160-667: Tashiding Monastery ( Sikkimese : བཀྲ་ཤིས་སྡིངས་དགོན་པ་ , Wylie : bkra shis sdings dgon pa ) is a Buddhist monastery of the Nyingma sect of Tibetan Buddhism in Tashiding , about 27 km from Gyalshing city in Gyalshing district in northeastern Indian state of Sikkim . which is the most sacred and holiest monasteries in Sikkim. It is described as the "Heart of Sikkim/Denzong", citing to its importance of religious sacredness. It
320-619: A "Look East" policy that seeks to strengthen partnerships with the ASEAN nations, Japan , and South Korea that revolve around many issues, but especially those involving economic investment and regional security. China's nuclear test of 1964 , as well as its repeated threats to intervene in support of Pakistan in the 1965 war, convinced India to develop nuclear weapons. India conducted its first nuclear weapons test in 1974 and carried out additional underground testing in 1998. Despite criticism and military sanctions, India has signed neither
480-519: A 1988 coup d'état attempt in the Maldives. After the 1965 war with Pakistan, India began to pursue close military and economic ties with the Soviet Union ; by the late 1960s, the Soviet Union was its largest arms supplier. Aside from its ongoing special relationship with Russia , India has wide-ranging defence relations with Israel and France . In recent years, it has played key roles in
640-722: A multi-party system , India has six recognised national parties , including the Indian National Congress (INC) and the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), and more than 50 regional parties . The Congress is considered center in Indian political culture , and the BJP right-wing . For most of the period between 1950—when India first became a republic—and the late 1980s, the Congress held
800-427: A comparatively destitute country in 1951, India has become a fast-growing major economy and a hub for information technology services , with an expanding middle class. India has a space programme with several planned or completed extraterrestrial missions . Indian movies , music , and spiritual teachings play an increasing role in global culture. India has substantially reduced its rate of poverty , though at
960-578: A group of people or region, such as "Denjongpa/Denjongpo", meaning "Bhutia Dwellers" in Tibetan languages. There are also a small number of villages who use last names derived from their respective village name. There are only five basic words for colors in Bhutia, with words for red, yellow, white, black, and blue/green. The last color listed can be difficult for Bhutia speakers in English translation, as
1120-407: A lexical similarity of 65% between the two languages. By comparison, Standard Tibetan , however, is only 42% lexically similar. Bhutia has also been influenced to some degree by the neighbouring Yolmowa and Tamang languages . Due to more than a century of close contact with speakers of Nepali and Tibetan proper , many Bhutia speakers also use these languages in daily life. Dialects are for
1280-796: A long-lasting composite Hindu culture in south India. In the Punjab , Sikhism emerged, rejecting institutionalised religion. The Mughal Empire , in 1526, ushered in two centuries of relative peace, leaving a legacy of luminous architecture . Gradually expanding rule of the British East India Company followed, turning India into a colonial economy but also consolidating its sovereignty . British Crown rule began in 1858. The rights promised to Indians were granted slowly, but technological changes were introduced, and modern ideas of education and public life took root. A pioneering and influential nationalist movement emerged, which
1440-674: A majority in the Parliament . Since then, however, it has increasingly shared the political stage with the BJP, as well as with powerful regional parties which have often forced the creation of multi-party coalition governments at the center. In the Republic of India's first three general elections, in 1951 , 1957 , and 1962 , the Pandit Jawaharlal Nehru -led Congress won easy victories. On Nehru's death in 1964, Lal Bahadur Shastri briefly became prime minister; he
1600-602: A message to the people that waters should not be polluted and its environmental importance is propagated. Sikkimese language Sikkimese ( Tibetan : འབྲས་ལྗོངས་སྐད་ , Wylie : 'bras ljongs skad , THL : dren jong ké , "rice valley language") is a language of the Tibeto-Burman languages spoken by the Bhutia people in Sikkim in northeast India , parts of Koshi province in eastern Nepal , and Bhutan . It
