Analysis/Insights

As a member of the Dutch-speaking Belgian Yoga Federation, I received a copy of the booklet the Government of India issued for the United Nations’ first-ever Yoga Day. It falls on 21 June, Summer Solstice, a day of mixed feelings: it is the longest day, alright, but it is also the start of the sun’s [...]

The concept of monotheism is taken to mean belief in just one god, deity, the creator. This is contrasted with polytheism which belief in many gods, as well as atheism which is denial of such a supernatural being. But is it just so simple? Has this monotheist narrative now spilled over into what we would [...]

The evangelicals, it appears, are in a bind—they want to capitalize on the mounting popularity of yoga, but how can they embrace a practice steeped in Hinduism without compromising their dogmatic exclusivity? They can’t authentically do that, and so, yoga is repackaged into a Christian avatar and forcibly divorced from its roots. The commercialization of [...]

India’s government has rejected the findings of a report by the United States Commission on International Religious Freedom that criticized the treatment of religious minorities since it came to power last year. The commission’s 2015 report said that since Narendra Modi’s party took over, religious minorities have been subject to derogatory comments by politicians linked [...]

Bhagirath Koirala, a Hindu priest, was falsely accused of inciting panic on April 10 by making a bomb threat, and complicity PAINESVILLE, OHIO – Today, the Painesville Municipal Prosecutor moved and Judge Michael A. Cicconetti of the Painesville Municipal Court agreed to dismiss all criminal charges against Bhagirath Koirala (age 67) of Reynoldsburg, Ohio. Mr. [...]

ISN’T HINDUISM SIMPLY A WAY OF LIFE?” This is a question I am frequently asked at satsang gatherings. It invariably makes for spirited discussion, as there is avid interest and a lively diversity of opinion. Years ago, Swami Chinmayananda, founder of Chinmaya Mission, gave a dramatic lecture on the subject . Here are key excerpts: [...]

Of all Indian scriptures, the Bhagavat Gita has likely been the one most commented on. India’s sages, yogis, philosophers, thinkers have, as a rule, regarded it a sacred duty to add theirs to the long list of commentaries on these eighteen brief chapters from the Mahabharata—a mere 700 slokas which have left the deepest of [...]

“…aggressive religions – they tend to overrun the Earth. Hinduism on the other hand is passive, and therein lies its danger.” (Sri Aurobindo, 1926) Throughout life it has often appeared to me that Hindus were passive. I don’t mean passive in terms of being non-violent (though that may also be the case), but passive in [...]

Many people will tell me, “I practice yoga, I sing kirtan, and I study the Bhagavad Gita and Indian philosophy. I meditate, I believe in an all pervasive consciousness that is manifest as the Universe itself. People have called it by many names and it has been represented by various forms. I study herbal medicine [...]

“[Many Hindus] claim that having a liberal and enlightened attitude towards homosexuality means that we are giving in to Western influence and values. It is always intriguing when we hear uninformed people speak of homosexuality as a form of colonialism. Aren’t they aware of the apparent contradictions? Of all the institutions we have inherited from [...]