www.crosswalk.com USA, March 21, 2006: HPI found this report from a Christian news service remarkable not for the increase in percent of Christians among teens in Japan, but for the abysmal low numbers of religious people at all. Just 30% of adults and 20% of teens consider themselves “religious.” The same trend is found in Europe, but to a lesser…
www.hindu.com ERODE, INDIA, March 20, 2006: The fifth State Hindu Resurgence Conference organized by the Vishwa Hindu Parishad (VHP) and the Grama Koil Poojarigal Peravai has rejected varnashrama (system of four castes) and sought an end to the practice of untouchability. Addressing the conference at the CNC College grounds on Sunday, VHP international president Ashok Singhal said untouchability had no…
www.etravelblackboard.com CHALERMPHRAKIAT DISTRICT, BURI RAM PROVINCE, THAILAND, March 20, 2006: In Hindu and Buddhist cosmology, mountains are believed to be homes to the Gods. Prasat Hin Khao Phanom Rung, a magnificent temple sanctuary set on the summit of Phanom Rung Hill, was built between the 10th and 13th centuries. According to the stone inscriptions in Sanskrit and Khmer found at…
www.mumbaimirror.com LONDON, ENGLAND, March 19, 2006: The BBC has said it paid an unspecified amount to settle a case filed by devotees of Hindu pontiff Jayendra Saraswathi against erroneous remarks by a leading Indian journalist in one of its radio shows. The remarks were made by Vinod Mehta, editor of Outlook magazine, in the BBC Radio 4 program called “A…
www.milkmiracle.com KAUAI, HAWAII, March 19, 2006: HPI note: A reader sent this link to a six-minute video of the 1995 “Milk Miracle.” The website introduction (borrowed mostly verbatim from Hinduism Today’s report at the time) reads: “Never before in history has a simultaneous miracle occurred on such a global scale. Television stations (among them CNN and BBC), radio and newspapers…
seattlepi.nwsource.com SEATTLE, WASHINGTON, March 8, 2006: This weekend brings to Seattle the fifth Vegfest, billed as the largest vegetarian festival in the United States. Last year, more than 9,900 people attended this celebration of meat-free eating, an increase from the 2,000 who came in 2002, its first year. The festival venue at Seattle Center is doubling in size this year.…
Hinduism Today CALIFORNIA, March 18, 2006: The following two articles announce the filling of two lawsuits in the California dispute over the presentation of Hinduism in new sixth grade social studies textbooks. For the full background, see the HPI reports here and here. The first lawsuit, by the Hindu American Foundation, has been expected following the adverse action of the…
www.hinduamericanfoundation.org SACRAMENTO, CALIFORNIA, March 16, 2006: The Hindu American Foundation (HAF) filed suit against the California State Board of Education (SBE) in California Superior Court in Sacramento today. After months of repeated correspondence with the SBE and California Department of Education (CDE), HAF filed suit as the foundation contends that a fair and open process was not followed in adopting…
www.capeem.org LOS ANGELES, CALIFORNIA, March 17, 2006: HPI note: The following press release was issued by the California Parents for the Equalization of Educational Materials (CAPEEM). The actual text of the lawsuit is available here. CAPEEM has filed a complaint in the U.S. District Court in the Eastern District of California against the California State Board of Education and the…
Hindu Society of South Australia Newsletter, February, 2006 AUSTRALIA, March 18, 2006: Carl Vadivella Belle, Vice President of the Hindu Society of South Australia, has been appointed Hindu Chaplain at Flinders University, where he will officiate along with chaplains from other communities within the Flinders University Religious Centre. This appointment is believed to be the first of a Hindu Chaplain…