1760-608: A proper form and an ordinary form. The ordinary form is used in common day-to-day speech between friends and family, while the proper form is used in more formal situations. Most Denjongke speakers do not know every form of these nouns, but knowing the formal form shows proficiency in the language. These two forms can be formed by adding a certain suffix or prefix, but others have a completely different spelling. Most nouns have one or two syllables, compound words, though still nouns, may have three or more syllables. Verbs in Denjongke show
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#17327975073211920-685: A quarter of a million local government bodies at city, town, block, district and village levels. In the 1950s, India strongly supported decolonisation in Africa and Asia and played a leading role in the Non-Aligned Movement . After initially cordial relations with neighbouring China, India went to war with China in 1962 and was widely thought to have been humiliated. This was followed by another military conflict in 1967 in which India successfully repelled Chinese attack. India has had tense relations with neighbouring Pakistan;
2080-441: A school subject in Sikkim and the written language was developed. Bhutia is written using Sambhota script and Zhang Yeshe De Script, which it inherited from Classical Tibetan . Bhutia phonology and lexicon differ markedly from Classical Tibetan, however. SIL International thus describes the Bhutia writing system as "Bodhi style". According to SIL, 68% of Bhutia were literate in the Tibetan script in 2001. Bhutia belongs to
2240-468: A separate occurrence from glottal stops. Words that end in a glottal stop vary in production length. In continuous speech however, they are mostly produced with a long vowel with no glottal stop. The glottal stop also increases vowel quality within back vowels, much like vowel length. A phonetic glottal stop can also happen when it accompanies an utterance-final nasalized vowel. There are a total of five fricatives in Bhutia, which are /s, z, ɕ, ʑ, h/. The /j/
2400-447: A site near the place where the present Tashiding Monastery has been built. Concurrently, a scented smell of incense followed by all pervading divine music was also noted. The first Chogyal who visited the site subsequent to hearing this unusual event, erected a small chorten at the site and named it as Thongwa-Rang-Grol . Legend further glorifies the site stating that a mere sight of it "confers self-emancipation". Another absorbing legend
2560-450: A small number of villages that do not generally use honorifics, using the low-level second person pronoun even with strangers. The lack of honorifics is perceived by most speakers as vulgar and offensive, while the use of honorifics is perceived by these villagers as "too slow and wordy". This may be exemplified by the translated sentence "Where are you going?". With honorifics the sentence takes eight syllables, and without, just three. Overall
2720-493: A state of being, feeling, or describe the happenings of events. Most verbs carry one syllable to help differentiate themselves from adjectives, and also carry two forms, the proper and ordinary forms. Adjectives vary from two to three syllables in order to, as forementioned above, help tell the difference between a verb and an adjective. It is often hard to tell the difference between a verb and an adjective because they both end in "-bo" or "-po". India India , officially
2880-431: A third of Indian plant species are endemic. India also contains four of the world's 34 biodiversity hotspots , or regions that display significant habitat loss in the presence of high endemism. According to official statistics, India's forest cover is 713,789 km (275,595 sq mi), which is 21.71% of the country's total land area. It can be subdivided further into broad categories of canopy density , or
3040-531: A three-way contrast, which are voiced, voiceless aspirated, and voiceless unaspirated. However, aspiration when it comes to the word-medial position is dwindled down as well as dialectal variation. Just the voiceless unaspirated contrast of /p/, /k/ and /ʔ/ can happen in the word-final position and these are mostly produced as an unreleased [p̚] and velar alternating with the glottal stop [k]~[ʔ]. The glottal stop, also being an allophone of word-final /k/, contrasts with non-glottal endings. One interesting phonetic feature
