Sharing Faith and Families

More than 40 local Hindus clapped, rang bells and chanted in unison on a recent Sunday morning in a private home while sitting cross-legged around a latticed shrine covered with roses, golden figures of Hindu deities and lit candles.

More than 15 families gathered together in this Huntington Beach home--as they have every other week for the last 15 years--to study Hinduism together and then share a meal.

The main purpose of the group, officially called United India Bal Vihar, is to make sure the children are learning about the traditions and history of Hinduism--knowledge they aren’t likely to get from public schools, said Venk Parameswaran, one of the founders.

“There are a lot of things in our holy books that I wanted to teach the children,” said Parameswaran, who moved to Orange County with his family from San Jose and was concerned about the small size of the Hindu community here.

For parents and grandparents, it’s also a chance to immerse themselves in Hinduism. Nagavenamma Shetty, 86, was wrapped in her red sari and smiling at the young children reading stories from their workbooks and answering questions about the text.

“I’m so happy that the children are learning about our culture,” she said through a translator.

According to another founder, Raj Goel of Cerritos, the older generation enjoys the meetings as much as the children, who may fidget and sometimes complain about the homework but who are happy to learning about their heritage in a culture that keeps religion out of the classrooms.

A 6-year-old in a miniature pink sari, Arpita Banaji from Hacienda Heights, listened to her teacher in the small group with relish.

“In my school, they don’t tell us about Hindus,” the girl said, adding that it was hard to sit still for the whole lesson. “Sometimes I get tired, but I still listen.”

Even the older children seem to enjoy the biweekly Sunday sessions.

“I’m proud to be a Hindu,” said 11-year-old Neel Murthy of Huntington Beach. “Plus, when this is over, we get to eat.”

After the opening prayers and chanting, an elder gives a speech about ethics and then a young person gives a presentation about Hinduism. After announcements, the group is split up into a senior group, an intermediate class and a junior class to study Sanskrit and hear the stories of the Bhagavad-Gita and other sacred Hindu texts.

“The children have a sense of belonging here,” said Dr. Lalitha Ananth, a physician who hosted the recent gathering. “Learning about the Hindu culture makes you think about God. It makes you less selfish.”

The meeting is also an excuse for the parents to don traditional clothing and the room was a sea of bright purple, orange and peach-colored saris. Even the men had on more subdued colors of jubba, or long shirts with baggy pants.

After the meeting, women were clustered in the kitchen assembling the lavish meal of traditional Indian foods--plates of hummus, yogurt and eggplant dishes covered the counter in a colorful spread.

The group is governed by a code of conduct drawn up by the founders. Rules require members to contribute financially and children are expected to complete assignments and attend at least 15 sessions a year. A one-time fee of $25 is charged to families joining the organization, which is limited to 15 families with children ages 6 through 18.

A coordinator and a librarian--both from the older generation--lead the group, which has cobbled together an impressive library for the children over the years filled with prayer books, sacred texts and also comic books from India which feature Hindu-based characters.

When the United India Bal Vihar started, Rishi Goel was 5 years old. Now a computer science student at USC, Goel is grateful for his immersion in Hinduism.

“I don’t drink, smoke, eat meat or steal,” he said. “These are all values that I learned here.”

Goel said he didn’t really appreciate his Sunday lessons until he had an identity crisis his freshman year when he was surrounded by young people from all races and religions.

“It helps me live my life,” he said, adding that he wanted to marry a Hindu woman. “Hinduism is a way of life. It helps me make moral decisions.”