Source SRI LANKA, June 1, 2018 (Up, translated from French): In Sri Lanka, a family business produces paper from elephant dung. It’s an ecological alternative to fight the ravages of deforestation. Ninety percent of the products (notebooks, photo albums, maps) are exported abroad. For the past twenty years, the company Maximus has developed an unusual and environmentally friendly paper manufacturing…
SORENG, INDIA, May 31, 2018 (Washington Post): Fifteen years ago, the tiny Indian state of Sikkim (population 610,000) launched a radical experiment: Its leaders decided to phase out pesticides on every farm in the state, a move without precedent in India — and probably the world. The change was especially significant for India, a country whose progress in agriculture was…
Source UNITED STATES, May 22, 2018 (Patheos, by Mat McDermott): The phenomenon of non-Indians adopting Hinduism is not new. However, the stories of how individuals came to the religion have not been regularly recorded. I hope to rectify that by time to time publishing interviews with those people who weren’t raised Hindu but now publicly identify as such, in the…
Source Your heart is the temple where God should be enshrined. Your good thoughts are the flowers, your good words the hymns, your good deeds the rituals. And love is the offering.— Mata Amritanandamayi Ma, Kerala-based hugging saint
Source MALAYSIA, May 26, 2018 (The Star): The government is planning to set up Hindu Endowment Boards in all states to ensure credibility and transparency in temple management. Human Resources Minister M. Kulasegaran said the board would ensure conformity and uniformity in the running of temples nationwide, as well as make public the financial accounts of temples. “We want to…
Source TIRUPATI, INDIA, May 29, 2018 (The Hans India): With the summer vacation drawing to a close, especially to the school-going children, the temple city of Tirupati has been witnessing a peak in the pilgrim crowd. For the past several days, the transit points have been bustling with activity as many people are making last minute plans to visit the…
Source Anger is nothing but an attachment for an object, when expressed towards an obstacle between ourselves and the object of our attachment.— Swami Chinmayananda (1916-1993), founder of Chinmaya Mission
Source INDIA, May 25, 2018 (Scroll): “Pull of Pulses,” by Salma Husain and Vijay Thukral, details the cultural history of lentils. In India the word dal is commonly used for lentils, a generic term used for an enormous number of lentils which range in color. Lentils to India are as the meatloaf is to Europe and the United States. Ranging…
Source SAINT-PAUL, REUNION, May 24, 2018 (Linfo, auto-translated from French): The Tamil community of Reunion is paying tribute to the God Muruga, the leader of the heavenly armies, God of youth and beauty. The cavadee is synonymous with spiritual rebirth and purification of souls. After ten days of fasting and prayers, thousands of penitents will participate in the Cavadee procession…
Source INDIA, May 24, 2018 (Swarajyamag): The Yogi Adityanath government in Uttar Pradesh (UP) is likely to take a decision to rename Allahabad to Prayagraj as the city prepares to host the Kumbh Mela in 2019, ANI has reported. The news comes amidst reports that several banners for the next year’s Kumbh already sport the name Prayagraj instead of Allahabad.…