Nepal
Shaligrams, the sacred fossils that have been worshipped by Hindus and Buddhists for over 2,000 years, are becoming rarer because of climate change
By Holly Walters — August 4, 2023
(The Conversation) — Many Hindus, Buddhists and people who follow the shamanic religion of Bon undertake a pilgrimage each year to northern Nepal to look for Shaligrams, believed to be a manifestation of Lord Vishnu.
Hundreds of thousands of Hindu devotees celebrate festival
By Associated Press — March 1, 2022
(AP) — Around 1 million devotees were expected to visit the temple of Hindu god Shiva on Shivaratri, one of Nepal's most cherished festivals.
Buddhist temple food pantry a lifeline for Nepalese students
By Luis Andres Henao and Jessie Wardarski — February 15, 2021
NEW YORK (AP) — The United Sherpa Association launched the food program from scratch last April as the coronavirus was ravaging the borough and other parts of the city.
How coronavirus lockdowns in the US starve vulnerable abroad
By Darren Tyler — July 7, 2020
(RNS) — More people may die from the lockdown policies designed to stop the virus than from the virus itself.
With Nepal in lockdown, volunteers feed hungry animals at Hindu shrine
By Binaj Gurubacharya — April 14, 2020
(RNS) — At the country’s most revered Hindu temple, a dozen staffers and some volunteers take up the job of feeding monkeys and pigs that are normally fed by devotees.
At a sprawling shrine to Shiva, Nepal’s Hindus help the dead on their way
By Jair Cabrera Torres — January 25, 2019
KATHMANDU, Nepal (RNS) — Located on the banks of the Bagmati River in the Himalayan country's capital, the Pashupatinath Temple complex is the site of daily ritual cremations.
Nepal bans Hindu practice of exile during menstruation
By G. Jeffrey MacDonald — August 23, 2018
KATHMANDU, Nepal (RNS) — Placing menstruating girls and women in sheds or huts is a centuries-old tradition called chhaupadi, practiced throughout the Hindu-majority country. But on Aug. 17, it became an offense.
Nepal temple bans mass animal sacrifice at festival
By Reuters — July 29, 2015
ATHMANDU, (Reuters) Millions of pilgrims from India and Nepal regularly attend the festival, where animals have been sacrificed in past years to Gadhimai, a goddess of power.
Amid Nepal’s shattered shrines and temples, a religious fatalism sets in
By Vishal Arora — April 30, 2015
KATHMANDU, Nepal (RNS) A 7.8-magnitude earthquake shattered many of Nepal's most famous religious sites but doesn't seem to have shaken the faith of its people.
The ‘Splainer: What religious sites were lost or damaged in Nepal quake
By Kimberly Winston — April 28, 2015
(RNS) In one minute, the April 25 earthquake in Nepal toppled, destroyed and damaged a millennium of religious history. This 'Splainer looks at the damaged sites and their religious and historical significance.
Want to help quake-struck Nepal? Experts: Send money, don’t volunteer
By Reuters — April 28, 2015
As the death toll from Saturday's massive quake mounts, experts say support established charities and aid groups that know what's needed most, avoid disaster scammers.
Foreign countries, aid agencies race to reach Nepal quake victims
By Reuters — April 26, 2015
NEPAL (Reuters) Teams from India, Pakistan, the United States, China and Israel were already on the spot to help, said the United Nations, as overwhelmed rescuers dug with their hands through the rubble to look for thousands still missing.
Détente on Christmas * Beard passes * Christ Bless Mississippi: Religious Freedom Recap
By Brian Pellot — December 4, 2014
This month's religious freedom news and views from around the world. Read with caution. Prozac optional.
‘Manakamana’ takes viewers on a virtual pilgrimage
By Kellie Moore — February 26, 2014
COLUMBIA, Mo. (RNS) The entire film takes place in a cable car – going up, coming down, looking around. Through the camera lens, viewers ride with men and women, young and old, people and animals.
Findings shed light on when the Buddha (might have) died
By Traci Watson — November 27, 2013
(RNS) The debate over when the Buddha died is not just academic: Buddhist countries such as Thailand use a dating system pegged to the year of his death, and some of his prophecies imply no one will achieve enlightenment a certain number of years after his passing.
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