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INDIA

CULTURE &
TRADITIONS

Throughout the history


of India, Indian culture has been
heavily influenced
by Dharmic religions.
Greater India was the historical
extent of Indian culture beyond
the Indian subcontinent.
This particularly concerns the
spread
of Hinduism, Buddhism, architec
ture, administration andwriting
system from India to other parts
of Asia through the Silk Road by
the travellers and maritime
traders during the early centuries
of the Common Era.
To the west,Greater
India overlaps with Greater
Persia in the Hindu
Kush and Pamir
Mountains. During the medieval
period, Islam played a significant
role in shaping Indian cultural
heritage Over the centuries, there
has been significant integration

CHINA

KOREA

Peking opera is a form


of traditional Chinese
theatrewhich combines
music, vocal performance,
mime, dance, and acrobatics. It arose in
the late 18th century and became fully
developed and recognized by the mid-19th
century.
Lion Dance It may also
be performed at important
occasions such as
business opening events, special
celebrations or wedding ceremonies, or
may be used to honour special guests by
the Chinese communities.
Dragon Dance is a form
of traditional dance and
performance
inChinese culture. Like
the lion dance it is most
often seen in festive celebrations.
Chinese dragons are a symbol of China,
and they are believed to bring good luck
to people, therefore the longer the dragon
in the dance, the more luck it will bring to
the community.
Nine Dragons (simplified Chinese:

FAMILY LIFE
In traditional Korea, the
typical family was large
with three or four
generations usually
living together. Because infant mortality was
high and a big family was thought of as a
blessing, having many children was desired.
Ondol
Traditional Korean rooms
have multiple functions.
Rooms are not labeled or
reserved for a specific purpose; there is no
definite bedroom or dining room for
example. Rather, tables and mats are brought
in as needed. Most people sit and sleep on
the floor on thick mats.
gimjang
is the age-old Korean
practice of preparing
winter kimchi, which has
been passed down from generation to
generation. Since very few vegetables are
grown in the three or four winter month,
gimjang takes place in early winter and
provides what has become a staple food for
Koreans.

JAPAN

of Hindus, Jains,
and Sikhs with Muslims across
India
India is regarded by many
historians as the oldest living
civilization of Earth. Indian
traditions date back to 8,000
BCE, and have a continuous
history since the time of the
Vedas, believed variously to be
3,000 to over 5,500 years old.
Indian traditions and culture are
perhaps the worlds richest as it
unveils an amazing plethora of
mythical stories that astounds the
imagination. Ancient concepts
like karma, dharma, atman (rebirth) and yoga still govern daily
lives of Indians,
Ghantaa-naadam
(ringing of bell) Ghantaa or bell
has a significant place in the
process of worship. While the
bell made of gold and silver
produce mild sound it is said that
the bells made of copper or brass
help in controlling the evils and

; traditional
Chinese:
; pinyin: Chn
Rng; WadeGiles:Ch'en Jung; ca. 1200
1266)[1] was a painter of the
Southern Song Dynasty celebrated for his
depictions of dragons.
Four Treasures of
the Study, Four
Jewels of the
Study or Four
Friends of the
Study is an
expression used to denote
the brush, ink, paperand ink stone used
in Chinese and other East
Asian calligraphic traditions.

the traditional houses


A traditional Korean house is called 'Hanok'.
Hanok sought to create a living space based
on the coexistence of nature and humans.
Accordingly, the natural aspects of a
traditional Korean houses range from the
structure's inner layout to the building
materials which were used.

germs. Its ringing also helps to


quiet the thoughts running in
your mind, before you sight
(darshan) the deity.

Abhishekam or
bathing the idol, is performed to
the idols with Panchaamrita,
which is a mixture of cow milk,
curds, pure ghee, sugar and
honey. Devotees also mix banana
and coconut water in
Panchaamrita. After completing
the abhisheka, the panchaamrita
is consumed by the devotees as
teertha. It is said that
panchaamrita has medicinal
values and will provide health
and nourishment to the body.
However, since it is used for
worshipping the god, there are
spiritual values too attached to
this teertha.

Pradkshina where
high magnetic values are

Brush
The oldest
brush so far
dates toHan
dynasty (202
BC220 AD). Brushes are generally made
from animal hair, or in certain situations
the first hair taken from a baby's head
(said to bring good luck in the Imperial
examinations). Brush handles are
commonly constructed from bamboo, but
special brushes may have handles
of sandalwood, jade, carved bone/ivory, or
other precious materials.
Ink
is an artificial ink
developed during
the Han dynasty. These
first writing inks were
based on naturally
occurring minerals
like graphite & vermilion; earliest inks
were probably liquids and not preserved.
The best ink sticks are fine grained and
have a light, slightly ringing sound when
tapped. They are often decorated with
poems, calligraphy, orbas relief, and
painted. These particular articles are
highly collectable, and often acquired like

Korean New Year is


the first day of
the Korean lunar
calendar. It is one of the most significant
traditional Korean
holidays.
chopail

