Gujarat Buddhism Conversion Row: Clarifying that Buddhism must be considered as a separate religion from Hinduism, the Gujarat government issued a circular stating that any conversion from Hinduism to either Buddhism, Jainism or Sikhism will require the prior approval of the District Magistrate under the provisions of Gujarat Freedom of Religion Act, 2003. This circular was released on April 10 by the Home Department of the Gujarat government after it came to light that applications seeking to convert to Buddhism were not being dealt with as per the law, the circular stated. The circular was signed by Deputy Secretary (Home) Vijay Badheka.

In recent years Gujarat has witnessed many people converting to Buddhism during events organised on occasions like Dussehra and other festivals, reported the Indian Express. The notice further said that it has come to notice that the offices of district magistrates are arbitrarily interpreting the Gujarat Freedom of Religion Act.

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it has come to notice that in applications seeking permission for conversion from Hinduism to Buddhism, procedures as per rules are not being followed. Moreover, sometimes, representations are being received from applicants and autonomous bodies that for religious conversion from Hinduism to Buddhism, prior permission is not required, it added.

The circular states that some offices are rejecting conversion applications, claiming that Sikhism, Jainism, and Buddhism are part of Hinduism under Article 25(2) of the Constitution, thus not requiring permission for conversion.

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In cases where applications are filed seeking prior permission, concerned offices are disposing of such applications while stating that under Article 25(2) of the Constitution, Sikhism, Jainism and Buddhism are included within Hinduism and so the applicant is not required to take permission for (such) religious conversion, the circular stated.

It is possible that the replies given to applicants in sensitive subjects like religious conversion without sufficient study of legal provisions can result in judicial litigations, it added.

The circular mentioned that with reference to Gujarat Freedom of Religion Act, Buddhism will have to be considered a separate religion.

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Buddhism A Separate Religion From Hinduism, Conversion Needs Prior Approval: Gujarat Govt - Jagran English

By Radhika Menon

Published April 9, 2024, 3:00 p.m. ET

Theres a common, condescending refrain about action movies: leave your brain at home. Focused more on fight sequences and big explosions than story, the genre is usually propped up by the pure adrenaline that comes from its choreography. But in Dev Patels directorial debut Monkey Man, the Indian-British actor isnt satisfied with making a hollow film thats just a vehicle for flashy action a welcome step forward. The problem, however, is that the story he lands on is overstuffed and convoluted, without a salient point of view on the many religious and socio-political ideas it introduces.

In Monkey Man, Patel plays a low-class fighter, simply called Kid, who fashions himself a real-life Hanuman, the monkey-headed deity depicted in the Hindu epic Ramayana. In the Ramayana, Hanuman is a devout ally of Rama and aids him in rescuing Ramas wife Sita from the clutches of the evil Ravana. Patels version instead takes vengeance on an evil police officer whom he witnessed indiscriminately kill his mom and burn down his entire village when he was a child.

There is some critique to be had about the films political stance: Monkey Man seems to take aim at the rising right-wing Hindutva movement in India from the POV of a moderate Hindu, but it doesnt fully delineate the beliefs of each side. Simultaneously, it introduces flashes of real-life riot footage against Muslims without having a Muslim character in the fold as a comp for the films story. Its clear Patel is interested in the current political landscape in his home country, but the execution is extremely confusing even for someone like me who has some background on the current climate in India.

But my biggest issues with the film were structural. At its core, Monkey Man is a revenge thriller as Kid avenges his mothers death. But where it falters is in the why of her death. Mid-way through the film, after a failed assassination attempt on the police officer Rana at the high-end club hes connived his way into, Kid gets ready to take his second shot. In a classic training montage (soundtracked by legendary tabla player Zakir Hussein in a loving ode to Indian musical tradition), Kid works through his demons. We see flashes of his idyllic childhood thats disrupted when corporate interests move into the village and forcefully drive out the resisting residents. An extended sequence, far too late in the film, takes us to the night of the violence, where corrupt Rana sets fire to the village and then kills Kids mom with his bare hands.

But who are these corporate overlords moving into town? Why is Rana implicated with them? What is their religious ideology and their reason for burning down this village? The movie tries to haphazardly answer these questions, and focuses its attention in the wrong direction for much of its runtime. Rana is a crony, not the mastermind, we find out, and we only get flashes of the true villain a right-wing nationalist named Baba Shakti (which literally translates to Father Power) who preaches to frenzied mobs. But his introduction comes too late in the film to pack the punch Patel is looking for. Baba Shakti is likely a stand-in for Narendra Modi, Indias current Hindu-nationalist prime minister (and the probable reason that Netflix dropped the project), but the flashes of Baba Shaktis ominous string-pulling dont effectively set him up as the Big Bad. The misdirection and lack of momentum around his reveal makes the final scenes, where Kid finally threads the needle and kills Rana and then barely takes out Baba Shakti, fall flat.

