Rajan Zed, the President of the Universal Society of Hinduism, gave the invocational prayer at the City Council meeting on February 1st. He also gave the very first Hindu prayer in the US Senate in Washington DC, and many other prayers around the United States of America.
Here is the transcript of his prayer:
“We are starting with the Gita mantra, which is considered the most sacred mantra of Hinduism. I shall be reading from ancient Hindu scriptures in Sanskrit, some as old as 1500 BCE and then interpreted in English. All rise please.”
[Sanskrit] “We meditate on the transcendental glory of the deity supreme which is inside the heart of the Earth, inside the life of the sky, and inside the soul of the Heaven. May he stimulate and illuminate our minds.”
[Sanskrit] “Lead us from the unreal to the real. Lead us from darkness to light. Lead us from death to immortality.”
[Sanskrit] “Strive constantly to serve the welfare of the world. By devotion to [the] selfless, one obtains the supreme goal of life. Do your work with the welfare of others always in mind.”
[Sanskrit] “May we [be] protected together. May we be nourished together. May we work together with great vigor. May our study be enlightening. May no obstacle arise between us.”
[Sanskrit] “Greaten your resolve, greaten your hearts. May your spirits be at one that you will long together dwell in unity and conquer.”
[Sanskrit] “Peace, peace, peace be unto all.”