Source: sify.com TAMIL NADU, INDIA, October 26, 2009: A special wing of Tamil Nadu police has recovered a stolen emerald murti of Lord Shiva worth over US$10 million. “This emerald Deity is very precious one which could be valued around 500 million rupees in the market was stolen from Tiruturaipundi temple and yesterday a special team has arrested the main…
Source: Religion News Service UNITED STATES, October 24, 2009: The Department of Homeland Security has amended its uniform and grooming policies after a Sikh man lost his job for wearing a turban and refusing to shave. Federal standards had required security guards to be clean-shaven and to wear a specified uniform and hat, two things that conflict with Sikh requirements…
Source: www.swans.com INDIA, September 8, 2009: [HPI note: this is an opinion piece by Raju Peddada dealing with the serious side effects that unethical conversion has in Indian villages. ] I distinctly remember the smells and sounds of the remote south Indian villages. In those innocent years, you could hear mothers calling out to their kids to come home for…
Source: timesofindia.indiatimes.com NEW DELHI, INDIA, October 25, 2009: The festival of Poorvanchalis, Chhath was celebrated with much fervor in the city. The banks of the Yamuna were reverberating with devotional Bhojpuri folk songs on Saturday. Thousands of devotees thronged the ghats to offer prayers to the setting sun. After fasting the entire day, people offered Chhath Sandhya Arghya to the…
Source: www.mlive.com ALLENDALE, MICHIGAN, October 4, 2009: Tales of romance, war and salvation constitute a fraction of the dozens of ancient Indian epics explored in “Mystic India, Land of Color and Tradition: Folk Art and Miniature Paintings” opening Monday inside the art gallery of the Grand Valley State University of Michigan. The exhibit features more than 60 pieces of Indian…
Source: news.bbc.co.uk LONDON, UK, October 28, 2009: An extract found in the bright yellow curry spice turmeric can kill off cancer cells, scientists have shown. The chemical — curcumin — has long been thought to have healing powers and is already being tested as a treatment for arthritis and even dementia. Now tests by a team at the Cork Cancer…
Source: www.wmf.org KAUAI, HI, USA, October 27, 2009: The article “Forgetting Hinduism When Preserving the Past,” from the October 24th edition of HPI, incorrectly listed the monuments on Indian soil that the World Monuments Foundation is protecting. The main point of the article, however, remains unchanged: none of the selected monuments in India are relevant to Hinduism. The correct list…
Source: www.hinduismtoday.com India was the motherland of our race and Sanskrit the mother of Europe’s languages. India was the mother of our philosophy, of much of our mathematics, of the ideals embodied in Christianity… of self-government and democracy. In many ways, Mother India is the mother of us all. Will Durant, American Historian (1885-1981)
Source: blog.baliwww.com BALI, October 14, 2009: Balinese Hindus all over the country celebrated Galungan, a holyday to commemorate the victory of dharma over adharma. This holyday is considered the pinnacle of Balinese Hindus’ view of their struggle to subdue negative forces called sad ripu (six enemies of the within). They are kama (lust), loba (greed), krodha (anger), mada (drunkeness), moha…
Source: www.wmf.org INDIA, October 24, 2009: The World Monuments Foundation (WMF) is the leading private organization dedicated to saving the worlds most treasured places. Since 1965–in more than 90 countries–WMF experts have been racing against time, applying proven techniques to preserve important architectural and cultural heritage sites around the globe. The 2010 watch list for India has five monuments is…