History of India
Wide zonee
The Indian subcontinent, the great landmass of South Asia, is the home of one of the world’s oldest and most influential civilizations. the subcontinent, which for historical purposes is usually called simply “India,” is understood to comprise the areas of not only the present-day Republic of India but also the republics of Pakistan (partitioned from India in 1947) and Bangladesh (which formed the eastern part of Pakistan until its independence in 1971). Since early times the Indian subcontinent appears to have provided an attractive habitat for human occupation. Toward the south it is effectively sheltered by wide expanses of ocean, which tended to isolate it culturally in ancient times, while to the north it is protected by the massive ranges of the Himalayas, which also sheltered it from the Arctic winds and the air currents of Central Asia. Only in the northwest and northeast is there easier access by land, and it was through those two sectors that most of the early contacts with the outside world took place.
Within the framework of hills and mountains represented by the Indo-Iranian borderlands on the west, the Indo-Myanmar borderlands in the east, and the Himalayas to the north, the subcontinent may in broadest terms be divided into two major divisions: in the north, the basins of the Indus and Ganges (Ganga) rivers (the Indo-Gangetic Plain) and, to the south, the block of Archean rocks that forms the Deccan plateau region. The expansive alluvial plain of the river basins provided the environment and focus for the rise of two great phases of city life: the civilization of the Indus valley, known as the Indus civilization, during the 3rd millennium BCE; and, during the 1st millennium BCE, that of the Ganges. To the south of this zone, and separating it from the peninsula proper, is a belt of hills and forests, running generally from west to east and to this day largely inhabited by tribal people. This belt has played mainly a negative role throughout Indian history in that it remained relatively thinly populated and did not form the focal point of any of the principal regional cultural developments of South Asia. However, it is traversed by various routes linking the more-attractive areas north and south of it. The Narmada (Narbada) River flows through this belt toward the west, mostly along the Vindhya Range, which has long been regarded as the symbolic boundary between northern and southern India.
Reasons to visit India!
1. Historic and Architectural splendor of India:
38 places in India are listed by UNESCO as World Heritage sites! As a land where the world’s oldest civilization took its birth, the architectural styles have drastically and majestically evolved and fused with other influences throughout its history that had seen the rise and fall of several empires and colonial rule.Discovering the architectural splendor of different places is also the main reason to visit India. Buddhist paintings, rock-cut architecture and stone carvings at Ellora and Ajanta caves in Aurangabad, stunning beauty of one of the Seven Wonders of the World, Taj Mahal built in white marble in Agra, mind-blowing intricacy of Hawa Mahal in red and pink sandstone in Jaipur, the opulent forts and royal palaces in Rajasthan, Falaknuma Palace in Hyderabad, local Temples, Mosques, Monasteries, Churches are the main places to familiarize yourself with the marvelous architecture and thereby its history and culture.
2. Abode to Spirituality:
If you are longing for a spiritual journey, India will be the ideal destination; undeniably the ultimate gateway to spirituality. One can find peaceful retreats for self-reflection, meditation, Yoga and other self-awakening practices. The holistic approach towards spiritualism, the belief in God and equality among humans is of paramount prominence in every religion practiced in India – Hinduism, Islam, Christianity, Buddhism, Jainism and Sikkim. The spiritual sites and teachings offer a lasting insight into the philosophy of human life, from the unreal to the real. This unique spiritual experience native to India is one of the best reasons to visit India. Participating in the ritual of evening Aarti to the Ganges River at Rishikesh, Haridwar and Varanasi is a soulenriching experience. Golden Temple, Varanasi, Dharamshala, Badrinath, Kedarnath, Kanyakumari, and Bodhgaya are popular holy places in India.
3. Joyous land of Festivals and Fairs:
A land where different religions are harmoniously practiced is undoubtedly a celebrated land! India celebrates the highest number of festivals and fairs in the world. The national and regional festivals, cultural fairs of India and deeper purpose and motive behind each festival are interesting and informative. From festivals celebrated with pomp to those devoted to God in silent prayers seeking blessings, India’s Diwali, Dusshera, Ganesh Chaturthi, Gurupurab, Maha Shivaratri, Holi, Eid and Christmas are a good reason to visit India and partake in the gayeties and festival special delicacies. The celebrations of national festivals like Independence Day, Republic Day are a platform to pay tribute to the brave personalities in Indian History, reminding each Indian citizen to be forever indebted to their sacrifices.
