‘It’s a challenge' — How the coronavirus is limiting temple worship for Utah Hindus
(Francisco Kjolseth | The Salt Lake Tribune) The new tools of ceremony, Hindu priest Sathish Nivarthi keeps Clorox wipes and hand sanitizer close while using multiple screen devices and a camera to broadcast a ceremony live online on Thursday, Sept. 24, 2020, at the Sri Ganesha Hindu Temple in South Jordan. Due to the coronavirus pandemic, the temple remains closed on weekdays with limited time slots available to visit on the weekends in an effort to promote safety.
Like all of Utah’s religious groups, Hindus have been forced by COVID-19 to cut back their various festivals and forms of worship.
It has been especially hard for a faith whose deities are housed in a temple that is now mostly closed on weekdays and whose rituals are part of daily life for believers.
Under normal circumstances, Hindu devotees flock to the Sri Ganesha Temple in South Jordan as a priest typically chants daily before the shrines, sprinkling each with water, and placing fruit, rice and flowers in front.
(Francisco Kjolseth | The Salt Lake Tribune) Hindu priest Sathish Nivarthi performs a fire ceremony on the shrine of Ganesha which represents light and warmth and the lighting of knowledge in our minds, at the Sri Ganesha Hindu Temple in South Jordan on Thursday, Sept. 26, 2020. As a way tp stay safe and cope during COVID-19, the temple is closed during weekdays, but priests go in in the evenings to decorate the statues and give offerings while broadcasting live classes and services online.
(Francisco Kjolseth | The Salt Lake Tribune) Hindu priest Sathish Nivarthi gets ready to perform a service online at the Sri Ganesha Hindu Temple in South Jordan on Thursday, Sept. 26, 2020. As a way tp stay safe and cope during COVID-19, the temple is closed during weekdays, but priests go in in the evenings to decorate the statues and give offerings while broadcasting live classes and services online.
(Francisco Kjolseth | The Salt Lake Tribune) Colorful vestige and jewelry adorns a shrine of Sri Andal as Hindus cope with the coronavirus pandemic by limiting visitors to the Sri Ganesha Hindu Temple in South Jordan and broadcast daily ceremonies online.
(Francisco Kjolseth | The Salt Lake Tribune) Hindu priest Sathish Nivarthi adjusts the Sri Nataraja shrine, a form of Shiva dancing on a demon of darkness meant to quell the beast at the Sri Ganesha Hindu Temple in South Jordan on Thursday, Sept. 26, 2020. As a way tp stay safe and cope during coronavirus pandemic, the temple is closed during weekdays, but priests go in in the evenings to decorate the statues and give offerings while broadcasting live classes and services online.
(Francisco Kjolseth | The Salt Lake Tribune) Stickers and signs promoting social distancing are placed on the ground outside of the Sri Ganesha Hindu Temple in South Jordan in an effort to maintain safety during the coronavirus pandemic. Thought the temple remains closed on weekdays, a few slots are available for signup on the weekend under limited hours.
(Francisco Kjolseth | The Salt Lake Tribune) Colorful vestige adorns a shrine of Sri Radha & Sri Krishna as Hindus cope with the coronavirus pandemic by limiting visitors to the Sri Ganesha Hindu Temple in South Jordan and broadcast daily ceremonies online.
(Francisco Kjolseth | The Salt Lake Tribune) Stickers promoting social distancing are placed on the ground outside of the Sri Ganesha Hindu Temple in South Jordan in an effort to maintain safety during the coronavirus pandemic. Thought the temple remains closed on weekdays, a few slots are available for signup on the weekend under limited hours.
(Francisco Kjolseth | The Salt Lake Tribune) Colorful vestige adorns a shrine of Sri Sivakami as Hindus cope with the coronavirus pandemic by limiting visitors to the Sri Ganesha Hindu Temple in South Jordan and broadcast daily ceremonies online.
(Francisco Kjolseth | The Salt Lake Tribune) Stickers and signs promoting social distancing are placed on the ground outside of the Sri Ganesha Hindu Temple in South Jordan in an effort to maintain safety during the coronavirus pandemic. Thought the temple remains closed on weekdays, a few slots are available for signup on the weekend under limited hours.
