ART & CULTURE

for UPSC PRELIMS

Second Edition 2023
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Preface
Art & Culture is a significant portion of history which is relevant in both the stages of the examination
i.e Prelims and Mains. Trends analysis of last 10-year Prelims Question Papers shows that every year
around 3-4 questions have been asked in UPSC Prelims examination. There is no dearth of material but
the problem is that it is very exhaustive which becomes humanly impossible to memorize hence this
books consolidates only those points which are relevant for the examination. We have also assimilated
Previous Year Questions in the book in order to keep the preparation as per the UPSC framework.

This book comprises of topics related to Culture of India, Characteristics of Indian Culture, Palaeolithic
Art, Indian Languages, Religion and Indian Philosophy, Indian Literature, Spread of Indian Culture
Abroad, Art & Architecture In India, Indian Paintings, Indian Pottery, Classical Music, Musical
Instruments, Classical Forms of Dance, Folk Dance Forms, Drama/Theatre, Pupper Forms of India,
Government Institutions Related to Art and Culture and Schemes & Initiatives, etc. All these topics and
their subtopics have been comprehensively covered under the book.

The book has been written with the point of view of comprehensive coverage of the entire syllabus of
Art & Culture. One of the distinguishing characteristics of the book is that it covers a wide canvas of
Art & Culture and the text has been written in a lucid, cogent, and convincing style, documented with
interesting data, diagrams, and illustrations with apt and appropriate examples.

**********
 CONTENTS
Preface..........................................(iv)  Chithirai Festival.................................23
 Chardham Yatra..................................23
 Makaravilakku Festival........................23
1. CULTURE OF INDIA..................... 01-39  Harvest Festivals around India.............23
1.1 CHARACTERISTICS OF...........02-06  Pakke Hornbill Fest as.........................24
INDIAN CULTURE ‘State Festival’

 Introduction........................................02  Sangai Tourism Festival......................24

 Behdiengkhlam Festival......................24
 Culture and Heritage...........................02
 Cherry Blossom Festival......................25
 Indian Culture.....................................02
 Hornbill Festival..................................25
 Unity in Diversity.................................04
 Ambubachi Mela.................................25
1.2 PALEOLITHIC ART..................07-07  Lai Haraoba Festival...........................26
 Introduction........................................07  Zo Kutpui festival................................26
 Salient features of the paintings..........07  Aadi Mahotsav....................................26

1.3 INDIAN LANGUAGES...............08-09 1.6 INDIAN LITERATURE...............27-38

 Introduction........................................08  Vedic Literature..................................27
 Indian languages................................08  Shruti Literature..................................27
 Smriti Literature..................................28
1.4 RELIGION & INDIAN ...............10-20
 Classical Sanskrit Literature................29
PHILOSOPHY
 Buddhist Literature.............................30
 Early Vedic and Later Vedic Period.......10
 Jain Literature....................................31
 Sects of Hinduism..............................10
 Gupta Period Literature.......................31
 Buddhism...........................................11
 Early Dravidian Literature.....................32
 Jainism..............................................13
 Medieval Period Literature...................33
 Some terminologies associated...........15
 Mughal Period Literature.....................35
with Jainism
 Literature During National Movement...36
 Indian Philosophy...............................15
 Major Indian Religions.........................19 1.7 SPREAD OF INDIAN................39-39
CULTURE ABROAD
1.5 FESTIVALS OF INDIA..............21-26
 Introduction........................................39
 Kuthiyottam Ritual..............................21  Cultural Expansion..............................39
 Mahamastakabhisheka.......................21
 Dwijing Festival...................................22 2. VISUAL ARTS.............................. 40-79
 Nongkrem Dance Festival....................22 2.1 ART & ARCHITECTURE............41-66
 Bathukamma Festival..........................22 IN INDIA
 Khajuraho Dance Festival....................23  Indus Valley Civilization.......................41
  Mauryan Empire..................................43  Kalamkari Art.....................................76
 Post Mauryan Period...........................44  Pattachitra Painting............................76
 Cave Architecture in Ancient India.......47  Bagh Print..........................................76
 Gupta Period......................................48
2.3 INDIAN POTTERY...................77-79
 Harshvardhana...................................50
 Introduction........................................77
 Pallavas, Chalukyas, Rashtrakutas.......50
 Unglazed Pottery................................77
 Evolution of Temple Architecture.........52
 Glazed Pottery....................................77
 Indo-Islamic Architecture....................56
 Terracotta...........................................78
 Indo-Islamic Monuments.....................57
Build Under Different Rulers  Papier - Mache....................................79