There are still things to love in Monkey Man: The action is propulsive, and Patels co-written script cheekily name-checks its spiritually similar counterpart in John Wick. (You may have heard a few people talk about a particularly fun scene in which Kid holds a knife in his mouth to execute a kill, and those scenes are where the film is at its best.) During the slow second act, Patel showcases Indias hijras (a eunuch, third gender group prevalent in South Asia whose closest Western comp is the female trans community) and builds them up as allies and underdogs, teaming up with Kid to take down the evil forces in the film. It humanizes the group, a welcome depiction of a class of people who are constantly undermined.

The film has gone through its own reinvention numerous times as it moved from Netflix to Universal, producer Jordan Peele came onboard and allegedly helped cull and streamline the footage and its obvious that some crucial character beats and motivational plot points were deleted. Even leaving the thematic issues aside, there are many indications that the long, tortured production hindered the films script: for one, Made in Heavens Sobhita Dhulipalas Sita has absolutely nothing to do but look beautiful and be a damsel in distress in her very limited screen time, despite her namesake from the Ramayana being viewed as a warrior in modern, feminist retellings of the epic.

I went into Monkey Man hoping to love a film that is clearly interested in fraught topics related to religious extremism and showcasing Hinduism in an approachable way. It is an audaciously ambitious film with its heart in the right place, but unfortunately the storytelling is too muddled to really strike on its desired message.

Radhika Menon (@menonrad) is a TV-obsessed writer based in Los Angeles. Her work has appeared on Paste Magazine, Teen Vogue, Vulture and more. At any given moment, she can ruminate at length over Friday Night Lights, the University of Michigan, and the perfect slice of pizza. You may call her Rad.

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'Monkey Man' Hits During Its Fight Sequences, But Gets Muddled When It Tries To Explore Religious Extremism in India - Decider

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The Vatican has issued a new document rejecting the concept of changing biological sex.

The doctrine office finally issued Infinite Dignity, a 20-page declaration that has been in the works for five years, on Monday.

After substantial revision in recent months, it was approved by Pope Francis, who ordered its publication.

In its most eagerly anticipated section, the Vatican repeated its rejection of gender theory.

It said God created man and woman as biologically different, separate beings, and said they must not tinker with that plan or try to make oneself God.

The publication is a setback for transgender people who had hoped Pope Francis might be setting the stage for a more welcoming approach from the Catholic Church.

Around the world, major religions have diverse approaches to gender identity, and the inclusion or exclusion of transgender people.

Here are examples from some religions:

The Catholic Churchs disapproving stance toward gender transition is shared by some other denominations. For example, the Southern Baptist Convention - the largest Protestant denomination in the United States - adopted a resolution in 2014 stating that Gods design was the creation of two distinct and complementary sexes, male and female. It asserts that gender identity is determined by biological sex, not by ones self-perception

However, numerous mainline Protestant denominations welcome trans people as members and as clergy. The Evangelical Lutheran Church in America elected an openly transgender man as a bishop in 2021.

In Islam, there isnt a single central religious authority and policies can vary in different regions.

Abbas Shouman, secretary-general of Al-Azhars Council of Senior Scholars in Cairo, said that for us, ... sex conversion is completely rejected.

It is God who has determined the ... sex of the fetus and intervening to change that is a change of Gods creation, which is completely rejected, Shouman added.

In Iran, the Shiite theocracys founder, Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini, issued a religious decree, or fatwa, decades ago, opening the way for official support for gender transition surgery.

In Hindu society in South Asia, while traditional roles were and are still prescribed for men and women, people of non-binary gender expression have been recognized for millennia and played important roles in holy texts. Third gender people have been revered throughout South Asian history with many rising to significant positions of power under Hindu and Muslim rulers. One survey in 2014 estimated that around 3 million third gender people live in India alone.

Sanskrit, the ancient language of Hindu scriptures, has the vocabulary to describe three genders - masculine, feminine and gender-neutral.

The most common group of third gender people in India are known as the hijras. While some choose to undergo gender reassignment surgery, others are born intersex. Most consider themselves neither male or female.

