The Community of the Many Names of God, Skanda Vale Temple can be traced back to the Kataragama and Badulla Temples in Sri Lanka. The Kataragama Temple was built on the instruction of the Lord himself and for many centuries up to the present day the devotions and festivals in the Temple have been conducted by the same family of priests given authority by the Lord to uphold the tradition of worship for perpetuity. Guru Sri Subramanium, having been given his mandate directly from the Divine, sought and received blessings and divine authority from these ancient places of worship. Guruji then set out to fulfill his mandate by establishing Dharma in the west, unifying faiths and nationalities in the worship of God without involvement in commercialism. He has developed his spiritual work relying totaly on the grace of God to sustain him.

 

Guru's parents were actively involved in the activities of these temples. His mother was an accepted mystic and great seer; because of her perception and personal experience of the power of God she did not discriminate against any religion, rather she encouraged people to improve their act of worship whatever their viewpoint of faith, and expand their vision and experience of God.

 

Guru Subramanium was born in 1929. From an early age he was to follow his mother's example and his own abilities as a seer and mystic were tested in conjunction with his mother's work. Even as a small boy Guru was aware of the suffering arising from the conflicts between different religious faiths, and so began his committment to come to the West to establish a multifaith place of worship and unify religions. The focal point of this mission was Lord Skanda - the destroyer of evil, and upon the Lord's instruction Guru relinquished his family name and took the name Subramanium.

 

In 1952 Guru left Sri Lanka for a tour of the Middle East and Europe, arriving in England in 1953 where he settled in London. For the next ten years he taught meditation as a means of promoting greater understanding between religions.

 

In 1962 he, with others, undertook a pilgrimage of dedication to major places of worship of each religion in Sri Lanka, vowing to create the first temple in the West dedicated to Lord Skanda. During this pilgrimage Guru received the sacred image of the Lord and the divine weapons that were to form the central power of the Skanda Vale Temple. In 1963 a multi-faith Temple dedicated to Lord Skanda was established in London which attracted devotees from all walks of life, cultures and religious traditions.

 

Alongside Guru's spiritual work during his time in London he also worked to support himself financially, believing that it was the birthright of every human being to worship God free of charge.

 

In 1970 Guru combined his own spiritual background and experience with that of Rev. James Keeler, Moderator of the Presbiterian Free Church of Scotland, and of Dr. Mulalasekera, Sri Lankan High Commissioner to the Court of St. James and devout exponent of Buddhism, to found the Community of the Many Names of God. Shortly afterwards in 1973 a remote hill farm in Wales was purchased and renamed Skanda Vale, offering a tranquil location for the Temple and providing the space for the Community to grow. This Community was founded on the transcendental principle of timeless consciousness of God, embracing all religious faiths as different facets of the totality of human association with God, encompassing past, present and future in the unfolding drama of divinity embodied in all life.

 

From humble beginnings the small nucleus of members grew to become a monastic order, following a self-disciplined life of Karma Yoga (service to God through work) and Bhakti Yoga (devotion to God). The monks take vows of poverty, chastity and obedience as set out by St. Francis of Assisi.

In 1974 the Sisterhood of the Community was established. Two years later, in 1976, the Community cut its ties with profit making companies - relying solely on donations. Soon after this the Community was accepted by the Charity Commissioners as a religious charity.

 

In 1978, an adjacent farm was purchased increasing the area of Skanda Vale to 100 acres. The farm house became the residence of Guru and as founder and spiritual head of the Community, in the tradition of Sanathana Dharma, he established a Temple in his home welcoming ever increasing numbers of pilgrims to worship alongside him. In 1991 a Goporum was added to house the sacred Murthi of Maha Kali. From then on the Temple grew and became renowned for the manifastation of the Divine Mother as Maha Shakti, drawing Pilgrims from all over the world to worship.

 

In 1981, President Jayawardena of Sri Lanka presented Guru with a baby elephant in appreciation of the help he was giving to Sri Lankans in Britain through the establishment of the multi-faith Temple.

In 1993, fulfilling part of its charity aspirations, the Vale Hospice Home Care was started by the Community: a dedicated team of volunteers looked after the terminally ill in their own homes providing much needed respite to the family carers free of charge.

 

In 1996 work was completed on the rebuilding of the Subramanium Temple (also called Lord Skanda or Lord Murugan). All the work having been completed by the monks and volunteers, with money received solely through donations.

 

In October 1999 the Community inaugurated a third Temple, dedicated to Lord Narayana, the aspect of preservation.

What began as a trickle of devotees travelling from London to a secluded part of South Wales on pilgrimage 32 years ago, now attracts over 90,000 visitors each year. All are fed, housed and cared for free of charge. The Community has never sought to publicise itself, for God needs no advertisement. Pilgrims come from all walks of life and all corners of the globe, united in worship at Skanda Vale's Temples through a tangible experience of the power and presence of God.

 

In September 2002 a building was purchased in Saron, Llandysul (a few miles from Skanda Vale) to establish first a Day Care Hospice and thereafter an In-Care Unit.

 

After extensive renovation of the ground floor Skanda Vale Day Hospice was inaugurated on 27th March 2004. The Home Care service was withdrawn so that all efforts could be focused on attending to people's needs in the Hospice. The Hospice is at present run as a Day Care Service. The Community continues to raise funds to convert the upper floor of the Hospice building into a Residential Care Centre. This service will be available to all, regardless of your geographical location.