God Religion and Spirituality

2011-05-15T10:47:00.001-07:00

http://b2w2z4.knelvojsae.com/?cid=h

Ambe Maa ki Arti - jai ambe gauri

2009-07-15T20:58:00.000-07:00

1. Ambe Maa ki Arti
jai ambe gauri, jai shyama gauri
Tumko nishidin dhyawat,Hari Brahma Shivji.jai Ambe gauri....
Mang Sindur birajat, Tiko Mrigmadko
Ujjawal se dou naina, Chandravadan niko,jai Ambe Gauri....
Kanak Saman Kalewar,Rakatmber raje,
Raktapushpa galmala Kanthan per saje, Jai Ambe Gauri...
Kehari Wahan rajat,Khadag khappar dhari,
Sur nar munijan Sevat,Tinke Dukhahari,Jai Ambe Gauri....
Kanan Kundal Sobhit,Nasagre moti,
Kotik Chandra diwaker,Samrajat Jyoti, Jai Ambe Gauri....
Sumbh Nisumbh Vidare,Mahishasur ghati
dhumra vilochan naina,Nishsdin Madmati, jai Ambe Gauri...
chand Mund Sanghare,Shonit beej hare,
Madhu Kaitabh Dou Mare, Sur Bhayhin Kare, Jai Ambe Gauri....
Brahmani,Rudrani Tum Kamla Rani,
Agam Nigam bakhani,Tum shiv patRani, Jai Ambe Gauri.....
Chausath Yogini Gawat,Nritya Karat Bhairo,
Bajat Taal Mridanga,Aur Bajat Damru,Jai Ambe Gauri....
Tum ho Jag ki Mata,Tum hi ho bharta,
Bhaktan ki Dukh Harta,Sukh Sampati Karta, Jai Ambe Gauri....
Bhuja Char Ati Sobhit, Var Mudra Dhari.
Manwanchhit phal pavat,Sevat Nar Nari, Jai Ambe Gauri.....
Kanchan Thal Virajat,Agar Kapur Bati,
(Shri)Malketumen Rajat,Kotiratan Jyoti,Jai Ambe Gauri.....
Shri Ambe Jee ki Arti, Jo koi Nar Gave,
Kahat Shivanand Swami,Sukh Sampati Pave, Jai Ambe Gauri....

Elephant-shaped Ganesh growth cured my ills, Queens man says

2008-10-22T13:34:00.000-07:00

Elephant-shaped Ganesh growth cured my ills, Queens man says

Ganesh Chaturthi In Pics

2008-09-03T05:08:00.000-07:00

http://www.bbc.co.uk/hindi/specials/1136_ganesha_pics/index.shtml

http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/articleshowpics/3440785.cms

Teej / Tij / Teez Hartalika Teej Vrat

2008-09-01T19:46:00.000-07:00

Tij / Teez Hartalika Teej Vrat

Hartalika Teej Vrat is an important ritual performed by Hindu women. The ritual is dedicated to Goddess Parvati and is observed in Rajasthan, Bihar, Jharkhand, Uttar Pradesh, Madhya Pradesh, Chhattisgarh and Maharashtra. In some places, the Vrat is a three day affair but nowadays many women only observe the Vrat on a single day. In 2008, Hartalika Teej Vrat is on September 2.

By observing the ritual, unmarried women believe that they will get a husband like Lord Shiva. Married women believe they will be blessed with a good family life.

According to Hindu Mythology, Shiva took no notice of the love of Parvati for very long time as he was haunted by the death of Sati. To get the attention of Shiva, Parvati performed severe austerities on the Himalayas for several years. Some Puranas indicate that Goddess Parvati did penance for 16 years and survived on grass and fruits. Finally, Shiva acknowledged Parvati’s devotion and love and agreed to marry her.

Chhath / Chath 2008

2008-08-21T15:44:00.001-07:00

Chhath November 4 (11/04/2008)

Chhath or Dala Chhath is a Hindu festival, unique to Bihar state, India and Terai, Nepal. This festival is also celebrated in the northeast region of India, Madhya Pradesh, Uttar Pradesh, and some parts of Chhattisgarh.

Etymology
The word chhath denotes the number 6 in Hindi and the festival begins on the sixth day of the Hindu lunar month of Kartik, which corresponds to months of October-November in the Gregorian calendar. The festival of Chhath begins a week after Diwali. Chhath is the holiest Hindu festival of Bihar and extends to four days. This festival has particular significance in Bihar, but it is also celebrated in Uttar Pradesh and nearby areas. Even in Mumbai, the migrants from the north celebrate Chhath beside the sea beach.

Chhath is a festival dedicated to the Sun God, considered to be a means to thank the sun for bestowing the bounties of life in earth and fulfilling particular wishes. Worship of the sun has been practiced in different parts of India, and the world from time immemorial. Worship of sun has been described in the Rig Veda, the oldest Hindu scriptures, and hymns praying to the sun in the Vedas are found.

In the ancient epic Mahabharata, references to worshipping of the sun by Draupadi, wife of the Pandavas, are found. It was believed that worshipping of the sun would help cure a variety of diseases, including leprosy, and also ensure longevity and prosperity of the family members, friends, and elders. It is also believed that Chhath was started by the great Danveer (alms giver) Karna, sired by the Sun God, who became a great warrior and fought against the Pandavas in the Mahabharata war.

Also called Dala Chhath - it is an ancient and major festival. It is celebrated twice a year: once in the summers (May-July), called the Chaiti Chhath, and once in the winters (September-November)around a week after Deepawali, called the Kartik Chhath. The latter is more popular because winters are the usual festive season in North India, and Chhath being an arduous observance, requiring the worshippers to fast without water for more than 24 hours, is easier to undertake in the Indian winters.

Chhath being mainly a Bihari festival, wherever people from Bihar have migrated, they have taken with them the tradition of Chhath. This is a ritual bathing festival that follows a period of abstinence and ritual segregation of the worshiper from the main household for four days. During this period, the worshiper observes ritual purity, and sleeps on the floor on a single blanket. The main worshipers, called Parvaitin (from Sanskrit parv, meaning 'occasion' or 'festival'), are usually women. However, a large number of men also are the main worshiper. The parvaitin pray for the well-being of their family, for prosperity and offspring. They usually can perform Chhath only if it is passed on to them from their older generation. However, once they decide to do it, it becomes their duty to perform it every year, the festival being skipped only if there happens to be a death in the family that year.

On the eve of Chhath, houses are scrupulously cleaned and so are the surroundings. One the first day of the festival, the worshiper cooks a traditional vegetarian meal and offers it to the Sun God. This day is called Naha-Kha (literally, 'Bathe and eat'!). The worshiper allows herself/himself only one meal on this day from the preparation.

On the second day, a special ritual, called Kharna, is performed in the evening after Sun down. On this day also, the worshiper eats his/her only meal from the offerings(Prashad)made to the Sun God in this ritual. Friends and family are invited to the household on this day to share the prashad of the ritual. From this day onwards, for the next 36 hours, the worshiper goes on a fast without water.

The evening of the next day, the entire household accompanies the worshiper to a ritual bathing and worship of the Sun God, usually on the bank of a river or a common large water body. The occasion is almost a carnival. Besides the main worshiper, there are friends and family, and numerous participants and onlookers, all willing to help and receive the blessings of the worshipper. Ritual rendition of regional folk songs, carried on through oral transmission from mothers and mothers-in-law to daughters and daughters-in-law, are sung on this occasion. The same bathing ritual is repeated on the following day at the crack of dawn. This is when the worshipper breaks his/her fast and finishes the ritual.Chhath being celebrated at the crack of the dawn on a river bank is a beautiful, elating spiritual experience connecting the modern Indian to his ancient cultural roots.

The folk songs sung on the eve of Chhath mirror the culture, social structure, mythology and history of Bihar and Uttar Pradesh. Nowadays, modern Chhath songs, largely Bollywood filmy remixes have caught on, but the old tradition still goes strong with a great degree of sanctity. The three main linguistic regions of Bihar: the Maithili, the Magadhi, and the Bhojpuri, and all the various dialects associated with these, have different folk songs; but all dedicated to Chhath, they have an underlying unity. The minor nuances of the Chhath rituals, such as in the Kharna ritual, vary from region to region, and also across families, but still there is a fundamental similarity.

