Culture is an awesome element that contributes tremendously to the personality and identity of a person.
A person’s way of life is rooted from the society, community, or family in which he/she has been raised. People from a specific community or those raised in a specific family tend to exhibit a specific societal perspective, comparable judgements, and reasoning. Here, I’m going to talk about the country or culture from where my roots are from. The culture who has diversity in its own and the land of “Atithi Devo Bhav”, a value that soaked up into each and every Indian; to believe that guests are god. The landscape of the country is blessed with all types of environment; deserts, snow, coastal beaches, and highlands. India that is incredibly rich in culture and heritage. I’m coming with those realities that world is not aware of like caste system in India, relationship, marriages, way of communications, respect, spiritual health, food and festivals. India would be a rare example of a cocktail of different languages, religions, dance, music, architecture, and food.
India is a land of multi-lingual and multi-religious. It is a birthplace of the world’s four major religion; Hinduism, Buddhism, Jainism, and Sikhism. My roots are from India and I’m half Gujarat and half Mlavi.
Gujarat and Madhya Pradesh is a state. How the both religion effect on me and how both culture are diverse from each other. By including family values to the family members’ perceptive and what is the role of society in both culture I’ll talk briefly about my own perspective too.
My introduction to this world was under a diversified cultural ordeal. By gender I’m a female and I’m grateful for that. India is a diverse country but still there are some people who believes that men are superior. Majority of the people believe this thing and there are more than 80% families that has superior as men. Talking about my family, my dad is the only person who is earning and supporting us as financially.
At the same time, my family believe that I should grow up and be independent because they don’t want me to see like other women in India and that’s the main reason behind my study in United States. By Indian culture, women have to be shy, respectful, give respect to the men, not to be superior, less earning person, always cooking for family, take cares of her children, and never speak when men are talking. These are the common things that men and Indian society believe in but there are some people who are totally opposite to these thoughts. By gender my family believe that my brother should become businessman and I should become a doctor because I’m a girl and business doesn’t suit on the girls. By culturally, I would like to say that every state has their own culture, own language, own festivals, and own food. If you move from one state to another state you will get culture shock and that is normal in India.
In my family, my mom is from Madhya Pradesh and that’s another state and my dad is from Gujarat. They did love marriage but their language is different and their life styles were different. My mom still has some language problem after spending 20 years with my dad. So, basically, I’m half Gujarati and half Malvi. My dad doesn’t believe in myths and he believes more in practical knowledge rather than praying to god. My mom is totally opposite, she believes in myths rather than practical knowledge. I still remember some of them and fundamentally I believe some of them too, I know that’s not true and there are no logics behind them but my mom believes and so I’m.
what I have still remember are; you can’t cut hairs and nails on Saturdays and after midnight, if the crow is making voice around your house that means someone going to visit you, if cat crosses your path that means something bad going to happen on your path, if dog is crying around your home that means someone going to die and that person will be one of your close person, if you break the glass unintentionally that means something good going to happen and there are some festival related like we can’t wear black clothes on festivals or on some good occasions, some rituals like you can’t wear sandals or sleepers in the temple, if you promise something to god that means you will get what you are wanting from so long, and so on. I don’t really believe but whenever I talk with my mom when any of these happen with me that means that side effect going to affect me, that is also my own myth. I believe in god and I have faith in god because I get some positive vibes from god. I believe in god Krishna or Shrinathji. my all family member believes in the same god. Hindu people have different gods and this is one of them.
When I was a little kid, I was doing everything that relates to the god like Janmashtmi that means the born of the god and I was doing fast for him or to please him. Indian culture believes that if you want to please your god you have to do the fast and I still believe that and there are some scientific reasons too. I get elder and I stopped doing the fast, or Aarti (one kind of ritual song), change dress of him, change the Mishri everyday (his daily snack), and spend 10-15 minute in the temple and do the worshipping. I went to the one workshops this year and they told the importance of the spiritual health, and positivity. I remembered that I was having positivity when I was doing these things for my god but right now I don’t have that much of time to do all the things.
I promised, and I started doing Aarti and I called that Aarti as Yamunashtak daily when I walk to the school from my house. I started feeling that something is connected to my body or I have a faith in the god. I love hearing Yamunshtak everyday so I can feel more confident. This is one good thing that I like about Indians that they focus more on spiritual health rather than physical health because inner positivity and confidence is everything. Yoga is basically the same thing. As I mentioned, India is a diverse country and it has differences in everything no matter if it’s language, festivals, gods, foods, or caste. Here is the main point of my essay, the caste system in India that I’m totally opposite.
