ART AND
CULTURE
PRESENTED BY –
SAMRIDHI GOYAL
NATIONAL WAR MEMORIAL
Amar Jawan Jyoti
The eternal flame at the Amar Jawan Jyoti
was an iconic symbol of the nation’s
tributes to the soldiers who have died for
the country in various wars and conflicts
since Independence.
It was established in 1972, to mark India’s
victory over Pakistan in 1971 War, which
resulted in the creation of Bangladesh. It
had been burning continuously since then.
INDIA GATE
The India Gate, All India War Memorial, as
it was known earlier, was built by the
British in 1931. It was erected as a
memorial to around 90,000 Indian soldiers
of the British Indian Army, who had died in
several wars and campaigns between
1914-1921.
NATIONAL WAR MEMORIAL
400 meters from India Gate was
inaugurated in 2019.
It was built to commemorate all the
soldiers who have laid down their lives in
the various battles, wars, operations and
conflicts of Independent India.
Eg. Sino-Indian war in 1962, Indo-Pak wars
in 1947, 1965 and 1971, Indian Peace
Keeping Force Operations in Sri Lanka,
Kargil Conflict in 1999, United Nations
peace-keeping missions, Humanitarian
Assistance Disaster Relief (HADR)
operations, counterinsurgency operations
and Low- Intensity Conflict Operations
(LICO).
SAHITYA AKADEMI AWARDS
Inaugurated in 1954, Sahitya Akademi -
India’s National Academy of Letters.
Functioning as an autonomous
organization, it also gives special awards
called Bhasha Samman to significant
contribution to the languages not formally
recognized by the Akademi and for
contribution to classical and medieval
literature.
WORLD HINDI DAY
UNESCO's World Heritage Centre has agreed
to publish Hindi descriptions of India's world
heritage sites on WHC website.
World Hindi Day is celebrated to mark the
anniversary of first World Hindi Conference
which was held in 1975 by then Prime Minister
Indira Gandhi. The day was first observed on
January 10, 2006.
National Hindi Diwas is celebrated every year
on September 14. On that day in 1949, the
constituent assembly adopted Hindi, written
in Devanagari script, as the official language
of the Union, while the focus of the World
Hindi Day is to promote the language at the
global stage.
FACTS ABOUT HINDI LANGUAGE
The word Hindi originated from the
Persian word Hind, which means the
land of the Indus River.
In linguistic terms, Hindi belongs to
the Indo-Iranian sub-family of the
Indo-European family of language.
Hindi has been influenced and
enriched by Turkish, Arabic, Persian,
English and Dravidian (ancient South
India) languages.
The earliest form of Hindi was called
'Apabhramsa', which was an offspring
of Sanskrit. In 400 AD, poet Kalidas
wrote Vikramorvashiyam in
Apabhramsa.
PADMA AWARDS
Instituted in 1954.
Padma Awards Committee, which is
constituted by the Prime Minister
every year. The nomination process
is open to the public. Even self
nomination can be made.
All persons without distinction of race,
occupation, position or sex are eligible for
these awards. However, government
servants including those working with PSUs,
except doctors and scientists, are not
eligible for these Awards.
The awards can also be conferred on
foreigners/Non-Resident Indian (NRI)/Person
of Indian Origin (PIO) /Overseas Citizen of
India (OCI).
Karakattam
It is one of the many creative traditions
that owe their existence to Mariamman, the
rain goddess.
Although it has links with the rain
goddess, the form is about more than just
worship—it is also about reversing the
caste dominance.
Karakattam is mostly famous in Tamil
Nadu, it’s performed in different parts of
Kerala as well.
Karakattam is a form of folk dance performed at
festivals, conferences, roadshows and primarily at
Mariamman festivals.
Three tiers of flower arrangements of different
colours sit on top of a container filled with either
water, rice, or soil.
Other highlights include blowing fire, inserting
needles into eyes, and keeping balance while
holding a bottle parallel to the ground on the
performer’s back.
DEVAYATANAM
‘Devayatanam – An odyssey of Indian
temple architecture’.
In India, there are 3 main kinds of temple
architecture: Nagara or the Northern
Style, Dravida or the Southern style, and
Vesara or the Mixed styles.
These architectures highlight India’s rich
history, culture, and heritage and are an
integral part of Indian life and its
ecosystem.
Construction of temples started with beginning
of human settlements & evolved through ages.
Temple construction was practiced as a pious
act not only in the subcontinent but the idea
also travelled to the nearest neighbourhood
such as south-east and east Asia.
