There is a need to celebrate diversity and coexistence in Indian society. , Photo credit: Getty Images/iStockphoto
Culture is the aggregate of human labour. It is made up of the social, political, religious and literary ethos of human beings. Culture is the building block of human society. It has a very intriguing relationship with the space-time continuum. It is a continuous variable. That’s why it is not rooted but growing. Society is the result of human behavior in different situations and it also defines its culture. As culture is an evolving process, there is a conflict between human conscience and the circumstances of the moment. Therefore, culture can be defined as the result of this struggle. It is the refinement of every aspect of human nature.
The development of Indian society is deeply rooted in its various cultures. Its various cultures served as tributaries to become a vast, time-tested and indivisible entity that we know today as Indian culture or in other words, Indian culture. India, Its core strength lies in its interdependence as it is a multicultural society. From the Himalayas to the Indian Ocean, as our national anthem says, the country presents a carnival of varied social, cultural and geographical diversities. That’s why diversity and coexistence are so important to a culture that is now erroneously portrayed by right-wing groups as a one-sided religious thought process. On the contrary, the cultures of India teach us about Vasudhaiva Kudumbakam (The world is one family). Culture, thus, is the result of reasoned and dialectical interactions between different ideologies and philosophies. But not about some religious fiction.
The Vedas, Upanishads, Ramayana, Mahabharata, Agama Sutras, Dhamma Pada, Tripitaka and Sangam literature have ignited the dreams, stories, myths, histories, fantasies, spiritualities and ideologies of Indian society for many centuries. On the one hand, there is Adi Shankara who taught us the principles of Advaita and on the other, we have Sree Narayana Guru and Chattambiswami who fought against blind faith. This coexistence of harmony and conflict can also be found in our classics and folklore. Tulsidas and Thunchatthu Ramanujan Ezhuthachan, who were scholars of Sanskrit language, composed their masterpieces- Ramcharitmanas And Adhyatmaramayanam Kilipattu In the languages of the people. In this context, I am reminded of the words of the famous Hindi writer Nirmal Verma: “It is in the time of labor and creation that man creates himself. In other words, the nature of its culture lies within the language of its labour.”
We see the different ideological layers presented by Valmiki, Tulsidas and Naresh Mehta to Lord Rama from different perspectives. Moved by the death of a man, Tulsidas started his work. crunch The pitiful cry of the female at the loss of the bird and her mate at the hands of a hunter. Grief and compassion had moved him. Lord Brahma came to Valmiki, urging him to compose the history of Lord Rama. There is a culture that holds knowledge in high esteem and even engages in epistemological study of God himself in his thirst for knowledge.
Indian culture has always taught us to live a luxurious life and celebrate it in different ways. whether it is a mantra from the Brihadaranyaka Upanishad which says, ” Mrityorma Amritam Gamay(From death lead me to immortality) or a prayer Vedas He says, ” Pashyema Sharadah Shatdam, Jeevem Sharadh Shatdam(Give me 100 years of healthy life with all its splendor and bliss). When Lord Krishna says in the Gita, Dehino asmin yatha dehe kaumaram yauvanam jara tatha dehantar prapti dhirasatra na muhyanti(Change is inevitable and one should not fear it), these lines present us a philosophy about life.
In the travelogues of Faxian, Hiuen Tsang, Pliny and Megasthenes, we see our glorious culture from the homes of ancient universities. Through the works of Aryabhata, Bhaskaracharya, Varahamihira, Nagarjuna, Charaka, Sushruta and Vagbhata, we see our culture reflected in philosophy, science and medical practices.
The cultures of India are, in short, about socialism which gives equal importance to man and nature. It teaches us about collectivity, harmony, welfare of all, tolerance, co-existence and last but not the least, love.
I would like to end with a mantra from the Shvetashvatara Upanishad which says, tejasvinavadhidamastu(May our study illuminate us) and with a Kabir Doha , Guru Govind two standing uncles applied, Balihari Guru tell your Govind diyas(When the Guru and the Lord are standing in front of me, whose feet do I bow first? I will touch the feet of my Guru first because it is He who taught me about the Lord). So let’s be skeptical about everything, even God, in a good way.
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