‘If we change, the world will’
First permanent Hindu temple in Katy emphasizes energy, thought and prayer in order to walk a righteous path
Transforming 20914 Park Row Drive into a Hindu temple started Friday evening in the parking lot. That’s where 50 or so barefoot girls and women gathered behind a silver mini van, holding copper pots on their heads. Slowly, the van inches forward, traditional Indian music coming from the open back door. The women, many dressed in red and yellow saris, make their way through fresh rain puddles to follow.
Copper is used because it’s one of the most powerful metals, explained Jayant Desi, who is opening his own Hindu temple in Louisiana soon. Women participate because they have energy men don’t, energy to birth babies, he said. As they walk they chant, “God, please come, we need your presence and your wisdom.”
This is the first step. Then comes the dances, prayers, dinner and finally the installation of the idol followed by a sacred fire ceremony. From the outside, the hall still looks like any other Katy building. But soon the decorations from India will arrive and the transformation will be complete.
Opened with two days of celebration, the Center for Gayatri Consciousness, Temple of Ma Gayatri, is the first permanent Hindu temple in Katy. Part of a worldwide network, the center emphasizes positive energy and thought in order to walk a righteous path. The practice is based in India, where Dr. Pranav Pandya inflects his teaching with scientific studies into the benefits of meditation and yoga.
The only Gayatri center in Houston, its organizers hope it will become a destination in the South in addition to centers in San Antonio, Dallas and further afield in Georgia and Louisiana.
“We are going to help from here,” Pandya tells the crowd gathered in Katy over a video message sent from India. “The work you are doing is very im-
portant.” The center in Katy is expected to serve some 500 families. Opening night, at least 250 packed the 4,200-square foot temple.
“There are tons of Hindus moving to Katy,” said Jayani Parikh, a Katy resident who teaches Sunday school here and helped prepare a group of young dancers for Friday night’s festivities. “They all want family homes, good schools,” she said. “Katy has a good name.” Attracted to message
The Katy school district is roughly 12 percent Asian, up from around 8 percent when Asians were included in “other” in the annual state-collected numbers. (Fort Bend ISD is 23 percent Asian, while the state average is under 4 percent.)
Many Hindu temples are on the southwest side of Houston or in its southwestern suburbs, like Sugar Land, but Parikh said, those areas are saturated. Drawn by the Energy Corridor and the school district, more South Asian families are choosing the Katy area.
And Parikh hopes when they do, they will choose the Center for Gayatri Consciousness. Parikh was raised Hindu but she didn’t get involved with the Gayatri Pariwar, or family, until four years ago. She said she was attracted by the message of transformation: “If we change, the world will change.” Cleansing mind, body
Inside, before the worship can begin, the men and women must cleanse their physical, mental and emotional bodies. Some sit on folding chairs, but most are spread across rugs and blankets on the cool tile floor. They sprinkle water on themselves, apply a small red dot of color to each other’s foreheads to represent mindfulness and focus, and ask to be guided with wisdom and foresight.
For now, the idol stays hidden behind a maroon curtain but in a ceremony Saturday, the statue will be revealed. Then the temple will be open for worshippers to pray, practice yoga and learn more about the philosophy.
The community had been gathering at a center on Hillcroft while this location was in the works. Now, Parikh is excited to be able to pray and meditate on the mantras of transformation whenever she wants here. But she’s most looking forward to the building’s decorations arriving from India.
“It’s going to really look like a temple then,” she said.