"So did you have culture shock?" this high school student asked me yesterday. Japanese people always makes the best out of their opportunities, whether it is to mingle with a foreigner, to know the outer world or to practice their english. I told her how i felt when i was brought into all this snow and how i got accustomed to it later. but that doesn’t fit as a culture shock, does it? I didn’t have much to tell her abt culture shock as one of the reasons i came to japan was the unique culture it posessed. Yet i forgot to tell her about the Reverse Culture Shock, which i saw defined in the handbook for international students of our university, and which i met with a few months before..

They’ve given the stages of Reverse Culture Shock like this:

1. acceptance & integration: state where a student has established a routine and accepted the habits, customs, foods n characteristics of japan.
2. return anxiety: where he realize how much his experiences have changed himself
3. return honeymoon: excited immediately upon arrival in india. parties to welcome and renew friendships n family ties
4. reentry shock: family n friends may not understand or appreciate what he has experienced, nor may they seem very interested. india n his hometown may’ve changed in his eyes.
5. reintegration: realises +ve n -ve aspects of both countries and have a more balanced  perspective of their experiences.

Of these, reentry shock is the most treacherous. was prepared for it too, psychologically, as i was aware of it beforehand but still it felt awkward once in a while. it may seem weird but thatz how it is.

So it was in august that i went to india after 1 n 1/2 years. and things were fun..

sense of time. gathering @ kochi

me: i’ve been waiting here since 5:45 !!
he: what time did we fix to meet? 6:00, rt?
me: ya and do you know whatz the time now?
he: it is 6:30 yaar. we’re on time!
me: huh??!!

dress sense. @ my friends home

he: dey, arent u changing this tshirt when you’re going out?
me: huh? mmm? means?
he: didnt u bring any shirt?
me: no, whatz the problem with this da?
he: ohh, never mind!

zebra crossing @ kottayam

me: mummy stop! itz red!!

mummy n me stops there
people cross the roads
cars n lorries n buses pass by

me: mummy itz green now! letz cross

but
cars n lorries n buses pass by
therez a policeman watching nearby

me: whattt???
mummy: hahaha. so letz wait for the red signal n cross!

aunty on phone, inviting to their new home

me: oh! i cant wait to see ur new home!
aunty: but remember, we dont have those hi-fi computerised toilets at our home. if you need, you’ve to bring one of your own. (unfortunately sometime back i had bragged to them that in japan the toilet seat warms when you sit, one can adjust the heat, water jet n blah blah..)
me:

It was like this for some days for each n everything. Back in time i was expert in jumping into those crowded running buses and now i found my talents lost. I even felt it was awkward how i kept my foot in the bus. I twitched n twisted n turned so that i was satisfied how i stood in the bus. and then my shoes will be over someone’s feet!

So i dont have to say what happened to the green tea and the chopsticks i brought home!!

and oh god, i was saved cuz i was aware, never did i start stories saying "in japan..". (other than the hi-fi-toilet incident. that was enough!! )

Anyways reintegration came soon to my rescue. Indian toilets found me or i found them who knows.. (or was it the spicy food :) missing it now). Was allergic to japanese toilets when i came back after a month. Needed to go to the nearby spicy tajmahal restaurant to treat the allergy lol.

Related posts

• Indian influence on Japanese traditions & culture (7)
• Gong Xi Fa Cai and bow bow (20)
• of kimonos & adulthood. seijin-no-hi, the coming of age day (21)
• mile-sur-mera-tumhara (89)
• life and questions (11)

Tags: culture shock, dress sense, india, japan, reverse culture shock, toilet, zebra crossing

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In school, he was that kid who used to make superfluous audio effects. One day he bleated mehhaahhh like a sheep during the chemistry class, the teacher was startled;  she asked him to "remain" at the back of the class. Little did he or she realize then that it was all written in the books. That his animal is the sheep. That he was born in the chinese year of the sheep..

