Kerala Hindus of North America gift ‘Rig Veda’ to Vivek Ramaswamy’s family

Ohio, January 3, 2024: The Kerala Hindus of North America gifted the sacred ‘Rig Vedam’ to the parents of India-American US presidential candidate Vivek Ramaswamy, at an event held at the Dayton Temple, Ohio. The video of the event is available on YouTube at – (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CRJ4i5VOr2Y)

A viral video shows Vivek’s father conducting a ceremonial pooja for the ancient text before passing it on to him. The atmosphere resonated with spirituality as Ramaswamy, in turn, recited the potent Aikyamatya Suktham, which contains what is considered the profound wisdom encapsulated within the Rig Vedam.

In November, last year, Ramaswamy opened up about his ‘Hindu’ faith, emphasizing that it provides him with freedom and has motivated him to undertake this presidential campaign as a moral obligation.

Speaking at ‘The Family Leader’ forum organized by The Daily Signal platform, the Indian-American entrepreneur drew parallels between the teachings of Hinduism and Christianity, expressing his intention to promote shared values for the benefit of the next generation.

Ramaswamy said at that time, “My faith is what gives me my freedom. My faith is what led me to this presidential campaign…I am a Hindu. I believe there is one true God. I believe god put each of us here for a purpose. My faith teaches us that we have a duty, a moral duty to realize that purpose. Those are God’s instruments that work through us in different ways, but we are still equal because God resides in each of us. That’s the core of my faith”.

The Ohio-based bio-tech entrepreneur also drew parallels between Hindu and Christian faiths and said that these are the ‘shared values’ of God, and he will stand for those shared values.

“I went to Christian High School. What do we learn? We learnt the 10 commandments. We read the Bible. Scriptures class. God is real. There is one true God. Don’t take his name in vain. Respect your parents. Don’t lie. Don’t steal. Don’t commit adultery. What I learned at that time, is that these values are familiar to me. They don’t belong to Hindus. But, they don’t belong to Christians either. They belong to God actually. And I think these are the values that undergird this country,” Ramaswamy said.

The 38-year-old native of southwest Ohio is the son of a mother who was a geriatric psychiatrist and a father who worked as an engineer at General Electric.

Ramaswamy’s campaign has gained attention, and he has risen in GOP primary polls, although he still trails behind Trump and Florida Governor Ron DeSantis in terms of support. In fact, he also trails behind the other Indian American candidate, Nikki Haley of South Carolina, the former US Ambassador to the United Nations. CNN has not included Ramaswamy in an upcoming presidential debate.