 Modern Architecture...........................58 3. PERFORMING ARTS.................. 80-102

 Contribution of Famous Architects.......59
3.1 CLASSICAL MUSIC.................81-85
 Modern Indian Sculpture.....................59
 Khirki Mosque.....................................60  Introduction........................................81

 Khajuraho Temple...............................60  Hindustani Music................................81

 Konark Sun Temple.............................61  Carnatic Music...................................82

 Sri Meenakshi Sundareswarar Temple.....61  Similarities & Differences between.......83

‘Hindustani’ & ‘Carnatic’ Music
 Katas Raj Dham..................................61
 Famous Exponents of Indian...............83
 Kartarpur Corridor...............................62 Classical music
 Rani-ki-Vav.........................................62
3.2 MUSICAL INSTRUMENTS........86-87
 Buddhist site museum at ....................63
Lalitgiri in Odisha  Introduction........................................86
 Chaukhandi Stupa...............................63
3.3 CLASSICAL FORMS OF............88-90
 Stucco Sculpture.................................63 DANCE
 Markandeshwar Temple......................64
 Introduction........................................88
(mini khajuraho)
 Brihadeshwara Temple........................64 3.4 FOLK MUSIC & DANCE............91-97
 Suranga Bawadi..................................64 FORMS
 Lingaraj Temple..................................65  Introduction........................................91
 Somnath Temple.................................65  Folk Dances of North India..................91
 Chausath Yogini Temple......................66  Folk Dances of Central India................92
 Chennakeshava temple.......................66  Folk Dances of South India..................93
 Folk Dances of North Eastern India......93
2.2 INDIAN PAINTINGS.................67-76
 Folk Dances of North West India..........94
 Introduction........................................67
 Folk Dances of South West India..........95
 Mural Paintings...................................67
 Kamsale Dance...................................95
 Miniature Paintings.............................68
 Chhau Dance......................................96
 Modern School of Paintings................71
 Assamese Bhaona..............................96
 Folk Paintings of India.........................72
 Folk Music in India..............................96
 Mithila Paintings.................................74
 Thanjavur Paintings............................74 3.5 DRAMA/THEATRE................. 98-100
 Bagru Hand-Block Printing...................75  Introduction........................................98
  Folk Theatres......................................98  International Buddhist Conference.....110
 Modern Theatre................................100  Guru Padmasambhava......................110
 World Hindi Conference.....................111
3.6 PUPPET FORMS OF INDIA... 101-102
 World Sanskrit Conference................111
 Introduction......................................101
 Padma Awards.................................111
4. MISCELLANEOUS.................... 103-121  Jnanpith Award.................................111
 Indian Calendars...............................104  Gandhi prize.....................................111
 Martial Arts of India..........................104  Recent GI Tags .................................112
 Classical Languages.........................104  Kodava community...........................113
 Important Ancient Universities...........104  Major Rock Edicts.............................113
 Printing, Weaving and........................105  Major Pillar Edicts.............................113
Embroidery Styles in India  UNESCO Report on India’s Tribal........113
 Traditional Sarees/Fabric of India......106 and Indigenous Languages
 World Heritage Sites In India.............106  Tribal languages in India...................113
 Important Festivals Of North.............107  Swadesh Darshan Scheme................114
East India  Sanskriti Kumbh................................114
 UNESCO’s List of Intangible...............107  Bhasha Sangam Program..................115
Cultural Heritage  National Mission for Manuscripts......115
 UNESCO Global Geopark Network......107 (NMM)
 Kambala...........................................108  PRASAD Scheme..............................116
 Government Institutions related to.....108  Sun Temples in India.........................116
Art & Culture  Terminologies Associated with..........117
 Sangeet Natak Akademi....................110 Indian Culture


