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Drona - Superhero Movie Bollywood Style
Drona, an Indian Superhero film starring Abhishek Bachchan,Aasim Khan ,Priyanka Chopra was released worldwide on October 2, 2008. Film is supposed to be a compelling modern tale of one man's spectacular voyage through the labyrinths of mystic myths and legendary legacies. Of a journey that will force him to face his fears and make him the hero he was born to become. Drona claims to derive its roots from Indian mythology but actually ends up falling in the standard template of those frequent fanciful films where the villain desires to gain immortality through magical potions and the hero (or is it superhero) has to stop him from achieving eternity.
Drona essentially is designed as a superhero film but sadly his superpowers seem to be nothing more than delivering punches. The film starts on a dull note and as it progresses it starts resembling an Arabian Nights fable of the 80s in the likes of Hatim Tai (to tacky effect), with a protagonist who has to overcome obstacles to complete his mission. Unfortunately the blockages in his path are so bland that the lackluster screenplay loses its audience midways. Drona, an Indian Superhero film starring Abhishek Bachchan,Aasim Khan ,Priyanka Chopra was released worldwide on October 2, 2008. Fil... more -
India temple stampede kills 110
At least 110 people have been killed in a stampede at a temple in the popular tourist city of Jodhpur in north India, the third such tragedy to hit the country in a matter of months.
The disaster happened early this morning as thousands of devotees gathered to mark the start of the nine-day Navaratr festival at the Chamunda Devi temple at the top of the Mehrangarh fort, in the state of Rajasthan.
Several hundred people were injured after being trampled to the ground.
Television channels showed pilgrims carrying scores of limp bodies down the slope that leads to the temple while others attempted to resuscitate victims.
One child was shown hunched over her father's lifeless body, crying "Daddy, please get up".
Early reports suggested that the stampede was triggered by rumours of a bomb. The temple authorities dismissed that and blamed a steep, slippery slope. One witness said that temple officials had closed part of the route up the slope, creating a crush of people that broke a barricade.
A senior civil servant said: "We have 113 bodies in two government hospitals in Jodhpur," .
It is believed that most of the victims were men as the queue for women was separate.
Temple crushes are common in India. Last month at least 145 people including 40 children were killed in a similar stampede at the Naina Devi temple in the mountainous state of Himachal Pradesh.
The tragedy was triggered by the collapse of iron railings along a narrow path leading to the hilltop temple.
Hundreds of people - mostly women and children - fell down a steep slope as the panicking crowd tried to flee to safety, police and local officials said. Most of the victims died from suffocation.
Six people died in July at a popular Hindu festival attended by about a million people in the town of Puri in the eastern state of Orissa. In March, nine people died at a religious gathering in central India when a railing broke at the temple, triggering a stampede among 100,000 devotees.
In 2005, about 265 pilgrims were killed in a stampede near a temple in the western state of Maharashtra.
The latest tragedy is likely to trigger another call to ensure religious festivals are better organised.
Earlier this month, a government report blamed temple officials for the Naina Devi disaster. It suggested that in future pilgrims be split into groups of about 200 at such events and that "special arrangements" be made to manage the rush at weekends and holidays. At least 110 people have been killed in a stampede at a temple in the popular tourist city of Jodhpur in north India, the third such t... more -
At least 160 dead in India temple crush
At least 160 worshippers are feared dead after a stampede at a Hindu temple in the northern India state of Rajasthan.
Local officials said at least 100 more were thought to be injured after the incident at the Chamunda Devi temple in the historic city of Jodhpur.
It is thought that a wall near the temple collapsed, causing panic among thousands of gathered devotees.
India's temples have suffered several deadly stampedes recently - including one last month where 140 were killed. At least 160 worshippers are feared dead after a stampede at a Hindu temple in the northern India state of Rajasthan. ... more -
Vatican warns of growing "Christianophobia"
"Christianophobia" is a growing problem around the world and it must be fought with the same determination as anti-Semitism or Islamophobia, the Vatican said on Friday.
