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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

AUSTIN ,TX, March 4: A Hays County jury on Friday found the spiritual leader of Barsana Dham guilty of molesting two young girls who grew up at the ashram south of Austin in the mid-1990s. Prakashanand Saraswati, known to his devotees as Shree Swamiji, was convicted of all 20 counts of indecency with a child by sexual contact. The jury…

KAUAI, HI, March 5, 2011: The Apri/May/June edition of Hinduism’s flagship spiritual magazine, Hinduism Today, has been released in digital form and is now available for free on your desktop. The issue takes you to South America, Texas, Vermont, Nepal, Northeast India and more. Hold on to the adventure. But first, our 16-page Insight Section, called ‘The Sacred Earth.’ It’s…

“The inmost center of consciousness–located only after the actinic forces dissolve concepts of form and even consciousness being conscious of itself–is found to be within the center of an energy-spinning force field. This center–intense in its existence, consciousness only on the perimeter of the inside hub of this energy field–vitalizes all externalized form. Losing consciousness into the center of this…

PORT LOUIS, MAURITIUS, March 2, 2011: Once a year thousands of devout souls visit the Ganga Talao (pond), one of the holiest sites on the island, situated at Grande Bassin in the south, offer their prayers to Lord Shiva and bring back jal (water) on Sivaratri. People usually start these preparations more than a month in advance. Before they set…

INDIA, March 2, 2011: Millions of Hindu devotees across the country and the world celebrated Mahashivratri with ritual bathing, fasting and prayers. People thronged temples in thousands during the day, with many waiting in long queues, to offer prayers and pour milk on the Shivalingams representing Lord Shiva. ‘Mahashivratri is celebrated through the night with chanting and prayers. I got…

KAUAI, HI, U.S., MArch 2, 2011: Mahasivaratri is the most important festival dedicated to Lord Siva. This holy day is observed by millions of Hindus all over the world. It is one of Hinduism’s most esoteric holy days, when yoga practices, mantras and meditation take the devotee closer to God’s essence within the core of himself. Hindus typically fast, maintain…

As a dream leads only to waking up, television leads only to turning it off.    Satguru Sivaya Subramuniyaswami, in his book, Living with Siva Source

NEW YORK, February 28, 2011: Rising temperatures, drought and the spread of destructive insect pests will shrink the North American range of the lodgepole pine nearly 10 percent in the next 10 years, a new study finds. Observed ecosystem changes date back to 1980. The study was conducted by forestry researchers at Oregon State University and the Department of Forest…

USA, October, 2010 (by Ramdas Lamb): In the August, 2010 ruling which overturned California’s Proposition 8 banning same-sex marriage, a witness asserted, ‘Religion is the chief obstacle for gay and lesbian political progress.’ Why does religion play such a central role in debates about homosexuality? The first question that should to be addressed is ‘What functions do sex and sexuality…