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HOPKINSVILLE, KENTUCKY, November 17, 2004: Ketki Shah recalls the day that classmates at her daughter’s school told the young girl she and her family were going to hell, says this article. (The “Bible Belt” is a term used to indentify the heavily Christian area of the Southern US, running approximately from Texas to Virginia.) “That’s when we started meeting every week,” said Shah, a Hopkinsville resident and follower of the Hindu faith, as she spoke recently to students and staff gathered during an assembly at Hopkinsville Community College. The meeting was a part of the college’s ongoing Religion and Philosophy club speaker series and featured a brief presentation followed by a panel discussion. All of the panel members are students of the Bhagavad-Gita. The local group meets regularly to discuss the thoughts and ideas of the late Rev. Pandurang Athavale Shastri, founder of a Hindu group called Swadhyay which encourages people to let divine presence guide their actions. The Hopkinsville group also is part of a large organization known as Devotional Associates of Yogeshwar.



“There’s nothing peculiar or weird about our religion,” observed Ragini Chirravuri, a Hopkinsville resident, who said she wanted those attending the recent meeting to have a better understanding of Hinduism. Describing her religion as a wholesome one, she noted that Hindus are accepting of other religions and believe that it is OK for each person to follow his own spiritual path because all paths lead to God. Known as Swadhyar Parivar, the local group of about 23 families has, however, discovered an acceptance among the people of Christian County and other areas. “I love to be here in Hopkinsville,” commented Dr. Prakesh Shah, who is a local physician. “The community is very nice, and we have no problem.” Prakesh Shah said he’s encountered “no obstruction in the Bible Belt.” The panelists noted that, although their children have encountered some questions and issues at school, for instance, they have not really had a lot of challenges toward their worship.

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