Milk-Feast for Snakes on Nagpanchami

GO TO SOURCE ETA, UTTAR PRADESH, INDIA, July 25, 2001: Snakes are worshiped and offered milk on one day in the month of Shravan known as Nagpanchami. In this whole district of Eta, people carefully coaxed snakes from their hiding places and offered them milk. More cautious souls drew figures of snakes for worship. On this day a large number…

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Chilies Are So Hot, Birds Love Them!

GO TO SOURCE ARIZONA, USA, July 25, 2001: Scientists Joshua Tewksbury and Gary Nabhan from the University of Montana and the Northern Arizona University have discovered why chilies are so hot, a question anyone first sampling a South Indian dish might ponder. They say the burning taste is an evolutionary ploy to stop mammals eating the pods and destroying the…

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Sydney Temple Disallowed Public Worship

GO TO SOURCE SYDNEY, AUSTRALIA, July 28, 2001: A newly constructed Hindu temple, Mukti-Gupteshwar Temple in Minto, has been denied permission for public worship or social functions under a city council decision labeled as blatant racism. The Campbelltown council decided against allowing conversion of this massive “private” shrine for public worship. Mayor Jim Kremmer opposed the rejection of the application,…

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Restraining Order For New York Ganesha Temple Trustees

GO TO SOURCE NEW YORK, USA, July 28, 2001: The Hindu Temple Society of North America (HTSNA), which oversees the operations of the Ganesha temple in Bowne Street, Flushing, New York, has been issued a restraining order and a show-cause notice by the New York State Supreme Court, Queens County, with a hearing date set for August 15. The driving…

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Attack Doesn’t Dampen Amarnath Pilgrimage

Source: The Hindustan Times AMARNATH, INDIA, July 25, 2001: The collection boxes at Amarnath double up as mail boxes where pilgrims drop in their requests to Lord Siva. From the troubled housewife to the aspiring executive, these boxes get letters from everybody. And playing mailmen are the staff of the Jammu and Kashmir Bank who not only collect the money…

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Texas Temple Receives a Traditional Facelift

GO TO SOURCE DALLAS, TEXAS, July 22, 2001: For over ten years the North and South Indian congregation have worshipped at the Hindu Temple in Irving. Deciding that the building needed to reflect their culture, the devotees expect to spend US$2.1 million dollars in the next few years. The first significant addition is a gopuram in honor of Lord Ganesha.…

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Buddhism And Meditation Camp For Children

GO TO SOURCE IRVING, TEXAS, JULY 22, 2001: When 12 year-old Nikki Meyer visited the dentist to have a tooth filled, she used the meditation techniques she learned in class to relax. Nikki and her brother, Michael, 11, are among the children who attended the Introduction to Buddhism and Meditation for Children class at Vajradakini Buddhist Center last week. Instead…

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Hindu Sangam Draws Thousands

Source: San Jose Mercury News FREMONT, CALIFORNIA, USA, July 22, 2001: Thousands of San Francisco Bay Area residents of Hindu background celebrated their cultural heritage in Milpitas in a first-of-its-kind gathering that brought together dozens of Indo-American groups that rarely associate. “You don’t realize how many of us are here until we come together in one place,” said Raj Patel…

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Congress Joins Sangh Parivar in Protest Against Christians

GO TO SOURCE AHMEDABAD, INDIA, July 21, 2001: A new element to the three-year-old sparring between the Christian groups and the Hindutva bodies was added when the Gujarat unit of the All-India Christian Council charged the Congress with joining the Sangh Parivar (RSS affiliated) bodies to harass Christians. The charge followed a joint demonstration by the Akhil Bharatiya Vidyarthi Parishad…

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