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Amid Nepal’s shattered shrines and temples, a religious fatalism sets in
A volunteer stands in front of a collapsed temple at the Swayambhunath temple complex in Nepal. Religion News Service photo by Vishal Arora
Vishal Arora and Kevin Eckstrom | April 30, 2015
KATHMANDU, Nepal (RNS) When a 7.8-magnitude earthquake roared through this Himalayan nation last Saturday (April 25), leaving an estimated 5,500 dead and more than 11,000 injured, shrines and temples were sent crashing to the ground, many of them centuries old and irreplaceable cultural treasures.
According to the United Nations, 600,000 houses have been destroyed or damaged, and 2 million Nepalese will need tents, water, food and medicine. Many here say they will also need God, regardless of what happened to the temples, shrines and churches.
That is, if people believe God is still around.
“This is going to further strengthen people’s faith in God, and they will be trusting the Almighty for bringing things back in order,” said Ankit Adhikari, a Kathmandu-based singer and former journalist.
http://www.religionnews.com/2015/04/30/amid-nepals-shattered-shrines-temples-religious-fatalism-sets/