Page 203 - Religion Belief
Nepal's former king leaves for India on religious trip
Nepal's former monarch Gyanendra Shah today left for India to attend a religious festival and discuss Hinduism, media reports said. During his six-day visit, Shah will attend the International Gau Sambardhana Mahotsav at Rathipur in Bhubaneshwar on February 7, My Republica reported. He will lay the foundation stone of Gomata temple. A socio-cultural organisation 'Shree Marg' is organising the mega event to popularise Hindu rituals as well as applied spirituality, it said. Secretary of the group Sibasis Satapathy said a five-day 'Gau Biswashanti Mahajagyan' has begun from Saturday and on the concluding day, Go Sambardhana will be offered by the 70- year-old former King. "I am going on the invitation of Priest Sankaracharya and will be engaged in various religious activities and discuss on Hinduism," Shah said, adding that the discussions would consist of making Hinduism fit to modern times by simplifying the religion." "Hinduism is a custom and is in our roots. The leaves
UP: Priests warn of intensifying agitation against acquisition
Terming the UP government proposal of acquiring three temples and set up a shrine board to protect Govardhan as "draconian", priests from across the country gathered here in Govardhan dham has warned the government of intensifying its agitation against the decision. Thousands of priests gathered here yesterday have expressed their solidarity on the issue and threatened to close temples of all the 12 pilgrim centres, if the government doesn't reverse its decision. "If the draconian order of acquisition of Goverdhan based three temples is not withdrawn, it would convert into anational issue," said Mahesh Pathak, president, All India Tirth Purohit Mahasabha (AITPM) after addressing a gathering of priests of different temples. Though against the acquisition of the three temples, the AITPM president said that they don't want to lock horns with Yogi government and would rather cooperate for the formation of "shrine board", providedit is aimed to enhance pilgrim ...
Swiss president says Rohingya return must be voluntary
Swiss President Alain Berset says the return of Rohingya Muslims who have fled violence in Myanmar must be voluntary. Berset, who is on a four-day visit to Bangladesh, said after meeting with Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina on Monday that the situation of Rohingya in Bangladesh refugee camps is of great concern. Berset pledged to provide an additional 12 million francs ($12.9 million) for Rohingya this year. He is expected to visit Rohingya refugee camps tomorrow. More than 680,000 Rohingya Muslims have fled from Buddhist-majority Myanmar since the military launched a crackdown in August. In November, Bangladesh and Myanmar agreed to gradually repatriate them. The returns were scheduled to begin in January, but were delayed by incomplete preparations and concerns that the Rohingya were being forced back.
Rahul's temple visits is not communalism: Aiyar
Suspended Congress leader Mani Shankar Aiyar today said party president Rahul Gandhi's visits to temples and assertion that he and his family members were "Shiv Bhakts" were not acts of communalism which, he alleged, was being propagated by the BJP. "If Rahul Gandhi regards himself and his family members as 'Shiv Bhakts' ((devotees of Lord Shiva), what is wrong in that?" he asked. "Can this be held as communalism? And the party which is propagating communalism is the saffron party (BJP)," Aiyar told PTI on the sidelines of a function here. Aiyar was asked about his opinion on Gandhi's temple visits during the Gujarat assembly polls and reported plans to meet religious heads in poll-bound Karnataka this month. The BJP had termed Gandhi's frequent temple visits during the Gujarat election campaign as an attempt to attract Hindu votes. "My grandmother (late Indira Gandhi) and my family are Shiv Bhakts. But we keep such things private, because we think it is a very personal .
Can meditation make us better individuals?
Disputing popular claims that meditation can change how people behave towards others and make them more compassionate, new research suggests this is not the case.
Nepal King to visit Odisha from Feb 7
Nepal king Gyanendra Bir Bikram Shah Dev is scheduled to visit Odisha for six days from February 7, official sources here said. During his six-day visit the king will offer special puja at the 12th century Shree Jagannath Temple at Puri and visit Sakhigopal Temple, the sources said. This will be the first visit of a Nepal king to Sakshigopal temple in 150 years. He has a special seva and rituals in the three important shrines of Shree Jagannath Temple at Puri, Lingaraj Temple at Bhubaneswar and Sakhigopal Temple. He has the special privilege of performing 'aarati' for Lord Jagannath atop the 'Ratna Singhasan' (Podium) of the Srimandir (Puri temple), the sources said. He traditionally offers "kasturi" (musk) for the deity's rituals. There are deep spiritual ties between Odisha and Nepal. Adi Shankaracharya had established the rituals and practices in both Jagannath and Pashupatinath temples and Nepal, which comes under the spiritual jurisdiction of the Puri ...
Agra Muslims attempt 'Tiranga Yatra' to highlight grievances
Muslims in Agra on Monday tried to take out a "Tiranga Yatra" but were held back at the Shahid Smarak, where they presented a memorandum to a district official, listing a set of demands and grievances.
