Why do we...


Book Description

Indian culture is admired and respected all over the world for its depth. This book features in simple terms, the various aspects of this rich spiritual culture.




Indian Culture and India's Future


Book Description

Can Indian civilization be compared to a thousand-branched tree? What have been its outstanding achievements and its impact on the world? These are some of the questions this book asks. But it also deals with issues confronting more and more Indians caught in an identity crisis: What does it mean to be Indian? What is specific to the worldview developed by Indian culture? How has it dialogued with other cultures? Is it built on durable foundations, or is it little more than colourful religiosity and quaint but outdated customs? And what are the meaning and application of secularism and tolerance in the Indian context? The French-born author, who has been living in India for 33 years, argues that Indian culture is not some exotic relic of the past, but a dynamic force that still has a role to play in defining India's identity and cohesion, and in proposing solutions to today's global challenges. Written in a crisp and engaging style, this thought-provoking volume challenges received ideas on India's culture and invites us to think afresh. Can Indian civilization be compared to a thousand-branched tree? What have been its outstanding achievements and its impact on the world? These are some of the questions this book asks. But it also deals with issues confronting more and more Indians caught in an identity crisis: What does it mean to be Indian? What is specific to the worldview developed by Indian culture? How has it dialogued with other cultures? Is it built on durable foundations, or is it little more than colourful religiosity and quaint but outdated customs? And what are the meaning and application of secularism and tolerance in the Indian context? The French-born author, who has been living in India for 33 years, argues that Indian culture is not some exotic relic of the past, but a dynamic force that still has a role to play in defining India's identity and cohesion, and in proposing solutions to today's global challenges. Written in a crisp and engaging style, this thought-provoking volume challenges received ideas on India's culture and invites us to think afresh. -- Provided by publisher.




Indian Culture


Book Description

The author, a historian of repute, confronts important issues of Indian history in this classic work. He raises such questions as “Was there an Aryan Invasion of India in the past?”, “Is the caste system a bane or a boon?”, “Did Indian women enjoy equal rights in ancient times?”, “Was Democracy an alien concept to Vedic Indians?”, “Why Buddhism became extinct in the country of its origin?”, “What is India’s lasting contribution to the field of Science, Mathematics, Astronomy, Medicine, Chemistry, Metallurgy, etc.?”, “Was Indian Culture greatly impacted by foreign religions?”, “How did India influence its neighbouring Eastern and Western countries?”, “Is Sanskrit only an off-shoot of the Indo-European Languages Group?”, “What was the scale of the social, economic and political implosion detonated by two centuries of British Colonial Rule?”. The author has answered the above vexing questions based on an intensive study of Archaeology, Epigraphy, Numismatics, original records in different languages and the travelogues of foreign visitors.(Translator’s Note).




Daily Life in Indian Culture


Book Description

Gain insights into Indian Way-of-Life and Enjoy Your Travel to India This book helps you overcome the Indian cultural barriers and enjoy your India Travel. You get the best experience of Indian culture, through the character of John. This story of John makes you feel, relate, understand, experience the way Indians live. If you are traveling to India, this book will help you a lot in getting along with Indians and enjoying India. It takes you through the real-life situations of India. Everything that you need to know to understand the customs, traditions and rituals of India is presented in this book. The various aspects of Indian Culture are explained in a rational & experiential way. This book vividly presents the situations and scenarios that John has faced. "John returns to America, after six months of stay in India, as a positively transformed person. His relationship with his live-in girlfriend changes for better. He recounts all that he experienced during his stay in India and the insights he got." This book goes beyond the typical dos & don'ts. It provides an insight into the practicality of rituals; and into the typical life philosophy of Indians - including the way Indians look at life and happiness. It helps you understand the psyche of Indians and provides explanation for all that behavior that is unique to Indians such as: * The special ways of greeting each other * The restrictions on physical touch between the two genders * The superstitious beliefs about common phenomenon such as sneezing * The bizarre behavior of praying to a plant such as 'Tulasi' & treating animals as Gods e,g Cows * The eating habits * The restrictions on public display of affection (PDA) * Leaving footwear out before entering important places * The complex & primeval rituals performed at different life events, including at the time of death * The invasion of privacy * The disregard for Queue system * Sharing of food, and embarrassing upmanship to pay bills * The close family ties * The concept of arranged marriage * Existence of innumerable Gods and ever growing list of them * The Caste system and Reservations * The scriptures & the Hindu philosophical concept of Karma.....much more Take this virtual tour with John and Enjoy India!




Indian Culture and Work Organisations in Transition


Book Description

This book analyses key theoretical influences on Indian culture in a business context. It shows the interactions between indigenous culture and workplace ethics which is increasingly being populated by multinational corporations. It discusses how the Indian workplace has evolved over time as well as retained some managerial practices dating back to the classical traditions of ancient India. It further demonstrates the changes brought about by globalisation, especially through information technology and business process outsourcing industries. This volume will be useful to the scholars and researchers of business and management studies, cultural studies, Asian studies as well as human resource (HR) professionals.




