Hindu and Buddhist Groups to Dedicate Prayer Room at Duke Jan. 22

Hindu and Buddhist groups at Duke University will celebrate the dedication of a shared campus prayer room at an event 6 p.m. Saturday, Jan. 22, at the Gothic Reading Room in Perkins Library.

Anju Bhargava, founder of Hindu American Seva Charities, will speak at the gathering, which is free and open to the public. Bhargava is a member of the advisory council for the White House Office of Faith-based and Neighborhood Partnerships.

"It is exciting to see these groups representing two different world traditions working together to maximize the benefits of this space," said Christy Lohr Sapp, associate dean for religious life at Duke. "The Hindu and Buddhist groups at Duke provide a great model of mutual support."

Zoila Airall, assistant vice president of campus life, said, "Many students from both groups have stopped by to tell me how pleased they are with the space and our acknowledgement of their spiritual needs. I am thrilled that our Hindu and Buddhist groups now have prayer space for their religious observances."

The prayer room for Duke's Hindu Student Association and Buddhist Community is located in the Religious Life offices in the lower level of the Bryan Center.

During the academic year, the Buddhist Community offers meditation in the space at 8:30 a.m. four days a week as well as a regular evening meditation on Mondays. The Hindu Student Association celebrates Hindu festivals throughout the year and offers a weekly Gita discussion. The room is also open for personal reflection and meditation throughout the day.

The idea to develop a shared place for prayer began last summer when the two groups were each allocated a room for their activities. Rather than each maintaining a separate space that would accommodate both prayer and administration, the two groups decided to combine their resources to create the joint prayer room and a separate shared office.