India: Unity in diversity

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Punjabi Culture from Malwa region.

Malwai Giddha

 

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LOL! My dad used to teach me calligraphy of Punjabi alphabets on this....oh yeah he failed or should it be that I failed

All these pics are from Bathinda Virasat Mela...copyright:owner

 

[sh9xxc49]

nice collections yaarrrrr, keep posting

 

[Shinigami]

Jarawas (Andaman and nicobar isles)

Endangered Jarawa - India - YouTube

 

[Abingdonboy]

Pretty much sums up Indian diversity (taken from an IA SOF's diary):

In the Army, each 0fficer identifies with the religion of his troops. In
regiments where the soldiers are from more than one religion, the officers
– and indeed all jawans attend the weekly religious prayers of all the
faiths. In earlier days how many times have I trooped out of the battalion
mandir and, having worn my shoes, entered the battalion church or, taking
them off again, entered the Gurudwara next door? A few years ago it all
became simpler — Mandirs, Masjids, Gurudwars and Churches began to share
premises all over the army, and named Dharamsthan or Sarvadharamsthal. It
saved us the walk.



Perhaps it is so because the Army genuinely believes in two central ‘truths’
– oneness of God and victory in operations. Both are so sacred we cannot
nitpick and question the basics.



In fact, sometimes the army mixes up the two! 0n a visit to the holy cave at
Amarnath a few years ago I saw a plaque mounted on the side of the hill by a
battalion that had once guarded the annual Yatra. It said, ‘Best wishes from
-….- battalion. Deployed for Operation Amarnath.



On another instance, I remember a Commanding 0fficer ordered the battalion
Maulaviji to conduct the proceedings of Janamashtmi prayers because the
panditji had to proceed on leave on compassionate grounds. No eyebrows were
raised. It was the most rousing and best-prepared sermon on Lord Krishna I
have ever had the pleasure of listening to.



On the Line of Control, a company of Khemkhani Muslim soldiers replaced a
Dogra battalion. Over the next few days, the post was shelled heavily by
Pakistanis, and there were a few non-fatal casualties. 0ne day, the junior
commissioned officer of the company, Subedar Sarwar Khan walked up to the
company commander Major Sharma and said, “Sahib, ever since the Dogras left,
the mandir has been shut. Why don’t you open it once every evening and do
aarti? Why are we displeasing the Gods?”


Major Sharma shamefacedly confessed he did not know all the words of the
aarti. Subedar Sarwar went away and that night, huddled over the radio set
under a weak lantern light, painstakingly took down the words of the aarti
from the post of another battalion!



How many of us know that along the entire border with Pakistan, our troops
abstain from alcohol and non-vegetarian food on all Thursdays? The reason:
It is called the Peer day — essentially a day of religious significance for
the Muslims.



In 1984, after Operation Bluestar there was anguish in the Sikh community
over the desecration of the holiest of their shrines. Some of this anger and
hurt was visible in the Army too.


I remember the first Sikh festival days after the event — the number of
army personnel of every religious denomination that thronged the regimental
Gurudwara of the nearest Sikh battalion was the largest I had seen. I
distinctly remember each officer and soldier who put his forehead to the
ground to pay obeisance appeared to linger just a wee bit longer than usual.
Was I imagining this? I do not think so. There was that empathy and caring
implicit in the quality of the gesture that appeared to say, “You are hurt
and we all understand.”


We were deployed on the Line of Control those days. Soon after the news of
disaffection among a small section of Sikh troops was broadcast on the BBC,
Pakistani troops deployed opposite the Sikh battalion yelled across to
express their ’solidarity’ with the Sikhs.


The Sikh havildar shouted back that the Pakistanis had better not harbour
any wrong notions. “If you dare move towards this post, we will mow you
down.”



Finally, a real — and true — gem….


Two boys of a Sikh regiment battalion were overheard discussing this a day
before Christmas.


“Why are we having a holiday tomorrow?” asked Sepoy Singh.


“It is Christmas,” replied the wiser Naik Singh.


“But what is Christmas?”


“Christmas,” replied Naik Singh, with his eyes half shut in reverence and
hands in a spontaneous prayer-clasp, “is the Guruparb of the Christians.” !!

 

[jayron]

This is some bs propaganda insecure Hinds like to propagate to get others to believe in, we all know your real divisions. Besides, how about you take this bs to your Indian forum. No Pakistani here gives a damn about your diversity.

Well it is propaganda. Propaganda by the Indian government since independence to cultivate tolerance and harmony among Indians. In spite of occasional disruption to harmony and peace, for its diversity, Indian society has been largely peaceful. So the government's propaganda is a pretty successful one. Compare that with religiously homogeneous Pakistan and your government's propaganda which was not for peace and stability but for hostility towards the teeny tiny minorities left there. From what I see, it sure looks like your government's propaganda is a huge success as well.

 

[Abingdonboy]

Even in ANTARCTICA Indian diversity is on show!

It’s the only one of its kind in Antarctica. The concept is probably borrowed from the Indian Army, where such common places of worship are omnipresent. After all, for 26 years, the Army has been an integral part of the Indian Antarctic Expedition.
A small area in the loft of the Maiti station, just adjacent to the communication room has been allotted to the mandir, and the place is known as at Maitri. It is a thick carpeted cubicle, occupying both sides of the passage to the library. The low roof is very uncomfortable for the tall statured and one has to slouch or sit down while in the mandir. One side is like a proper hindu temple, complete with and enclosure for hindu deities, pooja samagri, bhajan books and kirtan musical instruments. Agarbattis and dhoopbatthis are not permitted due to the risk of fire. The musical instruments include harmonium, manjeera, tabla etc.

The other side has photographs, statues and books relevant to other faiths. We have Guru Granth Sahib, Kuraan, Geeta, Ramayan, Bible and books relevant to Buddhism and Jainism. These are available in various languages and have been housed in proper enclosures. For the interested, these provide a wealth of knowledge.

The mandir is a nice place to spend some quiet time and to de-stress. A quiet one hour here gives a lot of mental peace and makes one forget the stress of wintering over in Antarctica. The mandir property also includes an invaluable collection of religious and spiritual books in various languages added by successive expeditions over the years.
Every Tuesday, at 7 PM, a pooja is held and everyone is free to join in. Fresh Prasad is prepared each time, and consists usually of suji halwa. Tuesday is also the only day when non veg dishes are not prepared at Maitri.

http://imprintsonice.blogspot.com/2009/10/sarv-dharm-sthal-antarctica.html

 

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Ummm....... this thread was about showcasing diversity not proving diversity

 

[jatt+gutts]

pictures from my recent visit to Baba Budha Sahib Ji Gurudwara at amritsar.

 

[Filmmaker]

Thanks guys for posting these pics. Keep posting

 

[hembo]

Muslim woman with her son,dressed as Lord Krishna for a school function

Pround to be an INDIAN

This pic took me down the memory lane when I used to dress like a Maulavi for scholl fancy dress competition (Complete with a few Azaans) and participate in Zikir song (A traditional muslim devotional song of Assam) competition in College. I'm a Hindu by birth though I don't quite follow religion now-a-days.

Jai Hind!!

 

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Harayana

 

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Rajasthan