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Vancouver man becoming global Hindu teacher
Jeffrey Armstrong, of Vancouver, is making a big name for himself as a high-tech teacher of contemporary Hinduism.Armstrong has followed up his webcasts, corporate presentations and extensive DVD...
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Karma: How it really works
{This archived piece is background to the blog discussion on the nature of reincarnation and karma, included in the April 16th piece headlined “Too busy to reflect on life? And afterlife?} Making sport...
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Ethnic Mapping 1: The pulsing South Asian heart of Surrey
The sign at the top of the giant onion-domed Guru Nanak Temple in Surrey reads: One God. The signs on the traffic-filled thoroughfare in front of the exotic-looking Sikh gurdwara are strictly secular,...
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Adrian Dix profile revives memories of Rev. Vasant Saklikar
Tomorrow’s Vancouver Sun will feature my lengthy profile of Adrian Dix, the New Democratic Party leader in B.C. In interviewing Dix, it was fascinating to be reminded of one of the first people I ever...
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The history of luck
As soon as I sat at the whirling gambling machine in Burnaby’s Grand Villa Casino, I won nine out of 11 blackjack hands. Luck seemed to be on my side. I was on a roll as I bet against the...
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Immigrants remaking Canada’s religious face: Global survey
Canada is welcoming more than the global average of immigrants who are Christian, Sikh, Buddhist and non-religious. The country, however, is taking in less than the global average of immigrants who are...
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Vaisakhi primer: How Hindu spirituality dovetails with Western philosophy
There is a philosophical story behind the customary news stories reported each year about the two gigantic Vaisakhi parades that will be held this Saturday morning in Vancouver and next Saturday in...
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Hindu nationalism ‘bigger threat than Islam’
Many North Americans are terrorized by fear of fundamentalist Muslims. But a University of B.C. Asian studies newsletter argues Hindu nationalism is a much bigger danger to India’s more than one...
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Hindu women in a bind: Goddesses or homemakers?
Hindu tradition holds up women as goddesses and vehicles of divine power. Hindu tradition also locks women in subservient roles. What’s a Hindu woman to do? University of B.C. professor emerita...
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Punjabi atheists, agnostics unite in B.C.
Conventional wisdom tends to tag Punjabi Indians as highly religious — mostly as practising Sikhs — the kind of fellows who wear turbans and ceremonial swords and women who wear bright saris while...
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Young Hindus and Sikhs hope Diwali can counter ‘dogma’
Can India’s most popular festival bring together the disparate South Asians of Canada? For Vancouver’s Milan Singh, Diwali is the fun and sacred time of year when she says “all my friends crash my...
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Ten trends in global religion
Many predicted religion would die out as secularism spreads around the planet. But so far they’ve been wrong, mostly. Religion and spirituality remain extremely powerful across the globe, even while...
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Why some Christians think yoga is ‘idolatrous’
North Vancouver Rev. Ed Hird is a dyed-in-the-wool conservative. He’s also an engaging fellow with a lively mind and blog. He so strongly disagreed with the idea of same-sex blessings that he and his...
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Find out where Christians, Muslims and non-religious live in Canada
We now know which provinces and cities in Canada have the highest proportion of Christians, Buddhists, Sikhs, Hindus, Jews, Muslims and non-religious. B.C. and Ontario top some of these lists. And so...
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In Canada you can’t guess religion by skin colour
The days are virtually gone in Canada when you could guess the religion of people by the colour of their skin or their ethnic origin. And nowhere is that more true than in immigrant-filled Metro...
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South Asian secularists counter religious power
All may not be what it appears when more than 150,000 people with South Asian roots flood the streets of Metro Vancouver for springtime’s annual Vaisakhi parade – creating a sea of mobile altars, women...
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Dipti Mehta honours women as part of Diwali in B.C. celebrations
Honour: Confessions of a Mumbai Courtesan Oct. 20-Nov. 4 | Vancity Culture Lab Tickets and info: from $35, thecultch.com One might not think there’s not a lot of overlap between acting and medical...
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Douglas Todd: Canadian Hindus struggling with Sikh activism
What do Canada’s more than 500,000 Hindus think about recent Sikh political activism in India and across this country? Prime Minister Justin Trudeau’s problem-prone trip with Sikh MPs to the world’s...
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