Where the heck is India?!

LOCATION
India is considered to be a sub-continent of Asia. The Indian Ocean laps upon the shores of India's south coast (hence the name), while the Arabian Sea and  Bay of Bengal flank the west and east coasts respectively. It is found north-west of Australia between 8 - 31 degrees latitude and 68-88 degrees longitude.

CAPITALSIndia's capital city is Delhi (site of the most recent Commonwealth Games). Other major cities are Chennai, Mumbai (previously known as Bombay), Kolkata (Calcutta), Agra (site of the Taj Mahal) and Hyderabad. 

A political map of India displaying the different states.



A geographical map of India. This map shows the great variation in elevation in metres.

GEOGRAPHICAL FEATURES Important geographical features in India are the revered Ganges river, the Godavari river, the Eastern and Western Ghats (mountain ranges) and the Thar desert. The best beaches in India are found on the west coast. These include Varkala and the beaches of Goa. They are comparable to the incredibly scenic beaches of Ibiza, Rio and even Australia!

Religion in India

India is a country where religious diversity and religious tolerance is established in both law and custom. Throughout the history of India, religion has been an important part of the country's culture. India is the birth place of four of the world's major religious traditions; namely Hinduism, Jainism, Buddhism and Sikhism. ^[1]

Many other world religions also have a relationship with Indian spirituality. For example, the Baha'i sect or religion recognizes Lord Buddha and Lord Krishna as manifestations of God Almighty. Further, Indian Hindus have popularized meditation (e.g., yoga), homeopathy (e.g., Ayurvedic medicine), divination, vegetarianism, karma, reincarnation in Western countries to a great extend.^[2] A vast majority of Indians associate themselves with a religion. The influence of Indians abroad in spiritual matters has been significant as several organizations such as Hare Krishnas, Brahma Kumaris, Ananda Margis and others spread by Indian spiritual figures.
According to the 2001 census, Hinduism accounted for 80.5% of the population of India.^[3] Islam (13.5%)[2], Christianity (1.3%) and Sikhism (2.9%) are the other major religions followed by the people of India. This diversity of religious belief systems existing in India today is a result of, besides existence and birth of native religions, assimilation and social integration of religions brought to the region by traders, travelers, immigrants, and even invaders and conquerors. Stating the hospitality of Hinduism towards all other religions, John Hardon writes, "However, the most significant feature of current Hinduism is its creation of a non-Hindu State, in which all religions are equal;..."^[4]
Zoroastrianism and Judaism also have an ancient history in India and each has several thousand Indian adherents. India has the largest population of people adhering to Zoroastrianism and Bahá'í Faith anywhere in the world. ^{[5] [6]} Bahá'ís make up 0.2% of the Indian population
The Constitution of India declares the nation to be a secular republic that must uphold the right of citizens to freely worship and propagate any religion or faith (with activities subject to reasonable restrictions for the sake of morality, law and order, etc.).^[7][8] The Constitution of India also declares the right to freedom of religion as a fundamental right.
Citizens of India are generally tolerant of each other's religions and retain a secular outlook, although inter-religious marriage is not widely practiced. The Supreme Court of India has ruled that Sharia or Muslim law, held precedence for Muslims over Indian civil law.^[9] Inter-community clashes have found little support in the social mainstream, and it is generally perceived that the causes of religious conflicts are political rather than ideological in nature.^{[citation needed]}

Evolution of Hinduism

"Priest King" of Indus Valley Civilization

Hinduism is often regarded as the oldest religion in the world,^[10] with roots tracing back to prehistoric times,^[11] or 5000 years.^[12] Evidence attesting to prehistoric religion in the Indian subcontinent derives from scattered Mesolithic rock paintings depicting dances and rituals. Neolithic pastoralists inhabiting the Indus River Valley buried their dead in a manner suggestive of spiritual practices that incorporated notions of an afterlife and belief in magic.^[13] Other South Asian Stone Age sites, such as the Bhimbetka rock shelters in central Madhya Pradesh and the Kupgal petroglyphs of eastern Karnataka, contain rock art portraying religious rites and evidence of possible ritualised music.^[14]
The Harappan people of the Indus Valley Civilization, which lasted from 3300–1700 BCE and was centered around the Indus and Ghaggar-Hakra river valleys, may have worshiped an important mother goddess symbolising fertility.^[15] Excavations of Indus Valley Civilization sites show seals with animals and "fire‑altars", indicating rituals associated with fire. A linga-yoni of a type similar to that which is now worshiped by Hindus has also been found.

