Intercultural Paper - Essay Example

This culture simply identifies itself with codes of conduct that promote love and respect with the main aim of maintaining modesty and purity. Institutions lead to the establishment of norms that support individual survival in a social setting. Stability and functionality of society depend upon roles and responsibilities that are created and defined by different institutions. However many societies may differ, they all have institutions that influence the culture or rather the way of life of individuals.

Religious institutions for instance control behaviour and determine the actions of individuals. The religious institution that defines the Hindu culture comprises of various religious practices of which people are expected to abide by. Being the most dominant religion in India, the religion emphasizes with humility, respect, purity and modesty. There are various religious practices that promote these four doctrines. For instance, touching people’s feet is considered a sign of respect. Touch the feet of individuals who are considered to be holy is considered a sign of humility (WordPress, n.d). Hindus also consider it a tradition to offer gifts to priests and gurus as a sign of appreciating the spiritual blessings they receive.

Religious institutions in the Hindu Culture consider purity to be of great essence. Purity takes three forms: purity of body, purity of thoughts and purity of deeds. In their daily activities, Hindus protect this purity through following their religious codes of ethics and living wisely (Sharma, 2002). Religious offerings are usually given to deities from time to time. These offerings are usually in the form of food or flowers. Sniffing of offerings is not allowed based on the belief that sniffing is meant for the gods.

All items that are intended to be offered for offerings are cleaned and covered as a sign of purity. Their temples and shrines are