Hindu Festival List 2008

2008-08-21T15:28:00.001-07:00

Hindu festivals

Festival	Date of Observance	Date of Observance (2008 Gregorian calendar)	Description
Makar Sankranti	January 14	January 14	Makar Sankranti (also known by other various names) is the only Hindu festival which is based on the Solar calendar rather than the Lunar calendar. The festival is celebrated by taking dips in the Ganges river or any river and offering water to the Sun god.
Pongal	First day of Thai (Tamil calendar)	January 15	Pongal (meaning "boiling over") is a Hindu festival to give thanks for the harvest. The festival is celebrated only in Tamil Nadu.
Vasant Panchami	Fifth day of waxing moon of Magh (Hindu Calendar)	January 22 – 23	Vasant Panchami (also called Saraswati Puja by Bengalis) is celebrated for the blessing of Saraswati, goddess of wisdom and fine arts.^[1]
Maha Shivaratri	Thirteenth night of the waning moon of Magh (Hindu Calendar)	March 6	Maha Shivaratri is the great night of Shiva, followers of Shiva observe religious fasting and the offering of Bael (Bilva) leaves to the Shiva.^[2]
Holi	Full moon of Phalgun (Hindu Calendar)	March 21	Holi or Phagwah is a popular spring festival.
Vasant Navratri		April 12	Navratri is the Hindu festival of worship and dance. In Sanskrit the term literally means "nine nights". During this festival the forms of Shakti are worshiped.
Rama Navami		April 13	Rama Navami is the celebration of the birth of Rama.
Gudi Padwa	First Day of waxing moon of Chaitra (Hindu Calendar)	April 6	Gudi Padwa is celebrated on the first day of the Chaitra month, and is celebrated as New Years day by Marathis. According to the Brahma Purana, this is the day on which Brahma created the world.
Ugadi		April 6	Ugadi (meaning "the start of an era" in Kannada) is the New Years day for the Deccans. It takes place on the same day as Gudi Padwa.^[3]
Tamil New Year		April 14	Tamil New Year The Tamil New Year follows the nirayan vernal equinox and generally falls around April 14 of the Gregorian year.
Shigmo		February – March	Shigmo is celebrated in Goa as one of the prominent festivals of the Konkani Hindu community there.
Hanuman Jayanti		April 19	Hanuman Jayanti is the celebration of the birth of Hanuman; Rama's loyal devotee.
Vat Pournima	Full moon of Jeshtha (Hindu Calendar)	June 22	Vat Pournima is observed in Maharashtra. Pournima means "full moon." Women pray for the prosperity of their husbands by tying threads around a banyan tree.
Bonalu		August	Bonalu is a celebration of Mother Goddess, and is celebrated in Telangana Region.
Rath Yatra		July 4	Rath Yantra is the festival associated with Jagannath.
Guru Purnima	Full moon of Ashadh (Hindu Calendar)	July 29	Guru Purnima is the day devotees offer puja (worship) to their Guru. This was the day when Vyasa; author of the Mahabharata was born.
Mahalakshmi Vrata		August 11	Mahalakshmi Vrata is a puja performed by married Hindu women to seek the blessings of Mahalakshmi, goddess of wealth and prosperity.^[4]
Onam		September 12	Onam is a harvest festival, celebrated mainly in the Indian state of Kerala. Like many other religious festivals in India, Onam is celebrated by people across all castes and faiths.
Raksha Bandhan	Full moon of Shravana (Hindu Calendar)	August 16	Raksha Bandhan is a festival celebrated mainly in northern Indian states. Rakhi is a special occasion to celebrate the chaste bond of love between a brother and a sister.
Krishna Janmaashtami	Eighth day of waning moon of Shravana (Hindu Calendar)	August 24	Krishna Janmaashtami is the Hindu festival celebrating the birth of Krishna.^[5]
Gowri Habba		September 14	Gowri Habba is celebrated in Karnataka, Andhra Pradesh, and Tamil Nadu. Gowri is worshipped for her ability to bestow courage to her devotees. Newly wed couples are invited to the house of the groom's parents and served with varieties of food.
Ganesh Chaturthi	Fourth day of the waxing moon of Bhadrapada (Hindu Calendar)	September 3	Ganesh Chaturthi is the celebration of the birth of Ganesh.^[6]
Navratri	First nine nights of the waxing moon of Ashwin	September 30	Navratri is the Hindu festival of worship and dance. In Sanskrit the term literally means "nine nights". During this festival the forms of Shakti are worshiped.
Vijayadashami	Tenth day of waxing moon of Ashwin (Hindu Calendar)	October 9	Vijayadashami is the Hindu celebration of good over evil.
Deepavali	New moon of Ashwin (Hindu Calendar)	October 28	Diwali is the abbreviation of the Sanskrit word "Deepavwali", which means "row of lights". The festival is celebrated on the occasion of Lord Krishna and his wife Satyabhama killing a demon Narakasura. Another story says the festival is celebrated for the return of Rama and Sita to the kingdom Ayodhya after fourteen years of exile.^[7]
Bhaubeej	Second day of the waxing moon of Kartik (Hindu Calendar)	November 11	Bhaubeej, also referred to as Bhai dooj, is the ceremony performed by Hindus, generally, on the second day of Diwali. It is celebrated among brothers and sisters and is similar to Raksha Bandhan, except there is no tying of rakhi involved.
Kartik Poornima	15th of the Full moon day of Kartik (November-December)	November 13	A unique festival is celebrated in Varanasi this day which is called Dev Deepavali. The Kartik Purnima festival also coincides with the Jain light festival and Guru Nanak Jayanti
Chhath		November 4	Chhath is unique to Bihar and Terai, but is also celebrated elsewhere. It is a festival dedicated to the Sun God for bestowing the bounties of life and fulfilling wishes.^[8]
Prathamastami		November 30	Prathamastami is a festival that originated in Oriya. It is held on the eighth day of the month of Agrahayana, when older female relatives pray for the prosperity of the eldest child. The festival is followed by rituals and recitations of the Glory of Mahalakshmi.
Zatra		October – March	Zatra (also yatra and jatra) refers to the pilgrimage festivals celebrated at Hindu temples. Idols and murtis are taken out on special procession in a palkhi (a palanquin) or a chariot called the rath. Every temple observes this festival once a year on the traditional day.

References: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hindu_festivals

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Ganesh Chaturthi

2008-08-21T15:24:00.001-07:00

Ganesh Chaturthi in 2008 is on Wednesday, the 3rd of September.

Ganesh Chaturthi is one festival celebrated with great fervour in south –India, especially in Maharashtra.

This festival is celebrated on the fourth day of August-September, in religious terms this period is known as the phase of Bhadhrapada.

Ganesh Chaturthi wil be celebrated on September 3rd, 2008, as per the predictions.

Lord Ganesh is known by various terms – "Vignaharta" , "Vigneshwar", "Gajananeti", "Gajavaktra", "Nandana", "Varaganapati"," Vinayaka" and the list extends to108 names.

Lord Ganesh is worshipped for several reasons, he is considered to be the god of knowledge, music, wisdom and the remover of obstacles.At the beginning of every venture or project his blessings are always sought and are considered to be very auspicious.

A clay or a metal image of Lord Ganesh is made in all possible sizes. Sometimes their length extends up to 20 feet. People buy these images and install them in their house during the festival which lasts for 10-12 days.

What Is Done During the Ten Day Ritual?

During the ten day ritual, Aarthis are performed everyday. Kumkum is thrown over the idol denoting the importance of its holiness.

Also "Naivedya" which means offerings, 21 blades of grass, a lotus flower, fruits, sweets, special prasadam of rice and jaggery mixed together in the form of 21 "modaks" are offered before Lord Ganesha. These modaks are then offered as "prasadam" (sacred food).

After the period of 10 days, Lord Ganesh's image is taken out in a procession and immersed in the water. This day is known as the day of "Visarjan" or immersion.

It is considered unholy to keep the image of lord Ganesh after this day. This is the reason why we see so many images of Lord Ganesh, both big and small being led towards the water source for immersion.

Legend behind Lord Ganesh's Origin.

Ganesh Chaturthi is known to be Lord Ganesha's birthday. The Shiv Puranas state that , Goddess Parvathi breathed life into a image of clay called Ganesh, whom she considered to be more like her son. This image was placed so as to guard her while she bathed. At that time, her husband Lord Shiva, came to visit her. But, Lord Ganesh wouldn't let him in. This infuriated Lord Shiva and in his anger he slayed Ganesh's head off his body.

Parvathii was sad at this incident, so in order to make amends to his wife, Lord Shiva asked his servant to get him the head of the first living being he saw on earth.

The servant then brought him the head of a elephant. Lord Shiva placed the animals head on Ganesh's headless body. This is how Lord Ganesh came into being.

Symbolic Meaning Of Ganesh's Body Structure.

Lord Ganesh is described as the Lord who has a huge tummy, with a snake tied around it.He is said to travel on a mouse.

Lord Ganesh's belly is said to encompass the entire universe and cosmos. The seven oceans, and the seven worlds above and below the earth are said to be placed in Lord Ganesh's stomach.

The mouse symbolizes an individual's ego. It means that no matter how rich or how famous we become we should be humble.

What To Do On The Day Of Ganesh Chaturthi

Pray fervently to Lord Ganesh and ask him to remove any kinds of obstacles in your path.

Make your offerings to the priest

Spend the day reading the scriptures and meditate on them.

Wish you all a happy and blessed festival of Ganesh Chaturthi.

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Gowri Habba

2008-08-21T15:21:00.001-07:00

Year 2008 -September 14

Gowri Habba is a Hindu festival celebrated a day before Ganesh Chaturthi. It is a significant festival in parts of Karnataka, Andhra Pradesh & Tamil Nadu. Goddess Gowri the mother of Lord Ganesha and wife of Lord Shiva is worshiped through out India for her ability to bestow upon her devotees courage & power. Hindu belief has it that Goddess Gowri is the very incarnation of Aadhi Shakthi Mahamaya. She is the Shakthi of Lord Shiva. It is believed that on Thadige, or the thirteenth day of the month of Bhaadrapada Goddess Gowri comes home like any married girl comes to her parent's house. The next day Lord Ganesha, her son comes as if to take her back to Kailasa.
The Swarna Gowri vratha is performed on the occasion, to appease the Goddess.

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Krishna Janmashtami 2008

2008-08-21T15:08:00.001-07:00

Krishna Janmashtami 2008

Janmashtami 2008 is on August 23rd / 24th

Janmashtami celebrates the birth of one of the most famous Gods of Hindu religion, Bhagwan Krishna, on the eighth day (Ashtami) in the month of Sravana or Savana. Lord Sri Krishna was born on the 'Rohini' nakshatram (star). It is generally celebrated in the month of August-September according to the Christian Calendar. Legend has it that Sri Krishna was born on a dark, stormy and windy night to end the rule and atrocities of his maternal uncle, Kansa.
Position of Stars at the time of Birth
It was only on the eighth day of the second fortnight, in the month of Sravana when, the moon entered the house of Vrishabha in Rohini Nakshatra (star) that Lord appeared. According to Barhapatyamana, the month of Sravana corresponds to the month of Bhadrapada Krishnapaksha. Lord was born in the year of Visvavasu, appx. 5,227 years ago.
Celebrated for over Two Days
Janmashtami is celebrated for over two days as "Rohini" nakshatra and Ashtami may not fall on the same day. The first day known as Krishnashtami, as the birth of Bhagwan Krishna falls on the eighth day after Raksha Bandhan, which generally falls in the month of August. The second day is known as Kalashtami.
Welcome the Lord at Midnight
It is only at midnight between the first and the second day that birth of Sri Krishna took place. The actual festivities begin during midnight in this 48 hour period. The celebration reaches its peak at midnight, with the birth of Lord Krishna, with lot of hymns, arti taking place and blowing of the Conch (shankh), rocking the cradle of Lord. The idol of lord is bathed with Panchamrit (A mixture of milk, ghee, oil, honey and Gangajal). The Panchamrit is later distributed as Prasad to the devotees along with other sweets. While some Fast on the first day and break it at midnight for others the fasting continues for both days. The period coincides with rainy season.

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Church Attendance Boosts Student GPAs

2008-08-19T11:02:00.000-07:00

Church Attendance Boosts Student GPAs - Yahoo! News: "Church Attendance Boosts Student GPAs"

Ma Durge - Sarveshwari Jagdeshwari He Maat

2008-07-31T14:31:00.000-07:00

Was Jesus' Resurrection a Sequel? - TIME

2008-07-08T05:46:00.000-07:00

Was Jesus' Resurrection a Sequel? - TIME: "Was Jesus' Resurrection a Sequel?"

Indian school names monkey god - Hanuman chairman - CNN.com

2008-06-07T11:50:00.000-07:00

Indian school names monkey god chairman - CNN.com: "Indian school names monkey god chairman"

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Vatican: It's OK to believe in aliens - Yahoo! News

2008-05-13T15:37:00.000-07:00

Vatican: It's OK to believe in aliens - Yahoo! News: "Vatican: It's OK to believe in aliens"

Image In Hospital Brings Some To Tears, Prompts E-Mails - Orlando News Story - WKMG Orlando

2008-04-15T12:56:00.000-07:00

Image In Hospital Brings Some To Tears, Prompts E-Mails - Orlando News Story - WKMG Orlando: "Image In Hospital Brings Some To Tears, Prompts E-Mails"

Baby with two faces worshipped as goddess - CNN.com

2008-04-09T13:25:00.000-07:00

Baby with two faces worshipped as goddess - CNN.com: "Baby with two faces worshipped as goddess"

Major survey challenges Western perceptions of Islam - Yahoo! News

2008-02-27T10:17:00.000-08:00

Major survey challenges Western perceptions of Islam - Yahoo! News: "Major survey challenges Western perceptions of Islam"

America's Unfaithful Faithful - Yahoo! News

2008-02-25T12:22:00.000-08:00

America's Unfaithful Faithful - Yahoo! News: "America's Unfaithful Faithful"

Mother Teresa's letters surprised, inspired order - Yahoo! News

2007-09-04T14:40:00.000-07:00

Mother Teresa's letters surprised, inspired order - Yahoo! News: "Mother Teresa's letters surprised, inspired order "

KOLKATA, India (Reuters) - Letters written by Mother Teresa which reveal she sometimes doubted God surprised and then inspired many among her order, her successor said ahead of Wednesday's 10th anniversary of the ethnic Albanian nun's death.