 Unit 1
CULTURE OF INDIA

1
 CHAPTER

1.1

CHARACTERISTICS OF
INDIAN CULTURE
 INTRODUCTION to add new thoughts, new ideas to those already
existent and sometimes we give up some which we
don‘t consider useful any more. This is how culture
 Culture is the soul of a nation. On the basis of
is transmitted and carried forward from generation
culture, we can experience the prosperity of its
to next generation. The culture we inherit from our
past and present. Culture is collection of values
predecessors is called our cultural heritage.
of human life, which establishes it specifically and
ideally separate from other groups.
 Culture refers to the patterns of thought and
 INDIAN CULTURE
behaviour of people. It includes values, beliefs,
rules of conduct, and patterns of social, political  According to Indologists, Indian culture stands
and economic organisation. These are passed on not only for a traditional social code but also for
from one generation to the next by formal as well a spiritual foundation of life. Indian culture is an
as informal processes. Culture consists of the invaluable possession of our society. Inspite of
ways in which we think and act as members of a facing many ups and downs Indian culture is shining
society. Thus, all the achievements of group life are with all its glory and splendor.
collectively called culture.  Indian culture is one of the most ancient cultures of
 Culture is the product of such an organization and the world. The ancient cultures of Egypt, Greece,
expresses itself through language and art, philosophy Rome, etc. were destroyed with time and only their
and religion. It also expresses itself through social remnants are left. But Indian culture is alive till today.
habits, customs, economic organisations and Its fundamental principles are the same, as were in
political institutions. Culture has two types: (i) the ancient time. One can see village panchayats,
material, and (ii) non-material. caste systems and joint family system. The teachings
of Buddha, Mahavira, and Lord Krishna are alive
 The first includes technologies, instruments, till today also and are source of inspiration. The
material goods, consumer goods, household design values of spirituality, praying nature, faith in karma
and architecture, modes of production, trade, and reincarnation, non-violence, truth, non-stealing,
commerce, welfare and other social activities. The chastity, non- acquisitiveness, etc. inspire people of
latter includes norms, values, beliefs, myths, legends, this nation, today also.
literature, ritual, art forms and other intellectual-
 Indian culture can be called an ancient culture,
literary activities. The material and non-material
whose past is alive even in the present. The
aspects of any culture are usually interdependent
reminiscent of the stone-age found in Pallavaram,
on each other. Sometimes, however, material culture
Chingalpet, Vellore, Tinnivalli near Madras, in
may change quickly but the non-material may take
the valley of river Sohan, in Pindhighev area in
longer time to change.
West Punjab, in Rehand area of Mirzapur in Uttar
Pradesh, in Narmada Valley in Madhya Pradesh, in
 CULTURE AND HERITAGE Hoshangabad and Maheshwar, make it clear that
India has been the land of development and growth
 Cultural development is a historical process. Our of human culture.
ancestors learnt many things from their predecessors.  On the basis of excavation done in places like
With the passage of time they also added to it from Harappa and Mohanjodaro etc. we come to know
their own experience and gave up those which they the developed civilization and culture of the pre-
did not consider useful. We in turn have learnt many historical era, which was flourished around 3000
2 things from our ancestors. As time goes we continue B.C. Thus, Indian culture is about 5000 years old.
 ART & CULTURE 3

Significance of Geography in Indian it a continental character. It enabled her to generate

