Page 4 - Religion Belief

Sabarimala all set to receive pilgrims as season begins on Nov 17

The Lord Ayyappa temple in Sabarimala will be opened on Wednesday, a day ahead of commencement of two-month long pilgrimage season. The annual Mandalam-Makaravilakku pilgrimage season begins on November 17. The sanctum sanctorum of the temple will be opened at 5 PM on November 16 in the presence of chief priest (Tantri) Kandararu Rajeevaru by outgoing head priest N Parameswaran Namboothiri. Later, newly selected head priests of Lord Ayyappa and Malikappuram temples will take over for performing poojas for the next one-year period. The 41-day Mandala puja festival will conclude on December 27. The temple will be opened again on December 30 for the Makaravilakku pilgrimage on January 14, 2023. The shrine will be closed on January 20, concluding the pilgrim season. Officials said thousands of devotees are expected to participate this year as it is the first pilgrim season after lifting of the COVID-19 restrictions which were in place during the last two years. Elaborate security ..

Uniform Civil Code will be implemented across country one day: Minister

Minister of State for Law and Justice SP Singh Baghel on Tuesday said Uniform Civil Code (UCC) will be implemented throughout the country one day

File affidavit by Dec 12: SC tells Centre on Places of Worship Act pleas

The Supreme Court on Monday granted time till December 12 to the Centre to file a comprehensive affidavit to petitions challenging the validity of certain provisions of a 1991 law, which prohibit filing of a lawsuit to reclaim a place of worship or seek a change in its character from what prevailed on August 15, 1947. A bench comprising Chief Justice D Y Chandrachud and Justice J B Pardiwala took note of the submissions of Solicitor General Tushar Mehta, appearing for the Centre, that the reply could not be filed and the matter can be taken up later. I need to consult with the Government for filing a detailed counter. If some time can be given, the law officer said. The bench adjourned the hearing on the petitions after taking note of the submissions that due deliberations with government authorities were needed and asked the Centre to file a comprehensive one on or before December 12. The bench asked the Centre to share its response with the parties concerned and decided to hear t

Madhya Pradesh CM Chouhan performs bhoomipujan of Meghdoot Forest in Ujjain

Madhya Pradesh Chief Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan performed bhoomipujan for the proposed Meghdoot Forest in Ujjain on Tuesday. He came here to review the facilities of Shri Mahakal Lok

SC issues notice to Centre on plea against forced religious conversion

The Supreme Court on Friday sought response from the Centre and others on a plea seeking direction to take stringent steps to control fraudulent religious conversion by "intimidation" and through "gifts and monetary benefits". A bench of Justices M R Shah and Krishna Murari issued notices to the Union of India, Ministry of Home Affairs and Ministry of Law and Justice. The top court asked the parties to file a reply by November 14. The apex court was hearing a plea filed by advocate Ashwini Kumar Upadhyay seeking direction to the Centre and states to take stringent steps to control fraudulent religious conversion by "intimidation, threatening, deceivingly luring through gifts and monetary benefits". Upadhyay submitted that this is a nationwide problem which needs to be tackled immediately. "The injury caused to the citizens is extremely large because there is not even one district which is free of religious conversion by 'hook and crook'," the plea submitted. "Incidents are report

Krishna Janmashtami: Top 20 quotes, wishes and WhatsApp status

Krishna Janmasthami will be celebrated today in all parts of India. Have a look at the top 20 quotes related to Lord Krishna, Krishna Janmashtami greetings, wishes, and WhatsApp status

Not Indian culture to denigrate any religion, says M Venkaiah Naidu

Vice President M Venkaiah Naidu on Friday cautioned against forces and vested interests that are threatening the nation's peace and integrity through a divisive agenda

No 'non-veg' eating blacksmiths; checks on social media: Delhi Kanwar alert

The Kanwar Yatra started on Thursday and the Kanwariyas are expected to reach the national capital on July 20

'Not request, but warning': VHP posters ban non-Hindus from Varanasi ghats

Posters banning the entry of non-Hindus to the Varanasai ghats along the Ganga appeared on the walls of buildings, which were reportedly pasted by activists of VHP and Bajrang Dal.

