GO TO SOURCE ALEXANDRIA, VIRGINIA, USA, May 30, 2002, In May, 2002, one of the world’s most loved and respected spiritual Masters, Paramhans Swami Maheshwarananda (Swamiji) will visit North America with the message that “World Peace is in Your Hands.” Sri Swamiji kicks off his North American tour with a seminar and retreat in Alexandria, VA, on May 30-June 2.…
GO TO SOURCE NEW YORK, NEW YORK, May 30, 2001: Author Salman Rushdie offers his analysis and approach to tensions between India and Pakistan in this New York Times editorial, which is, at least in comparison to a lot of editorials on the situation, relatively well-informed on the ground realities. An excerpt, “This time President Musharraf is the one being…
GO TO SOURCE GAYA, INDIA, May 27, 2002: Minor skirmishes on Sunday between Bajrang Dal and Vishwa Hindu Parishad (VHP) activists on the one hand and new Buddhists on the other marred the Buddha Purnima or birthday celebrations, the most important event of the Buddhist calendar. According to the Buddhist belief, it was on this day that rarest of the…
Source: TamilNet SRI LANKA, May 26, 2002: The Federation of Hindu Temples in Batticaloa and Amparai said Sunday that the Sri Lankan security forces in the region continue to encompass more than 15 places of worship in the two districts within the defense perimeters of their camps. The trustee boards of fourteen Hindu temples in Batticaloa and Amparai complained to…
GO TO SOURCE UNITED KINGDOM, May 30, 2001: Scotland is losing its religion, according to research published in the Church of England Newspaper. The paper says that 30 years ago almost everyone claimed a religious identity, but now over one-third have no religious affiliations. In 1972, 43% of Scots said they rarely or never attended church. The paper states, “This…
GO TO SOURCE GANDHINAGAR, INDIA, May 27, 2002: The National Commission for Minorities (NCM) efforts to broker a peace deal between Hindus and Muslims in Gujarat have run into rough weather, according to this report in the Hindustan Times, with the minorities’ delegation refusing to hold talks with VHP and Bajrang Dal representatives. A meeting between representatives of the two…
GO TO SOURCE SYDNEY, AUSTRALIA, May 27, 2002: Hindus in Australia have reacted angrily to the publishing of a cartoon of Lord Ganesha in the Financial Express. The cartoon shows a caricature of Lord Ganesha with four arms standing on a map of India. One hand juggles an atomic bomb, another sticks of dynamite, a third a chicken and the…
Source: Le Mauricien PORT LOUIS, MAURITIUS, May 27, 2002: Nine days of Ram Katha, sacred songs and discourses on the life of Lord Rama, by the famous Pujya Sant Morari Bapu was concluded on May 27 at the Hindu House in Port Louis. Veerendra Ramdhun, president of Hindu House, reported that an average of 3,000 devotees attended each of the…
GO TO SOURCE BHUTAN, May 27, 2002: This PBS report shows how television, introduced in 1998 to this remote country, has already changed many lives. “Here is an excerpt from the show, “In the capital city of Thimphu, Rinzy’s children sit home alone, glued to the set, neglecting their homework. And previously gentle boys from good Buddhist families are now…
GO TO SOURCE DURBAN, SOUTH AFRICA, May 24, 2002: A Zulu song by a South African playwright Mbongeni Ngema allegedly inciting racism against the country’s 1.2 million people of Indian origin has caused consternation within members of the Indian community with the Human Rights Commission saying it will probe the matter. The song, released in February this year, was played…