Question

Demonstrate your understanding of the changes in the area of Religious and Cultural Diversity by choosing and explaining THREE Documents/Artifacts which you believe show the changing ideas of religious and/or cultural diversity (acceptance or conflict) from the beginning of our nation to today.

Answer 1

Religious diversity has been a defining characteristic of India’s population for centuries. The country has no official state religion, but religion plays a central role in Indian daily life through its temple ceremonies, festivals, pilgrimages and family religious traditions.

Religious values reflect the beliefs and practices which a religious adherent partakes in. They can originate from members of the religion.

Hinduism has been the dominant religion for several thousand years, Buddhism, Christianity, Islam, Jainism, and Sikhism have also flourished.

Religion is taken far more seriously in India than it often is in the West and by virtually the entire population. Followers of India’s religions, particularly Hindus and Muslims, have created what Indians call “communities,” groups who largely coexist peacefully but live and worship in separate social circles.

The culture of India is the heritage of social norms, ethical values, traditional customs, belief systems, political systems, artifacts and technologies that originated in or are associated with the Indian subcontinent. The term also applies beyond India to countries and cultures whose histories are strongly connected to India by immigration, colonization, or influence, particularly in Southeast Asia.

India's languages, religions, dance, music, architecture, food and customs differ from place to place within the country.

Indian origin religions Hinduism, Jainism, Buddhism, and Sikhism, all are based on concepts of karma and dharma.

AHINSA, philosophy of nonviolence, is an important aspect of native Indian faiths.

India has 28 states with different culture and the second most populated country in the world.^[14] The Indian culture, often labeled as union of several various cultures spans across the Indian subcontinent and has been influenced and shaped by a history that is several thousand years old. Throughout the history of India, Indian culture has been heavily influenced by Dharmic religions.

Today, Hinduism and Buddhism are the world's third and fourth-largest religions respectively, with over 2 billion followers altogether, and possibly as many as 2.5 or 2.6 billion followers. Followers of Indian religions – Hindus, Sikhs, Jains and Buddhists make up around 80–82% population of India.

Cultures and traditions change from generation to generation. It has been observed that cultures and traditions have been changing with every generation. The reason behind this is the disintegration of joint families along with a more career-oriented mindset of the recent generations.

It is a well-known fact that cultural values and traditions are passed down from grandparents to grandchildren. However, due to changing lifestyle joint families are slowly and gradually getting converted to nuclear families. This prevents the grandparents from passing down beliefs and traditions to children. As the current generation is not aware of what their family beliefs and values are, they will follow the ones that they believe are appropriate. Secondly, as families become nuclear and parents focus more on their careers they have little time to transfer their culture and traditions to their children. Children learn from the actions of their parents and hence end up acting in the same way with their children as their parents did with them. Unfortunately, this hampers the adoption of family values and traditions.

Any change that takes place in the realm of culture can be called cultural change. Culture is not static but dynamic. It also undergoes change. For example, invention and popularisation of the automobile, the addition of new words to our language, changing concepts of property and morality, new forms of music, art or dance, new styles in architecture and sculpture, new rules of grammar or meter, the general trend towards sex equality, etc., all represent cultural changes. Nearly all important changes involve social and cultural, material and non-material aspects.

Religious beliefs and rituals can be the catalyst or vehicle of social change. Most religions are syncretic, they borrow practices, beliefs and organizational characteristics from other religions. Sometimes this is done voluntarily and at other times it is done by force.

The process of modernization in India, well under way during the British colonial period, has brought with it major changes in the organizational forms of all religions.
The ideal of cultural diversity is not merely a reapplication of the idea of providing equal access to social goods themselves, but it is an attempt to redefine the goods themselves. As people of diverse backgrounds are brought together, a transformation will take place in people's minds and hearts. An individual in a formerly exclusive group will discover the richness of a different culture. He will influence others in his group who will eventually be open to different foods, different customs, and most importantly, different ideas. The diversity lecture series and planned events will produce not only tolerance and respect, but understanding as well, enhancing the effectiveness and creativity of individuals and contributing to economic prosperity. Diversity will create broadmindedness, goodwill, and social betterment in every direction. People can learn from one another's distinctive cultural experiences and become better workers, better citizens, and ultimately better people.

RELIGION AND CULTURE MATTERS and religion is a key factor in the cultural identity of many people, influencing their behaviour and traditions. Rituals, sacrifices, prayer, art, are one of the many ways people show their allegiance to a particular religion.

Everyone should respect everyone's religion and culture and the main aim of everyone should be to become a better human with pure heart.