HPI KAUAI, HAWAII, December 24, 2006: An issue came up at the Hindu Mission of Canada in Quebec regarding the chanting of the famed Gayatri Mantra by the ordinary devotees. Some brahmins held the position that the mantra should chanted by everyone only when a priest is leading the chant. The chairman of the mission, Dharam Pal Verman, asked Hinduism…
info@hindusangam.org.my KUALA LUMPUR, MALAYSIA, December 21, 2006: The annual December school vacation period is always the period in which numerous Hindu Religious courses are held for students and youths, and also religious teacher training courses for others. Malaysia Hindu Sangam has organized the Pre-School Teacher Training & Religious Teacher Training program. Also, the annual Awakening Camp (Elluchi Mugaam) for youths…
www.mercurynewsphoto.com INDIA, December 23, 2006: This interesting site offers an audio slide show based on several recent articles about India published in the Mercury News. It’s not religious in content, but the presentation is slick and the information useful. The “elephant” is India itself. The subjects are Venture capitalists–Investing in India’s Future, Infosys–tens of thousands of employees work at the…
southasia.oneworld.net NEW DELHI, INDIA, December 15, 2006: (HPI note: This article is written with the intent of attracting attention to the plight of the tsunami survivors. It is not, in the process, all that realistic about what is involved in reconstructing entire villages even in the best of conditions. The most efficient Hindu organizations involved in reconstruction in Tamil Nadu…
Vishwa Samvad Kendra, Chennai CHENNAI, INDIA, December 22, 2006: A full third of Chennai’s police force, 5,000 out of a total force of 15,000, have taken a vow to participate in the Sabarimala pilgrimage, which includes several weeks of fasting and disciplines in advance. Such devotees are called Ayyappa Swamis. Police Ayyappa Swamis say that they are happily observing the…
www.rediff.com DELHI, INDIA, December 22, 2006: Justice K G Balakrishnan, the senior-most judge of the Supreme Court, will be the new Chief Justice of India, the first-ever Dalit to occupy the coveted post. Law Ministry sources said President A P J Abdul approved the new appointment on Friday. He replaces Chief Justice Y K Sabharwal who is retiring on January…
HPI KAUAI, HAWAII, December 22, 2006: Hinduism Today is planning extensive coverage of the Thai Pusam festival in Malaysia at both Batu Caves and Penang on February 1, 2007. We are looking for devotees who will be participating in carrying kavadi at the event, including those from overseas, and are willing to be included in the story. As well, we…
www.hindu.com BHUBANESWAR, ORISSA, INDIA, December 18, 2006: Backed by a High Court order, which said all Hindus, irrespective of their caste, could enter any Hindu temple, the administration on Sunday succeeded in getting those opposed to the Court’s ruling to give up their position on not allowing Dalits to worship in the Jagannath temple. The rituals in the temple were…
www.shastras.org TROY, MICHIGAN, December 20, 2006: (HPI note: The following appeared as a press release written by Navya Shastra and sent out through Religion News Service.) Navya Shastra, the international Hindu reform organization, has issued an apology to the Dalit communities of India. The organization issued the apology after consulting with Hindu activists and its own Dalit members. It reads:…
www.ft.com BERLIN, GERMANY, December 6, 2006: Violence in video games has escalated and countries around the world are taking steps to censure the violence as they feel it may be directly related to real-life incidents of violence among youth who are avid gamers. One such country leading the crackdown is Germany. The news release explains, “Virtual hit men in Europe’s…