SourceORISSA, INDIA, May 18, 2005: An Indian court has commuted a death sentence handed down to a man convicted of murdering an Australian missionary and his two young sons. The man, Dara Singh, has now been sentenced to life imprisonment. The court also released 11 out of 12 others who had received life sentences for the killings. Graham Staines and…
SourceDEKALB, ILLINOIS, May 19, 2005: Northern Illinois University, DeKalb, Illinois is holding the second Ramayana Conference on Saturday and Sunday, June 4 and 5, 2005. The conference currently has scholars from nine different countries and several American Universities. The objective of the conference is to provide an exchange forum for Ramayana scholars to share art, archaeology, and literature related research.…
Press ReleaseCHICAGO, ILLINOIS, May 19, 2005: During 2005 the Vivekananda Vedanta Society of Chicago is celebrating 75 years of service in Chicago. The Society was founded by Swami Gnaneswarananda of the Ramakrishna Order in 1930. For many years the Vivekananda Vedanta Society was the only Hindu group in Chicago and carried on the work which was started by Swami Vivekananda…
SourceNEW DELHI, INDIA, May 15, 2005: India’s Prime Minister, Dr. Manmohan Singh, made the following remarks at the memorial meeting for Swami Rangnathananda, late president of Ramakrishna Mission, here today. “I deem it a great privilege and a great honor to be present on this occasion when we have gathered to celebrate the life and works of one of the…
SourceNEW DELHI, INDIA, May 2, 2005: Officials have estimated that 32,000 cows are allowed to roam the streets of New Delhi at will. Tourists are amused when traffic is brought to a halt by grazing cows. However, residents of the city know the dangers. The news release explains, “Almost every week new stories of their savagery hit the front pages.…
SourceCALIFORNIA, USA, May 18, 2005: Last September 2004, dancers, musicians and artists contributed their talents in a benefit performance for Iraivan Temple at the CET Theater in San Jose. Contributions for Iraivan exceeded expectations, and a US$10,000 check was presented to Paramacharya Palaniswami of Saiva Siddhanta Church for Iraivan Temple’s continuing construction (click here to learn about this all-stone, hand-carved…
SourceSILICON VALLEY, CALIFORNIA, May 15, 2005: Arjun, the warrior-prince of the Mahabharata, and Maya were the most popular names given to baby boys and girls respectively by Indians in the United States. The name Arjun was given to 247 boys last year, ranking it 741 in the list of 1,000 most popular baby names in the US, compiled by the…
SourceBANGALORE, INDIA, May 13, 2005: When everyone is worried about losing their built up areas that serve as shops and residences to a city-wide road widening project, the magnificent gopuras of the temples stand in eloquent silence. While they are nestled among huge complexes with staircases dangerously leading out on to the street far below, historians suggest that the ancient…
SourceJOHANNESBURG, SOUTH AFRICA, May 13, 2005: Hindi, Gujarati and Tamil speaking Hindus celebrated a decade of unity in a South African town as they marked the 10th anniversary of a temple where they have prayed together. The small Hindu community lives in the township of Roshnee, some 70 km south of here. The Roshnee Siva Soobramaniar Alayam has served the…
SourceCHENNAI, INDIA, April 29, 2005: Necessity is the mother of invention. A common cliched adage used by all; but it comes handy to report on the feet wash system introduced by officials of Sri Parthasarathy Swami Temple in Triplicane on the lines of the same facility at Tirumala Tirupati Devasthanam. This feet wash system was launched this morning at the…