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Art Highlight: Asian forms of Lord Vishnu

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Hinduphobia Highlight: Azerbaijani Disinformation

Readers of ours that monitor geopolitics are likely aware of an emerging cultural, diplomatic, and military axis forming between Turkey-Azerbaijan-Pakistan, with India deepening ties with Afghanistan, Armenia, Cyprus, and Greece in response.

This however is a Hinduism blog, not a geopolitics blog, so its important to lay out what makes this axis relevant to Hindus, especially diaspora Hindus. DisInfoLab has a great thread on the full disinformation investigation involving Azerbaijani state-backed actors (The Baku Initiative Group [BIG]) propping up anti-Hindu groups throughout the west.

The image below shows the actors in this sphere.

Sikh Federation International (SFI) is involved in attacking the Hindu diaspora over spurious claims of “Hindutva” and often collaborates with the group Sikhs for Justice (SFJ), whose founder Gurpatwant Pannun has released numerous videos threatening Canadian Hindus and Hindu temples. Additionally the groups collaborated on numerous initiatives around the spurious concept of “transnational repression”, where Khalistanis claim that India oppresses them outside India. Khalistanis attempt to get laws against transnational repression passed in the West to silence critics of their violent movement, and also to force lawmakers to surveil Hindus.

Earlier this year the BIG and SFI published a collaborative report on “transnational repression”, completely whitewashing violent Khalistanis and spreading disinformation about Indians and Hindus. The BIG this year also had an initiative around caste, and works with Ambedkarite groups to spread disinformation about caste and Hindus.

Aesthetic: Peshawar Hindu Temple

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Person Highlight: Madhavadeva

Madhavadeva (1489-1596 CE) was an Assamese Hindu reformer and guru and proponent of the Vaishnavite sect known as Ekasarana Dharma.

Early Life

He was born to Govindagiri and Manorama Devi in 1489 in a village in Lakhimpur, Assam in a Kayastha family. His father came from modern day Bangladesh and was a learned man, while his mother, Govindagiri’s second wife (he was a widower) was distantly related to the great Assamese guru Srimanta Sankaradeva.

As a child he excelled in sports, but his father came across hard economic times, forcing the family to move around. After the marriage of Madhavdeva’s sister, things started to improve. Manorama stayed with Madhava’s sister, and Govindagiri and Madhava moved in with one of Govinda’s sons from his first marriage near Rangpur (present-day Bangladesh). There, Madhava began learning Sanskrit and accounting. After a few years, Govindagiri died and Madhava and his step-brother had quarrels, leading Madhava to seek out his mother. En route to reconnecting with his mother, he received word that his mother was sick, and vowed to conduct a ritual to Goddess Durga for her health. When he returned to Assam, he got into an argument with his brother-in-law, a devotee of Sankaradeva, who refused to allow him to sacrifice a goat for his mother’s health. His brother-in-law told him that Sankaradeva would provide all the necessary arguments against animal sacrifice, and Madhava agreed to debate him.

As a Vaishnavite

After a long and arduous debate, Madhava accepted the worldview of Sankaradeva and took him as his guru. He went across Assam, preaching and attending religious sessions. Soon after, persecution by the Ahom Kingdom led to Sankaradeva and Madhavadeva to migrate to Western Assam after the invasion of the Ahom Kingdom by the Koch. By this time Madhavadeva had become the principal disciple of Sankaradeva. Then Madhavadeva went on a long religious pilgrimage to places like Puri, and Bodh Gaya, and even met with the granddaughter of the Saint Kabir.

After Sankaradeva’s death, Madhavadeva became his successor and appointed 12 apostles to preach Ekasarana Dharma across Assam. These apostles established the famous sattras of Assam which served as quasi-monastic centers of learning and community gathering, and still are a major part of the Assamese cultural landscape today.

During his time there was a schism in the followers of Sankaradeva’s tradition, with many joining the sect of Damodaradeva, a more traditionalist Brahmin disciple of Sankaradeva. Additionally faced obstacles from different Kings and rival religious sects. Nevertheless he generated a prodigal amount of literature.

His Works

Madhavdev wrote mainly in Brajavali (a localized version of Maithili used by Sankaradev), and Assamese, though he also had a strong command of Sanskrit. Writing in Brajavali, and later Assamese allowed him to spread his religious thoughts much more easily.

