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USA, January 10, 2003: HPI received the following article and request from Chaturbhuj N. Gidwani. Gidwani, who is attached to US forces in Okinawa, Japan, has campaigned for years to establish a Hindu chaplain in the US military. There are presently Buddhist and Muslim chaplains serving, and as yet, no Hindu chaplain. However, there is an intermediate position, that of Lay Leader, which can be fulfilled on a part-time basis by a qualified person. Gidwani himself is a Hindu lay leader at Okinawa.



He writes: “It is explained in the Directorate for Operational Ministries, U.S. Atlantic Fleet’s Lay Leader Handbook & Resource Guide, that a Lay Leader’s role is to conduct Divine Services in the absence of ship/squadron chaplain. The position can be of great benefit to the collective life of the ship. It is my opinion that the role of the Lay Leader is one of enhancing our own individual moral character and spirituality that will eventually weed out global terrorism. I am writing this article as a call for Indian Americans serving the Armed Forces to come forward and volunteer to be Hindu Lay Leaders. Ever since September, 1893, when Swami Vivekananda came from India to represent Hinduism and address the Parliament of Religions held in Chicago, Illinois, America has opened her arms to the philosophy and principles of Vedanta. In the last 110 years, major cities around the world have opened Ramakrishna Mission Centers that teach Vedanta Philosophy to those who are in sympathy with the teachings of Sri Ramakrishna, spiritual master of Swami Vivekananda. Presently the University of California offers regular courses on Vedanta Philosophy. In August, 1947, Mahatma Gandhi proved to the whole world that freedom can be achieved through the main tenet of Hinduism – nonviolence. In 1965, Congress made massive reforms to the immigration laws, equalizing quotas which allowed immigrants from many countries to enter the United States of America, particularly from Asia. These reforms opened the doors for people from the subcontinent to come over and make America their new homeland. In 1950s and 60s, two great spiritual masters, Swami Chinmayananda and Satguru Sivaya Subramuniyaswami (Gurudeva), independently started to teach Hindu heritage and cultural values to Americans to bring unity in diversity. In July, 1973, Americans decided through their elected Congress to establish the All Volunteer Force. This allowed young Indian Americans to come forward and join the Armed Forces to serve their new homeland. In March, 1998, efforts by Hinduism Today, founded by Gurudeva, were made to attract qualified Hindus to consider career Military Chaplaincy as a career option. Click here for the article. I also appeal to all serving soldiers, sailors, marines, and airmen to volunteer to become part-time Hindu Lay Leaders as allowed in the military and invite qualified Hindus to consider becoming Hindu Chaplains, a commissioned officer post, in the U.S. Armed Forces. With this noble appeal, we will continue to preserve our 5,000 year-old culture and heritage for our future generations to come. For additional information contact the author at 011-81-611-745-5217.”



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