By Lizeth Vejar
Every Sunday the Southern Utah Krishna community meets at their Spanish Fork Krishna Temple to worship, learn, and receive blessings.
The Utah Krishna community began meeting in a log house in Spanish fork 35 years ago. In 2001, they built a temple.
The temple serves many purposes. It is a place of gathering for various activities throughout the year. One of the most popular events is the Holi Festival of Colors. But the temple is also used for weekly worship and the Krishna Love Feast.
“I like coming here because it is a good way to pay devotional service to God. There’s singing, there’s chanting, there’s good food. It’s just a really good time,” temple attendee Brent Spencer said.
The Love Feast begins with participants singing mantras or “kirtan” and listening to a talk by the temple leader.
Next, the “aarti ceremony” takes place where they offer the five elements from God’s creation: earth, air, fire, water, and ether, back to him.
At the end of the ceremony, they pass a lamp around the room. Each person hovers their hand over the flame and touches their forehead to light the flame within.
At the end of the service attendees get a red dot or “tika” on their forehead to symbolize that their head is at the feet of the Lord. After every service, they offer a free vegetarian dinner to both members and visitors.
“Making everybody happy makes me happy,” temple worker Indurani Dashi/Ghost said.
Even though most of the congregation are visitors, the Krishna community is going to strengthen their faith and leave them a unique memory.
“I feel deep sense of fulfillment being able to share my culture and to serve people,” temple leader Charu Das said.
