1. The name
“India” is derived from the River Indus, the valleys around which were the home
of the early settlers. The Aryan worshipers referred to the river Indus as the
Sindhu. The Persian invaders converted it into Hindu. The name “Hindustan”
combines Sindhu and Hindu and thus refers to the land of the Hindus.
2. The
number system was invented by India. Aryabhatta was the scientist who invented
the digit zero.
3. India
exports software to 90 countries.
4. Martial
Arts were first created in India, and later spread to Asia by Buddhist
missionaries.
5. Yoga has
its origins in India and has existed for over 5,000 years.
6. The World’s
first university was established inTakshashila in 700BC. More than 10,500
students from all over the world studied more than 60 subjects. TheUniversity
of Nalanda built in the 4th century BC was one of the greatest achievements of
ancient India in the field of education.
7. Sanskrit is
the mother of all the European languages. Sanskrit is the most suitable
language for computer software.(a report in Forbes magazine, July 1987).
8. Ayurveda is
the earliest school of medicine known to humans. Charaka, the father of
medicine consolidatedAyurveda 2500 years ago. Today Ayurveda is fast regaining
its rightful place in our civilization.
9. Although
modern images of India often show poverty and lack of development, India was
the richest country on earth until the time of British invasion in the early
17th Century. Christopher Columbus was attracted by India’s wealth.
10. The art of
Navigation was born in the river Sindhu 6000 years ago. The very word
Navigation is derived from the Sanskrit word NAVGATIH. The word navy is also
derived from Sanskrit ‘Nou’.
11.
Bhaskaracharya calculated the time taken by the earth to orbit the sun hundreds
of years before the astronomer Smart in 5th century that time taken by earth to
orbit the sun 365.258756484 days.
12. The
value of “pi” was first calculated by Budhayana, and he explained the concept
of what is known as thePythagorean Theorem. He discovered this in the 6th
century long before the European mathematicians.
13. Algebra,
trigonometry and calculus came from India. Quadratic equations were by
Sridharacharya in the 11th century. The largest numbers the Greeks and the
Romans used were 106 whereas Hindus used numbers as big as 10**53(10 to the
power of 53) with specific names as early as 5000 BC during the Vedic period.
Even today, the largest used number is Tera 10**12(10 to the power of 12).
14. IEEE has
proved what has been a century old suspicion in the world scientific community
that the pioneer of wireless communication was Prof. Jagdish Chandra Bose and
not Marconi.
15. The
earliest reservoir and dam for irrigation was built in Saurashtra.
16. According
to Saka King Rudradaman I of 150 BC, a beautiful lake called Sudarshana was
constructed on the hills ofRaivataka during Chandragupta Maurya‘s time.
17. Chess
(Shataranja or AshtaPada) was invented in India.
18. Sushruta
is the father of surgery. 2600 years ago he and health scientists of his time
conducted complicated surgeries like cesareans, cataract, artificial limbs,
fractures, urinary stones and even plastic surgery and brain surgery. Usage of
anesthesia was well known in ancient India. Over 125 surgical equipment were
used. Deep knowledge of anatomy, physiology, etiology, embryology, digestion,
metabolism, genetics and immunity is also found in many texts.
19. When many
cultures were only nomadic forest dwellers over 5000 years ago, Indians
establishedHarappan culture in Sindhu Valley (Indus Valley Civilization).
20. The four
religions born in India, Hinduism, Buddhism, Jainism, and Sikhism, are followed
by 25% of the world’s population.
21. The
place value system, the decimal system was developed in India in 100 BC.
22. India is
one of the few countries in the World, which gained independence without
violence.
23. India
has the second largest pool of Scientists and Engineers in the World.
24. India is
the largest English speaking nation in the world.
25. India is
the only country other than US and Japan, to have built a super computer
indigenously.
26. The first
six Mogul Emperor’s of India ruled in an unbroken succession from father to son
for two hundred years, from 1526 to 1707.
27. The
World’s First Granite Temple is the Brihadeswara temple at Tanjavur in Tamil
Nadu. The shikhara is made from a single ‘ 80-tonne ‘ piece of granite. Also,
this magnificient temple was built in just five years, (between 1004 AD and 1009
AD) during the reign of Rajaraja Chola.
28. India is
the Largest democracy in the world, the 6th largest country in the world AND
one of the most ancient and living civilizations (at least 10, 000 years old).
29. The game
of snakes & ladders was created by the 13th century poet saint Gyandev. It
was originally called ‘Mokshapat.‘ The ladders in the game represented virtues
and the snakes indicated vices. The game was played with cowry shells and
dices. Later through time, the game underwent several modifications but the
meaning is the same i.e. good deeds take us to heaven and evil to a cycle of
re-births.
30. The
world’s highest cricket ground is in Chail, Himachal Pradesh. Built in 1893
after leveling a hilltop, this cricket pitch is 2444 meters above sea level.
31. India
has the most post offices in the world!
32. The
largest employer in the world is the Indian railway system, employing over a
million people!
33. Until
1896, India was the only source for diamonds to the world. (Source: Gemological
Institute of America)
34. The
Baily Bridge is the highest bridge in the world. It is located in the Ladakh
valley between the Dras and Suru rivers in the Himalayan mountains. It was
built by the Indian Army in August 1982.
35. Jainism
and Buddhism were founded in India in 600 B.C. and 500 B.C. respectively.
36. Islam is
India’s and the world’s second largest religion.
