Bowing to intense pressure from Hindu groups and political parties both at home and abroad, Nepal's Maoist government on Wednesday reversed its decision to replace the Indian priests at the Himalayan country's most revered Pashupatinath temple in Kathmandu with the local Brahmins. The announcement was made by Prime Minister Prachanda during a special address to Parliament telecast live by the state-run television.
'I don't feel any animosity towards the attacker. I only feel sorry for him. He did it out of ignorance, and needs help,' Ramesh Maharaj, the priest at the Hindu temple in New York, which was attacked by a firebomb on Sunday, tells Rediff.com
'I don't feel any animosity towards the attacker. I only feel sorry for him. He did it out of ignorance, and needs help,' Ramesh Maharaj, the priest at the Hindu temple in New York, which was attacked by a firebomb on Sunday, tells Rediff.com
The Supreme Court on Friday refused to entertain a plea of self-styled godman Asaram, serving life term in a rape case, for suspension of the sentence because of his deteriorating health condition.
Samy Vellu, the President of the Malaysian Indian Congress, met Home Minister Syed Hamid Albar and urged him to end the ban on the recruitment of priests from India. Vellu told the minister that the temples and gurdwaras in Malaysia urgently needed approximately 500 and 300 priests respectively.The minister told Vellu that the matter had to be brought up at Cabinet level for the decision to be revoked.
The priest of a Swaminarayn temple in Junagadh in Gujarat and his three associates arrested on Tuesday in connection with a sex scandal will be dismissed from the sect.
When Jaipur's Maharaja Madho Singh was invited to attend King Edward VII's coronation in 1902, he chartered a ship for Rs 15 lakh for the journey. He also carried 27,000 litres of Ganga jal on board. Prakash Bhandari recalls the maharaja's voyage to attend a British monarch's coronation on a day when Charles III will be crowned king at Westminster Abbey.
As anti-Sri Lankan protests raged in several parts of Tamil Nadu, a Buddhist priest from the island, currently pursuing archaeological studies in Delhi University, was roughed up by some activists of pro-Tamil outfits at the famous Big Temple in Thanjavur on Saturday, police said.
Five people, including an Indian priest, have been arrested for their alleged involvement in the death of a six-year-old boy in an ashram in Kathmandu, the police said on Wednesday. Indian national Swami Atma Suddhananda, in-charge of the Pranavananda Ashram, was arrested along with four Nepalese men after Rupesh Giri was found dead in mysterious circumstances on Tuesday, said a police officer at the Bouddha police station.
An Indian Christian priest, Father Alexis Prem Kumar, abducted in Afghanistan eight months back, has been released, PM Narendra Modi announced on Sunday.
In his complaint, Rev Paul Williamson of the Church of England described the marriage as "gross and offensive".
Traditional Hindu priests of the Vishnupad Temple in Bihar's Gaya town -- known as Gaywal Pandas -- are busy trying to find out if Shiv Sena chief Bal Thackeray, his son Uddhav Thackeray and his nephew and Maharashtra Navnirman Sena chief Raj Thackeray were originally from Bihar.
'If people don't see you, they might be hesitant, but once they see you, they are confident that this is the person they will vote for,' says political debutant Shambhavi Choudhury, 25, alumnus of the Lady Sriram College and the Delhi School of Economics.
Saji Abraham, clergyman of St Thomas Orthodox Church in Rajasthan's Banswara district, suffered head injuries in the attack, which took place when he was preparing for Christmas celebrations.
A women offers prayers to the Sun God on the occasion of the Chhath Puja in Bhubaneswar.
"I will pay Rs 10 crore cash reward to anyone who beheads Stalin and brings his head to me. If no one dares to kill Stalin, I will myself find him and kill him," Paramhans Acharya, the chief priest of the Tapaswi Chawni temple of Ayodhya, said.
Explore some of the majestic temples dedicated to Lord Shiva across the country.
The BJP has been talking about Ram Rajya for years now. I have asked many a right winger what that means, but they cannot say beyond good government, notes A Ganesh Nadar.
Doomariyaganj MLA Sayeda Khatoon had on Sunday visited the Samay Mata temple at the invitation of the local people to participate in a Shatchandi Mahayagya.
Root relies on trademark style to rescue England
The Islamic State has claimed the gruesome killing of a Hindu head priest in Bangladesh using guns and cleavers at a temple in an area bordering India.
The equestrian statue of the Maratha warrior king has been installed at the Army's 41 Rashtriya Rifles Maratha Light Infantry Regiment in the north Kashmir district which shares its border with Pakistan. Special prayers were held by a priest on the occasion.
The Sikh high priests have called for a Punjab bandh on May 22.
Roman Catholic priest Rev Joseph Palanivel Jeyapaul, facing charges of sexually assaulting a 14-year-old girl in Minnesota, was on Tuesday asked by the Archbishop of Madras to return to the United States for further investigations.
The Shri Ram Janmabhoomi Teerth Kshetra Trust has sent invitations to 7,000 people, including 3,000 VVIPs, for the consecration.
Amid heated debate on whether Makara jyoti of Lord Ayyappa shrine is celestial or manmade, the chief priest of Sabarimala temple on Sunday said the controversy was generated only to divert attention from the tragedy that killed 102 devotees.
Nearly 50 years after Tamil Nadu government legalised "self-respect" marriages which are conducted without a priest the Madras High Court has upheld the amendment made in the year 1968 to simplify Hindu marriages.
The Chennai police on Friday rescued an eight- year-old girl a day after she was kidnapped by unidentified persons for a ransom of Rs 5 lakh and arrested a priest who allegedly masterminded her abduction in a bid to make money to pay off loan.
Major Archbishop and Catholicose of SMC, Baselios Mar Cleemis made the announcement regarding this at St Mary's Cathedral in Thiruvananthapuram in the presence of senior prelates, priests, religions and lay members.
Would you support a homosexual priest in your own community?
Spread over 62 acres of land, the temple has been built at an approximate cost of Rs 25 crores and the construction was completed in two years.
They were strangers who met on a bus. They believe God brought them together. Shobha Warrier reports on an incredible story of kindness and giving from Kerala.
Dhillon told reporters that IPS Section 304 slapped against the Nihang could be converted into Section 302 (murder) following further investigation.
A bohemian Nepali, a south Indian priest and a mechanical engineer are bound by their mutual love for tattooing as an art form. These young men however are no longer on the margins as tattooing is being accepted in the mainstream more than ever.
A Ganesh Nadar meets the stunned father of Alexis Prem Kumar, the Indian Jesuit priest, who was abducted by armed gunmen in the Herat province of Afghanistan.
Buddhist monks have demanded the arrest of the former chief priest of the Bodh Gaya Mahabodhi temple, Buddhism's holiest shrine, after recovery of ornaments and jewelry donated by devotees from his room.
It is in circumstances like this that the Constitution becomes extremely important. It reminds us that we have a commitment towards higher human values to fulfil, a path to get back to, suggests Shyam G Menon.Else, we risk being rudderless in an ocean of money and majoritarianism, suggests Shyam G Menon.
Union Minister Pralhad Joshi confirmed as much on his social media handle on Monday, saying a renowned idol-maker from the 'land of Hanuman' will see his piece of creation find pride of place at the Ram Temple on January 22.
Narayan Prasad Pokarel, president, Nepal chapter of the Vishwa Hindu Parishad, was gunned down around 0630 IST at Ram Nagar near Butwal, 300 km southwest of Kathmandu, sources in the organisation said.
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