SARAH: (April 24, 2006) Folks, the subject (the kid) is none other than Roxy! Hey Roxy, common admit it now. You liked to bleat and bleated you did in the classroom, and got punished for that!

Gong Xi Fa Cai ! It’s the Chinese New Year on January 29th, 2006. So when you see someone, greet with a Gong Xi Fa Cai Gong-She-Fa-Sai the newyear greeting, literally meaning "congratulations and be prosperous". In chinese calendar, one of the schemes for counting the year is the 12 year cycle, from 1, 2, 3 to 12. Then again from 1. Each year is represented by an animal. 2006 is the Year of the Dog. If you meet a chinese person and ask him his animal, you could get his year of birth too (as you could possibly guess his age-range)!

India-China talks
She: These Indians, they stink! they wear the same shirt to the lab 7 days a week. They stink!
He: These Chinese, they eat white onion and never had a shower in life. They stink!
She: Not all Chinese
She: Ya, not all Indians
Both were happy.

Japan-China talks
She: Your japanese books say the army did a great thing at nanjing. Burn those books
He: Your chinese books say Mao did a great thing in china. Burn those first
She: Oh ya?!
He: Oh ya!
No, not so happy.

It is sad to see so many chinese living here in Japan hate Japan so much. They have voice against whatever japan did. But they don’t have voice against tyrannies in their own country. Of course, once upon a time Japan’s political mindset was different, the defense was on the bad side and bad things happened. Japan’s mindset today is totally different from the yore. Since WWII it has only extended its hands for help. Yet people want to punish her for the sins of forefathers. Why don’t they first look at their own base and start rectifying from there? The number of chinese killed cuz of Japan won’t come any near to the number of people killed during Mao’s dictatorship (tens of millions of people). China has a bit grown out of its stringent communist measures of the past though people still have a lash even on their inner thoughts. Seems it will take years when human rights will weigh over unrealistic ideals.

Nevertheless, China has a great tradition of its own, though much is not obvious to people outside. Many of the traditions, art forms, even Kanji the writing system in Japan originated in China. One day, after my studies, I wish to go there and roam around inhaling the aroma of those unknown worlds. Yes I love china despite of what is said in the above piece of writing. Every country does have some insipid elements of its own. That doesn’t but define the whole of it. It’s whether you look at the thorns or roses.

Ok, enough. Hopefully, I’ll go for the chinese newyear celebrations here. i.e. if anyone invites me

Recommended book: Wild Swans, Three daughters of China by Jung Chang (banned in mainland China)

Epilogue: Gong Xi Fa Cai bow bow !! He used to howl and bow bow too. Later he was named as pattikutty (puppy-dog) by some of his classmates.

Related posts

• reverse culture shock (14)
• Indian influence on Japanese traditions & culture (7)
• of kimonos & adulthood. seijin-no-hi, the coming of age day (21)
• mile-sur-mera-tumhara (89)
• life and questions (11)

Tags: animal, china, chinese new year, gong xi fa cai, india, japan, year of dog, year of sheep

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Namaste.
Yesterday (29 Oct, 2005) I had gone to talk about India at an English Seminar for high school students at SIT school.

One of my friends asked me why I am keeping my hands in my pocket while they’re all doing namaste (reasonable question). We say namaste when we meet another person, another soul. Here, in this English seminar, I taught them what India is, and one of our basic greetings, namaste. Facing the camera, they are demonstrating what they learnt from me. I don’t need to demonstrate namaste when I face the camera.

Thought I would share the slides and some info with you as well. The slides have been made as simple as possible, for the students to digest and may be I will append some extra info for you. Will put one or two slides per day.

Namaste

Namaste: नमस्ते:
In Sanskrit “Namas” means, “bow, obeisance, reverential salutation.” It comes from the root Nam, which carries meanings of bending, bowing, humbly submitting and becoming silent. “Te” means “to you.” Thus “namaste” means “I bow to you.” the act of greeting is called “Namaskaram,” “Namaskara” and “Namaskar” in the varied languages of the subcontinent.