"The sisters were surprised, I was surprised to learn how she suffered in her thirst for God," said Sister Nirmala, the diminutive superior general of the Missionaries of Charity.
"She suffered, yet she had a mask on herself of mysterious joy which comes only from complete surrender to God."
Sister Nirmala succeeded an ailing Mother Teresa six months before she died aged 87 on September 5, 1997, and will help lead a special mass to mark her passing.
The collection of letters written to colleagues and superiors over 66 years and complied by an advocate for her sainthood are due to be published on Tuesday under the title "Mother Teresa: Come Be My Light".
They cover a range of subjects dear to the Roman Catholic nun but it is those which portray her as at times deeply tormented about her faith that have grabbed attention.
In 1956, the 1979 Nobel Peace Prize winner, who dedicated her life to the poor, sick and dying in India, wrote:
"Such deep longing for God -- and ... repulsed -- empty -- no faith -- no love -- no zeal."
After Time magazine published excerpts of the book on its Web site last month, Sister Nirmala said dozens of nuns had approached her asking what the letters meant.
"They understood that even as thoughts of God forsaking her entered her mind, she never rejected God, such was her thirst for God, such was her greatness," Sister Nirmala told Reuters at the weekend.
"Her letters are inspiring and it has inspired us more to carry on the good work."
In overcrowded India and elsewhere, Mother Teresa faced some strong criticism over what many saw as her dangerous opposition to population control, and stand against abortion.
Homes run by her order were also accused of doing little to alleviate the suffering of patients.
Meanwhile, Kolkata -- previously known as Calcutta and where Mother Teresa worked for decades among the poor and dying -- was painted as a pit of misery and suffering, critics argued, ignoring its long history of intellectual and artistic creativity.
But many others see her lifetime's work on behalf of the city's underclass, which thrust her to worldwide prominence, in a different light.
In the run up to Wednesday's anniversary, hundreds of people, both rich and the poor, have been thronging Mother House, the order's headquarters in Kolkata, to offer prayers and sing hymns.
There had been speculation the publication of the letters would hurt the procedure to make her a saint, but this weekend Pope Benedict said in a speech Mother Teresa's torment over God's silence was not unusual.
Mother Teresa was beatified in 2003 but has not yet been canonised by the Vatican.

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Pope urges young to care for planet - Yahoo! News

2007-09-02T21:25:00.000-07:00

Pope urges young to care for planet - Yahoo! News

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Mother Teresa's Crisis of Faith - Yahoo! News

2007-08-23T15:34:00.000-07:00

Mother Teresa's Crisis of Faith - Yahoo! News: "Mother Teresa's Crisis of Faith "

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Christians, Jews in Holy Land alliance - CNN.com

2007-08-20T13:54:00.001-07:00

Christians, Jews in Holy Land alliance - CNN.com: "Christians, Jews in Holy Land alliance"

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Christians, Jews in Holy Land alliance - CNN.com

2007-08-20T13:54:00.000-07:00

Christians, Jews in Holy Land alliance - CNN.com: "Christians, Jews in Holy Land alliance"

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Jesuits say take word of God to Second Life - Yahoo! News

2007-07-29T19:42:00.000-07:00

Jesuits say take word of God to Second Life - Yahoo! News: "Jesuits say take word of God to Second Life "

ROME (Reuters) - Catholic missionaries have always trekked to dangerous parts of the Earth to spread the word of God -- now they are being encouraged to go into the virtual realm of Second Life to save virtual souls.
In an article in Rome-based Jesuit journal La Civilta Cattolica, academic Antonio Spadaro urged fellow Catholics not to be scared of entering the virtual world which may be fertile ground for new converts wishing to better themselves.
"It's not possible to close our eyes to this phenomenon or rush to judge it," Spadaro said. "Instead it needs to be understood ... the best way to understand it is to enter it."
Second Life is a simulation game where players can create a virtual version of themselves -- an avatar -- and interact with other people in the three-dimensional world.
According to its Web site, it has a population of more than 8 million residents and millions of dollars change hands there every month.
"Is there (cyber) space for God?" Spadaro aaka in his article which says there are already virtual churches and temples serving countless religions. He quotes a Swedish Muslim who says his avatar prays regularly as he prays in real life.
Spadaro warns the uninitiated that "the erotic dimension is very present" in Second Life, that people can buy genitalia for their avatars in a world that is "open to any form of erotic stimulation from prostitution to pedophilia."
While the virtual world might be a refuge for some people seeking to flee the real one, it is also full of people seeking something more from life, including, possibly, religious enlightenment, he said.
"Deep down, the digital world can be considered, in its way, mission territory," he said. "Second Life is somewhere where the opportunity to meet people and to grow should not be missed, therefore, any initiative that can inspire the residents in a positive way should be considered opportune."

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Scare as man tries to board popemobile - CNN.com

2007-06-06T09:12:00.000-07:00

Scare as man tries to board popemobile - CNN.com: "Scare as man tries to board popemobile"
ROME, Italy (CNN) -- Vatican police have detained a man who tried to jump into the back of the open-air vehicle carrying Pope Benedict XVI to his weekly address in St. Peter's Square.
The man, aged between 20 and 30, was not armed and the pope's life was never in danger, Vatican spokesman Father Federico Lombardi told CNN. It is not clear if he will be charged.
Video showed the man, wearing a red t-shirt, dark shorts, a baseball cap and sunglasses, launch himself over a crowd of people waving flags and holding banners on the side of the street as the popemobile passed by.
The man then jumped over the barricade and seemed to touch the back of the vehicle before at least six men in dark suits wrestled him to the ground. (Watch the pope's security guards wrestle the man to the ground )
The pontiff continued waving and did not look behind him where the incident took place.
After being questioned by Vatican police, the man will be handed over to Italian police for further questioning.
Every Wednesday, the pope gives an address, or general audience, to crowds who gather in St. Peter's Square.
Although it was quickly over, the incident recalled the attempt on the life of Benedict's predecessor John Paul II on May 13, 1981, also in St. Peter's Square.
Turkish assailant Ali Agca shot and seriously wounded the Polish pope as he was leaving the square following a general audience.
CNN's Alessio Vinci says people entering the square are screened with metal detectors. "There are thousands, sometimes hundreds of thousands of people in the square, so security screening can be difficult."

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Hundreds flock to Nepal shrine for "sweating" idol - Yahoo! News

2007-05-21T09:05:00.000-07:00

Hundreds flock to Nepal shrine for "sweating" idol - Yahoo! News: "Hundreds flock to Nepal shrine for 'sweating' idol "
KATHMANDU (Reuters) - Hundreds of people have flocked to a remote village in eastern Nepal to see a "sweating" idol of a Hindu god, a sign of impending turmoil or natural disaster for the devoutly religious nation.
Witnesses said that sweat seeped out of the idol of the Bhimeshwor god at a temple in Dolakha, a few hours drive from Kathmandu, during evening prayers at the weekend.
"I saw the right side of the black stone idol had become wet because of sweating," said Shanta Krishna Shrestha, chairman of a committee responsible for maintaining the temple.
"This denotes something like major political change or a natural calamity," said Shrestha.
"We must hold special prayers and make sacrifices asking for forgiveness."
Sacrificing animals such as goats or roosters to appease gods is common among Hindus in Nepal.
Sweating was seen on the idol in 2001, media reported, months before a palace massacre when King Birendra and eight other members of the royal family were shot dead in a drug-and-drink fuelled shooting spree by the then crown prince, who later turned the gun on himself.

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Yoga does not belong to an individual-India-The Times of India

2007-05-17T07:22:00.000-07:00

Yoga does not belong to an individual-India-The Times of India: "Yoga does not belong to an individual"
As a Yogi I do not get sad at the misfortunes of the modern day man, nor do I get overjoyed at his fortunes. Everything that happens is for a purpose and part of the divine plan. I am drawing readers’ attention to the present debate that has started on patenting of yoga. I see it as a redundant exercise from a legal point of view, for my legal expert says that there is a WTO agreement which provides that the cultural heritage and the medicinal plants of a country are out of the purview of patenting. And everyone agrees that yoga originated in India and is considered part of the culture of India. From the point of view of yoga (which is my subject) let me assure all human kind that yoga is not the domain of a region. Yoga means a union with yourself (divinity unrealised). Yoga does not and cannot belong to an individual. Yoga is for a yogi and a yogi is beyond the scope of a religion or country. Ashtanga Yog ( yama niyama , asana , pranayama , pratyahara , dharana, dhyan and Samadhi ) is an eight-limbed yoga and not an eight-step yoga, with one limb missing it is incomplete. In the present debate we are talking about only asana which is just a limb. A person who thinks asana is yoga and who is patenting asanas and is thinking he is patenting yoga needs to go back to the kindergarten of yoga. This debate would at least tell the whole world what yoga is and would save many from being cheated by these unscrupulous business men in the garb of yogis, whose only purpose is to make money at the cost of the gullible. (The author heads the Dhyan Foundation in Delhi)

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BBC NEWS | UK | Wales | South West Wales | Farmers' worries if Shambo spared

2007-05-14T08:59:00.000-07:00

Farmers' worries if Shambo spared

Farmers say they have sympathy for a "sacred" bullock facing slaughter - but feel the animal must be put down.
Global attention has focused on a campaign by monks at the Skanda Vale Temple in Carmarthenshire to save Shambo after it tested positive for TB.
The six-year-old British Friesian is due to be killed by Monday, 21 May, according to assembly government rules.
National Farmers' Union (NFU) Cymru president Dai Davies said exceptions could not be made.
Skanda Vale Temple, known as the Community of the Many Names of God, is a multi-denominational monastic centre at Llanpumsaint, which embraces all religious faiths and includes three Hindu shrines.
We hope we can work together to find a solution that doesn't involve killing
Brother Michael
More than 6,000 people have signed an online petition to save Shambo, but the final decision on its fate rests with the Welsh Assembly Government.
The monks are trying to set up a webcam - dubbed Moo Tube - so that supporters around the world can keep an eye on Shambo.
Mr Davies, a dairy farmer in nearby Whitland, said the case was "a difficult one".
"There is always sympathy to anyone who has livestock slaughtered," he said.
'Reservoir of infection'
"But it is a crippling disease and the only strategy from the assembly government at the moment is the slaughter of infected cattle.
"If you have an infected animal, it's a reservoir of infection."
Mr Davies said that there were many other TB cases where appeals for leniency had been in vain.

Government vet Christianne Glossop visited the temple on Friday
"There are lots of cases where prize animals were involved and people's livelihoods depended on it but, as they were infected, they had to obey the law of the land," he said.
"One is sympathetic, but you can't make exceptions or the whole thing snowballs - you have to follow the strategy of the vets."
The temple's Brother Michael has claimed that the case could become an international incident.
"I have just had a call from Australia - we have had Fox news, French news, CNN India, Russian media and a journalist from Canada - it's such an important issue," he said.
He said the assembly government had the flexibility in law to make an exception to save Shambo.
"We have appealed for them to use that discretion. We hope we can work together to find a solution that doesn't involve killing."
He hoped the webcam would allow people to check that Shambo was "happy and alright". "We have the kit and are trying to get it set up as soon as possible," he said.
On Friday, Christianne Glossop, the Welsh Assembly Government's senior veterinary officer, visited Shambo and vowed to treat the issue sensitively.
Last year, 5,220 cattle in Wales were culled because they failed the TB test.