Some Hindus believe third gender people have special powers and the ability to bless or curse, which has led to stereotyping causing the community to be feared and marginalized. Many live in poverty without proper access to healthcare, housing and employment.

In 2014, India, Nepal and Bangladesh, which is a Muslim-majority country, officially recognized third gender people as citizens deserving of equal rights. The Supreme Court of India stated that it is the right of every human being to choose their gender, and that recognition of the group is not a social or medical issue, but a human rights issue.

Buddhism has traditionally adhered to binary gender roles, particularly in its monastic traditions where men and women are segregated and assigned specific roles.

These beliefs remain strong in the Theravada tradition, as seen in the attempt of the Thai Sangha Council, the governing Buddhist body in Thailand, to ban ordinations of transgender people. More recently, the Theravada tradition has somewhat eased restrictions against gender nonconforming people by ordaining them in their sex recorded at birth.

However, the Mahayana, and Vajrayana schools of Buddhism have allowed more exceptions while the Jodo Shinshu sect has been even more inclusive in ordaining transgender monks both in Japan and North America. In Tibetan Buddhism, Tashi Choedup, an openly queer monk, was ordained after their teacher refrained from asking about their gender identity as prescribed by Buddhist doctrine. Many Buddhist denominations, particularly in the West, are intentionally inclusive of transgender people in their sanghas or gatherings.

Reform Judaism is accepting of transgender people and allows for the ordination of trans rabbis. According to David J. Meyer, who served for many years as a rabbi in Marblehead, Massachusetts, Jewish traditional wisdom allowed possibilities of gender identity and expression that differed from those typically associated with the sex assigned at birth.

Our mystical texts, the Kabbalah, address the notion of transitioning from one gender to another, he wrote on a Reform-affiliated website.

Its different, for the most part, in Orthodox Judaism. Most transgender people will find Orthodox communities extremely difficult to navigate, says the Human Rights Campaign, a major U.S. LGBTQ-rights advocacy group.

Transgender people are further constrained by Orthodox Judaisms emphasis on binary gender and strict separation between men and women, the HRC says. For example, a transgender person who has not medically transitioned poses a challenge for a rabbi who must decide whether that person will sit with men or women during worship.

Rabbi Avi Shafran, spokesman for the Orthodox Jewish organization Agudath Israel of America, wrote a blog post last year after appearing on an Israeli television panel to discuss transgender-related issues.

There can be no denying that there are people who are deeply conflicted about their gender identities. They deserve to be safe from harm and, facing challenges the rest of us dont, deserve empathy and compassion, Shafran wrote. But the Torah and its extension, halacha, or Jewish religious law, are unequivocal about the fact that being born in a male body requires living the life of a man, and being born female entails living as a woman.

In Judaism, each gender has its particular life-role to play, he added. The bodies God gave us are indications of what we are and what we are not, and of how He wants us to live our lives.

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How major religions take very different stances on trans people and gender identity - The Independent

ANI | Updated: Apr 12, 2024 21:18 IST

New Delhi [India], April 12 (ANI): India on Friday said that it is a "positive development" that the Taliban is restoring property rights for Afghan Hindus and Sikhs in the country. "We have also seen reports. If the Taliban administration has decided to restore property rights to Hindus and Sikhs from Afghanistan...I mean, who are their nationals, it is something which is a positive development. That is how we look at it," the official spokesperson of MEA, Randhir Jaiswal said during a weekly media briefing on Friday.

Jaiswal responded to a question asked about the reports stating that the Taliban justice ministry has come up with some solutions for the property problems that the minorities were facing and that property rights have been restored to the Hindus, and the Sikhs. Notably, the Land-Grabbing Prevention and Restitution Commission has started investigating cases of usurped land belonging to Hindu and Sikh communities across the country, reported Kabul-based Ariana News on March 10. The Ministry of Justice had said in a statement it instructed technical teams in the capital and in provinces to identify usurped land belonging to Hindu and Sikh communities and land at risk of being grabbed. (ANI)

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"Positive development": India on Taliban restoring property rights for Afghan Hindus, Sikhs - ANI News

The Gujarat government recently released a circular clarifying that Buddhism is to be considered a separate religion, along with Jainism and Sikhism. Under the provisions of the Gujarat Freedom of Religion Act, 2003, any conversions from Hinduism to these religions now require prior approval from the respective district magistrate.

