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Indian Culture and Customs Biography
India is the cradle of the human race, the birthplace of human speech, the mother of history, the grandmother of legend, and the great grand mother of tradition. Our most valuable and most instructive materials in the history of man are treasured up in India only.” -- Mark Twain
“We owe a lot to the Indians, who taught us how to count, without which no worthwhile scientific discovery could have been made.” -- Albert Einstein "It is, indeed, a remarkable circumstance that when Western civilization discovers Relativity it applies it to the manufacture of atom-bombs, whereas Indian civilization applies it to the development of new states of consciousness." -- Alan Watts (1915-1973) Harvard University Professor “Many of the advances in the sciences that we consider today to have been made in Europe were in fact made in India centuries ago.” -- Grant Duff, British Historian of India
Land and Climate. India, covering 1,269,338 square miles (3,287,590 square kilometers), is roughly one-third the size of the United States. A small section of the Himalaya Mountains lies in the disputed territories of the north. The Ganges Plain below is fertile and densely populated. South of the plain is the Deccan Plateau. About half of the country is under cultivation and a little less than one-fourth is forested. Most of the country experiences three basic seasons: hot summer (March–May), rainy (June–September), and cool winter (October–February). Temperatures rarely go below 40°F (4°C) in January or reach above 100°F (40°C) during the summer. Variations exist according to region and elevation. Floods, droughts, and earthquakes are common. Population. India has the second largest population in the world, behind China, with 1.03 billion residents. The population is growing at 1.6 percent. The Indo-Aryan castes comprise 72 percent of the population, while Dravidians account for 25 percent. Nationally, castes are assigned to one of four general classes by the government. These include forward classes (FC), backward classes (BC), scheduled castes (SC), and scheduled tribes (ST). Classifications are based on social, historical, and economic criteria. Individuals in each classification might be rich or poor, as class does not necessarily define wealth in today's India, but BCs, SCs, and STs can access affirmative action programs that reserve jobs, scholarships, and other benefits for castes that historically were persecuted or disadvantaged. People in the SC and ST groups have come to be collectively known as Dalits (downtrodden). A person's caste is a matter of lineage and cannot change, but Parliament technically has power to reassign a caste to another class. Caste still plays an important role in certain social interactions like marriage. Castes maintain their distinct culture and identity, and they rarely intermarry (though this is changing in cities and over time). Castes are often confused with the Brahmin classification philosophy, Chaturvarna Vyavasta (four-class system), per-haps because the three historically dominant Aryan castes bear the same name as the three highest classes in this system. The ancient Sanskrit scholars believed any society is composed of four classes: Brahmin (intellectuals and priests), Kshatriya (rulers and warriors), Vaishya (farmers and merchants), and Shudra (workers). As they dispersed on the Indian subconti-nent, the Aryans grouped most non-Aryan castes into the Shudra class. The Brahmin philosophy became widespread by 1000 CE because of Aryan dominance in many states, but it does not determine a person's caste. Government. A democratic republic, India is divided into 26 states and six union territories. President K. R. Narayanan, elected in 1997 by Parliament and the state assemblies, has mostly ceremonial duties. Prime Minister Vajpayee is head of government. India's Parliament has two houses: the Rajya Sabha (Council of States) and the Lok Sabha (House of the People). No more than 250 members, elected by the legislatures of each state, serve in the Rajya Sabha. All but 2 of the 545 members of the Lok Sabha are directly elected by the people. All citizens may vote at age 18. Economy. India is primarily an agricultural nation. It is a leading world producer of peanuts, rice, cheese, tobacco, wheat, cotton, milk, sugarcane, and rubber. Other important crops include grains, oilseed, jute, tea, and coffee. Export earnings come mainly from tea, coffee, iron ore, fish products, and manufactured items. Textiles are a principal domestic product and also a profitable export. Roughly 20 percent of the population is employed in services, and 15 percent in industry. India is rich in natural resources, with coal, iron ore, natural gas, diamonds, crude oil, limestone, and important minerals. High-technology industries lead the way for industrial growth. Tourism is also increasingly vital for income.
