The Sanatan Temple and Cultural Center of South Carolina (STCC) Historical Perspective on Key Milestones of the Hindu Temple in Charleston 2006 - 2020
PROLOGUE: The founding of the Sanatan Temple and Cultural Center of South Carolina (STCC) was a culmination of the dedication and selfless work by a large number of devotees who believed in the need for a Temple in our community. Devotees who donated money or contributed significantly have been honored by putting their names on plaques kept in the cultural center and listed here (hyperlink to list). Some others have been recognized in congregations at festivals and through STCC newsletters. We would like to emphasize two facts: 1. Sanatan Temple of Charleston and Cultural Center (STCC) and its subsidiary Hindu Temple of Charleston are not self-sustaining and completely depend on donations from the Community. 2. The management teams i.e., the Executive Committee and the Board of Trustees since the inception of the concept of Temple, appointed Committees and volunteers serve without any remuneration..
HISTORY: Charleston is a coastal city with an immigrated Indian population of about 500 families. In the early 2000s, the nearest Hindu Temple was about 100 miles away from Charleston in Columbia and for most devotees it was not convenient to visit on a regular basis. In addition to the need for a common place of worship, educating future generations and other interested members of the society about our culture and languages, the idea for a Temple in Charleston was brewing for a long time spanning almost two decades.
The STCC was formed in 2006. Sanatan indicates eternal and the word Dharma includes duties, rights, laws, conduct, virtues and “a way of living”. The use of Cultural Center need not be elaborated except to put an emphasis on learning of Indian languages, fine Arts including music and dance, Yoga and to conduct study sessions for Hindu holy books. In this document describing a short history, some names are mentioned to connect key events with human faces and to have a natural flow of the events. Professor Dinesh Sarvate was the prime mover for the creation of the Temple and remains a primary guide for the Temple activities through his service as a Trustee, Priest, Devotee and a Volunteer. Sri Sanjay Patel and Dr. Pruthvipathi Katikaneni have been the key members of the Committee drafting the Constitution and Bylaws and they, through their service on the Board of Trustees, established the governance of the Temple in strict accordance with the By Laws and with keen eyes on the details. Dr. Shashidhar Pai served as board member but more so as the first President of the Executive Committee where he provided strong and inclusive leadership in establishing the operating principles and policies of the Temple for day to day operations as well as for large events. Sri Peyush Dwivedi was instrumental in organizing the successful Murti Sthapana and Temple renovation project in 2017. He planned and executed every aspect of complex events leading to the Sthapana day by motivating large numbers of volunteers. Sri Anil Patel was instrumental in stabilizing Temple finances by organizing several important fund-raising events.
The invaluable contributions of numerous other devotees and supporters who made it possible to establish the Temple can be found here (hyperlink)
MAIN EVENTS: (1) Land for the Temple: It was the arrival of Sri Jagdish Hiranandani in 2006 which helped the Charleston community in the establishment of the STCC of SC. The first documented meeting of the STCC of SC was in June 2006 in which opening a Bank Account, registering as a Non-Profit Organization, drafting the Bylaws, Temple location and Fund raising were discussed. In the subsequent five meetings in that year the Co-ordination Committee passed unanimously a resolution to buy a parcel of Land at Koester, Ladson (1.8 Acres) with $140K (130K cost +10K cleaning). The cost amount was advanced by Sri Hiranandani pending Fund raising. A Shuddhi puja and Bhumi puja were done on the land. (2) Initial fund raising: Majority of Charleston population (about 300 families) belongs to an enterprising business community, originally hailing from Gujarat. Gujarati Samaj through Gordhan bhai Patel made one of the major initial contributions towards the Temple and for which STCC is grateful to Gordhan bhai Patel and the Samaj. (3) Next year, in 2007 Dr. Pai joined the fund-raising efforts and $21K was collected by going door to door in Mt. Pleasant. In Diwali Puja the collection went up to $58K. In the same