Culture of India

Culture of India has many aspects.

The culture of India has its roots some 4500 years ago with the Indus Valley civilisations. The two most famous of these city-civilisations were the Mohenjodaro and Harappa. A number of religions have always played a very important role in the culture of India: Hinduism, Islam, Buddhism, Sikhism and Jainism.

Until the invasions of the Aryans (form 1500 to 200 BC) the culture of India was purely Dravidian. Now the north of the country has an Aryan content, while the south still is heavily influenced by the ancient Dravidian culture. Even in Hinduism there are differences between north and south. Some gods, like Muruga for instance, are more popular in the south.

Not only Hinduism has played a vital role in the culture of India. From 1192 started the Muslim presence. The mixture of Hindu and Muslim architecture has produce some very impressive results. The well known Taj Mahal is an example that unique architecture. It was built by the Mughal Emperor Shah Jahan. Later the British also added their part to art and especially architecture of the nation.

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