Guest guest Posted January 6, 2004 Report Share Posted January 6, 2004 A call for action: In the wake of a devastating New Year's Eve fire, a Saraswati temple in New Hampshire, USA (about an hour's drive from my home), is asking devotees for help. Below I've posted the Associated Press account of the fire, followed by the temple's appeal and contact information. Many thanks to any members who might be able to help: EPPING, New Hampshire (Monday, Jan 5, 2004) - A New Year's Eve fire that destroyed ancient texts at a Hindu temple in Epping has left members in mourning. Among the items lost in the fire were a collection of handwritten prayers and mantras, some of which date from 30 to 40 B.C. A group of marble statues of gods and goddesses also were lost in the temple, named for the goddess Saraswati. "There's grief, there's sadness, there's loss," the temple's pandit, or director, Ramadheen Ramsamooj, said Friday. The fire was caused by an electrical problem, the state fire marshal's office and the Epping Fire Department said Thursday. The Saraswati Mandiram Temple has been located near Route 27 in Epping since 1997. The mantras, couplets in Sanskrit, contain knowledge for seekers and scholars, Ramsamooj said. Mantras, which originate in holy books, help people understand who they are in terms of the greater power, he said. Ramsamooj said he has collected the texts since he was a teenager and had about 200 of them. The stacked, dark-brown sheets of paper were wrapped in red cloth and tied. The fire was contained it to the main building's two-story addition, which included the upstairs temple and downstairs offices. It did not spread to an adjoining auditorium that holds 250 people, where the temple planned to hold Sunday services. The services typically attract between 60 and 200 worshippers from southern New Hampshire and Massachusetts. Ramsamooj, also the headmaster of an on-site school for 24 students in grades K-12, said this is a time to reflect on one of his faith's basic philosophies emphasizing non-attachment to things of this life. The idea isn't easy, he said. "I preach it every day, and now I have to live it." URL: http://www.cmonitor.com/stories/news/state2004/010504_temple_fire_200 4.shtml ********** AN APPEAL FOR HELP Dearest Friends of Saraswati Mandiram, As some you may know, a fire destroyed our Temple at Saraswati Mandiram on New Year's Eve. Everyone is safe and our other facilities were undamaged. We will continue to hold our regular Sunday Services in the Auditorium located next to the Temple. After serving the community for over ten years, we have every intention of continuing those services and rebuilding the Saraswati Mandiram Temple. We call upon you, dearest friends, to support this effort. We have established the Saraswati Mandiram "Mandir Building Fund" to receive your needed support. Please send your donations to: Saraswati Mandiram Mandir Building Fund 38B Ladds Lane Epping, NH 03042 We will be holding a "Visarjan Ceremony" in which we will gather the remaining pieces of our beloved Murties and place them in the Lamprey River. We will notify you of this event both on our website and through our email service. We will also be establishing a Murti Restoration Fund in which you can help restore the Murties that were lost. Information for this will be posted on the website shortly. In the meantime, please call us if you have any questions at 603-679- 1126. We look forward to seeing you. Wishing you peace and happiness for the New Year, Pandit Ramsamooj URL: http://www.saraswati-ihh.org Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted January 8, 2004 Report Share Posted January 8, 2004 Namaste, What a terrible loss. I've printed this out, I'll see if I can raise any help here. My heart goes out to all. pr , "Devi Bhakta" <devi_bhakta> wrote: > A call for action: In the wake of a devastating New Year's Eve fire, > a Saraswati temple in New Hampshire, USA (about an hour's drive from > my home), is asking devotees for help. Below I've posted the > Associated Press account of the fire, followed by the temple's > appeal and contact information. Many thanks to any members who might > be able to help: > > EPPING, New Hampshire (Monday, Jan 5, 2004) - A New Year's Eve fire > that destroyed ancient texts at a Hindu temple in Epping has left > members in mourning. > > Among the items lost in the fire were a collection of handwritten > prayers and mantras, some of which date from 30 to 40 B.C. A group > of marble statues of gods and goddesses also were lost in the > temple, named for the goddess Saraswati. > > "There's grief, there's sadness, there's loss," the temple's pandit, > or director, Ramadheen Ramsamooj, said