His most famous work was the Naam Ghosa, also his final work before his death. It consists of 1001 verses praising Lord Krishna, of which about a third have their roots in the Bhagavad Gita and the Mahabharata. The text also declares the universal equality of mankind.

Some of his other literary works include:

• Bhakti Ratnavali: A profound theological treatise emphasizing complete, emotional surrender to Krishna.

• Borgeets: He composed 191 spiritual and highly melodic songs that remain foundational to Assamese classical culture.

• Janma Rahasya: His earliest literary creation, which details the creation and destruction of the world.

• Guru Bhatima: poem composed in praise of his guru Sankardev.

• Adi Kanda: Assamese translation of the first canto of Valmiki’s Ramayana

Madhavdev also wrote plays, to help teach Vaishnavite theology and morality to the masses. These plays called jhumuras are another jewel in Assamese literary culture.

• Chordhara Jhumura (The butter thief)

• Pimpara Gucova Jhumura (Clearing the ants)

• Bhumi Letova Jhumura (Rolling on the ground)

• Bhojana Bihara Jhumura (The picnic/feast)

• Arjun Bhanjan (also known as Dadhimathan - churning of curd)

• Ras Jhumura

• Bishnu Haran

• Koumar Haran

• Bhushon Haran

These plays are still widely performed today across Assam.

An example of a song written by Madhavdev is provided below:

Death and Succession

Madhavdev passed away in 1596 after writing the Naam Ghosa, which he also termed as the guru and guiding book for his disciples. Rather than naming a successor, he appointed his most trusted disciples to head various sattras, decentralizing the religious community and allowing it to become more anti-fragile and for the sattrasto better serve the communities in which they were located.

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Aesthetic: Andhra Pradesh Temple

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Temple Highlight: Hindu Temple Antelope Valley Campus

Dezeen, one of the top architecture magazines, has an article on the Hindu Temple Antelope Valley Campus, near Lancaster, California. It features masonry buildings, inspiration from a famous temple in Himachal Pradesh, and even a “womb-like” zone for meditation, all in a beautiful desert valley.

For the full article go here: https://www.dezeen.com/2025/07/18/csa-partners-hindu-temple-california-desert/

The design draws upon India's Temple at Kangra, which is notable for its dedication to the worship of two deities – Vishnu and Shiva. The temple is located in the northern state of Himachal Pradesh, and variations of its design can be seen throughout India, the studio said.

The temple, designed by CSA Architects also maintains adherence to California’s strict design and environmental guidelines. around energy performance criteria around building siting and incorporating elements that reduce solar penetration.

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Video Highlight: The Man Who Rescued Trinidad Hinduism

Great video from Shawn Binda on Bhadase Sagan Maraj a 20th-century Hindu revivalist in Trinidad who had a major impact on the survival of Hinduism there.

Aesthetic: Antelope Valley Temple

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Praxis Highlight: Cow Protection in India

Great piece on Cow protection in India by the Centre for Studies in Hindu Conservatism (CSHC). CSHC is doing a great job with long-form pieces on a variety on Hinduism and India-related topics. Article linked here as well.

Centre for Studies in Hindu Conservatism

Cow Protection and Cultural Identity in India

Cow serves as a revered symbol in the Indian subcontinent, scholars have pointed out the worship of cow in the Harappan civilization as well as several injunctions in the Vedas associated with its worship. The bovine gained absolute importance with the emergence of Puranic Hinduism as several Hindu scriptures maintained that all Gods and goddesses resid…

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2 months ago · 25 likes · CSHC

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History: The Building of the Vijayanagara Empire

Aesthetic: Hindu Temple in Sukkur, Pakistan

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Hinduphobia Highlight: Sanctums of Hindu Temples

Yashica Dutt, author of “Coming out as Dalit” and frequent collaborator with the Hinduphobia hate group Equality Labs, wrote an article May 4th for City & State NY magazine on the identity politics of the Zohran Mamdani campaign and mayorship in New York City. The first draft of the article slandered NYC politician Jennifer Rajkumar (a practicing Hindu) as Hindutva, while not criticizing Mamdani’s own Islamist support base.

