When I Google 'Indian Culture'

I came across Ms.Shoba Narayan's thoughts at LiveMint.. Weirdly, they were not biased against the Right Wingies.. They were merely asking questions..

WHAT ACTUALLY IS OUR GREAT INDIAN CULTURE?? Can anyone please define it for me??

Oh.. In the article, Ms Narayan is told by Mr. Selvam, why he joined Sri Ram Sene?? Mr. Selvam begins...

1. Children are not listening to their elders.
2. Children are not wearing traditional clothes. Everyone is in jeans and "Muslim dresses" like the salwar-kameez.
3. Sari is dying.
4. What is worse, parents are not objecting to their children following Western culture. Fathers are giving sons drinks.
5. Wives are not respecting their husbands.
6. Boys and girls are freely mixing before marriage.
7. Women are not keeping traditions such as watering the tulsi plant for the well-being of the family.
8. Children talk back to adults.
9. Women in cut-piece clothes have become commercial objects. Even goddesses like Lakshmi are being used to sell liquor.
10. Last and the most important: Women are drinking and going to nightclubs.

Now before replying to those 10 Commandments of Indian Culture, Lets first see, what is the definition of Culture..

According to Wikipedia: Culture (from the Latin cultura stemming from colere, meaning "to cultivate") is difficult to define. Forexample, in 1952, Alfred Kroeber and Clyde Kluckhohn compiled a list of164 definitions of "culture" in Culture: A Critical Review of Conceptsand Definitions. However, the word "culture" is most commonly used in three basic senses:

* Excellence of taste in the fine arts and humanities
*An integrated pattern of human knowledge, belief, and behavior thatdepends upon the capacity for symbolic thought and social learning
* The set of shared attitudes, values, goals, and practices that characterizes an institution, organization or group.

According to Merriam Webster Online:

* The act of developing the intellectual and moral faculties especially by education.
* Enlightenment and excellence of taste acquired by intellectual and aesthetic training
*Acquaintance with and taste in fine arts, humanities, and broad aspectsof science as distinguished from vocational and technical skills
*Theintegrated pattern of human knowledge, belief, and behavior thatdepends upon the capacity for learning and transmitting knowledge tosucceeding generations
* The customary beliefs, social forms, andmaterial traits of a racial, religious, or social group ; also : thecharacteristic features of everyday existence (as diversions or a wayof life) shared by people in a place or time (popular culture)
* The set of shared attitudes, values, goals, and practices that characterizes an institution or organization.
* The set of values, conventions, or social practices associated with a particular field, activity, or societal characteristic.

Whatsaddens me the most, that we, the urban, the modern and the educatedIndia has no answer for such ancient relics. Why can't we answer backwith something solid and substantial..What we need is awell-thought-out, clearly stated out, in their vernacular of whatconstitutes Indian culture. So that when orators at a Hindutva meetingtalk about Indian culture being screwed up, we can tell him that theyare wrong. "Indian culture is not just about wearing jasmine in thehair. It is X, Y, and Z."

We need to know what that X, Y and Zare. Call it norms and mores that all of us outraged urban Indiansagree upon. Mere anger isn't enough. We need a strategy.

Theproblem is that culture is a vast topic; a maze if you will. Justfiguring out if chimpanzees have culture can take a lifetime and thatis usually where I get stuck. But all that stuff is not relevant to thequestion at hand, which is: Is there any such thing as Indian cultureand, if so, what is it?

More and more, it seems, weurban Indians are refusing to be bound by a common culture. We live andlet live, you and I-fellow travellers through the concrete jungles andshifting ideas of Mumbai, Delhi and Bangalore. We can't agree onwhether we will call our cities Mumbai or Bombay; Chennai or Madras. Weare gypsies, refusing to affiliate ourselves to traditional notions ofcaste, religion and routine. We mixrock ‘n' roll with rajma-chaawal; tuxedo with temple. The twin angelsof convenience and impulse effectively submerge the seemingcontradictions in our lives. Unlike our parents, who have a setof values that they all agree upon, we live by what Bastian called the'psychic unity of mankind'. We may fast during Lent, Karva Chauth andRamzan but religion and rituals are usually an afterthought in ourprofessional, idea-driven lives. We have more in common with theexecutive in Brussels than the mechanic in Bathinda. Or do we? Can we discount geography and a shared culture that easily? Do ideas trump history and heritage?


