The ancient Hindu practice of kirtan is a call-and-response form of meditation and spiritual chanting that is gaining popularity in the United States. More →

July 21, 2006

Estimates vary widely, but some claim that as few as 115,000 Zoroastrians remain—a few in Europe, North America and Iran, but the vast majority are in India, where they are called Parsis. More →

December 24, 2004

In India, in the city of Kalimpong, the poorest children have one place to go to school. It is called the Gandhi Ashram, and it’s run by a Canadian Jesuit priest. Father Thomas McGuire seeks students out, feeds them, teaches them, and gives them confidence — and violins. More →

July 9, 2004

Father Joe Maier is a Catholic priest who, over 30 years, has set up schools that have educated thousands of poor Thai children in the slums of Bangkok. In the process, he has skirmished with all kinds of people from drug dealers to church hierarchy. More →

June 4, 2004

Read R&E’s interviews with Asia expert Ainslee Embree and researcher Timothy Shah on the Hindu-Muslim violence in western India. More →

May 24, 2002

India, which is mostly Hindu, and Pakistan, which is mostly Muslim, are once again on the brink of war over the disputed region of Kashmir. Both nations have nuclear weapons. Hindu-Muslim tensions extend beyond Kashmir, though. Within India, where Hindus make up 80% of the population and Muslims make up 14%, violent outbreaks that began in February may already have taken thousands of lives. More →

May 24, 2002

Paryushana Parva is a festival of fasting, friendship, and forgiveness. Members of the Jain faith are celebrating the holiest time of the year. It coincides with monsoon season in India, which is where Jainism began.
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August 24, 2001

In India, sex selection by sonogram is officially illegal, but widely practiced. And there is no Hindu or legal prohibition on abortion. More →

June 1, 2001

BOB ABERNETHY: It was just two years ago that Mother Teresa died. The work of her worldwide missionary order continues, and so does the work of another missionary nun in Calcutta, a nun who ministers to the poor in a … More →

September 3, 1999

Many second generation American Hindus are fascinated by the religion’s philosophy, but rarely go to the temple or practice rituals, and often don’t understand them. There is a danger that the beliefs the rituals embody are at risk. More →

August 6, 1999