Buddha's Birthday
the birthday of the Prince
Siddhartha Gautama, is
aholiday traditionally celebrated
in Mahayana Buddhism. According to the
Theravada Tripitaka scriptures (from Pali,
meaning "three baskets"), Gautama was born
in Lumbini in modern-day Nepal, around the
year 563 BCE, and raised in Kapilavastu.
JUNGU Double Ninth Festival , Danpungnori(Viewing the changing color of maples
during autumn),9th day
of ninth month.
SANGDALGOSA
ritual performs to the
house of god, ten
months

stamps. The inksticks in highest regard,


available, the Main Idol is placed known as Hum
contain musk, borneol and other
in the center, and also because
they place a copper plate written precious aromatics of Chinese medicine.
with some Vedic scripts, which is They are still produced today in Shexian
in Anhui province
buried, beneath the Main Idols
Paper
placement known as
was first developed in
Garbhagriha or Moolasthan,
China in the first decade of
the copper absorbs the earths
100 AD. Previous to its
magnetic waves and radiates to
invention, bamboo slips
the surroundings.Thus a person
and silks were used for
who regularly visits a temple and
writing material. Several
makes clockwise pradakshina of
methods of paper production developed
the Main Idols placement,
over the centuries in China. However, the
automatically receives the
paper which was considered of highest
beamed magnetic waves which
value was that of the Jingxian in Anhui
get absorbed by his body.
province.
This particular form of paper, known as
Xunzh, is soft,
fine-textured,
AARTI aarti and
moth resistant,
garlanding are acts of veneration
has a high tensile
and love for the diety. Aarti
strength, and
consists of a dish that carries five
remarkable
small metal lamps along with
longevity for such a product - so much so
cotton, few rice grains and
that it has a reputation for lasting "1,000
arecanut. The purpose of
years."
performing arati is to ward off
Moon Palace
evil effects and the malefic

Daeboreum
(literally "Great Full Moon") is
a Korean holiday that celebrates the first full
moon of the new year of the lunar Korean
calendar which is the Korean version of the
First Full Moon Festival. This holiday is
accompanied by many traditions.

influence of the evil eye. The


camphor fire and flower garlands
give out chemical energies that
can absorb the negative energies.

also called Guanghan Palace, refers to the


Palace on the moon. Legend goes that it is
inhabited by the goddess of the moon
Change, the Jade Rabbit and the
woodcutter Wu Gang.

removing of
shoes Shoes are considered dirty
in India, so we take off our shoes
before stepping into someones
house or their kitchen. We dont
step on anything important and if
you do, we immediately express
our apologies.

As is known to all, Change stole the Pill


of Immortality and flew to the moon and
then she became the Chinese goddess of
the moon.

Samjinnal
which falls on the
third day of the
third month in
the Korean lunar
calendar. It was
called samjil in
old Korean
language and referred to in hanja. Samjinnal
implies the overlapping of Sam (three).
According to Choi Namseon, samjil was
derived from the consonants of Samil, and
Sangsa is defined as the first snake day of the
3rd lunar month.

zhongkui
In Chinese

Dano, also called Suritnal, is a Korean traditional holiday that falls


Kui is a god who exorcises ghosts and evil on the 5th day of the fifth month of the
lunar Korean calendar. It is an official
spirits.
holiday in North Korea and one of the major
traditional holidays in South Korea. South
Korea has retained several festivals related to
As legend has it, he lived in Zhongnan
the holiday, one of which
Mountain in the early Tang Dynasty. He
is Gangneung Dano Festival designated
was born with a panther-like head, ringby UNESCO as a "Masterpieces of the Oral
like eyes, an iron face and curly whiskers. and Intangible Heritage of Humanity".
folklores, Zhong

NAMASKAR or
NAMASTE Namaste, namaskar
or Namaskara or Namaskaram,
Vanakkam(Tamil), Nomoshkaar
(Bengali), Nomoskar (Assamese)
is a common spoken greeting or
salutation, expressing deep
respect. However, the same hands
folded gesture is made usually
wordlessly upon departure. The

SjAMBOK
litupa is a heavy leather whip. It is

word is derived from Sanskrit


(namah): to bow, obeisance,
reverential salutation, and
respect, and (te): to you.

take a bath daily


Maharshi Vatsyayana has
described the various power
centres and electric impulses in a
human body. A continuous
process of generation and
consumption of electric energy
takes place in the human body.
Polygraphic studies proved that
water enhances electro-magnetic
activity.

Braahmi
Muhurtham The time 90
minutes prior to sunrise is called
Braahmi Muhurtham. Braahmi
means Saraswathi, the Goddess
of intellect. The above specified
time is auspicious for gaining and
sustaining intelligence and

Throne
is the seat of state of
a potentate or dignitary, especially the seat
occupied by a sovereign on state
occasions; or the seat occupied by
a pope or bishop on ceremonial occasions.
[1]
"Throne" in an abstract sense can also
refer to the monarchy or the Crownitself,
an instance of metonymy, and is also used
in many expressions such as "the power
behind the throne".
Claw Foot

traditionally made
from an
adult hippopotamus(
or rhinoceros) hide,
but is also commonly made out of plastic.
A strip of the animal's hide is cut and carved
into a strip 0.9 to 1.5 metres (3 to 5 ft) long,
tapering from about 25 mm (1 in) thick at the
handle to about 10 mm (38 in) at the tip. This
strip is then rolled until reaching a taperedcylindrical form. The resulting whip is both
flexible and durable. A plastic version was
made for the South African Police Service,
and effectively used for riot control.