4.India as a Gastronomic treat:
It won’t be an exaggeration to say that Indian Cuisine is incomparable to any other cuisine in the world. The range of delectable dishes cooked using different spices bears a different flavor and texture in different regions of the country. While North Indian cooking uses minimal spices, South Indian food is ultra-spicy and can water your eyes, but we bet your taste buds would want more of it. The traditional and regional recipes and the fusion of traditional and Westernstyle of cooking present a galore of sweets, spicy food, delicious snacks, and light and refreshing drinks. Tandoori chicken, Rogan Josh (lamb), palak paneer, chickpeas curry etc. are popular in North India whereas Dosa, dal chaaval, seasoned spicy dishes, Dum ka Murgh, pickles, Malabari Fish Curry, chutney and sambar are popular in the South. Food alone can be a strong reason to visit India. Book flights to India to find it out yourself!
5.A natural paradise:
India is certainly a gifted land, thanks to the innumerable natural attractions in the country! The geographical setting of the Indian peninsula shielded by the snow-capped Himalayas in the North East, the Eastern and the Western Ghats on South Eastern and South Western sides offers multiple trekking spots. The Bay of Bengal and the Arabian Sea on either side of Southern India is home to beautiful landscapes and beaches. The mangrove forests and sprawling green tea estates in Darjeeling and Assam of East India, deserts, camels and precious jewels of Rajasthan, Wildlife in Central India, Royal monuments and forts from the Nawabs of Rajasthan to the Nizams of Hyderabad, Beaches of Goa, Backwaters of Kerala, beautiful and revitalizing hill stations spread all over the country, rustic villages, valleys, lakes, waterfalls and grassy hills are in abundance and the list of worth-visiting places in India seems endless and so are the reasons to visit India.
History of Kerala!
The God's own Country!
Kerala is first mentioned (as Keralaputra) in a 3rd-century-BCE rock inscription left by the Mauryan emperor Ashoka. In the last centuries BCE this region became famous among the Greeks and Romans for its spices (especially pepper). During the first five centuries CE the region was a part of Tamilakam— the territory of the Tamils—and thus was sometimes partially controlled by theeastern Pandya and Chola dynasties, as well as by the Cheras. In the 1st century Jewish immigrants arrived, and, according to local Christian tradition, St. Thomas the Apostle visited Kerala in the same century.
Much of Kerala’s history from the 6th to the 8th century is obscure, but it is known that Arab traders introduced Islam later in the period. Under the Kulashekhara dynasty (c. 800–1102), Malayalam emerged as a distinct language, and Hinduism became prominent.
The Cholas often controlled Kerala during the 11th and 12th centuries. By the beginning of the 14th century, Ravi Varma Kulashekhara of the Venad kingdom established a short-lived supremacy over southern India. After his death, Kerala became a conglomeration of warring chieftaincies, among which the most important were Calicut (now Kozhikode) in the north and Venad in the south.
The era of foreign intervention began in 1498, when Vasco da Gama landed near Calicut. In the 16th century the Portuguese superseded the Arab traders and dominated the commerce of the Malabar Coast. Their attempt to establish sovereignty was thwarted by the zamorin (hereditary ruler) of Calicut. The Dutch ousted the Portuguese in the 17th century. Marthanda Varma ascended the Venad throne in 1729 and crushed Dutch expansionist designs at the Battle of Kolachel 12 years later. Marthanda Varma then adopted a European mode of martial discipline and expanded the Venad domain to encompass what became the southern state of Travancore. His alliance in 1757 with the raja of the central state of Cochin (Kochi), against the zamorin, enabled Cochin to survive. By 1806, however, Cochin and Travancore, as well as the Malabar Coast in the north, had become subject states under the British Madras Presidency.
Two years after India’s independence was achieved in 1947, Cochin and Travancore were united as Travancore-Cochin state. The present state of Kerala was constituted on a linguistic basis in 1956 when the Malabar Coast and the Kasaragod taluka (administrative subdivision) of South Kanara were added to Travancore-Cochin. The southern portion of the former Travancore-Cochin state was attached to Tamil Nadu.
Kerala, The God’s own country!
Tourism Identity
“God’s Own Country’ is the tagline of Kerala Tourism which was coined by Walter Mendez, the Creative Director of an Indian advertising agency in 1989 at the request of the Tourism Department, Government of Kerala. This was used by agencies to showcase Kerala’s natural beauty and not-so explored places across the state. Kerala Tourism has won several awards for its innovative tourism campaign. Each of them depicted God’s Own Country in a new light, ensuring that the tagline continues to be associated with Kerala.
History of Ayurveda
Part of Indian tradition!
Ayurveda has an age-old history since the 2nd Century BC. Ayurveda has its foundations laid by the ancient schools of Hindu Philosophical teachings named Vaisheshika and the school of logic named as Nyaya. It is also related to the manifestation framework, well-known as Samkhya, and it was established in the same period when schools of Nyaya and Vaisheshika flourished.
