(Unpacked) Is this tribe in India secretly Jewish [Asian Jews]? Bene Manashe or Bnei Menashe
The warlike Bnei Menashe (Hebrew בני מנשה or "Children of Menasseh" known as the Shinlung in India [5]) is a community of Indian Jews from various Tibeto-Burmese [6] ethnic groups from the border of India, Bangladesh, and Burma (Myanmar) who claim descent from one of the Lost Tribes of Israel [7][5]: 3 , allegedly based on the Hmar belief in an ancestor named Manmasi [8]. Some of them have adopted Judaism [5] [though most seem to have been converted to Christianity by Western missionaries before realizing they were "Jews," though they have not been easily accepted by white supremacist Ashkenazi-dominated Israeli society even if officials offered them expedited conversion]. The community has around 10,000 members [1]. More
I break down the real story behind the destruction, separating myth from truth, and explaining how political motives — not religious extremism — led to the tragic demolition of these ancient marvels [which Madame Blavatsky claimed were far older than two millennia].
🕳️ Then, I venture deep into the surrounding Buddhist monastic caves carved into the Bamiyan cliffs — ancient Buddhist monasteries (viharas) — guided by a group of curious local Afghan kids.
The history etched into these walls is as haunting as it is beautiful. [This is the site of the world's oldest oil paintings.] 📜 I then reveal a lesser-known truth: The Taliban is actually considering rebuilding the Bamiyan Buddhas. Is it be a shift in ideology or a strategic political move?
🍽️ From there, I head into the town of Bamiyan to explore local Afghan cuisine — sampling some must-try dishes that reflect the heart of the Hazara culture.
American guy pulls up in American muscle car like Billie Eilish's on his way to go camping.
Where Siddhartha swam? Bamiyan Province
💦 The journey continues to [the Himalayan lakes of the Hindu Kush near Bamiyan called] Band-e Amir, Afghanistan’s first national park — a surreal set of turquoise lakes surrounded by towering cliffs.
Around the world in a purple muscle car?
Here, I meet Keith, an adventurous soul driving a purple American muscle car around the world. We join forces and go camping together in the Afghan wilderness.
⚔️ In a twist few would expect, we encounter the legendary Taliban — not in conflict, but in conversation. They show us their weapons, speak openly about Islam, and offer insight into their worldview. It’s a raw, complex moment that challenges many stereotypes and headlines.
Yogi casually walking in the snow like some kind of Wim Hof (Instagram)
Video shows yogi walking barefoot in Himalayan snow (TOI Trending Desk/etimes.in/5/26/25)
.
He did what? I have to step up my practice!
(TOI) A viral video shows a yogi walking barefoot in the freezing, snow-covered Himalayan mountains — and what he says next leaves viewers stunned.
A video shows a yogi walking barefoot in the Himalayas. The yogi is wearing only a thin [linen] cloth. A person recording the video greets him. The yogi says he is coming from Hind Parvat.
He calmly answers questions about the cold and his lack of warm clothing. The video is gaining attention online. Viewers are impressed by his spiritual detachment [rather than the physical obsession we normally exhibit].
The video leaves viewers stunned as it shows a yogi walking barefoot in deep snow, reportedly in the Himalayas. It has gone viral on social media, leaving viewers stunned. What has caught everyone’s attention isn’t any stunt, but the yogi’s calm, peaceful walk through harsh, freezing conditions, wearing nothing but a thin white cloth.
In the video, the yogi, who appears to be in his early 30s, can be seen walking barefoot through thick snow. The person recording the video greets him respectfully, saying, “Jai Kedarnath Maharaj ji” (“Hail Kedarnath, Maharaj-ji” or “Hello, Kedarnath, great holy lord”), then warns him gently, “Aaraam se, aaraam se… kahan se aa rahe ho? (“Careful, careful…where are you coming from?”)
Without hesitation, the yogi replies, “Hind Parvat se aa raha hoon.” Surprised, the man asks again, “Hind Parvat se?” and the yogi calmly repeats, “Haan, Hind Parvat se.” As the two continue talking, the man points toward the snow-covered slopes and asks, “Upar jaa sakte hain? Saari baraf hi dikh rahi hai upar toh” (“Can we go up there? It’s all snow-covered”).
The yogi responds with a smile, “Haan, baraf hi baraf hai” (“Yes, it’s all snow”).
The most surprising moment comes when the man, clearly shocked, asks, “Aap aise baraf par nange pair ho?” (“You’re walking barefoot on this snow?”)