Approximately 10 of India’s 40 UNESCO World
Heritage Inscriptions are Hindu temples in
different architectural styles, patterns and
symmetry.
PANDRETHAN TEMPLE
The Chinar Corps of the Indian Army was
recently accorded recognition by the National
Monuments Authority (NMA), for preserving
and rejuvenating the Pandrethran temple.
The Chinar Corps had adopted the ancient
excavation site within the cantonment and after
restoration, had named it ‘Dharohar’.
The Pandrethan temple, an 8th century
heritage site is situated in Srinagar’s
Badamibagh.
The site hosts several excavated
figurines tracing back to the 2nd century
– in the form of two large monolithic rock
shiva lingams, seven Gandhara-style
sculptures and a huge rock carving of
the feet of a monolithic statue.
Situated in the foothills of Zabarwan
range, and on Jhelum River banks, it has
magnificent sculptures of Shiva Trimurti,
Varah and Padmapani Avalikiteshwara.
KONARK SUN TEMPLE
It is a 13th-century CE temple dedicated to
sun god Surya, at Konark on the coastline
of Odisha. It was built by King
Narasimhadeva I of Eastern Ganga Dynasty
around 1250 CE.
The word 'Konark' is a combination of two
Sanskrit words kona (corner or angle) and
arka (the sun).
The temple follows the Kalinga or Orissa
style of architecture, which is a subset of
the nagara style of Hindu temple
architecture.
Declared a UNESCO world heritage site in 1984,
it is a major pilgrimage site for Hindus, who
gather here every year for the Chandrabhaga
Mela around the month of February.
This temple was called the Black Pagoda in
European sailor accounts as early as 1676
because its great tower appeared black.
Similarly, the Jagannath Temple in Puri was
called the White Pagoda. Both temples served
as important landmarks for sailors in the Bay of
Bengal.
Chenda, Elathalam, Kurumkuzal and
Veekkuchenda.
Each Theyyam is a man or a woman who
attained divine status by performing heroic
deeds or by leading a virtuous life.
Shiva or Shakti
The most prominent among these are Raktha
Chamundi, Kari Chamundi, Muchilottu
Bhagavathi, Wayanadu Kulaven, Gulikan and
Pottan.
COMMEMORATIVE STAMP
MERGER OF 3 JUMBO BLACK
HOLES SPOTTED
A Postal Stamp is a small adhesive piece of
paper of specified value issued by a
national post office to be affixed to a letter
or parcel to indicate the amount of postage
paid.
Commemorative postage stamps are issued
on subjects/ themes / institutions /
personalities / events that have a national or
international stature or have made national/
MERGERinternational
OF 3 JUMBO contribution or impact.
BLACK
HOLES SPOTTED
No stamp can be issued on a living personality.
The personalities on whom commemorative
postage stamp may be issued should be of
national or international importance.
Proposals for issue of Commemorative
Postage Stamps may be sent by any citizen of
India
Stamps
MERGER OFon3personalities
JUMBO BLACK shall not exceed 10%
of the Annual Issue Programme.
HOLES SPOTTED
GI TAG FOR NAGASWARAM
The musical instrument is traditionally made
by artisans based in a village near
Kumbakonam who make them through
specialized processing skills, a technique
inherited from their forefathers.
GI Tag
Wind instrument
Accorded a high status as a ‘Mangala
Vadyam’.
It is believed that Lord Shiva gifted the
instrument to the demon, Nagasuran.
The major portion of the
‘Narasinghapettai nagaswaram’ is made
from the Aacha (Hardwickia binata) tree.
The horn-like portion of Nagaswaram is
known as ‘Olavi’ and the loudspeaker-
like portion ‘anasu’. ‘Jeevali’ is played at
one end of the horn. It is through this
‘jeevali’ that air is blown.
KODAVA TAKKE
BAMIYAN BUDDHAS
The Bamiyan Buddha statues, created from
sandstone cliffs, dated back to the 5th century
AD, and were once the tallest standing Buddhas
in the world.
In their Roman draperies and with two different
mudras, the statues were great examples of the
convergence of Gupta, Sassanian and Hellenistic
artistic styles.
The statues consisted of the male Salsal ("light
shines through the universe") and the shorter
female Shamama ("Queen Mother"), as they were
called by the locals.
The Bamiyan valley, in the Hindu Kush
mountains and along the river Bamiyan, was a
key node of the early Silk Routes, emerging as a
hub of both commercial and cultural exchange.