Archbishop Dominique Mamberti, the Vatican's foreign minister, spoke in the wake of attacks against Christians in India that have left at least 13 people dead this week.
Mamberti, addressing a conference in northern Italy, said religious freedom was a vital part of international relations and human dignity.
"In order to promote this dignity in an integral way, so-called 'Christianophobia' should be combated as decisively as 'Islamophobia' and anti-Semitism," he said.
This week in eastern India, thousands of people, most of them Christians, have sought shelter in makeshift government camps, driven from their homes by religious violence.
Hindu mobs burnt more than a dozen churches and attacked Christians after a Hindu leader was killed.
Mamberti said the events in India made the issue of religious liberty today all the more pressing.
While Hindu groups accuse Christian priests of bribing poor tribes and low-caste Hindus to change their faith, the Christians say lower-caste Hindus convert willingly to escape a complex caste system.
Pope Benedict has condemned the violence against Christians in Orissa but also deplored the killing of the Hindu leader.
Italy's foreign ministry said it would summon India's ambassador to demand "incisive action" to prevent further attacks against Christians.
Mamberti said 21 Catholic missionaries were killed in the world in 2007 and lamented that the Christian population of Iraq was now down to about 500,000 from about one million before the U.S.-led invasion in 2003.
Last month, Pope Benedict told Iraqi Prime Minister Nuri al-Maliki that minority Christians in Iraq needed more protection.
The Archbishop of Mosul of Iraq's largest Christian denomination, the Chaldean Catholics, was kidnapped in February and found dead two weeks later.
The Vatican has often expressed concern that conflicts in the Middle East are greatly diminishing the Christian population in the areas of the religion's birth.
from: Reuters
http://uk.reuters.com/article/topNews/idUKLT61932620080... "Christianophobia" is a growing problem around the world and it must be fought with the same determination as anti-Semitism ... more -
Church Trashed as India Religious Riots Spread
Hindu mobs ransacked a church and clashed with Christian villagers in eastern India on Thursday, police said, as Italy said it would summon India's ambassador to demand "incisive action" to prevent more attacks.
Indian authorities have struggled to control spiraling religious violence in the eastern state of Orissa.
Hindu mobs have destroyed more than a dozen churches and attacked Christians this week after the murder of a Hindu leader in Kandhamal, a tribal area where Christian missionaries have been active for years.
Shoot-on-sight orders have failed to end clashes that have killed at least 11 people, mainly in Kandhamal district.
Police deployed more than 3,000 personnel in the streets on Thursday but they could not stop the ransacking of at least one church. Local media said as many as four churches were attacked.
"Police are marching in several areas now," Orissa police chief Gopal Chandra Nanda told Reuters.
Television pictures showed mobs armed with rods putting up road blocks on Thursday and others attacking churches.
Other mobs armed with bows and arrows and axes have attacked Christian homes, dragging out women and children. Hundreds have fled to forests and nearby hills, officials said.
"Moments after we passed by a Christian village, people set it on fire and everything was over within minutes," a senior police officer, speaking on condition of anonymity, said from Kandhamal, the worst-hit district.
India's constitution is secular, but most of its billion-plus citizens are Hindu. About 2.5 percent of Indians are Christians. But around the Kandhamal area, home to around 650,000 people, more than 20 percent of the mainly tribal inhabitants are Christian converts.
Religious violence has troubled tribal regions of Orissa for years, with Hindus and Christians fighting over conversions.
While Hindu groups accuse Christian priests of bribing poor tribes and low-caste Hindus to change their faith, the Christians say lower-caste Hindus convert willingly to escape a complex Hindu caste system.
Italy Condemns Religious Violence
The killings have drawn international reaction. Pope Benedict has condemned the violence against Christians in Orissa but also deplored the killing of the Hindu leader.
