Source UNITED STATES, January 31,2013 (Yale Daily News): In an effort to help strengthen Hindu programming on campus, Asha Shipman joined the Chaplain’s Office staff on Jan. 16 as the Yale’s first Hindu life advisor. The new 20-hour-per-week part-time position was created to support the increasing popularity of Hindu programs on campus, University Chaplain Sharon Kugler said. Shipman’s primary responsibility…
Source ALLAHABAD, INDIA, February 2, 2013 (India Real Time): The Kumbh Mela is frequently billed as the world’s largest religious gathering. It is almost certainly true. But how can we know for sure? The two men with the challenge of counting up to an estimated 80 million people are divided on how to do it. They also come up with…
Source It cannot be seen by the eye, and yet it is the eye within the eye. It cannot be heard by the ear, and yet it is the ear within the ear. It cannot be smelt by the nose, and yet it is that which makes the nose to smell. It cannot be uttered by the mouth, and yet…
Source Oh, if you only knew yourselves! You are souls; you are Gods. If ever I feel like blaspheming, it is when I call you man.— Swami Vivekananda (1863-1902)
Source KAPAA, HAWAII, USA, February 6, 2013: Two editors of Hinduism Today from Kauai’s Hindu Monastery in Hawaii will be traveling to Europe to attend the World Yoga Day in Lisbon, Portugal, June 22-24, followed by Spain, Italy, Switzerland, Germany and France (June 25-July 11). See “source” above for current details of their itinerary. A correspondent from the UK will…
Sunthanthiran (Tamil Weekly Newspaper) TORONTO, January 25, 2013 (Sunthanthiran): The International Policy Digest has authentically published a shocking news item, that 367 Hindu temples have been demolished in Sri Lanka, in areas, predominantly populated by Hindu Tamils. This document released in March 2012, has come out in the media now, and has created panic amongst the Tamils. The Rajapakse government…
Source ALLAHABAD, INDIA, February 1, 2013 (Wall Street Journal): For up to 80 million pilgrims–think 10 New York Cities–a Hindu festival now taking place on the banks of the Ganges River in Allahabad, India, is a chance to wash away their sins under ideal astrological conditions. For Suresh Dwivedi, chief medical officer at what is called the Kumbh Mela, the…
Source Every two miles the water doth change, and every four the dialect.— Hindi proverb on India’s languages
Source NEW DELHI, INDIA, February 2, 2013 (India Times): Young Muslim women in India, and even Pakistan, can be increasingly seen sporting the chooda (red bangles), mangalsutra (thaali) and often the sindoor (kumkum powder). And they see no taboo in it, taking it as a fashion statement, something that adds to their “just married” look. “Wearing a chooda doesn’t make…
Source ORLAND, FLORIDA, February 5, 2013: Fifty years after they began arriving from India, the first generation of Indian-Americans is retiring and finding itself in a quandary. Although many have the resources to live comfortably in retirement, some still depend on their children and suffer from social isolation as they navigate old age in an adopted country. The problem is…