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Article: Where atheists walk on coals. (Vijayawada, India's Atheist Center)
- Article from:
- Commonweal
- Article date:
- June 2, 1995
- Author:
CopyrightCOPYRIGHT 1995 Commonweal Foundation. This material is published under license from the publisher through the Gale Group, Farmington Hills, Michigan. All inquiries regarding rights should be directed to the Gale Group. (Hide copyright information)
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"They are firm in their Islam," said the man dressed in white Indian khadi, nodding at the house of his Muslim neighbors and smiling crookedly. "They are firm in their Christianity," he continued, pointing toward the Catholic seminary down the road. "And we, we are firm in our atheism." He opened his arms to the low, thatched roofs of the Atheist Center, in the south Indian city of Vijayawada, of which he--a man known as Lavanam--is director. I had just arrived. It seemed a good moment to tell Lavanam about the results of a recent Gallup survey: Indians grant religion more importance than any other people on earth. "Yes, that is so," he said sadly, bobbing his head ...