Source DHAKA, BANGLADESH, December 16, 2011 (AFP): When Bangladesh became an independent nation after a bloody nine-month battle with Pakistan that ended 40 years ago Friday, Narayan Chandra Das, a Bengali Hindu fleeing from Pakistan, had high hopes for his new country. Forty years after independence, creeping religious extremism, discriminatory policies and a series of violent attacks on Hindus, have,…
Source Three monks met and decided to practice meditation together. They sat by the side of a lake and closed their eyes in concentration. Suddenly, the first one stood up and said, “I forgot my mat.” He stepped miraculously onto the water in front of him and walked across the lake to their hut on the other side. When he…
Source I have come to the conclusion that long before all other heavenly books, God had revealed to the Hindus through the rishis of yore His four books of knowledge, the Rig Veda, the Yajur Veda, the Sama Veda and the Atharva Veda.— Prince Muhammad Dara Shikoh (1627-1658), a Sufi Muslim, later executed by his brother Aurangazeb
Source OXFORD, UK, December 16, 2011: In a speech in Oxford on the 400th anniversary of the King James Bible, the prime minister called for a revival of traditional Christian values to counter Britain’s “moral collapse”. The PM said it was wrong to suggest that standing up for Christianity was “somehow doing down other faiths”. Describing himself as a “committed”…
http://divanee.com/2011/12/13/at-greendale-school-districts-holiday-show-a-hindu-song-sparks-controversy/ GREENDALE, WISCONSIN, December 13, 2011: In a pivotal scene from the 2001 movie “Kabhi Khushi Kabhie Gham”, Shahrukh Khan and Kajol’s on-screen son leads his British classmates in a rendition of the Indian national anthem “Jana Gana Mana”. The scene culminates in every parent standing with their hands on their hearts, peculiarly recognizing a foreign country’s anthem. But when…
Source A Swiss devotee visited Ramana Maharishi (1879-1950), the sage of Arunachala. She was disturbed from having a vision of Siva. “Is He not the Destroyer?” she asked. The mystic replied, “Yes, He is the destroyer of sorrows. Siva is the embodiment of auspiciousness. Have you got a form? That is why you think of Siva’s form. The Self is…
Source [HPI news: Christmas, Hanukkah and Pancha Ganapati together in a Oprah.com article about how to accommodate different traditions in a December 25 family reunion. The advice given in the article may not be particularly insightful, but the fact that Lord Ganesha’s December festival is mentioned in the headline is another sign of Hinduism’s new place in America.] USA, December…
Source CHENNAI, INDIA, December 14, 2011: Tamil Nadu, a southern Indian state, on Wednesday ordered a vacation for elephants employed by temples as part of an official program to “rejuvenate” the weary creatures, officials said. State foresters herded 45 domestic pachyderms from Hindu shrines and hermitages in Tamil Nadu to the coastal state’s Mudumalai forests for a 48-day break to…
Source Every step I take in light is mine forever.— Swami Vivekananda (1863-1902), modern Hindu renaissance master
Source NEW YORK, NEW YORK, December 9, 2011: As Toni Kelly battled lymphoma she worried obsessively that her four-year struggle would destroy her family’s finances. She knew that after she died, which she did on Sept. 29, there was one way she could keep from adding to the $200,000 in medical debt she would leave behind. Like a growing proportion…