the forces of action and reaction which led to the
Culture
development of rich civilization and culture.
 The ancient civilization in India grew up in a
sharply demarcated sub-continent bounded on the Characteristics of Indian Culture
north by the world‘s largest mountain range- the
 Traditional Indian culture, in its overall thrust
chain of the Himalayas, which, with its extensions towards the spiritual, promotes moral values and
to east and west, divides India from the rest of the attitudes of generosity, simplicity and frugality.
Asia and the world. The barrier, however, was at Some of the striking features of Indian culture that
no time an insuperable one, and at all periods both pervade its numerous castes, tribes, ethnic groups
settlers and traders have found their way over the and religious groups and sects discussed below.
high and desolate passes into India., while Indians
have carried their commerce and culture beyond  The framework of Indian culture places human
her frontiers by the same route. India’s isolation has beings within a conception of the universe as a
never been complete, and the effect of the mountain divine creation. It is not anthropo-centric (human-
centric) only and considers all elements of creation,
wall in developing her unique culture has often been
both living and non-living, as manifestations of
over rated.
the divine. Therefore, it respects God‘s design and
 The importance of the mountains to India is not promotes the ideal of co-existence. This vision thus,
much in the isolation which they give her, as in the synthesizes human beings, nature and God into
fact that they are the source of her two great rivers. one integral whole. This is reflected in the idea of
 Of the two river systems, that of the Indus, now Satyam-Shivam-Sundaram.
mainly in Pakistan, had the earliest civilization. And  Indian philosophy and culture tries to achieve an
gave its name to India, as the Indian knew this river innate harmony and order and this is extended to
as Sindhu, and the Persians, who found difficulty in the entire cosmos.
pronouncing as initials, called it Hindu. From the
 Indian culture assumes that natural cosmic order
Persia the word passed to Greece, where the whole
inherent in nature is the foundation of moral and
of India became known by the name of the western
social order. Inner harmony is supposed to be the
river. The ancient Indians knew their subcontinent foundation of outer harmony. External order and
as Jambudvipa or Bharatavarsha. With the Muslim beauty will naturally follow from inner harmony.
invasion the Persian name returned in the form
of Hindustan, and those of its inhabitants who  Indian culture balances and seeks to synthesize the
followed the old religion became known as Hindu. material and the spiritual, as aptly illustrated by the
concept of purushartha.
 The western half of the Ganga plain, from the
region around Delhi to Patna, and including the  An important characteristic of Indian culture is
Doab, or the land between the Ganga and its great tolerance. In India, tolerance and liberalism is found
tributary river Yamuna, has always been the heart of for all religions, castes, communities, etc. Many
foreign cultures invaded India and Indian society
India. Here, in the region once known as Aryavarta,
gave every culture the opportunity of prospering.
the land of the Aryans, here classical culture was
formed.  There is a peaceful coexistence of various religions in
India and all have been affecting each other – although
 The south-eastern part of the Peninsula forms a
this tradition has been badly affected by activities of
larger plain, the Tamil country, the culture of which
converting religion by some religious organisations.
was once independent, and is not yet completely
All the religions existing in India are respected equally.
unified with that of the North. The Dravidian
Indian culture accepts the manifoldness of reality
peoples of Southern India still speak languages
and assimilates plurality of viewpoints, behaviours,
in no way skin to those of the North, and are of
customs and institutions. It does not try to suppress
a different ethnic character. Though there has been
diversity in favour of uniformity. The motto of Indian
much intermixing between Northern and Southern
culture is both unity in diversity as well as diversity
types. Geographically Ceylon is a continuation of
in unity.
India.
 The principles of Indian culture are today also that
 Thus, although India was isolated largely by the much in practice, as they were initially. A special
geographical features and different climatic zone, characteristic of Indian culture is – its continuous
yet her vast dimensions, variety of racial elements, flow. Since, Indian culture is based on values, so it‘s
wide differences of climate, great diversities of development is continuous. Many centuries passed
soils and different physical characteristics not only by, many changes occurred, many foreign invaders
prevented her from being a stagnant pool but gave
 4 ART & CULTURE

