Major Eastern Religions in Boston

1
Major Eastern Religions in Boston

• Hinduism
• Buddhism
• Jainism
• Sikhism
• Taoism

2
Introduction

• As you have already presented your research on
  the major Eastern religions of the world
  according to the 4 C (Creed, Code, Cult, and
  Community), this presentation is designed to show
  you a brief history and current conditions of
  five of the major Eastern religions in the Boston
  Area.

3
General History

• In the 1600s, religious diversity was
  unacceptable in the Puritan Commonwealth
• Between 1659 and 1661, four Quakers were hung on
  Boston Common
• In the 18th c. the Constitution and its Bill of
  Rights became the foundation of religious
  pluralism
• In the 17th and 18th centuries, immigrants were
  mostly from England

4
history

• By the 19th c. the new growing presence of
  Catholics and Jews from Eastern and Southern
  Europe challenged the Protestant tradition
• During the 20th c. immigrants came from Asia,
  Africa, Latin America and the Middle East as well
  as from other European countries
• Asian immigrants include Vietnamese, Cambodian,
  Chinese and Korean, both Buddhist and Christian.
  Among them, there are also South Asian immigrants
  - Hindu, Muslim, Jain, Sikh, Zoroasterian, and
  Christian.

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Hinduism in Boston

• Hinduism has had an impact on New England for
  over 100 years.
• The history of relations between India and Boston
  probably began with the trading ships that sailed
  back and forth from Salem and Boston to India in
  the early 19th.

6
Hinduism

• Hindu texts and ideas became a lively part of the
  intellectual life of New Englands most famous
  transcendentalists, Ralph Emerson and Henry David
  Thoreau.

7
Hinduism

• In the late 1893, a Hindu reformer Swami
  Vivekananda arrived for a months stay before the
  opening of the World Parliament of Religions in
  Chicago and attracted a great deal of attention.

8
Hinduism

• In the year following him, monks of the
  Ramakrishna order in India regularly followed his
  footsteps, such as Swami Saradananda, Swami
  Abhedananda, and Swami Paramananda.
• During the 1960s and 1970s, new streams of Hindu
  religious life came to Boston, including gurus
  and swamis and the groups of seekers and
  followers they attracted.

9
Hinduism

• One of the most durable groups was the
  International Society for Krishna Consciousness
  or ISKCON, known more popularly as Hare Krishna
  for its public chanting of Hare Krishna, Hare
  Rama! on Boston Common and in Harvard Square.

10
Hinduism

• ISKON is founded in 1968 by the world-wide
  spiritual leader of the movement, A.C.
  Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupada. Its New England
  main center is located in Boston (72 Comm Ave).
• Phone [phone]
• Website iskconboston.org

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Hinduism

• The Ramakrishna Vedanta Society (which began in
  India around 1887) has been in Boston since 1909,
  although the present organization has only been
  in existence since 1941. It is located at 58
  Dearfield St., Boston.
• Phone [phone]
• Websitevedantaofbosoton.org

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Hinduism

• The Ammachi Boston Area Satsang Group (ABASG) is
  established in Concord at 231 Elsinore St. since
  Ammachs first visit to Boston in 1987. Ammachi,
  also known as Mata Amritananda Mayi, is an
  international spiritual teacher from Kerala,
  India.
• Phone [phone] Websitewww.ammachi. org

13
Hinduism

• The first major Hindu Temple was constructed in
  New England in the Boston suburb of Ashland (117
  Waverly St).
• Its consecration in May 1990 attracted thousands
  of Hindu around the country to Boston.

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Hinduism

• During the consecration, water from Ganges River
  was poured over the Temples towers along with
  waters from the Merrimac, the Mississippi, the
  Ohio, and the Colorado.
• Inside the central sanctuary is the image of Sri
  Lakshmi, the auspicious goddess of wealth and
  blessings.

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Hinduism

• To the right of the sanctuary is a shrine housing
  the image of Vishnu, the transcendent Lord.

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Hinduism

• To the left is a shrine housing the image of
  Ganesh, the ever-popular elephant-headed remover
  of obstacles.
• Phone [phone]
• Website www.nehti.org

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Hinduism

• While the Sri Lakshmi Temple is surely New
  Englands largest, there are other Hindu temples
  in Dorcester, Cohasset, Lowell, and Stow.

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Hinduism

• The Ganesh Temple, named in honor of Lord Ganesh,
  is established in 1992 at 48 Edison St. in
  Dorcester.
• It serves as a religious center for Hindus mostly
  from the Caribbean.
• Phone [phone]

19
Hinduism

• The Cohasset Vedanta Center (130 Beech wood St.)
  is founded in 1929 as an extension of the Boston
  Vedanta Center. Its founder is Swami Paramananda,
  Swami Vivekanandas youngest monastic disciple.
• Phone [phone]
• Website www. vedantacentre.org

20
Hinduism

• The Swaminarayan Temple (403 Andover St.) was
  inaugurated on Sep. 1, 1990.
• The community practices a form of Hindu
  Vaishnavism focused on Lord Swaminarayan, and
  belongs to the International Swaminarayan Satsang
  Organization (ISSO).
• Phone [phone]

21
Hinduism

• The Sri Aksar Puroshottam Swaminarayan Hindu
  Temple is opened on July 14, 1990 and housed in a
  former congregational Church in Stow (4 Marlboro
  Rd). The group (called the Bachasanwasi) believes
  that Swaminarayan was the early manifestation of
  Lord Vishnu.
• Phone [phone]