There seem to be some very typical and eccentric traits of a group of people that makes them unique amongst all other races or nationalities. Let's discuss as to what is it that distinguishes the Indian from the rest of the world.
India, not as in a politico-geographical entity sense, but in a sense of a collective mass of people always interacting and influencing one another and forming as a result an unsaid and unspoken norm and trait which forms an inalienable part of their ethos.
Let's see what they are:-
1) Chronologically bereft -- Indians, as far as history is traceable, seemed to be averse to plotting down in exact and incontrovertible manner the dates of the happenstance of any event of substantial magnitude; thus, leading to conflicting accounts of history with regards to chronology.
Infact, many historical events were pieced together with references to the mention in foreign accounts of India. Thus, the first time historians could accurately plot a time, space and date is at the invasion of Alexander The Great to India, thereby, making 326 BC landmark year chronologically as being the reference point of many of the events occurring prior and post this event.
Also foreign traveler historians such as Fa Hsien, Al Beruni and others offer important insights into not only Indian way of life extant during their expeditions but also provides the much needed milestone in pinning down the exact dates of events.
Though Indians did write extensive records in matters of administration, poetry, conquests, mythology etc.what becomes difficult is to plot them in space and time.Thus, when on the one hand we have Greek, Chinese and Babylonian civilization offering almost a precise account of their histories, in India it seems difficult to piece together a cohesive and a meaningful record of historical occurrences.
To give an example, the Aryan Invasion Theory is a bone of contention between the rightists and the leftists, leaving the rest of India bewildered as to what to believe in. And it's now, in the last few years or so, that we were able to find the birthplace of Siddhartha Gautama Buddha (and it's not in India).
It also seems that we Indians are either chronologically lackadaisical or disregard it altogether, believing it to be of little importance. This seems to be a common thread running through out the ages and across the breadth and length of the country.
2) Forgetfulness -- Indians do not seem to be a group who'd remember for a long time the major incidents of substantial magnitude. In recent times, we can see the apathy of the people as a whole to the terrorists incidents.Contrast that with response elsewhere; the American retaliation to 9/11 incident and London's response to the tube station bombings were such that we haven't seen a repetition of the same kind or magnitude in either of the countries. But in India, right from the highest echelons of government, the authorities to the common people, are all in a state of oblivion and passivity as if somehow things will take care of itself.
Forgetfulness seems to run in genetic make-up, as historically too Indians have been beset by this trait. Remember Mahmud of Ghaznavi's 17 'invasions' to India which ultimately let to the plunder of the Somnath Temple. Even if the kings en route from Afghanistan to Gujarat, a very long stretch, were to offer some resistance on account of repeated pattern of past assaults, Indians could have fared many times better in stalling foreign powers from invading, impoverishing and/or enslaving India; if not altogether, at least to a substantial degree.
3) Infighting -- This trait is the hallmark of India as one cannot imagine an India without differences of opinion.But the prevalence of differences in spite of having a common uniting ground in everyone's interest is something unheard of. No wonder rulers of ancient and medieval India couldn't see eye to eye despite common threat of foreign powers and standing armies at the border. Not that rulers didn't offer resistance, but once Indian fortresses were penetrated, it didn't take much time for the foreign armies to expand in the mainland; whether the Moghuls or the Britishers.
4) Inequality -- Every society in earlier had some sort of distinction and gradation , but it wasn't so graded so as to make its adherents immobile. The hallmark of Indian societal division was that over a period of time, it degenerated from an occupational basis, which was fluid and mobile to birth based with occupation forming the foundation, which was rigid and inflexible from the gradation point of view and pernicious and baneful from humanistic perspective.
This feature has stayed with India even today, even though India has leapt way ahead of other NIS (newly independent states) with regards to equality and secularism.
5)Untapped Human Resource : Indians despite being blessed with intelligence which led it to be creators of many sciences and at the forefront of leading thought, logic and arts have never really replicated it on a broader scale involving the critical mass of the country. Even today, the economy and state is driven by 35% of the population, the rest having no means to share in the spoils of economic liberalization and free markets. If any, the poor are further relegated to the fringes. And thus we find the same cycle repeating where India is not able to make full use of its human resources.
