On Saturday 8 January 2005 between 8pm and 9pm, 500 children from various BAPS centers around London gathered at the Shri Swaminarayan Mandir in Neasden, London to offer a special ‘Children Praying for Children’ prayer. The prayers were offered in remembrance of those children who sadly lost their lives or were orphaned in the South East Asia Tsunami.

Dressed in traditional clothing the young children aged between 5 and 15 sat in a disciplined manner to participate in this special meeting. The opening video showed how the vicious tsunami attacked South East Asia. It stirred up emotions in all the innocent hearts and the best thing we could do was to pray to God. Everyone listened with rapt attention to 3 children who narrated various tragic stories of how the thousands of children lost not only their dear families but everything their families owned. Thereafter all the children recited Vedic prayers in the traditional manner during which representatives offered flowers to Bhagwan Swaminarayan and Guruhari Pramukh Swami Maharaj requesting for blessings to the souls of the deceased and courage to their family members.

Pujya Atmaswarup Swami talked about the importance of children praying for others, what we can do to help and how we should remain firm in our belief that with God's help everyone will surely be solaced. He also mentioned that at a time like this we must have empathy for those children who are going through a very shocking period in life.

At the end of the program children generously donated whatever they could, even from their pocket money.

The prayers were attended by chief guest Ms Caroline Boswell, Head of the Children and Young People’s Unit, Mayor of London’s Office, GLA, Councilor Mike Freer, Barnet Council, as well as other prominent VIPs.

To mark the end of the prayers a one-minute silence was observed in remembrance of those who were victims of this tragedy.

The ‘Children Praying for Children’ prayers were part of a larger BAPS Tsunami Appeal launched by HDH Pramukh Swami Maharaj, spiritual leader of BAPS Swaminarayan Sanstha. The appeal has generated generous donations and the funds are being used to provide aid across South East Asia.