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Catholic Church with Hindu and Buddhist Symbols


You will find the statue of Christ in padmasna posture at the Jagat Jyothi Mandir, a meditation centre constructed by the Quilon Social Service Society (QSSS), on the banks of Ashtamudi Lake at Parimanam in Kollam District, Kerala. The statue of Christ resembles Buddha. Christ and the 12 Apostles sit on the floor and are served on banana leaves in the famous last supper painting found here.


Ignatius Pereira writes in The Hindu
The walls of the mandir are decorated with symbols of `pancha boothas' and the four Gospels are represented as vulture (St. John), bull (St. Luke), lion (St. Mark) and angel (St. Matthew). Symbols of all religions are painted on the roof. In fact, the mandir looks like a typical Hindu temple with a 12-foot-tall stone lamp in front.
Incidentally, the Kollam diocese to which the new church belongs had adopted the Hindu symbol ‘OM’ two decades ago.