HYDERABAD, INDIA, February 26, 2025 (The Hindu): Streets lined with flower and fruit vendors, and temples adorned in vibrant hues of saffron, white, and pink, marked Maha Shivaratri in Hyderabad on Wednesday. Palash, marigold, jasmine and roses hung in neat bunches, ready to decorate temples and homes, while fruit sellers weighed out watermelons, apples and guavas – for the steady…
UNITED STATES, February 26, 2025 (Pew Research Center): After many years of steady decline, the share of U.S. adults who identify as Christians shows signs of leveling off – at least temporarily – at slightly above six-in-ten, according to a massive new survey of 36,908 Americans by Pew Research Center. The new study finds that 62% of U.S. adults identify…
KATHMANDU, NEPAL, February 26, 2025 (The News Mill): Nepal’s Pashupatinath Temple, the revered Hindu pilgrimage site, came alive with devotees and ascetics on Tuesday, the Eve of Mahashivaratri. Entry gates have been set up leading to the main temple complex, which has been decorated with flower garlands, further embellishing the area and attracting more devotees. Ascetics from various parts of…
BERKELEY, CALIFORNIA, February 21, 2025 (RNS): The first that the vast majority of turn-of-the-20th-century Americans heard of Swami Vivekananda was the speech the 30-year-old Hindu delegate gave at the Parliament of the World’s Religions in 1893 in Chicago. Vivekananda captivated his audience, addressing them as his “sisters and brothers,” and spoke about Hinduism’s teachings of the “oneness of existence” —…
PRAYAGRAJ, INDIA, February 23, 2025 (Travel and Tour World): Prayagraj is drowning in chaos as the Maha Kumbh Festival draws a jaw-dropping six-week total of six hundred million devotees, turning the city into a sea of humanity and crippling its infrastructure ahead of the sacred Maha Shivratri. With more than 10 million people pouring in daily since January 13, 2025,…
MUMBAI, INDIA, February 21, 2025 (VOA by Anjana Pasricha): Even for the world’s most-populous nation, the scale of a Hindu religious festival being held in India’s northern city of Prayagraj since mid-January is staggering. Surpassing previous numbers, the Maha Kumbh Mela that wraps up Wednesday has drawn more than half a billion devotees in the last six weeks, according to…
UNITED STATES,, February 17, 2025 (RNS): The winner of the 2025 Grammy Award for best new age, ambient or chant album — a category once dominated by Enya — was an album titled Triveni, meaning “the confluence of three rivers” in Sanskrit, an apt description for its weaving of Vedic chants, melodic flute and cello by India’s Chandrika Tandon, South…
FIJI, February 16, 2025 (The Fiji Times): A large crowd of over a thousand devotees gathered at the Sri Siva Subramaniya Swami Temple in Nadi yesterday to celebrate the Tamil Hindu festival, Thaipoosam. The auspicious occasion saw devotees from around Fiji pulling carts and dancing in celebration of the annual event. The Drik Panchang website defines Thaipusam or Thaipoosam as…
UNITED STATES, February 19, 2025 (YouTube): This video features colorized and upscaled footage from New York, London, Japan, India and more from the early 1900’s. The video shows scenes of everyday street life, commerce and transportation around the world from 1900 to 1909. Around the two minute mark is an elephant parade from 1902, possibly in Kerala, where the elephants…
PRAYAGRAJ, INDIA, February 14, 2025 (Indian Express): At the ongoing Mahakumbh in Prayagraj, a nagar kirtan accompanied by a gurbani kirtan and a gatka performance was organized on January 11, marking the presence of the Nirmla Akhara, one of the three Sikh-related akharas (spiritual orders) that are part of the world’s largest religious gathering. Many Sikh followers visit the three…
