INSIDE THE WEST'S FIRST JAIN TEMPLE

This article appears in today's Leicester Mercury:

Inside the west's first Jain temple

by Tom Mack; pictures by Alex Hannah

Worshippers at the city's Jain temple are hoping to spread their message of peace and non-violence as they celebrate their silver jubilee.

The distinctive temple in Oxford Street, Leicester city centre, opened 25 years ago this July.

The celebrations began on Monday when two visiting nuns from India joined in with a special day to celebrate one of the temple's founders – Shantaben Babulal Shah – who died 15 years ago.

Her daughter, former temple president Smita Babulal Shah, said: "Our religion is about avoiding violence – not just violent actions, but also violence in our words and our thoughts.

"My mother would not even pour hot water down the drain because she was worried about the tiny creatures which lived in the drain. 

"She always wanted to spread the message of non-violence to the wider world.

"Her work here has created a temple which caters for most of the sects of Jainism.

"We have five different areas for the five main sects and we are very keen for more people to come."

Jainism is a religion with similarities to Buddhism and Hinduism and started in the Gujarat area of India.

It became a formal religion in 527 BC before dividing into many different sects, but all followers share a commitment to the reverence of all living things.

Monday's special celebration included a conversation with the two nuns from India on the subject of peace.

Smita said: "The whole session is about peace – individual peace, family peace and universal peace and how we attain it."

Retired GP Dr Ramesh Mehta is the chairman for the temple.

He said worship at the temple, which is mostly in Gujarati, with some English, would appeal to many other people in the city.

He said: "We want more people to know they are welcome to come to the temple every day and not just people who are already familiar with Jainism."

Smita said: "We regularly have visitors from all over England and one man comes once a month from Dublin.

"Our temple here was the first Jain temple in the Western world and we have tried to make a contribution to the city and the county.

"As a small minority community, we have come a long way."

INTER FAITH WEEK, DAY 4: JAINISM 101

At 1500 we have the sixth of ten public meetings scheduled for Inter Faith Week, under the series title, "Communities of Faith or Belief in Leicester". We're putting on two talks per day in the Adult Education College (or, more precisely, in the Leicester People's Photographic Gallery which is attached to the Adult Education College).

The speaker for this Beginners' Guide to Jainism - or Jainism 101 - is Mehta Pradip, Vice-President of Jain Samaj Europe.

There are no takers today, so Mehta and I sit together for half an hour or so, chatting usefully about the Council of Faiths, Inter Faith Week and the place of the Jain Centre and community in both.

The photo above is one of two Jain images included in the Favourite Faiths Photo exhibition launched this week at the People's Photographic Gallery. The picture shows worshippers in the Jain Centre, Oxford Street, with the Centre's staned glass windows on show. This is believed to be the only Jain place of worship in the world featuring this short of display, which blends something of the previous use of the building with its current purpose.

FAITH TRAIL LINKS PLACES OF WORSHIP

From today's Leicester Mercury:

Faith Trail links places of worship

A walking route linking places of worship will be launched on Friday.

The Faith and Place Trail was compiled by archaeology students from the University of Leicester.

It is accompanied by a map that includes all places of worship in the city.

The trail was devised by second year students, with the help of the city's faith groups.

It takes in a selection of the places of faith which can be visited in the course of a few hours.

They include centres of worship for Bahá'í, Buddhism, Christianity, Hinduism, Islam, Jainism, Judaism and Sikhism, plus the Secular Hall and world arts gallery at New Walk Museum.

A university spokesman said: "The trail highlights how much there is to discover about Leicester."

University vice-chancellor, Professor Sir Robert Burgess, will be at the launch of the trail at New Walk Museum on Friday.

For details and the map, see: www.le.ac.uk/faithtrail

THOUSANDS VISIT STATUE OF HINDU GOD GANESH

This article appears in today's Leicester Mercury:

Thousands visit statue of Hindu god Ganesh 

Worshippers have until Saturday to pay tribute at a 20ft-high statue of the Hindu god Ganesh. 

Organisers of the Ganesha Chaturthi festival said the statue – which is on display at Soar Valley Netball Centre, in Leicester, after being shipped over from India – is believed to be the biggest of its kind in Europe. 

Vinod Patel, one of the organisers, said: "It is a fine creation. This is a very important festival. 

"We believe this statue is the biggest of its kind in Europe and is truly a sight to behold. 

"The festival brings luck to the thousands who pray to Ganesh." 

The 10-day festival marks the birthday of Ganesh, god of wisdom, prosperity and good fortune. 

The statue will be on show at the netball centre, in Gleneagles Avenue, Rushey Mead, until Saturday. 

Mr Patel said: "We expect up to 60,000 people to have seen the statue by Saturday. 

"After Saturday, it will be taken to Liverpool, where it will be immersed in the River Mersey as a symbolic act." 

Lord Ganesh is worshipped in the Hindu, Buddhist and Jain religions.

That may be a wee bit of a theological simplification at the end there, but an interesting article nonetheless - and an impressive-looking statue, I'm sure you'll agree.