Hinduism
Why the UMC took a historic stand and condemned Hindu nationalism
By Neal Christie — May 24, 2024
(RNS) — The United Methodist Church is saying that we will not stand by silently while people are persecuted because of their faith and their conscience.
Modi’s anti-Muslim rhetoric taps into Hindu replacement fears that trace back to colonial India
By Archana Venkatesh — May 20, 2024
(The Conversation) — The Indian prime minister made reference to communities that have “too many children” in a veiled reference to Muslims.
India’s parliament has fewer Muslims as strength of Modi’s party grows
By Sheikh Saaliq and Krutika Pathi — May 15, 2024
MALAPPURAM, India (AP) — Ever since the BJP began its rise as a political force in the mid-1980s, the proportion of Muslim lawmakers in parliament and state legislatures has shrunk.
Lawsuit alleges religious coercion through meditation in Chicago Public Schools
By Richa Karmarkar — May 13, 2024
(RNS) — Chicago public high school students allege they were coerced into participating in a Hindu puja ceremony as part of a multiyear study of Transcendental Meditation's ability to reduce crime from University of Chicago's Urban Labs and the David Lynch Foundation.
Harvard religion professor Diana Eck on pluralism’s changes, challenges
By Adelle M. Banks — May 9, 2024
(RNS) — ‘I still think of myself as Christian, in the sense that that’s my family of origin,’ Eck said. ‘There are other families that I feel I belong to as well.’
Harvard Pluralism Project’s Diana Eck retires after decades of research, promoting dialogue
By Adelle M. Banks — May 9, 2024
(RNS) — Eck said she hopes the Pluralism Project, which has been a model for affiliates and organizations across the country, will continue to foster dialogue and engagement.
India votes in third phase of national elections as Modi escalates his rhetoric against Muslims
By Krutika Pathi and Sheikh Saaliq — May 7, 2024
NEW DELHI (AP) — Most polls predict a win for Modi and his Bharatiya Janata Party, which is up against a broad opposition alliance led by the Congress and powerful regional parties.
South Asian groups work to break cultural, religious stigmas around domestic violence
By Richa Karmarkar — April 30, 2024
(RNS) — In Sexual Assault Awareness Month, advocates hope to reshape the conversation around intimate partner violence within the diaspora.
A Hindu festival in southwestern Pakistan brings a mountainous region to life
By Adil Jawad and Riazat Butt — April 29, 2024
HINGLAJ, Pakistan (AP) — The dramatic surroundings of Hingol National Park in Baluchistan province are the setting for Pakistan’s largest Hindu festival, Hinglaj Yatra, which started on Friday and ends on Sunday.
An anti-Hindutva teach-in spurs debate about Hindu representation on college campuses
By Richa Karmarkar — April 25, 2024
(RNS) — Hindu student organizations, say advocates, do not always represent the full breadth of thought within the community of young American Hindus.
Modi is accused of using hate speech for calling Muslims ‘infiltrators’ at an Indian election rally
By Krutika Pathi — April 23, 2024
NEW DELHI (AP) — The remarks sparked fierce criticism for peddling anti-Muslim tropes, and for breaking election rules which bar candidates from engaging in any activity that aggravates religious tensions.
Once a fringe Indian ideology, Hindu nationalism is now mainstream, thanks to Modi’s decade in power
By Krutika Pathi and Sheikh Saaliq — April 18, 2024
AHMEDABAD, India (AP) — Supporters and critics agree on one thing: Modi has achieved staying power by making Hindu nationalism acceptable — desirable, even — to a nation of 1.4 billion that for decades prided itself on pluralism and secularism
Hindu Lord Ram road-trips through the United States
By Richa Karmarkar — April 17, 2024
(RNS) — For the first time in North America, an image of Lord Ram is being paraded from temple to temple on a two-month-long road trip, just in time for the deity’s birthday, Ram Navami.
Indian protesters pull from poetic tradition to resist Modi’s Hindu nationalism
By Krupa Shandilya — April 16, 2024
(The Conversation) — Thanks to a strong oral Urdu literary tradition in South Asia, poems from the past linger in the popular imagination.
Solar New Year celebrations unite religious groups across the South Asian diaspora
By Richa Karmarkar — April 15, 2024
(RNS) — This week, people of all South Asian backgrounds celebrated the Hindu Solar New Year in their unique, regional ways. But common threads between the holidays, many say, have the power to unite those living in the diaspora.