The yogi calmly replies, “Nange pair main thodi hoon, yeh toh shareer hai. Yeh shareer nange pair hai, main nahi hoon” (“I am not barefoot – this body is. The body is barefoot, not me”).
The man then says, “Na aapki jacket hai…” (“You’re not even wearing a jacket...”), and the yogi replies, “Kuchh nahi pehna hai” (“I haven’t worn anything special”).
Wearing only a thin dhoti, the yogi’s quiet strength and composed presence in the freezing Himalayan cold has drawn admiration and curiosity.
Many online viewers have described it as a powerful example of spiritual detachment and mind-over-body strength, the kind rarely seen in today’s fast-paced world.
While the video continues to gain attention across multiple social media platforms, it was originally shared by the yogi himself, who goes by the username @margdarshakji on Instagram.
The Times of India (TOI) could not independently verify the location, time, or authenticity of the video. Read more at:
timesofindia.indiatimes.com
Times of India, May 26, 2025; Dhr. Seven, Amber Larson (eds.), Wisdom Quarterly
China Earthquake LIVE: Death toll from powerful earthquake in Tibet reaches 126 | WION LIVE
The wisdom eyes of the Buddha, Nepal
(WION)
Started streaming Jan. 7, 2024: Bhutanhas also been affected. A 6.8-magnitude quake [updated to 7.1] struck China's remote Tibet region on Tuesday morning. [This is disputed territory claimed by an independent Tibet, nibbled at by India, touching Nepal, not far from Bhutan, but invaded and occupied by Chinese forces.] The death toll is rising to at least 53 [at least 126 with at least as many injured], state media is reporting. US media states that a magnitude of 7.1 earthquake jolted China-Nepal border. The earthquake jolted Dingri County in Xigaze City (Shigatse), located in the Xizang(Tibet) Autonomous Region, at 9:05 am local time. In addition to the confirmed fatalities, 62 others have been injured. The powerful tremor has left a trail of destruction, and rescue efforts are underway.
#nepal #china #tibet
Powerful earthquake rocks Tibet and parts of Nepal
Aerial view of Boudhanath, Nepal
(CNN)
Jan. 7, 2025: More than 100 people have been killed after a powerful earthquake struck a remote region of Tibet, with tremors felt across the Himalayas in neighboring Nepal, Bhutan, and parts of northern India. The 7.1-magnitude quake struck at 9:05 am local time at a depth of 6.2 miles (10 kilometers) and was followed by multiple aftershocks, according to the United States Geological Survey (USGS). #CNN #News
China’s Yinchuan hit by 11 earthquakes in 24 hours; millions flee, roads and rails jammed
(China Observer) Jan. 4, 2025: ✪ On Jan. 2 and 3, 2025, Yinchuan in Ningxia, China, experienced 11 earthquakes within 24 hours. The strongest measured 4.8 magnitude. The tremors were also felt in Shaanxi and Gansu. Although the magnitudes were not high, the frequent and widespread quakes, combined with shallow epicenters, led to strong tremors in some areas, causing public panic. Join channel: @chinaobserver0#chinaobserver
India, the Himalayas Acrobats | Deadliest Journeys
(Best Documentary) Premiered Nov. 17, 2022. The truck drivers of India (Inde) who supply the lost cities of the Himalayas play the tightrope walkers on passes at altitudes of 4,000 meters. They graze parishes and precipices flat out on roads barely wider than their engines.
Directed by Frédéric Elhorga and Antonin Marcel.
Celtic sea salt vs. Himalayan pink salt: mineral comparison + differences
(Clean Food Living) March 12, 2022. Ever wonder what the differences between Celtic sea salt and Himalayan pink [rock] salt are? This video explores in depth information about the minerals in pink Himalayan salt (an ancient sea salt mined in pristine caves in Pakistan) and the minerals in Celtic sea salt. The hostess compares Celtic sea salt minerals to pink Himalayan salt minerals in a side-by-side chart showing numeric values. Plus this video shows the many similarities and differences (other than mineral content) between the two. With this information we can determine some of the health benefits of each.
NOTE: Dear friends, please forgive my mispronunciation of Himalayas (called them Himalayans) and of Celtic. I was phonetically saying "Seltic" (like the basketball team) instead of "Keltic" 😊 Many blessings!
Indian national flag flown next to Chinese national emblem
during welcome ceremony for visiting Indian officials outside the Great
Hall of the People in Beijing. China insists India withdraw
its troops from disputed Himalayan plateau (AP).
Mt. Everest could be soaked in blood instead of littered with frozen bodies.
.