Understanding Indian Culture and Bridging the Communication Gap


Book Description

This is a practical book on Indians psychology, their culture and how to bridge the communication gap between India and the West. It is based on real life experiences and will help you to become more effective while doing business with Indians. About the author: Mr Subodh Gupta born and brought up in India, has worked for about 12 years as an Entrepreneur, an Engineer, a guest professor to various MBA schools, a training consultant for The Times of India Group in India and about 3 years in the UK as a freelance trainer and consultant.




The Spirit and the Flesh


Book Description

Winner of the: Gay Book of the Year Award, American Library Association; Ruth Benedict Award, Society of Lesbian and Gay Anthropologists; Award for Outstanding Scholarship, World Congress for Sexology Author’s note: Shortly after the second revised edition this book was published in 1992, the term "Two-Spirit Person" became more popular among native people than the older anthropological term "berdache." When I learned of this new term, I began strongly supporting the use of this newer term. I believe that people should be able to call themselves whatever they wish, and scholars should respect and acknowledge their change of terminology. I went on record early on in convincing other anthropologists to shift away from use of the word berdache and in favor of using Two-Spirit. Nevertheless, because this book continues to be sold with the use of berdache, many people have assumed that I am resisting the newer term. Nothing could be further from the truth. Unless continued sales of this book will justify the publication of a third revised edition in the future, it is not possible to rewrite what is already printed, Therefore, I urge readers of this book, as well as activists who are working to gain more respect for gender variance, mentally to substitute the term "Two-Spirit" in the place of "berdache" when reading this text. -- Walter L. Williams, Los Angeles, 2006




The Cambridge Companion to Modern Indian Culture


Book Description

A wide-ranging and truly interdisciplinary guide to understanding the relationship between India's colonial past and globalized present.




Everything You Know about Indians is Wrong


Book Description

In this sweeping work of memoir and commentary, leading cultural critic Paul Chaat Smith illustrates with dry wit and brutal honesty the contradictions of life in "the Indian business." Raised in suburban Maryland and Oklahoma, Smith dove head first into the political radicalism of the 1970s, working with the American Indian Movement until it dissolved into dysfunction and infighting. Afterward he lived in New York, the city of choice for political exiles, and eventually arrived in Washington, D.C., at the newly minted National Museum of the American Indian ("a bad idea whose time has come") as a curator. In his journey from fighting activist to federal employee, Smith tells us he has discovered at least two things: there is no one true representation of the American Indian experience, and even the best of intentions sometimes ends in catastrophe. Everything You Know about Indians Is Wrong is a highly entertaining and, at times, searing critique of the deeply disputed role of American Indians in the United States. In "A Place Called Irony," Smith whizzes through his early life, showing us the ironic pop culture signposts that marked this Native American's coming of age in suburbia: "We would order Chinese food and slap a favorite video into the machine--the Grammy Awards or a Reagan press conference--and argue about Cyndi Lauper or who should coach the Knicks." In "Lost in Translation," Smith explores why American Indians are so often misunderstood and misrepresented in today's media: "We're lousy television." In "Every Picture Tells a Story," Smith remembers his Comanche grandfather as he muses on the images of American Indians as "a half-remembered presence, both comforting and dangerous, lurking just below the surface." Smith walks this tightrope between comforting and dangerous, offering unrepentant skepticism and, ultimately, empathy. "This book is called Everything You Know about Indians Is Wrong, but it's a book title, folks, not to be taken literally. Of course I don't mean everything, just most things. And 'you' really means we, as in all of us."




Channel Kindness: Stories of Kindness and Community


Book Description

A New York Times Bestseller For Lady Gaga, kindness is the driving force behind everything she says and does. The quiet power of kindness can change the way we view one another, our communities, and even ourselves. She embodies this mission, and through her work, brings more kindness into our world every single day. Lady Gaga has always believed in the importance of being yourself, being kind to yourself, and being kind to others, no matter who they are or where they come from. With that sentiment in mind, she and her mother, Cynthia Germanotta, founded Born This Way Foundation, a nonprofit organization dedicated to making the world a kinder and braver place. Through the years, they've collected stories of kindness, bravery and resilience from young people all over the world, proving that kindness truly is the universal language. And now, we invite you to read these stories and follow along as each and every young author finds their voice just as Lady Gaga has found hers. Within these pages, you’ll meet young changemakers who found their inner strength, who prevailed in the face of bullies, who started their own social movements, who decided to break through the mental health stigma and share how they felt, who created safe spaces for LGBTQ+ youth, and who have embraced kindness with every fiber of their being by helping others without the expectation of anything in return. In one story, you’ll read about a young person with an autoimmune disease, who after being bullied at school, learned how to practice self-love and started an organization with the mission of educating others about the importance of self-love, too; and in another story, you’ll meet a young person who decided to start a movement to help eliminate the stigma surrounding mental health and encouraged others to talk about their feelings openly and honestly, a reminder that kindness and mental wellness go hand in hand. Not only were we moved by these individual acts of kindness, but we were also touched by the many stories of organizations, neighborhoods, and entire communities that fully dedicated themselves to helping those in need and found new, innovative ways to make our world a kinder and braver place. Individually and collectively, these stories prove that kindness not only saves lives but builds community. Kindness is inclusion, it is pride, it is empathy, it is compassion, it is self-respect and it is the guiding light to love. Kindness is always transformational, and its never-ending ripples result in even more kind acts that can change our lives, our communities, and our world.