🌍INDIA
INTRODUCTION:
India is part of the continent of Asia. Most of India forms a peninsula, which means it is surrounded by water on three sides. The world's highest mountain range, the Himalaya, rises in the north. The southeast is bordered by the Bay of Bengal, and the southwest is bordered by the Arabian Sea.
India's terrain varies widely, from the Thar Desert in the west to jungles in the northeast. A fertile area called the Ganges Plain covers much of northern India. This formation was created from soil that was deposited by rivers running from the Himalaya. In some places, this layer of silt is over 25,000 feet (7,620 meters) deep.
HISTORY OF INDIA:
Origins of the Indus Valley Civilization:
The earliest evidence of humans in South Asia dates back two million years. Beginning about 30,000 years ago, stone age hunters and gatherers inhabited sites in the area. Between 8000 and 6500 B.C.E., there was a gradual shift from dependence on wild resources to domestic plants and animals.
.
During the period between 5000 and 2000 B.C.E., highly organized urban settlements spread throughout northern regions (present-day Pakistan and north India). Trade and communication networks linked these settlements to one another and to other distant ancient cultures.
Indus Valley Civilization and the Rise of Indo-Aryan Culture:
Around 2600 B.C.E., regional cultures were united into a culturally integrated network in the Indus Valley region. Settlements in this civilization extended over a 650,000 square kilometer region. The peoples of the region shared several cultural characteristics, including planned urban developments, the use of a still undeciphered script, standardized weights, and craft technologies
The Indus Valley cultural system declined in the early centuries of the second millennium B.C.E., probably due to environmental changes in the region. Around 1500, Indo-Aryan culture began to dominate the region. Indo-Aryan culture is associated with Sanskrit, a language related to Greek, Latin, and Avastin (the ancient language of Persia) --all are derivatives of a common mother language that is no longer extant (named by linguists as proto-Indo European). The Veda--texts associated with the complex ritual system of the Indo-Aryans--were composed in this period. These texts formed one important basis for the religion we now call "Hinduism."
The Early and Classical Periods:
At first largely nomadic, Indo Aryan culture became increasingly urbanized and settled. New religious orientations arose, and some of the notions associated with classical Hinduism and the other major religions of the period--such as samsara, or the notion of rebirth--developed. Buddhism and Jainism were founded in the middle of the last millennium B.C.E., sharing some of the basic assumptions of developing Hindu thought but critical of the hierarchical and ritual system associated with the Vedic system. Centralized power was first established on a broad scale under the Nanda dynasty in Magadha, and then expanded under the Maurya's from ca. 323-184 B.C.E.
In the first century C.E., the Kushans, a group of nomadic warriors from central Asia, conquered the Gandharan region of northern India, Pakistan, and Afghanistan. Smaller regional centers across the North, under Kushana control in the early centuries of the first millennium, were brought together under Gupta control in the fourth century. The Gupta period was characterized by great flourishing of art and literature and is known as the "classical" period of Indian art and literature.
The "Medieval" Period:
This period was characterized by the growth of strong regional centers and lack of one overarching political authority in the subcontinent. Sind in present-day Pakistan was integrated into a Muslim polity to the west; invasions by Turkic and Central Asian rulers commenced at the beginning of the second millennium C.E. Centralized powers were established, based at Delhi; independent regional kingdoms, however, continued. By the time Turkish invaders had established their power over the north as sultans, Rajput rulers in present-day Rajasthan and Punjab had established powerful small kingdoms. Regional kingdoms also flourished in the south.
The Mughals:
In 1526, the Mughal empire was founded by Babur, a Turkish/Central Asian chieftain whose ancestors included Chingiz Khan an Timur (known in the West as Tamerlane). His son Humayun was driven from India in 1540 and took refuge in the court of Shah Tahmasp in Iran. Mughal rule was reestablished, and under Akbar expanded across the north. Akbar moved against Rajput rulers, who were allowed to retain control over their land in exchange for their loyalty. The Rajput hill-states of the Punjab hills (now Himachal Pradesh) were brought under Mughal influence under the rule of Jahangir, Akbar's son.
British Rule:
Although Europeans were present in South Asia as traders from the beginning of the seventeenth century, it was not until the middle of the eighteenth century that the British established rule in the region. As Mughal control waned in the eighteenth century, British power expanded. After the Battle of Plassey in 1757, the British were ceded control of the province of Bengal. By 1857, the time of the First War of Indian Independence (or, as it was known to the British at the time, the "Mutiny"), the British were poised to take control from Mughal hands permanently. Nearly two-fifths of the area, however, was left in the hands of quasi-independent rulers, who nonetheless were forced to contend with British power at the center.