2 priests suspended for decorating main deity with churidhar
Two priests at a temple in Mayiladuthurai in the district have been suspended for decorating the main deity of the goddess in churidhar with sandalpaste, reportedly going against 'agama' traditions. The priests had gone about the decoration on February 2, an auspicious day in the Tamil month of Thai,when a sandalwood decoration is done, as they were encouraged by the positive response they got to one done in Gujarati style on January 26, another propitious day. However the move backfired after a photograph of it went viral in the social media, receiving flak from a section of devotees. Though the decoration was not derogatory, some temple officials and devotees opined that it was against the temple agama rules, as per which the goddess should be decorated only with saree. Following this, the head of Thiruvavaduthurai adheenam mutt Ambalavana Desiga Paramacharya Swamigal ordered the suspension of the two priests today, temple officials said. The Mayooranathaswamy temple ..
Two Freemasons' lodges operating secretly at UK Parliament
Two Freemasons lodges set up for MPs and political journalists are continuing to operate secretly at the UK Parliament, a media report said.
Police release 'kidnapped' priest in DR Congo
Congolese police have released a Catholic priest hours after they snatched him this weekend following a mass in Kinshasa, the cleric said today, amid spiralling tensions between the church and the government. Security forces had grabbed Father Sebastien Yebo outside his church yesterday, beaten him and thrown him into a jeep, with witnesses describing the incident as a "kidnapping". Yebo told AFP he was let go in the afternoon after several hours of interrogation over his alleged links with the Kamwina Nsapu militia. The guerilla movement, based in Kasai province, has been leading a bloody rebellion since 2016 against moves by President Joseph Kabila to extend his stay in power. Meanwhile the church, along with political opposition figures, has spearheaded huge anti-Kabila rallies in recent weeks, calling on the leader to step down. Yebo said police had levelled "strange" accusations at him yesterday. "They said I was the financial backer of the Kamwina Nsapu," the priest
Furnish data on properties, revenue: HC tells Hindu 'mutts'
In a plea seeking action against encroachment of land owned by a Hindu "mutt", the Madras High Court bench here has impleaded heads of as many as 32 similar religious bodies directing them to furnish to the government data on their properties and revenue. Hearing a public interest petition filed by a devotee, Radhakrishnan, a division bench comprising justices Kirubakaran and Tharani impleaded the heads of all the "mutts" called "Adheenams" in Tamil Nadu as respondents and directed them to provide details. The information on properties owned by the "mutts" and revenue from it should be submitted to the inspector general of registration and the top authority should confirm the same, the court said. The petitioner submitted that "Senkol Adheenam" owned several acres of lands in Tuticorin and Tirunelveli districts and the "mutt" authorities were supposed to undertake religious work and service to devotees from the revenue earned from the properties. Administration of the ..
Giriraj Singh seeks Sunni Muslims' support in Ayodhya dispute
Union Minister Giriraj Singh has called upon the Sunni faction of the Muslim community to lend their support for the construction of Ram Temple at the disputed site in Uttar Pradesh's Ayodhya.Stating that every Hindu is descendant of Ram, he asked that if not in India, will the Ram temple be built in Pakistan."Shias have given their support for Ram Temple. Sunnis must lend their support too. Every Indian is descendant of Ram. Hindus and Muslims will come together to build the temple. If Ram Temple is not built in India where else will that be? Pakistan?" Singh told ANI on Saturday.Earlier, Uttar Pradesh Shia Waqf Board Chairman Waseem Rizvi had asked the Muslims opposing construction of Ram temple in Ayodhya, to go to Pakistan and Bangladesh.The Supreme Court will continue the final hearing in the long-standing Babri Masjid-Ram Janmabhoomi dispute case from February 8.The top court is hearing a total of 13 pleas filed against the 2010 judgement of the Allahabad High Court.The High ...
Book seeks to take back Hinduism from hijackers: Tharoor
Congress leader Shashi Tharoor has called for taking back the idea of Hinduism from those who have "hijacked" it and expressed concern over its misuse for very narrow-minded political purposes. Tharoor, who has come out with a book on his understanding of Hindu religion, says he is not proud of those who suggest that only a Hindu --"and only a certain kind of Hindu -- can be an authentic Indian. I am proud of those Hindus who utterly reject Hindu communalism, conscious that the communalism of the majority is especially dangerous because it can present itself as nationalist, he says. According to the Lok Sabha member, the idea for his book 'Why I am a Hindu' had been churning around his head for some time. I realised that this is very much part of a political agenda and I felt that one had to find a way of speaking out against it, so that was essentially the origin of the book, Tharoor told PTI at the recently-concluded Jaipur Literature Festival here. I have been ...
