Click here to view original web page at VIEWPOINT: Discovering Hinduism in Āratī
Each Sunday evening as I enter Georgetown University’s Jewish prayer room, Makóm, for weekly Āratī , herbal incense and the soft hum of the harmonium greet me. After I grab a comfortable pillow and find a spot, I close my eyes and begin meditating with the rest of my Hindu community, feeling at home at last. Though I have only been at Georgetown for eight months, I have discovered the value of my faith and found community within Hindu spaces on campus. Before I came to the Hilltop, I had never been a part of an extensive cultural or faith-based organization like the Hindu Students Association. At my high school, tucked away past the acres of Iowa corn fields, I was the only Hindu and Indian student. The nonexistent Hindu community at school discouraged me from embracing my faith; I was so lonely and ashamed of my cultural identity […]
