Amarnath Yatra Concludes in India

SourceJAMMU, INDIA, August 30, 2004: The 45-day annual Amarnath pilgrimage concluded on Monday with saints carrying the holy mace of Lord Siva reaching the cave shrine in south Kashmir Himalayas. The charri mubarak, carried by around 500 saints led by its custodian, Mahant Deepinder Giri, reached the shrine, 143 km from Srinagar, around 0845 IST. A record 400,000 pilgrims undertook…

Continue reading

Eight Arrested In Plot To Bomb Hindu Temple

SourceHYDERABAD, INDIA, August 29, 2004: Eight suspected militants belonging to the Muslim group Lashkar-e-Toiba have been arrested in Hyderabad. The police claim they were plotting to blast the famous Ganesh Temple near the Secunderabad railway station during the Ganesh festival next month. Those arrested belong to the old city in Hyderabad and nearby districts. Police said they have links with…

Continue reading

A New Approach to Investing – A Faith-Based Investment

SourceUSA, August 2004: It all started a few years ago with socially responsible investing. SRI became the catch word for investors looking into investing in mutual funds or the stocks and bonds of select companies. Expounding criteria such as we only invest in companies that do not derive any profit or a minute amount of profit from the tobacco industry,…

Continue reading

Protestant Christian Ministers Uneducated in Other Faiths

Religion News ServiceUSA, September 1, 2004: (RNS) Most Protestant ministers expressed little familiarity with the key beliefs of a number of non-Protestant religious groups, a survey has found. The findings by Ellison Research, a marketing research company in Phoenix, were first reported in the September/October edition of Facts & Trends, a magazine published by LifeWay Christian Resources of the Southern…

Continue reading

Four Killed In Stampede At Krishna Pushkar River Festival

SourceVIJAYAWADA, INDIA, August 28, 2004: Four people were killed and 11 injured in a stampede on the first day of the Krishna Pushkar mela at Vijaywada. Thousands of pilgrims had come to take the holy dip today at the beginning of 12-day mela. According to reports, an iron railing along the footbridge leading to the bathing area collapsed and this…

Continue reading

Kerala’s Onam Festival An Economic Boon

SourceKOCHI, INDIA, August 28, 2004: Kochi Markets are witnessing a boom in Kerala with Onam celebrations picking up across the state. With people on a shopping spree ahead of the harvest festival, the whole of Kerala has turned into a customer-friendly market worth US$681 million. The salaried section is richer by $454 million by way of two months’ salary, bonus,…

Continue reading

His Holiness Mahamandaleshwar Paramhans Swami Maheshwaranandaji on Raksha Bandhan

International Sri Deep Madhavananda Ashram Fellowship, Vienna, AustriaAUSTRIA, August 28, 2004: His Holiness, Mahamandaleshwar Paramhas Swami Maheswarananda issued the following message on the occassion of Raksha Bandhan: Blessed Selves. On the 30th of August we are celebrating the holy festival of Raksha Bandhan, the day of brothers and sisters. On this day sisters tie sacred threads around their brothers’ wrists…

Continue reading

Federal Judge Considers New York Temple Appeal

SourceNEW YORK, NEW YORK, August 27, 2004: After three years of lawsuits between two groups of Hindu devotees, a federal judge will decide whether or not the state is entitled to tell a religious organization in Queens how to organize and manage itself. The trustees of the Hindu Temple Society of North America, of Flushing, filed a lawsuit to protest…

Continue reading

Ayurveda Deserves To Be Given The Status Of Mainstream Medicine

News ReportsMUMBAI, INDIA, August 24, 2004: “So far as India is concerned Ayurveda has always been the mainstream medicine. The reach of modern medicine in India even today is 30 percent. And 70 percent people are being treated through Ayurvedic medicines or household remedies. However it is unfortunate that out of the total governmental expenditure 97 percent is being spent…

Continue reading