Goddess Lakshmi and Goddess Bhudevi, and their active presence in the Tamil Hindu Diaspora in the SF Bay Area: Will climate change events affect the worship of two qualitatively different Hindu goddesses?

This this paper will explore the presence, vitality, and active worship of two Hindu goddesses in the Tamil diaspora in the San Francisco Bay Area. While Lakshmi is very well known, representing wealth, health, and auspiciousness, the earth goddess Bhudevi is not as focused upon. Recent wildfires in California wrought havoc, raising questions connecting devotion and ecology. How does environmental catastrophe affect Hindu Americans’ worship of Bhudevi or Lakshmi? Are there caste distinctions or class differences to note, and how do these shape the perceptions of the Hindu diaspora? These questions will be investigated through the interlaced lenses of 1) economics and the varying notions of “value”; 2) the Hindu sacralization of the natural world and its relationship to environmental knowledge; and 3) transformative individual and community action about climate chaos. This research will be based on ethnographic fieldwork situated around two temples: Concord Siva-Murugan Temple and Livermore Siva-Vishnu Temple.