Washington, U.S.A. — As their numbers rise, Asian Americans have been largely responsible for the growth of non-Abrahamic faiths in the U.S., particularly Buddhism and Hinduism. Counted together, Buddhists and Hindus now account for about the same share of the U.S. public as Jews (roughly 2%).

At the same time, most Asian Americans belong to the country’s two largest religious groups: Christians and people who say they have no particular religious affiliation. According to a comprehensive, nationwide survey of Asian Americans conducted by the Pew Research Center, Christians are the largest religious group among U.S. Asian adults (42%), and the unaffiliated are second (26%). Buddhists are third, accounting for about one-in-seven Asian Americans (14%), followed by Hindus (10%), Muslims (4%) and Sikhs (1%). Followers of other religions make up 2% of U.S. Asians.

Each of the six largest subgroups of this largely immigrant population also displays a different religious complexion. A majority of Filipinos in the U.S. are Catholic, while a majority of Korean Americans are Protestant. About half of Indian Americans are Hindu, while about half of Chinese Americans are unaffiliated. A plurality of Vietnamese Americans are Buddhist, while Japanese Americans are a mix of Christians, Buddhists and the unaffiliated.

When it comes to religion, the Asian-American community is a study in contrasts, encompassing groups that run the gamut from highly religious to highly secular. For example, Asian Americans who are unaffiliated tend to express even lower levels of religious commitment than unaffiliated Americans in the general public. By contrast, Asian-American evangelical Protestants rank among the most religious groups in the U.S., surpassing white evangelicals in weekly church attendance (76% vs. 64%). The overall findings, therefore, mask wide variations within the very diverse Asian-American population.

These are among the key findings of a new survey by the Pew Research Center’s Forum on Religion & Public Life and Pew Research Center’s Social & Demographic Trends project. “Asian Americans: A Mosaic of Faiths” is the second report based on a nationally representative survey of Asian Americans, which was conducted by the Pew Research Center between Jan. 3 and March 27, 2012. The first report on the survey’s findings, “The Rise of Asian Americans,” was released in June. This report examines Asian Americans using religious affiliation, as the primary frame of analysis.

The full report, including slideshow galleries highlighting key findings, is available on the Pew Forum’s website.

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Las Vegas, U.S.A. – Raelians have invited Buddhists, Hindus and the numerous spiritual groups who use the swastika as their spiritual symbol to stand up and show their support for the third annual Swastika Rehabilitation Day, to be held June 23 in cities around the world.

The swastika has been a symbol of peace and good luck in many Eastern religions and can be found on religious monuments and scriptures on every continent. It is also part of the spiritual symbol of the Raelian Movement.

Rael, the Movement’s spiritual leader, has explained the recurrent presence of the swastika as the symbol of the advanced scientists who created all forms of life on Earth and guided humanity with the teachings of peace and love that are at the origin of all religions.

“The swastika is one of the best traces left by those who created us, and the attempt to bury it as a symbol of violence and hatred only gives credit to the horrible Nazi ideology,” said Thomas Kaenzig, coordinator of World Swastika Rehabilitation Day. “Demystifying the original meaning of this beautiful symbol is the only solution,” he explained. “We can’t accept the fact that the swastika is still being hijacked, just as Christians wouldn’t accept that the Christian cross was used to represent the ideology of the Ku Klux Klan. Images of swastikas within synagogues and various other ancient sites in Israel have also helped people of Jewish origin to recognize the importance of this rehabilitation day.”

Kaenzig said it’s time to educate the public and rehabilitate what Raelians consider to be the most important symbol for humanity. He added that this year’s world demonstration will include flying large swastika banners in the skies of several U.S. cities and presenting street swastika animations in Karlsruhe, Germany, and in Tel Aviv, Israel.

In the US demonstrations will take place in Los Angeles, Chicago, Houston and Miami starting at 3pm local time. The swastika banners will be flown in the Los Angeles area and along the New Jersey coast line from 3pm to 6pm local time as well as in the New York City area from 10am to 1pm local time.

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Tokyo, Japan – Daisaku Ikeda, president of the Soka Gakkai International (SGI) Buddhist association, issued a proposal on June 6 stressing that empowerment of individuals and communities is vital to achieving a sustainable global society. The proposal puts forward ideas related to the Rio+20 UN Conference on Sustainable Development opening in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, on June 20.

Ikeda states: “It is unacceptable to consider the pursuit of sustainability as simply a matter of adjusting policies in order to find a better balance between economic and ecological imperatives. Rather, sustainability must be understood as a challenge and undertaking requiring the commitment of all individuals … constructing a society that accords highest priority to the dignity of life.”

The proposal, entitled “For a Sustainable Global Society: Learning for Empowerment and Leadership,” emphasizes that education is key.

Ikeda was a strong advocate of establishing the UN Decade of Education for Sustainable Development (DESD) which ends in 2014, and he now calls for a successor framework, an educational program for a sustainable global society to start in 2015, focused on fostering agents of positive change. Such a program should give rise to empowerment, and beyond that, to leadership, if it is to generate real transformation.