On Thursday, Italy's foreign ministry said it will summon India's ambassador to demand "incisive action" to prevent further attacks against Christians.
A statement issued after a cabinet meeting also said Italy would ask France, the current EU president, to take up the issue at a future meeting of foreign ministers.
The Indian ambassador would be told of Rome's "strong expectations" for "an incisive, preventive and repressive action by Indian authorities regarding such unacceptable acts of violence," the Italian statement said.
In Orissa, peace committees were set up in villages and India's Prime Minister Manmohan Singh discussed the violence with a delegation of bishops in the capital, New Delhi.
But Christians in many villages said attacks were worse than the government has said. Hindu mobs ransacked a church and clashed with Christian villagers in eastern India on Thursday, police said, as Italy said it would s... more -
Nepal court scraps 'living goddess' tradition
A centuries-old tradition in Nepal of worshipping a virgin girl-child in a palace as a "living goddess" has been scrapped after it was condemned as outdated by the country's supreme court, which has ruled that the supposed deity must go to school.
God School... could be planet Earth. A centuries-old tradition in Nepal of worshipping a virgin girl-child in a palace as a "living goddess" has been scrapped af... more -
In Search Of: The ancient wisdom from which all the world's religions have em...
Written by Gnostic Instructor
Gnosis is Greek for “knowledge.” Gnosis refers to experiential knowledge, rather than intellectual or conceptual knowledge.
The venerable science of Gnosis is the universal and essential "knowing" that arises from the experience of objective reality, universally experienced by all those who fully awaken and develop their consciousness. The science or path to arrive at knowing that reality for oneself, in ones own experience, is also called Gnosis, because it leads to the acquisition of one’s own Gnosis of fundamental truth.
Gnosis is, in its essence, the method to escape suffering, because to experience fundamental reality, one must abandon the deluded mind, within which we all suffer intensely. Our delusions cause suffering, and prevent us from seeing the truth.
The method to experience the fundamental reality is exact and has existed for millennia.True Gnosis - conscious knowledge of this experience - is free of separatism, dogma, politics, fanaticism, and sectarianism. Gnosis comes from the divine, and cannot be bottled into the limited concepts of the intellect or mere belief.
The hallmarks of true Gnosis are seen in the world's greatest human beings: profound compassion, penetrating wisdom, and sparkling intelligence. Written by Gnostic Instructor ... more -
British woman impaled on statue of deathly Hindu goddess
A 30-year-old woman had to be cut free after impaling her arm on three-inch metal spikes attached to a statue of Kali, the Hindu goddess.
The accident happened in the victim's house near Manchester. It took firemen 30 minutes to free her by cutting through the spikes with a hacksaw. A spokesman for Greater Manchester Fire and Rescue Service said: "The woman had fallen onto the statue within the house. We had to cut through the part that she had impaled her arm on.
The victim has not been named. It is understood she "fell onto the statue while staggering around".
Kali, the goddess of time and change, is generally associated with death and destruction. A 30-year-old woman had to be cut free after impaling her arm on three-inch metal spikes attached to a statue of Kali, the Hindu godde... more -
Mourners killed as Indian soldiers fire into Kashmiri funeral crowd
Indian security forces fired into crowds of protesters for a second day today as they defied curfews in Indian Kashmir, killing a reported 14 people, in the worst violence seen in the region since an anti-Indian uprising in the 1990s.
The demonstrations were sparked when Hindus of the Jammu region began blocking the main highway in the state — preventing Muslim traders from selling their goods.
The clashes have broadened into a pro-independence protest and have raised fears that relations between India and Pakistan could once again be destabilised.
Although the army imposed the first curfew in the Kashmir valley in 13 years, it was almost immediately broken. More than 20,000 Muslims defied the ban in Bandipora, about 40 miles north of Srinagar and took to the streets in the morning.
Police also fired on another protest rally just south of Srinagar, killing two people. A local journalist was also killed.