However, that was actually the lesser of the Hinduphobic takes in the article; Dutt bizarrely claimed that “Dalits” were not allowed in the inner sanctum of Hindu temples and randomly singled out BAPS. A hilarious aside is that the surname “Dutt” is generally used by Brahmins in Punjab and Kayasthas in Bengal, and is not a well-known Dalit surname, though Dutt claims to be “Bhangi”.

The claims by Dutt around Dalits, and around BAPS exploiting “Dalits”, are obviously false, and observers immediately corrected her false takes. There is no evidence ever of someone being denied entry to an American temple based on their caste. To repeat, there have been zero incidents of caste discrimination at American Hindu temples. Caste discrimination in the Indian-American community is basically non-existent, as found by the Carnegie Institute Survey on Indian-Americans.

Indu Viswanathan, a scholar who we’ve featured on many previous issues, had a great response to Dutt’s claims from a Hindu perspective:

Dutt, due to her diminished intelligence level, tried switching the goalposts when called out and responded snarkily, blocking most of her critics.

Spoiler alert - Dutt obviously never provided any evidence. She demanded BAPS invite her (a non-believer) to a temple where she could touch the idols.

The number of corrections and attention drawn to the article was so high that City and State NY magazine issued corrections to the original article. Yashica Dutt’s lies and lack of journalistic integrity were so dire that they needed to be corrected.

Later, the clowns at the group “Hindus for Human Rights” (HfHR) joined the fray, casting aspersions on the Hindu American Foundation and trying to pick a fight with its founder, Suhag Shukla. Then, an actual BAPS member, from a caste that Dutt claims isn’t allowed in temples, quote-tweeted them and fact-checked the HfHR hucksters.

Then Aurangzeb’s biggest fan, Audrey Truschke joined the fray, accusing the Hindu American Foundation (HAF) of being “openly casteist” for responding to Dutt’s lies. Truschke ignored the fact that thousands of Hindu temples have non-Brahmin priests

When people lie about Hinduism and Hindus, it is important to forcefully, publicly, and articulately expose their lies. The more voices the better. Whenever you see Dutt, or Truschke, or any publication that platforms them, call them out for lying and correct them.

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Religion Highlight: Shared Hindu Beliefs

The always articulate Satyan Sharma has a correction to the adage that “Hinduism is a way of life” (as if Islam or Judaism or Jainism isnt).

Instead say: “Hinduism is a way of life based on the Vedas, Dharmashastras, Itihasas, and Puranas”

Aesthetic: BAPS Temple, Lisbon

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Temple Highlight: Temples as Symbols of Abundance

Tilak Parekh has a great article in Works in Progress Magazine (a publication linked to the American “Abundance” movement) titled “Modern Hindu Temples.” Works in Progress is a magazine that often discusses the need for Americans to build and achieve things in the physical world, often in fields like Energy, Housing, and Infrastructure. Read the article here: Modern Hindu temples - Works in Progress Magazine - we highly recommend reading the piece

So why are Hindu temples relevant for this piece? One clue might be the fact that modernity and the increasing affluence of Hindus is paradoxically increasing the fealty to traditional texts!

Temple architecture is governed by ancient canons known as the Shilpa Shastras, which define the classical style of Hindu temple architecture. In the twentieth century, many Hindu communities continued to aspire to this style, while sometimes using modern materials for reasons of cost. As these communities have become more prosperous, they have tended to adhere to the these Shastras even more closely: modern affluence has enabled a more faithful embodiment of architectural tradition rather than a departure from it.

The piece goes into the requirements for a temple, but notes that temple-building has undergone some major process innovation in recent years!

Perhaps the most striking innovation in recent temple architecture is the labor model. The construction of a modern temple can be a complex hybrid of high-tech manufacturing, hereditary craftsmanship, and devotional volunteerism. Stone is sourced from quarries around the world, especially Tuscany, Bulgaria and Rajasthan. It is shipped to workshops in India, where intricate carving is executed by professionals. These artisans often come from lineages of stone carvers who have preserved these skills for centuries.

