Queen Elizabeth II to Visit UK Hindu Temple

[Guest guest]

LONDON - Highgatehill Murugan Temple is to become the first Hindu

temple in Britain to be visited by the Queen in her 50-year reign.

 

The temple was picked to welcome the Queen as part of her bid to

recognise each of Britain's many faiths during her Golden Jubilee tour

of the country.

 

The visit, by the Queen and Prince Philip on 6 June, will come on

their first day of formal engagements after the four-day celebrations

of the Golden Jubilee at the beginning of June.

 

Alongside worshippers at the temple will be representatives from the

wider Hindu community in Britain, which has grown from just a handful

of followers 50 years ago to an estimated 1.5 million today.

 

The unprepossessing two-storey building is an unlikely setting for

royal history to be made. But work on installing new decorations to

the walls and ceiling, and completing a series of shrines, will

transform the hall into a suitable setting for the Queen's recognition

of the Hindu faith's contribution to modern Britain.

 

The small temple was chosen because it is like many of the growing

number of Hindu places of worship across Britain: relatively small and

adapted from an existing building.

 

Temple administrator K Naza said: "We will be finished work next week

and we will be ready for the Queen's visit. The royal party is only

going to spend 15 or 20 minutes here. But we are very happy to welcome

them."

 

When the Queen arrives, she will show respect for Hindu practice by

taking off her shoes before walking into the temple. It follows a

gesture six years ago in the Pakistani city of Lahore, where she

swapped shoes for British Airways flight socks as she toured a mosque.

 

And after taking off her shoes, the Queen will be given a traditional

ceremonial garland, to show her status as an honoured guest, before

she is led round the temple's shrines.

 

A Buckingham Palace spokeswoman said: "The Queen will obviously follow

all the customs of the temple and the Hindu faith."

 

Downstairs, in the temple's community hall, local children will

entertain the royal visitors with classical Indian music and dance,

while they get a chance to chat with worshippers and Hindu community

leaders.

 

"Clearly this is representative of many temples across Britain, and we

had to find one which could fit into the Queen's busy schedule," said

the Palace spokeswoman.

 

It will be part of a tour of north London which will include Alexandra

Palace and a meeting with young athletes, and will come before the

Queen attends a garden party at Lambeth Palace hosted by the

Archbishop of Canterbury, George Carey.

 

Two more days will be spent in London by the Queen with visits to

Hillingdon and Kingston-upon-Thames in the west on 25 June, and

Croydon, Lewisham and Bromley in the south on 9 July.

 

Royal aides have attempted to recognise every one of Britain's faith

groups during the Golden Jubilee tour, culminating in a reception for

leaders of every religious group at Buckingham Palace on 10 June.

 

Christians, Muslims, Sikhs, Hindus, Jews and Buddhists, as well as

members of smaller faiths, will be welcomed by the Queen in the first

reception of its type.

 

"Clearly the Queen has met many of the religious leaders already, but

she was also keen to have ordinary members of each faith at the

reception," said a palace spokeswoman.

>From "This Is London"

by Hugh Dougherty and Robert Jobson

Original Source:

http://www.thisislondon.co.uk/dynamic/news/story.html?in_review_id=592

992

[Guest guest]

Just hope that Prince Philip does not make any faux pas

or 'insensitive comments' in his usual style on this occasion!!

 

Kallikaputri

[Guest guest]

kalikaputri, you are too funny for words!

 

did you know that prime minister tony balir and prince charles

visited the swaminarain temple in london?

 

have you visited this temple, dear? i am planning to conduct my

son's hindu wedding ceremony in that temple in february of 2003. my

son has dto tie the grecian knot to his lady love, a lovely girl from

netherlands!! so you, sesh and sshanpir, mark your calendar for a

wedding event!!!

 

love

[Guest guest]

Namaskar Kallikaputri!

 

And congratulations! You are Shakti Sadhana's official oracle of the

week! Back on May 29, speaking of the Queen and Prince Philip's first

visit to a Hindu temple, you wrote:

 

*** Just hope that Prince Philip does not make any faux pas

or 'insensitive comments' in his usual style on this occasion!!

Kallikaputri ***

 

Well, as it happens, Prince Philip did precisely that:

 

 

JOKE OF EDINBURGH

 

LONDON - Jun 7 2002 - PRINCE PHILIP put his foot in it yet again

yesterday when he asked four Tamil high priests: "Are you Tigers?"

 

The Hindu leaders had to give the daft duke a lesson about Sri Lankan

militant group the Tamil Tigers, who are behind several terrorist

attacks.

 

One told him: "No we are priests. We are not associated with

violence."

 

Philip's latest blunder came as he joined the Queen for a visit to

the Highgate Hill Murugan Temple in north London.

 

It was the first time the monarch has visited a Hindu temple in

Britain.

 

High priests lit candles and blessed their royal visitors in the

Sanskrit language.

 

Luckily, Philip's daft comment was met with laughter.

 

Later, one of the priests said: "We weren't offended. He was just

joking."

 

Earlier, the Queen and Duke were decorated with garlands.

 

Before the colourful visit, the Queen started her day at a bus depot

in Willesden, north London.

 

She met drivers and thanked them for helping to keep the capital

moving during the weekend Jubilee celebrations.

 

Source: The Daily Record http://www.dailyrecord.co.uk/news/page.cfm?

objectid=11933116&method=full&sit