India is the cradle of the human race, the birthplace of human speech, the mother of history, the grandmother of legend, and the great grand mother of tradition. Our most valuable and most instructive materials in the history of man are treasured up in India only.” -- Mark Twain
“We owe a lot to the Indians, who taught us how to count, without which no worthwhile scientific discovery could have been made.” -- Albert Einstein "It is, indeed, a remarkable circumstance that when Western civilization discovers Relativity it applies it to the manufacture of atom-bombs, whereas Indian civilization applies it to the development of new states of consciousness." -- Alan Watts (1915-1973) Harvard University Professor “Many of the advances in the sciences that we consider today to have been made in Europe were in fact made in India centuries ago.” -- Grant Duff, British Historian of India
Land and Climate. India, covering 1,269,338 square miles (3,287,590 square kilometers), is roughly one-third the size of the United States. A small section of the Himalaya Mountains lies in the disputed territories of the north. The Ganges Plain below is fertile and densely populated. South of the plain is the Deccan Plateau. About half of the country is under cultivation and a little less than one-fourth is forested. Most of the country experiences three basic seasons: hot summer (March–May), rainy (June–September), and cool winter (October–February). Temperatures rarely go below 40°F (4°C) in January or reach above 100°F (40°C) during the summer. Variations exist according to region and elevation. Floods, droughts, and earthquakes are common. Population. India has the second largest population in the world, behind China, with 1.03 billion residents. The population is growing at 1.6 percent. The Indo-Aryan castes comprise 72 percent of the population, while Dravidians account for 25 percent. Nationally, castes are assigned to one of four general classes by the government. These include forward classes (FC), backward classes (BC), scheduled castes (SC), and scheduled tribes (ST). Classifications are based on social, historical, and economic criteria. Individuals in each classification might be rich or poor, as class does not necessarily define wealth in today's India, but BCs, SCs, and STs can access affirmative action programs that reserve jobs, scholarships, and other benefits for castes that historically were persecuted or disadvantaged. People in the SC and ST groups have come to be collectively known as Dalits (downtrodden). A person's caste is a matter of lineage and cannot change, but Parliament technically has power to reassign a caste to another class. Caste still plays an important role in certain social interactions like marriage. Castes maintain their distinct culture and identity, and they rarely intermarry (though this is changing in cities and over time). Castes are often confused with the Brahmin classification philosophy, Chaturvarna Vyavasta (four-class system), per-haps because the three historically dominant Aryan castes bear the same name as the three highest classes in this system. The ancient Sanskrit scholars believed any society is composed of four classes: Brahmin (intellectuals and priests), Kshatriya (rulers and warriors), Vaishya (farmers and merchants), and Shudra (workers). As they dispersed on the Indian subconti-nent, the Aryans grouped most non-Aryan castes into the Shudra class. The Brahmin philosophy became widespread by 1000 CE because of Aryan dominance in many states, but it does not determine a person's caste. Government. A democratic republic, India is divided into 26 states and six union territories. President K. R. Narayanan, elected in 1997 by Parliament and the state assemblies, has mostly ceremonial duties. Prime Minister Vajpayee is head of government. India's Parliament has two houses: the Rajya Sabha (Council of States) and the Lok Sabha (House of the People). No more than 250 members, elected by the legislatures of each state, serve in the Rajya Sabha. All but 2 of the 545 members of the Lok Sabha are directly elected by the people. All citizens may vote at age 18. Economy. India is primarily an agricultural nation. It is a leading world producer of peanuts, rice, cheese, tobacco, wheat, cotton, milk, sugarcane, and rubber. Other important crops include grains, oilseed, jute, tea, and coffee. Export earnings come mainly from tea, coffee, iron ore, fish products, and manufactured items. Textiles are a principal domestic product and also a profitable export. Roughly 20 percent of the population is employed in services, and 15 percent in industry. India is rich in natural resources, with coal, iron ore, natural gas, diamonds, crude oil, limestone, and important minerals. High-technology industries lead the way for industrial growth. Tourism is also increasingly vital for income.
Economic growth is moderate, and inflation, while low, is rising. Serious gaps between the urban wealthy and the roughly 350 million poor highlight India's stark social contrasts and future challenges. Approximately 35 percent of all people are unable to provide for their basic needs and more than half are subsist farmers.
Indian Culture and Customs
Indian Culture and Customs
Indian Culture and Customs
Indian Culture and Customs
Indian Culture and Customs
Indian Culture and Customs
Indian Culture and Customs
Indian Culture and Customs
Indian Culture and Customs
Indian Culture and Customs
Indian Culture and Customs
Indian Culture and Customs
Indian Culture and Customs
