08/30/2013
Seshadri Kumar
• Wed, Aug 28, 2013
Sringeri Vidya Bharati Foundation has acquired 5 acres of land on Clodine Road near the intersection of West Bellfort and FM 1464 in Richmond to build a temple and community center.
With the blessings of the Jagadguru Shankaracharya, His Holiness Sri Sri Bharati Tirtha Mahaswamigal of the Sringeri Sharada Peetham, the ground breaking ceremony for the southern center in Houston was held on Aug. 25.
Dr. V. R. Gowrishankar, CEO and Administrator of Dakshinamnaya Sri Sharada Peetham, Sringeri, came to Houston as an emissary of the pontiff to participate in the ceremony.
Gowrishankar in his reamrks predicted that the Houston center will be the southern center in the U.S. and will become “the Sringeri of the U.S.” as the Sringeri is the southern center of the Sankara Math in India.
Gowrishankar said he was confident that the Houston temple will be ready for consecration in 2015, though local volunteers are shooting for an earlier opening in 2014.
The Sringeri Math will not take any money from the U.S. chapters, Gowrishankar said.
Sringeri Sharada Peetham is obligated to help its followers in the U.S. and the organization would facilitate the local chapter establish and maintain a facility to continue the spiritual and religious tradition, he said.
“A place like this is needed for spiritual seekers and for contentment. This temple will provide the essence of knowledge to becoming a better human being,” Gowrishankar said.
Dr.Yegnasubramanian, chairman of the SVBF, USA, said initially the southern center was to be established in Florida, but Texas won the seat. Even in Texas, Dallas and Austin competed for the venue, but finally by the divine grace, Houston landed the project.
First, the organization thought of buying a church and converting it into a temple, but later decided to buy a land and build the project from the scratch.
Subramanian said for any good action, the divine grace helps fulfill it. The Houston facility will be the southern center of SVBF. The local executive committee is headed by S. Parameshwaran and Kartick Vishwasankaran is the secretary.
Subramanian said a Sringeri center is also proposed in Detroit, Michigan and shortly, a location will be finalized in California. The Houston temple may come up even before the Detroit center because of the weather, he said.
The SVBF promotes the learning of Bhagavad Gita among children. Any student who can recite the entire 18 chapters of the Gita and can write an essay and deliver a speech, is eligible for a $10,000 a year scholarship and the student can get scholarships for completing the college education.
The main criterion in awarding the scholarship is not the GPA or recommendation of the counselors, but the knowledge of Bhagavad Gita, Subramanian said. Bhagavad Gita cuts across all traditions and is meant for every human being, he said. It helps one become an integrated person, Subramainan said.
Kartick, SVBF, Houston chapter secretary, said besides the temple for Sharada and other deities, the center will have a library, provision for individuals to perform religious rites, and a cow shelter.
Sridhar Menon from New Jersey, a trustee of SVBF, and two other trustees, have offered a matching contribution of $50,000 to the Houston project if the local committee raises $100,000.
Call Kartick at 281-710-7196 1-800-45-HINDU for more information.