(Francisco Kjolseth | The Salt Lake Tribune) Stickers promoting social distancing and flow of traffic are placed on the ground inside the Sri Ganesha Hindu Temple in South Jordan in an effort to maintain safety during the coronavirus pandemic. Thought the temple remains closed on weekdays, a few slots are available for signup on the weekend under limited hours.
(Francisco Kjolseth | The Salt Lake Tribune) Colorful vestige adorns a shrine of Sri Ram Parivar with food offerings as Hindus cope with the coronavirus pandemic by limiting visitors to the Sri Ganesha Hindu Temple in South Jordan and broadcast daily ceremonies online.
(Francisco Kjolseth | The Salt Lake Tribune) The new tools of ceremony, Hindu priest Sathish Nivarthi keeps Clorox wipes and hand sanitizer close while using multiple screen devices and a camera to broadcast a ceremony live online on Thursday, Sept. 24, 2020, at the Sri Ganesha Hindu Temple in South Jordan. Due to the coronavirus pandemic the temple remains closed on weekdays with limited time slots available to visit on the weekends in an effort to promote safety.
(Francisco Kjolseth | The Salt Lake Tribune) The new tools of ceremony, Hindu priest Sathish Nivarthi keeps Clorox wipes and hand sanitizer close while using multiple screen devices to broadcast a ceremony live online on Thursday, Sept. 24, 2020, at the Sri Ganesha Hindu Temple in South Jordan. Due to the coronavirus pandemic the temple remains closed on weekdays with limited time slots available to visit on the weekends in an effort to promote safety.
(Francisco Kjolseth | The Salt Lake Tribune) Hindu priest Sathish Nivarthi performs a fire ceremony on the shrine of Ganesha which represents light and warmth and the lighting of knowledge in our minds, at the Sri Ganesha Hindu Temple in South Jordan on Thursday, Sept. 26, 2020. As a way tp stay safe and cope during COVID-19, the temple is closed during weekdays, but priests go in in the evenings to decorate the statues and give offerings while broadcasting live classes and services online.
Many members of the community then would visit daily, weekly or for special blessings before a test, before a big game, before a new project or performance, before a birth or marriage.
Under current circumstances, the priest does the morning service by himself, while the evening service is livestreamed via YouTube. He is flanked by three screens, a tripod for the camera, a carton of Clorox wipes, a bottle of hand sanitizer, and a roll of paper towels.
Devotees can make appointments to have a priest conduct a ceremony for them via a video call. They can arrange for a wedding or other big occasions to be held in the outside pavilion, but must observe guidelines such as restricting guests to six people, says Sandy resident Chaitanya Achan, who is the temple president.
Utah’s Hindu population has surged to more than 8,000, according to temple officials, and last year between 1,200 and 1,500 came to the temple for each of the major holidays.
The temple has become the core of their communal worship so it being mostly closed is a sacrifice for devotees, says Indra Neelameggham, a longtime member of the community.
On weekends, the temple allows worshippers to enter, but they must do so alone or in small family groups, stay safely distanced, and wear a mask to chant, she says, “even if no one [else] is there.”
The sacraments have been discontinued, and no food is served inside.
“Visiting the temple is a cultural experience that has built up over a lifetime,” Achan says. “Suddenly, you have to stop doing that. It’s a challenge.”
(Francisco Kjolseth | The Salt Lake Tribune) Hindu priest Sathish Nivarthi gets ready to perform a service online at the Sri Ganesha Hindu Temple in South Jordan on Thursday, Sept. 26, 2020. As a way tp stay safe and cope during COVID-19, the temple is closed during weekdays, but priests go in in the evenings to decorate the statues and give offerings while broadcasting live classes and services online.
Diwali, the festival of lights and one of Hinduism’s main celebrations, is slated for Nov. 14. Last year, more than 1,500 attended, Achan says. Temple officials are not sure they will even hold it this year.
One of the other big festivals is for the Mother Goddess. It’s a time when families get together for nine days, Neelameggham says, and it will not be held this year.
Zoom is taking the place of personal visits, she says. When the pandemic is gone, will Hindus and others stop assembling?
“That will be a big change for society in the next generation,” Neelameggham says. “It will be based on technology, rather than physical closeness.”
And, she says, “they are not the same.”