were faced, but the light of Indian culture today also culture. The traditional cultural media not only
is continuously glowing. continue to survive today, but also some aspects of
 Many invasions occurred, many rulers changed, it have also been incorporated in novel ways into an
many laws were passed but even today, the traditional emerging popular and, classical culture.
institutions, religion, epics, literature, philosophy,
traditions, etc. are alive.  UNITY IN DIVERSITY
 Adaptability has a great contribution in making
Indian culture immortal. Adaptability is the process  One feature that is most often noticed about India
of changing according to time, place and period. is its unity in diversity. This overworked cliché
It’s an essential element of longevity of any culture. has become a part of India’s self-identity. India is
Indian culture has a unique property of adjustment, a country of sub-continental proportions. From
as a result of which, it is maintained till today. Indian north to south, east to west, people from diverse
family, caste, religion and institutions have changed backgrounds have mixed and cultures have
themselves with time. Due to adaptability and co- intermingled over centuries. Nevertheless, there has
ordination of Indian culture, it‘s continuity, utility been an underlying continuity in identity. Beneath
and activity is still present. the bewildering diversity of religion, language and
 Receptivity is an important characteristic of Indian customs of this vast country, the underlying unity is
culture. Indian culture has always accepted the good remarkable.
of the invading cultures.
Geographical and Demographic Factors:
 An important characteristic of Indian culture is
Unity in Diversity. There is much diversity in Indian  The first striking feature about India is its diversity
culture like in geography, in caste, in creed, in because of India‘s geographical environment and
language, in religion, in politics, etc. huge populations.
 In terms of physical features of the population, there
Indian Culture during the Contemporary is diversity in appearance and complexion, height
Period and figure etc.

 During the modern period, the relationship  However, geography seems to have played an
between the classical represented by English and important role in engendering Indian unity and the
the vernacular folk traditions has broken down. sense of Indianness. Shut off from the rest of Asia
Traditional equilibrium has been affected by different by the inaccessible barriers of the mighty Himalayas
factors and processes of modernization. and with the seas and the ocean on all other sides,
India is clearly marked out to be a geographical
 With the impact of modern social forces the entity.
relationship between the classical and the folk
traditions has been disturbed. In the urban centres Religious Factors:
a new middle class has been growing and assuming
the role of the bearer of the classical tradition.  India is a multi-religious country. There are seven
major religious groups in India. The Hindus
 Throughout history, the folk and the tribal traditions
constitute the majority of Indian population. The
have remained relatively unaffected by changes in
Muslims constitute the second largest religious
political structures.
group. The Christians, the Sikhs, the Buddhists,
 The bearers of modern Western classical cultural the Jains and others the Jews, the Zoroastrians or
tradition, on the other hand, have on occasions Parsis and the Animists may not be numerically
shown less tolerance towards the folk and the tribal big, but their contribution to India is as significant
traditions. They usually brand the traditional culture as the other bigger groups. Religion is both a factor
as primitive, barbaric and superstitious in comparison of unity and diversity in Indian society. All religious
to the modern culture. They try to modernize and groups are differentiated internally.
westernize all the elements and streams of Indian
culture. Composite Culture:
 The processes of westernization, industrialisation,  The story of Indian culture is one of continuity,
urbanisation, globalisation and democratisation are synthesis and enrichment. Culture is also a source
influencing various aspects of Indian culture today. of unity as well as diversity like religion. Powerful
 These modernizing and secularizing forces, however, kingdoms and empires such as the Mauryas and the
have not yet cut off contemporary Indian culture Guptas did not aggressively intervene in social and
from the traditional and cultural roots of Indian cultural matters; leaving much diversity intact.
 ART & CULTURE 5

