History was created in the United States Senate at 9.30 am on Thursday, when Rajan Zed, the Hindu chaplain of the Indian Association of Northern Nevada, opened the Senate with a Hindu prayer.
This is the first such instance since the formation of the powerful Upper House in 1789. Zed was accompanied by his wife Shipa and four of his friends from Virginia.
According to the US Senate web site, 'Throughout the years, the United States Senate has honored the historic separation on Church and State, but not the separation of God and State. During the past 207 years, all sessions of the Senate have been opened with prayer, strongly affirming the Senate's faith in God as sovereign lord of our nation.'
However, just as Zed was about to begin the prayer, a few Christian fundamentalists protested and began screaming, while holding the Bible aloft, "Lord Jesus, protect us from this abomination." Officers from the Sergeant of Arms' office ejected one after the other (three were taken away) from the Senate gallery which looks down on the floor.
The president pro-tem of the Senate, had to beat the podium with his gavel thrice. He called on the Sergeant of Arms to restore order in the Senate Chamber. A Senate aide said these people probably had gotten visitor's passes to the Senate gallery through a Senator's office and noted that "disrupting a Senate in the chamber is a criminal offense and they can be arrested."
A few minutes later, Zed delivered his prayer which took no more than 90 seconds, which as per the instructions from the Office of the Chaplain of the Senate had to be delivered exclusively and entirely in English.
Image: Hindu priest Rajan Zed with his wife Shipa outside Capitol building.
Reportage: Aziz Haniffa | Photographs: Paresh Gandhi/Aziz Haniffa
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