To celebrate Harmony Week, councils across the north have banded together to take community members on a bus tour to various places of worship.
The tour will first stop at a Hindu temple in Craigieburn called ‘Kali Mata Mandir’, and member Puneet Sharma said he is excited to welcome visitors.
“At the temple you leave all your tensions outside the door, when you enter you forget everything and just believe in humanity and peace,” Mr Sharma said.
“This is about peace and harmony and bringing all the religions together.”
The Places of Worship tour will also visit the Islamic Thomastown Mosque and then stop for lunch at the Greek Orthodox Holy Monastery of Axion Estin in Northcote before heading to the Buddhist Quang Duc Monastery in Fawkner.
“We want to promote harmony across the community, every religion has positive things to add, that is why we want to come and be united together,” Mr Sharma said.
“Before any religion we are just people, especially when you are an immigrant from another country.
“We understand because we ourselves are immigrants who came here 20 years ago.”
The temple’s faith leader (108 Mahanat Shree Nath) Bhawna Puri Ji said the Kali Mata Mandir feels like home.
“A lot of faiths share the same god, so it feels like a family,” Bhawna Puri Ji said.
She said charities of different faiths, like the Salvation Army, also take donations from the Kali Mata Mandir kitchen.
“We want to make sure no one sleeps with an empty stomach,” she said.
“We have an open kitchen which has free vegetarian food for any culture, any background, anyone.
“You can bring your boxes here and we will give you rice and dal, no questions asked.”
Any adult can register for the free Places of Worship tour that will run on 12 March from 9.15am to 4.30pm.
The bus will pick up and drop off tour guests from one of four locations, the last pick up is 10.40am at the Kali Mata Mandir, 7 Nova Court, Craigieburn.
Details: https://shorturl.at/tTy3S
