Daily Inspiration

Source: www.hinduismtoday.com Lord Siva, the bestower of happiness, gave the art of yoga. As Nataraja, King of dancers, He gave dance.    BKS Iyengar

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A Debate on Subsidized Pilgrimages

Source: www.livemint.com BANGALORE/MUMBAI/HYDERABAD, INDIA, June 18, 2009: In a country proud to be secular, there is increasing debate about government subsidization of religious pilgrimages. Karnataka’s Bharatiya Janata Party government proposes to set aside US$210,000 to subsidize pilgrimages for Hindus. In Andhra Pradesh, the Congress party-led government is subsidizing the cost of travel for Christians visiting Jerusalem. Last year the Union…

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2010-2011: Chinmaya Mission West Offers Year-Long Ashram Retreat

Source: www.chinmayamission.org/krishnalaya PIERCY, CA, USA, June 20, 2009: For anyone sincerely interested in life transformation and willing to commit to the idea for a year, full time, without weekends or breaks, Chinmaya Mission West of California is offering a one-year study-and-meditate intensive at its Krishnalaya Ashram, set among mountains, redwood forests and rivers in Piercy, Northern California. The retreat, “Vedanta…

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Daily Inspiration

Source: www.hinduismtoday.com As is your devotion, so is your liberation. Good work brings good wages, a little work brings only a little wage.    Swami Nityananda, guru of Baba Muktananda

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Foreigners’ Entry Fee Doubled at Pashupatinath Temple http://www.hindu.com/thehindu/holnus/001200906151552.htm

Source: http://www.hindu.com/thehindu/holnus/001200906151552.htm KATHMANDU, NEPAL, June 15, 2009: Foreigners visiting Nepal’s sacred Hindu temple Pashupatinath must now pay an entry fee of US$11 (Rs 500), up from Rs250. PADT secretary Paramananda Shakya said the intent is to develop the infrastructure in the area, and to provide guides for visitors. “We will build more eateries and restrooms of international standard,” he said.…

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India’s Palaces of the Dalits Face Praise and Criticism

Source: www.ft.com LUCKNOW, UTTAR PRADESH, INDIA, May 23, 2009: On the banks of the Gomti River outside Lucknow, an elaborate memorial is being constructed in honor of Dr. Bhim Rao Ambedkar, the erudite hero of India’s “untouchables,” the Dalits. Large statues of Dr. Ambedkar and other Dalit heroes look down on giant sandstone elephants that line the walkway to a…

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India’s Palaces of the Dalits Attract Awe and Criticism

Source: www.ft.com LUCKNOW, UTTAR PRADESH, INDIA, May 23, 2009: On the banks of the Gomti River outside Lucknow, an elaborate memorial is being constructed in honor of Dr. Bhim Rao Ambedkar, the erudite hero of India’s “untouchables,” the Dalits. Large statues of Dr. Ambedkar and other Dalit heroes look down on giant sandstone elephants that line the walkway to a…

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Amarnath Yatra Resumes

Source: www.hindustantimes.com SRINAGAR, INDIA, June 19, 2009: The Amarnath yatra resumed on Friday after remaining suspended for three days due to heavy snowfall and rain. “The fourth batch of over 6000 pilgrims left the Baltal base camp, 62 miles from here, for the holy cave this morning,” a spokesman of the Shri Amarnathji Shrine Board (SASB) told PTI. 1,860 pilgrims…

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Upper Castes Pick Up Brooms in Uttar Pradesh

Source: www.hindustantimes.com UTTAR PRADESH, INDIA, June 17, 2009: The economic meltdown has forced thousands of Brahmins, Thakurs, Banias, Kayasths, Lodhs, Yadavs and Muslims to take jobs as sweepers and sanitation workers, jobs that were traditionally done by Dalits. Software engineers and other well educated, highly skilled workers, suddenly unemployed, are sweeping streets and cleaning drains for a living, regardless of…

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Foreigners’ Entry Fee Doubled at Pashupatinath Temple

Source: http://www.hindu.com/thehindu/holnus/001200906151552.htm KATHMANDU, NEPAL, June 15, 2009: Foreigners visiting Nepal’s sacred Hindu temple Pashupatinath must now pay an entry fee of US$11 (Rs 500), up from Rs250. PADT secretary Paramananda Shakya said the intent is to develop the infrastructure in the area, and to provide guides for visitors. “We will build more eateries and restrooms of international standard,” he said.…

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