SourceWASHINGTON, D.C., December 23, 2003: This article in the Washington Post is mostly about the appointment of Robert D. Blackwill as coordinator for strategic planning with the National Security Council, a new and very influential position. Blackwill, a former Harvard professor, was much appreciated in India during his recently-concluded stint as ambassador, and appears to have imbibed some of India…
SourceKAUAI, HAWAII, January 1, 2004: The publisher of the international magazine, Hinduism Today, Satguru Bodhinatha Veylanswami (affectionately referred to as Bodhinatha) will be pilgrimaging to India in January 2004, bringing with him seven monastics and 80 sishya and students from 14 different countries. Successor to Satguru Sivaya Subramuniyaswami, Bodhinatha and his monastic order are carrying on the dynamic work started…
SourceSAN FRANCISCO, CALIFORNIA, January 1, 2004: Droves of Britons gave up meat during England’s mad cow outbreak in the 1980s, but since the discovery of an infected cow in Washington state American vegetarians mostly have trod carefully, trying not to take advantage of a situation that could cost lives and cripple a $40 billion industry. “I caution vegetarians from using…
SourceLONDON, ENGLAND, December 14, 2003: Leading British Hindus are meeting on Sunday to discuss ways of tackling violence against their community. Organizer C. B. Patel said Hindus had suffered worse religiously motivated violence than Jews in recent years. Hindu leaders will be joined by politicians and representatives from the Metropolitan police. The conference has been called in response to an…
SourceKOCHI, INDIA, December 29, 2003: A doctor of Indian origin now living in America who stole a conch from a temple in Kerala five years back has returned it anonymously, saying he faced innumerable problems and hardships because of his misdeed. Last week, priests in the Sree Dhanwanthari temple at Wadakkanchery, a small town near Thrissur, were surprised to receive…
SourceNEW DELHI, INDIA, December 31, 2003: The usually more balanced Associated Press posted an article (“source” above) today that reads, in part, “The last year was, it seems, pretty good for India. ‘The Golden Year,’ a major newsweekly proclaimed in a recent cover story. ‘The Feel-good Year,’ another magazine declared. Politicians and headline writers battle it out for the most…
SourceDELHI, INDIA, December 28, 2003: Pundit Hindraj Divekar, one of the foremost experts of the Rudra Veena, announced his new web site has been launched as of December 4. The Rudra Veena is a marvelous ancient instrument with a large gourd at each end and a deep sound. HPI confesses a particular fondness for the instrument…
SourceCHENNAI, INDIA, December 12, 2003: Buddhist-majority Sri Lanka will introduce a law restricting conversions due to proselytizing by Christian groups, including groups rebuilding the war-torn island, a minister said on Saturday. The move comes amid an outpouring of sympathy in Sri Lanka this month after the death of a Buddhist monk known for his campaign against conversions to Christianity. T.…
SourceKABUL, AFGHANISTAN, December 27, 2003: The draft constitution now being considered by Afghanistan’s Loya Jirga is causing disquiet amongst the Hindu and Sikh community over what they see as its lack of protection for them as minority religious groups. Although what was once a large community has shrunk to just a few thousand, the remaining Hindu and Sikhs have tried…
SourceKABUL, AFGHANISTAN, December 28,2003: The years of war in Afghanistan has damaged or completely destroyed ancient temples in the country. For instance, the Shor Bizar area of old Kabul — once the Indian heart of the city — is now in ruins. And the area boasts of a 500-year-old Shiv Mandir. Jitender Sharma, the priest, succeeds his father and grandfather,…