Skanda Vale

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Skanda Vale (grid reference SN419320) is a Hindu Temple/Monastery in the county of Carmarthenshire, south-west Wales. The temple is dedicated to Lord Subramanya, who is also known as Skanda, Karttikeya, and Muruga.

Skanda Vale is located in the valleys of West Wales, about five miles from the town of Carmarthen, on the way to Lampeter, the nearest village is Llanpumsaint. The road to the temple is very narrow, allowing just one vehicle to pass at a time. There are three temples: The Murugan Temple, The Maha Shakthi Temple, and the Ranganatha Temple. There is a daily puja at each temple, and many monks live near the temple. There are overnight facilities for people travelling from a long distance.

The Community of the Many Names of God was founded on the worship of God in his universality, in accordance with the spiritual teachings of Lord Krishna as in the Bhagavad-Gita. It was established as a monastic centre in Wales in 1973. The present 115 acre site was originally three adjacent farms and a small block of woodland, which were separately purchased and amalgamated by the community as the grounds of Skanda Vale Monastery. Its first temple, dedicated to Lord Subramanya, was registered as a place of public worship in 1975.

A variety of animals are kept on the grounds of the temple including an elephant. There has been controversy since April 2007, when their sacred bullock, Shambo, tested positive for bovine TB, and the government ruled that he had to be destroyed. An international campaign has been mounted to save him.^[1] On 16 July 2007, the High Court in Cardiff quashed the ruling made by the National Assembly for Wales, and that it had not in its decision to slaughter Shambo: "given the serious infringement of the community's rights under Article Nine of the European Convention on Human Rights that slaughter would involve."^[2]. However after 23rd July 2007 Shambo again faced execution, after the Court of Appeal ruled that he should be slaughtered. ^[3]. Shambo was euthanized on July 26th 2007, via a lethal injection. Welsh authorities have since reported that signs of TB were present upon postmortem examination.