Course review of the semester - Coursework Example

Indian Civilization The country India is officially referred to as the Republic of India and is located in south Asia. India is the second most populous country after China. The country comes number seven in terms of area coverage and more than half of the country borders water bodies. In addition, the country shares borders with Pakistan, China, Burma, Nepal and Bangladesh. According to (Srinivas, 2004, p.57), India is among a small number of states in the world where democracy is exercised in full.

Indus civilizationIt is very fascinating to note that the earliest form of human civilization and organization started in India, among other few places in the world. The most common of all civilizations recorded in the Indian history is the Indus Civilization. When analyzing the history of the ancient civilization, (Srinivas, 2004, p.58) argues that the Indus Civilization began in the Bronze Age stage of human evolution. Among the three prehistoric culture, the Indus Civilization was the most widespread covering an approximate area of over a million square kilometers.

The other civilizations were Mesopotamia and Ancient Egypt.Another surprising fact about the Indus Civilization is that its inhabitants developed techniques such as metallurgy (melting metals such as copper and tin) and handcraft (carving and basketry). Furthermore, the civilization had cities with excellent urban plans such as drainage system, water supply system and huge residential buildings.The Vedic civilization The Vedic era was characterized by the Aryan culture that was associated with Vedas.

In his work, (Srinivas, 2004) describes the Vedas as texts that are sacred to Hindu. In addition, the Vedic civilization, which lasted up to 500BC, forms the foundation of Hinduism religion and many other Indian cultural aspects. The era of the Vedic civilization marked the genesis of the present day India. Most of the current day states of the art technology can trace their roots on the Indus and Vedic civilizations. Religion and Spiritual traditionsIn India, religion forms a foundation in major areas of life.

According to (Srinivas, 2004, p.60), about 85 percent of Indians adhere to Hindu religion while the rest are mainly Muslims. Just like Indian gods and goddesses. Hinduism has many dimensions depending on location and caste. Indians follow dharma as their moral codes while Vedas are considered as being the sacred texts. Spiritually, (Srinivas, 2004, p.63), declares that Indians believe in reincarnation. In the belief, life is a continuous process of death and rebirth. According to the belief, when someone dies, a rebirth takes place somewhere else, and the person comes back to life but as a different person or animal (Srinivas, 2004, p.64)India under colonial ruleThere existed internal conflicts among Indian kingdoms that paved way for European insurgency in India.

In the year 1498, a Vasco da Gama lead fleet discovered a new route to India, which allowed them to set op trading base Daman and Bombay. The incidence coupled with another series of events increased the political influence of the colonial governments. By the year 1619, Indians had lost all their territories to Britain, Portugal and France,Indian Culture in the modern worldExperts concur that the Indian culture is the most outstanding in the world. The Indian culture derives its weight from strict adherence to family and religious values.

The essential component of the society is the family. A family starts with a well organized marriage ritual, where spouses are put in the union. Other outstanding cultural practices in India are festivals, cuisine, clothing, literature and greetings. Indians have not been left behind in both visual and performing arts. Performing arts include dancing, music, theater and drama. In visual arts, elements such as painting, sculptor and architecture are common. In addition, Indians participate in martial arts and different sports.

Work CitedSrinivas, M. N. India: Social Structure Studies in Sociology and Social Anthropology. 2nd ed. Vol. 3. New Delhi: Transaction, 1980, 2004. 57. Print.