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Customs & Traditions

Customs & Traditions

Indian Culture

Indian Culture is not necessarily restricted to art, drama, music, theatre and dance but covers Indian lifestyle, literature, history, natural phenomena etc. LIFESTYLE India's rich sartorial past rustled with pure silk, crisp cotton, soft wool, elegantly folded and draped. Men and women wore stunning jewellery of exquisite design. Traditional Indian cosmetics use extensive natural herbs, fruits, leaves, flowers and kitchen ingredients. Jewellery in India is worn by almost all. Payal or Nupur for feet, small and large earrings, bangles for hands and necklace for the neck are the most common ornaments.

Literature

Of the 5000 extant languages and dialects in the world, 845 are Indian. Twenty-two officially recognized languages make Indian literature an unwieldy segment to document. The main language spoken in India is Hindi in the north and central India and Dravidian languages in south India. Urdu is spoken in the U.P. and Hyderabad regions. In the east end of the Ganges Bengali is spoken. Gujrati and Marathi are also spoken in Gujrat and Maharashtra respectively. English is widely spoken in towns and cities.

History

The medieval and modern period of Indian history are well documented by the Mughals and the British. The re-constructing the long span of 5000 years, through coins, edicts and assorted relics of the turbulent past, is difficult preposition.

Science

By about 500 BC Indian texts illustrated the calculation of the calendar, although the system itself almost certainly goes back to the eighth or ninth century BC. The year was divided into 27 nakshatras (stars), or fortnights, years being calculated on a mixture of lunar and solar counting.

Views about the Universe

Early Indian views of the universe were based on the square and the cube. However, about 200 BC the Jains transformed the view of the universe based on squares by replacing the idea of square orbits with that of the circle. The earth was shown as a circular disc, with Mount Meru rising from its centre and the Pole Star directly above it.

Technology

The only copy of Kautiliya's treatise on government dates from about 100 BC. It describes the weapons technology of catapults, incendiary missiles and the use of elephants, but it is also evident that gunpowder was unknown.

Mathematics

Conceptions of the universe and the mathematical and geometrical ideas that accompanied them were comparatively advanced in South Asia by the time of the Mauryan Empire and were put to use in the rules developed for building temple altars. Indians were using the concept of zero and decimal points in the Gupta period. Music and Dance Everything traditional in the realm of performing arts goes back to Bharata's Natya Shastra. Dance, music, theatre are enduring part of the Indian cultural milieu.

Music

Indian music can trace its origins to the metrical hymns and chants of the Vedas, in which the production of sound according to strict rules was understood to be vital to the continuing order of the Universe. Hindustani music probably originated in the Delhi Sultanate during the 13th century, when the most widely known of North Indian musical instruments, the sitar, was believed to have been invented.

Carnatic (Karnatik) music

Contemporary South Indian music is traced back to Tyagaraja (1759-1847), Svami Shastri (1763-1827) and Dikshitar (1775-1835), three musicians who lived and worked in Thanjavur. They are still referred to as 'the Trinity'. Their music placed more emphasis on extended compositions than Hindustani music.

Music Festivals

Many cities hold annual festivals, particularly during winter months. Some important ones are January: Sangeet Natak Akademi's Festival, New Delhi; Tyagaraja Festival, Tiruvayyaru, near Thanjavur. February: ITC Sangeet Sammelan, New Delhi. March: Shankar Lal Festival, New Delhi. August: Vishnu Digambar Festival, New Delhi. September. Bhatkhande Festival, Lucknow. October: Shanmukhanada, Mumbai. November: Sur-Singar Festival, Mumbai. December: Tansen Festival, Gwalior; Music Academy and Music and Dance Festival, Chennai.

Dance

The rules for classical dance were laid down in the Natya Shastra in the second century BC, which is still one of the bases for modern dance forms. The most common sources for Indian dance are the epics, but there are three essential aspects of the dance itself, Nrithya (pure dance), Nrithya (emotional expression) and Natya (drama). India is also rich in folk dance traditions, which are widely performed during festivals.

Food

The food of India, with its special techniques and its unparallel range of spices is celebrated as much for its vast repertoire of splendid meat dishes as for its versatile vegetarian cuisine. Fair and Festivals Enriched by so many cultural and ethnic groups, India's festival calendar is full of events every month to mark the seasons in historical remembrance or simply in thanksgiving

Customs & Traditions

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