Latest Hindu News

PURI, INDIA, April 7, 2007: The Puri palace is abuzz with activity for Lilabati Pattamahadei's Gahan Bije--the queen's once-in-a-lifetime private visit to the Jagannath temple. In another corner of the city, a small house in a narrow lane is sharing the limelight. 11-year old Lokanath Mudirasta, will have the privilege of conducting puja for the royal couple tomorrow. According to tradition, a boy priest should be present, along with a married Brahmin woman, when the king and queen offer prayers during Gahan Bije. "I know exactly what I have to do," says Lokanath, the Class VII student of Utkal HIndi Vidyapith. Lokanath got the sanction to perform as priest after a sari-tying ceremony in the temple on January 13. "I had been to the king with my grandfather and the king told me what I have to do.

RISHIKESH, INDIA, April 14, 2007: (HPI note: The following press
release is from Parmarth Niketan.) Pujya Swami Chidanand Saraswatiji
(Muniji), President and Spiritual Head of Parmarth Niketan Ashram,
Rishikesh (Himalayas), India is a highlighted speaker at the major
conference organized by the Institute of Noetic Sciences, called
Consciousness in Action, from the August 9 to 12, 2007 in Palm Springs,
California. The conference brings together dozens of scientists,
visionaries and yogis. Pujya Swamiji will discuss the most important
foundation of global transformation: becoming the change we want to see
in the world. See URL above for details and registration information.

ONTARIO, CANADA, April 12, 2007: The Niagara River, which leads to Niagara Falls, could become Canada's stand-in for the sacred Ganga in India. As the tradition of sending ashes back to India's holy rivers becomes less popular with second- and third-generation Canadian Hindus, Ontario's Hindu community wants a waterway designated for traditional burial rituals. The chosen river or lake would also be used to dispose of flowers and leaves offered to the Deities by the faithful. "Currently, people are depositing the ashes in bodies of water, in Lake Ontario and other places, but they are doing it in a very unceremonious manner -- with fears in their minds that they may be doing something wrong," said Roopnauth Sharma, the president of the United Hindu Federation and the spiritual leader of the Shri Ram temple in Mississauga. There is no law in Canada preventing one from depositing ashes in a lake or river.

SAN FRANCISCO, CALIFORNIA, April 12, 2007: (HPI note: the following is from Macy's "press kit" at URL above, which includes photos. The huge Lord Ganesha is quite a startling sight to encounter in the center of downtown San Francisco.) Macy's 61st Annual Flower Show invites visitors to "Imagine India" and celebrate the country's vibrant colors, distinctive style, seductive sounds, delicious food and amazing flowers. From the opulence and grandeur of India's golden palaces, to the excitement of Mumbai's nightlife, to the intoxicating beauty of the spice markets, India is a country on the cutting edge that has maintained a strong connection to its rich history. In a salute to India's rich spiritual heritage, visitors are greeted by a 30-foot tall statue of Ganesha above the Geary Street entrance. A 75-foot curtain of lights serves as the backdrop to the beloved figure and puts on an impressive five-minute light show of color and blooms.

TIRUPATI, INDIA, April 6, 2007: The Chittoor district unit of the Kula Vivaksha Porata Samithi (KVPS) on Thursday welcomed the decision of the Tirumalar Tirupati Devasthanams (TTD) to provide entry for Dalits into the Venkateswaraswamy temple located in the Vemuru village in the Tirupati (rural) mandal. The Samithi's vice-president and the CPI(M) district secretary K. Murali also complimented the TTD for organising a Kalyanothsavam ritual in the Dalitwada and also making the temple priests stay in the same colony. In a statement, Mr. Murali particularly complimented TTD Board Chairman B. Karunakara Reddy for being instrumental in taking of the decision and urged him to take similar initiatives in respect of some more temples in the district which still practized discrimination against the Dalits.

The temples of Khajuraho are India's unique gift to the world, representing, as they do, a paean to life, to love, to joy; perfect in execution and sublime in expression. Life, in every form and mood,...

This year, Rama Navami festival falls on 27th March. Coinciding with the festival, several Hindu groups across the world have launched a campaign centering of the heritage of Lord Rama. The Rama Sethu - a thin bride which connects India to Sri Lanka is one of the most important physical landmarks [...]

When I heard that the India lost to Bangladesh, and later Sri Lanka, in the Cricket World Cup, I must have been only Indian who was actually [...]

This year, Rama Navami festival falls on 27th March. Coinciding with the festival, several Hindu groups across the world have launched a campaign centering of the heritage of Lord Rama. The Rama Sethu - a thin bride which connects India to Sri Lanka is one of the most important physical landmarks [...]

When I heard that the India lost to Bangladesh, and later Sri Lanka, in the Cricket World Cup, I must have been only Indian who was actually [...]

The well-known ‘Nehru-Gandhi dynasty’ of India scarcely requires an introduction. From the days of India’s, Jawaharlal Nehru (India’s first premier) [...]

The well-known ‘Nehru-Gandhi dynasty’ of India scarcely requires an introduction. From the days of India’s, Jawaharlal Nehru (India’s first premier) [...]

CHENNAI, INDIA: S. Kalyanaraman of Chennai writes to HPI that the four dots that are part of the "voided cross" (see yesterday's HPI) on the latest Indian two-rupee coin are seen in some forms of the "Jerusalem cross." This is a solid cross with equal arms (ie, a "plus" sign) with four smaller crosses set around the arms, and in one example, dots, just as the dots are on the rupee. See Wikipedia, here, and scroll down to "Crusaders' cross" for an illustration. The description reads, "Also known as the Jerusalem cross. This cross was the symbol of the Crusader Kingdom of Jerusalem, which existed for almost two hundred years after the First Crusade. The four smaller crosses are said to symbolize either the four books of the Gospel or the four directions in which the Word of Christ spread from Jerusalem. Alternately, all five crosses can symbolize the five wounds of Christ during the Passion."

True combination of Ayurveda values and freshness of river ganga is a possibility if you enter the world of gangabeach resort. Ayurveda therapy India concept in varied facets belongs only to land of s...

KAUAI, HAWAII, March 10, 2007: "Hinduism from Ancient Times" is the 16-page educational insight section in the April issue of Hinduism Today. It is a sixth grade social studies lesson in Hinduism, Hinduism Today's response to the California textbook controversy. The intent is to present Hindu history in an accurate, academically sound and sensitive manner acceptable to the Hindu community. At the URL above, one can buy bulk copies of the lesson reprint (300 copies for $99 plus shipping, which can be as low as $11.25 for "media mail" in the US, but you can get the box even to India for $49.80 surface mail.). Click here for the website of supplemental material for the lesson which includes a URL to download a PDF version of the lesson, endorsements from academics and community leaders, and links to additional material on the various subjects of the lesson.

Sitaram Yechury sheds his typical communist crocodile tears as he bemoans about the RSS vision of India. ---------------------------
And who has given a free license to men like Sitaram Yechury to question the patriotism of a great son of India like Sri Guruji Golwalkar?
--------------------------- 'Anti-Hindutva is a very old social disease of the Communists. It has been a permanent

From: prabhuparashu@yahoo.com
Date: Feb 27, 2007
Subject: My two questions To ALL HINDU LEADERS AND THINKERS,
(Political, Social & Spiritual) Respected Sir, I am an ordinary Hindu citizen of India who does not understand how destroying lakhs of Hindu temples by Muslims is correct and why destroying an old, decrepit and unused structure built on a very sacred Hindu

Fervent anti-Valentines Day protests are witnessed annually in India, and this year was no exception. Hundreds of protests took place across [...]