A Memory from Childhood…

Today is Friday. I go with my mother to the temple for our usual poojas(offerings of prayer). We place fruit and milk on the altar before the gods. We bow and recite our prayers. I ask the gods to do good to our family. We leave, but the scent of burning incense lingers…

My Hindu Home

I grew up in a staunch Hindu home. My parents, as well as my ancestors for generations before them, followed the Hindu religion. Mother, a very devout worshipper, practiced the religious rituals more faithfully than my father. Like many other Indian intellectuals, he did not participate in every festival and the regular poojas at the temple, but for truly important Hindu events, he was always involved.

As the youngest child in my family I was very attached to my mother and so I gained my early religious beliefs from her example. She is definitely the kindest person I know. Through her many charitable deeds, she blesses everyone who comes to her with a need. She believes, as all Hindus believe, that you get good karma when you do good deeds and if you refrain from angering the gods. As I followed my mother to the various festivals and faithfully did the poojas that she did, I hoped my actions would please the gods. When I got older, I became quite a celebrity within the Hindu community by performing classical dances at fundraising events at temple functions.