HPINEW DELHI, INDIA, January 5, 2004: The Ardha or half-cycle celebration of the Kumbha Mela at Haridwar is to begin January 14 and carry on through May. As many as 20 million devotees will pilgrimage to the Ganges during that time. This Mela occurs on the 6th year between the main Melas which are on a 12 year cycle. There…
SourceCENTRAL JAVA, INDONESIA, January 3, 2004: Resembling a temple in India, the Bima Temple in Java was built about 7th century ce, and the traditional rites performed at the temple are steeped in Javanese mysticism. Twenty-four statues called Kudus originally blessed the upper part of the Bima temple. After successive thefts, deities only remain on the western and southern sides…
SourceSRI LANKA, January 2, 2004: It has been almost two years since a ceasefire was announced between the Tamil Tigers and the government. After twenty years of civil war, the Tamil Tiger rebels now control areas of northern Sri Lanka. In order to enter these areas, travellers must pass through immigration and custom offices manned by young Tamil Tigers cadres.…
SourceSRI LANKA, January 3, 2004: The Sri Lanka government is setting up all-religions peace committees at provincial and district levels to defuse the religious tension in Sri Lanka. The Sri Lankan Prime Minister’s Secretary, Bradman Weerakoon, held talks on December 31, 2003, with the Secretaries of the Buddhasasana, Hindu religious affairs, Christian affairs and Muslim affairs Ministries to discuss details.…
SourceKATHMANDU, NEPAL, January 3, 2004: Kumari, the Virgin Living Goddess who is worshipped by millions of Nepalis, has once again started giving darshan or audience to foreigners after an 11-month hiatus at her abode at Kumari Ghar, Basantapur. Foreign tourists were restricted from seeing the Kumari following a dispute over allowances to be given to the Living Goddess from the…
Hindi Daily Dainik Hindustan (translated from Hindi)NEW DELHI, INDIA, January 3, 2004: “Ko nahi janat hai jag mein kapi, sankat mochan naam tiharo” [Who does not know that in this world oh monkey, thy name is one which liberates one out of all problems]. It is this “Sankat Mochan” [one who liberates the individual from all problems] who is playing…
SourceNEW DELHI, INDIA, January 3, 2004: Tibetan spiritual leader the Dalai Lama said people of India should maintain the country’s glorious tradition of “ahimsa” for all-round development. “For thousands of years, India is following tradition of ahimsa (nonviolence). Indians must show the world that people of different religions can live together peacefully,” he said at a function organized by Sri…
SourceUNITED STATES, December 28, 2003: According to a USA Today research done in 1,000 high schools, spanning more than 25 states in the US, and from a survey among 40,000 typical students (that is, neither stars nor low performers), it has been found that boys have “a deep-seated malaise about learning.” According to the research, for five out of six…
SourceNEW YORK, NEW YORK, December 27, 2003: The executive director of Bharatiya Vidya Bhavan in the United States, Dr P. Jayaraman, is among seven non-resident Indians chosen for the Pravasi Community Service Award. Dr. Jayaram has contributed his expertise in Sanskrit on numerous occasions to Hinduism Today magazine and other publications by Satguru Sivaya Subramuniyaswami. The award is given by…
SourceEPPING, NEW HAMPSHIRE, January 2, 2003: There was little Pandit Ramadheen Ramsamooj could do to save several precious religious icons when fire engulfed his Hindu temple Wednesday night. The smoke, he said, was just too thick. “I could not see anything at all,” the 50-year-old leader of the Saraswati Mandiram temple said yesterday as he sifted through what was left…