Akshardham largest Hindu temple in the world.^{[citation needed]}

Hinduism's origins include cultural elements of the Indus Valley Civilization, the Vedic religion of the Indo-Aryans, and other Indian civilizations. The oldest surviving text of Hinduism is the Rigveda, produced during the Vedic period and dated to 1700–1100 BCE.^γ[›][16] During the Epic and Puranic periods, the earliest versions of the epic poems Ramayana and Mahabharata were written roughly from 500–100 BCE,^[17] although these were orally transmitted for centuries prior to this period.^[18]

Buddhist Mahabodhi Temple

After 200 CE, several schools of thought were formally codified in Indian philosophy, including Samkhya, Yoga, Nyaya, Vaisheshika, Purva-Mimamsa and Vedanta.^[19] Hinduism, otherwise a highly theistic religion, hosted atheistic schools; the thoroughly materialistic and anti-religious philosophical Cārvāka school that originated in India around the 6th century BCE is probably the most explicitly atheistic school of Indian philosophy. Cārvāka is classified as a nastika ("heterodox") system; it is not included among the six schools of Hinduism generally regarded as orthodox. It is noteworthy as evidence of a materialistic movement within Hinduism.^[20] Our understanding of Cārvāka philosophy is fragmentary, based largely on criticism of the ideas by other schools, and it is no longer a living tradition.^[21] Other Indian philosophies generally regarded as atheistic include Classical Samkhya and Purva Mimamsa.

 Rise of Shramana Religions

Palitana Jain Temples.

Mahavira the 24th Jain Tirthankara (599–527 BC, though possibly 549–477 BC), stressed five vows, including ahimsa (non-violence) and asteya (non-stealing). Gautama Buddha, who founded Buddhism, was born to the Shakya clan just before Magadha (which lasted from 546–324 BCE) rose to power. Buddha is said to be a descendant of Brahmin Sage Angirasa in many Buddhist texts.^[22] His surname 'Gautama', some scholars like Dr. Eitel connect it to the Brahmin Rishi Gautama.^[23] His family was native to the plains of Lumbini, in what is now southern Nepal. Indian Buddhism peaked during the reign of Asoka the Great of the Mauryan Empire, who patronized Buddhism following his conversion and unified the Indian subcontinent in the 3rd century BCE. He sent missionaries abroad, allowing Buddhism to spread across Asia.^[24] Indian Buddhism declined following the loss of royal patronage offered by the Kushan Empire and such kingdoms as Magadha and Kosala.

The Jama Masjid in Delhi is one of the world's largest mosques.

Some scholars think between 400 BCE and 1000 CE, Hinduism expanded as the decline of Buddhism in India continued.^[25] Buddhism subsequently became effectively extinct in India.

 Advent of Islam

Though Islam came to India in the early 7th century with the advent of Arab traders, it started to become a major religion during the Muslim conquest in the Indian subcontinent. Islam's spread in India mostly took place under the Delhi Sultanate (1206–1526) and the Mughal Empire, greatly aided by the mystic Sufi tradition.^[26]

Bhakti Movement

During the 14-17th centuries, when North India was under Muslim rule, The bhakti movement swept through Central and Northern India, initiated by a loosely associated group of teachers or sants. Chaitanya Mahaprabhu, Vallabhacharya, Surdas, Meera Bai, Kabir, Tulsidas, Ravidas, Namdeo, Tukaram and other mystics spearheaded the Bhakti movement in the North. They taught that people could cast aside the heavy burdens of ritual and caste, and the subtle complexities of philosophy, and simply express their overwhelming love for God. This period was also characterized by a spate of devotional literature in vernacular prose and poetry in the ethnic languages of the various Indian states or provinces. Bhakti movement spawned into several different movements all across North and South India.
During the Bhakti Movement many Hindu groups no integrated with the rest of Hindu society celebrated through their own Hindu saints. Guru Ravidas was a Chura of Uttar Pradesh, Guru Parsuram Ramnami was a Chambar of Chhatisgarh, Maharishi Ram Naval was a Bhangi of Rajasthan. Several of these saints even went to the extent of fighting conversion from foreign missionaries and only encouraging Hinduism within their communities. For example, in Assam tribals were led by Gurudev Kalicharan Bramha of the Brahmo Samaj, in Nagaland by Kacha Naga, in Tamil Nadu by Ayya Vaigundar, in Central India by Birsa Munda, Hanuman Oaron, Jatra Bhagat and Budhu Bhagat.
In North India, Bhakti movement is not differentiable from the Sufi movement of Shia Muslims of the Chisti fame. People of Muslim faith adopted it as a Sufism while Hindus as a stronger force within Vaishnava bhakti.

