SourceKERALA, INDIA, October 27, 2004: One of the world’s largest palm-leaf manuscript collections in Kerala is going digital. In a process expected to last more than five years, experts have begun digitizing the collection of over ten million palm leaves with centuries-old writing in the state archives department. The manuscripts on palmyra palm leaves are a rich source of history…
Religion News ServiceUSA, November 1, 2004: Internal Revenue Service IRS Commissioner Mark Everson said Friday (Oct. 29) that the agency is investigating more than 60 cases of nonprofit groups possibly engaged in illegal partisan activity. About one-third of the cases involve churches. Everson said the agency reviewed about 100 cases and found 60 that “merited examination.” Federal law prohibits the…
HPIKAUAI, HAWAII, November 1, 2004: Our thanks to Tom Parks for pointing out that the birthplace of President George W. Bush is New Haven, Connecticut, not Austin, Texas, as stated in yesterday’s HPI on astrological predictions for the US presidential elections.
SourceIDAHO FALLS, IDAHO, USA, November 1, 2004: (HPI Note: Occasionally a news item catches our attention because it reports a potentially remarkable scientific advancement.) Scientists at the Idaho National Engineering and Environmental Laboratory say they have developed the first system to convert dirty diesel fuel into a quiet, self-contained and efficient energy source. The system is the product of six…
SourceAUCKLAND, NEW ZEALAND, November 1, 2004: Thousands of people from many cultures helped Auckland’s Indian community celebrate Deepavali yesterday in the Town Hall and outside on Queen St. A constant stream of people moved from the Town Hall, where music, dance, art and a fashion show provided most of the entertainment, to Queen St where a stage was set up…
SourceMALAYSIA, October 24, 2004: Deepavali, the Festival of Light, brings joy, happiness and prosperity to every Hindu home. It is on this auspicious day–on November 11 this year–that the Goddess of wealth, Devi Mahalakshmi, is said to visit people’s homes. To show respect to the Goddess, it is important that the home be prepared properly, says Star columnist T. Selva.…
SourceTRINIDAD, October 23, 2004: Sanatan Dharma Maha Sabha Secretary General Satnarayan Maharaj has accused the Ministry of Education of attempting to convert non-Christian pupils through a national school singing competition. The preliminaries of the Caroni Education Division singing competition began yesterday at several venues in Central Trinidad. It is being sponsored by the Royal Bank of Trinidad and Tobago. Bank…
SourcePORT BLAIR, ANDAMANS, October 27, 2004: Under the British raj, the islands of Andaman and Nicobar began as a colony for convicts. Many of today’s islanders are descendants of those very convicts. But interestingly the old penal colony has left behind a very homogenous society, where caste, creed and communal tension find absolutely no space. The serene island was once…
SourceLONDON, ENGLAND, October 27, 2004: In an indirect move to curb forced marriages within the Asian community in Britain, the country’s Foreign and Home Offices have decided to raise the minimum age for such marriages from 16 to 18. This tough approach is not aimed at arranged marriages per se, but more against such relationships being promoted and encouraged within…
SourceTIRUPATI, INDIA, October 28, 2004: A majority of the speakers at a meeting here supported the demolition of the 1000-pillar mantap and said that the structure had no connection with the temple and had no Agama Shastra (religious texts dealing with temple construction) importance. However, one of the speakers at Wednesday’s meeting, a former deputy executive officer of the TTD,…