The funeral of a Kashmiri separatist leader, Sheikh Abdul Aziz, was another flashpoint, with security forces facing down 10,000 people who defied the curfew to take the body to Srinagar's main mosque.
Aziz was killed yesterday when police fired into a large crowd of Muslims trying to march to the Pakistani portion of Kashmir in protest at the "Hindu blockade" of the highway linking the Kashmir valley with the rest of India. Mirwaiz Umar Farooq, head of the separatist umbrella group the Hurriyat Conference, said that India "should not be surprised at the nationalism of Kashmiris. There has been a facade of normalcy in Kashmir. Tourists coming and mobile phones arriving do not mean that people are not angry".
Farooq said India had "wasted chances to come up with a creative solution with Pakistan and Kashmiris". He added: "I think the blockade made people realise that Kashmir at the moment totally depends on India and that we need to be economically independent."
Under Pervez Musharraf, Pakistan had begun a peace process with India and refrained from making statements about troubles in Indian Kashmir. But the new Pakistani government surprised the Indian government today with a statement condemning "the excessive and unwarranted use of force against the people of Indian-occupied Kashmir".
Navtej Sarna, the Indian foreign affairs spokesman, hit back saying: "These statements constitute clear interference in the internal affairs of an integral part of India — such statements by leaders of a foreign country do not help the situation. Nor do they contribute to creating the atmosphere necessary for the dialogue process between India and Pakistan to move forward."
Analysts raised concerns that Kashmir, divided between Pakistan and India but claimed by both, could destabilise relations on the subcontinent.
"The first thing is the whole event is very undesirable in terms of both the domestic situation and its linkage with the larger bilateral peace process," C Uday Bhaskar, a senior strategic analyst, said. "I see this will have a bad impact and considering that Pakistan is going through a bad turmoil now, the overall impact on the peace process will not be very positive."
Indian Kashmir, formally known as Jammu and Kashmir, has been rocked by violence between Hindus and Muslims in recent weeks. The troubles began in May when the state government handed over 100 acres of land for pilgrims to Amarnath, a Hindu shrine in the Himalayas.
Muslim protests faded after the government rescinded the order, but Hindu nationalists in Jammu responded by blocking the key highway linking the Kashmir valley, with its Muslim majority, to northern India. Some analysts fear Hindu nationalist right-wing groups may keep the issue burning.
Manmohan Singh, the Indian prime minister, held emergency talks last night but there appeared little progress towards peace in Kashmir. Indian security forces fired into crowds of protesters for a second day today as they defied curfews in Indian Kashmir, killing a repo... more -
Indian army shoots Hindu protesters
The army in Indian-administered Kashmir has opened fire at hundreds of stone-throwing Hindu protesters, killing one person, an official said.
Two other protesters, angry over a government decision to not transfer land to a Hindu shrine, were injured in the clash at Pullimore, a village on the outskirts of Jammu city, said Ramesh Kumar, a police officer.
Kumar said that the army, deployed along the highway that connects Jammu with the rest of India, the only Hindu-majority region in India's mostly Muslim Jammu-Kashmir state, was forced to fire at the protesters after they defied a curfew and pelted stones at vehicles on the road.
They also tried to block off the road, Kumar said.
Anger between Hindus and Muslims in the Himalayan region has flared since June when the government in Jammu-Kashmir decided to award 99 acres of land to the Shri Amarnath Shrine Board, a trust that maintains the Amarnath shrine, a revered Hindu site.
The shrine contains a large icicle revered by Hindus as an incarnation of Lord Shiva, the Hindu god of destruction and regeneration.
Kashmiri Muslim leaders say the confrontations will continue [AFP]
Hundreds of thousands of Hindus are currently visiting the shrine on an annual pilgrimage.
The state government was forced to revoke the land transfer last month after a week of often violent protests by Muslims who called the move an attempt to build Hindu settlements in the area and alter the demographics of the state.
Six people were killed and hundreds wounded in those protests.
