ACTIVE LOCAL
A day in the life of
SHASTRII DILIP JOSHI HINDU PRIEST AT SHREE HINDU TEMPLE AND COMMUNITY CENTRE
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his temple began in 1969 in a small terraced house in the Spinney Hill area of Leicester. Three years later it moved to Cramford Street then some years after that the community bought an old telecoms building in St Barnabas Street and gradually built on to it to make the temple what it is today. We carried out a survey two years ago and calculated that 200,000 people a year come to this temple. That includes our regular devotees and also people of other faiths who come to visit us. We have 3,000 to 4,000 school children each year and also people from nursing homes. One of my roles is to teach them about Hinduism. I always wanted to be a priest because my father and grandfather were also priests, in India. My father was not in good health and he sent me to train at the Sola Bhagavat University. It takes 11 years to qualify as a priest at a Sanskrit university to gain the title of Shastrii. I then moved from India to Leicester to stay with my uncle. I have been here for 13 years and I am the senior Hindu priest. There are three priests altogether and our role is to give the right advice and guidance to the devotees who come here to worship. We also plan and celebrate festivals, manage the running of the temple and try to encourage more people to come and support the temple. I conduct Hindu wedding ceremonies all over Europe; this year I’ve been to Germany, Italy and Spain to do so. We’re open from 6.30am to 8.30pm every day. On Saturdays and Sundays we run cultural programmes and prayers and songs called Bhajan, which means songs of worship, and we provide food for approximately 1,000 people each weekend. We have prayers three times a day: the first at 7am, then from 9.30am to 10.30am. At 12pm we offer food to the gods and then we eat that food ourselves. Finally, evening prayers take place from 6.45pm until 7.45pm. We run language schools in Guajarati and English, we have yoga and meditation classes every Monday and we also have solicitors who provide free legal advice once a month to people who need it. Festival of light We use the big hall for community events and the front hall for temple celebrations and festivals. We decorate the temple with fresh and artificial flowers for each festival and we change the costumes of the gods and goddesses. Each festival has different meanings and they are celebrated in different ways. We celebrate the
“I like to meet people and I like to help. I try my best” Holi festival of colours in March and the Diwali festival in the autumn to mark the last day of the Hindu year and the first day of the new year. This year it takes place from October 19 to 22. Diwali is the festival of light and celebrates the victory of light over darkness and good over evil. It is when people let light into their hearts and minds, and try to do something helpful for their family, community and country. We light fireworks to burn away anger, ego, critical thoughts and jealousy. We want to welcome good energy, good friends and good feelings in the new year of Diwali. We wear our best clothes, give sweets and gifts to each other and forgive wrongs from the past year. The Diwali festival in the Melton Road area of Leicester is one of the biggest Diwali festivals in the country. We are famous for Indian food and shopping. All faiths join us there, not just Hindus. We
decorate the whole area and have a huge switching on ceremony with 30,000 to 40,000 people each year. I sometimes go to people’s houses to bless them on the birth of their babies, for weddings, when they open a new business or move house. I am also a Hindu minister in Her Majesty’s Prison Service where I try and help stop crime by talking to and guiding the prisoners. I work in Nottingham Prison, Foston Hall in Derbyshire and Sudbury, Denby and Bolton prisons. I have been asked to go to more prisons but unfortunately I don’t have time. I’m a community member of the Federation of Hindu Priests and I attend meetings of the National Council of Hindu Temples all over the country. I meet ministers from all faiths including Christians, Muslims and Sikhs to discuss peace and the poor in the world. We ask the views of every single minister and try to work out how we can all help make things better for everyone and the country. I like to meet people and I like to help. I try my best. Shree Hindu Temple & Community Centre, 34 St Barnabas Rd, Leicester, LE5 4BD. 07871 848224.
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