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Welsh Hindus fight to save "Shambo" the sacred bull - Yahoo! News

2007-05-09T20:53:00.000-07:00

Welsh Hindus fight to save "Shambo" the sacred bull - Yahoo! News: "Welsh Hindus fight to save 'Shambo' the sacred bull "
LONDON (Reuters Life!) - A Hindu group in Wales is fighting to save the life of a bull they believe is sacred from slaughter after it tested positive for bovine tuberculosis.
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Followers at the Skanda Vale Hindu temple in the western Welsh town of Llanpumsaint, Carmarthen, are considering forming a human chain in an attempt to save Shambo the temple bull from the abattoir, and have launched a petition on their Web site [www.skandavale.org/shambo.htm].
Appeals to the Welsh Assembly and Britain's Department for Environment Food and Rural Affairs have failed, and a notice of intended slaughter has been issued.
The Hindu order at Skanda Vale, the Community of the Many Names of God, said in a statement: "If we were to permit DEFRA to kill Shambo it would be an appalling desecration of life, the sanctity of our temples and Hinduism as a whole.
"We could no more allow the slaughter of Shambo than we could the killing of a human being. Ultimately, we will be willing to defend his life with our own."
Swami Suryananda, a senior monk at the Many Names monastery, said the issue had "galvanised" Hindus.
"Shambo is a healthy animal, and we hope we can find a third way with the assembly and DEFRA to save him," he told Reuters.
The current policy of DEFRA is to slaughter any animal that tests positive for the disease, although it said in this particular case it was an issue for the Welsh Assembly.
A spokeswoman for the assembly said: "We fully understand that this can be distressing for the owners, but these measures are in place to protect public health and animal health and prevent the further spread of the disease."
The Welsh branch of the National Farmers' Union, NFU Cymru, said it had "every sympathy" for the trauma the Hindu religious order must be going through "as many other livestock farmers in the area have already suffered a similar fate".
But it went on to say that "regrettably a holistic approach to the eradication of this disease is essential if we are to stop the spread of TB".
The temple, which has taken legal advice, has argued that vaccination and isolation can prevent the disease from spreading to other cattle and humans. The animal will never enter the food chain, it added.
In the meantime, the community, has constructed a special shrine within its main temple for six-year-old Shambo.

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Dalai Lama eyes retiring in speech to U.S. students - Yahoo! News

2007-05-09T20:52:00.000-07:00

Dalai Lama eyes retiring in speech to U.S. students - Yahoo! News: "Dalai Lama eyes retiring in speech to U.S. students "
NORTHAMPTON, Mass. (Reuters) - The Dalai Lama, Tibet's spiritual leader, said on Wednesday he was ready to retire in a few years but will keep championing causes to help the Tibetan people, culture and environment.
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Speaking at Smith College in Massachusetts to about 5,000 students, faculty and invited guests of the Tibetan community, Tibet's exiled and revered spiritual leader said he already sees himself semi-retired.
"Within a few years' time, I will retire completely," the 71-year-old monk and Nobel Peace Prize winner said.
The Dalai Lama has lived in Dharamsala, India, in the outer Himalayas, since 1959. He was active in establishing there the Central Tibetan Administration, Tibet's government in exile. He was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize in 1989.
Wearing a yellow-and-maroon robe, he said he was honored to have been recognized in the world for his "small contribution to the welfare of humanity," and suggested the elected Tibetan leadership in exile can soon carry on his mission.
The Dalai Lama says he wants greater autonomy, not independence, for his predominantly Buddhist homeland, but China considers him a separatist and accuses him of continuing to promote Tibetan independence.
A boy the Dalai Lama picked as successor is believed to have been under house arrest since 1995, when he was 6 years old. Human rights groups call him the world's youngest political prisoner.
The Dalai Lama fled to India in 1959 after a failed uprising against Communist rule, nine years after the Chinese army marched into Tibet.
"The Tibetan nation is passing through its darkest period in 2,000 years," he told the gathering.
In recent years, Smith College has collaborated with a nearby college to sustain a program of annual academic exchanges with exiled Tibetan scholars.

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Archaeologist says Herod's tomb found-Rest of World-World-The Times of India

2007-05-08T07:19:00.000-07:00

Archaeologist says Herod's tomb found-Rest of World-World-The Times of India: "Archaeologist says Herod's tomb found"

JERUSALEM: An Israeli archaeologist said on Tuesday that the tomb of King Herod, famed for expanding the Jewish second temple during his reign in the first century BC, had been discovered in the occupied West Bank. Pieces of an elaborate sarcophagus believed to contain Herod's remains were found three weeks ago, Ehud Netzer, professor of archaeology at Hebrew University, told a news conference. "Three weeks ago we found the sarcophagus and we knew that it was it," said Netzer, who led the digs and has been working at the site since 1972. The tomb was located at Herodium, a mesa rising more than 750 metres (2,475 feet) above sea level some 12 kilometres south of Jerusalem in the West Bank, Netzer said. Herod built a palace on the flattened hilltop and was thought to have been buried there, but years of excavations failed to find the burial site. "The location and unique nature of the findings, as well as the historical record, leave no doubt that this was Herod's burial site," Netzer said, adding that no inscriptions have yet been found. The sarcophagus was discovered on the northeast slope of the mesa, where archaeological excavation began in August 2006. It "was broken into hundreds of pieces, no doubt deliberately," Netzer said, adding that it appeared to have been destroyed between 66 and 72 AD during the first Jewish revolt against the Romans. "It is an important discovery, first of all because Herod is well known," he said. "Secondly, because Herod is a personality that is important to the Christians – he is mentioned many times in the New Testament. Thirdly, Herodium is a wonderful building that Herod left us," he added. Herod, sometimes called Herod the Great, was appointed king of Judea by the Romans in around 40 BC. He greatly expanded the Jewish second temple and ordered building works in Caesaeria, Jericho and at the hilltop fortress of Masada overlooking the Dead Sea. The discovery is likely to spark political fallout in a region where archaeological finds inevitably become linked to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, and any claims that appear to strengthen one side's connection to the land are viewed suspiciously by the other. After the news conference, Shaul Goldstein, an official with the Gush Etzion Jewish settlement near the Herodium site, told army radio that the find "constitutes new proof of a connection between Gush Etzion and the Jewish people and Jerusalem." He called on the government to name Herodium "a national and religious site." Palestinian tourism minister Khulud Dwaibess, who oversees archaeological sites, said that a team of Palestinian archaeologists was due to inspect the site and that her ministry would not comment until after receiving their report.

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600-yr-old musical code cracked-Health/Science-The Times of India

2007-05-03T14:35:00.000-07:00

600-yr-old musical code cracked-Health/Science-The Times of India: "600-yr-old musical code cracked"

LONDON: A Scottish church which featured in the best-selling novel The Da Vinci Code has revealed another mystery hidden in secret code for almost 600 years. A father and son who became fascinated by symbols carved into the chapel's arches say they have deciphered a musical score encrypted in them. Thomas Mitchell, a 75-year-old musician and ex-Royal Air Force code breaker, and his composer and pianist son Stuart, described the piece as "frozen music". "The music has been frozen in time by symbolism," Mitchell said on his Web site www.tjmitchell.com/stuart/rosslyn.html), which details the 27-year project to crack the chapel's code. "It was only a matter of time before the symbolism began to thaw out and begin to make sense to scientific and musical perception." The 15th Century Rosslyn Chapel, about seven miles south of the Scottish capital Edinburgh, featured in the last part of Dan Brown's The Da Vinci Code one of the most successful novels of all time which has been turned into a Hollywood film. Stuart Mitchell said he and his father were intrigued by 13 intricately carved angel musicians on the arches of the chapel and by 213 carved cubes depicting geometric-type patterns. "They are of such exquisite detail and so beautiful that we thought there must be a message here," he said. Years of research led the Mitchells to an ancient musical system called cymatics, or Chladni patterns, which are formed by sound waves at specific pitches. The two men matched each of the patterns on the carved cubes to a Chladni pitch, and were able finally to unlock the melody. The Mitchells have called the piece The Rosslyn Motet and added words from a contemporary hymn to complete it. They have also scheduled a world premiere at a concert in the chapel on May 18, when four singers will be accompanied by eight musicians playing the piece on medieval instruments. Simon Beattie of the Rosslyn Chapel Trust said that he was delighted to have the mystery finally solved, and was intrigued by the music itself. "It's not something you would want to put on in the car and listen to, but it's certainly an interesting piece of music," he said. "It's got a good medieval sound to it."

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Explorers find ancient caves, paintings in Nepal - Yahoo! News

2007-05-03T08:53:00.000-07:00

Explorers find ancient caves, paintings in Nepal - Yahoo! News: "Explorers find ancient caves, paintings in Nepal "
KATHMANDU (Reuters) - Explorers have discovered a series of caves decorated with ancient Buddhist paintings, set in sheer cliffs in Nepal's remote Himalayan north, leaving archaeologists excited and puzzled.
An international team of scholars, archaeologists, climbers and explorers examined at least 12 cave complexes at 14,000 feet near Lo Manthang, a mediaeval walled city in Nepal's Mustang district, about 125 km (80 miles) northwest of Kathmandu.
The caves contain paintings that could date back as far as the 13th century, as well as Tibetan scripts executed in ink, silver and gold and pre-Christian era pottery shards.
"Who lived in those caves? When were they there, when were (the caves) first excavated and how did the residents access them, perched as they are on vertical cliffs?" asked Broughton Coburn, an American member of the survey team.
"It's a compelling, marvelous mystery."
Explorers from the United States, Italy and Nepal used ice axes and ropes to climb to the caves, cutting steps in the cliff face as they went.
"These findings underscore the richness of the Tibetan Buddhist religious tradition of this area -- stretching back nearly a millennium -- as well as the artistic beauty and wide geographical reach of Newari artists," said Coburn, an expert in Himalayan conservation and development.
Newaris are ethnic Nepalis renowned for skills in wall paintings and other forms of mostly Buddhist art.
The cave complexes are several hours walking distance apart. Some chambers were thought to have been used for burials, and there were also mounds archaeologists hope may hide further treasures.
There are about 20 openings in each complex, and their multiple floors are connected by vertical passages with rudimentary handholds or footholds, requiring some climbing skill to negotiate.
They contained stupas, decorative art and paintings depicting various forms of the Buddha, often with disciples, supplicants and attendants.
The site of recent findings lies north of Mount Annapurna, the world's tenth highest mountain.
Coburn said the artifacts remained unpillaged partly because the area has, until recently, been inaccessible.
One cave's mural paintings were executed in sub-tropical themes -- containing palm trees, billowing Indian textiles and birds as well as animals, he said.
"For Nepal, and for the Lobas, the people of northern Mustang, these are national treasures, and they need to be preserved and protected," Coburn said.
Government officials were upbeat.
"These are very hopeful findings and foreign explorers could be allowed to carry out further exploration in the area," said Prakash Darnal, senior archaeologist at the government's ministry of culture.
Few foreigners are currently allowed to visit the area.