is the name of the


first dynastyof Geor
knowledge, owing to which it is
gian kings
called Braahmi Muhurtham. It is
of Kartli (Iberia)
during Braahmi muhurtham that
preserved by The
Sun god spreads his light rays,
Georgian Chronicles. Their rule lasted,
which bring to life the cells and
with intermissions, from the 3rd century
the brain.
BC to the 2nd century AD. The main male
line is reported to have become extinct
early on and followed by houses related to
Swastika In the
it in the female line. By the close of the
Ganesh Puran, it is said that the
2nd century AD, the Pharnavazid rule
swastika is a form of Lord
came to an end and the Arsacid
Ganesha, the remover of all
Dynasty took over the crown of Iberia.
Spring Festival
obstacles. In the Amarkosh, it is
has a long
referred to as a pure and
historical standing
auspicious blessing. In one of the
originating from
hymns in the Rig-veda it is said
worshipping and
that the swastika is symbolic of
Surya (Sun). People also consider sacrificing at the end of a year in Shang
Dynasty (1600BC- 1100BC), and
the Swastika (Satiya or
formally fixed in the first year of the reign
symbolic of the Sudarshan
of Emperor Wudi (156BC- 87BC, of Han
Chakra) as a symbol denoting
Dynasty (202BC- 220AD).
plus (+) or prosperity.
Dragon Boat
Festival
Dragon Boat
Festival has a
history of about

chuseok
originally known
as hangawi, is a
major harvest
festival and a three-day holiday
in Korea celebrated on the 15th day of the
8th month of the lunar calendar. Like many
other harvest festivals around the world, it is
held around the autumn equinox.
Chuseok, as well as the days before it and
afterwards, are statutory holidays in South
Korea. Within East Asia, the timing coincides
with that of the Chinese and
Vietnamese Mid-Autumn Festival, as well as
the Japanese Tsukimi.

Dngzh
Festival or Winter Solstice Festival is one
of the most important festivals celebrated by

2500 years according to the popular story


saying that it is a festival to commemorate
the great patriotic poet Quanyuan
(339BC- 278BC) of Chu State in Warring
States Period (475BC- 221BC).
Ghost Festival
Zhongyuan Festival Ghost Festival has
something to do with the sacrifice of
Buddhism and took shape in Song
Dynasty (9601279). It is also a
festival to
worship
ancestors and
deceased
relatives and show filial piety just as the
Tomb-sweeping Festival.

the Chinese and other East Asians during


the Dongzhi solar term (winter solstice) on or
around December 22 (according to East Asia
time). In 2015, the festival falls on Tuesday,
December 22.
The origins of this festival can be traced back
to the yin and yang philosophy of balance
and harmony in the cosmos.[2] After this
celebration, there will be days with longer
daylight hours and therefore an increase in
positive energy flowing in. The philosophical
significance of this is symbolized by the I
Ching hexagram f (Returning").

The Ghost
Festival, also
known as
the Hungry Ghost
Festival in modern day, Zhong Yuan Jie
or Yu Lan Jie, is a traditional Buddhist and
Taoist festival held in Asian countries. In

Lantern Festival
or Yuan Xiao
Festival in
Chinese, falls on
the 15th day of
the lunar New
Year, which is also the last day but the
peak of the Spring Festival. Lantern
Festival can be traced back to Western
Han Dynasty
(207BC- 25AD),
about 2000 years
ago.
QingMing
Festival
Tomb-sweeping Festival or Qingming
Festival in Chinese, is a festival to
worship ancestors and deceased relatives
in China usually falls on April 4 or April
5. Tomb-sweeping Festival can be traced
back to Eastern Zhou Dynasty (770BC256BC), with a history of over 2500
years. According to the tradition, people
eat cold food during this festival.

the Chinese calendar (a lunisolar calendar),


the Ghost Festival is on the 15th night of the
seventh month (14th in southern China).
In Chinese culture, the fifteenth day of the
seventh month in the lunar calendar is
called Ghost Day and the seventh month in
general is regarded as the Ghost Month. in
which ghosts and spirits, including those of
the deceased ancestors, come out from
the lower realm. Distinct from both
the Qingming Festival (in spring) and Double
Ninth Festival (in autumn) in which living
descendants pay homage to their deceased
ancestors, during Ghost Festival, the
deceased are believed to visit the living.

RELIGIONS AND
BELIEFS

Religion in India is characterised


by a diversity of religious beliefs
and practices. The Indian
subcontinent is the birthplace of
some of theworld's major
religions;
namely Hinduism, Buddhism, Jai
nism and Sikhism. Throughout
India's history, religion has been
an important part of the country's
culture. Religious diversity
and religious tolerance are both
established in the country by
the law and custom;
the Constitution of India has
declared the right to freedom of
religion to be a fundamental
right.
Sikhism Guru Nanak (1469
1539) was the founder
of Sikhism. The Guru Granth
Sahib was first compiled by the
fifth Sikh guru, Guru Arjan Dev,
from the writings of the first five
Sikh gurus and others saints who
preached the concept of universal
brotherhood, including those of
the Hindu and Muslim faith.
Hinduism is an ancient religion

Buddhism Being brought into


China 2,000 years ago, it was
gradually widely accepted by most
Chinese people and developed into
three sections, namely the Han,
Tibetan and Southern Buddhism.
Han Buddhism Buddhism during
the Han Dynasty was regarded as
having its basis in magic in much
the same way as Taoism and it first
took root among members of the
royal family and aristocracy.
During the Three Kingdom
Period, it was studied as an
independent subject. Luoyang in
North China became a major
center where there was a focus on
the translation of the scriptures
while in South China this
religion thrived in a tolerant
atmosphere.
Tibetan Buddhism As the
second large sect, it has 3,000
temples and 120 thousand monks.
Confucianism
Confucianism, not a real religion,
is just an ethical and philosophical
system, which developed
from Confucius thoughts and later

Bowing is equivalent to the


handshake in Korean culture. Bowing
means showing gratitude and respect
to the person you are meeting with.
The younger generations have
blended the western culture with their
native culture by shaking hands after
bowing to each other.
Gifts have remained an integral part
of their culture; however, gifts are
always given according to the
capacity and affordability of the other
person because Koreans firmly
believe in reciprocating. The quantity
or numbers also add value to your
gifts; seven is considered as a lucky
number so anything in multiples of
seven will be accepted heartily.
Buddhism is the main religion in
Korea and its teachings reflect in
Korean lifestyle, culture and arts.
Numerous Buddhist statues,
monuments and temples have been
included in the National Treasure and
Monument list by the government.
Yungdrung is major symbol of
Korean Buddhism and it can be seen
outside temples and religious places
in Korea.