The Modern Nation-States of India, Pakistan, Bangladesh, and Nepal:
In 1947, the independent nations of Pakistan (East and West) and India were formed out of the British empire in India; Nepal was never integrated into this empire. The partition of the subcontinent into separate nation-states is accompanied by tremendous violence. In 1971, East and West Pakistan divided into Pakistan and Bangladesh. Although relations among these nation-states are often tense, they share many cultural, as well as historical, ties. South Asians in Europe, the Americas, Africa, and other parts of Asia form a dynamic diaspora corporation.
CULTURE OF INDIA:
India’s culture is among the world’s oldest; civilization in India began about 4,500 years ago. Many sources describe it as “Sa Prathama Sanskriti Vishva Vara” — the first and the supreme culture in the world, according to the All-World Gayatri Parivar (AWGP) organization.
Western societies did not always see the culture of India very favorably, according to Christina De Rossi, an anthropologist at Barnet and Southgate College in London. Early anthropologists once considered culture as an evolutionary process, and “every aspect of human development was seen as driven by evolution,” she told Live Science. “In this view, societies outside of Europe or North America, or societies that did not follow the European or Western way of life, were considered primitive and culturally inferior. Essentially this included all the colonized countries and people, such as African countries, India, and the Far East.”
However, Indians made significant advances in architecture (Taj Mahal), mathematics (the invention of zero) and medicine (Ayurveda). Today, India is a very diverse country, with more than 1.2 billion people, according to the CIA World Factbook, making it the second most populous nation after China. Different regions have their own distinct cultures. Language, religion, food and the arts are just some of the various aspects of Indian culture.
Language:
India has 28 states and seven territories, according to the World Health Organization. There is no official language in India, according to a Gujarat High Court ruling in 2010, though Hindi is the official language of the government. The Constitution of India officially recognizes 23 official languages.
Many people living in India write in Devanagari script. In fact, it is a misconception that the majority of people in India speak Hindi. Though many people speak Hindi in India, 59 percent of India residents speak something other than Hindi, according to The Times of India. Bengali, Telugu, Marathi, Tamil and Urdu are some other languages spoken in the country.
Sanskrit, an ancient Indo-European language usually referred to in action movies, came from Northern India. How the language started has been a point of argument amongst linguists. It shares many similarities with English, French, Farsi and Russian languages. New DNA research in 2017 found that an Aryan invasion may have introduced the beginnings of Sanskrit. “People have been debating the arrival of the Indo-European languages in India for hundreds of years,” said study co-author Martin Richards, an archaeogenetics at the University of Huddersfield in England. “There’s been a very long-running debate about whether the Indo-European languages were brought from migrations from outside, which is what most linguists would accept, or if they evolved indigenously.” [Aryan Invasion May Have Transformed India’s Bronze-Age Population]
Religion:
India is identified as the birthplace of Hinduism and Buddhism, the third and fourth largest religions. About 84 percent of the population identifies as Hindu, according to the “Handbook of Research on Development and Religion,” edited by Matthew Clarke (Edward Elgar Publishing, 2013). There are many variations of Hinduism, and four predominant sects — Shaiva, Vaishnava, Shateya and Smarta.
About 13 percent of Indians are Muslim, making it one of the largest Islamic nations in the world. Christians and Sikhs make up a small percentage of the population, and there are even fewer Buddhists and Jains, according to the “Handbook.”
The CIA cited similar figures. According to its World Factbook, around 80 percent of the population is Hindu, 14.2 percent is Muslim, 2.3 percent is Christian, 1.7 percent is Sikh and 2 percent is unspecified.
Food:
When the Moghul Empire invaded during the sixteenth century, they left a significant mark on the Indian cuisine, according to Texas A&M University. Indian cuisine is also influenced by many other countries. It is known for its large assortment of dishes and its liberal use of herbs and spices. Cooking styles vary from region to region.
Wheat, Basmati rice and pulses with chana (Bengal gram) are important staples of the Indian diet. The food is rich with curries and spices, including ginger, coriander, cardamom, turmeric, dried hot peppers, and cinnamon, among others. Chutneys — thick condiments and spreads made from assorted fruits and vegetables such as tamarind and tomatoes and mint, cilantro and other herbs — are used generously in Indian cooking.
Many Hindus are vegetarian, but lamb and chicken are common in main dishes for non-vegetarians. The Guardian reports that between 20 percent and 40 percent of India’s population is vegetarian.
