Recipe For Disaster? India Divides Sacred Site Between Muslims and Hindus
I almost hate to say it, but is this the next Jerusalem? From the Wall Street Journal:
NEW DELHI—An Indian court ruled Thursday that a sacred site claimed by both Hindus and Muslims should be divided, in a complex decision that will test whether India has moved beyond the violent religious passions that bedeviled the nation in the 1990s.
In the ruling, two of the three judges in the case found that the site be divided into three parts—two for the Hindu side and one for Muslims. Two of the judges also found that the site was the birthplace of Lord Ram, a significant ruling for the Hindu side. The court said no action would be taken for three months and the Muslim side said it would appeal to the Supreme Court of India.
The case, before the Allahabad High Court in the northern state of Uttar Pradesh, has been running since 1950…
Dr. Deepak Sarma and the History of Hinduism on The Black Fridays
The Black Fridays Bonus Episode 27 — Dr. Deepak Sarma
Website • iTunes • Direct Download 
• RSS
The Black Fridays welcomes Dr. Deepak Sarma this week for a discussion on the nature of faith, the Hindu faith, and Hindu interpetations of paranormal phenomena. A fascinating discussion that I am sure you will enjoy. Dr. Sarma is a Professor or Religious Studies at Case Western Reserve University. Sarma earned his M.A. in religious studies and his Ph.D. in philosophy of religion from the University of Chicago. He has a B.A. in religious studies from Reed College in Portland, Ore.
Religious Sacrifice of 250,000 Animals Begins
Olivia Lang in Bariyapur, Nepal, reports for the Guardian:
The world’s biggest animal sacrifice began in Nepal today with the killing of the first of more than 250,000 animals as part of a Hindu festival in the village of Bariyapur, near the border with India.
The event, which happens every five years, began with the decapitation of thousands of buffalo, killed in honour of Gadhimai, a Hindu goddess of power.
With up to a million worshippers on the roads near the festival grounds, this year’s fair seems more popular than ever, despite vocal protests from animals rights groups who have called for it to be banned. “It is the traditional way, ” explained 45-year old Manoj Shah, a Nepali driver who has been attending the event since he was six, “If we want anything, and we come here with an offering to the goddess, within five years all our dreams will be fulfilled.”…