Sikhism

The Harmandir Sahib or Golden Temple of the Sikhs.

Guru Nanak (1469–1539) was the founder of Sikhism. The Guru Granth Sahib was first compiled by the fifth Sikh guru, Guru Arjan Dev, from the writings of the first five Sikh gurus and others saints who preached the concept of universal brotherhood, including those of the Hindu and Muslim faith. Before the death of Guru Gobind Singh, the Guru Granth Sahib was declared the eternal guru. Sikhism recognizes all humans as equal before Waheguru,^[27] regardless of colour, caste or lineage.^[28]
Guru Nanak's preachings were directed with equal force to all humans regardless of their religion.^[29] As such he freely borrowed and redefined religious terminology from the lexicons of other faiths.^[30] Guru Nanak defines the transformation of man to a permanent union with God as part of his preaching against communalism summarized by the famous phrase, "There is no Hindu and no Muslim". Introduction of Christianity

Christianity in India

Although historical evidence suggests the presence of Christianity in India since the first century,^[31][32][33] it became popular following European colonisation and Protestant missionary efforts.^[34]

Communalism

Communalism has played a key role in shaping the religious history of modern India. As an adverse result of the British Raj's divide and rule policy, British India was partitioned along religious lines into two states—the Muslim-majority Dominion of Pakistan (comprising what is now the Islamic Republic of Pakistan and the People's Republic of Bangladesh) and the Hindu-majority Union of India (later the Republic of India). The 1947 Partition of India instigated rioting among Hindus, Muslims, and Sikhs in Punjab, Bengal, Delhi, and other parts of India; 500,000 died as a result of the violence. The twelve million refugees that moved between the newly founded nations of India and Pakistan composed one of the largest mass migrations in modern history.^Δ[›][35] Since its independence, India has periodically witnessed large-scale violence sparked by underlying tensions between sections of its majority Hindu and minority Muslim communities. The Republic of India is secular, its government recognises no official religion. In recent decades, communal tensions and religion-based politics have become more prominent.^[36]

Demographics

Religions of India

Religion	Population	Percent
All religions	1,028,610,328	100.00%
Hindus	827,578,868	80.5%
Muslims	138,188,240	13.4%
Christians	24,080,016	2.3%
Sikhs	19,215,730	1.9%
Buddhists	7,955,207	0.8%
Jains	4,225,053	0.4%
Bahá'ís	1 953 112	0.18%
Others	4,686,588	0.32%
Religion not stated	727,588	0.1%

Characteristics of religious groups

Religious group	Population %	Growth (1991–2001)	Sex ratio (total)	Literacy (%)	Work participation (%)	Sex ratio (rural)	Sex ratio (urban)	Sex ratio (child)ε[›]
Hindu	80.46%	20.3%	931	65.1%	40.4%	944	894	925
Muslim	13.43%	36.0%	936	59.1%	31.3%	953	907	950
Christian	2.34%	22.6%	1009	80.3%	39.7%	1001	1026	964
Sikh	1.87%	18.2%	893	69.4%	37.7%	895	886	786
Buddhist	0.77%	18.2%	953	72.7%	40.6%	958	944	942
Jain	0.41%	26.0%	940	94.1%	32.9%	937	941	870
Animist, others	0.65%	103.1%	992	47.0%	48.4%	995	966	976

How to get from Oz to India in a few easy steps

Many flights to India land in Delhi. Other popular areas are Mumbai and Chennai.

The best way to travel from Perth to India is on a plane. It is quick and if you do your research it can be reasonably affordable. You need to remember that the prices change from day to day and depending on your airline company.
The following prices are from www.flightcentre.com.au
From Perth to Chennai (return)
QANTAS: $2151 (inc taxes)
South African Airways: $2202 (inc taxes)
Emirates: $2794 (inc taxes).

www.airfaresflights.com.au has cheap flights from Perth to Delhi looking at a variety of airlines. Prices range from $683 to $1548 return.

It takes about 10 hours to travel from Perth to India. This depends on the times of stopovers and delays etc.

If you are already in Asia (such as Pakistan) there are a variety of ways you can get into the country. The easiest way is travelling by train. The Pakistani Railway has a train that leaves twice a week from Lahore and travels to Delhi. It costs about $AUD17. You get to see many sights along the way. You need to have your passport to book the ticket and you will need to show your passport at the border.

You can also take buses and taxis. They will take you to the border of Pakistan, you go through the checkpoint and get into a taxi or bus on the Indian side.
http://www.seat61.com has excellent advice on travelling into India via rail.

Lahore Station. Where your train to India will leave from.