The circular, signed by Deputy Secretary (Home) Vijay Badheka and issued by the Home department on April 8, addresses concerns about conversions to Buddhism not following the rules. Mass conversions to Buddhism, especially among the Dalit community, have been observed annually during events coinciding with festivals like Dussehra.

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The directive emphasises the need for strict adherence to the Gujarat Freedom of Religion Act, citing instances where district magistrates misinterpreted its provisions. Some offices failed to follow prescribed procedures for conversions from Hinduism to Buddhism and even entertained representations suggesting that such conversions did not require prior permission, Indian Express reported.

In cases where applications are filed seeking prior permission, concerned offices are disposing of such applications while stating that under Article 25(2) of the Constitution, Sikhism, Jainism, and Buddhism are included within Hinduism. It further instructed the district magistrates to decide on applications for religious conversion after a detailed study of the legal provisions and by following instructions issued by the state government from time to time, the circular read.

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A senior official from the Home Department explained that the circular was issued to clear up any confusion regarding the rules for converting from Hinduism to Buddhism. Some district magistrates were misinterpreting the law, so the circular was issued to provide clarification.

In Gujarat, theres a noticeable trend of Dalits converting to Buddhism. The Gujarat Buddhist Academy (GBA) frequently hosts such conversion events. Ramesh Banker, Secretary of GBA, welcomed the circular, stating, We believed from the beginning that Buddhism is not a part of Hinduism, and for conversion to Buddhism, prior permission of the district magistrate is mandatory in a prescribed format. It was our demand (to issue such a clarification), which has been fulfilled.

In our conversion events, we have always followed the procedure, taking prior permission from the concerned district magistrate by filling up a prescribed form, he added.

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The circular seeks to simplify the conversion process by detailing the requirements for obtaining permission. It also warns against providing incorrect responses to conversion applicants, which could lead to legal disputes.

Referring to the Gujarat Freedom of Religion Act, the circular asserts Buddhism as a distinct religion. It mandates prior permission from the district magistrate for conversions from Hinduism to Buddhism/Sikhism/Jainism.

The form has to be submitted to the district magistrate one month before the conversion event by the dharmguru (religious head) under whom the conversion would take place. In the form, details of the person(s) to be converted are to be submitted, including name, address, community, whether they belong to Scheduled Caste or Scheduled Tribe, marital status, occupation, monthly income, the time since when he is following the religion from which he is converting, reasons for conversion, venue and date of the conversion event and the name of the dharmguru who will perform the conversion, among others. So the applicant is not required to take permission for (such) religious conversion, the circular stated, according to The Indian Express report.

It is possible that the replies given to applicants in sensitive subjects like religious conversion without sufficient study of legal provisions can result in judicial litigations, it added.

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Buddhism separate religion, Hindus need to seek permission to convert, says Gujarat government - The Financial Express

In a further outreach to India, the Taliban authorities in Afghanistan are actively engaged in restoring private land to Hindu and Sikh minorities, reclaiming these properties from warlords associated with the previous regime supported by the West. This move signifies a crucial stride in addressing the historical injustices experienced by religious minorities in the nation, who have endured displacement and marginalization for an extended period, as stated by a Taliban official.

Indian officials perceive this development as a positive gesture towards India. One of the significant developments includes the return of Narender Singh Khalsa, a Member of Parliament representing the Hindu and Sikh communities, who has recently arrived in Afghanistan from Canada.

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Afghanistan's Outreach To India: Land Restoration For Hindus, Sikhs - NewsX

IN INDIA NATIONAL elections are looming. Voters are expected to go to the polls in April and May. Narendra Modi, the prime minister, hopes to win a third term in office. To that end he has been playing up his religious devotion. On January 22nd Mr Modi inaugurated a new temple to Ram, in Ayodhya, a northern city believed by devotees to be that Hindu gods birthplace. The temple was built on land previously occupied by a centuries-old mosque, which was torn down by a Hindu-nationalist mob in 1992. Addressing a crowd of supporters after the ceremony, which marked the unofficial start of his campaign for re-election, Mr Modi claimed the new construction was not just a divine temple but a temple of Indias vision, philosophy and direction. What did he mean?

Equating Hinduism and India in this way is one of the main tenets of Mr Modis ideology: Hindutva, or Hinduness. Adherents of Hindutva, including many members of Mr Modis Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), believe in the hegemony of Hinduism in Indiato the extent that they consider Hindu and Indian culture synonymous. Critics fear the BJP aims to to turn the country of 1.4bn people, 80% of whom are Hindus, from a secular state into a Hindu one. BJP officials deny this. They say they are trying to establish a Hindu national identity suppressed for centuries by Muslim and British invaders.

