SourceINDIA, APRIL 22, 2003: This lengthy article written by Sankrant Sanu begins, “India, like many other former colonies, suffers from a class-system based on knowledge of the erstwhile colonial language, which in the case of India is English. This class system has manifested as a reference and social status given to people that spoke most like their masters, with a…
SourceKATHMANDU, NEPAL, October 19, 2003: There is no official record of how many Nepalis are living on other countries. Representatives of the nonresident Nepalis, using their own resources and means, have compiled these numbers on Nepalis living in foreign lands. There are 21 million Nepalese in Nepal, who are 89.5% Hindu. About five million Nepalis are estimated to be living…
SourceUSA, October 19, 2003: This unusual website sells a large variety of Hindu-themed merchandise, including t-shirts with slogans such as “Proud Hindu” and “We are all children of God.” They have similarly slogan-embossed coffee mugs, wall clocks, mousepads, lunchboxes, postcard and stickers. One set of items says, “Oh God, Lead us from untruth to truth. Lead us from darkness to…
SourcePENANG, MALAYSIA, October 13, 2003: Malaysian Hindus have been celebrating the festival Navaratri in their country since the early 1920’s. With each successive year, the festival has attracted more participants to the nine-day celebration in honor of Goddess Durga, Lakshmi and Saraswati. This year the festival culminated with a 4 km chariot procession starting at 7 p.m. from Penang Street…
SourceBIHAR, INDIA, October 13, 2003: Bihar prison inmates may be in for a surprise in the next few weeks. State Jail Minister Basawan Bhagat announced at a meeting attended by senior officials, “The prisons have decided to stop providing nonvegetarian food to prisoners and bring about a qualitative change in the vegetarian food. High-quality rice, dal and vegetables will be…
SourceWESTCHESTER, NEW YORK, October 13, 2003: Once again Hindus in the U.S.A. have brought their religion closer to home. Westchester County’s first Hindu temple was consecrated and icons of Gods and Goddesses were installed recently while priests chanted Sanskrit and bathed the deities with milk, honey, yogurt, sugar and clarified butter. The article says, “The deities, made in Ahmadabad, India,…
SourceNEW DELHI, INDIA, October 15, 2003: Hinduism Today correspondent Rajiv Malik reports from Delhi, “On Karva Chauth day, which was observed in North India on October 13 and 14, tens of millions of women keep a fast, taking neither food nor water, for the well being and long life of their husbands. The prominent government minister, Mrs. Sushma Swaraj, dressed…
Paras RamoutarTRINIDAD, October 15, 2003: An acclaimed folk group from the state of Rajasthan, India, will provide nightly performances at the 17th annual Divali Nagar for one week, from today. The group will perform at the Divali Nagar Centre, Endeavour Road, Chaguanas, until Thursday, October 23. Additionally, a pictorial exhibition on the theme of the child is being researched and…
SourceSINGAPORE, October 16, 2003: About 3,200 men made the ceremonial dash across a pit of hot coals at Sri Mariamman Temple yesterday, as part of the annual Hindu festival of Thimithi. The fire-walking festival has been held at the South Bridge Road temple since 1840. It is celebrated before Deepavali, which falls on October 24 this year. Hindus cross the…
SourceAYODHYA, INDIA, October 16, 2003: Police in northern India continue to arrest thousands of Hindu activists even as efforts are under way to defuse tensions over their plan to rally near a controversial religious site, states this BBC article. The activists, who belong to the Vishwa Hindu Parishad (VHP), are heading to Ayodhya, as part of a campaign to build…