On our planet there are many corners that will not leave indifferent even the most picky person. In this article, we will consider the oldest civilization that has preserved its culture to this day. She surprised and continues to amaze us with her contrasts, worldview. This marvelous country is India.
Amazing country
In the modern world, you can find almost any information you are interested in, including interesting facts about India. You can read books as much as you like or watch films and videos about it, but still you will know almost nothing about this state. India is the only country on Earth where religious and cultural traditions have not been interrupted since ancient times. All the great civilizations of antiquity - Sumerian, Egyptian, Celtic, Roman and others - arose and sunk into oblivion, and the Indian survived to this day. There is no need to look for interesting facts about India, because this country is surprising and amazing at every turn. Often there is a feeling that you were cast by an unknown force in a parallel world or at another time. This country has preserved mysterious sects with their rituals strange to modern man, Buddhist monasteries, ancient temples, stunning landscapes, a unique lifestyle and much more. Every educated person on our planet knows that the ancient language of India, Sanskrit, has been preserved here. And even the uneducated representatives of our society have heard about the existence of the teachings of the Kama Sutra (though many of them do not understand the philosophical core of this teaching).
Country of contrasts
This state has incorporated the jungle and deserts, plains and mountains, maharaja palaces and reed shacks, respectable businessmen and beggars, red light districts and brutal Puritanism, government and caste system. Here it is - India. Interesting facts about the country of yogis can be collected all my life and still this work will not be completed. Mysterious Tibet, the majestic Himalayas, rainforests, the sacred river Ganges, many sea resorts, ancient monuments and museums - all this is the national pride of India.
Ancient India: interesting facts
By studying the history of this country, one can discover many amazing facts about the scientific and cultural achievements of the ancient inhabitants of India. Let's consider some of them.
1. In the city of Taksashil, the first university on the planet was founded. This happened in 700 BC. Here, more than ten thousand students studied over 60 subjects. And in the fourth century AD e. another university was founded in the city of Nalanda, which was one of the country's greatest achievements in the field of education.
2. Listing interesting facts about India, one cannot fail to mention Ayurveda, the earliest medical school that is known to man. It was created 2500 years ago by the father of Charak medicine. Complex surgeries were performed here - cesarean section, prosthetics, cataract removal, removal of stones from the urinary system, and even brain surgery.
3. In the fifth century AD, the scientist Brasharacharya calculated the time during which our planet passes around the Sun.
4. Another Indian scientist, Budhayana, in the sixth century for the first time, the number pi was calculated (long before the Arab and European mathematicians). In addition, he presented extended versions of the actions that are today known as the Pythagorean theorem. In India, such sciences as trigonometry and algebra were invented. From here came the basic concept of costing, and quadratic equations, and much more. Scientists of this country even invented the largest unit of time - kalpa, which described the period from the birth of the universe to its destruction (approximately 25 billion years).
The tragedy of this country
These and many other interesting facts about India are hushed up today, which, in principle, is understandable, because otherwise a "civilized" Europe will have to explain to the whole world what kind of "culture" they carried to the "wild" tribes of this country. Why did the British, and not only them, likened to barbarians, destroyed millions of Indians, plundered the national wealth of this nation, and removed many cultural and historical values. Indeed, at the time when universities functioned here, scientists created with a capital letter, complicated medical operations were carried out, future English "sirs" slept in a stable with pigs. After all, having recognized the fact of the barbaric plunder of India, it is necessary to recognize the true cause of modern military conflicts. NATO civilians, poppy fields, the plunder of natural resources and other delights of democracy have a better life for civilians.
But enough of the sad, back to this beautiful country.
India: interesting facts for children
For little readers, we will highlight some interesting facts. In this country, more than five thousand years ago, the teachings of yoga. Having visited India, every child and adult will be able to see with their own eyes how these people walk on broken glass, sleep on nails. And if you are very lucky, then you can see cases of levitation of the ancient masters.
And which of the children is not familiar with the main character of the cartoon "Mowgli"? But the story described by Kipling has real roots. Similar cases when wild animals raised a human child are known in life.
Through the eyes of a traveler
India is a very hospitable country, the most good-natured and peace-loving people on the planet live here. And this is so, another interesting fact speaks about it. Over the past ten thousand years, the inhabitants of this country have not invaded the territory of other states. And Mother Teresa (St. Calcutta) and Mahatma Gandhi are the greatest apostles of the twentieth century.
Well, let's continue to collect interesting facts about this country.
1. India is the birthplace of today's popular chess game. They used to be called “chaturanga”, which is translated from Sanskrit as “four kinds of troops”: once they were infantry, chariots, cavalry and fighting elephants.
2. In its area, modern India occupies the seventh place in the world. It is three times smaller than the United States, but at the same time it is the second in the world in terms of population - 1 billion 170 million people.
3. This country has more post offices than any other. India's largest employer is the Indian Railway. It provides jobs for more than a million people.
4. Until 1896, India was a global diamond monopoly. And this state was one of the richest (even colonized by Britain at the beginning of the seventeenth century).
5. In this country, the main religion is Hinduism, the second place is Islam. India has more than three hundred thousand mosques in operation - more than in any other country.
6. The citizens of this country are called Indians, and not Indians at all, as many believe. The last term refers to those people who profess Hinduism. Therefore, Indians can be citizens of other countries where they practice this religion, for example, Nepal.
Sacred trash
Along with the amazing facts listed above, India is one big garbage dump. Ancient monuments can be combined here with fetid heaps of garbage. And even in the Himalayas sacred to Indians at an altitude of 3000 meters above sea level, perennial garbage can often be found. Residents of this country simply dump garbage down. It covers the mountainsides with a continuous fetid carpet. And nobody cares.
Conclusion
To summarize, it should be noted: despite the fact that many inhabitants of our planet know about this large state, the second largest in the world in terms of population, modern youth has a very vague idea of where India is located. The world map will help fill this knowledge gap. The state borders with countries such as Pakistan, Tajikistan, China, Nepal, Bhutan, Bangladesh and Myanmar. India is washed by the Indian Ocean.