But the cancellation angered Hindus and set off demonstrations by them.
Jammu, the only Hindu-majority city in the state, and Samba, a town on its outskirts, have witnessed massive protests ever since.
The clashes come a day after a Muslim protester was killed demonstrating against alleged attacks on Muslims by Hindus in the Jammu region of Jammu-Kashmir.
Sajjad Haider, editor-in-chief of the Kashmir Observer newspaper, told Al Jazeera that in Jammu, "where the agitation has been alarming, Muslims have been targeted by right-wing Hindu groups".
"The unfortunate part is that the government of India has been totally caught off guard and the situation has developed into full-scale confrontations."
Haider said: "They have let things worsen in Jammu. There have been no measures taken so far to contain the violence which has been exerted against minority [Muslim] members and government property.
"On the other hand we have seen in the Kashmir valley that the [Indian] government has come down heavily on protests [by Muslims] against the violence on minority [Muslim] members, which have been peaceful.
"In Jammu, they have taken a soft approach against protesters who are obviously a minority there."
Muslim Kashmiri leaders say the confrontations will continue.
Syed Ali Shah Geelani, a separatist leader fighting Indian government forces for a Kashmir with closer ties to Pakistan, said the "peaceful protests" would continue after "harassment of Muslims by Hindu extremists".
A Hindu group leader, Shri Amarnath Yatra Sangrash Samiti, who organised some of the protests, said: "We stick to our core demand, restoration of land." The army in Indian-administered Kashmir has opened fire at hundreds of stone-throwing Hindu protesters, killing one person, an officia... more -
'Scores killed' in India stampede
A stampede at a hilltop temple in northern India has killed at least 120 people, police say.
The stampede happened at the Nainadevi temple in the Bilsapur district of Himachal Pradesh state, during a nine-day Hindu religious festival, the BBC reports.
Police said the victims included 30 children. Dozens more people were hurt and have been taken to hospital.
The Nainadevi temple is about 160km (100 miles) from the Himalayan hill town of Shimla.
Indian temples are regularly hit by stampedes, as huge crowds of Hindu devotees flock to make offerings at festival times.
There have been at least three fatal stampedes in the country so far during 2008, although the numbers killed were far smaller than in the latest incident.
Crowds had gathered at the temple to celebrate the festival of Shravan Navratras, which began on Saturday and runs until 11 August.
At least 50,000 people were expected to attend the festivities, says the BBC's Damian Grammaticas in Delhi.
A local police official told the BBC Hindi service that the stampede happened when metal railings on the narrow mountain path to the temple broke, causing widespread panic.
Hundreds were then crushed together in a tiny space where they were unable to breathe.
He said rescue teams had taken the injured to hospital.
The chief minister of Himachal Pradesh is said to have offered compensation to those injured in the stampede, and to the families of those killed. A stampede at a hilltop temple in northern India has killed at least 120 people, police say. ... more -
Emperor - Chapter 6
The Body of Medical Literature on Cannabis Medicine
Our authority here is the ‘Body of Literature,’ starting with ancient materia medicae:
Chinese and Hindu pharmacopoeia and Near Eastern cuneiform tablets, and continuing all the way into this century, including the 1966-76 U.S. renaissance of cannabis studies—some 10,000 separate studies on medicines and effects from the hemp plant.
Comprehensive compendia of these works are designated as the prime sources for this medical chapter, as well as ongoing interviews with many researchers. The Body of Medical Literature on Cannabis Medicine ... more -
Emperor - Chapter 13
PREJUDICE: Marijuana and the Jim Crow Laws
Since the abolition of slavery, racism and bigotry have generally had to manifest themselves in less blatant forms in America.
The cannabis prohibition laws illustrate again this institutional intolerance of racial minorities and show how prejudice is concealed behind rhetoric and laws which seem to have an entirely different purpose.
