Reportedly for the first time since its foundation in 1799, City of Franklin Board of Mayor & Aldermen (Tennessee) will start its meeting on March nine with Hindu prayers, containing hymns from world’s oldest extant scripture.

 

Distinguished Hindu statesman Rajan Zed will deliver the invocation from ancient Sanskrit scriptures remotely before Franklin Board of Mayor & Aldermen. After Sanskrit delivery, he then will read the English interpretation of the prayers. Sanskrit is considered a sacred language in Hinduism and root language of Indo-European languages.

 

Zed, who is the President of Universal Society of Hinduism, will recite from Rig-Veda, the oldest scripture of the world still in common use; besides lines from Upanishads and Bhagavad-Gita (Song of the Lord), both ancient Hindu scriptures. He plans to start and end the prayer with “Om”, the mystical syllable containing the universe, which in Hinduism is used to introduce and conclude religious work.

 

Reciting from Brahadaranyakopanishad, Rajan Zed plans to say “Asato ma sad gamaya, Tamaso ma jyotir gamaya, Mrtyor mamrtam gamaya”; which he will then interpret as “Lead us from the unreal to the real, Lead us from darkness to light, and Lead us from death to immortality.” Reciting from Bhagavad-Gita, he proposes to urge mayor, aldermen and others present to keep the welfare of others always in mind.

 

Zed, a global Hindu and interfaith leader, has been bestowed with World Interfaith Leader Award. Zed is Senior Fellow and Religious Advisor to Foundation for Religious Diplomacy, on the Advisory Board of The Interfaith Peace Project, etc. He has been panelist for “On Faith”, a prestigious interactive conversation on religion produced by The Washington Post; and produces a weekly multi-faith panel “Faith Forum” in a Gannett publication for over ten years.

 

Hinduism, oldest and third largest religion of the world, has about 1.2 billion adherents and moksh (liberation) is its ultimate goal. There are about three million Hindus in USA.

 

Franklin, on both sides of the Harpeth River, has been ranked “4th Best Places to Live” and designated as a “Distinctive Destination”. Singer-actress Miley Cyrus and Paramore rock band were born in Franklin, which is known for Battle of Franklin and its Pumpkinfest. Dr. Ken Moore and Eric Stuckey are Mayor and City Administrator respectively.