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Select a Category Books Cultural Differences Food Holidays Issues in Hinduism Series Karma Movies Names of God News Ramayana Scripture Theology Yoga

Select a Month March 2015 February 2015 January 2015 December 2014 November 2014 October 2014 September 2014

March 2015

March 20, 2015

Issues in Hinduism: Diversity

There are a lot of things people could criticize any religion for. They range from...

March 19, 2015

Puja in Plain English

I had a roommate in college who approached prayer like it was a business meeting....

March 18, 2015

Issues in Hinduism: Murtis

Some religions use symbols to represent the Divine. Other religions forbid such symbolism. Hinduism allows...

March 17, 2015

Will the real Divine Mother please stand up?

There is an old joke about two patients in a mental hospital who keep arguing...

March 16, 2015

Issues in Hinduism: Caste

Sometimes it seems like world leaders can't manage to get anything done. This is because,...

February 2015

February 27, 2015

Is any diet truly sattvic?

No matter how you go about it, eating is never a harmless act. Something has...

February 04, 2015

Why prohibit onions and garlic?

Not just Hinduism, but other dharmic religions such as Jainism and Buddhism, advise against eating...

January 2015

January 07, 2015

The tyranny of unread books

We won't make much progress toward our goals if we're weighed down with hundreds of...

January 05, 2015

What’s the opposite of a white man?

A lot of Americans apparently think of God as a white man. This was something...

January 01, 2015

Is There Magic in Tidying?

Is one of your New Year's resolutions to finally get on top of your clutter...

December 2014

December 30, 2014

Hindus irate over Bollywood film PK

Taking a page from Hollywood's constant ridicule of Christianity, Bollywood has begun ridiculing Hinduism.

December 16, 2014

Two Christmas books even non-Christians will enjoy

One thing I don’t have conflicted feelings about is books. I read just about anything...

December 10, 2014

Torture is tamasic

Using techniques that don't work on people who aren't guilty is incomprehensible.

December 09, 2014

How prejudice arises

In any group, if your sample size is large enough, some of the people will...

December 07, 2014

Something is broken

When I was in college, everyone used to go out at night and walk across...

December 03, 2014

Quiet Heroes

Hollywood loves the Hero’s Journey. It started with the writings of Joseph Campbell, who imagined...

November 2014

November 25, 2014

Sita and Snow White

I've sometimes wondered if the Ramayana is part of the source material for Snow White....

November 18, 2014

Does Wealth Prove God’s Favor?

Are the rich our betters? Do we have no right to criticize those with more...

November 12, 2014

Minister of Yoga

India gets a new position: minister of yoga and alternative medicine

November 11, 2014

Who is the Self?

What are we defining ourselves as? Is it our true identity?

November 03, 2014

What does Hinduism teach about the right to die?

Brittany Maynard's decision to end her life has sparked controversy. What does Hinduism teach about...

October 2014

October 30, 2014

On the nightstand

A glimpse at a few of the books I'm reading.

October 27, 2014

What does it mean when Hindus touch someone’s feet?

After learning that feet are considered unclean and insulting in India, it can be surprising...

October 26, 2014

Deity shoes?

Feet and shoes don't have the same connotations in the United States and India, and...

October 23, 2014

AshtaLakshmi: Eight Forms of the Goddess of Wealth

We often think of wealth in terms of one thing: numbers. How fat is our...

October 21, 2014

Maya is not Satan

On the occasions you get completely swept away by a film and magically transported to...

October 19, 2014

Decorating for Diwali

Lights...candles...Diwali! The festival of lights is coming up and I'm getting excited.

October 14, 2014

The wise grieve not

God doesn't lose people. When someone dies, we say we've lost them, but God doesn't...

October 10, 2014

Karma in the context of Reincarnation

Karma carries across lifetimes -- and you don't have to believe in reincarnation for this...

October 09, 2014

Careless Karmas

The worst karmas aren't the ones we purposefully cultivate but the "careless karmas."