In simple language, namaste is “a hello with a respect”.
Namaste can be related to the Japanese bowing. In both, we don’t touch the other person as in the western style of shaking hands of each other. Both gives respect and means “I bow to you”.

In my state, Kerala we say ‘Namaskar’ instead of Namaste.

India: Unity in Diversity

India: Brief Satistics

Yeah. The country is so diverse! Many languages, religions, costumes flourish in India. Even the division into states are basically according to this cultural/language diversity. Most of the states have its own language.
eg: Language of the state of Kerala = Malayalam.

Hindi is the national language. English has associate status and is widely used.

Herez a list I got from Wikipidea, on the major languages:

1. Hindi हिन्दी
2. English (associate official)

Recognized national languages of India (Scheduled list for official use)

1. Assamese (official language of Assam) অসমীয়া
2. Bengali (official language of Tripura and West Bengal) বাংলা
3. Bodo (official language of Assam)
4. Dogri (official language of Jammu and Kashmir)
5. Gujarati (official language of Dadra and Nagar Haveli, Daman and Diu, and Gujarat) ગુજરાતી
6. Hindi (official language of Andaman and Nicobar Islands, Bihar, Chandigarh, Chhattisgarh, Delhi, Haryana, Himachal Pradesh, Jharkhand, Madhya Pradesh, Rajasthan, Uttar Pradesh and Uttaranchal) हिन्दी
7. Kannada (official language of Karnataka) ಕನ್ನಡ
8. Kashmiri
9. Konkani (official language of Goa)
10. Maithili (official language of Bihar)
11. Malayalam (official language of Kerala and Lakshadweep) മലയാളം
12. Manipuri (Meithei) (official language of Manipur)
13. Marathi (official language of Maharashtra) मराठी
14. Nepali (official language of Sikkim)
15. Oriya (official language of Orissa) ଓଡ଼ିଆ
16. Punjabi (official language of Punjab) ਪੰਜਾਬੀ, پنجابی
17. Sanskrit संस्कृता
18. Santali
19. Sindhi سنڌي، سندھی, सिन्धी
20. Tamil (official language of Tamil Nadu and Pondicherry) தமிழ்
21. Telugu (official language of Andhra Pradesh) తెలుగు
22. Urdu (official language of Jammu and Kashmir) اردو

Other popular languages of India
(over 5 million speakers but no official status)

1. Awadhi (often considered a sub-variety of Hindi)
2. Bhili (Bhil tribals)
3. Bhojpuri (language of Bihar, often considered a sub-variety of Hindi)
4. Bundeli (often considered a sub-variety of Hindi)
5. Chhattisgarhi (language of Chhattisgarh, often considered a sub-variety of Hindi)
6. Gondi (Gond tribals)
7. Hariyanavi (Haryanvi) (language of Haryana, often considered a sub-variety of Hindi)
8. Hindustani (A mixture of Hindi and Urdu. Spoken largely in the Northern part of India.)
9. Kanauji (language of Uttar Pradesh, often considered a sub-variety of Hindi)
10. Kodava, spoken in the Kodagu district of Karnataka
11. Kutchi (language of Kutch, a region in Gujarat)
12. Magadhi (language of southern Bihar, often considered a sub-variety of Hindi)
13. Marwari (language of Rajasthan, often considered a sub-variety of Hindi)
14. Tulu (spoken by Tulu people of Karnataka and Kerala)

Indian Flag:
The orange (deep saffron) symbolizes courage and sacrifice (saffron is the sacred color of Hinduism).
The white stands for peace, unity and truth.
The green stands for faith (Islam) and fertility.
The wheel in navy blue indicate the Dharma Chakra, the wheel of law in the Sarnath Lion Capital. The blue symbolizes the sky and the ocean. The 24 lines inside the chakra (wheel) symbolizes 24 hours of the day.