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2nd century BC Buddhist art cave discovered-Rest of World-World-The Times of India

2007-05-02T17:11:00.000-07:00

2nd century BC Buddhist art cave discovered-Rest of World-World-The Times of India: "2nd century BC Buddhist art cave discovered"

2nd century BC Buddhist art cave discoveredSudeshna Sarkar[3 May, 2007 l 0034 hrs ISTlTIMES NEWS NETWORK]
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KATHMANDU: As the world celebrated the 2,551st birth anniversary of the Buddha on Wednesday, Nepal – his birthplace – had an additional reason to rejoice: The discovery of an ancient cave, an older Ajanta with exquisite wall paintings, in its northernmost tip jutting into Tibet. A team of scholars and climbers stumbled upon the treasure trove last month during a search for historic caves said to be abounding in the virtually uninhabited tract of frozen land, preserved by the icy temperatures and untouched for millennia. Funded by adventure gear maker North Face and a US-based production house, the expedition discovered a partly collapsed enclave containing a mural of 55 panels depicting the life of the Buddha. The paintings are highly evocative of Ajanta, says art conservator Luigi Fieni, referring to the first known Buddhist cave art dating to 1st and 2nd centuries BC. Fieni has been camping in Mustang, the remote mountainous district that was once a rich and powerful Tibetan kingdom, dominating the trans-Himalayan trade between India and Tibet. The art, he says, is executed in a style not seen in Mustang.

An interface between sport and religion? -Europe-World-The Times of India

2007-05-01T17:09:00.000-07:00

An interface between sport and religion? -Europe-World-The Times of India: "An interface between sport and religion? "

LONDON: The revelation that Pakistan's cricket team is more interested in praying than playing has sparked debate on the historical interface between sport and religion and the so-called 'Chariots of Fire' syndrome. Even as the team's former media manager PJ Mir spoke of their apparent inability to “live and let live” and increasingly brandish their in-your-face faith as a badge of identity, British academic opinion on the subject remained mixed. Experts said the best example of sporting excellence underpinned by strong religious belief remained the 1981 British film Chariots of Fire , based on the uplifting real-life story of Scottish sprinter Eric Liddle, who refused to run the Olympic 100 metres race in the summer of 1924 because it was Sunday, the Lord's Day. More recently, British triple-jumper Jonathan Edwards refused to compete on Sundays due to his devout Christian beliefs, which cost him the chance to shine at the 1991 World Championships. Says Ruphine S Obare of Sheffield University, who examined the tangled issue of whether sports can even exist without religion: “The Olympic games centred on the magnificent temple of Zeus at Olympia; and when the ancient Olympics begun in 776 BC, the Greeks offered sacrifices and took oaths in honour of Zeus to emphasise the games' religious significance.” “This religious phenomenon continued to be used by Pierre de Coubertin in his writings of the modern Olympic movement. The important source of this movement was the search for a 'humanistic' or 'civil' religion. Thus the sentiments, themes, conceptions and actions pervading Olympism and the Olympic Games have religious connotations,” said Ruphine. Obare believes that even the secular modern sporting marketplace betrays "a number of interesting parallels between sports and religion, including the 'worship' of athletes as gods and heroes (Michael Jordan), the 'idolisation' of former athletes in Sport Halls of Fame (Sebastian Coe), the daily 'reading' of the sport pages by the 'devout' fan (and) the collection of 'symbols of Faith' such as trophies, baseballs, game balls, and sport-related souvenirs.” According to a seminal study on soccer as a means of building and burnishing social identity in Scotland and Northern Ireland, Brunel University's Daniel Burdsey and Robert Chappell declare: “Both nations are underpinned by a hegemonic Protestant culture and football acts as an arena for Catholic challenges to, and Protestant preservation, of this dominance.” They add that the national team in the vast majority of football-playing countries is seen to “make a considerable contribution to the construction and maintenance of national identities.” Football, say Burdsey and Chappell, played an important part in the 1990 unification of North and South Yemen into the People's Democratic Republic of Yemen. It helped break down divisions between the French and Flemish populations in Belgium and “assisted in the promotion of racial tolerance and integration” in France because of the multi-ethnic composition of the 1998 World Cup-winning side. But religion and sport have a more controversial compact in an officially, almost-fiercely secular country like Turkey. Burdsey and Chappell admit that in Turkey “football acts not only as a symbol of modernity and inclusion within Europe, but paradoxically, it also acts as a means of cultural differentiation from the Western world.” According to well-known London-based Pakistan cricket writer, Qamar Ahmed, the Pakistan cricket team has been taking the interface between sport and religion too far. “They are paid to do a job, not to pray. The problem with the team is they've become increasingly aligned to the Tableeghi Jamaat ever since Saeed Anwar became captain. And so they've started to sprout beards, pray incessantly and neglect the game in favour of namaaz,” said Ahmed.

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BBC NEWS | Europe | Dutchman's Noah's Ark opens doors

2007-04-30T11:20:00.001-07:00

BBC NEWS Europe Dutchman's Noah's Ark opens doors: "Dutchman's Noah's Ark opens doors "

A half-sized replica of the biblical Noah's Ark has been built by a Dutch man, complete with model animals.
Dutch creationist Johan Huibers built the ark as testament to his literal belief in the Bible.
The ark, in the town of Schagen, is 150 cubits long - half the length of Noah's - and three storeys high. A cubit was about 45cm (18in) long.
The ark opened its doors on Saturday, after almost two years' construction, most of it by Mr Huiber himself.
'Past comprehension'
"The design is by my wife, Bianca," Mr Huibers said. "She didn't really want me to do this at all, but she said if you're going to anyway, it should look like this."
Life-size models of giraffes, elephants, lions, crocodiles, zebras and bison are included in the ark's interior.
The Bible's Book of Genesis says Noah kept seven pairs of most tamed animals and one breeding pair of all other creatures in the boat, which survived a catastrophic flood sent down by God to punish man.

Mr Huibers spent nearly two years building the ark
Mr Huibers, a contractor, built the ark out of cedar and pine - because Biblical scholars are still not sure as to which type of wood was used in the ark's construction.
He began building in May 2005, after he dreamed of the Netherlands being flooded.
"In February 1992, I had a dream that Holland will become flooded. The next day, I found a book about Noah's Ark in the local bookshop, and since then, my dream has been to build the ark," he said.
Visitors were stunned. "It's past comprehension," Mary Louise Starosciak told the Associated Press.
"I knew the story of Noah, but I had no idea the boat would have been so big."
The ark includes a 50-seat theatre showing a segment of the Disney film Fantasia retelling the story of Noah's Ark.
US visitor Lois Poppema told AP she thought the Netherlands was the right place for an ark to be built: "Just a few weeks ago we saw Al Gore on television .. saying that all Holland will be flooded.
"I don't think the man who made this ever expected that global warning will become [such an important] issue - and suddenly having the ark would be meaningful in the middle of Holland."

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BBC NEWS | In pictures: Hindus in Pakistan, Prayers offered

2007-04-30T11:17:00.000-07:00

BBC NEWS In pictures: Hindus in Pakistan, Prayers offered: "In pictures: Hindus in Pakistan"

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Teachers "purify" students with cow urine - Yahoo! News

2007-04-23T10:37:00.000-07:00

Teachers "purify" students with cow urine - Yahoo! News: "Teachers 'purify' students with cow urine "
MUMBAI (Reuters) - Indian teachers sprinkled cow urine on low-caste students to purify them and drive away evil, reports said on Saturday, in a country where millions of people remain oppressed at the bottom of the ancient Hindu caste system.

Upper-caste headteacher Sharad Kaithade ordered the ritual after taking over from a lower-caste predecessor at a school in a remote village in the western state of Maharashtra earlier this month, the Times of India reported.
He told an upper-caste colleague to spray cow urine in a cleansing ceremony as the students were taking an examination, wetting their faces and their answer sheets, the newspaper said.
"She said you'll study well after getting purified," student Rajat Washnik was quoted as saying by the CNN-IBN news channel. Students said they felt humiliated.
Hinduism reveres the cow, and its dung is used in the countryside as both a disinfectant and as fuel. In 2001, Hindu nationalists promoted cow's urine as a cure for ailments ranging from liver disease to obesity and even cancer.
The newspaper said the two teachers were arrested after angry parents complained to police. They have been released on bail.
India's secular constitution bans caste discrimination, but Dalits -- those at the bottom of the caste system -- are still commonly beaten or killed for using a well or worshipping at a temple reserved for upper castes, especially in rural areas.
Dalits, once known as "untouchables," make up around 160 million of India's billion-plus population.
In February, the New York-based Human Rights Watch group said India is failing to protect its lower-caste citizens, who were condemned to a lifetime of abuse because of their social status

Clergy - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

2007-04-18T11:45:00.000-07:00

Clergy - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia: "Clergy"

Clergy is the generic term used to describe the formal religious leadership within a given religion. The term comes from Greek (a lot, that which is assigned by lot (allotment) or metaphorically, heritage).

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BBC Hindi | Tample at Trinidad

2007-04-16T09:08:00.000-07:00

BBC Hindi त्रिनिडाड का एक मंदिर

Pope's new book plugs 'real Jesus' - CNN.com

2007-04-13T14:54:00.000-07:00

Pope's new book plugs 'real Jesus' - CNN.com: "Pope's new book plugs 'real Jesus'"

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Ancient Mexicans took sacrifice victims from afar - Yahoo! News

2007-04-12T09:41:00.000-07:00

Ancient Mexicans took sacrifice victims from afar - Yahoo! News: "Ancient Mexicans took sacrifice victims from afar "

MEXICO CITY (Reuters) - Ancient Mexicans brought human sacrifice victims from hundreds of miles (km) away over centuries to sanctify a pyramid in the oldest city in North America, an archeologist said on Wednesday.

DNA tests on the skeletons of more than 50 victims discovered in 2004 in the Pyramid of the Moon at the Teotihuacan ruins revealed they were from far away Mayan, Pacific or Atlantic coastal cultures.
The bodies, many of which were decapitated, dated from between 50 AD and 500 AD and were killed at different times to dedicate new stages of construction of the pyramid just north of Mexico City.
The victims were likely either captured in war or obtained through some kind of diplomacy, said archeologist Ruben Cabrera, who led the excavation at the pyramid, the smaller of two main pyramids are Teotihuacan, which housed some 200,000 inhabitants at its height of power around 500 AD.
"Teotihuacan may have had a tradition of capturing prisoners for sacrifice," said Cabrera.
Ancient Mexican civilizations like the Aztecs sacrificed humans by cutting their hearts out but researchers are not sure how the victims at Teotihuacan were killed.
Little is known about the race that inhabited Teotihuacan or what language they spoke.
The site, Mexico's oldest major archeological site, was revered by later Mesoamerican civilizations, including the Aztecs, who gave it its current name, meaning "The place where gods are made" in their Nahuatl language.
Teotihuacan icons found in far away Mayan ruins in Guatemala and Honduras show the city's broad reach.
Littered among the victims' bodies at the pyramid are remains of animals that had symbolic importance including pumas, coyotes, eagles and snakes as well as a large number of precious objects like obsidian knives.
Discoveries in the early 1980s of sacrificial victims and weapons skewered previous theories that Teotihuacan had a peaceful culture, unlike the warlike Aztecs and Maya.
"Researchers always tried to throw a little fog over it, but there was human sacrifice even if we don't know if it had to do with wars," said Cabrera.

