New Straits TimesSINGAPORE, January 19, 2004: (This appeared as a letter to the editor) I refer to your report “Churches celebrate Pongal festival” (NST, Jan 12) where church coordinator S. Vythilingam was quoted as saying “Pongal is not a religious festival but a traditional festival celebrated by the Tamils.” Pongal is celebrated on the first day of the month of…
SourcePHOENIX, ARIZONA, January 22, 2004: Leo Godzich tells the couples in his premarital education class at the Phoenix First Assembly of God, how important it is to enter into marriage knowing each other’s finances, sharing assets and agreeing on their budget priorities, says this New York Times article. Such classes would be useful for Hindu temples to conduct for about-to-be…
SourceNEW DELHI, INDIA, January 26, 2004: An Ayurvedic Center was inaugurated at the Army Base Hospital and Delhi Cantonment on Sunday. The 10-bed indoor facility provided for the management of chronic diseases is based on the Panchkarma Therapy of Ayurveda. The Center was inaugurated by Shri Ajay Prasad, Defence Secretary, Lt Gen B. N. Shahi, Director General of Armed Forces…
SourceHYDERABAD, INDIA, January 24, 2004: Animals have befriended man since the dawn of creation and animal rights should be the focus of the 21st century, spiritual head of Sadhu Vaswani Mission Dada J. P. Vaswani said on Friday. Addressing a press conference, Dada Vaswani said the importance of vegetarianism and spiritual education needs to be inculcated from the preschool level.…
SourceHOUSTON, TEXAS, January 24 2004: The case that HPI reported recently of the kudge who ordered a man to take yoga classes as part of his one-year probation, has attracted national attention in the US and in India. Judge Larry Standley was on CNN (“source” above) recently defending his unusual sentence. He said “The facts as they were presented to…
SourcePARSIPPANY, NEW JERSEY, January 25, 2004: A pile of plywood and insulation was dumped in the center of the two-lane entry to the Sanatan Mandir Hindu Temple on Jean Terrace sometime on January 23 night or early January 24, and police say the incident may have been a bias crime. Temple priest Pravin Shastri discovered several layers of plywood piled…
SourceHYDERABAD, INDIA, January 17, 2004: Three well-educated Hindu men are profiled in this compelling article explaining how religion has always been the crux of their life. For example, Venkata Ramana Deekshitulu, head priest at the Tirumala Venkateshwara Swamy Temple, has a post-doctoral research degree. Deekshitulu explains, “I got an opportunity to go to the US and do research on human…
SourceTORONTO, ONTARIO, CANADA, January 20, 2004: The 250,000-strong Hindu community in Greater Toronto has undertaken the task of building a museum in honor of Hindu culture and traditions. Mastermind for the project, Budhendra Doobay, says, “Young people do not understand Hindu rituals, customs and heritage. Some of them are learning it from people who don’t fully understand the religion, and…
SourceEVESHAM, NEW JERSEY, January 18, 2004: The Hindu Temple Association in Burlington County proposed a 19,427-square foot center to the Planning Board last Thursday. Planning a Hindu temple and Indian cultural center at the location on Route 73 between Dutch Road and Ardsley Drive, the association was questioned by the Planning Board as to whether the proposed 190 parking spaces…
SourceCAMBODIA, January 25, 2004: An unprecedented effort to reclaim the ancient temples from the Cambodian jungle is racing against a tourist onslaught. There is nothing quite like Angkor in northwest Cambodia. Within the 155-square-mile Angkor district is Angkor Wat, the most awe inspiring and best known of the 44 temples built between the 9th and 14th centuries. The temples are…