(although Hinduism is diverse,


with monotheism, henotheism, p
olytheism, panentheism, pantheis
m, monism, atheism, agnosticism
, andgnosticism being
represented, and Hinduism is also
the largest religious grouping in
India; its more than 1 billion
adherents (2001) compose
80.5% of the population. The
term Hindu, originally a
geographical description, derives
from the Sanskrit, Sindhu, (the
historical appellation for the
Indus River), and refers to a
person from the land of the river
Sindhu.

Pre-historic religion
Evidence attesting
to prehistoric religion in
the Indian "subcontinent"
derives from
scattered Mesolithic rock
paintings depicting dances
and
rituals. Neolithic pastoralis
ts inhabiting the Indus
Valley buried their dead in

was treated as a kind of belief to


educate common people. It
obtained its stable position under
the reign of Emperor Wu of Han
Dynasty (202BC-220AD), and
became the ideology of the society
in the feudal system since then.
Taoism
Taoism, with more than 1,800
years history originated in
the Warring Period and came into
being in Eastern Han Dynasty (25
- 220). Now about 300 Taoist
Temples are scattered around
China, in which about 30 thousand
Taoists lived in. Around 5 Taoist
schools exist in the country and
two main sections are included in
Taoism. In the 1,800 years, Taoism
influenced the local culture deeply,
especially on traditional medicine
and literature.
Islam
Being introduced into China in
the 7th century in Tang Dynasty,
Islam has more than 1,400 years
history in the country. Now,
Muslims live everywhere, but the
highest concentrations are Ningxia

Jerye (ancestral emorial rite)


According to a traditional Korean
belief, when people die, their spirits
do not immediately depart; they stay
with descendants for four
generations. During this period the
deceased are still regarded as family
members and Koreans reaffirm the
relationship between ancestors and
descendants through jerye on the
special days like Sollal (Lunar New
Year's Day) and Chuseok (Korean
Thanksgiving Day), as well as on the
anniversary the ancestors passed
away.
Protestants and Catholicism
Protestantism came to Korea after
the signing of the Korean-American
Treaty in 1882. Since Christianity
challenged the basic values of Joseon
society, its believers were subject to
persecution in the early years, but as
Christians took an increasingly active
role in the anti-colonial struggle
against the Japanese and churches
promoted more educational
opportunities, Christianity gained
more acceptance.
Confucianism
Confucianism was a common
philosophy in ancient Korea that

a manner suggestive of
spiritual practices that
incorporated notions of an
afterlife.

Many Hindu practices and beliefs


under Chola rule were
interwoven with the royal
familys authority. Shiva was the
Cholas divine state authority.
local traditions in the Tamilspeaking region and other Chola
territories honored a myriad of
other deities
including Brahma, Vishnu, and
thegoddess Devireflecting the
diversity of beliefs that are
understood as Hinduism today.
Darshan, the act of seeing and
being seen by the deity to attain
grace, is one of the central
aspects of Hindu worship. The
eyes of the deity, cut in a special
ceremony, are critically important
to the devotees ability to make
direct visual contact. With
continued bathing, anointing, and
other aspects of worship the eyes

Hui Autonosmous Region,


Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous
Region, Gansu Province and even
Qinghai Province. Sunni Islam
was the main branch worshipped
by almost all the Muslims in the
country.
Christianity
Christianity was first introduced to
China in Tang Dynasty, which was
named as Nestorianism during that
time. After 1840, they swept the
country. Although they were
suspended after 1949, it spread
fast in recent years. Now about 30
million Chinese people are
Christians, who are organized in
about 97 parishes. Most of
Christians gather in the south part
of the country.
The ten sun in the sky
In ancient China, people believed
that there were ten suns that
appeared in turn in the sky during
the Chinese ten-day week. Each
day the ten suns would travel with
their mother, the goddess Xi He, to
the Valley of the Light in the East.
There, Xi He would wash her

brought about profound changes and


exerted considerable influence on the
Korean people. It has become an
indispensable component of the
Korean moral system, way of life,
and national law.
Shamanism
Various shamanistic practices are
deeply ensconced in Korean life.
Modern shamanism still remains very
similar to folk beliefs from ancient
times, as it has remained relatively
uninfluenced by Buddhist tradition. It
is closely related to the rituals of
primitive cults and communal rites
for the gods of heaven. Even today,
Shamanism in Korea is a practice that
seeks to solve human problems
through a meeting between humans
and the spirits.
Won Buddhism
is a modernly reformed Buddhism
that seeks to make enlightenment
possible for everyone and applicable
to regular life. The scriptures and
practices are simplified so that
anyone, regardless of their wealth,
occupation, or other external living
conditions, can understand them.
Mormonism
The Church of Jesus Christ of Latterday Saints in South Korea was
established following the baptism

are gradually worn down and


therefore must sometimes be cut
again.
Shiva has many aspects and
powers that have been described
in hymns, religious narratives,
ritual, visual art, dance, theater,
andmost recently
Rg Veda, Shiva was understood
as the deity Rudra, "the howler,"
a lesser but feared god who is
connected to the wild,
uncontrollable aspects of animals
and nature. Between 300 and 700
CE, a new understanding of
Shiva emerged from texts called
the Puranas, which recount the
adventures and challenges of the
gods.
Shiva Purana describes Shiva as
performing two critical and
interconnecting roles as the
destroyer and the creator,
periodically destroying the
universe so that it can be remade
again. These texts also contain
stories of Shiva as a yogi, dweller
in cremation grounds, husband to
the goddess Parvati (Uma), and