Smoking in America
The first known* smoking of female cannabis tops in the Western hemisphere was probably in the 1870s in the West Indies (Jamaica, Bahamas, Barbados, etc.); and arrived with the immigration of thousands of Indian Hindus (from British-controlled India) imported for cheap labor. By 1886, Mexicans and black sailors, who traded in those islands, picked up and spread its use throughout all the West Indies and Mexico.
*There are other theories about the first known “smoking” of hemp flower tops, e.g., by American and Brazilian slaves, Shawnee Indians, etc., some fascinating - but none verifiable.
Cannabis smoking was generally used in the West Indies to ease the back-breaking work in the cane fields, beat the heat, and to relax in the evenings without the threat of an alcohol hangover in the morning.
The jazz and swing music of “Negroes, Mexicans and entertainers” was declared an outgrowth of marijuana use.
Given its late 19th century area of usage - the Caribbean West Indies and Mexico - it is not surprising the first marijuana use recorded in the U.S. was by Mexicans in Brownsville, Texas in 1903. And the first marijuana prohibition law in America - pertaining only to Mexicans - was passed in Brownsville in that same year.
“Ganja” use was next reported in 1909 in the port of New Orleans, in the black dominated “Storeyville” section frequented by sailors.
New Orleans’ Storeyville was filled with cabarets, brothels, music, and all the other usual accoutrements of “red light” districts the world over. Sailors from the islands took their shore leave and their marijuana there.
Blackface...
The Public Safety Commissioner of New Orleans wrote that, “marijuana was the most frightening and vicious drug ever to hit New Orleans,” and in 1910 warned that regular users might number as high as 200 in Storeyville alone.
To the DA and Public Safety Commissioners and New Orleans newspapers from 1910 through the 1930s, marijuana’s insidious evil influence apparently manifested itself in making the “darkies” think they were as good as “white men.”
In fact, marijuana was being blamed for the first refusals of black entertainers to wear blackface* and for hysterical laughter by “negroes” under marijuana’s influence when told to cross a street or go to the back of the trolley, etc.
*That’s right; your eyes have not deceived you. Because of a curious quirk in the “Jim Crow” (segregation) laws, black Americans were banned from any stage in the Deep South (and most other places in the North and West also). “Negroes” had to wear (through the 1920s) blackface - (like Al Jolson wore when he sang “Swanee”) - a dye which white entertainers wore to resemble or mimic black people. Actually, by “Jim Crow” law, blacks were not allowed on the stage at all, but because of their talent were allowed to sneak/enter through back doors, put on blackface, and pretend to be a white person playing the part of a black person... PREJUDICE: Marijuana and the Jim Crow Laws ... more -
Mosque feeds 1, 000 needy Singaporians
Muslims worked together this weekend to provide Sunday lunch for people of races & religions at the Al-Iman Mosque in Bukit Panjang.
BLESSING TO ALL COMMITTEE
Soon after the Tsunami in 2004 Islamic Religious Council of Singapore and mosque heads set up a Blessings to All committee to help in humanitarian efforts. To date, it has raised $1.3 million for disaster victims in South Asia, Indonesia, Myanmar and Sichuan, China.
Yesterday the committee presented a $129,000 cheque to Mercy Relief for survivors of this year's cyclone in Myanmar and earthquake in China.
The committee encourages Mosques to make a difference in neighborhoods. Some Mosques now projects like running soup kitchens & beach clean ups.
RESPONSES
Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong said:
'Keep up the good work, to be good Muslims, good citizens, good neighbours!' he wrote in a note at the mosque, alongside comments from other well-wishers, who included representatives of major religions in Singapore.
Said Mr R. Bawajee of the Hindu Advisory Board: 'The promotion of sharing among communities facilitates inter-faith harmony.' Muslims worked together this weekend to provide Sunday lunch for people of races & religions at the Al-Iman Mosque in Bukit Panjan... more -
Muslim-run organisation throws "Pizza for the hungry" parties!
