Mayor To Open New Boise Temple

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Copyright 1999 The Idaho Statesman - The Idaho Statesman

 

August 21, 1999, Saturday

 

SECTION: Life ; Pg. 1e

 

LENGTH: 1316 words

 

HEADLINE: A Temple Opens A Culture embraced

 

BYLINE: By Tiffany Horan

 

SOURCE: The Idaho Statesman

 

On a small street lined with apartments and brick houses near Boise State University, a new Hare Krishna temple has risen.

 

Constructing the house of worship has been a learning experience for the 30- member congregation, and also for the artists, architect, construction workers, and neighbors who knew little about the eastern faith or Indian culture before the project began.

 

The Hare Krishna Temple and Vedic Cultural Center opens with a public celebration Sunday. A small temple had previously been located in the home of the Guptas, an Indian family that lives next to the new site.

 

"The amazing thing about this project is that it's really a project of Idaho by Idahoans, " said Ravi Gupta, 17, who called the temple the centerpiece of his life. "They've made their best effort to make it something unique for all of us."

 

Stained glass master Michael Booth, architect Bruce Poe and artist Mike Baltzell said they enjoyed learning about a new religion and culture and incorporating that knowledge into their work. An added benefit was the cooking of Aruddha Gupta, Ravi's mother, who regularly made special Indian meals for the men. The Guptas used to own Govinda's Restaurant.

 

"Every time I stopped by food was being handed to me, " Poe said. "I think I gained 10 pounds."

 

Poe said he learned while designing the temple that Hare Krishnas are non- violent, vegetarian, and unconnected to material things.

 

The temple sits between two brick duplexes, which had previously been divided by garages. Except for a gold dome, the brick exterior of the temple blends in with the duplexes and the neighborhood - a goal of Poe's design. But inside, the eastern influence is supreme.

 

"It's a piece of India in Boise, " Poe said.

 

A wooden arch shaped like an inverted lotus flower, marble floors and hand-carved altar are a few of the temple's unique touches. The ceiling and stained glass windows are the others.

 

The ceiling, which is painted blue, was designed to represent the spiritual sky. Several colorful murals depicting Krishna, or God, in different incarnations grace the ceiling.

 

Painting the murals was a bit nerve-racking, said Baltzell, an associate professor of Theater Arts at Boise State University. The ceiling isn't very high, so people can look closely at his work for as long as they want - unlike in a theater where the audience is only present for a limited time.

 

Getting it right

 

Creating images of someone's faith also is tricky - especially when you are not of that religion, Baltzell said.

 

But the Guptas helped Baltzell by stopping by his studio about once a week to check on his progress. The family not only helped with the aesthetics of the paintings, but made sure the religious symbolism was appropriate, he said.

 

Working on the project was interesting, Baltzell said.

 

"It's not often you get a chance to do something like this, " he said.

 

Booth, owner of Kaleidoscope Art Glass Studio in Meridian, also enjoyed the project's uniqueness. Booth often creates Christian scenes for churches, so learning about a different faith was interesting. Translating the spiritual nuances into his work also was challenging, he said.

 

"I had to make sure sure I was picking up the right glint in the eye, the tilt of the head, the shape of the shoulder, the drape of the cloth, " Booth said.

 

His pieces are installed in the front window of the temple. The largest piece shows Krishna playing a flute by a river. Ten smaller pieces show the forms Krishna has taken through the ages.

 

The work is the best of his life, Booth said.

 

"Not just because of the window, but because of the interaction (with the Guptas), the humor, the learning, the patience, " said Booth, whose son Matthew also helped with the project. "I think all of these things came together to make it special."

 

Guptas share culture, food

 

Booth and his son also learned to appreciate Indian food during the process.

 

Aruddha Gupta always brought special dishes when the family visited Booth's studio every two weeks.

 

Matthew Booth was rewarded with more food Tuesday when he finished installing the stained glass at the Temple. Arun Gupta, Ravi's father, told Matthew that Aruddha had something special for him.

 

Matthew soon was happily eating a big plate of lentils, rice and vegetables with potato curry in the temple courtyard.

 

Neighbor Bonnie Bruett, 85, doesn't come over to eat, but to see the progress of the construction. She watches the workers from her front window every day.

 

"I now know how to lay brick, to put concrete down, " she said.

 

She makes oatmeal cookies for the workers. The workers helped her when a large branch fell on her property.

 

Bruett likes having the temple across the street.

 

"I think it's beautiful, " she said.

 

Building the temple

 

The Guptas moved to Boise 13 years ago for Arun Gupta's new job at Hewlett-Packard Co. There was no Hare Krishna temple in town, so Aruddha Gupta began calling Indian families listed in the phone book.

 

A week later, a temple was opened in the Gupta home. The family wanted to open a larger temple not only to worship, but to share their culture with the community, Aruddha said. Teachers and professors from local schools and colleges often brought classes to the old temple.

 

Giving back

 

"Boise has been so nice to us, " she said. "I feel very blessed. I have felt very welcome in Boise, I have never felt any bias. Because of that, I have wanted to share everything with the community."

 

The congregation has been raising money for the new, $ 250, 000 temple for two years, said Arun Gupta, who also is temple president. In addition to the congregation's portion, $ 50, 000 came from the community and the rest from the Gupta family.

 

Aruddha, who along with other Hare Krishnas marks her forehead with sacred clay from the river Ganges as a sign that her body is a temple of God, was inspired by the Vedas, ancient sacred book of Hinduism. The temple will help her share that inspiration with fellow Indians as well as the community at large, she said.

 

Aruddha used the Vedas, along with other academic books, to home school her two sons.

 

Ravi, 17, has a degree from Boise State University in mathematics and philosophy. At the end of September, he leaves for Oxford University in England where he will study Sanskrit, an ancient Indian language. Gopal, 15, will be a junior at BSU. He studies electrical engineering.

 

The boys will make a lifelong commitment to their faith at opening ceremonies Sunday. Both will vow not to eat meat, gamble, drink or take drugs, and not to have sex outside marriage.

 

Opening the temple in Boise, where he has lived since age 4, is something Ravi has been anticipating for many years. It will be difficult to leave when he moves to England, Ravi said.

 

"It's hard in a sense that I won't get to spend time in the temple, " he said. "On the other hand, I'm not leaving permanently. (Boise) is a place called home."

 

If you go

 

What: Public grand opening of the Hare Krishna Temple and Vedic Cultural Center. Mayor Brent Coles will cut the ribbon and there will be a temple tour, Indian dances, songs by children and a grand feast.

 

Where: 1615 Martha Street, Boise. Take University Drive to Chrisway Drive. Turn right on Martha Street.

 

When: Sunday 6 to 10 p.m.

 

Tickets: Free

 

About Hare Krishnas: The Hare Krishna philosophy is 5, 000 years old and comes from the Vedas, the sacred books of Hinduism. The movement came to the United States in 1965. One way Hare Krishnas serve God is by chanting his name.

 

Caption: Photo by Kim Hughes / The Idaho Statesman: The completed temple will be a dream come true for the Gupta family, including Arun, left, Ravi, rear, and Aruddha.

 

Caption: Photo by Kim Hughes / The Idaho Statesman: Rama Woti works on preparing curtains for the altar in the new Hare Krishna temple.

 

GRAPHIC: Photo by Kim Hughes / The Idaho Statesman: Matthew Booth of Kaleidoscope Art-Glass Studio hangs stained-glass windows that he made with his son Michael Booth in the Hare Krishna Temple and Vedic Cultural Center. The center will celebrate its grand opening Sunday.