Oct 2022 Newsletter: Diwali on the Hill, Interfaith initiatives & Advocacy Updates!

November 5, 2022

HfHR's Monthly Newsletter serves as your guide to our progressive Hindu advocacy over the past month! Read on to learn about our webinars, podcasts, articles, advocacy updates, anti-caste initiatives, and more.

Dear Friend,

In October we celebrated the victory of good over over evil, selflessness and gratitude, sibling bonds, connection with the environment—especially the sun—as we ushered in festivals such as Dusshera, Diwali, Bhai Dooj, Bhagini Tritiya and Chhath Pooja. Several wishes poured in for the HfHR community from Pramila Jayapal (U.S. Congress Representative), Rohit Khanna (U.S. Congress Representative), Rashida Tlaib (U.S. Congress Representative), Amar Shergill (CA Democratic Party Executive Board), Anantanand Rambachan (Professor of Religion at Saint Olaf College, Minnesota), TM Krishna (renowned musician & author, HfHR Advisory Board member). We also celebrated Eid Milad-un-Nabi with our Muslim brethren with whom we want to work on building Hindu-Muslim Ekta. And On Oct. 17, we were on the Capitol Hill!

In this holy month of Kartika, we also shared beautiful verses on Nirvana by a Buddhist Master Kanha that helped us go on a self-discovery journey and make the best use of our time.

Read on to learn more on what we had been upto last month!

Hindu Heritage Month

This year too HfHR celebrated Hindu Heritage Month in October, by lifting the vision of Hinduism that rejects caste and Islamophobia, and once again embracing the idea of Hinduism that believes in the idea of "oneness" and "vasudhaiva kutumbaka" (the world as one family).

While Chandra Arya, a Hindu parliamentarian from Canada, haughtily raised the RSS flag in Ontario last week to mark the beginning of the Hindu Heritage Month in Canada, we promise to continue to promulgate our message of love, unity and compassion and write a future for Hinduism without Hindutva. This was reflected in the progressive ideas we published such as those of Basavanna and caste and the multi-faith Diwali events we were part of.

The Coalition for Minority Rights that HfHR is a part of in India HfHR is a part of organized a webinar “Reversing the Trend: Minority Rights in India” to discuss how the international community can support efforts towards a more inclusive, pluralistic and multi-faith society India.

Diwali on the Hill

On Oct. 17, HfHR hosted a multi-Faith Deepavali celebration on Capitol Hill. The event saw Hindu, Muslim, Christian, Sikh, and Buddhist speakers, dance performances, and 100 people in attendance. A big thank you to all of our co-sponsors!

HfHR also hosted its first ever Bay Area multi-faith Deepavali celebration on Oct. 22, where it celebrated and recommitted to the radical inclusion of all communities, which is the cornerstone of our vision for communities around the world. The battle between good and evil is within each of us, and during Deepavali we were committed to bringing the light of love, generosity, compassion and peace into the world.

HfHR co-founder Raju spoke at an interfaith banquet in Sacramento.

HfHR ED Sunita was at the White House Diwali celebration with old friends of HfHR, a few new friends, and a few very familiar faces - the U.S. Surgeon General Dr. Vivek Murthy, and actor/former White House Staffer, Kal Penn.

HfHR Capitol Hill Multi-faith Deepavali Celebration Live Stream

Pankaj Mahalle on the unique tradition of his village during Dussehra

Youth Initiatives

In commemoration of Goddess Durga's victories, here is season 2’s finale of Ganesha's Tusk, where Samara and Amani reflect on what Hindu tales can tell us about the importance of challenging authority and speaking up against injustice.

Listen here

HfHR ANZ Chapter Updates

HfHR-ANZ participated actively in two events in one single day in Sydney- a beautiful celebration of Sukkot, and an interfaith commitment to multiculturalism and social harmony. The National Council of Jewish Women Australia NSW Division led by Lynda Ben-Menashe, celebrated Sukkot with a Pink Ribbon Breakfast in the Sukkah- to commemorate the Breast Cancer Awareness Month. In the evening we participated in a very important ceremony organized by our key collaborators: the Indian Crescent Society of Australia (ICSOA), led by long-term activist Abbas Raza Alvi. This is an annual interfaith event held by ICSOA at the NSW Parliament House— titled “Multiculturalism and Social Cohesion in Australia” this year—with the motto, “be the change you want to see”.

HfHR-ANZ also participated in the “Migration with Dignity” launch of Democracy in Colour on Oct.5, which was a joint hybrid event featuring presentations from activists from Melbourne and Sydney.

Latest from HfHR and PAIGAM

In this episode of Ulti Pulti Baat, we examine the truth behind the accusations of growing 'Hinduphobia' in the diaspora. Is it for real or a grand strategy to divert attention away from the violence against religious minorities in India.

It's been a busy month, to say the least!

We want to keep the intensity of this enthusiasm and passion in the future. Your support energizes us to build a bold and radically inclusive Hindu public voice that opposes Hindutva and caste, and prioritizes the rights of marginalized communities.

Please donate generously and support our progressive Hindu platform for advocacy for human rights for all.

Once again, thank you for your continuous support and well-wishes!

With our love, gratitude and solidarity,

HfHR Board and Staff
Arya, Bidisha, Deepak, Harita, Manaswi, Manvi, Nikhil, Preeti, Punya, Raju, Ria, Shanti, Sravya, Sunil, Sunita, Swati, Swathi, Thrisha, Urmila, Vijay

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