Source KATHMANDU, NEPAL, May 22, 2015 (PTI): Around 200 Buddhist monks and nuns were killed when about 1,000 monasteries collapsed in the massive April 25 earthquake and subsequent aftershocks in Nepal, according to authorities. Buddhist philosophy promotion and monastery development committee (BPPMDC), under the ministry of federal affairs and local development, said that all 215 monasteries in Sindhupalchok district were…
Source BEIJING, CHINA, May 19, 2015 (Business Standard): Participation of Premier Li Keqiang in the high profile yoga-tai chi event along with Prime Minister Narendra Modi here recently and the permission to set up the first India-assisted yoga college in China is seen as an official sanction for its spread in the communist nation. Li’s participation in the colorful yoga-tai…
Source NEPAL, May 20, 2015 (France 24): The massive earthquakes that recently hit Nepal caused the loss of thousands of lives, but they also destroyed numerous temples. In a strange twist of fate, some holy statues survived the two quakes and their aftershocks… because they were stolen and smuggled abroad several decades ago. Nepalese people are now calling for their…
Source You shine, all living things emerge. You disappear, they go to rest. Recognizing our innocence, O golden-haired Sun, arise; let each day be better than the last. — Rig Veda (X, 37, 9)
Source INDIA, May 21, 2015 (The Hindu): A special convention of Elephant Owners Association held here on Monday called upon people to protect festivals and cultural heritage of the state. “The people with vested interests have misled the court that elephant owners were misusing elephants for making money. We should try to convince Union ministers about the importance of festivals,…
Source The atman in you is that which indwells all things.” “Tell me, Yajnavalkya, about this atman that indwells all things.” “It is that which transcends hunger and thirst, sorrow and delusion, old age and death.”— Brihadaranyaka Upanishad III, 5A
Source UNITED KINGDOM, April 14, 2015 (Daily Mail): Will Germans be the eventual custodians of Sanskrit, its rich heritage and culture? If the demand for Sanskrit and Indology courses in Germany is any indication, that’s what the future looks like. Unable to cope with the flood of applications from around the world, the South Asia Institute, University of Heidelberg, had…
Source INDIA, April 24, 2015 (Swarajya): A few days ago a US official revealed the full extent of “Operation Hidden Idol” which had recovered approximately 2,600 items worth an estimated 650 Crores ($100 million). This brought out the truth about scores of artefacts being stolen by just one disgraced art dealer, Subhash Kapoor. And this was just the number seized…
Source BELGIUM, May 5, 2015 (Dunia News): The celebration of Saraswati by Bali Hindus was held solemnly at Pura Santi Agung Bhuwana in Brugelette, Belgium on Saturday, May 2nd, 2015. At least 500 Balinese Hindus from 12 European countries participated. The event saw a series of ceremonies that began on Friday. A communal prayer ceremony ritual formally began the celebration…
Source PHNOM PENH, CAMBODIA, MAY 17, 2015 (By Sopheng Cheang, The Associated Press): Cambodia welcomed home a 10th century stone statue of a Hindu God that was looted from a temple during the country’s civil war and spent the past three decades at an American museum. The sculpture of Hanuman was formally handed over Tuesday at a ceremony in Phnom…