THE HOUSE OF GOD... AND A PRAYER
W hen I pray, whether it is in a shrine or at my home or in the busy streets, if I am able to feel the connect with God, that place is a temple for me… Call it dharga, church, gurudwara or synagogues or whatever. If I am not able to feel connected to God when I pray, then, no matter how famous is the shrine I offer my prayers from, to me, that is not a ‘House of God’. All shrines are built by mortals like you and me… men and women who are imperfect. God never came down – will never come down – to build shrines. We build and we put Him – idols and holy books in His name – in the houses we build in His name… Hence, to me, any place is a house of God, a temple, if I am able to feel the closeness to the Supreme Being… I have felt such closeness everywhere – in many temples, gurudwaras and dhargas. I remember, when my wife and I had visited the famous Hazratbal shrine in Kashmir… I had spent many quiet moments, there, allowing tears to simply roll down my cheek...