News

Source I loved my motherland dearly before I went to America and England. After my return, every particle of dust of this land seems sacred to me.— Swami Vivekananda (1863-1902)

Source MYSORE, INDIA, December 5, 2014 (Huffington Post): “I have found my best work comes in the form of ‘environmental portraits’,” photographer Christine Hewitt writes on her website, “where I am able to capture the subject and their surroundings in a fine balance of aesthetic appeal, visual interest and storytelling.” Now, she’s combining that aesthetic storytelling with a good cause.…

Source CAMBRIDGE, MASSACHUCETTS, December 4, 2014 (Harvard University): The Pluralism Project at Harvard University was created to help Americans engage with the realities of religious diversity through research, outreach, and the active dissemination of resources. It is a two-decade-long research program to engage students in studying the new religious diversity in the United States. The Hinduism in America Timeline begins…

Source INDIA, December 1, 2014 (BBC): Businessman Mahesh Savani hosted a mass wedding for 111 couples near the city of Surat, in the western state of Gujarat, the NDTV website reports. All of the women came from humble backgrounds and had lost their fathers, so wouldn’t have been able to finance the nuptials themselves, the website says. On top of…

Source ISLAMABAD, PAKISTAN, December 3, 2014 (Times of India): A Hindu temple was attacked by fanatics in Pakistan, the temple was torched, the stone Deity of Lord Hanuman blackened with soot, and some religious books burnt. This attack on November 21, in the Tando Mohammad Khan area in Sindh, and reported in the Dawn newspaper, is however, not a one-off…

Source To define God is grinding what is already ground; for He is the only being we know.— Swami Vivekananda (1863-1902), founder of the Ramakrishna Mission

Source NEW DELHI, INDIA, December 3, 2014 (Washington Post): Shripad Yesso Naik, India’s new yoga minister, dreams of a day when sun salutations and downward-facing dog pose will be as popular in their homeland as they are around the world. Yes, India now has a minister of yoga — and he and his government want their cultural bliss back. Indian…

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 VIRGINIA, USA, December 3, 2014: Hindu University of America, in conjunction with Vishwa Hindu Parishad of America, is pleased to present the first Training Course for American Hindu Leaders to become Certified Volunteer Chaplains of the Hindu Faith. The course will be presented at Satchidananda Ashram-Yogaville, in Buckingham, Virginia, Monday Januar 5 through 9, 2015. The three main instructors…

Source INDIA, December 1, 2014 (The Hindu): At a time when the central government decided to celebrate the birth anniversary of Tamil poet Tiruvalluvar in schools across the country, his majestic statue may soon find a place in Moscow, Russia. “Tiruvalluvar is a great and celebrated poet. His contribution to the Tamil literature is well known. We have received a…