Parekh then goes on to name 7 example of recent construction and talk about their beauty and process. Read the article here: Modern Hindu temples - Works in Progress Magazine

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Philosophy Highlight: Indian Knowledge Systems

In this episode of Upclose, Raghava Krishna joins Ashish Dhar for an important conversation on Indian Knowledge Systems (IKS), not a nostalgic slogan but a living civilisational framework that modern India still struggles to fully understand. What exactly is IKS? Is it merely about ancient texts and forgotten traditions, or does it represent a deeper way of thinking about knowledge, education, society, ethics, cosmology and human life itself? This discussion explores how India’s knowledge traditions were fragmented, misunderstood, and often reduced by colonial frameworks, and why reclaiming them requires far more than symbolic pride. From the intellectual foundations of Bharat to the modern disconnect from its own epistemic roots, this conversation invites viewers to rethink what Indian Knowledge Systems truly mean.

Aesthetic: Hindu Temple Goa

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Resource Highlight: Citation Integrity

Our readers know there is a budding “knowledge” industry of various surveys and reports with exceptionally shoddy methodology largely with the purpose of slandering Hindus. These reports get cited by a coterie of like-minded ideologues, but more dangerously, have been used as the basis for potential legislation. Anang Mittal, a friend of the newsletter, describes the citation loops of such reports below:

Here’s how the citation loop works:

• An advocacy group publishes a report with bold claims about India or its diaspora.

• Journalists cite the report as evidence, rarely interrogating its methodology or potential bias.

• Lawmakers and officials cite these media stories to justify new policies, hearings, or statements.

• The advocacy group then cites the resulting policy or lawmaker statements as “validation” of its original claims.

• The cycle repeats, and each time the claims gain more legitimacy—regardless of their accuracy.

  (via Anang Mittal)

Many are familiar with the Hinduphobic hate group “Equality Labs” and their caste survey, which makes up numbers about mythical “caste discrimination” in the United States, which the Carnegie Survey on Indian Americans clearly demonstrates doesn’t exist at scale. Another such report, that is more national in scale is US Commission on International Religious Freedom (USCIRF) which claims India is one of the worst violators of religious freedom, which given there are 50+ Muslim countries on the planet, there is no way India is even bottom quartile!

Meanwhile the vice-chair of USCIRF is a Pakistani Islamist operative named Asif Mahmood. Take a look at the image below to examine for yourself what his views are:

So then how do you hold these sorts of epistemic rabble-rousers accountable? Enter the Citation Integrity Dashboard. Developed by a few keen observers of Washington, DC politics, the dashboard judges reports that cover India, Indian-Americans, and Hindus according to a set of 8 criteria below. Check out the launch post from Anang Mittal here.

The criteria are:

1. D1 Definitional Precision

2. D2 Classification Rigor

3. D3 Case Capture & Sampling

4. D4 Coverage Symmetry

5. D5 Source Independence

6. D6 Verification Standards

7. D7 Transparency & Governance

8. D8 Counter-Evidence

Below is a screenshot from the dashboard.

To learn more visit the dashboard at: https://citationintegrity.org/

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History Highlight: Caste in Maratha Empire

@sandman1306 on X provides some interesting historical documents from the Maratha Empire showing that in the empire, engaging in caste pride was officially discouraged and rebuked. The linked post also has the original Marathi document.

Why is this important? Its clear historical evidence that the Hindavi Swarajya was not a place where some rigid pyramid of caste was imposed on the populace nor a place where Brahmins were “oppressing” members of other castes. Its important to readily have historical evidence to debunk lies from Ambedkarite groups that peddle atrocity porn about Indian history and Hindu society.

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Aesthetic: Hindu Temple, Maharashtra

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Educational Highlight: Hindu Dharma vs Religion

Hindu Parents Network (HPN) is hosting a great event around how to describe Hindu Dharma vs. the concept of religion to students and children. The workshop will be held online at 8pm EST/5pm PST on Tuesday, April 14th.

Registration is available at this link.

For more information, visit: https://www.hinduparentsnetwork.org/dharma-religion-hinduism-workshop/

Resource Highlight: Tripuratallika

Tripurā Tallikā is a collection of practicioners of the Shakta concept Śrīvidyā who have a mission to make Srividya texts more accessible.

They have blogs on various concepts of Shakta Hinduism, summaries of texts, art projects, information on Shaiva texts and concepts, as well as e-texts with English, Sanskrit, and some vernacular Indian language reading. We’ll delve more into this sect in future issues.

