Source WASHINGTON, DC, USA, October 22, 2011 (huffingtonpost.com): Contrary to common perception, violence worldwide is diminishing. [HPI note: Violence per person is diminishing; see the numbers at source.] Yes, there’s still bloodshed nearly everywhere you look–Africa, Pakistan, Iraq, Afghanistan, the US, Mexico and even Norway–but historically, we’ve never had it this peaceful. The reality is not painted in the bloody…
Source INDIA, October 25, 2011 (theaustralian.com.au): A luxury shopping mall in Mumbai sports the world’s first ATM to dispense diamond jewelry as well as gold and silver coins, serving Indians’ apparently unquenchable appetite for jewels and precious metals. The machine offers a range of 36 products, from 10-gram gold coins etched with an image of Lakshmi, the Hindu goddess of…
Source USA, November 5, 2011 (www.care2.com, by Delia Quigley): As yoga has grown and spread throughout the West, chanting the sacred Sanskrit words has spread right along with it. Chanting or singing your prayers has been a vital part of worship in every religion worldwide. It is done to soothe and quiet the mind, awaken spiritual energy and heal the…
Source TRINIDAD AND TOBAGO, Tuesday, October 25, 2011 (newsday.co.tt): The Minister of Arts and Multiculturalism Winston “Gypsy” Peters yesterday distributed checks exceeding US$ 61,000 to three cultural groups for the hosting of this year’s Divali celebrations. The three organizations receiving checks were the National Council for Indian Culture (NCIC) who received over US$ 20,500, the Sanatan Dharma Maha Sabha (SDMS)…
Religion News Service WASHINGTON, October 25, 2011 (by David Gibson/Kevin Eckstrom, RNS): American Catholics have by and large remained loyal to the core teachings and sacraments of their faith, but increasingly tune out the hierarchy on issues of sexual morality, according to a new study released on October 24. The sweeping survey shows that over the last quarter-century, U.S. Catholics…
Source NEW YORK, October 30, 2011 (NY Times): After decades in which cancer screening was promoted as an unmitigated good, as the best — perhaps only — way for people to protect themselves from the ravages of a frightening disease, a pronounced shift is under way. Now expert groups are proposing less screening for prostate, breast and cervical cancer and…
Indian Express NEPAL, November 5, 2011 (by Yubaraj Ghimire for the Indian Express):Nepal was declared a secular state more than five years ago, but politicians’ use of religion is still strong. On Vijayadashami day, October 6, President Ram Baran Yadav offered prasad to senior government officials and others in his office, following a practice of the monarchs before Nepal became…
Source GEORGE TOWN, MALAYSIA, November 2, 2011(The Sun Daily): Thousands of Hindu devotees made their way to the Sri Arulmigu Ganesha temple, near Vale of Tempe, during its re-consecration ceremony today. The five-day event, which is celebrated once every 12 years, started Saturday, and saw devotees flocking to the temple to pray and bring offerings for blessings. With thousands of…
Source If you long to see God, take to spiritual practices. What is the good of merely crying, “O God! O God!”?— Sri Ramakrishna Paramahansa (1836-1886)
Source We live in a moment of history where change is so speeded up that we begin to see the present only when it is already disappearing.— R.D. Laingt (1927-1989), Scottish psychiatrist