3200-504: A year and kept in the Tashiding Monastery. It is opened during the festival by the lamas who inspect the water level and hence it is called the festival of holy water. The belief is that alteration in the quantity and quality of the water stored in the vase over a year would indicate the fortune of Sikkim and its people in the following year. If it is filled to the brim (which is interpreted as a measure of increase by 21 cups),
3360-532: Is /bb/. This happens when the equative bɛʔ and the infinitive marker -po/bo combines to become -bbɛʔ. The rest of bilabial plosives are as follows: voiced labio-velar approximant, voiceless aspirated bilabial plosive, voiceless unaspirated bilabial plosive, voiceless unreleased bilabial plosive, voiced bilabial fricative, voiceless bilabial fricative, voiced bilabial plosive, and voiceless lightly but not consistent aspirated bilabial plosive followed by breathiness. Dento-Alveolar plosives and affricates are produced with
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#17327975073213520-528: Is a federation with a parliamentary system governed under the Constitution of India—the country's supreme legal document. It is a constitutional republic. Federalism in India defines the power distribution between the union and the states . The Constitution of India, which came into effect on 26 January 1950, originally stated India to be a " sovereign , democratic republic ;" this characterisation
3680-464: Is a local belief that the people in these Northern villages originated from this same area in Bhutan. Bhutia has a total of eight vowels and 43 consonants in its inventory. Words in Bhutia are split into high or low registers all based on voice quality and pitch. The register of Bhutia words can be predicted most of the time based on their starting phoneme but nasals and liquids are unpredictable. Due to
3840-531: Is believing." The monastery is historically illustrious, geographically well located, aesthetically beautiful, spiritually divine – a place where nature and spirituality dwell together, urging the human race to be ecologically upright. Geographically the Monastery and the Tashiding town are surrounded by four divine caves located in four cardinal directions. The four caves where Buddhist saints meditated are: On
4000-515: Is built on top of a heart shaped hill or helmet shaped hill above the confluence of the Rathong Chu and Rangeet rivers, with the Mt. Kanchendzonga providing the scenic back drop. It is about 16 km from Yuksam, 40 km from Gezing via Legship . The monastery is considered the spiritual centre of Sikkim since it is encircled by many important monasteries in Sikkim in all directions such as:
4160-699: Is defined by regional kingdoms and cultural diversity. When Harsha of Kannauj , who ruled much of the Indo-Gangetic Plain from 606 to 647 CE , attempted to expand southwards, he was defeated by the Chalukya ruler of the Deccan. When his successor attempted to expand eastwards, he was defeated by the Pala king of Bengal . When the Chalukyas attempted to expand southwards, they were defeated by
4320-470: Is expected to remain so in the near future. According to a 2011 PricewaterhouseCoopers ( PwC ) report, India's GDP at purchasing power parity could overtake that of the United States by 2045. During the next four decades, Indian GDP is expected to grow at an annualised average of 8%, making it potentially the world's fastest-growing major economy until 2050. The report highlights key growth factors:
4480-624: Is indicated by the large number of megalithic monuments dating from this period, as well as by nearby traces of agriculture , irrigation tanks , and craft traditions. In the late Vedic period, around the 6th century BCE, the small states and chiefdoms of the Ganges Plain and the north-western regions had consolidated into 16 major oligarchies and monarchies that were known as the mahajanapadas . The emerging urbanisation gave rise to non-Vedic religious movements, two of which became independent religions. Jainism came into prominence during
4640-456: Is linked by an ancient legend to Guru Padmasambhava, is about a divine vase filled with holy water kept in the monastery, which is opened for public display and worship every year on the night before the Full Moon day in the first month of Tibetan calendar. Bhumchu (Bhum=pot; Chu=water) is a Buddhist festival celebrated to predict the future. In this vase, water of Rathong chhu is stored for
4800-521: Is located on top of the hill rising between the Rathong chu and the Rangeet River , 40 kilometres (25 mi) from Gyalshing and 19 kilometres (12 mi) to the south east of Yuksam . The annual festival of Bumchu, meaning ~Holy water~ takes place on the 14th and 15th of the 1st month of Tibetan lunar calendar, often around the months of February and March. The festival is believed to predict
