INDIA, September 24, 2026 (India Weekly): India’s latest Domestic Tourism Expenditure Survey offers a revealing look at how people travel within the country, from their reasons for taking trips to the transport they use and the places they choose to stay. The survey shows that domestic travel is closely connected to religion, healthcare, social visits and shopping, with buses, trains…
CHENNAI, INDIA, July 1, 2026 (Hinduism Today): Dr. Choudary Voleti recounts a long-awaited 2023 pilgrimage through South India after spending most of his adult life in the United States. His journey included Chidambaram, Srirangam, Thanjavur, Madurai, Thirupparankundram, Rameswaram, Tiruchendur, Suchindram and Padmanabhaswamy Temple, among other sacred sites. He describes the pilgrimage as an interplay between human effort and what he…
SRINAGAR, JAMMU And KASHMIR, September 24, 2026 (India Today): Srinagar’s historic Sheetalnath Temple in the Habba Kadal area reopened after 36 years, with temple bells, Vedic chants and havan rituals marking the revival of the shrine that had remained closed amid decades of unrest in Kashmir. The reopening brought together scores of Kashmiri Pandits who travelled from different parts of…
SAN JOSE, CALIFORNIA, July 1, 2026 (Hinduism Today): Lakshmi Sridharan surveys the history, uses and properties of cardamom, cloves and nutmeg, three prized Asian spices whose value helped propel European maritime trade with India and Southeast Asia. Green cardamom is indigenous to the Western Ghats of South India, while black cardamom originated in the eastern Himalayas. Cloves and nutmeg originated…
TIRUVANNAMALAI, INDIA, September 25, 2026 (The Hindu): After nearly a decade, the Arunachaleswarar Temple in Tiruvannamalai received an eight-year-old elephant named Hiralal from Assam. HR&CE officials said that the elephant arrived at the temple premises around 9.30 p.m. on Thursday. The Department received the animal after the death of Rukmani, a 30-year-old female elephant, in March 2018 due to an…
SEATTLE, WASHINGTON, July 1, 2026 (Hinduism Today): Vidya Mohan explores the South Indian Navaratri tradition of golu, in which families arrange handcrafted dolls on stepped displays and invite friends and neighbors to visit during the festival. Known variously as bomma, bombe or golu, the displays include Gods and Goddesses, saints, historical figures, people, animals and scenes from Hindu scripture and…
TURIN, ITALY, September 14, 2026 (La Voce, translated from Italian): A statue of Ganesha is adorned with flowers, crafted from clay and painted with natural pigments. Surrounding it are hundreds of people, incense, fruit, and prayers; for a few hours, the Po becomes not merely Turin’s river, but the setting for the conclusion of one of Hinduism’s most recognizable rituals.…
INDONESIA, September 8, 2026 (Conde Nast Traveller): Somewhere in the eastern corner of Indonesia, high up in the Tengger mountains of East Java, sits a centuries-old Ganesha statue. The Lord’s presence is a testament to the local population’s belief in Hindu religious practices, passed down for generations. People cross the massif and scale 7,641ft up an active volcano, where the…
INDONESIA, September 18, 2026 (Indonesia Expat): The Indonesian Ministry of Tourism, together with various ministries, agencies and local governments, has renewed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) regarding the use of Prambanan, Borobudur, Mendut and Pawon Temples for religious purposes by Hindu and Buddhist communities in Indonesia and around the world. Indonesian Minister of Tourism Widiyanti Putri Wardhana stated that this…
INDIA, September 18, 2026 (News India Times): Every year, Maharashtra, especially Mumbai and Pune, goes crazy with Ganesh Utsava celebrations. In Maharashtra, it is a high-energy, deeply emotional, 10-day cultural phenomenon. While South Indian traditions are heavily rooted in temple-centric, scriptural Agama protocols, Maharashtrian celebrations are defined by an exuberant blend of intimate household hospitality and massive, roaring community street…