Hindutva originated in the anti-colonial movements of the early 20th century. In 1922, while in jail for anti-British activities, Vinayak Damodar Savarkar wrote The Essentials of Hindutva, a pamphlet offering an ethno-nationalist definition of Indian civilisation. A Hindu, he argued, was anyone for whom India was both a fatherland and a holy land.

Savarkar, an atheist, took a flexible view of whom could be considered a Hindu. Jains and Buddhists could be. But Muslims and Christians, as adherents of non-Indic religions, could not be part of the Hindu nation unless they renounced their faith. Contemporary Hindu ideologues tend to say that India embraces citizens of all faithsbut requires them to be loyal to an Indian nation defined by Hinduism. In support of this demand, they often cite an imagined golden age of Hindu kingsand decry the centuries-long period of colonial rule, under Muslim then Christian invaders, that followed. Millions of Hindus, they say, were forcibly converted to Islam or Christianity during that dark period. They often argue that their critics suffer from a colonial mindset.

After India gained independence in 1947, Savarkars vision lost out to the more secular, inclusive one preferred by Jawaharlal Nehru, Indias first prime minister, and other framers of the new Indian constitution. Yet groups such as the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh, a paramilitary volunteer outfit that Mr Modi joined as a child, continued to promote Hindutva and Hindu nationalism.

Their efforts have been hugely boosted, since the 1980s, by the rise of the BJP from the margins of national politics to centre stage. In power since 2014, Mr Modi has modernised Hindutva, making it symbolic of Indias national greatness. Alongside this, his party has also pushed many Hindu-nationalist priorities. In 2019 his government revoked the special status of Jammu and Kashmir, hitherto the countrys only Muslim-majority state, and split it into two territories that are governed from Delhi. Multiple states ruled by the BJP have tightened laws against cow slaughter and religious conversion, ostensibly to protect Hindus from nefarious attempts to convince them to abandon their religion. The government promotes vegetarianism, which is mostly practised by high-caste Hindus. A currently-suspended plan to establish a national registry of citizens and amend the citizenship law could put the rights of millions of Muslim Indians at risk.

The BJPs opponents say the main effect of these policies has been to relegate non-Hindu Indians, particularly Muslims, to the status of second-class citizens. It has also empowered Hindu-nationalist vigilante groups. Such groups roam neighbourhoods for signs of illegal cow slaughter or attempts by Muslim men to seduce Hindu girls and convert them (a conspiracy theory known as love jihad). They frequently operate with impunity, often alongside the police. When Mr Modi inaugurated the Ram temple the government encouraged citizens to celebrate the event as a moment of national pride. Many were eager to do so. But the celebrations carried a warning to those who demurred. Some neighbourhood associations sent notices to refuseniks encouraging them to pack up and move elsewhere.

Supporters and critics of Mr Modi differ on whether the consecration of the temple at Ayodhya was indeed a moment of national pride. Either way, the states unambiguous promotion of the event appeared to mark a significant break with the secular principles enshrined in Indias constitution.

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What is Hindutva, the ideology of India's ruling party? - The Economist

Appalled Hindus are asking for resignation of General Mills CEO Jeffrey L.Harmening with an official apology from the company for non-disclosure of beef in its Yoplait yogurts, and their immediate recall from the market.

Hindu statesman Rajan Zed, in a statement in Nevada, said that it was shocking for Hindus to learn that popular Yoplait yogurts, which they had been eating for years, contained beef; while beef was not explicitly mentioned under the ingredients listed on the Yoplait packages/boxes.

Zed, who is President of Universal Society of Hinduism, stated that Yoplait yogurts contained gelatin, but the source of gelatin was not mentioned under the Ingredients on packages/boxes. When Zed contacted General Mills, its Consumer Care department responded: The source of Gelatin in all Yoplait Yogurt Products is beef.

Consumption of beef is highly conflicting to Hindu beliefs. Cow, the seat of many deities, is sacred and has long been venerated in Hinduism, Rajan Zed points out.

It was a very serious issue for the devotees and would severely hurt their feelings if they would come to know that they were unknowingly eating beef-laced Yoplait yogurts, Zed said. General Mills, which claims to be an innovative company that stands for good, should not be in the business of hurting the sentiments of trusting consumers and communities and contradicting its own statement of Do the Right Thing, All the Time, Zed added.