The pizza parties -with live music- saw people of all faiths caming together across U.S. states which saw 15,000 pizza slices donated to the homeless & hungry at soup kitchens through eyeBLINK’s business (a not for-profit-organisation)!
The Muslim-run eyeBLINK’s business's manager and creator of 'Pizza for the Hungry: A Smile Brings Hope' Obai Kadwani said:
“It is a part of our religion to feed the hungry,”
“Charity is both encouraged and required in Islam. Muslims are encouraged to feed the hungry irrespective of the religions of the hungry. It is great to showcase such a great characteristic of Islam. As everyone knows, actions speak louder than words.”
http://www.free-press-release-center.info/pr00000000000... The pizza parties -with live music- saw people of all faiths caming together across U.S. states which saw 15,000 pizza slices donated ... more -
Hindus Hating The Guru
"The Love Guru's Meagan Good gives an honest and personal answer to a question from viewer, princessjae, about the religious controversy surrounding the film.
"The Love Guru" is in theaters now. "The Love Guru's Meagan Good gives an honest and personal answer to a question from viewer, princessjae, about the religious... more -
Muslim Morocco using Music as a bridge between world faiths?
As Saudi Arabia held its first ever conference on interfaith dialogue Morocco is hosting its 14th festival of World Sacred Music.
The president of the festival, Mohamed Kabbaj, said:
"Religion is too important to leave to clerics alone"
There was even a Christians & Muslims performing together which was shown on France24 on its 'Culture' Magazine.
Other performers from across the globe include a Christian singing in Syriac related to Aramaic the language of Jesus (pbuh) & Indian Madhup Mudgal who will sing in Hindustani (classical Indian) even using Hindu scriptures like the Vedas. A Greek Othordox choir & other Muslim sufi perfomers also performed.
The city of Fez has been the spiritual & cultural capital of Morocco & has ties with Europe such as Andulusia, (modern day Spain) as it use to be part of the Islamic Empire where Muslims, Christians & Jews use to live & coexist peacefully. As Saudi Arabia held its first ever conference on interfaith dialogue Morocco is hosting its 14th festival of World Sacred Music. ... more -
SPIRITUALITY vs. RELIGION
I did not write this although I do agree with it.
SPIRITUALITY vs. RELIGION:
Spirituality says that God is within us, and that we do not need anyone else to make this particular divine connection for us.
Religion says that we are separated from God, and that we need to communicate with and worship this ascended entity in order to make the divine connection.
Spirituality says that we are free to make choices on our own, and that we must accept personal responsibility for our actions.
Religion says that we must make their choices and act their way, depending upon a given religious denomination's belief systems.
The theme of spirituality is fellowship through the employment of unconditional love.
The theme of religion is fellowship through fear and guilt.
Spirituality does not require us to make donations.
Religion has become a big business.
Spirituality says there is no Hell, no judgment, no angry God, and that we are loved unconditionally.
Religion says there is a Hell, God gets angry and judges us. Therefore, we are not loved unconditionally.
Spirituality says we are free to choose our own path to God.
Religion commands us to do it their way, depending upon a particular religious denomination's beliefs.
Spirituality says we go to God to lighten our burden.
Religion has taught us to fear their God, depending upon a particular religious demonination's beliefs.
Spirituality says we should not be ashamed of our sexuality. Rather, it should be a sacred celebration of love.
Religion has taught us to feel ashamed, guilty and dirty about our sexualty.
Spirituality teaches us to honor and respect Mother Earth.
Religion has told us to "Be thou fruitful, multiply and subdue the Earth." I repeat, "... subdue the Earth."
Spirituality reminds us that we are one with God and one with each other.
Religion teaches disunity and separation which is the opposite of God.
Spirituality says God is within everyone and everything.
Religion says God and His messengers reside in Heaven and that "they" are the only intermediaries for us.
Spirituality says we are born in innocence and purity.
Religion says we are born with sin.