children in the lake and put them


in the branches of an enormous
mulberry tree called fu-sang. From
the tree, only one sun would move
off into the sky for a journey of
one day, to reach the mount YenTzu in the Far West.
Cowherd and weaving girl
The fairy tale of the Cowherd and
the Weaving Girl is one of the four
most famous folktales of ancient
China. It is a classic love story
between a fairy and a human being
and has a widespread influence.
The Qixi Festival is said to have
something to do with the fairy tale.
Naturally, the seventh day of every
seventh month of the lunar
calendar has become Chinese
Valentine's Day.
The story of meng jiangnv
The story of Meng Jiangnv is very
famous in China. Operas ,ballads,
and musicals featuring this story
are widely spread among the
people.
Individual salvation
Chinese beliefs and practices
related to death were closely tied

of Kim Ho Jik in 1951. Studying


nutrition in Cornell, he met a member
of their faith, Oliver Wyman, and was
struck with their doctrine. Upon
joining the church and completing his
degree, Kim traveled back to South
Korea, started translations for
materials, and helped the church gain
official recognition.
Cheondoism
is a fundamentally Confucian
religious tradition derived from
indigenous Sinism. It is the religious
dimension of the Donghak ("Eastern
Learning") movement that was
founded by Choe Je-u (1824-1864), a
member of an
impoverished yangban (aristocratic)
family, in 1860 as a counter-force to
the rise of "foreign religions", which
in his view included Buddhism and
Christianity (part of Seohak, the wave
of Western influence that penetrated
Korean life at the end of the 19th
century).
Unification church
is a new religious movementfounded
in South Korea in 1954 by Sun
Myung Moon. Since its founding, the
church has expanded throughout the
world with most members living in
East Asia.

father to the
gods Ganesha andSkanda.
Devotional poetry Tamil poetsaints of the seventh through
ninth centuries CE offer an
important perspective on the
south Indian worship of key
Hindu deities.
Their devotional perspective is
known as bhakti. These saints
and devotional poets wrote
numerous hymns dedicated to
Hindu gods, especially Shiva and
Vishnu.
Tamilas opposed to Sanskrit,
the language used in Brahmanic
Hindu ritualthe poems were
performed throughout the region,
generating deep devotion and
even inspiring the construction of
temples. A number of poet-saints
were from the lower classes.
Dance, one of many offerings to
the deity, was performed by
temple dancers or devadasis,
women who dedicated their lives
to sacred movement.
Bharata natyam is based on the
108 positions of Shiva's dance of

to family life and, therefore,


shaped by its collectivist mentality.
In his article, "Souls and
Salvation: Conflicting Themes in
Chinese Popular Religion," the
anthropologist Myron Cohen, has
even argued that the pursuit of
individual salvation was inimical
to orthodox popular religion.
Nonetheless, this pursuit was not
absent from traditional religious
life.

China has been a multi-religion


country since the ancient times. It
is well known that Confucianism
is an indigenous religion and is the
soul of Chinese culture, which
enjoyed popular support among
people and even became the
guiding ideology for feudalism
society, but it did not develop into
a national belief.
According to a latest survey, 85%
of Chinese people have religious
beliefs or had some religious
practices and only 15% of them

Unificationist beliefs are derived


from the Christian Bible and are
explained in the church's textbook,
the Divine Principle. It teaches that
God is the creator and Heavenly
Father, whose dual nature combines
both masculinity and femininity and
whose center is true love.
The blessing ceremony of the
Unification Church, a wedding or
marriage rededication ceremony, is a
church tradition which has attracted
wide public attention.
Islam
in South Korea is represented by a
community of roughly
40,000 Muslims, mainly composed
by people who converted during
the Korean War and their descendents
and not including migrant workers
from South and Southeast Asia. The
largest mosque is the Seoul Central
Mosque in the Itaewon district of
Seoul; smaller mosques can be found
in most of the country's major cities.
Hinduism
is practiced among South Korea's
small Indian and Nepali immigrant
community. However, Hindu
traditions such
as yoga and Vedanta have attracted

triumph, which are described in


the Natya Shasta (ca. secondsixth centuries), a text focused on
the art of performance. Images of
these positionskaranasstill
exist on temples of Tamil Nadu
today.
the significance of dance in the
image and narrative of Shiva
Nataraja relates to his cosmic
power, which is represented in a
dynamic pose that appears to
radiate energy. It recalls the
narrative of Shiva's victorious
"dance of bliss" (ananda
tandava) in the forest
near Chidambaram.

are real atheists.

185 million people believe in


Buddhism and 33 million have
faith in Christianity and believes in
the existence of God.

Only 12 million people are


Taoists, although more than one
hundred million have taken part in
Taoism activities before. Thus, it is
obvious that the Buddhism has the
widest influence. The other major
religions are Taoism,
Confucianism, Islam and
Christianity.

interest among younger South


Koreans. There are two Hindu
temples in the Seoul region, the Sri
Radha Shyamasundar Mandir and
the Sri Sri Radha Krishna temple,
located on Seoul's outskirts.