Rajan Zed further said that it was hard to comprehend why General Mills Inc., which claims We make foodthe world loves: 100 brands. In 100 countries. Across six continents., did not mention explicitly under the ingredients on the package/box the source of gelatin used in its products. It was highly insensitive on its part, according to Zed.

Now is the time for General Mills to admit their serious error of not being transparent enough to mention in clear and simple terms what was inside the package/box so that an ordinary consumer could make right and appropriate choices, Zed said. Moreover, in the future, General Mills should explicitly list beef in the ingredients on the package/box when beef was present in the product; Zed added.

Besides the CEO resignation and official apology, Zed urged General Mills to recall all Yoplait packages/boxes containing gelatin where source of gelatin was not clearly mentioned, and later replace these with packages/boxes which markedly declared source of gelatin under the ingredients label.

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Hindu Group Seeks Resignation Of General Mills CEO For Non-Disclosure Of Beef In Yoplait Yogurts - Eurasia Review

CAMBRIDGE, MAScholar Swayam Bagariahas been named Assistant Professor of Hindu Studies at Harvard Divinity School. His appointment took effect January 1, 2024.

Bagaria was most recently a Postdoctoral Fellow in Hindu Studies at HDS and was named to that position in 2022. Prior to his time at HDS, Bagaria was a Postdoctoral Fellow at the University of Virginia in the College Fellows Program. He received his PhD in anthropology from Johns Hopkins University in 2020.

I am thrilled to welcome Swayam Bagaria to the HDS faculty, said HDS DeanMarla F. Frederick. Professor Bagaria is not only an emerging scholar, but also a proven and appreciated teacher. His ethnographic perspective on lived religion today and his research on the relationship between classical Hinduism and popular Hinduism in contemporary India will allow Hindu Studies to better flourish at HDS and Harvard. His appointment pushes forward our effort to continue to develop Hindu Studies and a Hindu Ministry Program at the Divinity School.

An anthropologist interested in the psychosocial aspect of religion, particularly Hinduism, Bagarias work combines computational, cognitive, and socio-cultural methods to understand the formation and persistence of religious and religion-like beliefs and commitments in contemporary India.

I am excited to join HDS at what seems like an inflection point in the history of the School. Religion, even if just as a cluster of biases or as a set of ethical constraints, has always been important for most of our endeavors in the world but it was rarely acknowledged as such, said Bagaria. My strength has always been my curiosity and receptivity to different disciplinary frameworks and methods. I find that reframing a problem from multiple perspectives and understanding the tradeoffs between them can break the rut of being trapped in scholarly echo chambers. Practically, I try and achieve this in my research collaborations but even more so in my teaching.

In his first book, Bagaria provides a new framework to understand the bespoke internal plurality of Hinduism and its capacity to allow a diverse set of regional sects with their own set of beliefs and practices and with differing states of cultural and social organization to subsist.

Bagarias second book is on the relation between spirituality and mental health in India in the last century.

He has also written on the impact that an acknowledgement of the salience of religious identity and belief in India has had on thedesign of constitutional orders,the framing of foreign policy, and on understandingthe economics of dead assets. Other interests include using computational social science to study belief formation, comparative constitutional law, contemporary psychedelic sciences, and the cultural economics of religion.

At Harvard Divinity School, he teaches a year long course on history of psychotherapy and psychiatry in India and its engagement with the spiritual and cultural aspects of religious belief, as well as elective courses on comparative constitutional law, the ethics and economics of caste, and an introductory class on social science research methods.

Swayam Bagaria is already a much-appreciated member of our faculty, bringing to campus fresh expertise regarding Hindu temples, Hindu and civil law codes, methods in ethnographic study, and insights into the varieties of living Hinduism, saidFrancis X. Clooney, S.J., Parkman Professor of Divinity and Professor of Comparative Theology and search committee chair for the tenure-track position in Hindu Studies. As HDS expands Hindu studies and strengthens the place of Hindu perspectives in ministry studies, Swayam will be an essential person, much appreciated in both the academic and ministerial dimensions of HDS.

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Swayam Bagaria Named Assistant Professor of Hindu Studies at Harvard Divinity School - India New England

In Nepal, a growing Hindu nationalist movement is calling for the country to adopt Hinduism as its state religion and reinstate the countrys Hindu monarchy. Now there is concern over recent clashes between Hindu nationalists and police. Analysts say the movement stems from a combination of disillusionment with the government, inspiration from neighboring India, and social media influencers. Henry Wilkins reports from Kathmandu.

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Hindu Nationalism Spreading in Nepal - Voice of America - VOA News