Satguru Bodhinatha Veylanswami reads his editorial from the Apr/May/Jun 2009 edition of Hinduism Today magazine. Hindus in the West are sometimes invited to give a talk explaining their religion at a local college, schoolroom, interfaith group or even a Christian church. Some have confided to me that they do not feel qualified to give such a presentation. There is clearly a need for an authentic, non-academic introduction to Hinduism that can be presented with confidence on such occasions. Satguru Bodhinatha Veylanswami prepared this Publisher's Desk (drawn from our book What Is Hinduism?) as a broad summary of our faith that can be drawn upon to properly educate others in the basics of Hinduism, minus all the misconceptions and myths.

Publisher's Desk: Introduction to Hinduism

Religion & Spirituality

Other

Spirituality

Christianity

Buddhism

Hinduism

Judaism

Islam

Satguru Bodhinatha Veylanswami reads his editorial from the January/February/March 2011 edition of Hinduism Today magazine. "Five core disciplines for bringing our inner perfection into our intellectual, emotional and instinctive nature."

Publisher's Desk: Practice Makes Perfect

Satguru Bodhinatha Veylanswami reads his editorial from the October/November/December 2010 edition of Hinduism Today magazine. "The company we keep affects our attitudes, speech and actions as profoundly as the foods we eat."

Publisher's Desk: We Are Whom We Meet

The July-August-September edition of Hinduism's flagship spiritual magazine, Hinduism Today, has been released in digital form and is now available for free on your desktop. It travels the globe from India to Australia, from Nepal to Mauritius, and it introduces an amazing man we have named the 2010 Hindu of the Year.

That story first. He's known throughout India as an innovator, a dauntless worker and a brazenly proud Hindu. Sri P. Parameswaran is as active in his 80s as most of us ever become, writing, campaigning for social reform and building, building, building dharma institutions. You may have visited the Vivekananda Rock Memorial. That's there because of him. And the Vivekananda Kendra schools, andâ€¦. Enough. Read his amazing story in the current issue and see why he merits the coveted Renaissance Award.

The Hinduism Today publisher and editors attended the Parliament of the World's Religions las December, and had a chance to sit with a dozen of Hinduism's most amazing leaders. Our article shares their views on hot topics, things you may not normally get to ask a swami or swamini. They give the Hindu view on the global financial crisis, gay marriage, yoga's relationship to Hinduism and the challenges Hindus face in the future. It's a must-read if you want to understand these issues and where we stand.

Our feature article takes us into the hills of Nepal, as we follow the rites of passage, the samskaras, followed there, in a unique and colorful way. Ace photographer Thomas Kelly brings the rituals and celebrations to life with his astounding camera work. We follow boys and girls through life, stopping at the milestones. The ending surprises us, as writer Ellen Coon, moved deeply by the way elders are honored in Tibet, takes the rituals back to her home in middle America where she holds her father's 80th birthday party in a style never seen in the US, honoring him with sacred songs, a turban, testimonials and even a foot-washing which, she offers, he (and everyone in the Coon family) will never forget. 

Our 16-page center section is a tour-de-force of some of the most exotic of Hinduism's practices, called "Healing, Sacred Vows and Trance Possession." Stephen P. Huyler is our guide into a seldom-documented world that may well teach you again of the power of faith. Stephen's stories, all photographed by him, are real, and he was witness to each of them, from 14-month-old Aditi's return from the brink of death at a healing shrine to a frenetic trance during kavadi. Our founder, Satguru Sivaya Subramuniyaswami (1927-2001) had much to say on these subjects, and his insights enrich Huyler's tales, and add a special depth to the power of spiritual vows, called vratas. 

Our publisher, Satguru Bodhinatha Veylanswami, speaks often to Hindu groups, answering their questions about life. In this issues Publisher's Desk, he urges readers to work hard at living in the eternal now, showing us how it is done. By freeing ourselves from regrets of the past and worries about the future, he says, we not only live a more effective life in the material world, we also meditate better. Living in the now is a form of yoga, and a fun and effective one at that.

Mauritius is the Hindu country you have probably never heard about. Well, that changes with this article. Vel Mahalingam tells the story of how his languishing country, once under siege by Christian missionaries and suffering economic collapse, was turned around. The people of the nation started studying their faith, applying the ancient wisdom to their lives, even dressing in traditional styles. Spirits rose, problems fell and today this nation's majority Hindu community is perhaps the best model of how to face the 21st century and keep your religion in the bargain.

There's lots more, of course. Book reviews and some humor, plus an opinion piece by none other than Professor Arvind Sharma, one of the leading thinkers of our time, who tells how he came to appreciate the openness of Hinduism when he saw his non-Hindu academic peers struggling with the constraints of their religions traditions. It's all there in the current issue of Hinduism Today, where you go to stay in touch with Sanatana Dharma.

Issue Summary Jul/Aug/Sep 2010

Satguru Bodhinatha Veylanswami, publisher of Hinduism Today magazine, reads his Publisher's Desk article from the Apr/May/Jun 2010 issue on camera. "A peaceful and effective life is waiting for those who undertake the not-so-easy work required to live in the eternal now."

Publisher's Desk: Letting Go of Past and Future

The April-May-June edition of Hinduism's flagship spiritual magazine, Hinduism Today, has been released in digital form and is now available for free on your desktop. This issue focuses primarily on two subjects: Hindu history for children and Hindu festivals. 

The 16-page history lesson is the fourth in our series aimed at a sixth-grade audience. It covers the period from 1850 to 1947, when India was colonized by the British.,As our readers know, Indian history in Western textbooks for children is appallingly inaccurate and skewed toward the strange. This segment continues our effort to rectify that, to give well-researched lessons that tell the true story of India's place in the world down through the centuries. Here we present the facts about the British occupancy, their economic exploitation and sometimes ruthless repressions. You may have read other histories of this period, but get ready to discover lots of new insights into those difficult days before Independence.

In the second main feature, we explore 15 of the major Hindu holy days in a 32-page feature called "Festivals!" It's a marvelous romp through the year, stopping every month or so to tell about our celebrations. Festivals are a kind of glue for Hindu culture, touching our lives, connecting families and neighbors, bringing together entire cities. Soumya Sitaraman, author of Random House's Following the Hindu Moon helped the Hinduism Today editorial staff by contributing fascinating details, typical holiday recipes and her mother's marvelous photography. The editors added "Fact and Fiction" sections to explore (and emend) some of the gnarly myths that people in the West hold about Sanatana Dharma. This is a great resource that can find its way into the schoolroom, the summer camp, anywhere students are learning about Hinduism past and present. As you would expect, it is elegantly designed by the HT wizards.

When our publisher, Satguru Bodhinatha Veylanswami, was in Melbourne in December, he gave a wonderful keynote talk on yoga and its place in the world, particularly its applicability to nonHindus. His current editorial gives us a glimpse of that talk, "Can Everyone Benefit from Yoga?"

Bodhinatha's Australian itinerary included the 2009 Parliament of the World's Religions, touted as the world's largest interfaith meeting--a reprise of the 1893 meeting that featured Swami Vivekananda. As part of the 2009 program, a rare gathering of Hindu leaders from around the world met to discuss key modern issues, trends and challenges. Our story brings you the opinions of the swamis who attended from all over the world. Their views of climate change, one of the key topics in Melbourne, will inform and perhaps surprise you. 

If you already use the free desktop client to read the PDF's and keep a library of past issues on your computer, would have received an e-mail notice announcing the new release. If you haven't tried it choose "Navigator" from the menu above to download Hinduism Today Navigator. It's is free.

Publisher's Desk: Introduction to Hinduism

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