4960-664: Is more likely to be code switched with these than in written language. Noun phrases are made up of nouns with their proceeding or following modifiers, proforms much like pronouns, demonstrative words, and nominalized clauses. The order in which noun modifiers follow is (demonstrative) + noun + adjective + numeral + (demonstrative). Whenever the quantity of a noun is specified, the noun is not pluralized. It would like something like "sister three" rather than "sisters three". Nouns, adjectives, postposition phrases, noun compliment clauses, and relative clauses can all be considered genitive-marked noun modifiers. Nouns in Denjongke have two forms:
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5120-595: Is now kept in Tashiding Monastery and revered during the Bhumchu festival. This vase is made of five types prized jewels, divine soil and holy water said to have been gathered by Padmasambhava from religious centres in India , Oddiyana and Zahor. The vase was made by the wrathful deity Damchen Gar-bgag and sanctified by Guru Padmasambhava himself by performing the "Sadhana of Yidam Chuchig Zhal (meaning tutelary deity of eleven heads)". On this occasion, heavenly deities appeared in
5280-403: Is one of the official languages of Sikkim. The Bhutia refer to their own language as Drendzongké (also spelled Drenjongké , Dranjoke , Denjongka , Denzongpeke or Denzongke ) and their homeland as Drendzong ( Tibetan : འབྲས་ལྗོངས་ , Wylie : 'bras-ljongs , "Rice Valley"). Up until 1975, Bhutia was not a written language. After gaining Indian statehood, the language was introduced as
5440-606: Is produced when saying these vowels. Below is a chart of Bhutia vowels, also largely following Yliniemi (2005). In the Tibetan script , an abugida , the inherent vowel /a/ is unmarked. In Bhutia, first names are typically two disyllabic words, and are heavily influenced by the day of the week (a child was born), planetary words, and Buddhism. Names can also belong exclusively to one gender, or be gender-neutral. In official documents last names are used and vary in origin. Some may use clan names, while others use names that exist for
5600-422: Is realised as an allophone of /n/ and /ng/, which themselves have mostly lost contrast among speakers. Plosives and affricates contrast in four distinct ways and it only occurs in the word-initial position. The four contrast ways are voiceless unaspirated, voiced, voiceless heavily aspirated, and voiceless lightly with a breathy voice and aspirated inconsistently. Anything that falls in the word-medial position has
5760-485: Is reduced when it comes to the word-medial position and the breathy series of consonants. Below is a chart of Bhutia consonants, largely following Yliniemi (2005) and van Driem (1992). Devoiced consonants are pronounced with a slight breathy voice , aspiration , and low pitch . They are remnants of voiced consonants in Classical Tibetan that became devoiced. Likewise, the historical Tibetan phoneme /ny/
5920-549: Is related to the celebration of the Bhumchu festival at Tashiding Monastery. The legend is traced to the tantric art . Guru Padmasambhava, while teaching the tantric system of "Mahakarunika Avalokiteshvara Sadhana and initiation on emancipation from the cycle of mundane existence" to the King Trisong Detsen, prince Murub Tsenpo, Yeshe Tsogyal and Vairotsana in Tibet, sanctified the same holy vase with holy water, which
6080-451: Is still encircled by traditional buildings and chortens at the far end of the site, which holds the relics of Sikkim Chogyals and Lamas, including the 'Thong-Wa-rang-Dol' chorten which is believed to cleanse the soul of any person who looks at it. Also of major note are the stone plates called the 'Mani', the work of Yanchong Lodil who inscribed them with the sacred Buddhist inscriptions, such as "Om Mane Padme Hum". Bhumchu festival, which
6240-599: Is supported among these forests, and elsewhere, in protected habitats . According to the Oxford English Dictionary (third edition 2009), the name "India" is derived from the Classical Latin India , a reference to South Asia and an uncertain region to its east. In turn the name "India" derived successively from Hellenistic Greek India ( Ἰνδία ), ancient Greek Indos ( Ἰνδός ), Old Persian Hindush (an eastern province of