Hindutva's damaging game

Violence against minorities will affect everyone

Need to instil ideals of Swami Vivekananda in today's youth: CJI Ramana

To fulfill the dream of making a resurgent India through principles there is a need to instil his ideals in today's youth, Chief Justice of India N V Ramana said on Sunday.

Religion and the workplace

In theory, religion plays no role at a workplace. However, in practice, it does

When devotion goes viral

But in 21st century India, religion, appears to get a carte blanche during Covid-19

The mythology of fear

Instead of its once haloed existence as the year of lofty goals and vision statements, it is now staring at an epitaph that may well read: The year when death ran amok and the gods went missing.

Over 50% respondents say won't visit religious places once open: Survey

The survey, conducted by LocalCircles, a community social media platform, looked at people's willingness to visit various public spaces when they are opened post relaxations.

Want to visit temple, church or mosque from June 8? Know the Unlock rules

Unlock 1.0: Here are the guidelines that worshippers and religious institutions need to follow from June 8

Where ignorance is bliss, 'Tis folly to be wise?

It is time to ask why public figures and institutions are promoting unscientific beliefs at citizens' expense

Lebanese town bans Muslims from buying, renting property

Mohammed Awwad and his fiancee, both Muslims, recently found an affordable apartment for rent online in a town in Lebanon, southeast of Beirut. The 27-year-old journalist called the number and asked the owner when they could drop by to take a look. He was stunned by her response: Muslims are not allowed to settle in the town, she said. The apartment owner apologized to Awwad, saying she wouldn't mind renting to people of any sect but officials in the town of Hadat issued orders years ago that only Christians be allowed to buy and rent property. The young Shiite Muslim man could not believe what he heard and asked his fiancee, Sarah Raad, to call the municipality and she, too, was told that the ban had been in place for years. Hadat is a small example of Lebanon's deeply rooted sectarian divisions that once led to a 15-year civil war that left more than 100,000 people dead. Christian communities feel under siege as Muslims, who tend to have higher birth rates, leave overcrowded areas ..

Fail to understand why sanitary workers jobs are allocated solely for Christians: Pak activist

Human rights activist Kapil Dev on Tuesday questioned why in Pakistan, sanitary workers jobs were allocated solely to Christians."I fail to understand as to why sanitary workers jobs are allocated for #Christians only? Why not for all? What if such jobs are for only Muslims in UK, USA or elsewhere in the West? You shit, and we clean. This should stop now. #EqualityForAll," Kapil Dev tweeted along with a picture of a recent advertisement by the Pakistan Army.The Pakistan Army advertisement offering sanitation jobs for Christians recently drew criticism over social media for being discriminatory towards the community, reported Union of Catholic Asian News.Run by several newspapers in Pakistan, the advertisement announced vacancies for the posts of drivers, sepoys, tradesmen and sanitation workers in the Army's Mujhahid Force. However, the sanitation jobs were specified for Christians only.This triggered several minority rights activists, who later urged Pakistan Army to discard its ...

2014 Burdwan blast case: Wanted JMB operative arrested from Bengaluru

A Jamaat-ul-Mujahideen Bangladesh (JMB) operative, wanted in the 2014 Burdwan blast case, was arrested by the National Investigation Agency from Bengaluru on Tuesday, officials said. Habibur Rehman Sheikh (28) alias Habibur or Sheikh was apprehended by the central agency from the Dodabalpur area of the city, they said. Sheikh was named in the chargesheet filed by the NIA in this case in March, 2015 "for his direct involvement in the conspiracy of JMB to wage war against governments of India and Bangladesh", an NIA official said. He was a close associate of senior JMB leader Jahidul Islam alias Kausar and was associated with other JMB leaders like Rahamatullah Sheikh and Moulana Yusuf, the official said. Sheikh was an active member of JMB's Bolpur module in West Bengal and had attended a number of training camps conducted by the terror group, the official alleged. He was produced on Tuesday before a special NIA court in Bengaluru which granted the agency five-day transit remand for ...