varadananda@sbcglobal.net CHICAGO, ILLINOIS, USA, JULY 1, 2007: (HPI note: Swami Varadananda sent the following press release.) Over 250 people attended the consecration ceremony to celebrate the completion of Phase 1 of the Sri Ramakrishna Universal Temple on July 1. Perfect weather helped to make the event an outstanding success. Under the guidance of Chandrasekar Gurukul, a priest well-versed in Vedic…
abc.net.au JAMMU, INDIA, July 6, 2007: Hindu pilgrims who hugged the ice Siva Lingam in Kashmir may have caused it to melt, experts say. “Hugging and touching the stalagmite definitely generates heat and can lead to its melting,” said Mohammed Ismail, the head of the geology department at the University of Kashmir. Hundreds of thousands of devotees make the gruelling…
www.hindu.com KASHMIR, July 1, 2007: Cutting across religious lines, thousands of Muslims joined Kashmiri Pandits to celebrate the Mela Khanbaran festival of Tripursunderi shrine here, which was reopened after 17 years. Rebuilt by the army and local Muslims in 2002 after the shrine was set afire by militants, the temple was reopened for the festival from June 20 to 24.…
news.bbc.co.uk KUALA LUMPUR, MALAYSIA, July 6, 2007: A Malaysian woman held for months in an Islamic rehabilitation centre says she was subjected to mental torture for insisting her religion is Hinduism. Revathi Massosai, the name by which she wants to be known, says she was forced to eat beef despite being a Hindu. Miss Massosai was seized by the Islamic…
cities.expressindia.com NEW DELHI, INDIA, July 6, 2007: the 19th annual mango festival will begin at the Talkatora stadium in the Capital on Saturday. Several contests, including mango culinary, mango eating competitions, quizzes, apart from fruit and vegetable carvings by leading chefs and cultural programs will be held during the two-day festival. Delhi Tourism Minister Arvinder Singh Lovely said the festival…
ar@hindu.org KAUAI, HAWAII, July 6, 2007: Hinduism Today magazine is seeking one (or more) enterprising young people with some journalism experience to both solicit and contribute articles by and about youth to the magazine. If you would like to participate, kindly e-mail ar@hindu.org.
info@hindusangam.org.my PETALING JAYA, MALAYSIA, July 1, 2007: The Malaysia Hindu Sangam held its 30th Annual General Meeting at the Plantation House, Petaling Jaya, on July 1, 2007. The meeting was officially opened by Y.B. Dato Seri (Dr.) S. Samy Vellu, the Minister of Works and the President of the Malaysian Indian Congress, in his capacity as Patron of the Malaysia…
specials.rediff.com VARANASI, INDIA, July 1, 2007: (HPI note: This is a much-better-than-usual article on Varanasi from the tourist’s point of view.) There are certain things that are a must do in life. Even if it means pulling out of bed at 4 in the morning to make it to the water’s edge in one of India’s most chaotic cities. But…
www.healthsystem.virginia.edu VIRGINIA, UNITED STATES, July 4, 2007: The University of Virginia has created a chaplaincy services and pastoral education program in order to train people to interact with patients from many different religious backgrounds. They offer training in Buddhism, Protestant and Catholic Christianity, Islam, Judaism and Hinduism. Hinduism’s belief in a One Supreme Reality, how Hindus look at illness and…
swsurya@btconnect.com SOUTH WALES, UK, July 5, 2007: (The following was received from Swami Suryananda of Skanda Vale.) Guru Sri Subramanium was born in Sri Lanka to aristocratic parents. His father was the highest-ranking medical officer in Sri Lanka, whilst his mother, of South Indian descent, was a renowned seer, possessing great spiritual power. It was in this atmosphere of science…