 The distribution of material traits such as dress,  In the post independence period, English replaced
habitation, arts and crafts, endless variety of food Urdu as the official and court language. After
and their preparation, makes India a living example independence, Hindi was made the national
of regional diversity. language but English remained the language of the
central government and of the courts. English has
Political Factors: also remained the language of higher education and
research in India after 1835.
 It is generally believed that India’s continuity as
a civilisation was social and cultural rather than  Language too has an underlying role in the unity
political. Order and stability were maintained not by in diversity of Indian culture. Although there is
means of the state but through culture and society. bewildering diversity in the languages and dialects
The vastness of the country’s extreme diversity of of India, fundamental unity is found in the ideas
physical features, endless variety of races, castes, and themes expressed in these languages. There is
creeds and languages and dialects have made it unity also at the level of grammatical structures.
difficult to establish an all- Indian empire Sanskrit has deeply influenced most languages of
India with its vocabulary. Dravidian languages also
 However, the idea of bringing the whole country
have a number of Sanskrit words today. Persian,
under one central authority has always been on
Arabic and English words too have become part of
the minds of great kings and statesmen of India.
the Indian languages and dialects today. The spirit
It was with this purpose that the kings of ancient
of accommodation, which united different ethnic
India proclaimed the idea of Chakravarti. Kings
groups into one social system, also expresses itself
like Chandragupta Maurya, Ashoka, Samudragupta
in the literatures of India.
and Harshvardhana had put this idea into practice.
The socio-political contributions of some Muslim
Elements of Unity in India in different
rulers such as Akbar and Jehangir were also highly
commendable. Akbar’s Din-e-Elahi and Jehangir’s Phases
emphasis on justice deserve special mention in this
 Due to cultural and economic interaction and
regard.
geographical mobility there has emerged an all-
 The British tried to establish political unification India style, a series of inter-linkages and much
under a paramount power with regard to the commonality between different regions of India.
defence, external relations, foreign policy and The following few paragraphs will elaborate the
certain economic matters within the whole of India. elements which act as binding factors inspite of
 After the independence the unity of India is numerous diversity in India.
expressed in the institution of the nation. It is the  India is characterized by numerous local level
product of the freedom movement as well as the traditions or folk traditions as well as what could be
constitutional legacy of the British rule. There is deemed as the greater classical tradition. The latter
political and administrative unity today but there would be more widely spread over the country but
are different political parties and diverse political also confined to certain dominant sections of society.
ideologies. Therefore, politics is both a factor of
 Common to each linguistic region are specific
unity and diversity.
agriculture related castes which form the core of
rural communities, along with their complementary
Linguistic Factors:
artisan and service castes. These were involved in a
 India is a multilingual country. Language is another jajmani-service provider relationship. In the urban
source of cultural diversity as well as unity. It areas there were predominantly, castes of banias
contributes to collective identities and even to (traders), crafts persons and castes such as brahmans
conflicts. Twenty two languages are recognized by and kayasthas.
Indian Constitution.  Pilgrimage centres have also led to a type of unity
 All major languages have regional and dialectical at the all India level. Barriers of caste, class and
variations, for example, Hindi has Awadhi, Brij, other social taboos were almost absent at pilgrimage
Bhojpuri, Magadhi, Bundeli, Pahari, Malwi, Odia centres during several cultural occasions. People from
has Sambalpuri and several other dialects. The different regions were able to interact at the pilgrim
situation is further complicated since 179 languages centres with each other leading to the establishment
and 544 dialects are recognised in India. of cultural bonds. Trans-sectarian pilgrim sites
 These languages and dialects are divided into three include Kashi, Haridwar, Rameshwaram, Dwarka,
linguistic families Indo- Aryan, Dravidian and Badrinath, Gaya, similarly Amritsar and Ajmer
Mundari. Sharif also become pilgrimage centre during
medieval period.
 6 ART & CULTURE