Much of Indian food is eaten with fingers or bread used as utensils. There is a wide array of breads served with meals, including naan, a leavened, oven-baked flatbread; and bhatoora, a fried, fluffy flatbread common in North India and eaten with chickpea curry.
Architecture and art:
The most well-known example of Indian architecture is the Taj Mahal, built by Mughal emperor Shah Jahan to honor his third wife, Mumtaz Mahal. It combines elements from Islamic, Persian, Ottoman Turkish and Indian architectural styles. India also has many ancient temples.
India is well known for its film industry, which is often referred to as Bollywood. The country’s movie history began in 1896 when the Lumière brothers demonstrated the art of cinema in Mumbai, according to the Golden Globes. Today, the films are known for their elaborate singing and dancing.
Indian dance, music and theater traditions span back more than 2,000 years, according to Nilima Bhadbhade, author of “Contract Law in India” (Kluwer Law International, 2010). The major classical dance traditions — Bharata Natyam, Kathak, Odissi, Manipuri, Kuchipudi, Mohiniattam and Kathakali — draw on themes from mythology and literature and have rigid presentation rules.
A study published in April 2016 in the Journal of Indian Ocean Archaeology found that some Indian horns have many similarities with horns made in Ireland. This research may suggest that the two countries may have exchanged ideas and techniques in making musical instruments during the Bronze Age. “Some horns are frankly shockingly similar to the point where it is like witnessing time travel,” study author Billy Ó Fogle, an archaeologist and doctoral student at the Australian National University in Canberra, told Live Science. “If I were to find one of these modern Indian instruments in an Irish archaeological excavation and I didn’t know what I was looking at, I would likely assume it was a Late Bronze Age Irish artifact.” [Surprising Echo of Ancient Irish Horns in Indian Instruments]
Clothing:
Indian clothing is closely identified with the colorful silk saris worn by many of the country’s women. A traditional piece of clothing for men is the dhoti, an unstitched piece of cloth that is tied around the waist and legs. Men also wear a kurta, a loose shirt that is worn about knee-length. For special occasions, men wear a sherwani or achkan, which is a long coat that with a collar having no lapel. It is buttoned up to the collar and down to the knees. A shorter version of a sherwani is called a Nehru jacket. It is named after Jawaharlal Nehru, India’s prime minister from 1947 to 1964, but Nehru never wore a Nehru jacket. He preferred the achkan, according to Tehilla, an Indian newspaper. The Nehru jacket was primarily marketed to Westerners.
Literature:
India has many great epics dating back many centuries in the form of stories, poems, plays and self-help guides. The two most famous Hindu epics are the Ramayana and Mahabharata, which both contain thrilling tales of gods and demons, love and war and chariots and kidnappings. These stories have been told and retold for thousands of years and play a huge part in Indian culture.
The Ramayana tells the story of Rama, prince of the legendary kingdom of Kosala, and follows his fourteen-year exile to the forest urged by his father King Dasharatha. The Mahabharata is the longest poem that has been written in Sanskrit. Both epics tell of good triumphing over evil and show the values of devotion, loyalty, sacrifice and truth
FAMOUS PERSONALITIES:
For many among us, the term “Famous personalities of India” brings to mind renowned figures like Mahatma Gandhi and Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel. While these two luminaries are monuments to the country’s independence struggle, there are a great many other Indians who have made tremendous contributions to the fields of politics, culture, entertainment, literature and much more.
.
The Indian independence movement was spearheaded by Mahatma Gandhi. He is regarded by many as one of history’s greatest leaders and was instrumental in guiding India toward freedom from British domination.
The Dalit Buddhist Movement was inspired by Dr. B. R. Ambedkar, an Indian jurist, economist, politician, and social reformer who fought against societal injustice against Untouchables (Dalits) in India. Additionally, people call him Babasaheb. Ambedkar was the chief architect of the Indian Constitution and the country’s first minister of law after independence.
Jawaharlal Nehru
The first Prime Minister of India, Jawaharlal Nehru, was a remarkable leader who was instrumental in the Independence cause. He was also a superb writer and public speaker. Nehru was not only a leader; he also made contributions in the spheres of politics and education.
CONCLUSION:
India the country of languages and tradition.
Flourished with its ever-withstanding heritage and everlasting resources is developing in a faster phase for the new generation of the world.
Proud to be an Indian.
Bharath Matha Ke jai!!!
TEAM TIGER
TEAM MEMBERS:
1.SIVARAM VARMA.M
2.RAVIKUMAR.M
3.LOGESHKUMAR.R
Let's Begin !
ReplyDelete