Source: Hindu Press International MUMBAI, INDIA, August 5, 2002: A recent BBC report by their correspondent, Sanjeev Srivastava, begins, “One of the oldest languages in the world, Sanskrit, is in danger of becoming extinct in India, the country of its origin. Although most Indian languages still use the basic grammar of Sanskrit, no more than a few thousand people in…
GO TO SOURCE NEW DELHI, INDIA, July 26, 2002: Should corporal punishment be banned in schools? Is the curriculum too much for schoolchildren to bear? Why should children be deprived of the five-day week which their parents enjoy? National Human Rights Commission chairman, Justice (Retired) J. S. Verma, has decided to interact with school-goers at four regional schools run by…
GO TO SOURCE NEW DELHI, INDIA, July 31, 2002: Precious folk and tribal art from the Punjab and Himachal Pradesh is being preserved and cared for at the House of Folk Art. Originally started by K. C. Aryan, well-known art historian, sculptor and art painter, the museum is now cared for by Mr. Aryan’s son and daughter. According to the…
Source: The Star Tribune MINNEAPOLIS, MINNESOTA, June 8, 2002: Anant Rambachan, professor of religion at St. Olaf College, is one of ten religious experts worldwide invited to the Vatican to discuss religious tolerance. Rambachan wants to find constructive solutions to the world’s violence by encouraging the world’s major religions to find common ground, common voices and common values. When genuine…
Source: Religion News Service LONDON, ENGLAND, August 6, 2002: Both the Roman Catholic Church and the Church of England have announced their support for scrapping the English law against blasphemy and replacing it with a more generalized law against incitement to religious hatred. The present blasphemy law only covers material denying the truth of Christianity, the Bible or the Church…
GO TO SOURCE BHOPAL, INDIA, July 31, 2002: Sant Ram Kishore Das Khade Shree Maharaj has never in the past nine years sat or lied down. Originally from Nepal, the 73-year-old saint has pledged to remain standing for at least 14 years for world peace. Sant Ram feels he can remain standing for more than 14 years or even through…
GO TO SOURCE AHMEDABAD/VADODARA/RAJKOT, INDIA, August 3, 2002: On the first anniversary of the January 26 earthquake, the Narendra Modi government ordered special prayers to appease the dharti mata. Various organizations all over the state are praying for a revival of the monsoon. People are resorting to several methods to solicit divine intervention to avoid a drought. In Vadodara, plans…
GO TO SOURCE HYDERABAD, INDIA, July 26, 2002: Heaps of garbage, overflowing drains and filth all around was what the Mayor, T. Krishna Reddy, got to see in the vicinity of the famous Ujjaini Mahankali temple even as the annual Bonalu festivities commence on Sunday. The Mayor warned of stringent action if the “mess was not cleared up immediately.” Though…
GO TO SOURCE KASHMIR, INDIA, August 5, 2002: This long New York Times report begins, “Shouting ‘Hail Hail Shiva!’ thousands of Hindu pilgrims crowded two narrow dirt tracks high in the Himalayan mountains of the disputed territory of Kashmir. Even though the pilgrimage is purely religious, it has not escaped the conflict in this battered territory. The threat of attacks…
Source: The Guardian (London) LONDON, ENGLAND, July 8, 2002: The Church of England has thrown its weight behind an extraordinary proposal to unite Muslim, Jewish, Christian and Hindu children in the country’s first multi-faith secondary school. The plans, backed by leading figures from all four of Britain’s main religious groups, are aimed at transforming the image of faith-based education which…