India – the country of Incredible Facets

Introducing India, the country of incredible delights is a mammoth task, involving an exploration of strange yet extraordinary secrets stored in its heart. India gave to the world many novel concepts and visionary thoughts. One such prime thought is the concept of peace and non-violence which this country mastered through its 100000 years of history. Throughout this passage of illustrious time, India never invaded any country and always practiced peaceful and harmonious existence with the rest of the world.When many civilizations were dwelling in forests as nomads over 5,000 years ago, Indians were enjoying flourished and fulfilled existence at Harappa during Indus Valley Civilization period. In fact, the modern name ‘India’ is derived from the River Indus, the valley which was the home for the early settlers in the country. India got rechristened as ‘Hindustan’ by Persian invaders who pronounced Sindhu as Hindu. The term Hindustan became synonymous as the land of Hindus in the popular dialect, representing the land of bounties and riches defined by a metaphor of ‘the Golden Bird.’ This phrase illustrated the richness and grandeur of India equated with gold, wealth, diamonds, spices, fertile soil, rich resources, diversified knowledge and tolerant principles. Emperor Ashoka immortalized the principle of non-violence after a shattering bloodshed during the Kalinga War. He placed Buddhist rock edicts and pillar edicts in different regions of India. He also placed the Lion Capital in Sarnath, which later became the national emblem of this country. The Chakra in the Indian Flag is also inspired by the Dharma Chakra devised by Lord Buddha. Besides the peace and non-violence, India pioneered the concept of knowledge and education. The country’s achievement in the field of education was the conception of two famous universities in the world; Nalanda and Takshila. At that time, these universities taught more than 60 subjects and attracted around 10,500 students from different parts of the world, adding on to the glory of this region. The ancient sciences of Ayurveda and Yoga owe their origins to India. The timeless appeal of these healthy disciplines is valid till date, providing a boost to Ayurveda, Spa and Yoga therapies. In the field of science, Saint Charaka, the father of medicine devised and consolidated the concept of surgeries which are applicable even today. The accidental discovery of America by Christopher Columbus is also accredited to India. Columbus, in a hope to find out the sea route to India, unintentionally landed in America. Lastly and most importantly, India gave to the world the concept of immaculate hospitality through an age old adage, ‘Atithi Devo Bhavah.’ This saying sums up the belief that guests are god, and they should be treated with the divine hospitality. This saying is still a part of incredible India where tourists are considered gods and are treated at par with the best of hospitality and tourism potentials. This is a great reason why a great number of tourists prefer to visit India and experience a gamut of colours, regions, religions and traditions in a rich way. The incredible India tour is about all this and much more. It is an unabridged attempt to present the heritage, culture and natural bounties to the purveyors of India and bring them closer to this country of contrasts. Through this blog, we will continue to enlighten the tourists with the wealth of bestowed wonder called incredible India.