 Traditional personal laws and social customs of the Sikandra shows, in spite of its Muslim arches and
Hindus were applicable in different regions. The domes, the general pattern of Buddhist viharas or of
Dayabhaga system of inheritance was popular in the rathas of Mahablipuram. Jain influence is found
Bengal whereas the Mitakshara prevailed over the on the mosque of Fathehpur Sikri and Mount Abu.
rest of the country, except in Kerala and Bengal. The Mughal architecture acquired new qualities
Most Indians believe in the ideas of heaven and which neither the Persian nor the old Indian styles
hell and cherish the idea of moksha (salvation) or had ever possessed.
nirvana (liberation) from the cycle of life and death.  Painting also developed a new style during this
This concept of moksha or nirvana is linked with the period through the blending of the Turko-Iranian
perception of the one ultimate Brahma. with the old Indian style. Akbar founded an academy
 In the middle ages when the world witnessed the of painting at his court where Indian and Persian
most intensely fought religious wars in Europe artists worked together. Jehangir was not only a
and the Middle East, India stood out as a country patron of art but was himself an artist, and during
where many religions co-existed in relative social his time Mughal painting reached its zenith.
harmony. The role of the ruler like Akbar was also  During the colonial rule different factors led to
very important in this context. significant changes in the structure of Indian society.
 Islam seems to have strengthened the de-ritualising The traditional framework of unity in Indian
and egalitarian trends in Medieval Hinduism, while civilization came under tremendous stress. Modern
Hindu philosophy seems to have strengthened the education introduced by the colonial rulers initiated
mystical spiritual strain in Muslim religious thought. a process of cultural westernisation.
For example, the Bhakti movement initiated by the  The freedom movement (1857-1947) created new
Nayanar Saints of South India found strength in the sources of unity in Indian society. Now, nationalism
context of Islam and Muslim dominance in North replaced religion and culture as the cementing force
India. In the same way, the mystic and devotional within Indian society. Despite the partition in 1947,
aspect of Islam was strengthened in the philosophical the experience of freedom movement is still the
milieu of Hinduism. Ramanand, Kabir, Nanak and foundation of Indian unity in modern India.
Dara Shikoh played a significant role in the spread
of mutual understanding among the Hindu and the  After the independence the nation and its different
Muslim masses. organs have become the pillars of unity in India. The
constitution built on the pre-existing unity of India
 A unified culture in language, music and the arts has strengthened it still further by emphasizing the
was developed during the medieval period. Hindi values of equality, fraternity, secularism and justice.
and Urdu are the product of this unified Hindustani
culture of medieval India. Both languages have  Modern means of communication, the network
common roots, common vocabulary but these of railways, surface transport, civil aviation, post
are written in different scripts — Devanagari and offices, telegraph, telephones, print media, radio and
Persian respectively. television have played important roles in maintaining
and strengthening the national ethos and creating a
 In music and arts, the Hindus and the Muslims we feeling among Indians.
had come together. North Indian (Hindustani)
music was nurtured at the king‘s courts and in the  Industrialisation, urbanization and other economic
Hindu temples. Hindus sang at the Muslim courts factors have led to the creation of the capitalist and
and Muslims have sung bhajans at Hindu temples. the middle classes and have also created mobility of
Krishna, Radha and the gopis have provided the labour and services throughout the country.
staple theme for many of the compositions sung by  Thus, the above account on the aspect of unity in
Hindu and Muslim masters alike. diversity speaks that Indian has a traditional culture
 In architecture the process of blending Hindu and with cosmopolitan outlook. Since time immemorial
Muslim elements was perfected during the medieval inspite of having scores of differences the country
period. During the rule of Akbar, a synthesis of the is still united in spirit, in politics, in the mind of
Turko-Persian conceptions with Indian style was the inhabitants and will remain in such condition
attempted. In Jehangir‘s time the Hindu influence perpetually.
seems to have had increased. The tomb of Akbar at


 CHAPTER

1.2

PALEOLITHIC ART

 INTRODUCTION  Paintings have 3 motifs- man, animal and geometric

pattern.
 The past of humankind has been divided into three  Green and red colour paintings are found in
broad categories viz. Prehistoric, protohistoric and Bhimbetka caves.
historic. Prehistoric period belongs to the time before  Community dancers provide a common theme.
the emergence of writing and the historic period to
 Some of the pictures like women and children depict
the time following it.
a kind of family life.
 Human civilisation has evolved from stone age
to modern scientific world through experiments
and observation. In the past we have moved from
stone age to bronze age and then iron age. Stone
age was marked by use of stone tool technology.
The suffix lithic indicates the stone tool technology. Bhimbetka Cave Paintings
Economically the Paleolithic and Mesolithic periods
represented the hunting-gathering stage while the  Major breakthrough in the artistic development took
Neolithic represented the stage of food production, place in chalcolithic period when man started using
i.e. plant cultivation and animal husbandry. pottery in his daily life. We find painted pottery with
 Although man struggled for his survival in the various designs in different areas. The vividness and
Paleolithic era, the artistic attitude made him develop vitality of earlier periods disappear in this new type
several rock cut paintings in the walls of the caves. of painting. They used many colures such as white,
By piecing together the information deduced from yellow, orange, red, green, black, etc.
these cave drawings, scholars were able to construct
 New developments that occurred in Chalcolithic
the history of the Paleolithic man. Remnants of
Period:
rock paintings are found in the rock shelters located
in Bhimbetka near Bhopal. Several other sites are ! Brushes were made of plant fibre.
situated in several districts of Madhya Pradesh, ! Paints were made by crushing rocks. They got
Karnataka, Uttar Pradesh, Andhra Pradesh and red from hematite, white from limestone, etc.
Bihar.
! They engraved on rocks as a part of the rituals
they perform at birth, at death, at coming of age
 SALIENT FEATURES OF THE and at the time of marriage.
PAINTINGS ! They also painted individual animal with a good
pictorial quality which implies the mastery of
 The paintings were carved in the walls of caves with painting skill compared to previous era.
a sharp weapon.  The pre-historic paintings help us to know about
 The paintings mainly consist of man’s struggle for the life style of man at that time, his food, his daily
survival. Hunting scenes pre-dominate. activities and above all, his mind-the way he thought.