year, the Constitution Committee finished drafting the Bylaws and STCC was registered with the Secretary of State, SC, as a Non-Profit Organization in May 2007. On March 1, 2008, the very first General Body Meeting was held with over 65 families in attendance. General Body was briefed about the progress of the Temple. Year 2009 was significant as many resolutions were passed by the Co-ordination Committee which later became the Board of Trustees. These included $51 per family annual subscription, life membership of 5K, rules of order for a meeting as well as the rules for the minutes of the meeting among others. (1) Bank loan rejections and a significant event: The first attempt was made to take a Bank loan of $500K which was rejected. Then the loan was scaled down to $200K and various proposals for building a Temple ($350K to $500K) were rejected by General Body. By September of that year finances improved to just over $103K and total assets to about $250K. Still we did not have a fixed place for our festivals or for performing major Pujas. Two of the Board members proposed to rent a place to start a Temple with a rent of $9K annually. The proposal was not accepted by the Board. This is being mentioned because of its significance. As a consequence of those events Sri Peyush Dwivedi and a group of six enterprising devotee families opened a Temple in a rental place at Ladson on 19 October, 2009 and named it the Hindu Temple of Charleston at Ladson (HTCHSL). The Sthapana puja was done by Sri Dinesh Sarvate: It was HTCHSL’s decision to let him decide on the deities and their placement on the stage. Within a week the STCC of SC Board of Trustees resolved to build a bridge between the two entities and decided to celebrate all the festivals henceforth at HTCHSL until the STCC started the Temple as planned. HTCHSL accepted the proposal graciously. This was a very mature and wise step by both organizations since they both had the same goal to serve the same community. (2) 1740 Jervey: In the meantime, the negotiations were afoot for the purchase of a Church building located at 1740 Jervey Avenue. The Board resolved to abandon plan to build a new Temple building if the negotiations for the Church were successful. Negotiations were successful and 1740 Jervey Avenue property was bought by the STCC after taking bank loan. A Priest from Columbia Temple was invited to do the “Shuddhi puja” as is customary when a new place is bought. Such a puja was also done on the Koester lot. Once we bought 1740 Jervey and idea of building a new Temple was postponed, it was but natural to sell the Koester lot.
(3) As per the understanding between the two boards, HTCHSL merged with STCC on 30 September,2010. All the Vigrahas as well as the Pataka, Ramayana and Gita were moved to the STCC from HTCHSL. This was done in a solemn and heart-warming ceremony with due respects to the volunteers from the HTCHSL as well as from the STCC. In addition, a beautiful Radha-Krishna murti was given by Gordhan bhai from his home for the Temple till new Vigrahas are obtained. The Chal Sthapana puja was done by Swati and Dinesh Sarvate on Vijaya Dashami day 17 October 2010 under the guidance of the priest from the Columbia Temple and the Community, at last, had its own Temple building.
(4) Hanuman Ji arrives: A place was designated for Hanuman Vigraha in the original plan established in October 2010.Temple planned to acquire an appropriate Vigraha from India with its own funds. A beautiful Hanuman vigraha meeting the required specifications was found by Purnima Pai in Mangaluru. Its chal sthapana was done by Dineshji on Hanuman Jayanti Day 16 April 2011. There was a big celebration!! (hyperlink program flyer). We must mention that the tradition of weekly Hanuman chalisa reading onTuesdays was organized by Sri Sekar Kousik. This continues to be the longest and most regularly held event at OUR Temple to this day. Sekar Ji is an example of a true devotee who served the Temple year after year without seeking any personal recognition and honor. STCC owes a great deal to such volunteers for its successful operations.
(5) Venkateshwara arrives: We were fortunate to receive donation of a beautiful sculpted Sri Venkateshwara Vigraha from Drs. Radhakrishna and Mithra Baliga in October 2013. Two priests from the Hindu Temple of Atlanta did the Sthapana puja on 26 October 2013. (link to photo album). For next forty days several devotees followed the customs as directed by the Atlanta priests including daily puja and daily chanting of Shri Venkateshwara Suprabhatam.
