Venkat Raman
Devotees of Lord Venkateswara (Lord Balaji) can now be proud of a Temple dedicated to their favourite God, with the opening of an exclusive place of worship in Hamilton.
For Hindus in Auckland, who constitute a majority of the population in the country, it would accord a closer access, in an environment that is pristine and serene.
The Deities
The Deities at the new Temple located at 2 Kent Street, Frankton include Lord Balaji with Sridevi, Bhoodevi, Garudazhvar, Hanuman, Lord Shiva, Parvathi, Ganapathi and Murugan. A Navagraha Samadhi (The Place for Nine Grahas) for Pooja near the entrance completes the Temple scene.
The Sri Balaji Temple Trust (SBTT), which owns and manages the Temple has appointed Gopalacharyulu from Tirupathi as the Main Priest.
The Temple is open from 11 am to 1 pm and from 6 pm to 8 pm on weekdays except Wednesday, which is the weekly holiday. The Temple will be open on weekends (Saturday and Sunday) from 10 am to 1 pm and from 6 pm to 9 pm.
The Trustees
SBTT Office-bearers and Trustees deserve credit for successfully establishing a place of worship countering odds and challenges over the past four years.
Among them are Bala Bhaskar Tikkisetty (Chairman), Malathi Vasudevan (Treasurer), Nagan Suppiah (Secretary), Ravi Kolluru (Public Relations Office); and Trustees Asogan Govender, Muttiah Paranthaman, Pancha Narayanan, Raman Annamalai and Satish Jandhyala.
Members of Parliament David Bennett, Tim McIndoe (National) and Sue Moroney (Labour) were among the local politicians who attended the event on different days.
The Rites
The new precincts of Lord Balaji was gloried by a series of religious ceremonies held from March 5 to 9, 2015, each of which witnessed the enthusiastic participation of the members of the community from various parts of New Zealand.
A team of 11 Priests conducted the ceremonies enhanced the religious and traditional value of the event, with their flawless chanting reverberating in the atmosphere for long.
They included Ananta Satya Rama Gopal Khandavalli (Resident Priest), Phanindra Raja Sekhar Sharma, Satish Kumar Karanam, Chinna Subramanian Ayaluri (from India), Balamuralikrishna, Sourirajan, Ramakanth, Annadanam (Wellington) and Parameswaran Chandru, Vasudeva Sharma, Raghavan Rengachariar (Auckland).
Traditional values
Malathi, who was at the forefront of the festivities along with her husband Thodur Madabushi Vasudevan (Consultant Vascular Surgeon at Waikato Hospital and Chairman of Royal Australasian College of Vascular Surgery) sent us a report which highlighted the gratitude owed to so many by so few.
She said that the five-day event followed the established traditions in the inaugural of a place of worship including Ganapathi Homam, Kalasa Pooja, Rudra and Subramanya Homam, Navagraha Homam and Uchi Kala Pooja for Surya Bhagavan (Sun God).
According to Malathi, the fourth day (March 8) witnessed ‘a touching ceremony’ to lay the Lord and His consorts in a flowerbed for ‘Yoga Nidra.’
“On March 9, after a Homam and amidst deep chanting by all attending devotees, Lord Venkateswara and all the accompanying Deities were forklifted and cemented. The Priests then performed the rituals to ‘open the eyes’ of the idols and ‘Poorna Ahuthi’ with the Trustees. The evening featured bhajans and devotional singing by many devotees,” she said.
The Kalyanotsavam (Marriage) of Lord Balaji to Sridevi and Bhoodevi was a delight to watch, she added.
The Origin
According to Malathi, the idea of an abode for Lord Balaji took root during a living-room discussion of just three people about seven years ago.
A Charitable Trust was formed in March 2009 and trustees from different occupations and professions were incorporated into the Organisation.
“Fundraising started immediately with donations from Trustees, well-wishers and devotees in the form of Trusteeship, Trust Membership and Temple Development Fund. An Awareness Programme was launched through emails, personal contacts, website, and prayer meetings. Annual Homam, which began in January 2010, is held every year,” she said.
Malathi expressed gratitude on behalf of SBTT to a host of people who have been instrumental in the fruition of the Temple Project.
“They include three professional, world-class musicians who performed at fundraising concerts, Graniteworx and Pragma Group (for their donations), Tamil Society Waikato, Waikato Telugu Association, Sai Group, the South African community in Auckland and Hamilton, and others for their help on various occasions,” she said.
While the Temple is now ready for worshippers, like Lord Balaji Himself, there are debts to be serviced and repaid, and finances mobilised for meeting overhead costs and other recurrent expenditure.
Seeking public help, Malathi, a practising Chartered Accountant, said that as a registered charity, donations are tax deductible.
Donations can be credited to Westpac Account (Number 03-1568-0478167-00) and further information can be obtained from Bhaskar Tikkisetty on (07) 8539972, Nagan Suppiah on (07) 854-6271 or Malathi Vasudevan on (07) 8562652.
Website: www.sribalaji.co.nz and follow the Lord on Facebook (Hamilton Balaji)
Another report with more pictures will appear in our next issue