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7
 CHAPTER

1.3

INDIAN LANGUAGES

 INTRODUCTION diversity and richness of our culture has been

possible because of the development of sanskrit
Language is a medium through which we express our language during those time.
thoughts while literature is a mirror that reflects ideas and ! Middle Indo-Aryan Group (600 BC to 1000
philosophies which govern our society. Hence, to know AD): Prakrit was developed during this period.
any particular culture and its tradition it is very important Prakrit was also the mother language for other
that we understand the evolution of its language and the languages such as Pali, Apabhramsha, Ardha
various forms of literature like poetry, drama, religious Magadhi. Pali was one of the main languages
and non-religious writings. This lesson talks about the role used in Budhist scripts. Buddha himself
played by different languages in creating the composite preached in Pali
cultural heritage that characterizes India.
! Modern Indo Aryan Group: The languages
belonging to this group are Hindi, assamese,
 INDIAN LANGUAGES: THEIR bengali, Guarati, Marathi, Punjabi, Odia, Urdu
CLASSIFICATION etc. The language developed under this group
is mainly spoken in the northern, western and
 The Indian people, composed of diverse racial eastern parts of India.
elements, now speak languages belonging to four  Dravidian Group: Group comprises mainly of
distinct speech families—the Aryan, the Dravidian, languages spoken during the southern part of India.
the Sino-Tibetan (or Mongoloid), and the Austric. Around 25% of Indian population are covered in
People speaking languages belonging to the above this group. Proto dravidian gave rise to 21 dravidian
four families of speech at first presented distinct language. These are classified into three categories.
culture groups; and the Aryans in ancient India were Telugu is numerically the largest of all dravidian
quite conscious of that. languages, Malayalam is smallest and youngest of
the dravidian group.
Languages in India ! Northern: Brahui (Baluchisthan), malto (tribal
areas of bengal and odisa) and kurukh (bengal,
 Indo Aryan Group of Languages: It is a branch odisa, bihar, madhya pradesh) are the main
of the larger Indo European group of languages languages.
which came to India with the advent of Aryans. It
! Southern: Kannada, Tamil, Malayalam, Tulu,
is the largest language group of India and around
Kodagu, Toda and Kota. Tamil is the oldest
74% Indians speak those languages which belong to
amongst these.
this group. This group is mainly divided into three
groups: ! Central: It consists of eleven languages i.e.
gondi, Khond, Kui, Telugu. Only Telugu
! Old Indo Aryan Group: This group had its
became a civilised language and is spoken in
development around 1500 BC and Sanskrit Andhra Pradesh and Tamil Nadu.
was born around this period. The ancient form
of sanskrit which is found in vedas, puranas,  Sino Tibetan group: Languages under this family
upanishads etc had emerged from this time. It is belong to the Mongoloid family and stretch all over
North Bihar, North Bengal, assam and in North
a scheduled classical language. One amongst 22
East. These languages are considered older than
indian languages. It is also known as the mother
Indo Aryan languages and are refered to in the
8 of Indian languages. The understanding of the
oldest sanskrit literature as Kiratas.
ART & CULTURE 9

! Tibeto Burman: Tibetan, North Assamese,  Austric: These are the languages spoken by the
Burman, Manipuri are the most common Munda or Kol group and spoken in central, eastern
languages spoken in this category. and north eastern india. Santhali is an important
! Siamese Chinese: Ahom is one of the languages language spoken by the group and common among
spoken in this category but it has already become the santhal tribals such as Jharkhand, Bihar and
extinct. Bengal.

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