6400-483: Is that voiced stops fricatives word-medially. Something else that is interesting is that when these are pronounced in isolation, voiced stops are either prevoiced or pre-nasalized. It is worth noting that some prenasalized onsets are voiced pretty much throughout but there are some that have a brief moment of weak voicing followed by a voiceless release. There is only one known geminate, which refers to consisting of similar adjacent sounds especially in consonants, and that
6560-630: Is the only central approximant. This central approximant /j/ happen in the high and low registers along with the voiceless fricatives /s, ɕ/ which provide evidence that Bhitia has tonal contrasts. /h/ in the high register contrasts with initial vowels and those have intrinsic phonetic initials, otherwise known as glottal initials. However, low register initial vowels just have an intrinsic initial which do not contrast with other glottal initials. In total, there are eight nasals in Bhutia: /m/, /n/, /ɲ/, /ŋ/, /m̥/, /n̥/, /ɲ̥/, and /ŋ̥/. The first four are voiced and
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6720-415: Is the pronunciation of /a/ and /o/ being neutralized before the phoneme /ŋ/. Another variation is that the short /i/ vowel is usually pronounced as [ɪ] on a lower register rather than the long vowel /iː/ [iː] which is already quite low. One final variation is that although /ɛ/ and /ɛː/ are listed as short and long vowels respectively, they still fall under the same F1 hertz category, which is the frequency that
6880-469: Is the temple of Guru Rinpoche. Other basic essential structures such as kitchen, school and residential housing are located on the left side of the approach path to the monastery. In the 'Chorten area', there are 41 chortens categorised as 'Chotens of Enlightenment', 'Chortens of Reconciliation' and 'Chortens of Great Miracle', which are all of Rinpoches and Tathāgatas . However, the main temple has undergone renovation work in modern times and rebuilt, but
7040-722: The Achaemenid Empire ), and ultimately its cognate , the Sanskrit Sindhu , or "river", specifically the Indus River and, by implication, its well-settled southern basin. The ancient Greeks referred to the Indians as Indoi ( Ἰνδοί ), which translates as "The people of the Indus". The term Bharat ( Bhārat ; pronounced [ˈbʱaːɾət] ), mentioned in both Indian epic poetry and
7200-632: The Arabian Sea . Coastal features include the marshy Rann of Kutch of western India and the alluvial Sundarbans delta of eastern India; the latter is shared with Bangladesh. India has two archipelagos : the Lakshadweep , coral atolls off India's south-western coast; and the Andaman and Nicobar Islands, a volcanic chain in the Andaman Sea . Indian climate is strongly influenced by
7360-506: The Asiatic cheetah ; the blackbuck, no longer extant in Punjab, is now severely endangered in India, and the cheetah is extinct. The pervasive and ecologically devastating human encroachment of recent decades has critically endangered Indian wildlife. In response, the system of national parks and protected areas , first established in 1935, was expanded substantially. In 1972, India enacted
7520-505: The Bhutias (ethnic Tibetans ) of Sikkim who hold the "life-sustaining water of the rivers" with great reverence. The festival falls on the 15th day Full Moon day of the first Tibetan month or Hindu month of Magh corresponding to February/March according to Gregorian calendar . The basic purpose of the festival is to highlight the importance of water as a precious resource to be conserved and its purity preserved. The prophecy also sends
7680-615: The Comprehensive Nuclear-Test-Ban Treaty nor the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty , considering both to be flawed and discriminatory. India maintains a " no first use " nuclear policy and is developing a nuclear triad capability as a part of its " Minimum Credible Deterrence " doctrine. It is developing a ballistic missile defence shield and, a fifth-generation fighter jet . Other indigenous military projects involve
7840-475: The Constitution of India , is used in its variations by many Indian languages . A modern rendering of the historical name Bharatavarsha , which applied originally to North India , Bharat gained increased currency from the mid-19th century as a native name for India. Hindustan ( [ɦɪndʊˈstaːn] ) is a Middle Persian name for India that became popular by the 13th century, and
