Hindus urge American universities to enhance Hinduism studies

September 7th, 2009 Hindus have asked Malta to replace the subject of “religion” with “comparative religion” in its public primary and secondary schools. According to Constitution of Malta (Chapter I, Article 2, Item 3): “Religious teaching of the Roman Catholic Apostolic Faith shall be provided in all State schools as part of compulsory education.

September 1st, 2009 Oscar nominated Guillermo del Toro (El laberinto del fauno) will reportedly produce big-screen adaptation of DC Comics character “Deadman”, and Hindus are concerned. Acclaimed Hindu statesman Rajan Zed, in a statement in Nevada (USA) today, said that if del Toro intended to portray Hindu gods-goddesses or concepts in the film, they would urge him to stay true to their depiction in the scriptures.

August 18th, 2009 NEVADA - "We Are All Hindus Now"-headlines the article in the upcoming edition of prestigious newsmagazine "Newsweek", saying "U.S. Views on God and Life Are Turning Hindu".

July 27th, 2009 Ravikumar Subramaniapillai, a software consultant of North Carolina (USA), has been nominated Vice President of renowned Universal Society of Hinduism. 39-year-old father of one, Ravi has volunteered for various Hindu organizations in India and USA.

July 23rd, 2009 Hindus have urged the school districts all over USA to add Diwali, the most important Hindu holy day, to the public schools’ holiday calendar. Acclaimed Hindu statesman Rajan Zed, in a statement in Nevada (USA) today, said that it was important for Hindu families to celebrate Diwali day together at home with their children.

July 23rd, 2009 Hindus urged US President Barack Obama to put a Hindu temple also on his list, if possible, in case he decided to attend a number of different churches in rotation. Hindu statesman Rajan Zed, in a statement in Nevada (USA) today, said that President Obama was most welcome to visit any Hindu temple he selected in/around Washington DC.

May 16th, 2009 Hindus have urged “elite” universities of USA to be more “inclusive” rather than “exclusive”. Acclaimed Hindu statesman Rajan Zed, in a statement in Nevada (USA) today, said that Princeton University only enrolled five Native American graduate students this current academic year, which was about 0.2 percent of its student body.

May 4th, 2009 Hindus have exhorted United Kingdom (UK) to let all retired Gurkha servicemen stay in the country. Acclaimed Hindu statesman Rajan Zed, in a statement in Nevada (USA) today, said that it was simply immoral for UK to deny these former servicemen to settle in UK, who had been sacrificing for Britain for the last two centuries and served the country with courage and loyalty..

May 3rd, 2009 Welcoming British pop sensation Lily Allen’s recently reported comments that “Hinduism is cool”, acclaimed Hindu statesman Rajan Zed has urged her to visit a nearby Hindu temple to have first hand experience of Hinduism.   Zed, who is the president of Universal Society of Hinduism, has also offered to supply a set of Hindu scriptures to Allen to help her in comprehensive understanding of Hinduism.   Hinduism was the oldest and third largest religion of the world with about one billion adherents and rich philosophical thought, Zed said in a statement in Nevada (USA) today, and added that if Allen needed any assistance in her study of Hinduism or Sanskrit, he or other Hindu leaders would be glad to share their knowledge or arrange the appropriate expertise.   Rajan Zed stressed that since entertainment industry had worldwide reach, entertainment celebrities should become familiar with at least basics of world religions to understand the feelings of their audiences better.   Reacting to the recent adventures of celebrities flirting with Hinduism, Hindu concepts and terminology; Zed said that Hindus welcomed celebrities to immerse in Hinduism but taking it seriously and with respect and not just using it as a fashion statement.   Grammy and MTV nominated 23-years old outspoken Lily Rose Beatrice Allen of “Smile” fame, is a well-known singer, songwriter, talk show host, and fashion designer.   # - SAMPURN

May 3rd, 2009 Sony Corporation has agreed to look into the issue of objections of Hindus against their newly released controversial “Hanuman: Boy Warrior” video game for PlayStation2. Replying to the communiqué of Bhavna Shinde of Forum for Hindu Awakening, Keita Sanekata of Sony Electronics Inc wrote, “We will review this issue, and get back to you as soon as possible.” Advancing the protest spearheaded by acclaimed Hindu statesman Rajan Zed, Shinde earlier wrote Sanekata to “look into withdrawing this game and publishing an apology, so as to prevent further denigration of our Deity Sree Hanuman and intensifying of our protests”.

May 3rd, 2009 Hindus have applauded Virginia Department and Board of Education for revisions in the world history curriculum framework reflecting Hinduism appropriately.   Acclaimed Hindu statesman Rajan Zed, in a statement in Nevada today, said that "it was a step in the right direction" to remove misunderstandings and misconceptions about Hinduism circulating especially in the western world.

May 3rd, 2009 Hindus are asking Pope Benedict to issue a public apology for allegedly insulting them.   Acclaimed Hindu statesman Rajan Zed, in a statement in Nevada (USA) today, said that it was very humiliating to one billion strong Hindus of the world when Pope Benedict referred their God as “just any god”.

May 3rd, 2009 Hindus have urged Malta to treat all religions and denominations equally in front of the law. Malta Criminal Code reportedly makes one liable to imprisonment up to six months for publicly vilifying “Roman Catholic Apostolic Religion”, while committing such act against “any cult tolerated by law” makes one liable to imprisonment only up to three months.

May 3rd, 2009 As director James Cameron defined “avatar” as “an incarnation of one of the Hindu gods taking a flesh form”, Hindus are presuming that he is using some Hinduism concepts and terminology in his upcoming blockbuster “Avatar”, and thus have urged him to be careful when handling Hindu tenets. In a 2007 interview with Time, James Cameron defined “avatar” as “an incarnation of one of the Hindu gods taking a flesh form”.

May 3rd, 2009 Hindus have urged the makers of “Caminho das Índias” (A Passage to India), a popular Brazilian television soap opera, to show the Hindu culture in its authentic form. Acclaimed Hindu statesman Rajan Zed, in a statement in Nevada (USA) today, said that Hindus world over were happy that Brazil’s largest TV channel “TV Globo” was propagating Hindu culture in South America, but he urged it to do thorough research into Hindu traditions before presentation and depict genuine Hindu culture and not the re-imagined version focusing just on audience ratings.