ARTS AND
LITERATURE

Arts and entertainment in


India have had their course
shaped by a synthesis of
indigenous and foreign
influences that have consequently
shaped the course of the arts of
the rest of Asia, since ancient
times. Arts refer
to paintings, architecture, literatu
re, music, dance, languages and c
inema.
Indian architecture consists of
production of the Indian
subcontinent that encompasses a
multitude of expressions over
space and time, transformed by
the forces of history considered
unique to the sub-continent,
sometimes destroying, but most
of the time absorbing. The result
is an evolving range of
architectural production that
nonetheless retains a certain
amount of continuity across
history.
The earliest production in
the Indus Valley Civilization was
characterised by well planned
cities and houses where religion

Zhong Kui
This painting
is a portrait of
Zhong Kui on
his feet drawn
in red ink. Zhong Kui is shown in
hight dudgeon at the evil spirits,
with his
sword
drqawn. His
martial stance
and his flying
sleeves lend a sense of movement
to the painting.
Pine and Cranes by Sea
This is
another
painting
to
celebrate
a
birthday, signifying Happiness
deep as the East Sea and longevity
comparable to the eternal pine on
South Mountain.
Imperial Concubine
This piece of ivory carving ware
is designed and carved by master
Yang Shihui. The lines are to be

Goguryeo Buddhism was introduced


to Goguryeo first in 372 CE because
of its location spanning much
of Manchuria and the northern half of
Korea, closest to the northern Chinese
states like the Northern Wei.
Buddhism inspired the Goguryeo
kings to begin commission art and
architecture dedicated to the Buddha.
A notable aspect of Goguryeo art are
tomb murals that vividly depict
everyday aspects of life in the ancient
kingdom as well as its
culture. UNESCO designated
the Complex of Goguryeo Tombs and
as a World Heritage Site because
Goguryeo painting was influential in
East Asia, including Japan, an
example being the wall murals
of Horyu-ji which was influenced by
Goguryeo.
baekje Baekje (or Paekche) is considered the
kingdom with the greatest art among the
three states. Baekje was a kingdom in
southwest Korea and was influenced by
southern Chinese dynasties, such as
the Liang Dynasty. Baekje was also one of
the kingdoms to introduce a significant
Korean influence into the art of Japan during

did not seem to play an active


role. The Buddhist period is
primarily represented by three
important building types- the
Chaitya Hall (place of worship),
the Vihara (monastery) and
the Stupa (hemispherical mound
for worship/ memory) exemplified by the extraordinary
caves of Ajanta and Ellora and
the monumental Sanchi Stupa.
The Jaina temples are
characterised by a richness of
detail that can be seen in
the Dilwara Temples in Mt.Abu.
The most famous Islamic
building type in India is the tomb
or the mausoleum which evolved
from the basic cube and
hemisphere vocabulary of the
early phase into a more elaborate
form during the Mughal
era where multiple chambers are
present and tombs were set in a
garden known as the char-bagh.
Gol Gumbaz, Bijapur and the Taj
Mahal, Agra, the latter renowned
for its beauty in white marble, its
minarets and its setting. With

Chinese porcelain
Porcelain, also called 'fine china',
featuring its delicate texture,
pleasing color, and refined
sculpture, has been one of the
earliest artworks introduced to the
western world through the Silk
Road.

this time period.


silla
The Silla Kingdom was the most isolated
kingdom from the Korean peninsula because
it was situated in the southeast part of the
peninsula. The kingdom was the last to adopt
Buddhism and foreign cultural influences.

Chinese opera
Chinese opera together with
Greece tragic-comedy and Indian
Sanskrit Opera are the three oldest
dramatic art forms in the world.
During the Tang Dynasty (618

The Silla Kingdom tombs were mostly


inaccessible and so many examples of
Korean art come from this kingdom. The
Silla craftsman were famed for their goldcrafting ability which have similarities
to Etruscan and Greek techniques, as
exampled by gold earrings and crowns.

Gaya
The Gaya confederacy was a group
of city-states that did not consolidate
into a centralized kingdom. It shared
many similarities in its art, such as

colonisation, a new chapter


began. Though
theDutch, Portuguese and the
French made substantial forays, it
was the English who had a
lasting impact.
Modern Architecture into India
and later with Independence, the
quest was more towards progress
as a paradigm fuelled
by Nehruvian visions. The
planning of Chandigarh- a city
most architects hate/love- by Le
Corbusier was considered a step
towards this. Later as modernism
exhausted itself in the West and
new directions were sought for,
in India too there was a search
for a more meaningful
architecture rooted in the Indian
context.
Indian literature, oral and written
forms are both
important. Hinduliterary
traditions dominate a large part of
Indian culture. Apart from
the Vedas which are a sacred
form of knowledge, there are
other works such as the Hindu

907), the Emperor Taizong


established an opera school with
the poetic name Liyuan (Pear
Garden).
Chinese pottery
Pottery may be the oldest artwork
of human beings. As far back as
the Neolithic Age (more than
8,000 years ago), people began
mixing clay and water then baking
it until it held its shape. Ancient
people attached the word 'pottery'
to their discovery and used it to
create various vessels and tools to
improve the quality of life. Over
the course of thousands of
years, they became dominant
wares in people's daily life: used to
cook, to store things, and to hold
cuisine or waters as dishes.

Cchinese Embroidery is a brilliant pearl


in Chinese art. From the magnificent
Dragon Robe worn by Emperors to the
popular embroidery seen in today's
fashions, it adds so much pleasure to our
life and our culture. The oldest
embroidered product in China on record
dates from the Shang Dynasty.

crowns with tree-like protrusions


which are seen in Baekje and Silla.
Many of the artifacts unearthed in
Gaya tumuli are artifacts related to
horses, such as stirrups, saddles, and
horse armor. Ironware was best
plentiful in this period than any age.

