Source: www.phillyburbs.com PHILADELPHIA, UNITED STATES, January 20, 2010: The BAPS Swaminarayan Temple of Middletown joined in a weeklong celebration of unity, reflecting on the life of Martin Luther King Jr. Sisters of the Blessed Sacrament sat before the statue of the Hindu god Ganesha, the monsignor of a Roman Catholic Church politely accepted the ceremonial flames of arati, as a…
Source: www.kumbh2010haridwar.gov.in NEW DELHI, INDIA, January 22, 2010: Whether you are just curious about the Kumbha Mela, or plan to attend, this very large and inclusive website is a wealth of information. An on-going slideshow in the center of the page is a colorful jumping off point. A series of photos highlight the four locations where the Melas occur, define…
Source: news.theage.com.au CHINA, January 22, 2010: [HPI note: The trend of sex-specific abortions affects India, too, and could bring similar results to India’s population.] More than 24 million Chinese men of marrying age could find themselves without spouses in 2020 due to gender selection abortions by the previous generations. A study done by the government-backed Chinese Academy of Social Sciences,…
Source: www.hinduismtoday.com It is the unique and all-encompassing nature of Hinduism that one devotee may be worshiping Ganesha while his friend worships Subramaniam or Vishnu, and yet both honor the other’s choice and feel no sense of conflict. The profound understanding and universal acceptance that are unique in Hinduism are reflected in this faculty for accommodating different approaches to the…
Source: www.thaindian.com PATNA, INDIA, January 21, 2010: On January 20 Hindus across India celebrated Saraswati Puja on the occasion of Basant Panchami, considered as one of the most auspicious days in the year for initiation of children into learning. In Patna, former Railway Minister Lalu Prasad Yadav celebrated the event with students of his alma mater. “Mainly on this day,…
Source: news.oneindia.in MATHURA, INDIA, January 21, 2010: Though people in north India are faced with a spine-chilling cold, festivities related to Holi, the festival of colors, commenced in Uttar Pradesh’s Mathura city on Wednesday. Every year Holi festivities lasting for 40 days begin here on the day of the Basant Panchami festival. The celebrations attract a large number of domestic…
Source: www.hindustantimes.com UTTAR PRADESH, INDIA, January 21, 2010: He’s 10 years old, his voice hasn’t quite cracked, he can twist his nimble body into yogic postures that would impress Chinese acrobats, and when he grows up he sees himself as a sadhu or holy man. A member of the Juna Akhara, one of the prominent sadhu sectsparticipating in the Kumba…
Source: www.hindustantimes.com HARIDWAR, INDIA, January 20, 2010: Ram Prasad slowly walks up the steps of Har-ki-pauri, one of the holiest Hindu sites on the banks of the Ganga in Haridwar, Uttarakhand. It’s the 37-year-old Mauritius citizen’s third trip to the Kumbh Mela. “I feel quite at home here and am experiencing the kind of spiritual bliss I’ve never felt before,”…
Source: www.hinduismtoday.com A journalist dreamed that he interviewed God and asked Him what surprised Him most about people. God answered, “That they get bored being children, are in a rush to grow up, and then later long to be children again. That they lose their health to make money and then lose their money to restore their health.”
Source: timesofindia.indiatimes.com UDUPI, INDIA, January 20, 2010: This temple town, considered to be the abode of Udupi Sri Krishna, is immersed in the festive mood of Paryaya, the biennial religious ceremony where a seer from the Ashta mutt ascends the Sarvajna Peeta and takes the leadership reins of the temple from the present seer who is relinquishes his responsibility. This…