cultural knowledge

social competence

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Understanding India

The image of India in the West is undergoing changes. Earlier clichees were made of hunger and holy cows. Today they are being substituted by software engineers and rocket scientists. Rarely are the true dimensions taken into account: India is as vast as western Europe. Anthropologists counted 4635 castes and tribes, listed 325 separate languages in India. Her cultural history dates 5000 years back to the cities by the Indus river, which established trade with the Assyrian empire in Mesopotamia. During the European Middle Ages India was a world trade power with her textiles and spices selling in Europe at exorbitant prices.

Rainer Hörig

 

A World on its own

India is not only a huge country, it is a world on its own. Hardly any other country in the world encompasses such a huge variety of lifestyles and economies, so many religions and worldviews. India's diversity is overwhelming and confusing. Any statement about India is at once both right and wrong. One has to abolish the notion of "the Indian". There are more than one billion Indians!

Rainer Hörig

Problems and Perspectives

India is faced with many problems that give many a reason for despair. But high-headedness is uncalled for here. Just a few hundred years ago Europe's elite starved for silk and spices, perfumes and jewellery from India. Today India's best brains develop software for multinationals, teach Yoga and meditation to the West, work out technical solutions for competitive prices in the world market.

Rainer Hörig

cited from:

Indien verstehen

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