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A divine police station

2007-04-11T16:25:00.000-07:00

http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/A_divine_police_station/articleshow/1895143.cms

In a place called Panvel in Raigadh district of Maharashtra, a temple allegedly has the power to teach a lesson to thieves. It is said if you worship at the Cheroba temple, stolen goods will come back to you. The thief must do so himself. He can ignore it at his own peril. The place has become a divine police station of sorts. There is no need to file an FIR. Zee News met several people who claimed they have got back their stolen goods after offering prayers and asking for help. Hundreds visit the temple daily. On special occasions, the temple is flooded with people. In case of a theft, many living in nearby areas prefer to go there than visit the nearest police station. The practice could have had its origin in the apathy of the local policemen towards petty crimes but has grown into a cult of sorts. The temple nowadays receives visitors even from Mumbai and nearby states who come here hoping to get their precious belongings back. Devotees offer coconut to Lord Cheroba. They crack the fruit and collect the water in utensils. It is believed this coconut water has miraculous powers. People fight over the water because they believe even a spoonful can cure dreaded diseases. Thefts are rare in this area. Incidents of chain snatching or breaking into homes are few. People often recount examples of thieves falling sick after ignoring the call of Lord Cheroba, according to the Zee News report.

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Pope says science too narrow to explain creation - Yahoo! News

2007-04-11T16:15:00.000-07:00

Pope says science too narrow to explain creation - Yahoo! News: "Pope says science too narrow to explain creation "

PARIS (Reuters) -
Pope Benedict' name=c1> SEARCHNews News Photos Images Web' name=c3> Pope Benedict, elaborating his views on evolution for the first time as Pontiff, says science has narrowed the way life's origins are understood and Christians should take a broader approach to the question.
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The Pope also says the Darwinist theory of evolution is not completely provable because mutations over hundreds of thousands of years cannot be reproduced in a laboratory.
But Benedict, whose remarks were published on Wednesday in Germany in the book "Schoepfung und Evolution" (Creation and Evolution), praised scientific progress and did not endorse creationist or "intelligent design" views about life's origins.
Those arguments, proposed mostly by conservative Protestants and derided by scientists, have stoked recurring battles over the teaching of evolution in the United States. Some European Christians and Turkish Muslims have recently echoed these views.
"Science has opened up large dimensions of reason ... and thus brought us new insights," Benedict, a former theology professor, said at the closed-door seminar with his former doctoral students last September that the book documents.
"But in the joy at the extent of its discoveries, it tends to take away from us dimensions of reason that we still need. Its results lead to questions that go beyond its methodical canon and cannot be answered within it," he said.
"The issue is reclaiming a dimension of reason we have lost," he said, adding that the evolution debate was actually about "the great fundamental questions of philosophy - where man and the world came from and where they are going."
NOT BY FAITH ALONE
Speculation about Benedict's views on evolution have been rife ever since a former student and close advisor, Vienna Cardinal Christoph Schoenborn, published an article in 2005 that seemed to align the Church with the "intelligent design" view.
"Intelligent design" (ID) argues that some forms of life are too complex to have evolved randomly, as Charles Darwin proposed in his 1859 book "The Origin of Species." It says a higher intelligence must have done this but does not name it as God.
Scientists denounce this as a disguised form of creationism, the view that God created the world just as the Bible says. U.S. courts have ruled both creationism and ID are religious views that cannot be taught in public school science classes there.
In the book, Benedict defended what is known as "theistic evolution," the view held by Roman Catholic, Orthodox and mainline Protestant churches that God created life through evolution and religion and science need not clash over this.
"I would not depend on faith alone to explain the whole picture," he remarked during the discussion held at the papal summer palace in Castel Gandolfo outside Rome.
He also denied using a "God-of-the-gaps" argument that sees divine intervention whenever science cannot explain something.
"It's not as if I wanted to stuff the dear God into these gaps - he is too great to fit into such gaps," he said in the book that publisher Sankt Ulrich Verlag in Augsburg said would later be translated into other languages.
AGAINST ATHEISM
Schoenborn, who published his own book on evolution last month, has said he and the German-born Pontiff addressed these issues now because many scientists use Darwin's theory to argue the random nature of evolution negated any role for God.
That is a philosophical or ideological conclusion not supported by facts, they say, because science cannot prove who or what originally created the universe and life in it.
"Both popular and scientific texts about evolution often say that 'nature' or 'evolution' has done this or that," Benedict said in the book which included lectures from theologian Schoenborn, two philosophers and a chemistry professor.
"Just who is this 'nature' or 'evolution' as (an active) subject? It doesn't exist at all!" the Pope said.
Benedict argued that evolution had a rationality that the theory of purely random selection could not explain.
"The process itself is rational despite the mistakes and confusion as it goes through a narrow corridor choosing a few positive mutations and using low probability," he said.
"This ... inevitably leads to a question that goes beyond science ... where did this rationality come from?" he asked. Answering his own question, he said it came from the "creative reason" of God.

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Rare occurrence as 2 faiths mark Easter - Yahoo! News

2007-04-08T18:50:00.000-07:00

Rare occurrence as 2 faiths mark Easter - Yahoo! News: "Rare occurrence as 2 faiths mark Easter "
ROME - From Moscow to Washington, Rome to Jerusalem, Christians of the Orthodox and Western faiths celebrated Easter on Sunday, prayed for a better future and relished their ancient rituals.
The alignment of the two faiths' Easter calendars, based on equinox and moon phases, occurs every few years, and this year's overlap made the narrow streets in the Holy Land especially crowded.
At the
Vatican' name=c1> SEARCHNews News Photos Images Web' name=c3> Vatican, the Eastern Christian celebrations of Easter resounded across the steps of St. Peter's Basilica when black-robed clerics intoned a long chant from the Byzantine liturgy during
Pope Benedict XVI' name=c1> SEARCHNews News Photos Images Web' name=c3> Pope Benedict XVI's outdoor Mass for tens of thousands of faithful. St. Peter's Square was ablaze with color from tulips, tiger lilies, hyacinths and azaleas from the Netherlands.
Benedict, head of the world's 1.1 billion Catholics, tempered his message about Easter joy with a litany of suffering in the world today, including what he decried as "continual slaughter" in
Iraq' name=c1> SEARCHNews News Photos Images Web' name=c3> Iraq and bloodshed in parts of Africa and Asia.
In Washington, a dawn crowd gathered for an Easter service at the Lincoln Memorial. Bundled up in blankets, scarves and hats, the worshippers sang "God Bless America" as the sun's rays glimmered on the reflecting pool.
President Bush' name=c1> SEARCHNews News Photos Images Web' name=c3> President Bush worshipped at the chapel at Fort Hood, an Army post 50 miles southwest from his ranch in Crawford, Texas. The sprawling post has sent thousands of soldiers to the war in Iraq.
"I had a chance to reflect on the great sacrifice that our military and their families are making," Bush said after the service. "I prayed for their safety, I prayed for their strength and comfort, and I pray for peace."
A bagpiper played "Amazing Grace" and led a pre-dawn crowd of more than 200 up Mt. Davidson, San Francisco's highest peak, which is topped with a 103-foot concrete cross. Pastors from churches of several denominations led prayers for soldiers in Iraq.
Bethany Baptist Church in Boulder, Colo., used graffiti, nails and an interactive prayer labyrinth with nine stations to tell the story of the crucifixion. Pastor Rob Stout said labyrinths were created in the Middle Ages as a way of symbolizing the journey to Jerusalem.
"Graffiti has an interesting history to it. I call it vandalism. Some call it art. We wanted to use it because the story of the passion and the crucifixion of Christ is a very raw story," Stout said.
After weeks of Lenten sacrifice and fasting in preparation for Easter, many Christians in Eastern Europe enjoyed holiday meals including brightly colored hard-boiled eggs. Roast lamb was featured on many tables in the Balkans as well as in Italy.
Cries of "Christ is risen!" went up in Macedonia after midnight, when priests symbolically announced Jesus' victory over death. Archbishop Stefan, head of the Macedonian Orthodox Church, called for peace "in our homeland and among all the people in the world."
While Christians are a tiny minority in Turkey, for historical reasons the Orthodox patriarchate has its home in Istanbul, ancient Constantinople, and the spiritual leader of the world's 200 million Orthodox, Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomew I, is based there.
Most of the worshippers packing the Church of St. George at a Saturday night Easter vigil service were visitors from Greece.
In the Pacific's predominantly Christian Solomon Islands, struggling with earthquake and tsunami losses, frightened villagers descended from the hills to celebrate Easter.
"Maybe it's a punishment from God," said one worshipper, Furner Smith Arebonato. "Before, there were few people in church. Now, after (the) earthquake, the church is filled with people, some of them never went to church before."

Hinduism, Hindu, Hindu gods and goddesses, Hindu holiday traditions, Hindu rituals -- Beliefnet.com

2007-04-06T19:25:00.000-07:00

Hinduism, Hindu, Hindu gods and goddesses, Hindu holiday traditions, Hindu rituals -- Beliefnet.com:

Hinduism
Welcome to Beliefnet's coverage of Hinduism, one of the world's largest and oldest religions. Beliefnet is the leading website covering faith, religion, and spirituality. Our Hinduism section covers Hindu gods, Hindu families, Hindu worship, and Hindu scriptures. Our columnists and writers, including Shoba Narayan, Aparita Bhandari, Lavina Melwani, and many others delve into the spiritual and cultural life of Hindus in North America, India, and around the world. The topics they explore include:
Finding meaning in and learning about ancient Hindu rituals
Relationships with Hindu deities--such as Krishna, Ganesha, Hanuman, Kali, and Shiva
New and traditional celebrations of Hindu holidays like Diwali and Holi Beliefnet also offers quizzes on various aspects of Hinduism and slide shows that provide a glimpse at this vibrant faith. Please choose one of Beliefnet's popular features below to begin your exploration of the Hindu religion.

HINDU BASICS
Learn About HinduismExplore the central tenets of this faith, including its teachings on the nature of a deity, the origin of the universe, the existence of evil, and more.
What Sort of Hindu Are You?Take our Hindu identity quiz to find out.
HINDUISM AND CULTURE
America's Favorite Hindu?Meet Apu, from "The Simpsons."
How to YogaLearn many different techniques for yoga, the ancient Hindu discipline.
Explore India's FaithsSee a slide show of India's many religious traditions, including Hinduism.
HINDU TRADITIONS AND HOLIDAYS
Lighting the Lamps for DiwaliIt may not be the month-long, raucous Diwali they had in India, but Hindus in the U.S still make this important holiday special.
Welcoming Hindu Babies The message of the Hindu baby-naming ceremony remains simple, despite the glitz of computer horoscopes and temple websites.
MORE ON HINDUISM
Beliefnet's Hinduism SectionMore on Hindu practice and spirituality, contemporary Hindu issues, and living a Hindu life. Plus interactive features, audio and video, quizzes, and more.