(6) New Marble Vigrahas: In 2017, Peyush Dwivedi and Dinesh Sarvate were delegated by the Board to select marble Vigrahas of deities (to be approved by Board of Trustees) from murtikars in India. They were established on their pedestals at the preselected places in the Temple after a group of five invited priests performed all the proscribed Yagnas and Archanas for three days. Funds were raised for this occasion with requests for sponsorship for each Vigraha. The Hindu population Charleston and neighboring region blessed this event like no other. This single event raised more funds than any other event at the Temple.
A few words for these Vigrahas are needed. Dinesh ji went to Jaipur for the sole purpose of talking with Murtikars and explaining what type of Vigrahas are needed. Peyush ji also reached Jaipur at the same time. At Jaipur they were fortunate to find a friendly source, that had manufacturing facility for marble Vigrahas and supplying them for many Temples worldwide. Dinesh Ji spent three full days meticulously detailing every Murti in consultation with the main artist who was to create them. It was very detailed research, understanding and a vision of Dinesh ji that we were able to get such amazing and most beautiful Murtis specially created for our Temple. It almost took 2 hours to discuss the Ganesh ji’s murti. Both of them went to see other major resellers in search of perfect murti of Ram Parivar. Eventually the magnificent and grand Ram Parivar in our Temple based on the vision and direction given by Dinesh ji was crafted by the same main Murtikar who crafted all other murties.
This was once in a life-time occasion and it was a blessing to have someone committed and devoted like Dinesh ji to actually detail all the 17 statues from eyes to feet and Peyush ji who not only supported this important undertaking but provided important needed connections.
Murtikars made the vigrahas as per our requirement meeting certain criteria. The Murtikars were instructed in details like the navel of Rama, Shiv ji’s snake, Ganesha’s yagyopavit and snake belt, not just the eyes, noses or faces of the deities. It was Dinesh Ji’s idea that the marble Hanuman murti should be modeled after the original Hanuman that occupies His prime spot in the Temple. The quality of marble and the colors for clothes were chosen to match the classical descriptions of deities and overall stage presence when they all will be installed.
(7) Sthapana: The big day arrives: On 29 April 2017 on the occasion of Akshay Tritiya the new Vigrahas were installed in the Temple sanctuary with all the pomp. Five priests were chanting vedic mantras and doing havan-yagyas, while Temple community was enjoying the pujas and delicious food for three days. Tireless group of volunteers worked day and night under the able guidance of Peyush ji. One person who stands out for the tremendous success of Sthapana ceremony is Peyush ji. His unbelievable acumen, detailed planning and organizational skills were self-evident. Ordering volunteer t-shirts to shawls, God’s dresses to kalash, places for priests to park, his skillful dealings contractors and workers assured that all the work was done on time and everyone was happy at the end of the day.
(8) Raffle: The next big fundraising event occurred in 2019 when Anil Patel spear-headed a raffle where the first prize was a Mercedes. He and his close friends sold the maximum number of lottery tickets. For the same Dr. Shashidhar Pai and his raised money with a concert by the Amateur Music Group of Charleston (AMGC).
(9) Parking Lot: Inadequate parking space has been an issue for our Temple when we have big functions like Diwali and Holi celebrations. This issue was partially resolved when adjacent plot of land was purchased in October 2020 with funds raised through the 2019 Raffle.
Epilogue: STCC added another community relations outreach activity during COVID-19 pandemic. This event was successfully carried out by the Temple Executive Committee under the leadership of Vandan JI and Peyush Ji and a devoted group of volunteers who served over 5,000 free school lunches costing nearly $20,000. This money was raised from the Temple devotees for the sole purpose of food distribution to the school children.
This is by no means the end of story of STCC. Just a summary of the progress STCC has made since its founding.
31 October 2020