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NT Bureau
Reno (USA), Apr 23:

        The Nevada Earth Day 2007 celebrations, held in Reno yesterday, opened with the recitation of Sanskrit prayers from the ancient Hindu scriptures.

        The celebrations started with the reading of the Shanti Mantraby Interfaith Relations of Hindu Temple, Northern Nevada, director Rajan Zed. This was followed by a recitation of the Prithvi Suktaa, a hymn to mother earth from the Atharva-Veda, by a Hindu priest to invoke the Goddess Earth.

        The priest also quoted Krishna's sayings in the Bhagavad-Gita: 'The brightness of the sun, which lights up the world, the brightness of the moon and of fire; these are my glory. With a drop of my energy, I enter the earth and support all creatures. Through the moon, the vessel of life-giving fluid, I nourish all plants.'

        'We may believe in different religions, yet we share the same home - our Earth. We must learn to live happily or we perish together. For man can live individually, but survival is a collective effort,' said Zed, quoting from ancient Hindu scriptures. He ended his lecture with the plea: 'O Goddess Earth, please forgive us as we walk on you this day.'

        According to Travis Souza, one of the directors of Nevada Econet, this year's theme was 'Sustainability Unleashed.'

        'More than 6,000 people attended the Earth Day celebrations, which included craft exhibitions, farmers' market and display booths put up by about 150 nonprofit organizations, agencies and businesses.

        Live entertainment programmes, open air drumming and dancing circles and children's activities were also conducted,' said Souza.