Korean painting
Korean painting demands an
understanding of Korean
ceramics and Korean pottery as the
glazes used in these works and the
textures of the glazes make Korean
art more in the tradition of ceramic
art, than of western painterly
traditions, even if the subjects appear
to be of western origin. Brush-strokes
as well are far more important than
they are to the western artist;
paintings are judged on brush-strokes
more often than pure technique.

epics Ramayana and Mahabhara


ta, treatises such as Vaastu
Shastra in architecture and town
planning, and Arthashastra in
political science.
Tamil literature has been in
existence for more than 2500
years. Tolkaappiyam has been
credited as its oldest work,
whereas the exact origins
ofThirukkural is unknown.

Embroidery in this period symbolized


social status. It was not until later on, as
the national economy developed, that
embroidered products entered the lives of
the common people.

CUISINE

Andhra
Pradesh The cuisine of
Andhra Pradesh belongs
to the two Teluguspeaking regions of
Rayalaseema and Coastal
Andhra and is part
of Telugu cuisine.

Assam
Assamese cuisine is a mixture
of different indigenous styles,
with considerable regional
variation and some external
influences. Although it is known
for its limited use of
spices, Assamese cuisine has
strong flavours from its use of
endemic herbs, fruits, and
vegetables served fresh, dried
or fermented.
Bihar Bihari cuisine is
wholesome and simple. Litti

Sichuan
Cuisines (or
Chuan
Cuisines)
Features: spicy
and hot, sour and hot
Classic Dishes: shredded pork with garlic
sauce, stewed beancurd with minced pork
in pepper sauce, saute chicken cubes with
chilli and peanuts, duck smoked with tea
leaves.

Hanjungsik, which is
one of the Korean
formal cuisine.

Dolsotbap, cooked
rice in a stone pot
(dolsot)

Kongguksu, a cold
noodle dish with a
broth made from
ground soy beans.

A bowl of gejang, marinated crabs in soy


sauce and plates of various banchan (small
side dishes)

Tteokguk, soup made with tteok, rice cake


is a traditional Korean dish eaten during
the celebration of the Korean New Year. The

chokha, a baked salted wheat


flour cake filled
with sattu (baked chickpea flour)
and some special spices, is well
known among the middle-class
families.
Chandigarh the capital
of Punjab and Haryana is a city
of 20th century origin with a
cosmopolitan food culture mainly
involving North Indian cuisine.
Delhi was once the capital of the
Mughal Empire, and it became
the birthplace of Mughlai cuisine.
Delhi is noted for its street food.
The Paranthewali Gali in
Chandani Chowk is just one of
the culinary landmarks for
stuffed flatbread (Paranthas).

madyha Pradesh
The cuisine in Madhya
Pradesh varies regionally. Wheat
and meat are common in the
North and West of the state,
while the wetter South and East
are dominated by rice and fish.

Guangdong Cuisines (or Yue Cuisines)


Features: fresh, delicate, nutrient
Classic Dishes: braised snake and leopard
cat, roasted crispy sucking pig, sweet and
sour pork, Dalong fried fresh milk,
Chaozhou stewed abalone and shark's
fins, fried beef Fillet with oyster sauce,
whole winter melon soup, boiled
Wenchang chicken with sauce.
Shandong Cuisines (or Lu Cuisines)
Features: paying attention to the choosing
of materials and cutting skills, usually
seasoning with shallot and ginger
Classic
Dishes: sweet and
sour fish, fried pork
joint, fried mutton
slice with scallion,
fried trepang
with scallion,
fried bean-curd,
braised whelk
with brown
sauce, fried
oyster.
Jiangsu Cuisines (or Su Cuisines)
features: fine cooking skill, different
cooking methods for different dishes,
thick and elegant taste, exquisite sculpts

dish consists of the broth/soup with thinly


sliced rice cakes.
BUDDHIST Cuisine
korean temple cuisine
originated in Buddhist
temples of Korea.
Since Buddhism was
introduced into
Korea, Buddhist traditi
ons have strongly
influenced Korean
cuisine, as well. During
the Silla period
yakgwa (a fried dessert) and yumilgwa (a
fried and puffed rice snack) were served for
Buddhist altars
and have been
developed into
types of hangwa,
Korean
traditional confect
ionery.

Milk is a common ingredient


in Gwalior and Indore.

Pav Bhaji, a popular


fast food originating in
Maharashtra

for dishes
Classic Dishes: baked side pork, Huaian
braised meatballs, roast chicken wrapped
by lotus-leaves and clay, sweet and sour
mandarin fish, braised finless eel, boiled
salted duck.
Hunan Cuisines (Xiang Cuisines)
Features: spicy and sour, with steamed,
fried and smoked food as the favorite.
Classical Dishes: spicy and hot chicken,
steamed multiple preserved hams, Andong
chicken, Dongting wild chicken, sweet
semen nelumbinis
soup.

COSTUME

FEMALE CLOTHING
Traditional Indian
clothing for women in the
north and east
are saris worn
with choli tops; a long skirt called
a lehenga or pavada worn with choli and
a dupatta scarf to create an ensemble
called a gagra choli; or salwar
kameez suits, while many south Indian
women traditionally wear sari and
children wear pattu langa.
Sari and wrapped garments
A saree or sar is a female
garment in the Indian
subcontinent.A sari is a strip of
unstitched cloth, ranging from four to
nine meters in length, that is draped over
the body in various styles. These
include:Sambalpuri Saree from East,
Mysore silk and Ilkal of Karnataka and,
Kanchipuram of Tamil Nadu from
South, Paithani from West
and Banarasifrom North
among others.
Salwar Kameez
is the traditional wear of women
in Punjab, Haryana and Himachal

