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…
Sify NewsMANOHARPUR, INDIA, January 22, 2004: Surrounded by dense forests and ramshackle hovels, Manoharpur looks like any other remote tribal village, says this article by Bibhuti Mishra. However, it came into the limelight five years ago when Australian missionary Graham Stewart Staines and his two minor sons were killed in front of the village church there. The murder brought the…
SourceLONGDENVILLE, TRINIDAD, January 22, 2004: Trinidad Hindus are launching the 14th annual Kendra Phagwa Festival this Sunday. This launching specifically takes place on the first day of spring, Vasant Panchami, and the birthdate of Goddess Saraswati. Preparation will be marked by the planting of a castor oil tree, community dancing and the symbolic chulha boiling of the first abeer. Abeer…
SourcePONDICHERRY, INDIA, January 22, 2003: Mata Amrithanandamayi has said the present trend of mixing religion and politics was not right. Speaking at a reception organized in Pondicherry on Wednesday, she expressed concern over growing violence and terrorism in the country. “All religions should coexist and work towards the development of the society and country. We should remember that human beings…