I don’t know what took me so long to write about this, perhaps I was waiting until a few months had passed so I would look back on my time in Kauai and it would seem mythical.
On our honeymoon we had the chance to visit a Hindu Monastery. We were brought in during non-visiting hours and sat down for a morning puja (prayer.) I couldn’t understand the Sanskrit words being spoken, but the marble tiles reflecting the dazzling morning light, the rhythmic chanting of the soft-spoken monk, and the song bird who walked in and sat next to us made the experience… almost soul cleansing.
We left with red tilaka on our foreheads, the mark of being personally blessed by the monk.
The grounds of the monastery were indescribably beautiful, nestled into a bank of the Wailua river and exploding with different botanicals. We had the chance to visit the site of the new temple being built, the first Hindu temple in thousands of years to be carved with hammer and chisel, by talented Indian stone masons. The detail is exquisite, and while it’s still years away from being completed, you can feel something special in the stones. Tourists grasped longingly at the temple walls, desperate to go inside.
I encourage anyone to go visit the monastery, regardless of religion or beliefs. It’s just an amazing site to see. You can help complete the temple by donating, which I felt compelled to do.
We were also blessed by a sacred Hawaiian hula dancer and accepted into a sacred Hawaiian temple, but another story for another day
xo, Alana