Language & Currency

I say Hello, you say Namaste

Although Hindi is the official language of India there are over 1600 other dialects (variations in of one language which make them 'new' languages) spoken in the country. The languages and dialects spoken are specific to different regions in India. 

Besides Hindi, English is also widely spoken. The regional dialects include Assamese, Bengali, Gujarathi, Kannada, Kashmiri, Malayalam, Marathi, Oriya, Punjabi, Sanskrit, Sindhi, Tamil, Telugu and Urdu.

Must learn phrase in Hindi
Accha! 
One of the most useful words to know is accha. Its meanings include (but are not limited to!): good, excellent, healthy, well, OK, really?, awesome!, and hmm...
If you learn no other word, remember this one!

Money, cash, dough, moolah
The Indian rupee (Rs) is divided into 100 paise (p), but paise coins are increasingly rare.
Coins come in denominations of 5, 10, 20, 25 and 50 paise, and Rs 1, 2 and 5; notes come in Rs 10, 20, 50, 100, 500 and 1000 (this last bill can be hard to change outside banks).

ATMs linked to international networks are common in most towns and cities in India. However, carry cash or travellers cheques as backup in case the power goes down, the ATM is out of order, or you lose or break your plastic.

The rupee is also accepted as currency in Nepal and Bhutan if you are continuing your travels to either of those countries.

The current exchange rate to the Australian dollar (as of 04/11/2010) is 1 AUD = 44 INR

History of India

History of India

The history of India begins with evidence of human activity of Homo Sapiens as long as 75,000 years ago, or with earlier hominids including Homo erectus from about 500,000 years ago. The Indus valley Civilization, which spread and flourished in the northwestern part of the Indian subcontinent  from c. 3300 to 1300 BCE, was the first major civilization in India. A sophisticated and technologically advanced urban culture developed in the Mature Harappan period, from 2600 to 1900 BCE. This Bronze Age civilization collapsed before the end of the second millennium BCE and was followed by the Iron Age, Vedic Civilisation, which extended over much of the Indo-Gigantic Plains  and which witnessed the rise of major polities known as the Mahajanapas. In one of these kingdoms, Magadha, Mahavira and Gautama Buddha were born in the 6th or 5th century BCE and propagated their śramanic philosophies.
Almost all of the subcontinent was conquered by the Maurya Empire during the 4th and 3rd centuries BCE. It subsequently became fragmented, with various parts ruled by numerous Middle kingdoms for the next 1,500 years. This is known as the classical period of Indian history, during which India has sometimes been estimated to have had the largest economy of the ancient and medieval world, controlling between one third and one fourth of the world's wealth up to the 18th century.
Much of northern and central India was once again united in the 4th century CE, and remained so for two centuries thereafter, under the Gupta Empire. This period, witnessing a Hindu religious and intellectual resurgence, is known among its admirers as the "Golden Age of India". During the same time, and for several centuries afterwards, southern India, under the rule of the Chalukyas, Cholas, Pallavas, and Pandyas, experienced its own golden age. During this period, aspects of Indian civilization, administration, culture, and religion (Hinduism and Buddhism) spread to much of Asia.
The southern state of Kerala had maritime business links with the Roman Empire from around 77 CE. Islam was introduced in Kerala through this route by Muslim traders. Muslim rule in the subcontinent began in 712 CE when the Arab general Muhammad bin Qasim conquered Sindh and Multan in southern Punjab, setting the stage for several successive invasions from Central Asia between the 10th and 15th centuries CE, leading to the formation of Muslim empires in the Indian subcontinent such as the Delhi Sultanate and the Mughal Empire.
Mughal rule came to cover most of the northern parts of the subcontinent. Mughal rulers introduced Middle Eastern art and architecture to India. In addition to the Mughals and various Rajput kingdoms, several independent Hindu states, such as the Vijayanagara Empire, the Maratha Empire, and the Ahom Kingdom, flourished contemporaneously in southern, western, and northeastern India respectively. The Mughal Empire suffered a gradual decline in the early 18th century, which provided opportunities for the Afghans, Balochis, Sikhs, and Marathas to exercise control over large areas in the northwest of the subcontinent until the British East India Company gained ascendancy over South Asia.
Beginning in the mid-18th century and over the next century, India was gradually annexed by the British East India Company. Dissatisfaction with Company rule led to the Indian Rebellion of 1857, after which India was directly administered by the British Crown and witnessed a period of both rapid development of infrastructure and economic decline. During the first half of the 20th century, a nationwide struggle for independence was launched by the Indian National Congress and later joined by the Muslim League. The subcontinent gained independence from the United Kingdom in 1947, after being partitioned into the dominions of India and Pakistan.