For more information, visit: https://tripuratallika.org/category/projects/

Religion Highlight: Buddhism and Caste

We’ve featured this topic in a few previous issues, but it is important to consistently point out that the argument that “Buddhism doesn’t have caste and Hinduism does” is wrong, and more evidence is always better. @kalingaarya from X/Twitter unearthed the following pieces to prove that further.

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Aesthetic: Karnataka Temple

Resource Highlight: Samsaadhanii

Samsaadhanii is a START (Sanskrit Text Analysis and Reading Tool) making classical knowledge accessible through structured analysis and recently released with more features to come.

Website: https://start.samsaadhanii.in/

For more information on the e-reader feature, visit their explainer here: https://start.samsaadhanii.in/E-reader.pdf or read the explainer below.

Currently the texts available to explore via the platform are:

• 1000 Sentences

• अष्टाध्यायम् → aṣṭādhyāyam

• उपनिषद् → upaniṣad

• महाभारतम् → mahābhāratam

• रघुवंशम् → raghuvaṃśam

• लीलावती → līlāvatī

• वेद → veda

• श्रीमद्भगवद्गीता → śrīmadbhagavadgītā

• सुन्दरकाण्डम् → sundarakāṇḍam

• सौन्दर्यरामायणम् → saundaryarāmāyaṇam

Meme Highlights: Non-Hindus after Death

Abrahamic nutjobs get a nasty surprise when they get to the gates of so-called “heaven”!

Temple Highlight: Bandar Abbas Temple

Aesthetic: Bandar Abbas Hindu Temple

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Praxis Highlight: Pancha Yadnya

Pancha Yadnya is the Balinese term for the five categories of religious duties that Hindus have in Indonesian Hinduism, derived from the Sanskrit term “pancha yajna” (meaning “five sacrifices”). The concept exists in lesser prominence in Indian Hinduism as well, but was brought to the forefront of Balinese Hinduism as Hindus standardized their beliefs during their fight for recognition from the Indonesian government in the 1940s and 1950s. Some of the roots of these practices lie in Manusmriti and other ancient texts, and they are:

• Dewa Yadnya: Devotional rituals dedicated to the Supreme God (Sang Hyang Widhi Wasa) and his manifestations, commonly featuring daily offerings like Canang Sari.

• Pitra Yadnya: Ceremonies dedicated to ancestors and holy spirits, including the significant cremation ceremony known as Ngaben.

• Manusa Yadnya: Rights of passage for humans, spanning from birth rituals to marriage ceremonies (Pawiwahan).

• Rsi Yadnya: Ceremonies honoring sages, high priests (Pemangku), and teachers, such as the Diksa ceremony.

• Bhuta Yadnya: Rituals to pacify lower spirits and harmonize negative forces with the environment, often featuring Mecaru or Tawur Agung

Balinese religious practice, and the practice of the remaining Javanese Hindus and Sumatran Tamils therefore had a framework for being a coherent part of an ancient religious praxis. This proved useful as groups in Borneo and Sulawesi, who practiced isolated forms of ancient Hinduism were able to be integrated into the Hindu community.

Narrative Highlight: A Random Collection

One thing people will use to strip away aspects of Hindu culture is to call Hinduism a “collection of random identities and belief systems grouped together by the British”. While Hinduism is diverse, it has coherent connections and shared beliefs between sects and a Hindu identity has existed, tied together by sacred geography. The posts below underscore how reducing Hinduism to the collection fallacy is ahistorical.

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Aesthetic: Sacred Dance for Dewa Yadnya

Praxis Highlight: Pilgrimage in Hinduism

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Aesthetic: North Indian Architecture

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Art Highlight: Kidarite Vaishnavite Seal

The Kidarites were a Hun dynasty that ruled Bactria and areas approximately on a diagonal from central Uzbekistan to Kashmir in the 4th and 5th centuries CE, that spoke Bactrian, an extinct Iranic language. They succeeded the Kushana Empire.

Architecture Highlight: 3 Styles of Indian Temple Architecture

Aesthetic: Painting of Lord Krishna

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History Highlight: Holi in Kabul

Earlier this week, hundreds of millions of people celebrated the Hindu festival Holi, which some call the “festival of colors.” A reminder that what is Hindu land has unfortunately contracted over the last millennium or so.

Jean de Thevenot, a French traveler in the 17th century CE, remarked on Holi celebrations in Kabul, Afghanistan by saying:

Now of course Afghanistan is associated with the Taliban, and the complete absence of women, and of fun in the public sphere. Its a complete tragedy that Hindus do not possess that territory today.

