China Recreates Afghani Buddhas

GO TO SOURCE LESHAN, CHINA, October 5, 2001: After the destruction of its most famous archaeological monuments — the giant stone figures known as the Bamiyan Buddhas — by the Taliban-controlled government in Afghanistan, one of the buddhas is rising again in Western China. A team of 300 workmen are carving a replica figure into a cliff face in Schuan.…

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State Government Sponsors Prayers for Rain

GO TO SOURCE ISAKHAPATNAM, ANDHRA PARDESH, INDIA, October 6, 2001: Driven to despair at the unrelenting drought affecting the state this year, the government decided to invite divine intervention. Accordingly, the endowments department directed the executive officers of all temples in its jurisdiction to perform special abhishekams (ritual bathing of the Diety) on October 7 to invoke the blessings of…

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Encroachment Threatens Archaeological Sites

GO TO SOURCE SANCHI, INDIA, October 1, 2001: Growing encroachment around places of archaeological importance, including the world heritage sites of Sanchi and Khajuraho, and over-zealous tourists not only pose a threat to their safety but also hamper conservation work. Archaeological Survey of India (ASI) Superintending Archaeologist S B Ota told UNI that most of these encroachments by influential people…

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Amnesty International Details Attacks

GO TO SOURCE LONDON, ENGLAND, October 4, 2001: Despite calls for tolerance and restraint by the authorities, at least 200 attacks on Sikhs and 540 on Arab-Americans have been reported in the USA in the week following the September 11 attacks on New York and Washington, international human rights watchdog Amnesty International has said. “Mosques, Hindu temples and community centers…

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American Native Indians Want End to Columbus Day

GO TO SOURCE DENVER, COLORADO, October 6, 2001: About 1,500 marchers converged at the state capitol Saturday, beating drums and waving flags as they called for the end of Columbus Day. The “Transform Columbus Day” rally was organized by American Indians and other activists who say Christopher Columbus was a slave trader whose explorations set off centuries of abuse for…

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Walter Cronkite Criticizes Falwell and Robertson

Source: TV Guide USA, October 1, 2001: TV Guide, the most widely circulated magazine in the world, published this report in its most recent edition. “Legendary CBS newsman Walter Cronkite, a paragon of fairness and restraint when he was known as ‘the most trusted man in America,’ says he believes that remarks made by Jerry Falwell and Pat Robertson on…

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Burger King Workers Get Hot Feet in Firewalking Attempt

GO TO SOURCE MIAMI, FLORIDA, October 6, 2001: About a dozen Burger King marketing-department workers burned their feet when they walked over white-hot coals at a meeting intended to promote bonding. One woman was taken to a hospital emergency room, and Burger King brought in a doctor to treat others whose feet were blistered. Some workers used wheelchairs the next…

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What’s Life Without Spice?? Kerala’s Campaign for Cardamom

GO TO SOURCE THIRUVANANTHAPURAM, INDIA, October 1, 2001: With a view to avoid any adverse impact of the terrorist attack on the United States and a possible counter attack, the Spices Board, under the Government of India, has embarked on a massive promotion campaign for cardamom, especially in the Gulf countries. Gulf countries are a major market for Indian cardamom.…

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Ancient Art of Spinning Receives New Recognition

Source: Telegraph India KUKUDAKHANDI, INDIA, October 2, 2001: To honor Mahatma Gandi, the spinning of cotton on charkhas, the small hand spinning wheel popularized by Gandhi, has been recognized by the Olympic Association of Berhampur as a sport. Ranging in age from 11 to 99 years of age, over 70 women gathered in the village of Kukudakhandi to participate in…

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Dalai Lama Against Conversions

GO TO SOURCE DHARMASALA, INDIA, October 4, 2001: In his first-ever reaction to media reports about the Dalai Lama planning to convert a million Hindus to Buddhism, Tibetan in-exile Prime Minister Samdhong Lobsang Tenzin today said the Tibetan spiritual leader and Nobel laureate had never converted any Hindu and did not intend to do so in the future. “In fact,…

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