Chapter 8 Unity In Diversity, Or ‘Many In The One’

Food For All

India is characterized by immense diversity in its food traditions. While each region and community boasts thousands of unique dishes and culinary preparations, there is also an underlying unity found in the common use of certain staple ingredients across the country.

Staple grains that form the basic food for most Indians include:

• Cereals: Rice, barley, and wheat.
• Millets: Pearl millet (bajra), sorghum (jowar), and finger millet (ragi).
• Pulses: Various types of dals and grams (chickpea, moong dal, arhar dal, masoor dal, etc.), and beans like rajma and lobia.

Many common spices, such as turmeric, cumin, cardamom, and ginger, are also used in kitchens throughout India. The unity lies in these shared basic ingredients, while the diversity is expressed in the countless ways they are combined and prepared to create a vast variety of regional dishes.

Textiles And Clothing

India's textile heritage and clothing styles are incredibly diverse, with distinct traditional dresses specific to different regions and communities.

Despite this variety, a significant example of unity in traditional Indian clothing is the sari. The sari is a long, unstitched length of cloth, typically 5 to 9 metres long, that is draped around the body in various ways. It is worn by women in most parts of India.

The sari can be made from numerous types of fabrics, primarily cotton and silk, but also increasingly synthetic materials. The diversity comes from:

• The vast range of fabrics, including famous silks like Banarasi, Kanjivaram, Paithani, Patan Patola, Muga, and Mysore silks, and countless varieties of cotton.
• Different weaving techniques, designs, and patterns incorporated into the cloth.
• Printing methods used to add designs after weaving.
• An endless array of colours, often produced from natural pigments.

Despite the hundreds of varieties and methods of creation, the fundamental garment remains a single, unstitched length of fabric – the sari, representing unity. Its long history in India is evident from ancient depictions, such as the stone relief from Vaiśhali dating back centuries BCE.

Furthermore, the way the sari is draped varies significantly from one region or community to another, and new draping styles continue to evolve. Beyond its primary use as a dress, the sari is often creatively adapted for various practical purposes, showcasing its versatility.

Similarly, the dhoti, a traditional garment for men, also exhibits diversity in fabric and draping styles across India, while remaining a fundamental item of clothing.

India's historical expertise in textiles, particularly cotton, led to the production of fine fabrics like 'chintz', which were highly sought after internationally centuries ago. The popularity of Indian textiles abroad demonstrates their quality and appeal.

Festivals Galore

India is known for its multitude of festivals, reflecting the diverse cultural and religious landscape of the country. While there is immense variety, many festivals are celebrated across different regions around the same time, often sharing similar themes or significance, even if they are known by different names.

A prime example is the festival celebrated around January 14th, which marks the beginning of the harvest season in many parts of India. This festival has numerous names across the country:

• Makara Sankranti (widely used)
• Pongal (Tamil Nadu)
• Makara Sankramana (Karnataka)
• Makara Vilakku (Kerala)
• Makar Sankraat (Madhya Pradesh/Uttar Pradesh)
• Khichdi Parv (Uttar Pradesh/Bihar)
• Uttarayan (Gujarat)
• Maghi/Lohri (Punjab/Haryana)
• Shishur Saenkraat (Kashmir)
• Magh Bihu (Assam)
• Pedda Panduga (Andhra Pradesh/Telangana)
• Poush Songkranti (West Bengal)

This phenomenon of similar festivals celebrated under different names across India highlights the unity of purpose (celebrating harvest, marking a new season) expressed through diverse regional traditions and names.

Similarly, the major festivals celebrated in October-November, such as Diwali, Durga Puja, Navratri, etc., also have variations in their names, customs, and specific deities worshipped from one region to another, while representing a shared period of festivity and cultural significance across the country.

An Epic Spread

Indian literature showcases remarkable diversity in languages, styles, and forms, yet shares fundamental themes and concerns across time and regions. A compelling illustration of unity in diversity is found in the widespread influence and adaptation of India's two great epics: the Ramayana and the Mahabharata.

These are long Sanskrit poems that narrate stories of heroes striving to uphold dharma (righteousness). The Mahabharata recounts the conflict between the Pandavas and their cousins, the Kauravas, for their kingdom, with the assistance of Krishna. The Ramayana tells the story of Rama's journey to defeat the demon Ravana and rescue his wife Sita, aided by his brother Lakshmana and Hanuman.

These epics are more than just stories; they are woven with numerous shorter tales and philosophical discussions that explore moral values and ethical dilemmas, constantly prompting questions about right and wrong.

For over two thousand years, the Ramayana and the Mahabharata have been continuously translated and adapted into almost every regional language in India and beyond, including Southeast Asia and the Arab world. Furthermore, countless folk versions of these epics exist, transmitted orally within communities.

Many communities, including numerous tribal groups (such as the Bhils, Gonds, and Mundas), have their own unique versions of the epics, adapted to their local contexts and traditions. They often integrate their own histories and legends, connecting themselves to the epic heroes like the Pandavas or Rama. This is seen across India, from the northeast to Tamil Nadu, where tribal communities maintain shrines dedicated to epic characters who are believed to have visited their areas.

The widespread presence of these epic narratives and their adaptations across diverse communities and regions illustrates how two core stories ('the One') have manifested in innumerable forms ('the Many'), creating a vast network of shared cultural reference points across the Indian Subcontinent and even internationally.

The epics, along with other facets of Indian culture like classical arts and architecture, reinforce the concept that while India is characterized by immense diversity, this diversity is underpinned by a profound sense of unity. This 'unity in diversity' is not about erasing differences but celebrating them as sources of enrichment, rooted in shared foundational ideas and narratives.

As expressed by figures like Rabindranath Tagore and Sri Aurobindo, this principle of 'the Many in the One' is considered fundamental to India's identity and cultural being, reflecting its capacity to encompass and harmonize diverse elements.