Hindu Temple In Tooting is Faces Demolition in UNITED KINGDOM

Source: www.yourlocalguardian.co.uk
Monday,May 31,2010

UNITED KINGDOM : The only Hindu Temple (a district of South London) is facing demolition as developers plan to move in and replace the holy site with a hotel and student accommodation. The Sivayogam Muthumariyamman Temple may be forced to close after the religious leaders’ bid to buy the building was rejected. Money owed to the landlord after a tenancy disagreement is thought to be main reason behind the rejection.

Navenbram Seevarapnam, founder and spiritual leader of the temple, said: “This will cause a lot of pain and misery for the whole community. Unfortunately this development is now in the hands of [other] people. “I feel we are being forced out. We have no other place to go. It is not easy to move a temple, it is something that once founded should remain in its location forever.” The temple is estimated to receive 300 people a day, with worshippers travelling from all across Europe - as well as India and Sri Lanka. It has been at its current location for 14 years and on special religious days can see the number of visitors rise into the thousands.

Barrowfen Properties, who are both the current landlords and developers, plan to build a 76 bedroom hotel, student accommodation in the form of 11 flats and commercial floorspace at ground level. Mr. Seevarapnam said he and a charitable trust that support the temple had tried to purchase the building, were rejected.

British Police Recognize Pagan Officers Association

By Yogeshvar Dubey (PHP from UK)
Wednesday,May 19,2010

 (Pagans celebrate the festival of Samhain at Stonehenge. Serving members of the police may take this and other pagan festivals as officially recognised holidays)

UK : According to yesterday's London Times, Britain's Home Office has formally recognized the Pagan Police Association as a "diversity staff support organization." This means that Pagan police officers will be allowed to take off Pagan holidays as part of their annual leave. However the Home Office refused the Association's request for funding. Leave for Pagan officers on Samhain (Halloween) may create problems since traditionally police leaves are cancelled on that day because of the high incidence of vandalism. [Thanks to Scott Mange for the lead.]

Hindu Festival Hold 1,500 peoples on Shoebury East Beach in U.K.

By Dr.Yogeshvar Dubay
Tuesday,May 18,2010

(Shushila Patel and Induben Gohil came from Portugal)

UNITED KINGDOM, May 3, 2010: A taste of India came to south Essex when more than 1,500 worshippers came to a Hindu festival. The miserable weather failed to dampen the spirits of the festival-goers who flocked to East Beach in Shoebury.

They braved the wind and rain for the Purshottum Maas festival, where they enjoyed folk dancing, traditional music and Indian food. It is the first time the festival, which takes place every three years, has been held in the U.K. on such a big scale.

Hindus Celebrate Women’s Day 2010 in the UK

Source: www.mandir.org
Tuesday,April 20,2010

BAPS Shri Swaminarayan Mandir, Europe’s first traditional Hindu temple (London)

UNITED KINGDOM, April 11, 2010: BAPS Swaminarayan Sanstha (BAPS) observed International Women’s Day 2010 in the UK with a month-long initiative, culminating on the weekend of 10-11 April with an inspirational conference entitled Celebrating Women: Past, Present & Future.

The key objective of the conference was to celebrate the achievements of women and inspire them to fulfill their potential in all aspects of life, especially related to their family, career and faith. Specifically, the conference celebrated the achievements of women in the past, drew inspiration from outstanding women in the present, and encouraged them to build an even brighter future for everyone.

One of the notable features of the conference was Haridarshan, a theatrical musical production introducing the inspirational Hindu characters of Maitreyi, Shabri, Draupadi, Mirabai, and female devotees of Bhagwan Swaminarayan. It was flawlessly delivered by a cast and crew of over 180.