Buddhist Fest aims to set world record with chanting session
'Global ShantiThe three-day festival, organised by the Andhra Pradesh Tourism Authority, aims to set a world record for 'largest online chanting session.'Krishna district collector B Lakshmikantham and Andhra Pradesh Tourism Development Corporation chairman professor V Jaya Rami Reddy inaugurated the event that is aimed at promoting Buddhist locations in Andhra Pradesh.More than 1000 monks from various countries including like South Korea, China, Myanmar, Japan, Thailand, Sri Lanka, Malaysia to participate in the festival. A greater number of participants are expected to join for the global chant that will take place today.On the first day, monks organised a rally from PVP Centre to PWD Grounds on Mahatma Gandhi Road. Lakshmikantham also walked the rally and later offered prayers. He said Amaravati was famous for its Buddhist heritage and the event was organised to promote peace and harmony."It's nothing but peace yatra. Peace is the most powerful weapon in the world. We are expecting
Four-day mega tribal festival in T'gana concludes
The four-day mega tribal religious festival 'Sammakka Saralamma Maha Jatara' or 'Medaram Jatara' concluded today at Eturunagaram of Jayashankar Bhupalapally district of Telangana, with lakhs of devotees offering prayers. Vice President M Venkaiah Naidu, Telangana Chief Minister K Chandrasekhar Rao and Chhattisgarh Chief Minister Raman Singh were among the prominent personalities who visited the sacred place and offered jaggery as mark of respect, a statement issued by the Deputy Chief Minister K Srihari, said. "I thank our chief minister Chandrasekhar Rao for announcing Rs 200 crore for development of this place including setting up permanent infrastructure," Srihari said. The chief minister also saidhis party MPs would talk to the Centre to declare Medaram Jatara as a national festival Over one crore people visited the religious place during the festival. The state government's website describes the festival, which is held every two years, as the largest tribal religious
Tharoor takes centre stage at Mathrubhumi literary festival
Congress MP Shashi Tharoor stole the show on the second day of the three day Mathrubhumi International Festival of Letters being held here as he took the centre stage to explain what prompted him to pen his latest book "Why I am a Hindu".
Case registered against BJP MLA for delivering hate speech
A case has been registered against a Telangana Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) MLA for allegedly spreading hatred between two communities.The leader in question is Goshamahal MLA T. Raja Singh, who was booked on February 1 after a video surfaced, wherein a person, purported to be the MLA, was seen delivering a hate speech.In the video, Singh had allegedly said every Hindu should carry weapons like lathis and attack other communities' members if they said anything wrong.He made the comment in the wake of Uttar Pradesh's Kasganj district violence.According to the police, the MLA has been booked under sections 295-A (Maliciously insulting the religion or the religious belief of any class) and 505 (2) (Statements conducing to public mischief) of the Indian Penal Code.Clashes broke out between two communities in the district on January 26 after one person died and two were injured during "illegal" 'Tiranga Yatra' rally taken out in Kasganj on Friday and provocative slogans were raised during .
ISKCON devotees arriving for 'Gour Purnima' festival
With a month left for 'Gour Purnima', the biggest festival for the Gaudiya Vaishnavs of Mayapur, devotees from across the world are arriving at the global headquarters of International Society for Krishna Consciousness (ISKCON) there. This is the centenary year of 'Nabadwip Mandala Parikrama', which was started by Bhakti Sidhanta Saraswati Prabhupad in 1918, an ISKCON Mayapur statement said today. More than 6000 foreign devotees from 50 countries and 4000 Indian devotees are expected to take part in the centenary celebrations of the eight-day 'Nabadwip Mandal Parikrama', which will be held from February 18, the statement said. During the 'Parikrama' devotees from Russia, China, Australia, Africa, US, Bangladesh and other European countries will walk almost 80 km covering all major spots where Sri Chaitanya Mahaprabhu had visited, it said. Apart from the festivities, the ISKCON Leadership Sangha(ILS), which is held every alternate year at Mayapur, will see the ...
Police 'kidnap' Catholic priest in DR Congo: witnesses
Police "kidnapped" a Catholic priest today after mass in Kinshasa, witnesses said, amid spiralling tensions between the church and the DR Congo's government over the president's refusal to step down. "Father Sebastien was taken away by police just after morning mass," a nun of the Saint-Robert parish told AFP in N'sele on the eastern outskirts of the capital. A police vehicle drew up outside the church, officers jumped out and "started to beat the priest," said another nun who had also witnessed the incident. "They threw him in the jeep and drove off with him," she said, adding that an unidentified man "filmed the priest" on his mobile phone during mass. Police refused to comment on the incident when contacted by AFP. Priest Sebastien Yebo has worked for the parish since August 2017. The incident comes after a deadly crackdown by the government on Catholic-organised protests against President Joseph Kabila. At least 15 people have been killed in clashes with security ...
Global Buddhist Peace Festival kicks off Saturday
The largest online global chant for world peace is all set to take place here as part of a peace festival that kicks off on Saturday. The chant is a part of first-of-its-kind festival of Buddhist Heritage, titled "Global Shanti: Amaravati Buddhist Heritage Festival" and will kick off on Saturday.