I could ponder and find these 5 traits. Do you know any group or nationality of people possessing such traits which make them stand out from rest of the world?
India, not as in a politico-geographical entity sense, but in a sense of a collective mass of people always interacting and influencing one another and forming as a result an unsaid and unspoken norm and trait which forms an inalienable part of their ethos.
Let's see what they are:-
1) Chronologically bereft -- Indians, as far as history is traceable, seemed to be averse to plotting down in exact and incontrovertible manner the dates of the happenstance of any event of substantial magnitude; thus, leading to conflicting accounts of history with regards to chronology.
Infact, many historical events were pieced together with references to the mention in foreign accounts of India. Thus, the first time historians could accurately plot a time, space and date is at the invasion of Alexander The Great to India, thereby, making 326 BC landmark year chronologically as being the reference point of many of the events occurring prior and post this event.
Also foreign traveler historians such as Fa Hsien, Al Beruni and others offer important insights into not only Indian way of life extant during their expeditions but also provides the much needed milestone in pinning down the exact dates of events.
Though Indians did write extensive records in matters of administration, poetry, conquests, mythology etc.what becomes difficult is to plot them in space and time.Thus, when on the one hand we have Greek, Chinese and Babylonian civilization offering almost a precise account of their histories, in India it seems difficult to piece together a cohesive and a meaningful record of historical occurrences.
To give an example, the Aryan Invasion Theory is a bone of contention between the rightists and the leftists, leaving the rest of India bewildered as to what to believe in. And it's now, in the last few years or so, that we were able to find the birthplace of Siddhartha Gautama Buddha (and it's not in India).
It also seems that we Indians are either chronologically lackadaisical or disregard it altogether, believing it to be of little importance. This seems to be a common thread running through out the ages and across the breadth and length of the country.
2) Forgetfulness -- Indians do not seem to be a group who'd remember for a long time the major incidents of substantial magnitude. In recent times, we can see the apathy of the people as a whole to the terrorists incidents.Contrast that with response elsewhere; the American retaliation to 9/11 incident and London's response to the tube station bombings were such that we haven't seen a repetition of the same kind or magnitude in either of the countries. But in India, right from the highest echelons of government, the authorities to the common people, are all in a state of oblivion and passivity as if somehow things will take care of itself.
Forgetfulness seems to run in genetic make-up, as historically too Indians have been beset by this trait. Remember Mahmud of Ghaznavi's 17 'invasions' to India which ultimately let to the plunder of the Somnath Temple. Even if the kings en route from Afghanistan to Gujarat, a very long stretch, were to offer some resistance on account of repeated pattern of past assaults, Indians could have fared many times better in stalling foreign powers from invading, impoverishing and/or enslaving India; if not altogether, at least to a substantial degree.
3) Infighting -- This trait is the hallmark of India as one cannot imagine an India without differences of opinion.But the prevalence of differences in spite of having a common uniting ground in everyone's interest is something unheard of. No wonder rulers of ancient and medieval India couldn't see eye to eye despite common threat of foreign powers and standing armies at the border. Not that rulers didn't offer resistance, but once Indian fortresses were penetrated, it didn't take much time for the foreign armies to expand in the mainland; whether the Moghuls or the Britishers.
4) Inequality -- Every society in earlier had some sort of distinction and gradation , but it wasn't so graded so as to make its adherents immobile. The hallmark of Indian societal division was that over a period of time, it degenerated from an occupational basis, which was fluid and mobile to birth based with occupation forming the foundation, which was rigid and inflexible from the gradation point of view and pernicious and baneful from humanistic perspective.
This feature has stayed with India even today, even though India has leapt way ahead of other NIS (newly independent states) with regards to equality and secularism.
5)Untapped Human Resource : Indians despite being blessed with intelligence which led it to be creators of many sciences and at the forefront of leading thought, logic and arts have never really replicated it on a broader scale involving the critical mass of the country. Even today, the economy and state is driven by 35% of the population, the rest having no means to share in the spoils of economic liberalization and free markets. If any, the poor are further relegated to the fringes. And thus we find the same cycle repeating where India is not able to make full use of its human resources.
I could ponder and find these 5 traits. Do you know any group or nationality of people possessing such traits which make them stand out from rest of the world?
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