Source Sectarianism, bigotry and its horrible descendant, fanaticism, have long possessed this beautiful Earth. They have filled the Earth with violence, drenched it often with human blood, destroyed civilizations and sent whole nations to despair. Had it not been for these horrible demons, human society would be far more advanced than it is now.— Swami Vivekananda (1863-1902), disciple of Sri…
Source INDIA, September 5, 2012 (theprovince.com): HPI Note: Our readers have expressed interest in the proposed McDonalds at two sacred spots in India, so we are running a few more news items on the subject. McDonald’s, home of the Big Mac, is facing Hindu protests over plans to open restaurants in two of India’s most revered religious centers and pilgrimage…
Source WASHINGTON, D.C. September 5, 2012 (BBC): HPI note: We don’t report on national politics, but for those interested, BBC correspondent Seema Dirohi has produced a insightful story on the political affiliation of Indian-Americans, available at “source” above. A related report with a more religious slant is here.
Source USA, September 5, 2012 (Forbes): McDonald’s plans to open vegetarian outlets in two holy cities in India. Why is the company that perfected burger flipping delving into the likes of McVeggie, McAloo Tikki and McSpicy Paneer, after more than 16 years in India? Here’s one possibility — global comparable sales were flat in July. The U.S. was down 0.1%,…
Source MILWAUKEE, WISCONSIN, September 4, 2012 (jsonline.com): The leader of a Hindu sect in Milwaukee who was convicted of bringing sham priests to the United States under a religious worker visa program will be sitting behind bars as he awaits sentencing. Sagarsen Haldar was ordered detained last week by U.S. District Judge Rudolph Randa, who cited the risk that Haldar…
Source KASHMIR, September 4, 2012 (presstv.com): HPI Note: The following report comes from a pro-Pakistan website favoring Kashmir “independence” and should be taken accordingly. After four years of relative calm, the issue related to a Hindu shrine in Indian-controlled Kashmir seems to pop up again. This comes as the Supreme Court of India issued orders to build permanent roads and…
Source INDIA, September 4, 2012 (The Telegraph): McDonald’s will open its first vegetarian-only restaurants in India next year to cater for pilgrims to sacred sites. Burgers and fries have proved a winning formula since the McDonald brothers created their eponymous fast food franchise in 1955. But now meat will be struck from the menu for the first time in an…
Source Do you want God to be yours? Then you must first become His!— Dada J.P. Vaswani, spiritual head of Sadhu Vaswani Mission
Source The leaders of three religions A, B and C decided to convene a meeting to bring about peace. God was so pleased with their efforts that He sent an angel to them during the meeting. The angel asked the leaders what they wished. The leader of religion A said, “Religion B is responsible for all the problems. So please…
Source CASTEGNATO, ITALY, February 12, 2012 (bsnews.it, translated the Italian): A huge bell, cast at the Poli Vittorio Veneto Foundry, has arrived in Castegnato for final polishing and detail work. The bell is 2.85 meters (9.3 feet) tall and 2.10 meters (6.9 feet) wide at the base. It weighs in at 12,342 kilos (6-1/4 tons.) The bell’s clapper alone weighs…