China demands India leave Himalayan plateau in dispute
BEIJING - China has
insisted India withdraw its troops from a disputed Himalayan plateau
before talks can take place to settle the most protracted standoff in
recent years between the nuclear-armed neighbors, who fought a bloody
frontier war 55 years ago.
Devas love the Himalayas.
( India must pull back its troops "as soon as
possible" as a precondition to demonstrate sincerity, Foreign Ministry Spokesman Geng Shuang told reporters at a daily news briefing.
His
comments came after weeks of saber-rattling in New Delhi and Beijing, as
officials from both sides talk up a potential clash even bloodier than
their 1962 war that left thousands dead.
The standoff could spill over into the G-20 Summit
in Germany later this week where Chinese Pres. Xi Jinping and his
Indian counterpart PM Narendra Modi are expected to meet at a gathering of
leaders from five emerging economies on the sidelines of the main event.
The month-long standoff and unconfirmed reports of
troop buildups on both sides of the border have also underscored the
swiftly deteriorating relations between the two Asian rivals headed by
assertive leaders with a nationalist bent.
China dislikes Dalai Lama
China
complained bitterly when Tibet's spiritual leader, the [14th] Dalai Lama, who
lives in exile in India, visited the contested Arunachal Pradesh region
in April, which India said amounted to interference in its internal
affairs.
China also appeared frustrated that India has
refused to join its continent-wide "One Belt, One Road" infrastructure
initiative, which includes a key component in Pakistan -- India's
archival but one of China's staunchest allies.
Meanwhile, India has
fumed about China using its position at the United Nations to
effectively stymie India's efforts to gain permanent membership in the
Security Council or label the Pakistani militant Masood Azhar a
terrorist.
Despite a litany of grievances on both sides,
frequent clashes on the 2,174-mile (3,500-kilometer) shared border have
been the most prominent irritant in efforts to build stable bilateral
ties, said Zhang Li, an expert on China-India relations at Sichuan
University.
"The border clashes show how fragile and volatile
the relationship can be," Zhang said, noting that the latest flare-up
took place in an area relatively free of past trouble and not previously
contested.
The dispute flared in June after Chinese teams
began building a road on territory also claimed by Bhutan.
Although
China and Bhutan have been negotiating the precise border for decades
without serious incident, the tiny Himalayan kingdom [now a republic after king renounced his throne to modernize his country with the highest Gross Domestic Happiness rating of all the world's countries] sought help this
time from its longtime ally, India, which sent troops onto the plateau
to stop the Chinese workers.
Since then, videos have emerged of Indian and
Chinese soldiers blocking each other with their arms and physically
jostling without coming to blows.
Incensed with India's involvement,
China retaliated by closing a nearby mountain pass that Indian pilgrims
use to reach Mount Kailash, a sacred Hindu and Tibetan (Vajrayana) Buddhist site in Tibet.
China's foreign ministry also presented to reporters historical
documents that it says prove China's claims to the plateau.
That hasn't stopped the two-way sniping. After
Chinese officials said India should learn "historic lessons" from its
humiliating defeat in the 1962 war, Indian Defense Minister Arun Jaitley
responded that "India in 2017 is different from India in 1962," in a
reference to its improved military strength.
While Indian media have issued shrill warnings
about Chinese expansionism, Chinese state media have also ramped up
their bellicose rhetoric, with the nationalist tabloid Global Times
warning Wednesday that Beijing would make no concessions.
Zhang, the Sichuan University professor,
acknowledged the unusually tough talk from both sides but said the
conduct of the two militaries and foreign ministries has been relatively
restrained and "within normal bounds."
Abhijnan Rej, a fellow at the Observer Research
Foundation, a New Delhi-based think tank, said India needed to "show
resolve" as China tries to pry away its traditional allies like Bhutan
and assert itself as the region's leader.
China has "exhibited a larger pattern in the last
two years" and sees itself as an Asian hegemon, Rej said. "You don't
become that by playing by the rules." Even though the Doklam Plateau is
not part of Indian territory, New Delhi has been particularly sensitive
to Chinese building activity in a region with strategic significance.
What's there to fight about up here?
If linked by Chinese roads, Doklam could become a
launching point for a Chinese attack on the vital Siliguri corridor -- also known as the "Chicken Neck" -- that connects India's northeast with
the rest of the country, Indian analysts say. Last month, India's
Ministry of Externals Affairs said Chinese actions in the area had
"serious security implications."
Aside from Doklam, the two countries have vast
competing territorial claims. China claims about 35,000 square miles (90,000 square
kilometers) in the Indian province of Arunachal
Pradesh, referred to informally by some Chinese as "Southern Tibet."
