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ONE of India's leading Hindu priests A R Raman Namboothri visited the kingdom last week to commemorate the beginning of a 41-day prayer session.
He conducted the ground-breaking rituals to open the new prayer hall in Khamis where Bahrain-based Hindus hold praying sessions to the religious sect's, Lord Ayyappa.
The priest, referred to as Thirumeni, held one of the most important positions in the southern state of India, Kerala, when he was the 'Melsanthi' or resident chief priest of the infamous Sabarimala Temple for one entire year.
Thirumeni, 54, hails from a family of priests who have served for the presiding goddess of the Thrikkalathoor Temple in a township in Kerala.
The committee group of the prayer hall invited him to the kingdom to begin the rituals on November 15 which will continue until December 27.
The committee is a dedicated group of people who have been managing and maintaining the hall as a worship destination for devotees of the faith in the kingdom.
A part of the donations collected by the hall is often donated to local charities such as the Isa Town Disabled Society as well as towards Tsunami relief in India through the Asianet Telecommunications office in Bahrain.
The visit was the Thirumeni's first trip outside India. He said: "I was dressed in my dhoti (traditional attire for men in India) with my chains and I had no idea how I would be treated or ever manage ... but Bahrain is friendly and has very helpful people."
