CHINA, August 10, 2024 (SCMP): A top university law graduate in China has been arrested for stealing donation money from Buddhist temples in a number of provinces by changing their receipt QR codes to his own. The man, whose identity was not released, confessed to the police that he had stolen more than 30,000 yuan (US$4,200) from temples in the…
BALI, INDONESIA, September 27, 2024 (Surfline, by Nick Carroll): Ulu Watu. The name triggers a deluge of images for surfers worldwide. Dream-like visions of long peeling lefts, trade-winds, sunsets. Images of Bali as Paradise, the ultimate escape. As one surfer we spoke to while researching this story told us: “It’s one of the holiest places on earth, and one of…
JAKARTA, INDONESIA, September 20, 2024 (Independent Observer): The Kingdom of the Netherlands is returning hundreds of objects of Indonesian cultural value that have been kept in the country since the colonial era, based on the recommendation of the Dutch Colonial Collections Committee. The Dutch Education, Culture, and Science Minister Eppo Bruins explained that the repatriation of the cultural objects would…
USA, September 24, 2024 (Religion News Service, by G. Jeffrey MacDonald): As many as 100,000 Christian church-owned buildings are expected to be sold or repurposed by 2030, according to an analysis in a new book, “Gone for Good? Negotiating the Coming Wave of Church Property Transition.” Though Sunday attendance has recovered in part from COVID-19 restrictions, a decades-long decline has…
INDIA, September 25, 2024 (The Hindu): Even as the sacred Tirumala laddu is shrouded in controversy over the alleged use of adulterated ghee in its preparation, the focus has now shifted to inscriptions at the Lord Venkateswara temple in the town, which refer to measures to be taken while handling ingredients, especially ghee. The temples in Tirumala and Tirupati have…
INDIA, September 23, 2024 (India Currents, by Vijay Rajvaidya): The Rann of Kutch in Gujarat is a place that many from India have heard about, yet few have truly experienced. A vast, desolate salt flat, this was once part of the Arabian Sea until the waters receded, leaving behind a stark, shimmering expanse. Divided into the Little Rann and the…
SAINT LOUIS, MISSOURI, September 25, 2024 (West News Magazine): Right behind the Wildwood YMCA recreational fields lies the site of the upcoming Murugan Temple of Saint Louis, a project spearheaded by the devotees of the Hindu Deity Lord Murugan. On Sept. 14-15, a consecration ceremony of smaller Deities – Utsava Vighra – was held for the temple. Priest Shri Bharadwaj…
UNITED STATES, September 23, 2024 (RNS, by Khyati Y Joshi): Outside my fourth-floor window, the sounds of devotional chanting, lively music and drum beats echoed in the narrow street below. It was Ganesh Chaturthi, a 10-day Hindu festival that earlier this month celebrated the birth of Ganesha, the beloved elephant-headed God known as the remover of obstacles. As a second-generation…
UNITED STATES, September 21, 2024 (Economic Times): A new theory by Michael Pravica, a professor of physics at the University of Nevada, Las Vegas, suggests that human consciousness might originate from hidden dimensions of the universe rather than solely from brain activity. Pravica claims that during moments of heightened awareness— like making art, practicing science or even dreaming—our consciousness could…
KUALA LUMPUR, September 20, 2024 (Malaysia News): The Shree Lakshmi Narayan Mandir, founded over a century ago, has always served as the focal point for a thriving North Indian community in Malaysia. The North Indian community began settling in Malaya during the British colonial rule. The Shree Lakshmi Narayan Mandir began as a place of worship in Kuala Lumpur town…