India, meanwhile, says 15,000 square miles (38,000 square kilometers) of
the Aksai Chin plateau belongs to it.
More than a dozen rounds of talks have failed to
make substantial progress in the dispute, although there have been
relatively few confrontations in recent years.
India has also formally
joined the Russian and Chinese-dominated Shanghai Cooperation
Organization this year alongside Pakistan.
Former Indian Ambassador to Beijing C.V.
Ranganathan said he was "baffled" by why the typical diplomatic channels
that have smoothed over other flare-ups have not worked.
"The fact that
this has lasted so long is not a good sign," he said. "India and
China's relationship has been on a downward trend recently and this in
fact is yet another example." More
Himalayan Mustang District, now a part of Nepal, formerly Tibet (Jmhullot/wiki)
Buddhist prayer flags fly throughout the Himalayas: Tibet, Nepal, Bhutan, India...
Nawang Tsering Gurungat at Diversity Square (Alina Simone)
There's a Tibetan dialect called "Mustang," and it's staying alive in the US
Stepping off the train in Jackson Heights,
Queens [New York], on a recent Sunday, Alina Simone discovered two groups doing sonic battle
in a courtyard ringed with shops:
There was a Tibetan religious service led by
crimson-robed Buddhist monks versus a "Bangladeshi Americans for Bernie Sanders"
rally. Later, looking up the name of the place, it's Diversity Square.
It's no surprise, given this is the epicenter of the most diverse neighborhood in America.
More than 130 different languages are spoken in Jackson Heights, but
many of them are from places so small, so remote, they get lost in the
commotion. Take Mustang [now claimed by Nepal], a dialect of Tibetan with only 7,500 speakers
worldwide — 800 of whom live in the US.
Dialects like Mustang — also referred to as “Mustangi” — are waging
quiet fights here for time, attention, and survival. What exactly are
they fighting against?
We could say it's the pursuit of the American
Dream itself. Given the challenges of starting a new life halfway across
the world, even when a language is spoken at home, English is often
what kids focus on learning.
As language activist Nawang Gurung explains: “Parents work 12 to 15
hours in restaurants, nanny jobs, as nail technicians....Now if
parents talk to their kids in Mustangi dialect, kids are gonna respond
in English.”
Nawang has become a custodian of Mustang here in New York City.
“Language represents your identity,” he explains. “Who you are. If the
Mustangi dialect vanishes, it's slowly gonna mean, it has a totally new
identity.”
Pema, Domaseri, and Domaseri at Diversity Square every
weekend attending Mustang Sunday. Even in a place as diverse as Jackson
Heights, it can be difficult to explain where it is they come from, the
three say (Alina Simone).
“When we say Mustang, not many people get it. And when we say Tibet, ‘Oh! That's China, basically.”
These new identities are being forged by families who are part of a massive migration from
the Himalayas, accelerated by last year's major earthquake in Nepal and
a downturn in tourism. According to Nawang, the result for mountain
people like the Mustang has been “a rapid population decline compared to
other regions in Nepal."
His fear is that as the sparse population of Mustang speakers
scatters, soon there won’t be anyone to learn from. So together with the
Endangered Language Alliance here in New York, he is working to create a
kind of Mustang Library of Congress. It’s part of a project called Voices of the Himalayas, a digital archive that will preserve Himalayan oral history, folklore and song, handed down over hundreds of years. More
Himalayan lore: Inner Earth "Agartha"
(Agarthissml) What is the legend of the underworld
realm of Agartha, and what mysteries surround it?
Presented by Astrambiente Lazio; created by Valeria
Temperini, Michela Rosarno, and Valerio Panfoli, in cooperation with
Adriana Bisirri, professor and principal of the SSML Gregorio VII
University in Rome.
The concept of a subterranean realm is common throughout the world’s religions and mythological traditions.
There is a powerful antecedent to the legends and rumors extant today in the mythology of VajrayanaBuddhist Tibet.
In his 1930 book Shambhala, Nicholas Roerich describes his attempts to understand the origins of underworld legends "to discover what memories were being cherished in the folk-memory."
Legend of the underworld realm of Agartha presented by Astrambiente Lazio;
created by Valeria Temperini, Michela Rosarno, and Valerio Panfoli, in cooperation with Adriana Bisirri, professor and principal of the SSML Gregorio VII University in Rome.
Explorer Roerich relates the remarkable encounters and events of his travels through Central Asia [Afghanistan, etc.] and Tibet at the turn of the century.
Through his detailed diary notes and the chronicling of legends and parables, he reveals the many facets of the tale of Shambhala, the long-awaited realization of paradise on earth. In Western mythology, Shambhala appears as the mythic land of Shangri-la.
