Free Republic

Sales of precious metal coins during the festivals in India, the world's largest consumer of gold, are higher this year as compared to last year, the Times of India reports. Many jewelers ran out of low-denomination gold and silver coins on Wednesday evening, when Dhanteras kicked off the first five days of Diwali. The coins are typically gifted during the holidays. ''Most markets are witnessing a huge crowd," Praveen Khandelwal, president of Confederation of All India Traders, told the newspaper. "Business has been much better in comparison to the past two years." Indian demand for gold typically rises by 40...

WASHINGTON: WASHINGTON: US President Barack Obama is likely to arrive in India on November 5 instead of November 7 as originally scheduled. He will leave Washington DC on the night of November 4 soon after the mid-term Congressional election where many pundits are predicting severe reverses for the Democratic Party. He will be away from the US for almost 12 days, one of the longest tours during his presidency, touching India, Indonesia, Japan, and South Korea, before returning to Washington DC on November 14. Read more: Obama to arrive in India on Diwali night - The Times of India http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/india/Obama-to-arrive-in-India-on-Diwali-night/articleshow/6694694.cms#ixzz11bIMiaBY

Barack Obama, who became the first US president to personally celebrate Diwali in the historic East Room in 2009, wanted to "specifically" celebrate the festival of lights with Indians, the White House has said. "He (Obama) specifically wanted to have an opportunity to celebrate Diwali and to do so with the Indian people, getting beyond simply his official business,"

WASHINGTON: WASHINGTON: US President Barack Obama is likely to arrive in India on November 5 instead of November 7 as originally scheduled. He will leave Washington DC on the night of November 4 soon after the mid-term Congressional election where many pundits are predicting severe reverses for the Democratic Party. He will be away from the US for almost 12 days, one of the longest tours during his presidency, touching India, Indonesia, Japan, and South Korea, before returning to Washington DC on November 14. The four-country visit involves major US friends and allies at a time when there is concern...

SOUTH BRUNSWICK — As a Muslim growing up in East Brunswick, Atiya Aftab missed classes and had to make up school work to be with her family on two important holidays: Eid al-Fitr, which marks the end of Ramadan, the Islamic holy month of fasting, and Eid al-Adha, the Feast of Sacrifice. As a mother of three in South Brunswick, Aftab has seen her children go through the same thing. Until now. In a decision that sent ripples of hope across the Muslim community well beyond New Jersey, the South Brunswick Board of Education has approved school closings in the...

The Dow Jones reached a significant milestone yesterday, and news outlets were abuzz with excitement. Olympia Snowe's vote for the Baucus bill was plenty fodder for the 24-hour news cycles. But, for Hindus, Sikhs, Jains and Buddhists in the United States, an epochal event transpired at the White House afternoon that should not slip notice. Lead me from Untruth to Truth. Lead me from darkness to light. Lead me from death to immortality. (from the Brhadaranyaka Upanishad -- I.iii.28) As the ethereal sounds of a Hindu priest's chanting of this Sanskrit prayer from ancient Hindu scripture filled the East Room,...

President Barack Obama, accompanied by Hindu Priest Sri Narayanachar Digalakote, uses a candle to light an oil lamp in observation of Diwali, or the 'Festival of Lights,' a holiday celebrated across faiths in India, Wednesday, Oct. 14, 2009, in the East Room of the White House in Washington. U.S. President Barack Obama smiles after signing an Executive Order restoring the White House Advisory Commission and Interagency Working Group, and observing Diwali in the East Room of the White House in Washington, October 14, 2009.

CNA).- Addressing the violent attacks against Christians in India was the focus of this year’s message to Hindus for the celebration of Diwali from Cardinal Jean-Louis Tauran, the president of the pontifical council for Inter-religious Dialogue. This year Diwali, or the Festival of Lights, falls on October 28, and for the occasion, Cardinal Tauran has penned a message in English entitled, "Christians and Hindus: Together in Favor of Non-violence." The celebration of Diwali should be an opportunity to consider “how we can live harmoniously in today's society, witnessing to the truth, light and hope,” Cardinal Tauran wrote. Saying that “religions...

"Nepal is celebrating the festival of Tihar, its equivalent of Diwali, the Hindu festival of lights. In Nepal, on the second day of the feast, special honour is bestowed on dogs."

A DISABLED child was told he could be excluded from Christmas activities at his school because his mother did not want him to attend a Hindu event. Annie Walker says the threat was made after she withdrew seven-year-old Liam from a Diwali celebration at St Anne's Infant School. Churchgoer Mrs Walker said she did not want Liam, who was starved of oxygen at birth and is quadriplegic, to be involved in a celebration of Hinduism, because she found its theory of reincarnation and Karma offensive as it implies that Liam's disability was punishment for sins in a past life. But...