37. There are
300,000 active mosques in India, more than in any other country, including the
Muslim world.
38. The oldest
European church and synagogue in India are in the city of Cochin. They were
built in 1503 and 1568 respectively.
39. Jews and
Christians have lived continuously in India since 200 B.C. and 52 A.D.
respectively.
40. The
largest religious building in the world is Angkor Wat, a Hindu Temple in
Cambodia built at the end of the 11th century.
41. The
Vishnu Temple in the city of Tirupathi built in the 10th century, is the
world’s largest religious pilgrimage destination. Larger than either Rome or
Mecca, an average of 30,000 visitors donate $6 million (US) to the temple
everyday.
42. Sikhism
originated in the Holy city of Amritsar in Punjab. Famous for housing the
Golden Temple, the city was founded in 1577.
43. India
provides safety for more than 300,000 refugees originally from Sri Lanka,
Tibet, Bhutan, Afghanistan and Bangladesh, who escaped to flee religious and
political persecution.
44. His
Holiness, the Dalai Lama, the exiled spiritual leader of Tibetan Buddhists,
runs his government in exile from Dharmashala in northern India.
45. India is
the world’s largest, oldest, continuous civilization.
46. India
never invaded any country in her last 10,000 years of history.
47. India is
the world’s largest democracy.
48. Varanasi,
also known as Banaras, was called “the ancient city” when Lord Buddha visited
it in 500 B.C.E, and is the oldest, continuously inhabited city in the world
today.
UPDATED ON
14/12/2010.
49. Most
historians agree that the first recorded account of plastic surgery is found in
ancient Indian Sanskrit texts.
50. India has
the world’s largest movie industry, based in the city of Mumbai (known as the
“City of Dreams”). The B in “Bollywood” comes from Bombay, the former name for
Mumbai. Almost all Bollywood movies are musicals.
51. With
150,000 post offices, India has the largest postal network in the world.
52. India is
the world’s largest producer of dried beans, such as kidney beans and
chickpeas. It also leads the world in banana exports; Brazil is second.
53. The
earliest cotton in the world was spun and woven in India. Roman emperors would
wear delicate cotton from India that they would call “woven winds.” Mogul
emperors called the fabrics “morning dew” and “cloth of running water.
54. India is
the birthplace of chess.l The original word for “chess” is the Sanskrit
chaturanga, meaning “four members of an army”—which were mostly likely
elephants, horses, chariots, and foot soldiers.
55. Hindi and
English are the official languages of India. The government also recognizes 17
other languages (Assamese, Bengali, Gujarati, Nepali, Manipuri, Konkani,
Kannada, Kashmiri, Malayalam, Marathi, Oriya, Punjabi, Sanskrit, Sindhi, Tamil,
Telugu, and Urdu). Apart from these languages, about 1,652 dialects are spoken
in the country.
56. India’s
pastoral communities are largely dependent on dairy and have made India the
largest milk-producing country in the world.
57. India has
the world’s third largest road network at 1.9 million miles. It also has the
world’s second largest rail network, which is the world’s largest civilian
employer with 16 million workers.
58. India
experiences six seasons: summer, autumn, winter, spring, summer monsoon, and
winter monsoon.
59. India is
the world’s largest tea producer, and tea (chai) is its most popular beverage.
60. The Taj
Mahal (“crown palace”) was built by Mughal Emperor Shah Jahan (1592-1666) for
his beloved wife Mumtaz Mahal (1593-1631). This architectural beauty has been
called “marbled embroidery” for its intricate workmanship. It took 22,000
workmen 22 years to complete it.
61. The
first and greatest civilization in ancient India developed around the valley of
the Indus River (now Pakistan) around 3000 B.C. Called the Indus Valley
civilization, this early empire was larger than any other empire, including
Egypt and Mesopotamia.
62. After
the great Indus Civilization collapsed in 2000 B.C., groups of Indo-Europeans
called Aryans (“noble ones”) traveled to northwest India and reigned during
what is called the Vedic age. Aryans spoke and imported Sanskrit into India,
which is the mother of all European languages. The mingling of ideas from the
Aryan and Indus Valley religions formed the basis of Hinduism, and the gods
Shiva, Kali, and Brahma all have their roots in Aryan civilization. The Aryans
also recorded the Vedas, the first Hindu scriptures, and introduced a caste
system based on ethnicity and occupation.
63.
Alexander the Great invaded India partly because he wanted to solve the mystery
of the “ocean,” which he had been told was a huge, continuous sea that flowed
in a circle around the land. When he reached the Indian Ocean, he sacrificed
some bulls to Poseidon for leading him to his goal.
64. Greek
sculpture strongly influenced many portrayals of Indian gods and goddess,
particularly after the conquest of Alexander the Great around 330B.C. In fact,
early Indian gods had Greek features and only later did distinct Indian styles
emerge.
65.
Chandragupta Maurya (340-290 B.C.), a leader in India who established the
Mauryan Empire (321-185 B.C.), was guarded by a band of women on horseback.
66. When the
first independent prime minister of India, pacifist Jawaharlal Nehru
(1889-1964), was featured in Vogue, his distinctive close fitting,
single-breasted jacket briefly became an important fashion statement for the
Mod movement in the West. Named the Nehru jacket, the prime minister’s coat was
popularized by the Beatles and worn by such famous people as Johnny Carson
(1925-2005) and Sammy Davis Jr. (1925-1990)
JAI HIND........
