Please join us in prayers for the Moscow temple

December 26, 2003

ISKCON Communication Moscow

Contact: Igor Anikanov, +7 (095) 255-66-63

Moscow Krishnas to Hold All-night Vigil

in Hope to Save Historical Temple

On Saturday, December 27, hundreds of lamps will light up in the only

Krishna temple of Moscow, which is facing imminent demolition. The ancient

Vedic nama-yajna ritual and joint prayers for protection is the last bid of

the desperate Krishna devotees to preserve their temple for over 25,000

followers of Vaishnavism in the Russian capital.

Hundreds of resident Indian and Russian devotees are expected to attend the

ceremony. Participating will also be many veterans of the Hare Krishna

movement in Russia, who were severely persecuted for their faith under the

former Communist regime. Now the ex-prisoners of conscience may have to

stand up again for what they were already thrown in jails and mental clinics

some 20 years ago.

In 1990, when it was set up in the two-storey dilapidated building at

Khoroshovskoye shosse, the Krishna temple became the very first center of

Hinduism in the former Soviet Union. Now, surrounded by growling bulldozers

of the "Donstroi" construction giant, it may soon become the very first

Hindu temple in the West ever destroyed by authorities.

Earlier this year the Moscow government allocated a plot of land for the

construction of the new Vedic cultural centre, where the present Krishna

temple was to be shifted to. The decision brought joy to the local Hindu

community and was appreciated by the government of India. However, soon a

protest campaign orchestrated by nationalistic politicians on the eve of the

parliament elections put the decision on an indefinite hold. To date, the

government has not passed the final approval for the title transfer.

In the meantime, desperate appeals of the Hare Krishna followers in Moscow

to avert demolition of their only shrine get no response from the Mayor's

office.

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