Inspiration Faith & Prayer Health & Wellness Entertainment Love & Family
Newsletters Special Offers

Om Sweet Om

Over the course of the past few years, I’ve taken yoga classes at a handful of different studios taught by countless different instructors.  Naturally, each one has her own style of teaching, and with that style comes a particular type of music.  Krishna Das and MC Yogi CDs have made countless appearances in classes.  I’ve…

Over the past week, I’ve been reviewing the comments in response to my last blog which continued to bring to light the Hindu roots of yoga.  It seems like the main issue many yoga practitioners have is that “yoga is not a religion” and any attempt to link it to one is seen as contrary…

Over the course of the last year, as the Hindu American Foundation’s Take Back Yoga campaign has grown in prominence, I’ve been asked many times why we felt compelled to address this issue.  Why not just appreciate the fact that yoga is hugely popular and has a beneficial impact on its millions of practitioners?  Why…

Here we go again.  First it was images of Ganesh on toilet seats.  Then we had Ram and Sita on flip flops.  And now we have Laxmi on a swimsuit.  Yes, I’m referring to the Lisa Blue one-piece swimsuit that has the image of the Hindu Goddess Laxmi on it.  It is clearly not an…

A few days ago, as I picked at the lonely avocado on my plate, I overheard a group of girls discussing how much they loved their outdoor yoga session.  I glanced over and noted that they were like countless women in the city, myself included, wearing similar black yoga pants and toting around their own…

In the midst of many celebrating the demise of Osama bin Laden, there has been an ongoing debate amongst many of us at the Hindu American Foundation (HAF) around whether it is right to rejoice over the death of another, even one as “evil” as bin Laden.  A core Hindu belief is that of ahimsa,…

The White House released President Obama’s birth certificate.  Kate wore McQueen.  Apple released a white iPhone.  And the cherry on top of this week’s circus…USCIRF put India on its “watch list” again.  Yesterday, the U.S. Commission on International Religious Freedom (USCIRF), a quasi-governmental body that monitors “violations of religious freedom abroad,” released its annual report…

I’ve never been a regular temple goer, but having spent a decade growing up in Atlanta, I always had access to a number of Hindu temples. As a child, my parents took me to the temple, or mandir, on the various religious holidays – Diwali, Holi, Shivaratri. I was generally overwhelmed by the experience —…

As we celebrate Earth Day, I am reminded of a story from the Hindu epic, Mahabharat, that has always touched me.  Five just princes were banished from their kingdom and forced to dwell in the forest for many years.  One of the princes, Bhima, in an attempt to release his anger at this injustice, walked…

Fifth graders can be unbelievably cruel with their words. Keenly aware of this, my fifth grade teacher devised a simple demonstration to get us to see the need to be more mindful of what we said and how we said it. Calling up a volunteer, she handed the student a tube of toothpaste and asked…
archives most recent
search this blog
More from Beliefnet and our partners