With a message of unity and peace, Vipul Vora may have become the first chaplain of the day to share the Hindu faith with Georgia senators Wednesday.
Senate Minority Leader Steve Henson, D-Stone Mountain, invited Vora and Rick Desai, both volunteers with BAPS Shri Swaminarayan Mandir Hindu temple in Lilburn, to lead Wednesday's prayer in the chamber.
Each day of the legislative session, a member of the Senate and House invite a religious figure to lead the chamber in prayer as the chaplain of the day. Vora recited the “Shanti Path” prayer in the religion’s traditional Sanskrit.
“Respect for all faiths and cultures is at the core of our existence and beliefs,” Desai said.
Henson and the Senate secretary said it was the first time that they are aware of that the chamber had a Hindu chaplain address the body, something Desai said was a huge honor.
“It’s a privilege to be able to address the state Senate in prayer,” Desai said afterward. “I also felt that it was appropriate to choose the prayer that prays for peace … in terms of everything that exists in the world.”
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