religious beliefs
Batek Protest Religious Discrimination
To judge by a news report on May 2, religious authorities in Malaysia’s Pahang state have been pressuring the Batek to abandon their plan to renounce the state-supported Muslim faith. Siti Kasim, an attorney who has been helping the Batek, uploaded a video to Instagram in which she argued the Batek point of view. In […]
The Birthday of the Buddha and Peacefulness
The 2563rd birthday of the Buddha was celebrated in Leh, Ladakh, on May 18th with the usual fervor, according to articles in The Dispatch and the Daily Excelsior, two news sources in that part of India.. Organized by the Ladakh Buddhist Association, the day started with a procession called the “Bumskor” that began at the […]
Strange Circumstances in the Kalahari
The San living in their traditional settlements in the Kalahari Desert were shaken last week by a diamond mine being closed and, two days later, by an earthquake. A variety of news sources covered both events. The Botswana Daily News on April 2 reported on a presentation about the mine to the Ghanzi District Council, […]
The Sacred River
Despite protests by the Lepchas that the Teesta River and its tributaries are sacred, the Government of Sikkim continues to press for additional hydroelectric dams. India Climate Dialogue published a review last week by Athar Parvaiz of the reasons for Lepcha opposition to the dams, which are in various stages of planning. The government of […]
Respecting the Value of Respect [journal article review]
The famous maxim “respect for the rights of others is peace” is an essential value for the Zapotec in Oaxaca’s Sierra Juárez region, as well as a defining concept for peaceful living everywhere. In a recent journal article, Estonian anthropologist Toomas Gross explores the impact the belief has on the region where Mexican President Benito […]
Kerala and its Peaceful Societies Part 1, the Kadar
The Kadar living in the Anapantham Colony had to move to another location, Sasthanpoovam, nearly 10 years ago when their colony was nearly destroyed by landslides. A mother and a child had been killed in the tragedy. By 2010, they had moved to temporary shelters in the new community and, according to a news report […]
Tragedy in Kerala and the Malapandaram
During the annual pilgrimage season which just ended, more than 30 million Hindu devotees visited the temple of Lord Ayyappan at Sabarimala, India, almost without incident, the Times of India reported on Friday. One source points out that the Hindu rituals at the Ayyappan temples, in the forested hills of Kerala state, represent the largest […]
Inuit Name-Souls Confront Modern, Rational Thinkers [anthology chapter review]
Edmund Searles writes that his conversion experience, from skeptic to faithful Christian, allowed him to appreciate the spirituality of the Baffin Island Inuit. His very personal religious odyssey started while he was doing field work for his dissertation in Iqaluit, Nunavut. He and his then fiancé, now his wife, Mary Ellen Thomas, were living with […]
Multiple Religions Foster Peaceful Societies
Friday, May 5, is a holiday this year in Mexico, South Korea, Taiwan, Hong Kong, and Macau, but for very different reasons. The Mexicans will celebrate Cinco de Mayo, the date when Mexican forces defeated a much larger invading French army at Puebla in 1862. Also tomorrow, South Korea and other parts of East Asia […]