Ikeda puts forward ideas for far-reaching institutional reform of the United Nations agencies responsible for development and environmental protection. He suggests the consolidation of the UN Development Programme (UNDP) and the UN Environment Programme (UNEP) and related agencies to create one integrated “global organization for sustainable development.”

He proposes a more substantial collaborative relationship with civil society and a “committee of the future generations” as a forum through which youth representatives could advise the new organization on its annual plans and policies.

Ikeda also stresses the need for a set of sustainable development goals, with a focus on the local community as a site of both lifelong learning and action.

Examples of proactive engagement might include tree planting, disaster prevention efforts, strengthening local production and consumption, promotion of recycling and encouraging the introduction of renewable energy.

Ikeda’s view of humanity’s place on our planet is ultimately hopeful. He comments: “Although physical resources are finite, human potential is infinite, as is our capacity to create value. The real significance of sustainability is as a dynamic concept in which there is a striving or competition to generate positive value and share it with the world and with the future.”

In connection with the Rio+20 Conference, “Seeds of Hope: Visions of sustainability, steps toward change,” an exhibition co-organized by SGI, the Earth Charter International and the City of Rio de Janeiro, will be shown in English and Portuguese at the Planetarium of Rio de Janeiro from June 16 to July 15.

A 10-minute film, “Nurturing Seeds of Hope in the Amazon,” highlighting the environmental education work of the Amazon Ecological Conservation Center founded by Mr. Ikeda in 1992 will be launched at the Planetarium on June 15.

At the Rio+20 Conference, a roundtable discussion on learning for empowerment, pooling experience from education related to sustainability, peace and disarmament and human rights, will be hosted by SGI and other organizations on June 20.

Daisaku Ikeda is a Buddhist philosopher, author and peacebuilder. Since the 1970s, he has engaged in dialogues and issued proposals related to peace and environmental protection.

Image Courtesy of   Daisaku Ikeda

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Asura’s Wrath may not be the best game you’ll ever play, it certainly won’t be the longest game you’ll play, and it definitely isn’t the most interactive game you’ll play. But it is still worth a play. After hearing the things I’ve already said about the game, you may be asking “Why?” and I don’t think you are crazy to wonder that.

So let me explain. Simply put, the game offers a fun and unique experience unlike any other. In all actuality, Asura’s Wrath is closer to an interactive anime as opposed to an action game, like God of War III.  In fact, I think Dragon Ball Z deserves a place amongst contemporaries just as much as the God of War games.

Asura’s Wrath’s roots as an anime can be seen in the game’s presentation. One thing that the game does to mimic the anime experience is present itself as episodic content, rather than one continuous story. The episodes are even broken up with little manga like segments and a “On the next episode of…” type of transition.  Don’t forget the over-the-top action in both the gameplay and cut scenes, which are a staple of almost every anime.

Then there is the ridiculous, but entertaining storyline which may seem like your cliché tale of betrayal and revenge. Still, it has its own unique flair that separates it from all the other, more mundane plotlines. After all, where else are you going to take on a giant Buddha in space? So now you have a chance to enjoy a piece of visual media that combines all of your favorite aspects of anime/manga, and video games,  in one tight, concise package.

While bursting at the seams with action, the parts where you are actually fully in control seem few and far between the segments of cinematic storytelling and Quick Time Events. Not to mention, the action is quite shallow. Your main source of damage output is the Light attack combo, which involves pressing square with the occasional triangle, which unleashes a heavy attack that changes based on context.

There are also cool counter attacks that change based on which faceless grunt’s skull you are bashing in at that particular moment. Bosses don’t have health bars, which makes these potentially epic duels reminiscent of your favorite anime’s battles. They are little more than a vehicle to get to the next cut scene. You just fill up your “burst” meter by bashing everyone’s face in, and when it’s full, you “burst” into yet another QTE that will shove you along to the next part of the story.

5. Presentation

Asura’s Wrath’s style is by far one of its best traits. The game is also certainly beautiful to look at, and it is both very, very unique and very, very odd. Not to mention it is also incredibly and unashamedly over-the-top.

4. Graphics

Everything looks good and is complemented by a unique art style.

3. Sound

Asura’s Wrath’s music is fantastic and does a great deal in sucking you into the action. The voice actors also do a pretty good job of delivering their lines and making them feel authentic.

2. Gameplay

Think of God of War III. Now think of God of War III with less complex actions and more QTE. Now you have Asura’s Wrath: satisfying gameplay with no “wow factor,” and a heck of a lot of interactive cut scenes. This applies to at least the first two-thirds of the game. The final third takes a page from Panzer Dragoon’s playbook, and turns into a similarly styled shooter.

1. Lasting Appeal

Let’s be honest here, single-player games almost always offer less value than games with multiplayer, and the divide is even greater when the single-player experience only lasts 6 hours. Asura’s Wrath isn’t quite justifiable with its $60 price tag, so either find a friend or two to split the bill with, rent it or wait until it is less than $40 is my personal recommendation.

Final Score: 3.5/5

This game is a great game, but it simply has a hard time justifying you spending your hard earned dollars on it. So while I do think it is worth a play, I think it isn’t worth it at this time. I am also to inclined to note that if you aren’t in it for the spectacle and are more concerned about the gameplay, then chances are that at the very least you will be a little disappointed.

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