Culture and Civilization | Anthropology Optional for UPSC PDF Download

Introduction

• India is one of the oldest civilizations in the world, home to a vast population of around half a billion people. Renowned for its cultural diversity and plurality, India’s complexity is such that no single discipline can fully capture its richness. The diversity in India is evident in every aspect of life, including its population, geography, environment, modes of livelihood, and, most importantly, its myriad cultures.
• There are four broad approaches to studying Indian civilization, which are outlined in the first section of this unit.
• The Indian population is a mosaic of historical migrations, leading to a rich tapestry of racial, ethnic, and religious diversity. Different regions of India are home to populations that, while concentrated in specific areas, speak a variety of languages and have distinct ways of life that set them apart from one another.
• The ecological and physiographic variations across different regions of India further contribute to its richness and diversity, which is elaborated upon in Section 1.3, focusing on the cultural and historical geography of the country.
• Section 1.4 examines the social structure and cultural diversity of Indian civilization, emphasizing the importance of its religious and socio-political historical past in understanding the evolution of Indian society. It underscores the notion that no society can be fully understood without reference to its history.
• Section 1.5 reflects on the significant elements that contribute to the unity of Indian civilization. It points out that, despite internal conflicts and almost continuous warfare, regionalism has never posed a significant threat to the unified identity of Indian civilization.

Approaches to the Study of Indian Civilization

• The term 'civilization' comes from the Latin word 'civis,' which means 'citizen' or 'townsman.' This suggests that the definition of civilization is complex. It implies certain agricultural practices, trade, planned settlements, diverse cultures, art, religion, and some form of governance. Civilization is a blend of human society with cultural-material and non-material traits along with a defined political structure. The Indus Valley Civilization is considered a civilization based on its artifacts and monuments. India is regarded as one of the oldest continuing civilizations, tracing its roots back to the Harappan civilization. 
• Numerous scholarly accounts have focused on understanding the nature of Indian society and culture, highlighting the diversity and richness of India as a civilization. These accounts offer various conceptual tools and methodologies for studying Indian civilization.

Cohn (1971) identifies four broad approaches to understanding Indian civilization:

• Catalogue Approach
• Cultural Essence Approach
• Cultural Communication Approach
• Approaching India as a Type

The Cataloguing of Traits:

• This approach involves recording traits, institutions, and qualities considered to be essentially Indian. Variations and deviations within India are examined through statistical measures like mean or mode. 
• While India’s diversity can be attributed to geographical, ecological, regional, class, or religious differences, the focus is on listing traits that are distinctly Indian or contribute to the concept of Indianness. However, what constitutes 'being Indian' can vary from scholar to scholar.

The Reading of Cultural Essence:

• This approach seeks to uncover the essential style and process—cultural essence—reflective of Indian civilization since its inception, not in terms of traits or content. 
• Cultural essence embodies India’s true spirit, shaped over time by historical and various other factors. Concepts like 'unity in diversity,' tolerance, brotherhood, and respect for the spiritual and divine represent this essence. The idea of ethos is abstract and deductive, making it highly subjective.

The Study of Cultural Communication:

• The cultural communication approach focuses on how the content of the civilizational system is transmitted and communicated through different levels of society. It emphasizes the structural integration of Indian civilization. The works of social anthropologists McKim Marriott (1955) and Robert Redfield (1956) provide a foundation for understanding the unity and interdependence within a civilizational entity.
• Marriott’s concept of cultural synthesis and interaction between 'Great Tradition' and 'Little Tradition' is illustrated through festivals in a small north Indian village, Kishangarhi, Uttar Pradesh. Redfield’s analysis of the folk-urban continuum reflects the symbiotic relationship between great tradition and little tradition.

Box 1: Parochialization and Universalization: McKim Marriott’s work, "Little Communities in an Indigenous Civilization" (1955), introduces the concepts of Universalization and Parochialization to explain cultural exchange between great tradition and little tradition in India.

• Universalization involves extending the great tradition by incorporating elements of little tradition, emphasizing the systematization and standardization of local practices within a universal framework.
• For example, the local celebration of Diwali in Kishangarhi, where the goddess Saurti is venerated for wealth and prosperity, illustrates how goddess Lakshmi represents a universalized form of Saurti.
• Parochialization refers to the adaptation of universal rites, beliefs, and cultural ideals to fit local contexts, showcasing the creativity of little communities within India’s indigenous civilization.
• Marriott exemplifies this with the Naurtha festival in Kishangarhi, a local adaptation of the broader Navarathri celebration, where nine different forms of the Sanskritic goddess Durga are honored over nine days.