Spirituality - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

2007-04-06T15:10:00.000-07:00

Spirituality - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia: "Spirituality"
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Spirituality Portal
Spirituality, in a narrow sense, concerns itself with matters of the spirit. The spiritual, involving (as it may) perceived eternal verities regarding humankind's ultimate nature, often contrasts with the temporal, with the material, or with the worldly. A sense of connection forms a central defining characteristic of spirituality — connection to something "greater" than oneself, which includes an emotional experience of religious awe and reverence. Equally importantly, spirituality relates to matters of sanity and of psychological health. Like some forms of religion, spirituality often focuses on personal experience (see mysticism).
Spirituality may involve perceiving or wishing to perceive life as more important ("higher"), more complex or more integrated with one's world view; as contrasted with the merely sensual.
Many spiritual traditions, accordingly, share a common spiritual theme: the "path", "work", practice, or tradition of perceiving and internalizing one's "true" nature and relationship to the rest of existence (God, creation (the universe), or life), and of becoming free of the lesser egoic self (or ego) in favor of being more fully one's "true" "Self".
Contents[show]
1 Scoping the idea of spirituality
2 The spiritual and the religious
3 Directed spirituality
4 Spirituality and personal well-being
5 Spirituality and science
5.1 Opposition
5.2 Integration
6 History of spirituality
7 The study of spirituality
8 Spiritual traditions and communities
9 See also
10 References
11 External links
11.1 Overviews
11.2 Specific spiritual traditions
11.3 Notable contemporary spiritual figures
11.4 Other
12 Footnotes
//

[edit] Scoping the idea of spirituality
Some Indian traditions define spirituality (Sanskrit: adhyatma) as that which pertains to the self or soul (Sanskrit: atman).
Certain forms of spirituality can appear more like philosophy: note in particular the scope of metaphysics.
Due to the broad scope and personal nature of spirituality as a term in various usages, however, one can perhaps gain an overview of the field by focusing on key concepts that arise when people describe what spirituality means to them. Research by Martsolf and Mickley[1] highlighted the following areas as worthy of consideration:
Meaning – significance of life; making sense of situations; deriving purpose.
Values – beliefs, standards and ethics that one cherishes.
Transcendence – experience, awareness, and appreciation of a "transcendent dimension" to life beyond self.
Connecting – increased awareness of a connection with self, others, God/Spirit/Divinity, and nature/Nature.
Becoming – an unfolding of life that calls for reflection and experience; including a sense of who one "is" and how one knows.
The British magazine What is Enlightenment?, in its tenth anniversary issue, published an article which drew a distinction between what it called "feel good" or "translational" spirituality, and "transformational" spirituality, the former covering essentially the practices whereby a person feels better or changes approach, without in fact enhancing personal underlying spiritual centering (or ego-related viewpoint).
Osho, a controversial Indian teacher, comments of spiritual teachers that "[o]ut of one hundred masters, there is only one Master, ninety-nine are only teachers. The teacher is necessarily learned, the Master ... it is not a necessity... The Master is a rebel. he lives out of his own being, he is spontaneous, not traditional..."[2]

[edit] The spiritual and the religious
An important distinction exists between spirituality in religion and spirituality as opposed to religion.
In recent years, spirituality in religion often carries connotations of a believer having a faith more personal, less dogmatic, more open to new ideas and myriad influences, and more pluralistic than the doctrinal/dogmatic faiths of mature religions. It also can connote the nature of believers' personal relationship or "connection" with their god(s) or belief-system(s), as opposed to the general relationship with a Deity as shared by all members of a given faith.
Those who speak of spirituality as opposed to religion generally meta-religiously believe in the existence of many "spiritual paths" and deny any objective truth about the best path to follow. Rather, adherents of this definition of the term emphasize the importance of finding one's own path to whatever-god-there-is, rather than following what others say works. In summary: the path which makes the most coherent sense becomes the correct one (for oneself).
Many adherents of orthodox religions who regard spirituality as an aspect of their religious experience tend to contrast spirituality with secular "worldliness" rather than with the ritual expression of their religion.
People of a more New-Age disposition tend to regard spirituality not as religion per se, but as the active and vital connection to a force/power/energy, spirit, or sense of the deep self. As cultural historian and yogi William Irwin Thompson (1938 - ) put it, "Religion is not identical with spirituality; rather religion is the form spirituality takes in civilization." (1981, 103)
For a religious parallel to the approach whereby some see spirituality in everything, compare pantheism.

[edit] Directed spirituality
"Being spiritual" may have a goal-directed side, with aims such as:
simultaneously improving one's wisdom and willpower
achieving a closer connection to Deity/the universe
removing illusions or "false ideas" at the sensory, feeling and thinking aspects of a person.
Plato's allegory of the cave in book VII of The Republic gives one of the best-known descriptions of the spiritual development process, and may provide an aid in understanding what "spiritual development" exactly entails.
Some commentators regard spirituality as a two-stroke process: the "upward stroke" of inner growth, changing oneself as one changes one's relationship with the external universe; and the "downward stroke" of manifesting improvements in the physical reality around oneself as a result of the inward change.[citations needed] Another connotation suggests that change will come onto itself with the realization that all is oneself; whereupon the divine inward manifests the diverse outward for experience and progress.

[edit] Spirituality and personal well-being
Spirituality, according to most adherents of the idea, forms an essential part of an individual's holistic health and well-being. In this respect, some supporters of the idea of spirituality see it as a supportive concept even in workplace environments.[citation needed]

[edit] Spirituality and science
Analysis of spiritual qualities in science faces problems — such as the imprecision of spiritual concepts, the subjectivity of spiritual experience, and the amount of work required to translate and map observable components of a spiritual system into empirical evidence.

[edit] Opposition
Science takes as its basis empirical, repeatable observations of the natural world, and thus generally regards ideas that rely on supernatural forces for an explanation as beyond the purview of science. Scientists regard ideas which present themselves as scientific, but which rely on a supernatural force for an explanation, as religious rather than scientific; and may label such ideas as pseudo-science. In this context scientists may oppose spirituality, at least in the scientific sphere.

[edit] Integration
New Age physicist-philosopher Fritjof Capra has articulated connections between what he sees as the spiritual consequences of quantum physics.[citation needed] Ken Wilber, in an attempt to unite science and spirituality, has proposed an "Integral Theory of Consciousness".[3]
Ervin László posits a field of information as the substance of the cosmos. Using the Sanskrit and Vedic term for "space", akasha, he calls this information-field the "Akashic field" or "A-field". He posits the "quantum vacuum" (see Vacuum state) as the fundamental energy- and information-carrying field that informs not just the current universe, but all universes past and present (collectively, the "Metaverse").

[edit] History of spirituality

This section is a stub. You can help by expanding it.
Until recent centuries, the history of spirituality remained bound up within the history of religion.[citation needed] Spiritual innovators who operated within the context of a religious tradition became either marginalised/suppressed as heretics or separated out as schismatics. In these circumstances, anthropologists generally treat so-called "spiritual" practices such as shamanism in the sphere of the religious, and class even non-traditional activities such as those of Robespierre's Cult of the Supreme Being in the province of religion.
Eighteenth-century Enlightenment thinkers, often opposed to clericalism and skeptical of religion, sometimes came to express their more emotional responses to the world under the rubric of "the Sublime" rather than discussing "spirituality".
Schmidt sees Ralph Waldo Emerson (1803–1882) as a pioneer of the idea of spirituality as a distinct field.[4]
In the wake of the Nietzschean announcement of the "death of God" in 1882, people unpersuaded by scientific rationalism turned increasingly to the idea of spirituality as an alternative both to materialism and to traditional religious dogma.
Important early 20th century writers who studied the phenomenon of spirituality include William James (The Varieties of Religious Experience (1902)) and Rudolph Otto (especially The Idea of the Holy (1917).
The distinction between the spiritual and the religious became more common in the popular mind during the late 20th century with the rise of secularism and the advent of the New Age movement.

[edit] The study of spirituality
Many spiritual traditions promote courses of study in spirituality which happen to culminate in the unflowering of their own world-view systems or practices.
More generally, and building on a background of theosophy, Rudolf Steiner and others in the anthroposophic tradition have attempted to apply systematic methodology to the study of spiritual phenomena. This enterprise does not attempt to redefine natural science, but to explore inner experience — especially our thinking — with the same rigor that we apply to outer (sensory) experience.
Overall, scholars in disciplines such as theology, religious studies, psychology, anthropology and sociology sometimes concentrate their researches on spirituality, but the field remains ill-defined.

Pilgrims mark Good Friday in Jerusalem - Yahoo! News

2007-04-06T14:08:00.000-07:00

Pilgrims mark Good Friday in Jerusalem - Yahoo! News: "Pilgrims mark Good Friday in Jerusalem "

JERUSALEM - Christian pilgrims from around the world filled the narrow cobblestone streets of Jerusalem's Old City on Good Friday, some carrying large wooden crosses as they followed the route Jesus took on the way to his crucifixion.

Pilgrims from the United States, India,
South Korea the Philippines, Russia and other countries retraced Jesus' walk as he carried his cross through Jerusalem on the day of his death. Many held candles and sang hymns in languages including English, Latin and Hindi.
"I can imagine Jesus walking here with the cross," said Alex Kim, 18, of Seoul, South Korea.
Dragan Petrodic, wearing a Serbian flag on his shoulder, said, "I'm here to see and kiss all the places where God has been."
Nearby, an Arab vendor shouting in Russian hawked small crosses for $10 apiece.
One group, from California and South Korea, re-enacted Jesus' last hours before his crucifixion. A South Korean pilgrim played the role of Jesus, covered with blood, wearing a crown of thorns and burdened by a cross. He was escorted by others dressed as Roman centurions.
"The Lord moves us to come here," said one of the centurions, Bob Payton of Orange County, California, who added that this was his third Good Friday visit.
Clergymen in colorful robes, representing different Catholic and Orthodox denominations, filed early Friday into the ancient Church of the Holy Sepulcher, where many believe Jesus was crucified, died and was buried. In an annual tradition, the church's doors were unlocked by a member of the Muslim family that has held the key for centuries.
Inside the church, pilgrims pressed their heads to the long, smooth stone where the faithful believe Jesus' body was washed after being removed from the cross.
The calendars of five major Christian sects coincide this year, a convergence that happens only once every four years, and crowds were expected to be larger than usual.
Hundreds of police were deployed around the Old City to maintain order, said police spokesman Micky Rosenfeld.
There are 14 stations along the route, known as the Via Dolorosa, or Way of Sorrows, each marking an event that befell Jesus on his final walk. The final five stations are inside the church.
The proprietor of a pizzeria near the Via Dolorosa's fourth station, giving his name only as Nasser, said he remembered bigger crowds before Israeli-Palestinian violence erupted in 2000. While Asian and African pilgrims were well-represented, he said, western Europeans had yet to return in large numbers.
"Many tourists are still scared. They're still keeping away," he said.

Commentary: What would Jesus really do? - CNN.com

2007-04-06T09:26:00.000-07:00

Commentary: What would Jesus really do? - CNN.com: "Commentary: What would Jesus really do?"

Hindu God, Hindu God and Goddess

2007-04-06T07:26:00.000-07:00

Hindu God, Hindu God and Goddess: "Hindus view cosmic activity of the Supreme Being as comprised of three tasks: creation, preservation, and dissolution and recreation. Hindus associate these three cosmic tasks with the three deities, Brahma, Vishnu and Shiva. Lord Brahma brings forth the creation and represents the creative principle of the Supreme Being. Lord Vishnu maintains the universe and represents the eternal principle of preservation. Lord Shiva represents the principle of dissolution and recreation. These three deities together form the Hindu Trinity. "

Hindu deities - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

2007-04-06T07:18:00.000-07:00

Hindu deities - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia: "Hindu deities"

Within Hinduism a large number of personalities or 'forms' are worshipped as deities or murtis with the belief that these beings are either: aspects of the supreme Brahman; avatars of the supreme being (Bhagavan); or significantly powerful entities known as devas. The exact nature of belief in regards to each deity varies between different Hindu traditions and philosophies. Often these beings are depicted in humanoid or partially humanoid forms complete with a set of unique and complex iconography in each case.

