Our Culture Today

OUR CULTURE TODAY
The culture of a society means its ideas, customs and art. The culture of a country is its customs, religions, music and dance. The food habits of the people, the festivals they celebrate, their art and handicrafts are all part of their culture.
India is a large country. A unique feature of our country is that all the major religions of the world are practised here like Hinduism, Islam, Christianity, Buddhism, Shikhism, Jainism and Zoroastrianism. There are also many languages
gjid dialects spoken in different parts of the country. There are also great varieties in costume, food-habits, and social customs.
India, being a secular country, provides his citizens the freedom to follow any religion. But we notice many common beliefs and customs among all the religions. On the occasion of festivals we pray, feast, go to the fairs, sing, and dance and wear colourful dresses. We have some festivals which are religious, and there are some festivals which are associated with seasons. Apart from these, we have National festivals such as Independence Day, Republic Day and Gandhi Jayanti.
These festivals are celebrated throughout the country with same zeal and enthusiasam. Some festivals such as Diwali, Dussehra, Holi, Id and Christmas are celebrated in most parts of the country. But Baishakhi, Pongal, Onam, Guruparv, Bihu, Basant Panchami, etc. are the regional festivals celebrated in some parts of the country. Birthdays of gods and other great man are also celebrated as festivals, for examples, we celebrate the birthday of Gautam Buddha as Buddha Purnima, lord Mahavir's birthday as Mahavir Jayanti, and Guru Nanak's as Guruparv.
Our culture also includes dance, music and art. Two types of dances classical and folk are in practice in India. Classical dance includes Bharat Natyam which comes from Tamil Nadu, Kathak from North India, Kathakli from Kerala, Kuchipudi from Andhra Pradesh, and Manipur from simpler and are mostly associated with "seasons. The...