Friday. > > The fire was caused by an electrical problem, the state fire > marshal's office and the Epping Fire Department said Thursday. The > Saraswati Mandiram Temple has been located near Route 27 in Epping > since 1997. > > The mantras, couplets in Sanskrit, contain knowledge for seekers and > scholars, Ramsamooj said. Mantras, which originate in holy books, > help people understand who they are in terms of the greater power, > he said. > > Ramsamooj said he has collected the texts since he was a teenager > and had about 200 of them. The stacked, dark-brown sheets of paper > were wrapped in red cloth and tied. > > The fire was contained it to the main building's two-story addition, > which included the upstairs temple and downstairs offices. > > It did not spread to an adjoining auditorium that holds 250 people, > where the temple planned to hold Sunday services. The services > typically attract between 60 and 200 worshippers from southern New > Hampshire and Massachusetts. > > Ramsamooj, also the headmaster of an on-site school for 24 students > in grades K-12, said this is a time to reflect on one of his faith's > basic philosophies emphasizing non-attachment to things of this > life. > > The idea isn't easy, he said. "I preach it every day, and now I have > to live it." > > URL: > http://www.cmonitor.com/stories/news/state2004/010504_temple_fire_200 > 4.shtml > > ********** > > AN APPEAL FOR HELP > > Dearest Friends of Saraswati Mandiram, > > As some you may know, a fire destroyed our Temple at Saraswati > Mandiram on New Year's Eve. Everyone is safe and our other > facilities were undamaged. We will continue to hold our regular > Sunday Services in the Auditorium located next to the Temple. After > serving the community for over ten years, we have every intention of > continuing those services and rebuilding the Saraswati Mandiram > Temple. We call upon you, dearest friends, to support this effort. > We have established the Saraswati Mandiram "Mandir Building Fund" to > receive your needed support. Please send your donations to: > > Saraswati Mandiram > Mandir Building Fund > 38B Ladds Lane > Epping, NH 03042 > > We will be holding a "Visarjan Ceremony" in which we will gather the > remaining pieces of our beloved Murties and place them in the > Lamprey River. We will notify you of this event both on our website > and through our email service. We will also be establishing a Murti > Restoration Fund in which you can help restore the Murties that were > lost. Information for this will be posted on the website shortly. In > the meantime, please call us if you have any questions at 603-679- > 1126. We look forward to seeing you. > > Wishing you peace and happiness for the New Year, > Pandit Ramsamooj > > URL: http://www.saraswati-ihh.org Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted February 3, 2004 Report Share Posted February 3, 2004 Here's a hopeful follow-up regarding the New Year's Eve fire at aSaraswati temple in New Hampshire, USA (click "Up Thread" to read original report): TEMPLE BEING REBUILT WITH HELP OF NEIGHBORS By Rachel Grace Toussaint EPPING - The aftermath of a New Year's Eve fire that gutted the Saraswati Mandiram Hindu Temple on Ladd's Lane has Pandit Ramadheen Ramsamooj, the church's leader, feeling both devastated by the loss and uplifted by the outpouring of community support - a support he did not realize was there until he and his congregation were struck by this tragedy. The two-alarm fire, apparently sparked by an electrical malfunction, turned to ashes everything in its path that night. While no one was injured, nothing, including ancient religious icons and artifacts, was spared from the blaze. "That's the biggest loss right now because there's no way I can bring those back," Ramsamooj said. "There were ancient scriptural writings that were a couple thousand years old. Every time I think about it, it makes me sad, and now I'm eating myself up - why couldn't I have documents or copies of these things put away in case of an event like this so we could still have access to this information? But before, I never thought in my lifetime my church would be on fire." But along with the loss comes a great feeling of gain in the form of support from the community at large. "The response and the sympathy I'm getting from the community is heartwarming," Ramsamooj said. "You know, we've lived here seven years now in Epping, and we've lived in such a way as not to interfere with the community ... not get actively involved in politics. We came here simply to worship, to pray and be a good neighbor. We really never talked to people, but people have had so much love and respect for us (in the wake of the