Darker Colors
Darker colors were much more
favored than lighter ones in
traditional Chinese clothing so the
main color of ceremonial clothing
tended to be dark while bright,
elaborate tapestry designs
accented. Lighter colored clothing
was worn more frequently by the
common people for everyday use.
Colors and Seasons
The Chinese associate certain
colors with specific seasons:
green represents spring, red
symbolizes summer, white
represents autumn, and black
symbolizes winter. The Chinese
are said to have a fully developed
system of matching, coordinating,
and contrasting colors and shades
of light and dark in apparel.
Red Color
for most Chinese people since
Red symbolizes good luck in
traditional mind. Chinese people
prefer to wear in red when they are
celebrating some important
festivals or events in their life,
such as wedding ceremony.
The pienfu
is an ancient two-piece ceremonial

Pradesh and is called the Punjabi


suit which is most common in the
northwestern part of India
(Punjab region). The
Punjabi suit also includes
the "churidaar" and "kurta"
ensemble which is also popular in
Southern India where it is known as the
"churidaar".
Lehenga Choli (skirt and blouse)
A Ghagra Choli or a Lehenga Choli is
the traditional clothing of women
in Rajasthan and Gujarat.
Dhoti
A dhoti is from four to six
feet long white or colour
strip of cotton. This
traditional attire is mainly
worn by men in villages.
Panchi or lungi
A Lungi, also known
as sarong, is a traditional
garment of India. A Mundu is
a lungi, except that it is
always white.[42] It is either
tucked in, over the waist, up to
knee-length or is allowed to lie
over and reach up to the ankle.
Sherwani

costume of a tunic-like top


extending to the knees and a skirt
or trousers extending to the ankles.
The changpao
is a one-piece garment extending
from the shoulders all the way to
the heels.
The shenyi
is a cross between the pienfu and
the changpao; it consists of a tunic
and a skirt or trousers like the
pienfu, but the tunic and the skirt
are sewed together and essentially
one piece like the changpao.
Consequently, the shenyi was the
most widely worn of the three
types. Three types of clothing were
wide and voluminous sleeves and
a very loose fit. Tunic and trousers
or tunic and skirt, utilized a very
minimum number of stitches for
the amount of cloth used.

A Sherwani is a long coat / jacket that


usually sports exposed buttons through
the length of the jacket. The length is
usually just below the knees and the
jacket ends just below the knee.
Sherwani is worn with tight fitting pants
or trousers called churidars.

LANGUAGE

Indo-Aryan language family


The largest of the language
families represented in India, in
terms of speakers, is the IndoAryan language family, a branch
of the Indo-Iranian family, itself
the easternmost, extant subfamily
of the Indo-European language
family.
Dravidian language family The
largest of the language families
represented in India, in terms of
speakers, is the Indo-Aryan
language family, a branch of
the Indo-Iranian family, itself the
easternmost, extant subfamily of
the Indo-European language
family.
Austroasiatic language family
(austro meaning South) is
theautochthonous language in
South Asia and Southeast Asia,
other language families having
arrived by migration.
Sino-Tibetan language family
are well represented in India.
spoken across the Himalayas in
the regions of Ladakh, Himachal
Pradesh, Nepal, Sikkim, Bhutan,

The languages of China are the


languages that are spoken by
China's 56 recognized ethnic
groups.
Standard Chinese (known in
China as Putonghua), a form
of Mandarin Chinese, is the
official national spoken language
for the mainland and serves as
a lingua franca within the
Mandarin-speaking regions (and,
to a lesser extent, across the other
regions of mainland China).
The Cantonese dialect is one of
the major languages of the Chinese
language group. It is the speech of
the Cantonese people in parts of
the Guangdong and Guangxi
provinces, as well as Hainan
island, Hong Kong, Macau, and
overseas Chinese of Cantonese
origin. The accent as spoken in
Guangzhou is considered the
standard.
The Hakka language is spoken in
the provinces Guangdong, Fujian,
Jiangxi, Hunan, Guangxi,
Guizhou, Sichuan, and in Hong
Kong, especially the New

Arunachal Pradesh, and also in


the Indian states of West
Bengal, Assam, (hills and
autonomous councils - BTC)[40]
[41]
Meghalaya, Nagaland, Manip
ur,Tripura and Mizoram.
Tai-Kadai language family
Ahom language belonging
to Southwestern Tai language had
been once the dominant language
of Ahom Kingdom in modernday Assam but had been replaced
later by Kamarupi language, the
ancient form ofAssamese
language.
Great Andamanese language
family The extinct and
endangered languages of
the Andaman Islands form a fifth
family- the Great Andamanese
language family, comprising two
families, namely: Great
Andamanese, Ongan family of
the southern Andaman Islands

http://www.diehardindian.com/culture-customs-traditions
http://www.asia.si.edu/explore/indianart/poetry.asp

Territories, Taiwan, Hainan,


Indonesia, Malaysia, Singapore,
Netherlands, Surinam, United
Kingdom and other overseas
Chinese communities of Hakka
origin.
The Chinese languages are the
languages of the Han people, the
major ethnic group of China. They
are spoken by over one billion
people. Approximately 95 percent
of the Chinese population speaks
Chinese, as opposed to the nonChinese languages such as
Tibetan, Mongolian, Lolo, Miao,
and Tai spoken by minorities.
The Min dialects are spoken in
most of Fujian, large areas of
Taiwan and Hainan, parts of
Eastern Guangdong and the
Leizhou Bandao Peninsula, and in
areas of Southeast Asia. Most of
the people living in Jiangxi,
eastern part of Hunan, and the
southeastern corner of Hubei use
the Gan dialects.
http://www.visitourchina.com/guide/culture.html#4
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Languages_of_China

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_Korean_traditional_festivals
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Indian_cuisine
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Clothing_in_India
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Languages_of_India

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_Korean_clothing

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