Box 2: Little and Great Traditions: Robert Redfield’s work, "Peasant Society and Culture: An Anthropological Approach to Civilization" (1956), draws from his experiences with Latin American peasants to highlight the interconnectedness of peasant societies with broader communities.

• Redfield emphasizes that peasant societies are not isolated; their way of life is influenced by interactions with tribes, towns, and cities.
• He views peasant society as a system of social relations, with connections extending beyond the community to include wider societal influences.
• Similar to Marriott, Redfield underscores the interdependence of peasant communities, representing little tradition, with urban populations who embody the great tradition.

Analysing Indian Civilization as a Type:
This approach, popular among comparative sociologists, views Indian civilization as a distinct type in comparison with other societies and cultures. Indian society is characterized as a traditional society undergoing processes like modernization, which reflect broader cultural, social, and historical principles.

• The goal is not to identify unique values or aspects of India but to typify it based on commonalities with other societies and cultures, examining variations accordingly.
• For instance, India may be considered a type as a village society or agrarian society, facilitating comparisons with other societies exhibiting similar rural life and community structures.
• However, categorizing India solely as a caste society would be ineffective, as the concept of caste is unique to India. This uniqueness renders cross-cultural comparisons challenging.
• According to this approach, what is unique is considered 'scientifically incomprehensible,' emphasizing the need for comparative frameworks (Cohn 1971:4).

Understanding the Geography of India

• India's geography has played a crucial role in shaping its historical, cultural, and political landscape. The diverse geography, including fertile river basins, plains, and deltas, has influenced human settlement patterns, population density, and agricultural practices throughout history. 
• The complex interplay between geography and human activity has created distinct zones within India, each with its own unique characteristics.

The Perennial/Nuclear Zones:

• The Perennial or Nuclear Zones are characterized by their fertile river basins, plains, and deltas. These areas have historically been the centers of human settlement, high population density, and political activity. Strong agricultural practices and trade centers for agricultural and craft commodities have also developed in these regions.

In northern India, the river basins and plains around Peshawar gave rise to the first nuclear zone,Gandhara, which played a crucial role in spreading influences from western and central Asia into India. Major nuclear zones in northern India include:

• Sutlej-Jamuna Doab: Home to cities like Kurukshetra-Panchala, Kanauj, Panipat, Delhi, and Agra, each with a vibrant political and historical past.
• Gangese-Jamuna Doab: Includes important cities with distinct linguistic traditions and unique cropping patterns.

In southern India, there are five major nuclear zones:

• Andhra: Home to Telugu-speaking people, with rich agricultural delta areas around the Godavari and Krishna rivers.
• Tamil Nadu: Site of the Chola and Pandyan kingdoms, inhabited by Tamil-speaking people. Comprises fertile plains of the Pennar River and Kaveri delta, densely populated.
• Maharashtra: Marathi-speaking area, with dry agriculture practices.
• Mysore: Home to Kannada-speaking people, similar to Maharashtra in agricultural practices, with millet, maize, and gram as prominent crops.
• Kerala/Malabar: Distinct due to its elevation from the Nilgiri ranges and heavy rainfall. Similar to Andhra and Tamil Nadu in wet rice cultivation.

The Route Zones:

• Route Zones, exemplified by Malwa, serve as connections between different regions. Malwa links northern India with the western coast and the Deccan, acting as a passage for invaders and traders to reach the attractive nuclear zones. 
• These zones lack a unified and persistent political tradition. They are socially and culturally diverse, often being areas of settlement for migrant populations.

The Zones of Relative Isolation:
Zones of Relative Isolation are geographically less conducive to human settlement due to their inaccessibility. For instance,Ladakh is characterized by its icy cold climate and high mountain ranges, making it relatively cut off and leading to sparse settlements.

A village in the Ladakh region is relatively isolated due to high mountain ranges

(Photo credit : Kiranmayi Bhushi)

The northern part of the country is characterized by hilly and mountainous terrain, creating several areas of relative isolationsuch as:

• The area in the northern arc, which includes regions near the borders of Baluchistan and Afghanistan. This region is home to loosely organized tribes that have adopted Islam.
• The regions around Gilgit and Jammu and Kashmir, known for their unique cultural traditions that blend with Hindu influences from the plains.
• The areas along the Himalayas, extending through the borders of Nepal, Bhutan, and Sikkim, including where the Brahmaputra River flows into the plains of Assam. This region exhibits a mix of Tibetan-Buddhism culture and Hindu beliefs from the plains.
• The hilly and forested regions in the northeast, located between Burma and India. This area is inhabited by various tribes that show south-eastern cultural influences.
• The Rajasthan/Marwar area, which is relatively isolated in northwest India. Since the 10th century, it has been settled by Rajputs and other groups fleeing from Muslim invaders, who shaped the local culture among the scattered tribes.