Accordingto Eugene M. Makar, the traditional Indian culture is defined byrelatively strict social hierarchy. He also mentions that from an earlyage, children are reminded of their roles and places in society. Thisis reinforced by that many believe gods and spirits have integral andfunctional role in determining their life. Several differences such asreligion divide culture.

When I think of Indian culture, several words come to mind: pluralism,oral poetry, the Vedas, spicy food, respect for elders, putting out forguests, hierarchy, the caste system, our hypocrisy towards women-atonce goddess and geisha-colour, Raga Bhairavi, the curves of our dancesand okay, I'll say it, Kama Sutra, monolithic carvings, paddy fields,contradictions such as Slumdog Millionaire, Bollywood tunes, colourfulfabric, polytheism, Hindu-Muslim clashes, arranged marriages.Are these just words or do they constitute an umbrella that for lack ofa better word, we can call culture? And why am I clinging to thisnotion when most others seem comfortable with shifting frames? I thinkit is because of this: Cultures in the past were like icebergs-theymoved slowly. Today, cultures all over the world are changing at warpspeed and urban cultures appear more similar than different. Afew countries-Japan and France come to mind-have been better at notjust taking pride in their culture but also preserving and exportingit. But most other nations, particularly in the emerging markets, haveput culture on the backburner and focused on more urgent issues such asGDP growth and employment. So what do we do? Should we justthrow up our hands and say: "Cultures change, kid. Buddhas get blownup. Shit happens. Get used to it." Or should we attempt to slow thingsdown, I know not how.

Oh, do I even qualify for talking about culture?? I am an atheist!! How dare I?? Now back to the 10 Commandments!!

1. Children are not listening to their elders.
Hmm...So what they should do?? Listen to their parents, follow them likeblind bats and become a beast of burden, both for the family andsociety?? Oh I forgot, that is what the society wants us to become;Beast of Burden!!


2. Children are not wearing traditional clothes....
Do you wear traditional clothes?? Err.. Tell Me..What do wear under your dhoti?? Boxers, Briefs or Nothings??? :D


3. Sari is dying...
Where,Everywhere you look, TV, movies, streets, in the bus, women wearsaris.. we wear them on every possible function.. Oh, If you want us towear sari and not run around do our livelihood, You are in for some bigtrouble!!!


4. What is worse, parents are not objecting to their children following Western culture. Fathers are giving sons drinks...
Ah!! Going to English-medium school is terrific and drinking English-daru is terrible..Oh, I got it.. Arey, Give me that Pauvva, Man!!


5. Wives are not respecting their husbands...
Bywhat?? By going out for a livelihood?? By asking for a helping hand athome?? By asking to look at the son's homework?? By Going out forshopping on their own , with her own debit-credit card???


6. Boys and girls are freely mixing before marriage....
Ummmm... Meeting each other for the first time at the Suhaag-raatand discover that you n him can't stand each other.. Dragging anincompatible marriage to my death-bed?? I better not marry, sir!!


7. Women are not keeping traditions such as watering the tulsi plant for the well-being of the family...
OH!!I didn't know that the tulsi plant knows what is wrong with amarriage/family and can set it right?? Voila, Magic!!! No wonder, Tulsiin the K-Serials lead such a HAPPY LIFE!! Family and Marriages need people to be understanding and supportive..Even if you live in a forest of Tulsi plants, Things will not be right, until unless you make an effort!!


8. Children talk back to adults...
First, you ask us to be inquisitive and when we do ask questions, you say we are talking back.. HYPOCRITES!!!


9. Even goddesses like Lakshmi are being used to sell liquor....
Oh!! Those idiots used the wrong goddess.. Varuni is the goddess of Wine and Intoxication..


10. Last and the most important: Women are drinking and going to nightclubs...
So....when they do it, it perfectly abides by the 10 Commandments?? Ain't it??