GO TO SOURCE AHMEDABAD, INDIA, October 31, 2002: Nearly a thousand Dalits (“untouchables”) in Ahmedabad reportedly embraced Buddhism on Sunday while followers of Babasaheb Ambedkar chanted during the ceremony. A delegation of 20 monks and nuns from Bodh Gaya, Sri Lanka, Bangladesh, Myanmar, Cambodia, Thailand and Vietnam initiated them into the religion. Bhante Mahanama from Bodh Gaya, presided over the…
GO TO SOURCE OTTAWA, CANADA, October 31, 2002: The Canadian office of the Council on American-Islamic Relations has released a guide on Islam for journalists, according to this report from Religion News Service. “A Journalist’s Guide to Islam,” heralded as the first of its kind, is intended to provide “ready and accurate information in areas that media professionals might encounter…
GO TO SOURCE DURBAN SOUTH AFRICA, October 28,2002: South Africa’s National Assembly’s Safety and Security Portfolio Committee agreed last week to recommend the Explosives Bill on November 5, a day after Deepavali. The bill, if passed, will prohibit the use of fireworks without a permit. The controversy erupted at a time when a massive firework display was held by Hindus…
Source: The Houston Chronicle HOUSTON, TEXAS, October 19, 2002: The festival of Navaratri, the nine-night Hindu festival honoring three Goddesses is celebrated in grand style by South Indian Hindus now living in Texas. Born in Chennai, southern India, where Navarathri is one of the major religious celebrations, Ranjana Narasiman says, “Sometimes I feel I’m living two cultural lives, and 24…
GO TO SOURCE USA, October 1, 2002: Produced every two weeks and available for free subscription at “source,” this newsletter focuses on “Improving and popularizing Ayurveda and all the holistic systems of medicine.” This October 1 edition features an article written by Dr. Vijay Shekhar Annambhotla on the concept of immunity in Ayurveda. Doctor Annambhotla categorizes immunity into three types:…
GO TO SOURCE WOODSTOCK, NEW YORK, October 18, 2002: Spray-painted on a rock face along Route 28 in the Catskill Mountains is the Hindu sign for Om. It is a subtle suggestion of the energy that vibrates throughout the region, according to this recent article. Some call it the bhajan belt, applying a word derived from Sanskrit for devotional song…
GO TO SOURCE KOLKATA, INDIA, October 27, 2002: Mathematics in its early stages developed mainly along two broad overlapping traditions, geometric/arithmetic and algebra. Among the Pre-Greek civilizations, it is in India that we see a strong emphasis on both these great streams of mathematics. The oldest known mathematics texts in existence are the Sulba Sutras of Baudhayana, Apastamba and Katyana,…
GO TO SOURCE LONDON, ENGLAND, October 25, 2002: British Prime Minister Tony Blair said Deepavali, celebrated by Hindus worldwide, contains a message for “all of us, whatever our faith.” Stressing that “Britain’s diversity of backgrounds and experiences has brought tremendous strengths and benefits to the society,” the Prime Minister said festivals like Deepavali “play an important role in helping us…
Source: The Hindu TALACAUVERY, INDIA, October 18, 2002: Thousands of devotees of the Goddess Cauvery were able to witness the annual event where the Goddess emerges from a tiny pond in the form of a holy spring. Priests chanted Vedic hymns during the ceremony called “teerthodbhava” that ended with many pilgrims jumping into the tank for ablution. In preparation for…