The following invocation address
was delivered by Prof. Anantanand Rambachan for the celebration
of Deepavali at the White House on October 23, 2003.
THE WHITE HOUSE, OCTOBER 23, 2003, 3.00 PM-4.00PM
Our country today is the
most religiously diverse nation on earth and the richness
of the world's religions in our midst is one of the finest
blessings of our common life. As Hindus, we embrace with
gratitude the opportunity afforded to us in the United States,
our home, to plant anew the ancient seeds of our religion
and to have these nourished by the fresh streams of history
and tradition flowing abundantly in this land. Our celebration
of Divali, today, in the White House, is a wonderful example
of such a new historical step for the Hindu tradition in
the United States and it is one, which, I know, will gladden
the hearts of Hindus everywhere. We are deeply grateful
to President Bush and the members of his administration
for making this celebration possible. His warm embrace of
our nation's religious diversity is an excellent example
of his visionary leadership.
While the many religions
that flourish in the United States offer distinct and unique
insights into the meaning of human existence, we are united
in the affirmation of the reality of God in the light of
whose existence our own lives gain purpose and significance.
We understand God to be the creator of all life and not
of specific communities and to be the destiny and support
of all beings. We share a view of God that would make it
contradictory to claim that God could be anything other
than One. In the midst of our diversity, God is the common
reality, unifying us with each other, making us a single
human family and inspiring us to lives of love and service.
"Religion,"
the American theologian Paul Tillich once said, " is
the substance of culture and culture the form of religion."
This is particularly true of Hinduism, with the result that
a religious dimension can be discerned in almost all of
the festivals that originate in India.
Divali, the festival
of lights, the most popular and widely celebrated Hindu
festival, is no exception. It will not surprise us to know,
given the antiquity of Divali and the diversity of India,
that the traditions associated with it are many. Some celebrate
Divali as ushering in the New Year and the beginning of
a new business calendar. It is an occasion of thanksgiving
for blessings received and prayer for future well-being.
The most widely shared tradition, however, associated with
Divali, is the one that connects the festival with the celebration
and rejoicing over the return of Rama to his home, after
a lengthy exile, and his defeat of the oppressive and tyrannical,
Ravana. Citizens welcomed him by lighting thousands of lamps,
even as over one billion Hindus do today on the continents
of Asia, Africa, Australia, the Americas and Europe. The
story of Rama has become, perhaps, the central narrative
of Divali because it addresses, universally, the human longing
for freedom from tyranny and oppression and the hope of
living in a world where there is no fear and where the fullness
of the human potential can be realized. Since this is what
Divali is truly about, let us linger on the story of Rama,
for a moment.
Ravana established and
maintained a rule by the exercise of fear and violence.
He was intent on conquering and imposing his will throughout
the world, enslaving others and depriving them of freedom.
The practice of religion was prohibited and brutally suppressed.
We get the picture of a spiritually arid land ruled by a
tyrant with no value for the sanctity of human life and
property. The defeat of Ravana by Rama, and liberation from
oppression, are not the only reasons for the rejoicing and
celebration that are central features of Divali Rama is
represented as establishing and providing a model for a
new society that was radically different from the one imposed
by Ravana. In the new kingdom, the state is no longer violent
and oppressive towards its citizens. Nations live at peace
with other nations, suffering is overcome and human relationships
are characterized by love, compassion and generosity. People
are free to realize and express their unique human gifts
in the service of each other.
The kingdom of Rama was
the inspiration for Mahatma Gandhiji's vision of an ideal
human community that was all-inclusive and committed to
the removal of the fundamental sources of human suffering.
We are not surprised that the Hindu tradition has invested
Rama with the attributes of divinity and understood his
rule as a vision of what a human community looks like when
God is recognized as supreme and ultimate. The kingdom of
Ravana, on the other hand, reveals what becomes of community
when God is displaced by human tyranny.
Divali endures as a reminder
that the struggle between the kingdoms of Rama and Ravana
is one that occurs inwardly daily in the human heart and
outwardly throughout the world in efforts of those who labor
and sacrifice for freedom, justice and human dignity. The
lights of Divali are the inextinguishable flames of faith
and hope in the ultimate triumph of goodness over evil and
the assurance that, in this perpetual struggle, we choose
to side of God. These lights also testify to our human yearning
for a world that is free of hate and fear and where there
is abundance of compassion and happiness.. These are the
aspirations articulated in Hindu prayer that is commonly
recited during this season of Divali. I close and invite
you to join:
Asato ma sad gamaya
Tamaso ma jyotir gamaya
Mrityor ma amritam gamaya
Sarve bhavantu sukhinah
Sarve santu niramayah
Sarve bhadrani pashyantu
Ma Kaschid dukhamapnuyat.
Aum Shanti Shanti Shanti
God:
Lead us from untruth to truth
Lead us from darkness to light
And lead us from death to immortality
May all be happy
May all be free from misery
May all be filled with goodness
And may there be an end
to all suffering On this auspicious occasion of Divali,
let us pray for our President. In confronting the many challenges
of our time, may God bless him with the wisdom and strength
necessary to lead our nation, and the world, to peace, security
and prosperity and may God's guidance and protective presence
be always with him. May God continue to bless the United
States of America.