Indian 90s’ parents believe that my daughter or my son have to marriage in the same caste that we belong from. We are not consider kissing our partner in the public because it’s about the respect of other people. We are still not allowed to do the love marriages or to get into relation with someone and especially the person is not from your caste. There some parents who allows to do the love marriage but if the person is male he is allowed to marry lower caste female but if the person is female she is not allowed to marry lower caste man. Only considering about my family, they want me to marry someone who is wealthier than me or my family, from the same caste that I belong from, and the person who has United States’ green card.
They don’t allow me to have a boyfriend at 18 or till graduation and if I have boyfriend with same caste they are good with my relation. In India, caste describes your personality and identity. From your last name people decide that if the person is from lower caste or upper caste. There are no equal rights for the caste. Upper caste people don’t touch the lower caste people and their professions are different. Maybe I believe that there are still some trust issues that my parents have with known people because they always tell me that don’t believe on someone’s talks and maybe he will cheat you or so on things.
Well, I don’t know till when I have to introduce my boyfriend as my friend to my parents because they don’t know my best friend is my boyfriend. I don’t know if they will be agreed or not for my marriage because we both are from different caste. Communication is a major key to every relationship weather its friendship, parenting, love-relationships, siblings, or any other.
First time when I left my parents and I came to United States I had a cultural shock and at the same time communication shock too. I thought here people are speaking English only but I was so wrong everyone is speaking Spanish. If you know Spanish you can make friends easily.
I was having difficult time before as I’m really very picky with the persons and I didn’t know with whom I can be friends with. People find friends who are speaking same language and there are very few people who accepts different culture people. My most of the friends are Indian and Americans. Over in India, people make friends who is wealthier so they can hangout more and spend some money on them, some of the people make friends based on caste, popularity, and how studious another person is.
there are still some people who make friends who are ready to support them, who care for their efforts, who appreciate, and who accepts the flaws too. I am kind of person who make all type of friend like someone that I really want from my heart and I really care for, some of them are only for studies, some of them are wealthier or who has car so I don’t need to worry about money and ride every time. I’m little bit selfish sometimes. As communication is the most need, Indian culture is more about respects while communicating with someone.
We are not allowed to use bad words or slam words in front of parents, or someone who is elder than us. when two elders are talking you are not supposed to say something. You have to accept things when your parents and especially your father telling you something weather the thing is right or wrong. You are totally allowed to say something or give advice to someone who is younger than you.
Indian people judge your personality how you communicate with someone especially in professional places. I love to communicate and have conversation with someone. In my family, I’m allowed to give my opinion, I’m allowed to take my decision of my life but I can’t go beyond their expectations, in front of other family members I have to be quite because it’s symbol of respect, in front of society I have to be polite otherwise they point out finger on the parents that her parents didn’t give her good manners. Bollywood is popular all over the world and Bollywood is full of drama too. Indian people are addicted to watch Bollywood movies and TV serials.
Indian women are used to watch more TV serials and it’s all about drama. For music people are more comfortable with Bollywood music and album songs, there are some people who started listening Hollywood songs and watching Netflix. Another way to communicating with people is festivals and traditions. During the festivals, people meet each other, share greeting, build new relations, wake up early, share sweets, decorate the house, call people to their house for dinner or lunch, put lights everywhere, and hug each other. There are festivals every month and the big festivals are Diwali and Holi that is common in every state. For me my favorite festival is Navaratri that means nine nights and that is only for my state.
Indian culture is diverse in everything and there are some positive and negative points too. Concluding everything about Indian culture, I like the way why family values are highly respected and fundamental in daily life, the food of India that can never be found anywhere in the world and not even the Indian restaurants that are in different countries, how people remember each other during festivals, how people greet each other, Indian people know what respect is in real meaning, how our traditional clothes and jewelry define the women beauty not the fake make up. I got cultural shock in every single little thing weather its food, clothes, community, respect, festivals, or economy. In India, I belong from two different culture one is Gujarati culture and second is Madhya Pradesh or Rajasthani culture. I have seen totally open-minded people and I have seen totally conservative thinking people over there but everyone has their own culture. I’m grateful for what I have as a culturally because I think about respect for other people before being selfish or think only about me. I’m proud of my family, culture, traditions, manners, and what I have. I feel different when people has common thinking here and I have something new by culturally and about my thoughts.
“You move in different country for better lifestyle but you can’t leave your roots and that defines you from where you belong to” “Maybe I’m a growing plant in United States but my seeds are from India”