Festival Highlight: Brajamai

The Indian state of Manipur has some unique traditions for Holi, but they actually reflect a timeless retelling of the life of Lord Krishna and Radharani.

Brajamai is the final-day procession of young women during Manipur’s Yaoshang festival (coterminous with Holi), in which they symbolically represent the women of Braja, the land of Krishna and Radha, and walk from a local Vaishnava temple to the main Govindaji temple while performing closing rituals and dances that recall scenes from Krishna’s youth with Radha and the gopis. In this way, Brajamai is directly tied to the Braj-līlās: the girls embody Radha’s companions, and the songs, kirtans, and dances celebrate the divine love of Radha and Krishna that is also central to Holi in Braj, where their playful use of colours is seen as an expression of spiritual joy and union.

Yaoshang itself is Manipur’s version of Holi, a five‑day spring festival of colours celebrated by the predominantly Hindu Meitei community around the full moon of the lunar month Lamta (February–March). It begins with Yaoshang Mei Thaba, the burning of a small thatched hut made of bamboo and straw, which ritually signals the destruction of evil and the arrival of renewal; ashes from this fire are treated as auspicious and applied to homes and foreheads. Over time, the festival absorbed Vaishnava elements associated with Krishna and Chaitanya Mahaprabhu, so that alongside sports, music, and fundraising by children, there are now processions, temple visits, and devotional singing focused on Krishna’s Holi-like pastimes. Within this framework, Brajamai forms the specifically Braj‑themed closing act on the last day.

Meidingu Bhagya Chandra in the 18th century made Vaishnavism a state-supported tradition in Manipur, and that Vaishnavism was heavily influenced by the teachings of .Chaitanya Mahaprabhu. In Manipur, Holi Purnima and Yaoshang came to be observed as his birthday, with an image of Chaitanya placed in a thatched hut, worshiped for several days with kirtans, cymbals, and drums. Bhagya Chandra is credited with institutionalizing this Vaishnava culture in Manipur—building temples such as the Govindaji temple and integrating Krishna‑centered rituals, processions, and performances into public festivals—so that Yaoshang, and eventually Brajamai, became both a social and a deeply Vaishnava celebration.

Today, the Brajamai event on the final day features a group of young women who set out from the Bijay Govinda or another local Vaishnava temple and proceed in a festive march to the main Shri Shri Govindaji Temple. They are understood to stand in for the women of Braja village, and in the temple courtyard they perform Halankar, a dance reenactment of scenes from Krishna’s mythology—particularly his playful interactions with Radha and the gopis, echoing Holi’s colours and moods through movement, music, and costume rather than powders and water alone. These performances are accompanied by kirtan parties, each with distinctive dress and flags, creating a large, temple-centered congregational celebration.

In contemporary Manipur, Yaoshang as a whole mixes sacred and secular elements: burning of the yaoshang hut, temple rituals for Chaitanya and Krishna, sports competitions, street fundraising and “nakathengba” by children, and Holi-style colour play. On the last day, large processions move toward Govindaji Temple for collective worship and cultural programs, culminating in the Brajamai and Halankar as the symbolic conclusion of the festival. For many Meitei Vaishnavas, these concluding rituals renew their emotional bond with Krishna and Radha, re‑enacting Braj from distant Manipur and affirming a shared devotional identity that connects local culture with wider Vaishnava tradition

Scenes courtesy of IndiaAesthetica on X.

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Aesthetic: Brajamai Celebrations

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Resource Highlight: Religious Accommodations

Some places, like California, Pennsylvania, and Connecticut have made Diwali a state holiday, and New York City schools also close for it. However for the Hindu students living elsewhere in the US the ability to take days off for Hindu festivals is often in question.

The Hindu American Foundation (HAF) has a great resource page outlining how students and families can advocate for religious accommodations, including but not limited to, taking days off from school.

The link to the resource is here: https://www.hinduamerican.org/religious-accommodations-overview

A religious accommodation is any reasonable change to school policy or practice that will allow a student to observe their religious beliefs. Religious accommodations come in many forms and they are based on what is needed for the individual student to observe their religious beliefs. You can request accommodation for a religious observance, even if it is unique to your family’s religious beliefs and practices, as religious customs can be different among Hindus (just as they can vary within any other religion).

