SourceCHENNAI, INDIA, September 17, 2004: The Madras High Court today ruled out a ban on Vinayaka Chaturthi processions and dismissed apprehensions of law and order problems as “doubts based on surmises.” Passing orders on a public interest litigation petition seeking to bar the manufacture of large-sized idols using plaster-of-paris coated with chemical-based paints, a Division Bench comprising Justice N. Dhinakar…
SourceNEW DELHI, INDIA, September 17, 2004: The Centre on Friday decided to declare Tamil a “classical language,” the first to be recognized so in the country. The Union Cabinet, which met on Friday morning, decided to create a new category of “classical languages” and put Tamil in this category. After the Cabinet meeting, Information and Broadcasting Minister, S Jaipal Reddy,…
SourceCHINO HILLS, CALIFORNIA, September 16, 2004: A Hindu sect must modify plans for a temple and community center or seek another location after the project failed to win approval from the City Council. The Chino Hills council, in a 4-1 vote, rejected a zoning change that would have allowed the sect to build a temple with five spires, one reaching…
SourceOREGON, USA, Friday, September 10, 2004: Jayanthi Ramana’s operatic Indian classical ballet was highly appreciated among Portland Institute for Contemporary Art’s 10-day unorthodox international performance fare, the Time-Based Art Festivals. “Gajamukha,” Raman’s ballet devoted to elephant-headed Hindu deity Lord Ganesha, steeped in antiquity and ecstatic dance form Raman presented stretch back 2,000 years, all night temple rites with movements set…
SourceBURTON UPON TRENT, ENGLAND, September 18, 2004: The following request has come from Syd Bill, convenor of this event: We are arranging the launch of Burton upon Trent Inter Faith Network, on October 10, 2004. Although I have local Hindu friends, I am having difficulty in a) finding a Hindu speaker to give his/her thoughts on inter faith dialogue, and…
SourceMUMBAI, INDIA, September 4, 2004: (HPI note: This book review appears in the Organizer, the main publication of the RSS). In February of this year in Godhra in Gujarat, a Muslim mob set railway carriages on fire and some 57 men, women and children, reportedly Karsevaks returning from Ayodhya, were charred to death. The reaction was swift and equally brutal.…
SourceKIMHAE, SOUTH KOREA, September 14, 2004: Links between India and Korea are not only modern-day trade links with commercial names like LG, Hyundai and Samsung making their presence felt in India. In 48 AD, Queen Suro or Princess Heo Hwang-ok is said to have made a journey from Lord Ram’s birthplace to Korea by sea, carrying a stone which calmed…
SourceSRI LANKA, September 16, 2004: The annual Brammothsavam Festival of the Mutuwal Sri Venkateshwara Maha Vishnu Devasthanam begins today and concludes on September 24. The day-long chariot festival will be held on September 23. The temple is a Sri Lankan replica of India’s famous Tirupathy Sri Venkatachalapathy shrine, in South India. The temple was completed in January 2002 after four…
SourceNEW DELHI, INDIA, September 16, 2004: Advent of technology and modernization may have changed the face of almost everything including the festivities but there is a small group of people keeping alive the traditional way of celebrating the victory of good over evil. A handful of artists, called the Ravana Makers, are working overnight on the pavements near the band…
Religion News ServiceWASHINGTON, D.C., September 15, 2004: The U.S. State Department on Wednesday (Sept. 15) for the first time included Saudi Arabia on a list of eight “countries of particular concern” for not allowing religious freedom, a potential stumbling block for relations between the United States and its Persian Gulf ally. The department’s sixth annual report on international religious freedom…