Hindu “leaders” are dime a dozen. You will find plenty of leaders and their organizations in India and also all over the world. Recently one such organization calling itself the Universal Society of Hinduism (USH) was in the news because of some of the comments made by its President Rajan Zed to a website called [...]
The Lord also tells me to tell you in the mid 90′s, about ’94-’95, no later than that, God will destroy the homosexual community of America. But He will not destroy it – with what many minds have thought Him to be, He will destroy it with fire. And many will turn and be saved, [...]
I remember watching Doordarshan the day the Babri Masjid was destroyed by Hindu fundamentalists. The Central and Uttar Pradesh governments knew that this was coming but was totally ill prepared to prevent the 500 year old Mosque from being attacked. But what state controlled media like Doordarshan and All India Radio did was even more [...]
History is complicated and also interrelated. A good example is Spain. It is a fairly large country by Western European standards and has a tremendous culture and history. What took me by surprise during my visit to Spain was the impact Islam has on Spanish culture, architecture and people. The Moors (collective term used to [...]
Mount Kailash according to Hindu mythology is the abode of Lord Shiva. In the Vishnu Purana Kailash is described as the center of the world and also the one of the pillars of the world. Some Buddhists also believe that Kailash is the home of Buddha. The mountain itself is in Tibet (occupied by China [...]
In a rather strange ruling the Delhi High Court said that people who are in a live-in relationship cannot complain about infidelity or immorality. The judges said “People who chose to have live-in relationship cannot complain of infidelity or immorality as live-in relationships are also known to have been between a married man and unmarried [...]
My interest in science and space in particular grew exponentially as I started watching the television show Cosmos presented by renowned astronomer and astrophysicist Carl Sagan in the mid eighties. I am not sure whether programs such as these are shown on Indian television anymore. But people of my generation will be forever grateful for [...]
“I’ve been so spoiled with my friends and family in this life. Next time I want to be just something quiet and supporting”. Hollywood actress Julia Roberts made these comments to a magazine while promoting her latest movie Eat Pray Love. According to reports she is now a Hindu and like many Hindus she now [...]
One of my favorite quotes about India is by the first century Greek Philosopher Apollonius Tyanaeus who said “In India, I found a race of mortals living upon the Earth, but not adhering to it, inhabiting cities, but not being fixed to them, possessing everything, but possessed by nothing”. I am not sure if Appollonius [...]
Indian constitution guarantees freedom of speech just like the American constitution yet places some significant restrictions on it. According to the constitution these restrictions are in place “in the interests of the sovereignty and integrity of India or public order or morality”. The Indian government has used this loophole on numerous occasions to impose censorship. [...]
Some of the questions that I am asked most by readers of this blog and by a few of my friends are whether I am nationalistic and whether I see anything wrong with nationalistic thought. My first reaction normally is to ask for clarification on what they mean by nationalistic thought. In most cases the [...]
In an attempt to embarrass India, a Canadian Indian politician with Sikh origins has introduced a motion in the Canadian parliament asking the Canadian government to declare the anti-Sikh riots of 1984 as a genocide. This motion comes a few weeks before the Prime Minster of India Manmohan Singh’s visit to Canada to attend the [...]
Lord Venkateswara Temple located in Tirumala (Chittor district in the South Indian state of Andhra Pradesh) has become one of the most visited places of worship in the world. It is estimated that over 50,000 people visit the temple every day. It is one of the most important temples in the Hindu pantheon. The presiding [...]
The world famous Lord Venkateswara Temple is located in Tirumala which is very close to the town of Tirupati (Andhra Pradesh). The Thirumala temple is one of the most visited places on earth. It is estimated that somewhere between 50,000 to 75,000 pilgrims and tourists visit this temple every day. Today the presiding deity of [...]
For the first time in over 70 years the Indian government is very likely to include the question of a person’s caste in the Census. This should not come as a surprise to many Indians. The Congress Party led UPA government has done its best to slice and dice the Indian population in whichever way [...]
India today is the 12th largest economy in the world. Among large economies India is also the second fastest growing economy in the world after China. If this growth rate continues India will become the third largest economy in the world in less than 25 years. Indians particularly those who are young are optimistic and [...]
In the late seventies and early eighties one of the common phrases that Indian politicians and the members of the media used as a response to what ails India was the phrase “the hidden hand”. The hidden hand (the West, their government and intelligence agencies) was the reason that India was in the bad shape [...]
