Source: The Hindu, Chennai THIRUVANANTHAPURAM, INDIA, December 14, 2000: An inquisition by the crime branch of the Sabarimala Temple in Kerala, South India, has been ordered by the administrative board after a bloated lizard and a shrew tail was discovered in a prasadam (food blessed in the temple ritual) can by a devotee. Ruling out the possibility that the creatures…
GO TO SOURCE LONDON, ENGLAND: Over a 10-year period Anglican and Roman Catholic church-attendance figures are down in England and Wales. Baptisms and church marriages are also in decline. The Anglican Church in Hereford is a case in point. Even with some 1,000 parishioners, weekly attendance averages only about 60. At the same time, other religions (not including Judaism) have…
GO TO SOURCE HONESDALE, PENNSYLVANIA, December 15, 2000: Beginning on January 9, 2001, and continuing through the month, the staff of Himalayan Institute will post “the Kumbha Mela Times,” a daily online newspaper covering the upcoming Kumbha Mela in Allahabad, India. Thirty million devotees are expected on the main bathing day in late January.
GO TO SOURCE WILBRAHAM, MASSACHUSETTS, December 15, 2000: The family of Dr. Abhaychandra L. Mehta has requested HPI to inform Hindus that Dr. Mehta passed away on February 28, 2000, two days after his 83rd birthday, of pulmonary fibrosis. An ayurvedic physician, teacher and practitioner of pancha karma, Dr. Mehta was the former principal of Gujarat Ayurveda University Hospital in…
GO TO SOURCE CHICAGO, ILLINOIS, December 15, 2000: Illinois has become the first state in the nation to ban the sale of bidi cigarettes, tiny, hand-rolled, flavored cigarettes, which are popular among young teens. “Bidi cigarettes resemble marijuana joints, which may influence their popularity,” said the Governor’s statement. “The United Stages government’s Centers for Disease Control found that bidis produce…
Source: Indian Express MUMBAI, INDIA, December 6, 2000: An estimated 250,000 sadhus and 700,000 pilgrims are expected to visit Trimbakeshwar in the Himalayas for a holy bath between July 30, 2003, and August 26, 2004, when Nashik hosts the Kumbh Mela. Dates will be ratified at a meeting on January 14 at Allahabad. According to the dates declared, the Sinhasta…
Source: The Hindu NEW DELHI, INDIA, December 11, 2000: The Ramakrishna Mission has incurred an expenditure of over US$22,000,000 on education, health and relief as well as developmental works undertaken during 1999 – 2000. Over $14.8 million, much of it subsidies from the government of India, was spent by the Mission’s educational institutions imparting knowledge to nearly 170,000 students. Medical…
Source: Hinduism Today FLUSHING, NEW YORK, December 15, 2000: According to the latest bulletin from the Hindu Temple Society of North America which governs the Ganesha Temple in Flushing, a new dress code is in force. “Certain kinds of dress are inappropriate for attending the temple,” says the bulletin. “These include shorts for both men and women; very short skirts,…
Source: Dainkik Bhaskar, Bhopal KHILCHIPUR, INDIA, December 5, 2000: To promote world peace Sri Ram Nam Jap, the chanting of Lord Rama’s name, has been organized and inspired by religious leader Sri Balyogi Rammilan Das Ji Maharaj of Kashi at the Naharda Hanuman Temple premises. According to Sri Balyogi Maharaj, this was the first huge sacred offering of it’s kind…
Source: South China Morning Post, November 27, 2000 KATHMANDU, INDIA: To have our last rites performed according to the Vedas is the parting wish of all devout Hindus. With the shortage of wood for many of the crematoria in Kathmandu, Nepal, the government has established an electric crematorium in the area around Pashupatinath Temple. Traditional funerals, with wood and hay…