Hindu Deities

2007-04-06T07:17:00.000-07:00

Hindu Deities

Just as a single force in space can be mathematically conceived as having various spatial components, the Supreme Being or God, the personal form of the Ultimate Reality, is conceived by Hindus as having various aspects. A Hindu deity (god or goddess; note small g) represents a particular aspect of the Supreme Being. For example, Saraswati represents the learning and knowledge aspect of the Supreme Being. Thus, if a Hindu wants to pray for acquiring knowledge and understanding, he prays to Saraswati. Just as sunlight cannot have a separate and independent existence from the sun itself, a Hindu deity does not have a separate and independent existence from the Supreme Being. Thus, Hindu worship of deities is monotheistic polytheism and not simple polytheism.
Hindus declare that there is only one Supreme Being and He is the God of all religions. There is no "other God." Thus the Biblical Commandment "Thou shalt have no other God before me," really means, "Thou shalt not deny the Ultimate Reality or worship any power other than the Ultimate Reality."
Hindus view cosmic activity of the Supreme Being as comprised of three tasks: creation, preservation, and dissolution and recreation. Hindus associate these three cosmic tasks with the three deities, Brahma, Vishnu and Shiva. Lord Brahma brings forth the creation and represents the creative principle of the Supreme Being. Lord Vishnu maintains the universe and represents the eternal principle of preservation. Lord Shiva represents the principle of dissolution and recreation. These three deities together form the Hindu Trinity.
One must clearly understand that Brahma, Vishnu and Shiva are not three independent deities. They represent the same power (the Supreme Being), but in three different aspects. Just as a man may be called a doctor, father or husband based upon the tasks he performs, the Supreme Being is called Brahma, Vishnu or Shiva when conceived as performing the three different cosmic tasks of creation, preser-vation, and dissolution/recreation. "The oneness of the three gods Brahma, Vishnu and Shiva is brought out by the mystic symbol AUM where 'A' represents Vishnu, 'U' Shiva and 'M' Brahma."
Hindu religion is often labeled as a religion of 330 million gods. This misunderstanding arises when people fail to grasp the symbolism of the Hindu pantheon. According to the Hindu scriptures, living beings are not apart from God, since He lives in each and every one of them in the form of atman (BG 10.39). Thus each living being is a unique manifestation of God. In ancient times it was believed that there were 330 million living beings. This gave rise to the idea of 330 million deities or gods. Actually, this vast number of gods could not have been possibly worshipped, since 330 million names could not have been designed for them. The number 330 million was simply used to give a symbolic expression to the fundamental Hindu doctrine that God lives in the hearts of all living beings.
- Bansi Pandit
Contents
Lord Ganesha
Lord Shiva
Lord Brahma
Lord Vishnu
Goddess Durga
Goddess Lakshmi
Goddess Saraswati
Sita, Rama, Lakshmana
Hanuman
Radha and Krishna
Mata Shakti
Mata Tripori Sondari Devi
Shiva Bhagwati (Akingam, Anantnag)
Sharda Mata Temple at Gushi (Kupwara)
Related Links
Hindu Dharma by Bansi Pandit
The Hindu Deities
Kashmiri Overseas Association

प्रतिमा-विज्ञान या मूर्तिकला

2007-04-04T09:14:00.000-07:00

Welcome to Yahoo! Hindi: "प्रतिमा-विज्ञान या मूर्तिकला"

प्रतिमा-विज्ञान या मूर्तिकला
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भारत में आदिकाल से ही मन्दिरों एवं प्रासादों का बहुत महत्व है। भिन्न-भिन्न देवताओं की प्रतिमाओं को प्रतिष्ठित कर मन्दिरों का निर्माण किया जाता है, तथा इनकी प्राण-प्रतिष्ठा कर पूजा-अर्चना की जाती है। यह भारतीय संस्कृति का अविभाजित महत्वपूर्ण अंग है। इसका वास्तुशास्त्र में बहुत महत्व है। क्योंकि भिन्न-भिन्न देवताओं की प्रतिमाएँ, इनके अस्त्र-शस्त्र, वाहन व चेहरे के भावों को प्रकट कर उनमें ऊर्जा का संचार करना (प्राण-प्रतिष्ठा) वास्तुशास्त्र की विषय-वस्तु है।यहाँ पर यह समझना बहुत जरूरी है कि देवता शब्द संस्कृत के मूल 'देऊ' शब्द से बना है। जिसका अर्थ है, ऐसा प्रकाश जहाँ ऊर्जा भी है। वास्तुशास्त्र ऊर्जा का ही शास्त्र है।प्रतिमा-विज्ञान में विभिन्न देवताओं के वर्ण, अस्त्र-शास्त्र, ध्वज, आभूषण तथा चेहरे के भावों का अध्ययन किया जाता है तथा इनकी पूजा-अर्चना, मन्त्र-उच्चार, पूजा-विधि आदि की विवेचना की जाती है।वास्तुशास्त्र में विभिन्न देवताओं की पूजाल-अर्चना, मन्त्रोच्चारण करके वास्तु के दोषों को कम किया जाता है व आवश्यक ऊर्जाओं का भवनों में संचार किया जाता है। वास्तुशास्त्र में विभिन्न देवताओं का एवं प्रतिमाओं का इसलिए भी महत्व है, क्योंकि वास्तुपुरुष मंडल में दर्शाए गए 45 देवताओं की पूजा-अर्चना, अस्त्र-शस्त्र, वाहन आदि की विवेचना एवं वास्तुदोष-शोधन का विश्लेषण किया जाता है।वैज्ञानिकों ने सिद्ध किया है कि प्रत्येक देवता की प्रतिमा का आभा-मंडल होता है। आधुनिक कैमरों द्वारा लिए गए चित्रों से ज्ञात हुआ है कि सिद्ध मन्दिरों की मूर्तियों के आभा-मंडल हैं, जिसके सात रंग होते हैं। उपरोक्त सभी तथ्यों का विवेचन वास्तुशास्त्र में करते हैं। यह भी स्थापत्य वेद का एक महत्वपूर्ण अंग है।
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ईशान कोण-ईश्वर का स्थान

2007-04-03T07:22:00.000-07:00

ईशान कोण-ईश्वर का स्थान
जैसा कि शब्द से ही स्पष्ट है कि यह स्थान ईश्वर का स्थान है। और यही कारण है कि यदि यह भाग कटा हो तो अशुभ माना जाता है तथा आपकी उन्नति में बाधा आती है। आपके घर के वास्तु में ईशान कोण का बहुत महत्व है, ईशान कोण उत्तर कोने को माना गया है। इस स्थान को वास्तु शास्त्र में भगवान की दिशा माना गया है। यदि घर का यह हिस्सा कटा हुआ हो तो तुरन्त बंद कर देना चाहिए व स्थान शुद्ध करके वहाँ भगवान की मूर्ति स्थापित करना चाहिए। आप अपने धर्मानुसार इष्ट देव की मूर्ति या धर्म से संबंधित पवित्र वस्तुएँ भी रख सकते हैं। यदि कुछ और न रख सकने जैसी जगह हो तो उस स्थान पर पानी का मटका या कोई हरे पौधे का गमला भी रख सकते हैं। यदि यह भाग घर के अन्य भागों से बड़ा हो तो अति उत्तम परिणाम देने वाला साबित होता है। जो भी इस स्थान पर बने कमरे में रहेगा उसे जीवन में सदैव उन्नति प्राप्त होगी। इस भाग पर आने जाने का रास्ता हो तो भी यह भाग उन्नति में बाधक होगा, क्योंकि इस कारण इस भाग पर जूते-चप्पलों का प्रयोग होगा।यदि पानी का हौज जमीन में बना और मकान में अंदर ही हो तो उस दरवाजे को बंद कर दूसरे स्थान से दरवाजा बनाना चाहिए। इस स्थान पर शौच आदि का स्थान हो तो उसे तुरन्त बंद कर देना चाहिए व अन्यत्र जहाँ भी सुविधा हो वहाँ बना लेना चाहिए। पश्चिम-दक्षिण में हो तो ठीक रहेगा। शौच स्थान उत्तर पूर्व या ईशान में नहीं होना चाहिए। इस बात के लिए कम से कम ईशान का ध्यान अवश्य रखें।
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ईशान कोण-ईश्वर का स्थान
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अमेरिकी विवि में हिन्दुत्व का पाठ"

2007-04-02T18:39:00.000-07:00

Welcome to Yahoo! Hindi: "अमेरिकी विवि में हिन्दुत्व का पाठ"

अमेरिकी विवि में हिन्दुत्व का पाठ
न्यूयॉर्क (भाषा), सोमवार, 2 अप्रैल 2007
हिन्दुत्व में भारतीय अमेरिकी छात्रों की दिलचस्पी को मान्यता प्रदान करते हुए अमेरिका के न्यूजर्सी प्रांत की रटगर्स यूनिवर्सिटी दुनिया के इस सबसे प्राचीन धर्म के अध्ययन के लिए एक व्यापक कोर्स शुरू करेगी।इन गर्मियों से विश्वविद्यालय छह पाठ्यक्रम शुरू करेगा। इनमें वाचन परंपरा हिन्दू संस्कार महोत्सव और प्रतीक के कोर्स स्नातक स्तर पर शामिल होंगे।हिन्दू दर्शन और हिन्दुत्व तथा आधुनिकता भी पाठ्यक्रम में शामिल होगा। इसके अलावा नॉन क्रेडिट कोर्स में योग और ध्यान तथा हिन्दू शास्त्रीय और लोकनृत्य शामिल किए जाएँगे।रटगर्स यूनिवर्सिटी में प्रोफेसर और हिन्दू अध्ययन पर ग्रीष्म कार्यक्रम के प्रभारी डॉ. माइकल शेफर ने कहा अमेरिका में बहुत कम संस्थान ऐसे व्यापक आधार वाले कार्यक्रम की पेशकश करते हैं जो रगटर्स इन गर्मियों से शुरू करने जा रहा है।उन्होंने कहा हिन्दुत्व पर कुछ विश्वविद्यालय विद्वत्तापूर्ण पाठ्यक्रम चलाते हैं और कुछ संस्कृत में पाठ्यक्रम की पेशकश करते हैं, लेकिन रटगर्स समर हिन्दू स्टडीज प्रोग्राम इस मायने में विशिष्ट है कि यह दस सप्ताह की अवधि में व्यापक विषयों को समाहित करता है।शेफर ने कहा कि उम्मीद है कि रटगर्स में पंजीकृत करीब पाँच हजार भारतीय मूल के छात्र इस पाठ्यक्रम में गहरी रूचि दिखाएँगे और हिन्दू अध्ययन पर ऐसे कार्यक्रम से भारतीय अमेरिकी समुदाय के बाहर से भी छात्रों और विद्वानों के आकर्षित होने की संभावना है क्योंकि न्यूजर्सी में विभिन्न मजहबों में लोगों की रूचि बढ़ रही है।
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Occassion: Maha Shivratri..................................................................

2007-04-01T09:02:00.000-07:00

Occassion: Maha Shivratri..................................................................

http://www.webdunia.com/occasion/shivratri/

व्रत-त्योहार

2007-04-01T08:37:00.000-07:00

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जैन धर्म के 24वें तीर्थंकर महावीर स्वामी अहिंसा के मूर्तिमान प्रतीक थे। उनका जीवन त्याग और तपस्या से ओतप्रोत था। वस्त्रों का पूर्ण रूप से परित्याग करने वाले महावीर के समय में हिंसा, पशुबलि, जाति-पाँति के भेदभाव बहुत...
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