There are also two notable zones of isolation in central India:

• An area running through the Vindhya Mountains, including eastern Gujarat, the Narmada River, and eastern Banaras, from where the Kaimur Hills can be seen.
•  The mountainous regions south of the Vindhya Range, covering northern Maharashtra, Madhya Pradesh, northwestern Orissa, and southeastern Bihar.

Viewing India from a Structural and Cultural Perspective

• Despite this diversity, India can still be viewed as a singular entity or nation. The civilization is structurally and culturally highly segmented and stratified. Hinduism, being more of a way of life than a strict doctrinal religion, has coexisted with and embraced various other religions, including Buddhism, Jainism, Sikhism, Islam, and Christianity. This has led to a rich tapestry of religious practices and beliefs. The great tradition of India, characterized by the hierarchy of varna and the extensive jati system, has permeated the subcontinent so deeply that even incoming religions like Islam and Christianity have, in practice if not in ideology, adapted to this social order.
• Today, the social and political landscape of India continues to be influenced by the past, with the caste system and local jatis playing crucial roles in power dynamics and social networks. A person's identity in contemporary India is often closely tied to their jati and varna, with references to a mythical past legitimizing these identities. The connection to the religious past also serves as a vital means of identifying with specific kinship groups and lineages. For example, Hindus travel to places like Gaya and Haridwar to perform rituals for their deceased relatives, where priests maintain genealogical records for their clients.
• The varna and jati systems impose themselves on the kinship system, with jati endogamy being a key principle. Blood feuds, rooted in kinship, are still practiced in some communities, where marital alliances and shared meals are restricted due to past disputes among ancestors. The influence of kinship and the jati system, as extended kin groups, limits social mobility and binds individuals to groups defined more by their historical past than by their present circumstances.
• However, this perception of the past has been evolving, especially since the late 19th century when nationalist leaders began to envision India as a cohesive nation with a unified population. After gaining independence from British rule in 1947, India was established as a secular state. National symbols were designed to reflect this secular character, avoiding overt Hindu symbols and instead representing a mix of religions. For instance, the national flag features the Buddhist wheel of law, and the national emblem is derived from the seal of the Buddhist king Ashoka. The national anthem, "Jana Gana Mana," emphasizes the unity of India's diverse peoples and regions.

Nationalist leaders like Jawaharlal Nehru aimed to present India as a model of "unity in diversity," highlighting its ability to assimilate and reshape foreign influences. India's civilization is marked by the assimilation and absorption of elements from various waves of immigrant rule, contributing to its socio-cultural richness and pluralism. However, the concept of "unity in diversity" raises questions about the appropriateness of viewing Indian society and culture through this lens, as highlighted in Embree's account of India's civilizational past.

Discussions on India's Civilizational Unity

The unified identity of Indian civilization is a topic of debate and discussion. Embree (1989) presents three different perspectives on this issue:

1. Denial of Unity: Some scholars, following the geographer Spate, argue that India is made up of distinct 'perennial/nuclear regions' that have shaped its regional geography, socio-cultural, and political history. These regions, marked by high population density and activity, differ from each other and from more isolated areas. This view emphasizes regional variations in geography, culture, and political development, leading to the concept of regionalism.

2. All-Encompassing Civilization: Proponents of this view acknowledge the importance of nuclear regions but argue for the existence of a unified Indian civilization. They see the colonial focus on regionalism as a misunderstanding of Indian history.

3. Unity in Diversity: This perspective sees India as a land of composite culture, reflecting both unity and diversity. Vincent Smith's Oxford History of India (1919) is an early expression of this view.

Embree, however, rejects the 'unity in diversity' characterization, emphasizing the role of Brahmanical ideology in unifying Indian civilization. He distinguishes between Brahmanical ideology, which provides a coherent worldview, and Hinduism, with its regional and local variations. Concepts like karma, reincarnation, dharma, and hierarchical social order are central to Brahmanical ideology.

Embree argues that Brahmanical ideology, along with the political experiences shaped by Islamic and European intrusions, plays a crucial role in Indian civilization's unity. Unlike Europe, where nation-states emerged, India's unity was influenced by these intrusions and the centrality of the ruler in the Brahmanical tradition. He contends that regionalism did not counter India's unity but rather that the historical attempts at political unification faced challenges from internal rivals to imperial institutions.

Conclusion