cultural experience

Cultural Experience Name of student Institution In recent times, I read a book; Culture and Customs of India by Carol Hernderson. I settled on the book because books are more detailed than movies and other sources of information. A book is also portable and therefore I could carry it an dread it at my own convenience.. The book also had references to other reading material from where I could get additional information to expand my knowledge. The main reason was however due to my love for learning other cultures. From the book, I found out many interesting things that I had not known before about the Indian people. India has always fascinated me because of its ancient and  HYPERLINK "/essay_search/diverse_culture.html" diverse culture which few countries in the world exhibit. Secondly, it is the second most populous nation in the world constituting approximately a sixth of the world’s total population. India, despite being a modern state, still follows an ancient societal set up. People from India embrace their culture and respect the dignity of both their friends and enemies. Due to this reason, it has the potential to break cultural barriers in promoting diversity tolerance and peaceful coexistence. People from all over the continent are attracted to India Because of her cultural tolerance. The uniqueness of the Indian culture is demonstrated in its ability to understand human values, nature and the dignity of life in relation to the global community. In studying their culture, Indians have a very strict dress code. The women are expected to dress modestly as prescribed by the cultural norms. Their clothing should have hems below the knee and their shoulders covered to avoid attracting unnecessary attention from their male counterparts. Indians prefer eating using their hands than employ cutlery. The right hand is for eating whereas the left is used for sanitation purposes when visiting the toilet for nature calls. In India, all secretions coming from the human body are viewed as unclean and unholy. It is also in this cultural set up where it is a big insult to touch another persons head or use your feet and toes to point to someone else. In public arenas, it is offensive for men and women to display open physical contact as it is considered a provocation of others emotions. The Hindu teenagers on the other hand are allowed to hold hands with same sex, with only girls exempted. What came out clear to me is that India has a variety of religions that are collectively summed up in one main religion, Hindu. Three quarter of the natives comprise of Hindus. The ancient Aryan invaders are considered the pioneers of Hinduism which supposedly originated from Vedism; the religion of the Aryans. Hinduism pledges its loyalty to numerous gods who are considered manifestations of one supreme spiritual deity. The Indian social setup is equally unique; Hindus are divided along acceptable social classes called castes. A caste is a socially defined group with a traced hereditary background within which intermarriage between members is permitted. Each caste claims its own origin and existence from mythical backgrounds that define their specific behavior and traditions in the larger community. Castes are categorized hierarchic...