www.hinduamericanfoundation.org

WASHINGTON D.C., July 29, 2008: An ancient Hindu temple located in the mountains on the Cambodia-Thai border is once again at the center of tension between the two neighboring countries.The Preah Vihear Hindu temple complex, a World Heritage Site by UNESCO, saw a buildup of 1200-1500 troops (800-1,000 Cambodian and 400-500 Thai) in and around the large temple complex.


The Preah Vihear Temple was built by the Hindu Khmer Empire in the 10th and 11th centuries, and was dedicated to Lord Shiva, according to Sanskrit inscriptions. The elaborately carved temple is an important part of ancient history and Hindu culture, and must be protected and preserved.

Samir Kalra, Esq., the incoming coordinator for the fifth annual Hindu American Foundation Hindu human rights report due out next year, called on the Thai and Cambodian governments to resolve their dispute peacefully and withdraw their troops from the historic temple complex and surrounding areas. “The presence of troops and weapons at the temple site violates the sanctity of this Hindu monument, and the temple has already born the scars of decades of fighting,” said Kalra. “It is ironic that the much-deserved listing of this heritage site began a conflagration that could destroy it, and we condemn this violent turn of events.”

www.ddinews.gov.in

COIMBATORE, INDIA, July 24, 2008: The four-day global convention on Ayurveda, beginning at Coimbatore on 21st August, will evolve strategies for integrating ayurveda in the National Rural Health Mission (NRHM) and prepare a mission document for globalization of the ancient science.

Efforts were on to formulate guidelines to offer ayurvedic treatment in its purest form and come out with strategies for integrating ayurveda in the NRHM, P. Ram Manohar, Secretary General of the scientific session of the conference told reporters in Kochi on Sunday. World over the population of the aged is on the rise and the Department of Ayush under the Health Ministry has identified Geriatrics as a priority area, he said. Metabolic disorders and nutrition are the other two areas which the conference will focus on.

Around 110 scholars from India and abroad will address the sessions in which about 2500 delegates, including 300 from abroad are expected to participate.

www.hinduonnet.com

LONDON, ENGLAND, July 24, 2008: Breast cancer research needs to investigate how a person’s ethnicity influences their response to treatment and its outcome, according to a new Comment piece in Friday’s Lancet by researchers from Imperial College London. Emerging evidence suggests that particular drugs may benefit people from one ethnic group more than others, because of differences in their genetic makeup. Most key trials looking at treatments for breast cancer have been carried out in predominantly white populations in Europe, North America and Australasia. Other populations might not respond to a drug in the same way as the white populations in these trials, argue the researchers writing today. They suggest that clinical trials should record participants’ ethnicity and analyze whether there are differences in how patients from particular ethnic groups respond to a particular therapy.

“Everyone responds differently to treatment and it’s often very difficult to predict how well someone will respond to a particular drug. However, evidence is now emerging that shows how your genes might influence whether or not a particular treatment can help you.

“There are small genetic differences between people from different ethnic backgrounds and it is really important that we find out whether these genetic differences mean that certain drugs perform well in people from certain ethnic groups but not in others. It’s only by doing this that we can make sure each individual receives the best possible care,” added Dr Palmieri.

www.hinduismtoday.com

Let your mind cognize itself by turning itself back on itself. Become consciously conscious. All you have to do is to watch your mind think.
   Satguru Sivaya Subramuniyaswami (1927-2001)