Jain Digest 1999 04

Author(s): Federation of JAINA
Publisher: USA Federation of JAINA

Page 31

Temple of Your Dreams - Pride and Joy of the Convention
C
onventioneers at the Biennial JAINA convention in Phila delphia over the 4th of July weekend are going to be treated to a marvelous sight. A specially-built Choumukhi temple just for this convention made of pink stone, intricately carved and so authentic you would think for a moment you are in India visiting the temple dearest to you.
This is a story of how this remarkable temple came into being. A vision of one man, the efforts of scores of volunteers and an inspiration for thousands. A story that took over eighty years to tell and played out on three continents.
You must have heard about the antique teakwood temple that was brought from Gujrat to the World's fair in St. Lois, acquired by Howard Hughes, languishing in a motel in Las Vegas and finally donated to the Jain Center of Southern California. Most people would simply admire the awesome panels on display at the Jain Bhavan in Los Angeles.
But Nipul Shah is not like most of us. He is using the panels and arches of this temple to create "something unique that would inspire our younger generation who have never visited India about the richness of our religion".
Nip, as his friends call him was born in Nairobi, Kenya in 1955 in to a staunch Jain household. At the age of 16 he went to the airport with his camera to take pictures of Gurudev Chitrabhanu who was traveling out of India for the very first time. He was already assigned the task of decorating the hall where Gurudev was to speak. It turned out that the official photographer did not come through and Nip became the photographer of record for Gurudev's historic trip. Gurudev touched the heart and mind of young Nip in such a powerful way that to this day he remembers and lives by the message he heard that auspicious day: "When you point a finger of blame at someone, remember you are also pointing three fingers at yourself". His journey to fame had just begun.
His first journey was from Nairobi to England for studies. At Imperial College he obtained a Ph.D. and today is an internationally recognized authority on internal combustion. In 1987, he moved to San Diego. Just as he was in Kenya and in England, he became very active in community affairs, temples and "Shishu Kunj". But fate was about to play a cruel joke: he was diagnosed with kidney troubles and given only a 2% chance of survival. Hah-someone was looking over him: After two kidney transplants and prolonged recovery period, he believes he now has a second lease on life.
He is not about to waste this precious gift of life. He believes there is a reason why he has been given this gift. Now his motto in life is "Be good-do good". Accordingly, he has turned his life towards doing something for the children. When he heard about the temple in Los Angeles and about the convention in Philadelphia, an idea of creating the temple was born. Although he has never been to India, he had seen temples in Nairobi and Mombassa. He wants to involve our youngsters in projects that will fortify them with our
by Dilip V. Shah
culture and religion. Inspired by the antique teakwood temple, invitation from the Devendra Peer of Samarpan Jain Sangh and help of Dr. Manibhai Mehta of Jain Center of southern California, he was off and running. He ran first to the Jain Society of San Diego. He encountered lot of enthusiasm and lots of questions in his Sangh but with supporters like Rohakbhai Vora, Ashokbhai Shah and Kishorebhai Mehta his dream carried the day.
To allow maximum number of people to see and pray at the same time, he decided on a Choumukhi (four sided) design. He tried to create a computer design but was not satisfied and built a model and took pictures instead. The plan was to build a temple with the base of 25 by 25 ft and height of 23 ft. He borrowed a pillar and half-arch from the Jain Bhavan of Los Angeles and had them professionally cleaned. Molds were made.
For the last six months every weekend volunteers-seven to seventy years old-have met at his house to build this temple. With the help of his wife Renuka and 17-year-old son Amar, his garage has turned in to a workshop. Almost 26 families in San Diego have put in approximately 2,000 hours and the clock is ticking on. 56 elephants, 24 Shravaks, 24 Shravikas, fountains and plants all around in addition to 24 Tirthankars-all made with devotion, care and such a sense of purpose that it has become a community project. Mold maker Tony has given countless hours teaching his art. Steve built the shikhar and the list of helpers just goes on...
The project has brought so many people together in San Diego and has generated a crescendo of good will and "can do" attitude that is about to run wild all over this continent. More than 250 pieces from 4,000 lbs. of Hydro stone have been made. The total weight is expected to be over 5,000 lbs. These pieces will be shipped (courtesy of Virendra Shah of Los Angeles) on 30 pallets. In Philadelphia Somchand Shah, Lalit Mehta, Rajni Doshi and Mahendra Sanghavi have taken the responsibility of erecting it at the convention site. You will not only be able to do Darshan, but also learn the process by which this temple was created. Just visiting this newest Jain temple in Philadelphia can be enough of a reason to attend the convention.
It his dream that he would like to get a murti in every Jain home in North America so that their day starts with a prayer. When you see this labor of love, the purity of purpose and the elegance of design, you will wonder. You will wonder how any Jain community in North America can say that they do not have resources to build a temple of their own. For cost of less than a luxury car, any community can build a temple like this. All they need is a few volunteers. After all, they have already been inspired. And Nip is ready to assist any community that wishes to embark on the journey that will uplift them. A temple built by the hands of their own children can be the very best thing that happened in their community.
JAIN DIGEST SUMMER 1999/29 www.jainelibrary.org