Myriad colors and cultures mixed Sunday in Columbia when more than 100 devotees of the ultimate humanitarian gathered to celebrate a gift of spiritual enlightenment and their leaders birthday.

The city was the site of a divya milan, a divine meeting, with the man known as His Divine Holiness Acharya Swaminshree Purushottampriyadasji Maharaj, or Bapa to celebrants, the leader of Shree Swaminarayan Gadi Sansthan a Hindu sect based on the preservation of moral and cultural values.

Shashi Kerai, one of the organizers of Sundays gathering at Columbias American Legion Post 19 and president of the Shree Muktajeevan Academy of Excellence in Chicago, said the visit is incredibly rare. Every year, he said, Maharaj and several saints tour the world to spread the faiths message of peace, tolerance and understanding of all religions and nations. Nearly 30 other U.S. cities had been nominated by followers to host the spiritual leader but did not make the final list of seven stops.

He visits Europe, London, the Far East, America and so forth. This countrys a really big country, so he cannot accommodate every city, Kerai said. Columbia is the most fortunate this year along with Los Angeles, Chicago to be nominated to receive him and to celebrate his arrival.

For their leaders 70th birthday, which he celebrated last month, congregants melded their cultures oldest traditions with all the trimmings of an American party.

As a traditional parade of followers circled the legion hall to bless and bring peace to the land, the crack of party poppers broke out of the cacophony of singing voices, clapping hands and clinking bangles.

Kerai, who works as a surgical neurophysiologist when he is not traveling on behalf of his faith, said much of the celebration is also to instill a sense of heritage and culture in congregants young and old. For followers, the event is as big if not bigger than a visit from the Pope of the Catholic faith, he said.

In recognition of the meetings host, American Legion Post 19 Post Commander Bob Stephenson and First Vice Commander Gary Fisher were blessed by His Divine Holiness. Fisher said the post was blessed to be chosen for the visit.

Kerai said that because of the number of devotees living and working in Tennessee, its possible that a temple could be constructed sometime in the near future, but it remains uncertain where. Until then, he said local congregants will continue to promote the morality and performance of charitable acts of their faith.

To obtain more information on His Divine Holiness and his teachings, visit http://www.swaminarayangadi.com.

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Religious leader visits Columbia