fire)." "In other words, this has been an event (leading to) the community being vocal in the way they feel about us," he said, "and that's something we wouldn't have heard of if it hadn't had been for this tragedy." Ramsamooj's congregation has received donations from other religious groups in the community, including St. Anthony's Roman Catholic Church in Sanbornville. Father Edmund Babicz of St. Anthony's sent a donation to Ramsamooj on behalf of his parish from the church's charity fund. "What moved me to sending it was seeing the article (about the fire), and specifically seeing the leader of the church," the Rev. Babicz said. "His eyes just told a story. And the loss of the items that were antiquarian and couldn't be replaced - I just felt bad for the poor man and the congregation as well." Ramsamooj has also received donations and other assistance from the Epping Neighborhood Crime Watch, Epping residents, and Saint Peter's Church in Epping. What's more, members of his own congregation have pledged money for the reconstruction, and the First Unitarian Society of Exeter has been taking up a collection for the temple during its Sunday services. As Babicz said, every penny counts for the Hindu congregation, especially since it has pledged to rebuild the temple, which it hopes to start at the end of this spring and finish by the end of summer. Ramsamooj estimates the reconstruction will cost roughly $500,000, but is still awaiting word from his insurance company. Until a new temple is constructed, for regular Sunday worship the congregation is using the auditorium located next to the temple on the 100-acre property - also known as The Institute of Holistic Health at Green Pastures Estate. Three families live on the estate and assist in running the institution, which has been in Epping for seven years and in Boston prior to that. According to Ramsamooj, the institute is an educational complex serving the secular and spiritual needs of the region. Saraswati Mandiram is a Hindu organization that was established in Massachusetts in July 1990. It is a nonprofit, tax-exempt, religious organization. The institute's Web site, www.saraswati-ihh.org, explains that Saraswati literally means the goddess of learning and the giver of good speech. Mandiram means a place where the mind is stimulated and enlightened toward the knowledge and learning that culminates in the salvation of the human spirit. There is also a private school on the estate called The Vivekananda Academy, which serves students ages 3 to 18. Students pass through levels of grade clusters, starting with kindergarten for children ages 3 to 5, all the way up to Level 5 for Grades 13 and 14. Normally, a student will study and work in a level for two years before moving on to the next level. The typical student will graduate at age 15 with a high school diploma and an associate's degree. The academy attracts students from Exeter, Fremont, Newmarket, Raymond, Stratham, Kingston, Kensington, Hampton, Plaistow and Chester, to name a few, and is based on principles of structure and a multiplicity of experiences, with its roots in the liberal tradition in education of both the East and West. The learning model is based on an after-school program in Boston that dates back to 1990. The institute itself also hosts its own educational seminars, special events and spiritual retreats, drawing large crowds from all over the New England area, Ramsamooj said. Luckily, the fire didn't touch any of the other buildings on the estate, including the residential buildings. "I have an apartment next to temple, and if fire had lasted five more minutes, that would've been in flames," Ramsamooj said. "What I have come to terms with now is ... there has been talk (within our congregation) of building a new church on the property separate from these buildings," he said. "We've only been talking about it for the past two years and haven't acted on it ... I look at (the fire) as a rebirth of our original idea." "I have mixed feelings about this," Ramsamooj said. "One, I'm suffering from a sense of loss, (but) the other is a sense of gratitude that we have such opportunities - that there's a bigger reason (for this), and our emotions may not play into the bigger reason, but it's a bigger goal that God may have for us to really establish a good church here." Those wishing to donate to the cause of rebuilding the temple can send donations to Saraswati Mandiram, Mandir Building Fund, 38B Ladd's Lane, Epping, N.H. 03042. Source: SeacoastOnline.com URL: http://www.seacoastonline.com/news/hampton/02012004/news/73826.htm Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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