Spirituality teaches that we are on a long spiritual adventure and journey which will ultimately end by reuniting with our Source.
Religion says we have got one life to get it all right, and there is nothing but Heaven or Hell after that.
Spirituality says we are free to express.
Religion, over time, fostered the dreaded inquisition.
Spirituality teaches unconditional love for all.
Religion, over time, fostered the Crusades in which many were killed and slaughtered in the name of God.
Spirituality teaches that we should love one another unconditionally and always honor the rights and choices of others.
Religion treated Native Americans, the Mayans and other indigenous cultures as savage primitives who "must be saved."
Spirituality teaches peace and harmony.
Religion has caused more wars and more killing than any other reason.
Spirituality says respect all living things.
I have never once heard any religion say stop slaughtering millions of trees every year for Christ's birthday.
Spirituality teaches us to have faith in ourselves.
Religion teaches us to have faith in them.
Spirituality says we have all the answers, that we can find them by "going within."
Religion teaches us that it has all the answers and only its answers are the right ones.
Spirituality teaches us to search for the Universal Truths, wherefrom our hearts will tell us when we have found them.
Religion teaches we have no choice but to accept their version of the Truth.
Which one feels better to you? Spirituality or religion?
Go to the depths of your heart for the answer for, indeed, it will never lie to you, my friend. I did not write this although I do agree with it. SPIRITUALITY vs. RELIGION: ... more -
Hindu shrine workers may keep their underwear on
Employees counting donations at a popular Hindu shrine in southern India will no longer have to take off their underpants at work after the local human rights commission intervened.
Police and temple authorities imposed the dress code at the Sabarimala hill shrine in Kerala five years ago after thefts were reported from the shrine's strongroom.
Employees in the vault, all of whom were men, were made to work topless wearing only a dhoti -- a cotton wrap worn around the waist -- with nothing underneath.
But they found it degrading, and their union complained to the Kerala State Human Rights Commission.
"The employees on duty are made to strip before an officer before leaving the office to ensure that they do not carry anything in their underwear," said Chavara Gopakumar, the union leader. "It is humiliating and an insult to human dignity."
The state's human rights commission agreed.
Authorities at the shrine, which is dedicated to Ayyappa, a south Indian deity, said on Friday they would end the practice and have begun looking into electronic surveillance systems.
Thousands of pilgrims flock to the shrine between November and January, bringing cash, precious metals and jewels in offerings. They are expected to forego meat, alcohol and sex for 41 days before arriving. Women of child-bearing age are forbidden. Employees counting donations at a popular Hindu shrine in southern India will no longer have to take off their underpants at work afte... more -
'Honour' Killings
It is often assumed that 'Honour' killings are sanctioned by Islam since they occur most commonly in the Middle East and as the perpetrators cite religious justification for their acts. But nowhere in the Holy Quran or Hadiths does it legitimise 'honour' killing, and Muslim leaders say it is forbidden.The image above shows Pakistani supporters of the Citizen's Action Group are campaigning against honour killings.
There have been many high-profile 'honour killings' in the UK such as Surjit Athwal (from a Sikh background) and Banaz Mahmod (from a Muslim background) which were condemned by both communities. Other recent honour killing which were not so high-profile include Vandana Bhadodiya (from a Hindu background).
The practice is said to pre-date Islam and Christianity and was born out of tribal culture. 'Honour' killings are carried out by members of the victim's immediate family to cleanse the family 'honour' after a female member brings 'shame' to it.
Critics say there is insufficient legislation in Iraq to punish perpetrators of 'honour' crimes eventhough a law was amended in 2002 to allow 'honour' killings to be treated in the same way as murder as some critics say some cases are often not investigated. 'Honour' crimes have risen in Iraq since the invasion as the Iraqi state disintegrated so people turned to tribal authorities. It is often assumed that 'Honour' killings are sanctioned by Islam since they occur most commonly in the Middle East and as ... more
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