The key steps for families to follow are:

1. Review School Policy

2. Prepare a Written Request for Religious Accommodation

3. Follow Up

4. Get a Final Decision

The website from HAF has more information on each step, and further discussion on the notion of religious accommodations as well. Additionally, they have three specific guides for three of the most common religious accommodations.

• Requesting an excused absence for a religious ceremony

• Requesting an excused absence for a festival/observance

• Requesting Dietary Accomodations

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History Highlight: Forms of Lord Kumara

Great infographic from Manasataramgini (MT), written in Sanskrit. He describes it as “An emanational diagram of the pArShada-s & pArShadI-s of the god kumAra for the process of visualization during japa of their mantra-s.” As a reminder Kumara is another name for Lord Murugan or Lord Karthikeya, the brother of Lord Ganesha

MT further explains: “pArShada means a companion or a member of the parivAra. The god kumAra is accompanied by a circle of 12 goddesses (shown above in the diagram) & 4 other companions 3 ectypic deities vishAkha, shAkha & nejameSha & wife ShaShThI”

Aesthetic: Maharashtra Jyotirlinga

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Hinduphobia Highlight: Attempted Secularization of Basant

A tweet by former Indian cricket star Ajay Jadeja responding to a video of Pakistanis celebrating Basant with kites went viral and sparked a huge discussion on whether Basant is a Hindu festival or not.

We’ve covered in some previous issues that there is a concerted effort and narrative to dehinduize festivals with Onam and Pongal being some of the more prominent examples, but even events like Diwali and even Durga Puja have not been spared. Pakistanis, leftists, and some Sikhs argued Basant is purely an ancient secular Punjabi festival and not Hindu in nature. Here we see a Punjabi ethnonationalist or possible Pakistani using a Bengali caste as a slur when confronted by a Bengali Hindu pointing out that Hindu festivals seem to always face people trying to strip the festival away from its Hindu roots.

Now as a reader of a Hinduism blog, you might have heard of the festival “Vasant Panchami” and perhaps you are aware that many Indian languages take the Sanskrit “v” sound and evolve it into a “b” sound. Obviously, Basant is the same thing as Vasant Panchami and just a local variant.

You might ask why is this important? When Hindu things are not associated with Hinduism, that makes it easier to claim Hinduism is just about “caste”, which broadly in the Western mind, is associated (wrongly) with oppression and the very theoretical varna pyramid. The more things that are stripped away from Hinduism in the discourse, the easier it is to marginalize practicing Hindus as extremists and the easier it is to reduce the pride that Hindus have in their religion; a key step towards deracination and/or conversion.

Thankfully, there are some Hindus that actually are fighting this ideological battle against the stripmining of Hinduism. @vvaayu pointed out that references to Vasant go back to the Rigveda itself.

Madhvacharya in his commentary on the Chandogya Upanishad mantras 2.5.1 and 2.5.2 , gives a translation of the term “Vasanta”, quoted below and linked here.

the various names given in Sanskrit to seasons are primarily names of the Lord. Thus Vasanta means He who gives joy to the Devas in whom He dwells. It is a compound of two words “Vasa” meaning Jīva, literally “that in which the Lord dwells”; and “ta” shortened form of the verb √tan, ‘to extend’; ‘to give joy’. “Vasa” plus “ta” is equal to “Vasanta”, a nasal being added in the middle.

When we move from the textual to the historical, we even see that the greatest Sikh emperor, Ranjit Singh, celebrated Basant to worship Goddess Saraswati.

So its clear Basant, which is just the regional form of broader Vasant Panchami is Hindu. What that means for you is to always speak out against the stripping of Hindu festivals away from Hinduism and correcting the record. Every festival you celebrate when you talk about it, say “The Hindu festival Basant”, “the Hindu festival Pongal”, and so on and so forth and use the historical and textual record widely to make sure people are educated about the topic.

