Indo Caribbean and other Hindus worried about the conversion of their members by Christian missionaries should know they are not helpless against this onslaught. The village of Ngarapalem in India is an example of what can be done, as all 34 of the families who had converted became Hindu again because of the effort of a single swami.
The swami is a member of the Global Heritage Hindu Foundation (GHHF) which has as its aims:
- Stop the conversion of Hindus to Christianity;
- Welcome back to Hinduism those who got converted to Christianity.
How Christian Village becomes a Hindu Village
Sri Saidatta Manasa Swamiji went to a village in Agency to do Pranaprathishta in 2020. On that day he went around some nearby villages. One of the villages he visited was NGARAPALEM. When he approached the village, he found one Church at the entrance of the village. As he kept walking, he also saw two more churches – one in the center of the village and the other at the end of the village. Thirty-five (35) families live in the village. All of them were converted to Christianity, except one family.
As he kept going around, he was feeling some vibrations. Then he felt possessed by Goddess and talking loudly to the people around him that they are facing so many problems in the village because they neglected their Ishtadevata / Grama Devata and failed to worship her for their welfare, health, and progress. Swamiji was possessed / entranced by some divinity and fell unconscious on the ground. They brought water and sprinkled on him. Then he got up. In that trance, Swamiji said that he is Poleramma for this village. They have neglected the Grama Devata. They used to worship her, and she used to protect them. Then the Christians came along and converted them with some incentives. Then men started drinking creating many family problems. Swamiji in that trance stage said that they should worship Poleramma to resolve some of these problems. The villagers were following Swamiji out of respect for the last one year and asked him where Poleramma can be found in the village so that they can resume their dharma of worshipping. Many elderly people remember the promises they made at the time to Poleramma. He reminded that the promises made at the time were not fulfilled. Now they agreed and for the last year they are worshipping to please her. Grama Devatas have to be satisfied and be happy to bestow blessings to the villagers. If she is satisfied, there will be unity, harmony, and peace in the village. By offering food items, their prosperity is guaranteed. The evil spirits are driven away by Grama Devatas. Demons and dangerous creatures would not harm them. Their crops would not be spoiled. Hence, celebrate Grama Devatas by setting aside all the differences based on caste, creed, religion, and economic status to reminding ourselves that we are all governed by one Divinity.
Swamiji said that the only way to get rid of their problems is to worship the Devi as promised by their elders and also the present generation. The villagers asked Swamiji where to find Grama Devata. He pointed to a nearby NEEM TREE and said that they should consider this tree as Devi and do the worship services. For the last one year they started worshipping the tree applying turmeric and kumkum and tying clothes and threads for her blessings. We can see how they are worshipping the Neem Tree, how they decorated and how they offered prasadam. All the families, who participated in worship of Grama Devata on that day, they are welcomed to Hinduism officially. They were given sarees, gods pictures, Hanuman flag and Rudraksha. Only one family did not participate. But fortunately, their children attended the Pujas and received the blessings.
Churches Closed
For the last one year the Christian families embraced Hinduism and stopped going to the Churches. Attendance in these churches is almost nil. Now the villagers have decided to write a letter to MRO to demolish them as they were built illegally