Related posts

• Indian influence on Japanese traditions & culture (7)
• reverse culture shock (14)
• onam with nature (16)
• mile-sur-mera-tumhara (89)
• life and questions (11)

Pages: 1 2 3 4 5 6 7

Tags: ashoka, bhangra, bharatanatyam, bihu, biriyani, buddha, buddhism, chappathi, churidar, classical music, classical dance, costumes, curry, dandiya, diwali, dosa, durga puja, festivals, film industry, flag, folk dance, ganesh chathurthi, hinduism, holi, idli, india, indian food, jainism, kabuki, kathak, kathakali, kuchipudi, kurta, languages, madurai meenakshi, mahatma gandhi, manipuri, mundu, namaste, nan, north india, odissi, onam, puri, religions, roti, sambar, saree, sikhism, south india, statistics, taj mahal, turban, unity in diversity, vada, yoga

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Part II of Omisoka, the Japanese NewYear Eve.

Was awed to see our own emblem shielding the buddhist temple @ Sapporo, Japan. Had known that Japan had borrowed several aspects from Indian culture, especially through Buddhism and Hinduism. But seeing something this large at a religious edifice was new to me. May be it is common in buddhist temples here..may be I am yet to see more of them.. but still..

The Lion Capital seal, Japanese Buddhism & Ashoka
The Lion Capital seal/emblem at Sarnath, near Varanasi in Uttar Pradesh was erected by Mauryan king Ashoka, during 3 Century BC, to mark the spot where Buddha first proclaimed his gospel of peace and emanicipation to the four quarters of the universe. After independence, on 26 Jan 1950, the Ashoka lion symbol or the Lion Capital seal was adopted as the State Emblem of India and his wheel of life appears on the Indian National Flag. A Government of India publication described the significance of these symbols in the following words: The National Emblem is symbolic of contemporary India’s affirmation of its commitment to world peace and goodwill. The 4 lions - symbolizing power, courage and confidence - rest on a circular abacus. The abacus is girded by 4 smaller animals - guardians of 4 directions: the lion of the north, the elephant of the east, the horse of the south and the bull of the west. The abacus rests on a lotus in full bloom exemplifying the fountainhead of life and creative inspiration. The motto ‘Satyameva Jayate’ from Mundaka Upanishid inscribed below the emblem in the Devanagari script, means ‘Truth Alone Triumphs’.

Joyanokane @ Omisoka
Well this is not all, I researched for more and the net came up with some answers. At Omisoka, the Japanese New Year Eve, one can hear the joyanokane, the ringing of a temple bell 108 times as the new year is born. Why 108 times? For an answer to that we have to trace the origins of Japanese Buddhism, far into the past. Buddhism, various Pagan gods, mathematics and a number of other things originally came through China from India. The Goddess Benten-sama, worshipped all over Japan is actually the Indian Goddess Sarasvati; Buddhist sutras and “magical language” used on sacred memorials is actually an altered form of Indian Sanskrit.

108 ?? juzu & mala
The prayer beads that most Japanese Buddhists use, called juzu, came from India where they are called mala, they always have 108 beads. Why so? The mala, analagous to the rosary, symbolizes the totality of the world and the circle of the heavens. In Indian astrology and religion, the circle of the visible universe was extremely important and clearly divided into 12 with each zone ruled by a constellation of the Zodiac, each represented by an animal. This system was used to understand and mark the exact moments when such things as the new year would occur. Now, each zodiac sign “zone” was further divided into 9 “digits,” much as a circle is divided into 360 degrees. Thus the totality of the heavenly round was 108 digits (9 x 12 = 108) and this number became sacred and a symbol of the cycles of life and time in India, China and, finally, Japan.
Thanks to Jayarava (see comments), there seems to be better explanation. Some facts from which the 108 sacredness would’ve derived: 

1. Distance between earth and sun = 108 x sun’s diameter
2. Distance between earth and moon = 108 x moon’s diameter (These 2 are referred in ancient Indian astronomy manuals as well)
3. Therez also a 3rd one which may not have been discovered in ancient India.. that the diameter of the sun = 108 x earth’s diameter.