In the prophecies of the East, it is seen as both a physical place and the dawning of a New Era of enlightened consciousness. More
CBS reporter to visit 59 parks in a year
New York (AP) - Conor Knighton didn't take the easy route when he proposed a "CBS Sunday Morning" story on the National Park Service's centennial. His idea approved, he's in the midst of a yearlong journey to spend time in each of the 59 national parks. His "On the Trail" reports air every two weeks, and this Sunday's piece about Depression-era park improvements will be the show's cover story.More
Lawyers hid evidence of police misconduct
Chicago (AP) - When a federal judge concluded that a lawyer employed by
the city of Chicago concealed audio evidence in a civil trial, the court
issued a sharp rebuke, saying the recordings showed police lied about
the events that led officers to shoot and kill a black motorist.More
"False Dalai Lama, stop lying" reads Shugden Dorje banner held by supporters also holding Buddhist flag, Honda Center, Anaheim, July 5-7 (Mark Rightmire/OCRegister.com)
Dalai Lama and monks, Dharamsala, India
Hundreds of protesting emails demanding retractions and apologies poured in last month after the Observer reported on planned demonstrations in Britain against the Dalai Lama, Tibet’s exiled spiritual leader [and semi-retired political leader].
Coupled with a storm on Twitter and placard-waving near our office in London, it had all the hallmarks of a carefully organized campaign to pressure the paper to kill a story, and all from apparently peace-loving Buddhists.
The article alleged that the Chinese authorities were encouraging a “toxic” campaign by the International Shugden Community to undermine the Dalai Lama and which could threaten Buddhism itself.
The [rival Tibetan] sect, described as extremist by the International Campaign for Tibet, had disseminated images of the guru as a pig, described him as a Muslim, and compared him to Hitler.
The story added, without attribution, that the sect believed in an evil spirit that inflicts madness and death on its enemies. It said demonstrations, organized by the Shugden-following New Kadampa Tradition (NKT), were planned when the Dalai Lama arrived at a new Buddhist center in Hampshire and at the Glastonbury festival. NKT declined to comment.
Shugden followers wrote to deny that they were extremist, that they had any links with the Chinese, or that their campaign was aimed at splitting Buddhism. They denied that NKT was organizing the protests, and they rejected entirely the idea that they believed in an evil spirit.
They maintained that the “false” Dalai Lama, as they called him, was himself a follower of Shugden teachings until 1976 but was now banning the practice and suppressing human rights.
“The net effect of your biased and harmful accusations is to abuse and alienate innocent Shugden Buddhists,” wrote one emailer.
“Instead, why don’t you honestly assess the claims of Shugden Buddhists?”
So I turned to an acknowledged authority, Professor Robert Barnett, director of modern Tibetan studies at Columbia University (USA).
“Their campaign depends on the implication that a ban by the Dalai Lama on Shugden practice exists throughout the Tibetan Buddhist community,” he said. “There is no ban in that broad sense, though some Tibetan organizations are said to have at certain times imposed such bans on their own members, which is indeed a matter of concern.
But the Dalai Lama did issue a [Shugden] prohibition to those who ask to take religious teachings with him. This could be loosely termed a ban, but it was a requirement that applied only to those people who ask to study religious texts with him. The ISC literature does not acknowledge this distinction.”
Yama, Lord of Death, as a yakkha on Tibetan thangka
Discriminatory statements by some in the exile Tibetan administration had not helped and he believed the Dalai Lama should have done more to clarify that Shugden worshippers should not be discriminated against. “But, regrettably, the Shugden campaign has tended to elide and confuse those questions and to focus on political, personal and sectarian issues which are extraordinarily provocative and incendiary.” All this had closed off most avenues for reasonable discussion.
There was no firm evidence, he said, of Chinese funding or involvement in Shugden protests organized in the west, but there was very strong evidence of significant Chinese involvement in Shugden organizations in India and Tibet. “NKT and its sister groups have formally linked themselves to those exile groups in India at times, including at least one joint statement and campaign. Leaders of the exile Shugden groups in India frequently travel to China and have formal receptions with Chinese officials, in which they make public statements.”
But more significant, he felt, was the fact that Shugden groups in the west expressed the same core views as the Chinese authorities and used the same specific strategy, and often the same terminology, notably the decision to focus their campaigns on attacking the Dalai Lama and describing him as “false”. He believed that a convergence of strategic objectives and methods was evident.
It was not, however, correct to say that Shugden followers in the west believed in an evil spirit. More
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