By Kishan Bhatt
NHSF PR Officer
National Hindu Students Forum (UK) recently held their annual NHSF Sports Competition on the 22nd February at Loughborough University. Over 600 students attended the day and around 30 different NHSF chapters (Hindu societies) were represented ranging from the North Zone such as NHSF Manchester, the Central Zone such as NHSF Birmingham and the South Zone such as NHSF Portsmouth.
It was a historic time for the NHSF chapters from across the country as they united together in the name of Hindu Dharma and a sporting spirit to achieve positive results for their teams in football, netball, cricket, kabbadi and kho-kho. The Hindu societies trained hard for months leading up to the day and to compete friendly and fiercely to go home crowned as champions.
The atmosphere of the day was electric with NHSF DeMontfort even bringing their own live mascot with them to show good-natured support! The day was filled with great joy and banter as spectators eagerly looked on at the tough competition ahead. The day started with a recital of the Gayatri Mantra to focus positive thoughts and energies into the day and to champion sporting spirit and Hindu unity. The day was also marked with a one-minute silence for the tragic loss of Shivali Dave, a recent ex-President of NHSF Leeds who sadly passed away prior to the weekend.
It was a fitting tribute that the netball team of NHSF Leeds, a team that Shivali had personally trained, retained the netball trophy in her memory. NHSF Brunel went home with the trophy for football and the NHSF Central Zone universities united together to take home the trophy for cricket for the second year running. In the traditional sports, however, it was once again NHSF Brunel that won the Kho-Kho and NHSF DeMontfort took home the most coveted title of national kabaddi champions intense final against their arch rivals NHSF Leicester. In true sporting and NHSF spirit, however, NHSF DeMontfort brought the NHSF Leicester Kabaddi team to come up with them to collect their trophies in a show of respect and solidarity for the day.
The NHSF Sports Competition this year had a surprise element by presenting the Gurkhas to the Hindu students, ambassadors of the Hindu physique as soldiers that fought for the British Army and are still to this day serving the Queen. These soldiers are renowned for their brute strength and courage as well as their gentle kindness to a worthy cause. They came and performed their traditional kukri dance, a dance of the swords.
Owing to Mahashivratri being the day after the sports competition, there were two Mahashivratri poojas performed under Hemangbhai Bhatt, who also explained to the students the significance of the pooja. The day also promoted both learning and sewa (‘selfless service’) by showing students how they can get involved in forthcoming charity projects and also interactive activities demonstrating how important the conservation of energy is, an important aspect of current British society. The day also embarked on a book swap project, whereby students brought educational books to swap on the day.
The NHSF Sports Competition was a competition of young Hindu champions; champions in the sense that they are the hope and inspiration of young British Hindus across the country to embark on getting more actively involved in sport, leading a healthy lifestyle and uniting in Lord Hanuman’s manifestation of strength, solidarity, humility and unity, some fundamental aspects of Sanaatan Dharma.