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Hanuman pictures: To Obama, from India with prayers

June 30, 2008 14:21 IST

A Hanuman devotee plans to send a rare encyclopedia, articles and pictures of the Lord to Democratic party's presidential nominee Barack Obama, who keeps a Hanuman medallion among his good luck charms.

 

Businessman Sunil Gomber would send an album of 'The visual encyclopedia of Lord Hanuman' along with 31 related articles and three rare laminated pictures to New York on Tuesday.

 

Sunil, who had converted his residence into a museum of Lord Hanuman, said that the article and pictures were around 1,600 years old.

 

"'I am sending this collection to Obama as he has expressed his faith on our God and we also want his success in the Presidential elections later this year," he said.

 

Gomber, who does wholesale book business, said recently he had dreamt about reciting ''Hanuman Chalisa'' and ''SunderKand Path'' in the White house and even hoisting a Hanuman flag in several parts of the Presidential building.

 

The 46-year-old senator from Illinois, who defeated his rival Hillary Clinton in a 17-month long electoral battle for Democratic party nomination, carries a ''tiny monkey god'' apparently representing Hanuman with him for good luck.

 

A recent photo posted on Time's White House Photo of the Day collection shows the first ever Black-American nominee of a major US party for the Presidential elections carries with him a bracelet belonging to an American soldier deployed in Iraq, a gambler's lucky chit, a tiny monkey god and tiny Madonna and child.

 

That

''tiny monkey god,'' of course, appears to be a statue of the Hindu monkey god, Hanuman, says the posting but editors and the photographer had not identified it as such. 

Obama, whose father was a Kenyan and mother a white woman from Kansas, spent initial days of his life in Indonesia where Hinduism was popular. Recently, a group of people in New Delhi have planned to present a statue of the revered god, Hanuman, to Obama. The group decided to order the idol after they read a magazine report, saying Mr Obama carried a good luck 'monkey king' charm.

 

The two-foot tall, 15-kg gold-polished, brass idol had been made as a present for Obama because "'he will be good for India, if he becomes the next president,'' according to Brij Mohan Bhama, leader of the group said.

 

Similarly, a prominent Hindu temple in New Delhi had started elaborate prayers of an idol of monkey God Hanuman that is to be presented to US presidential candidate Barack Obama for his success in the November elections, news reports said.

 

Priests and devotees at the Sankat Mochan Dham Hanuman temple decided to present a two-foot gold-polished brass idol after they read reports that the Illinois senator carried a good luck monkey king charm.

 

They would hand over the statue to Democratic party representative Carolyn Sauvage-Mar in a ceremony at the temple in the city's Chandni Chowk area.

 

''Tuesday is an auspicious day for Hanuman devotees. Therefore, today we will perform a 'puja' (prayers) of the Hanuman idol and then present it to Carolyn, who will in turn gift it to Obama,'' Lalu Maharaj, one of the head priests said.

 

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