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Culture & Heritage India

People

India is probably the only country with the largest and most diverse mixture of races. All the five major racial types - Australoid, Mongoloid, Europoid, Caucasian and Negroid - find representation among the people of India.


History
The history of India is shrouded in antiquity. The country has been thought of as a nation of philosophers with a well-developed and even idyllic society. Excavations of sites belonging to the Harappan era show that the people lived in brick houses in towns with excellent drainage. One of the oldest scriptures in the world is the four-volume Vedas that many regard as the repository of national thoughts that anticipated some of the modern scientific discoveries. Despite formidable barriers in the form of the mighty Himalayas and oceans, India also received a succession of foreigners, many of them carrying swords and guns. But nearly all of them stayed on. Out of these waves of immigration has emerged the composite culture of India and made it a land of unity in diversity. India became a land of assimilation and learning, a land of change and continuity. The Aryans were among the first to arrive in India which was inhabited by the Dravidians. Others who came here included Greeks, Persians, Mughals and even British, Portugese and French. Over the years there have been many major ruling dynasties like the Shakas, the Kushans, the Maurayas and Guptas. Nearly every major religion in the world is represented in India which is also the land of the Lord Buddha, Lord Mahavira and Guru Nanak Dev, the founders of Buddhism, Jainism and Sikhism.

National Animal
The large Asiatic carnivorous feline quadruped, Panthera tigris, maneless, of tawny yellow colour with blackish transerve stripes and white belly, proverbial for its power and its magnificence is the national animal of India. There are very few tigers left in the world today. A decade ago the tiger population in India had dwindled to a few hundreds.

National Tree
Bengalensis, whose branches root themselves like new trees over a large area The roots then give rise to more trunks an branches. Because of this characteristic and its longevity, this tree is considered immortal and is an integral pa of the myths and legends of India.

Fairs & Festivals in India
India is a rich land which has attracted invaders from Central Europe and Asia who left their imprint on this land, its religions and its lifestyles over 40 centuries. The Greeks , under Al-exander the great, travelled as far down as the lower Indus River which they mis pronounced as the "Hindu River" Consequently, all the various in vaders, with their conflicting faiths, who inhabited the land of the Indus River were called Hindus and their land, Hindustan. It was shortened to "HIND", then "IND" and finally INDIA.
Festivals in India are determined by the Solar & Lunar positions & they may fall in a different month as specified here. Kindly contact our members for exact date/ month of festivals/ fairs in India.

» January
Common Festivals: Makar Sankranti, Lohri, Pongal, Thai Pusam, Float Festival, National Kite Festival, Kerela Village Fair, Bikaner Festival, Pattadakal Dance Festival, Id-ul-Fittr, Vasant Panchami

» February
Common Festivals: Mahashivratri, Goa Carnival, Desert Festival, Nagaur Fair, International Yoga Week, Elephant Festival, Deccan Festival, Taj Mahotsav, Surajkund Crafts Mela, Chapchar Kut, Islands Tourism Festival

» March
Common Festivals: Holi, Gangaur, Jamshed-e-Navroz, Ramnavami, id-ul-Zuha, Mahavir Jayanti, Khajuraho Dance Festival, Elephant Festival, Hoysala Mahotsava, Ellora Festival.

» April
Common Festivals: Good Friday, Easter, Baisakhi, Gudi Padva or Ugadi, Pooram, Maharram, Buddha Purnima, Mewar

» May
Common Festivals: Urs

» June
Common Festivals: Ganga Dussehra, Hemis Festival,

» July
Common Festivals: Rathyatra, Guru Purnima

» August
Common Festivals: Janmashtami, Onam, Nag Panchami, Rakshabandhan, Ganesh Chaturthi

» September
Common Festivals: Tarnetar Mela

» October
Common Festivals: Navratri, Durga Puja, Dussehra, Marwar Festival

» November
Common Festivals: Sharad Purnima, Diwali, Guu Purab, Ka Pomblang Nongrem, Sonepur Fair, Pushkar Fair, Hampi Festival

» December
Common Festivals: Christmas, Konark Dance Festival

Physical Features
India, with an area of 3.3 million sq. km, is a subcontinent. The peninsula is separated from mainland Asia by the Himalayas. The country lies between 8° 4' and 37° 6' north of the Equator and is surrounded by the Bay of Bengal in the east, the Arabian Sea in the west and the Indian Ocean to the south. The Himalayas form the highest mountain range in the world, extending 2,500 km over northern India. Bounded by the Indus river in the west and the Brahmaputra in the east, the three parallel ranges, the Himadri, Himachal and Shivaliks have deep canyons gorged by the rivers flowing into the Gangetic plain.

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