The Vaisheshika School preached about inferences and perceptions that should be obtained about a patient's pathological condition for treatment. Whereas, Nyaya school propagated its teachings on the basis that one should have an extensive knowledge of the patient's condition, and the disease condition before proceeding for treatment. The school of Vaisheshika, classifies the attributes of any object into six types: substance, particularity, activity, generality, inherence and quality called as Dravya, Vishesha, Karma, Samanya, Samavaya and Guna respectively, in Sanskrit language. Later, Vaisheshika and Nyaya schools worked together and jointly founded the nyāya–vaiśeṣika school. The nyāya–vaiśeṣika school, in the later years brought glory to the ancient knowledge and helped in disseminating the knowledge about Ayurveda. From the sages the knowledge of traditional medicines was passed on to the disciples and then to the common man by various writings and oral narrations. The information about the healing properties of the herbs was composed in the form of poems, called “Shlokas”. These were used by sages to describe the use of medicinal plants. The Hindu system of healing is believed to be based on four eminent compilations of knowledge (Vedas) called as Yajur Veda, Rig Veda, Sam Veda, and Atharva Veda. The Rig Veda is the most well-known of all the four Vedas and describes 67 plants and 1028 Shlokas. The Atharva Veda and Yajur Veda describe 293 and 81 medicinally useful plants. The practice of Ayurveda is based upon the knowledge gained from these Vedas. The writings in Rig Veda and AtharvaVeda are attributed to “Atreya” who is believed to have been conferred with this knowledge from Lord Indra, who initially received it from Lord Brahma. Agnivesha compiled the knowledge from the Vedas, and it was edited by Charaka and some other scholars and is presently called as “Charaka Samhita”. Charaka Samhita describes all aspects of Ayurvedic medicine and Sushruta Samhita describes the Science of Surgery. Both these legendary compilations are still used by practitioners of traditional medicine. These ancient texts are available in various translations and languages like Tibetan, Greek, Chinese, Arabic and Persian. There are several other allied minor compilations like Nighantu Granthas, Madhava Nidana and Bhava Prakasha from the contributions of various scholars, however Charaka Samhita is the most respected of all the records.
Considering the bodily constitution, pathological history, the Dosha characteristics, life style and environmental conditions in an individual's routine life style, Ayurveda has many treatment strategies for promoting well-being to individuals.
Ayurveda employs the “Pancha karma” method in its therapies. Pancha karma therapy applies various processes for the rejuvenation of the body, cleansing and enhancing longevity. The Pancha karma is composed of five karmas (actions) that are used for removal of toxins from the body tissues. They are the Virechan (purgation though use powders, pastes or decoction), Vaman (forced therapeutic emesis by use of some medicines), Basti (use of enemas prepared from medicated oils), Rakta moksha (detoxification of blood) and Nasya (administration of medicines like decoctions, oils and fumes through nasal route).
Current status of Ayurveda
Perspectives for its future applications
In the recent decades, Ayurveda has experienced a considerable shift in its paradigm and a significant change in the outlook of researchers, towards its applications has occurred. The therapeutic principles of Ayurveda focus on prakriti and tridoshas, and these principles explain that every individual has his unique constitution called as prakriti. Prakriti determines the characteristic response of each individual to medications, environmental conditions and dietary factors. ‘Ayurgenomics’ a recently introduced research field, bridges thisgap between genomics and Ayurveda and serves as an aid in understanding of inter-individual differences in responses to therapies in various diseases. It especially emphasizes on studying inter-individual variances in patients from identical ethnic backgrounds. TSMs are now been looked upon for recourse to some limitations faced by western medicine, such as the need for individualized therapies, potential side effects and lack of desired therapeutic efficacy.
Rotti et al, have published several studies correlating the concept of prakriti in Ayurveda to present-day science. A report indicating the correlation of dominant prakriti with the Body Mass Index (BMI) and place of birth in individuals was published. Studies involving subjects of various prakriti types viz. Vata, Pitta and Kapha, were carried out to identify molecular differences that affect susceptibility and responses of individuals to various environmental or disease conditions. A classification method for human population, with respect to DNA methylation signatures is reported based upon traditional Ayurveda concept of prakriti. In a study involving genome-wide SNP (single nucleotide polymorphism) in 262 male individuals from three different prakritis, it was found that PGM1 gene is associated with energy production. PGM1 was found to be more homogeneous in Pitta prakriti, than the Kapha and Vata prakriti.
An integration of the knowledge of modern analytical techniques with a broader perspective for applications of Ayurveda principles can help in its wider acceptance globally. There is an increasing need of proving and fostering the scientific basis of the principles of Ayurveda, to keep this age-old valuable system of medicine, as a living tradition in future.
Reference: Wikipedia.org, Britannica.com, https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC5198827/ https://www.expresshealthcare.in/features/milestones-in-indianhealthcare/191620/ https://www.indianeagle.com