Christmas in India – how does that work? For many people (including me), it was difficult to imagine at first: Christmas trees, snow and presents - accompanied by warm climate, cows and monkeys? I asked friends, colleagues, shopkeepers and people on the street about it. How do they celebrate this festival? Is it as grand and pompous as in Christian countries? I got various answers, but one can be said for certain – Christmas is enjoyed by everyone!

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Hinduism, India's banyan tree of diverse religious traditions, reflects much of Indian people's behaviour, values and world views. With a growing interest in yoga and meditation in Western countries, Hinduism and its rituals have gained many followers outside India as well. Knowledge Must had the chance to interview a young German Hindu woman in her mid-twenties to find out about her experience, how she found her spiritual mentor and her understanding of Hinduism and India.

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Whether you come for business, education, or leisure, India's capital city Delhi offers you countless opportunities to spend your time. To help you make the most of this mega-city, we have gathered together over 100 interesting, fun, and often unconventional ideas into one handy guide. See how many you manage to tick off before you leave - that is, if you intend to leave behind the city's excitement at all…


ACTIVITIES:

1. Learn Hindustani, the lingua franca of the Indian Subcontinent (that covers the continuum of the standard registers Hindi and Urdu). For Delhi this is a real Must - and will make you enjoy the city all the more!

Continue reading "101 Things to Do While in Delhi"

Lili Jiang, 23, is a Chinese student from Sichuan Province, China. In July she went to travel in India and she has decided to share her experience with us.

KM: So, first of all, Lili, how come you decided to go to India? Isn’t it still a quite unusual destination for Chinese tourists?

Lili: Well to be honest, I think you are right, there aren’t many Chinese tourists in India (yet!), and on the plane I had a hard time explaining to the Chinese hostesses and passengers why I was travelling to India as a tourist. Most of the Chinese people on my flight were going to India for business purposes and they didn’t understand why I was going there just for fun! The hostesses were actually worried for me, telling me things like: “Why are you going to India? Are you mad? If you need help you can stay with us, here’s our Indian phone number!” Despite their concerns though, my experience in India was great! The main reason why I decided to go was that I’ve always felt an attraction for India! We’re neighbours, yet so different!! My friend (who was flying from Hong Kong, while I was flying from Beijing) and I were scared we would miss each other in the airport. Luckily enough, I guess I looked too different from my Indian sisters and brothers and my friend recognized me right after I got out of customs!

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Fasting is an integral part of Indian tradition. Fasting means holding oneself back voluntarily from eating something certain or even any kind of food for a definite period of time. In Hindi language it is called “vrat”. A fast can be partial or prolonged, e.g. for a duration of 24 hours. There are also some fasts in India which are observed for a week or more, examples being Navratri fasts, or Muslim fasts during Ramadan and Jain fasts. In Hinduism each day of the week is related to planetary constellations and devoted to a certain deity. These fasts are generally observed according to one’s individual needs. The day fasts can be understood in the following manner according to the different days of the week:

Continue reading "Fasting in India - The Hindu Day Fasts"