(after reading through all these.. I find itz difficult to get on to a final conclusion. yet letz conclude on the most plausible above)

Buddhism adopted these ideas from Hinduism, but added a new concept; “sins” or negative actions. Some Chinese Buddhist saint came up with the tradition of there being 108 sins and 108 beneficial acts to match the 108-digit circle of the universe. Since New Years Eve was the moment when all the past sins should be done away with, with the grace of Buddha, it became common to ring the temple bell 108 times. This would broadcast the power of the temple’s prayers and chants and anyone who heard this joyanokane would be washed clean of all last years sins, ready to begin a new year. It is for this reason that it is considered very unlucky in Japan to die near the end of the year!

Ref:
1. Wikipedia & Internet
2. Subhash Kak’s blog

Related posts

• India; Unity in Diversity (40)
• how to spend NewYear in Japan (6)
• reverse culture shock (14)
• Gong Xi Fa Cai and bow bow (20)
• of kimonos & adulthood. seijin-no-hi, the coming of age day (21)

Tags: ashoka, buddhist temple, hinduism, india, japan, japanese buddhism, joyanokane, new year, omisoka

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Ottan Thullal "Garuda Garva-bhangam"
Ottan Thullal is a typical solo dance in which the humorous elements from Koothu and the musical elements from Kathkali are combined. Its origin is attributed to Kunchan Nambiar, a veritable genius and one of the foremost poets of Kerala. Nambiar developed Ottan Thullal into the most popular folk art presented in kerala temples.

Ottan Thullal "Garuda Garva-bhangam" (The vanquishing of Garuda’s Pride).  Enacted by Kalamandalam Geethanandan.

Garuda Garvabhangam
(mpeg with english subtitles, 459mb, 45 minutes)
update: ottan thullal upload removed

Indian Recipes
Quite a lot of north Indian and south Indian recipes. All are vegetarian.
Indian Recipes. (originally released by arakirukkan @ MT)

Lost Temples of India

Documentary Video on the ‘Lost Temples of India’.
It covers Taj Mahal, south Indian temples like Madurai, Srirangam,
with historical, areal and inner (ceremonies) views of the temples.

Lost Temples of India
(format: mpeg, size: 480 mb, duration: 52 minutes)

Grab it before I remove the upload
update: temple upload removed

Mile sur mera tumhara

National Integration song “Mile Sur Mera Tumhara..”, released in 1987 commemorating the 40th anniversary of Indian Independence and aired for several years afterwards. Song lyrics (in different languages and roman alphabets) and details are here: http://www.rock-sea.net/mile-sur-mera-tumhara

Video & Audio:

video: MileSurMeraTumhara.avi produced by Ashish Kapoor @ MIT
(original video aired by doordarsan not available online yet).
audio: MileSurMeraTumhara.mp3

Some other uploads

Ek aur Anek video by Flims Division
….
suraj ek, chanda ek, taare anek,
ek titli, anek titaliyaaN
ek gilhari , anek gilhariyaaN
ek chidiyan, ek ek… anek chidiyaan
….

Malgudi Days Title song (mp3, 1mb)
Malgudi Days, Television program based on R.K. Narayan’s novel ‘Malgudi Days’.. Look at http://www.malgudidays.com/ for details on Malgudi Days, R.K. Narayanan and R. K. Laxman (he’s the younger brother of R. K. Narayan).

p.s. this page will be updated periodically. visit again for more.

* uploads in this page are not authored by rocksea networks and they’ve been uploaded with the intention of preserving the culture and to quench one’s nostalgia. the videos may be online for a month or so, smaller files may remain. if you’ve authored any of the files here and if you want it to be removed, do contact. if you’ve authored any files which aren’t here and you want them to be added, do contact.

Related posts

• reverse culture shock (14)
• mile-sur-mera-tumhara (89)
• life and questions (11)
• Indian influence on Japanese traditions & culture (7)
• India; Unity in Diversity (40)

Tags: india

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