Early in the first century AD, a semi-nomadic tribe
called the Kushanas swept out of Bactria.
They encouraged a syncretic (mix of) culture, in
which tribal traditions from Central Asia fused
with artistic conventions derived from the
Hellenized Mediterranean and with the ideologies
coming from Buddhist India.
MALCHA MAHAL
It is located in Chanakyapuri area in Delhi. It
was built in 1325 by Firoz Shah Tughlaq
It came to be known as ‘Wilayat Mahal’, who
claimed that she was a member of the royal
family of Oudh. She was given the palace
by the government in 1985.
The monument is not ASI-protected and,
therefore, no attention was paid to it to
conserve it.
FAMOUS
PERSONALITIES
Alluri Sitaram Raju
Rampa Rebellion in 1922 for enacting 1882
Madras Forest Act.
Traditional form of agriculture known as podu.
In 1924, Raju was taken into police custody, and
was executed publicly, effectively ending the
armed rebellion.
Manyam veerudu, or forest hero.
Guru Tegh Bahadur
Guru Tegh Bahadur was the ninth of ten gurus in
Sikhism. He was born in Amritsar on April 21,
1621 to Mata Nanki and Guru Hargobind, the sixth
Sikh guru. As a boy,Tegh Bahadur was called
Tyag Mal because of his ascetic nature.
He spent his early childhood in Amritsar under
the guidance of Bhai Gurdas, who taught him
Gurmukhi, Hindi, Sanskrit, and Indian religious
philosophy, while Baba Budha trained him in
swordsmanship, archery and horse-riding.
He was only 13 when he distinguished
himself in a battle against a Mughal chieftain.
He traveled extensively to preach the
teachings of Nanak
Saviour guru
He resisted the forced conversions of non-
Muslims to Islam.
It was executed on the orders of Aurangzeb
in Delhi in 1675. His martyrdom is
remembered as the Shaheedi Divas every
year on November 24.
Subhas Chandra Bose
He was born in 1897 in Cuttack.
After completing his education in India, Bose
left for London to prepare for the Indian Civil
Services exam and cleared it.
He had mixed feelings about working under the
British, and eventually resigned in 1921 as a
symbol of boycotting the British after the
incident of the Jallianwala Bagh massacre.
After returning to India, Bose joined the Indian
National Congress (INC) under the influence of
Mahatma Gandhi and started the newspaper
“Swaraj”.
His attempts to get rid of the British with the
help of the Nazi party and Imperial Japan
during the time of the 2nd world war left him a
troubled legacy.
In July 1943, he arrived in Singapore and took
over the reins of the Indian Independence
Movement started by Rash Behari Bose and
organized the Azad Hind Fauj also known as
the Indian National Army (INA).
He died in a plane crash in Taipei, Taiwan in
1945.
In honour of his contribution to the freedom
struggle, his birthday anniversary is celebrated
as Parakram Diwas. Parakram means Courage.
SANT RAVIDAS
Sant Ravidas Jayanti is observed on
Magh Purnima.
Born in 1377 C.E. in Varanasi, Guru
Ravidas was an Indian mystic, poet,
social reformer and spiritual guru.
Also known by Raidas, Rohidas and
Ruhidas - his devotional songs and
verses created a lasting impact upon the
Bhakti Movement.
He was among the first people to oppose the
Indian caste system through his poems and
teachings based on spirituality and spread the
message of equality.
Around 41 poems accredited to Ravidas were
included in Adi Granth (sacred scripture of
Sikhism).
Guru Ravidas is considered the founder of the
Ravidasia religion. He was also known as the
spiritual guide of Meera Bai, who is an eminent
personality in the sphere of Hindu spiritualism.
RAMANUJACHARYA
Statue of Equality.
Born in 1017 in Sriperumbudur in Tamil Nadu,
Ramanujacharya is respected as a Vedic
philosopher and social reformer.
Ramanuja revived the Bhakti movement -
Annamacharya, Bhakt Ramdas, Thyagaraja,
Kabir, and Meerabai.
He went on to write 9 scriptures known as
the navaratnas, and composed numerous
commentaries on Vedic scriptures.
Ramanuja is also credited with
establishing the correct procedures for
rituals performed in temples throughout
India, the most famous being Tirumala and
Srirangam.
His greatest contribution is the
propagation of the concept of vasudhaiva
kutumbakam, which translates as “All the
universe is one family”.
He spoke of universal salvation through
devotion to God, compassion, humility,
equality, and mutual respect, which is
known as Sri Vaishnavam Sampradaya.
