Question

essay on cultural heritage of india

Answer 1

India has a rich cultural tradition. There is a harmonious blend of art, religion and philosophy in the Indian culture. They are so beautifully interwoven in the fabric of Indian way of life and thought that they are inseparable.

Indian culture is actually an outcome of continuous synthesis and has absorbed many external influences in the course of long journey of history. The first stirring of civilisation occurred amongst the people of India some 4,000 years before the birth of Christ.

From those ancient times till recent past, we were exposed to unbroken sequence of civilisations. It is only the dynamism and the flexibility of Indian culture that enabled it to survive these foreign invasions and retain its originality and traditional character even after imbibing the best of these external influences.

Indian people, by nature tolerant and fatalists, did not at any time ridicule the traditions of foreign civilisations.

On the other hand, Indian mind has assimilated much of the thinking of the other cultures, thus enriching it and thereby becoming unique in its character. Today, it is the uniqueness which attracts the Western societies to the Indian culture. Disillusioned with their materialistic lives, they turn to India for solace and peace.

The wisdom of our ancient epics like the Ramayana and the Mahabharata serves as a beacon light to the seekers of spiritual bliss.

In the Bhagavad Gita, Lord Krishna tells how every human being can come to live the subtle philosophical principles laid down in our scriptures in the actual day-to-day life. Lord Buddha taught us to follow the ‘Middle Path’ by exercising control over the passions. One has to admit that

Indian sages and philosophers had started pondering on great issues more than 200 years ago which have been raised in the West only in the last century.

Indian art was influenced by the religious beliefs and the philosophical trends of the times. The temples of the south, the caves of Ajanta, Ellora and Khajuraho are living testimony to the artistic excellence achieved by the Indian artists, sculptors and architects in those gone by days. Foreign tourists experience a spiritual reawakening on visiting these temples.

Indian music is remarkable because of the continuity in its growth. Long before the Christian era, it had developed not only definite laws of theory and practice, but even comprehensive theories of appreciation.

Like Indian dance, it is built on the concepts of ragas and fast. Each raga is regarded as appropriate to certain emotions a certain mood suitable for certain time of the day or night.

There are two major schools of classical music—the Hindustani and the Karnataka. Both derive their rules from the classical treatises Natya Shastra of Bharata and Sangeet Ratnakarby Sarangdeva. There are about 250 ragas commonly used in north as well as south. Indian music has had great impact on the Western music. Great maestros like Pandit Ravi Shankar, Zakir Hussain, etc. have made valuable contribution towards popularising and promoting Indian music abroad.

The background of Indian dance is infinitely rich and varied, as varied as the land itself, yet with the same underlying unity which binds the people of the country together.

The dances of India, whether folk or classical, are an eloquent expression of an ancient civilisation, whose timeless wisdom continues to evoke the passionate search of man for conscious identity with God. Folk and tribal dances of India are of innumerable types.

But they all express its people’s natural gaiety, sense of abandon and rhythm. The origin of classical dances is attributed to the Hindu temples. It was in the temples that they were first conceived and nourished. It was also in the temples that they attained their full stature. While it is true that dances were also performed in courts, and on festive occasions, etc. yet the impulse that gave them birth was religious.

There are four major systems of classical dances in India— Bharat Natyam, Kathak, Kathakali and Manipuri. Other prominent dances are Kuchipudi of Andhra, Odissi of Orissa and Mohiniattam of Kerala. As in all Indian performing arts, so in dance the concept of rasa holds the central place.

Answer 2

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India has a rich cultural tradition. There is a harmonious blend of art, religion and philosophy in the Indian culture. They are so beautifully interwoven in the fabric of Indian way of life and thought that they are inseparable.

Indian culture is actually an outcome of continuous synthesis and has absorbed many external influences in the course of long journey of history. The first stirring of civilisation occurred amongst the people of India some 4,000 years before the birth of Christ.

From those ancient times till recent past, we were exposed to unbroken sequence of civilisations. It is only the dynamism and the flexibility of Indian culture that enabled it to survive these foreign invasions and retain its originality and traditional character even after imbibing the best of these external influences.

Indian people, by nature tolerant and fatalists, did not at any time ridicule the traditions of foreign civilisations.

On the other hand, Indian mind has assimilated much of the thinking of the other cultures, thus enriching it and thereby becoming unique in its character. Today, it is the uniqueness which attracts the Western societies to the Indian culture. Disillusioned with their materialistic lives, they turn to India for solace and peace.

The wisdom of our ancient epics like the Ramayana and the Mahabharata serves as a beacon light to the seekers of spiritual bliss.

In the Bhagavad Gita, Lord Krishna tells how every human being can come to live the subtle philosophical principles laid down in our scriptures in the actual day-to-day life. Lord Buddha taught us to follow the ‘Middle Path’ by exercising control over the passions. One has to admit that

Indian sages and philosophers had started pondering on great issues more than 200 years ago which have been raised in the West only in the last century.

Indian art was influenced by the religious beliefs and the philosophical trends of the times. The temples of the south, the caves of Ajanta, Ellora and Khajuraho are living testimony to the artistic excellence achieved by the Indian artists, sculptors and architects in those gone by days. Foreign tourists experience a spiritual reawakening on visiting these temples.

Indian music is remarkable because of the continuity in its growth. Long before the Christian era, it had developed not only definite laws of theory and practice, but even comprehensive theories of appreciation.

Like Indian dance, it is built on the concepts of ragas and fast. Each raga is regarded as appropriate to certain emotions a certain mood suitable for certain time of the day or night.

There are two major schools of classical music—the Hindustani and the Karnataka. Both derive their rules from the classical treatises Natya Shastra of Bharata and Sangeet Ratnakarby Sarangdeva. There are about 250 ragas commonly used in north as well as south. Indian music has had great impact on the Western music. Great maestros like Pandit Ravi Shankar, Zakir Hussain, etc. have made valuable contribution towards popularising and promoting Indian music abroad.

The background of Indian dance is infinitely rich and varied, as varied as the land itself, yet with the same underlying unity which binds the people of the country together.

The dances of India, whether folk or classical, are an eloquent expression of an ancient civilisation, whose timeless wisdom continues to evoke the passionate search of man for conscious identity with God. Folk and tribal dances of India are of innumerable types.

But they all express its people’s natural gaiety, sense of abandon and