India Arrests Militant for Delhi Bombings 2 hours, 1 minute ago NEW DELHI - India has arrested a Kashmiri militant who allegedly planned and funded the triple bombings in New Delhi last month that killed 60 people, police said on Sunday. ADVERTISEMENT Delhi Police commissioner K.K. Paul said Tariq Ahmad Dar, a key member of the Pakistan-based Lashkar-e-Tayyaba militant group, was arrested Thursday in the Kashmiri city of Srinagar and brought to the capital New Delhi on Friday for interrogation. Paul alleged Dar was the chief conspirator and financier in the attacks though he was not accused of participating in...

NEW DELHI (Reuters) - Anguished and weary relatives looked for loved ones among rows of charred bodies on Tuesday as Indians marked the biggest Hindu festival of the year clouded by the worst militant attack on the heart of their nation. The sound of firecrackers greeted the day in Delhi as the city began Diwali, the festival of lights marking the triumph of good over evil, days after three bombs killed at least 59 people and wounded 200 more, some still fighting for life. Some worshippers were searched as they arrived at temples for prayers. India is on high alert...

Hindus worldwide are stocking up on firecrackers, succulent sweetmeats, 22-carat gold jewels and colorful, silk outfits to usher in Diwali on Nov. 1 -- the start of the Hindu new year. Local merchants, such as Vinod Rai, the manager of Bhindi Jewellers in Newark, say "prosperity is key" to the holiday. "Wealth comes into a Hindu's home during Diwali," says Mr. Rai, after he quietly blesses each corner of his store while a popular Hindu devotional prayer, "Om Jai Jagadish Hare," plays softly in the background. "Diwali brings us the most business of the year," representing more than half the...

New Delhi, Oct. 29 (PTI): Terrorists struck in the capital in a big way on the eve of Diwali today triggering three explosions in two markets and near a bus killing 50 people and injuring over 70 others, including some foreigners. The first explosion toook place at around 5:40 p.m. in the busy Paharganj market in central Delhi in which 11 people died and 60 were injured. The market, which is frequented by foreigners, was bustling with Diwali shoppers. Minutes later, another explosion rocked Sarojini Nagar Market in south Delhi killing where maximum casualties were reported. Another blast took place...

Though pleased that the White House would be celebrating Diwali this year, the United States India League has said the celebrations should reflect the festival's status as Hinduism's most important one. The League, a representative body of Indians in the US, has also urged President George W Bush to attend the function, noting that his presence would send the 'right signals to his friends in India and the Indian American community'. According to the League's executive director, Don Feder, merely 'going through the motions of having a pro forma Diwali celebration' would not be enough. "Diwali is Hinduism's most importance...

The Vatican has issued a message to Hindus, congratulating them and wishing them a “happy Diwali”, the Hindu sect’s Festival of Lights. The message to Hindus, issued by President of the Pontifical Council for Interreligious Dialogue, Archbishop Michael Fitzgerald, proposed that Catholics and Hindus work together for the protection of children from forced labor, sexual abuse, AIDS, and other social evils. (1) 1) “Hindus and Christians: Together to help needy children,” (Vatican Information Service, November 11, 2004) This is a prime example of the loss of the supernatural in the post-Vatican II Church. Conversion for eternity's sake, the prime reason...

SYDNEY: The governments of Australia and New Zealand joined the resident Indian community in celebrating Diwali by illuminating their parliament houses in a rare gesture. In Australia, the northern façade of the gigantic parliament building at Canberra was illuminated at an impressive function Saturday. The Australian Parliament House would be illuminated for three nights. In Wellington, capital of New Zealand, it was Prime Minister Helen Clark who lit the traditional lamp to inaugurate the first ever Diwali function to be celebrated in parliament house. Clark had visited India only last month. At the Canberra illumination, around 1,000 people attended the...

WASHINGTON: It was a Diwali without sparkle for many Indians who attended a White House event on Wednesday to mark the festival. President Bush was a no-show, First Lady Laura Bush did not turn-up, and there was little representation from the top echelons of the administration or the Republican Party - not even in the form of Karl Rove, Bush's chief political strategist who attended last year's festivities. This year's principal was Robert Blackwill, former US ambassador to India and White House pointman on Iraq, who resigned from the administration over the weekend and whose last day it was at...

The Catholic Church has issued a message to Hindus, wishing them a happy Diwali, the Festival of Lights, one of the oldest and most important feasts on the Hindu calendar. Echoing the theme of a message to Muslims last week, which marked the approaching end of the Holy Month of Ramadan, the message to Hindus focused on children. It was issued by President of the Pontifical Council for Interreligious Dialogue, Archbishop Michael Fitzgerald, who called for collaboration among people of different faiths in protecting children. "During this season of Diwali, as you strive to overcome darkness through light, evil through...

TIMES NEWS NETWORK[ FRIDAY, NOVEMBER 05, 2004 12:37:33 AM ] WASHINGTON: After the electoral fireworks, the light. Indian-Americans will have their first dibs in the Bush II White House at a Diwali celebration to be hosted by the President next week. A tradition begun by the Bush I White House last year will be continued this year on November 10, when community elite will troop into 1600, Pennsylvania Avenue for the festival of lights. Bush was not present last year - he was in Hawaii on his way back from a trip to East Asia - but community leaders hope...