Hindu Rituals to Sacralize the American Landscape: Journal of Vaishnava Studies

Abstract

Memorial Day 1997: Jars filled with the waters of the Ganga, the Mississippi, the Suwannee, and many sacred rivers of India have
been consecrated with the steady recitation of the Vedas and many later Hindu scriptures for several days. These waters are now to be
poured over the brand new royal towers and main entrances (raja gopuram) of the Atlanta temple. This is the land of Georgia, which the Creek and Cherokees held sacred; this is the land that was part of the 23 million acres ceded to the British by the Creeks after the Creek war of 1813–14 and before their removal to Oklahoma; this is the land claimed by the British who built churches in the name of Christ. This land was the birthplace for the restoration when Atlanta rose like a phoenix from the ashes of the civil war. This is the land which the Hindus—the Asian-American-Indians—are now consecrating. Through their rituals, the waters of the Suwannee, Mississippi, the Ganga, and the Kaveri will now be poured over the towers, cascade down, consecrate the land, and bless the whole earth.