Meme Highlight: Pakistani Muslim Cultural Appropriation

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Aesthetic: Vasant Panchami Celebration

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Diaspora Highlight: Hinduism Revival in Reunion

Réunion Island is a French overseas department in the Indian Ocean, east of Madagascar, whose history reflects successive waves of exploration, colonization, and migration. Uninhabited before European contact, it was claimed by France in the seventeenth century, developed as a plantation colony reliant on enslaved Africans and later indentured laborers from India, China, and elsewhere, and formally became a French department in 1946. This past has produced a highly diverse Creole society shaped by African, European, Indian, and Asian influences. Today, Réunion is an integral part of the French Republic and the European Union, using the euro and governed under French law, while also facing structural challenges typical of remote island economies, including high unemployment and dependence on public transfers. At the same time, it is known for its dramatic volcanic landscapes, rich biodiversity, and growing role as a regional hub for tourism, research, and culture in the southwest Indian Ocean.

About 150,000-300,000 people in Reunion are the descendants of Tamil laborers, representing about one-sixth to potentially one-third of the population. The Tamil laborers were imported mostly from the French territory of Pondicherry, and jam packed in substandard ships, not properly fed, and denied medical treatment, with loads of people dying en route, and survivors forced to endure a brutal quarantine before being shipped off to sugar plantations.

Over time most of the descendants of Indian laborers were converted to Christianity by the French, who sent Tamil Catholic priests to the island to denigrate Hindu religious practices, and forced parents to name their kids with French Christian names. To the chagrin of Christians, many Indians maintained portions of Hindu beliefs and traditions, especially worship of Goddess Mariamman. In the last half-century, that Hindu practice has moved out into the open.

Hinduism Today magazine in 1991 covered the nascent Hindu revival in Reunion. At that point the government recognized 0 Hindus on the island, which was officially 50% Muslim and 50% Christian. At that time, the few Hindu temples and small Hindu community was starting to be visited by Hindu priests and figures who were traveling to nearby Mauritius (Hindu majority island country in Africa) and other African countries. Kavadi processions were occurring more regularly on the island at this time too, driven by local Tamils desire to connect with their ancestors and traditions.

The 2000s was also the time that flights between Reunion and India became much more readily accessible and a growing cohort of Indo-Reunionnais started to visit India and experience Hindu traditions and culture there. Unsurprisingly by 2004 Hindu religious practice started gaining more prominence. Hinduism Today had a piece in 2003 about mantra diksha (initiation in a mantra) ceremonies being conducted in Reunion, and children starting to be taught about the basics of Hinduism by community organizations, assisted by Indian Hindu charities. Hinduism Today also noted that in 2004, French media highlighted local celebrations of Deepavali in Reunion, and further noted that the Hindus in Guadeloupe, another French overseas possession (in the Caribbean) looked to Reunion for inspiration! In Week 266, we covered the revival of Hinduism in a different French overseas possession, Martinique, with many parallels to Guadeloupe and Reunion.

By the 2010s, Hindu life in Reunion appeared to be on the rebound. ISKCON began celebrating Rath Yatra in 2017 on the island, with a growing number of devotees, who were converts from Catholicism to Hinduism. Fast-forward to today, and the Hindu revival is slowly helping the Indo-Reunionnais return to their roots!

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Action Highlight: Bangladesh Hindus Action Item

As we have covered in many issues, the Hindu community in Bangladesh needs more attention. Everyone should be educating and speaking up about the atrocities faced by the Hindu community there. One tangible action item for our American and Canadian readers is writing to your representatives about the issues. CoHNA has a very helpful form to do just that. Available at: https://cohna.org/bangladeshi-hindus-need-your-help/

US Residents can fill the form here: https://cohna.org/escalating-anti-hindu-and-minority-persecution-in-bangladesh/#/16/

Canadian Residents fill out the form here: https://cohna.org/bangladeshi-hindus-can/

It takes almost no time to make your voice heard, but don’t stop there. Wherever you see discussions about religious minorities, make sure that you talk about the atrocities facing Bangladeshi Hindus. If you see an Islamist lying about Islam’s treatment of minorities, show them the facts. If you see someone speaking up for Hindus, promote/share/like their content. If you see someone attacking a Hindu for speaking up for Bangladeshi Hindus, make sure you criticize, refute, and/or mock the attacker. We are stronger when we are united.

Aesthetic: Reunion Hindu Temple

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History Highlight: The Kashmiri Pandit Exodus of 1990

Praxis Highlight: The Uniqueness of Vedic Ritualism

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Aesthetic: Umerkot Shiv Temple, Pakistan