such as in the first statue discussed and the origin of the Ganges model), the Goddess is a much respected and important aspect of this temple.

To regard Divya Dham as just another Hindu temple is to sell it far short of its true worth.  It is a sacred place.  A place true to its roots.  It is also a place where people may come together, share, learn about each other, and even worship together.  Divya Dham, as envisioned by the Swami Jagdishwaranandji, is truly a fine example of “The Heaven on theEarth.”

DIAGRAMS OF DIVYA DHAM

Illustrations by Douglas Peters

Main Chamber 1
Main Chamber 2
Main Chamber 3
Main Altar
Vaishno Devi Cave