After the riots of 1993, one lone figure walked the deserted lanes of Mumbai, weaving his way between the rubble and the mangled bodies, beating his drums and chanting na-mu-myo-ho-ren-ge-kyo. Disregarding the danger and the tension palpable in the air, Buddhist monk Bhikshu Morita was proclaiming a message of peace and love.

His message of peace still lives on in the Nipponzan Myohoji temple where he has been residing for more than three decades. At prayer time (between 5-7 am and 6-7.30 pm), this Buddhist temple at Worli reverberates with the rhythmic thudding of drums accompanied by a low murmur of na-mu-myo-ho-ren-ge-kyo. In Buddhish philosophy, this chant is supposed to be the Mahadharma, the key to total salvation. A steady stream of devotees trickles into this small but quaint temple, offering their prayers and deriving comfort from the sanguine serenity of this sanctuary of peace.

“I’m not a Buddhist, but I come here almost daily. There is an air of stillness that envelops this temple. As though time ceases to move forward when I’m here,” says Dr Arvind

Krishnamurthy, who lives five minutes away.

There is nothing elaborately intricate in the architecture of the temple. It is a single-storied structure of large sandstone blocks. Its beauty lies more in its simplicity than any sophisticated ornamentation. The interiors are sparsely lit with a series of paintings depicting Buddha’s life lining the walls. At the heart of the temple is a six-and-a-half feet marble statue of Buddha.

Like all monuments and heritage sites, this temple too has a captivating saga that unfurls when one delves into its history. Built in 1956, the temple’s origin is linked to a prophecy made 700 years ago in the 13th century by a Japanese monk, Maha Bodhisattva Nichiren. He had said that the ultimate salvation of humanity lay in India. In 1931, Japanese monk, Nichidatsu Fuji arrived in India with a mission to fulfill that prophecy. As a result of a chance meeting with Jugal Kishore Birla, a great philanthropist and Gandhian, the decision to build the Nipponzan Myohoji temple was born. Jugal Kishore Birla acquired the plot on which the temple stands.

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