Some more precious gems from my trips

To me heritage means much more than monuments and artifacts! It is a way of life. Customs, traditions, rituals, festivals, languages, dialects, art, craft, music, poetry, stories, songs, dance, sculpture, costumes, accessories, cinema, theater, folk-lore, mythology..... The list is endless. In short, heritage summarizes the ethos and culture of a civilization. 

Everything that is worth preserving, revering and passing on to the next generation constitutes heritage. It is heritage which defines us as individuals and collectively, as citizens.

Heritage would definitely include the way we treat each other and outsiders! 'Atithi Devo Bhava' is not just a saying. It is an idiom of the Indian tradition of going all out to welcome and be hospitable to guests, irrespective of whether they are known to us or are even strangers!

Ayurveda and Yoga are undoubtedly the gems of our Indian heritage.

Here are some more gems of heritage, culled from my trips in India:

Sculptures depicting Bharatanatyam dance
Chidambaram temple

Meditation center - Auroville
Puducherry

Meticulously caved rock - Arjuna's penance
Mamallapuram

Wall painting

Ivory sculptures - Madurai

Shiv temple - Rameshwaram

Ornate door carving

Sri Brihadeeswarar temple - Thanjavur

Sri Brihadeeswarar temple - Thanjavur

Sea-shore - Rameshwaram

Madurai Nayagar Palace - Madurai

Temple - Madurai

Mahalaxmi temple - Chennai

Chennai

Queen Victoria's Memorial - Kolkata

Queen Victoria's Memorial - Kolkata

Jain temple - Kolkata

St. Paul's Cathedral - Kolkata

Konarak - Sun temple

Konarak - Sun temple