8000-686: The Ganges and the Brahmaputra . According to some current projections, the number and severity of droughts in India will have markedly increased by the end of the present century. India is a megadiverse country , a term employed for 17 countries that display high biological diversity and contain many species exclusively indigenous , or endemic , to them. India is the habitat for 8.6% of all mammals , 13.7% of bird species, 7.9% of reptile species, 6% of amphibian species, 12.2% of fish species, and 6.0% of all flowering plant species. Fully
8160-586: The Himalayas . Immediately south of the emerging Himalayas, plate movement created a vast crescent-shaped trough that rapidly filled with river-borne sediment and now constitutes the Indo-Gangetic Plain . The original Indian plate makes its first appearance above the sediment in the ancient Aravalli range , which extends from the Delhi Ridge in a southwesterly direction. To the west lies
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#17327975073218320-548: The Indian Rebellion of 1857 . Fed by diverse resentments and perceptions, including invasive British-style social reforms, harsh land taxes, and summary treatment of some rich landowners and princes, the rebellion rocked many regions of northern and central India and shook the foundations of Company rule. Although the rebellion was suppressed by 1858, it led to the dissolution of the East India Company and
8480-613: The Indus Valley Civilisation , the first urban culture in South Asia, which flourished during 2500–1900 BCE in Pakistan and western India. Centred around cities such as Mohenjo-daro , Harappa , Dholavira , and Kalibangan , and relying on varied forms of subsistence, the civilisation engaged robustly in crafts production and wide-ranging trade. During the period 2000–500 BCE , many regions of
8640-668: The Pallavas from farther south, who in turn were opposed by the Pandyas and the Cholas from still farther south. No ruler of this period was able to create an empire and consistently control lands much beyond their core region. During this time, pastoral peoples, whose land had been cleared to make way for the growing agricultural economy, were accommodated within caste society, as were new non-traditional ruling classes. The caste system consequently began to show regional differences. In
8800-756: The Rabdentse ruins, the Sanga Choeling Monastery , and the Khecheopalri Lake . There are several legends linked to the most revered monastery and the Bhumchu festival that is held here. Another legend relates to the three monks who consecrated the first Chogyal of Sikkim at Yuksam. It is said that the three monks saw an unusual divine phenomenon of bright light shining on top of the Kanchendzonga mountain, which reflected to
8960-622: The Republic of India , is a country in South Asia . It is the seventh-largest country in the world by area and the most populous country . Bounded by the Indian Ocean on the south, the Arabian Sea on the southwest, and the Bay of Bengal on the southeast, it shares land borders with Pakistan to the west; China , Nepal , and Bhutan to the north; and Bangladesh and Myanmar to
9120-557: The South Asia Satellite , a gift from India to its neighbouring SAARC countries. In October 2018, India signed a US$ 5.43 billion (over ₹ 400 billion) agreement with Russia to procure four S-400 Triumf surface-to-air missile defence systems, Russia's most advanced long-range missile defence system. According to the International Monetary Fund (IMF), the Indian economy in 2024
9280-735: The South Asian Association for Regional Cooperation and the World Trade Organization . The nation has provided 100,000 military and police personnel to serve in 35 UN peacekeeping operations across four continents. It participates in the East Asia Summit , the G8+5 , and other multilateral forums. India has close economic ties with countries in South America , Asia, and Africa; it pursues
9440-748: The Thar Desert , the eastern spread of which is checked by the Aravallis. The remaining Indian Plate survives as peninsular India , the oldest and geologically most stable part of India. It extends as far north as the Satpura and Vindhya ranges in central India. These parallel chains run from the Arabian Sea coast in Gujarat in the west to the coal-rich Chota Nagpur Plateau in Jharkhand in
9600-424: The United Kingdom , and Canada . The President of India is the supreme commander of the nation's armed forces; with 1.45 million active troops, they compose the world's second-largest military . It comprises the Indian Army , the Indian Navy , the Indian Air Force , and the Indian Coast Guard . The official Indian defence budget for 2011 was US$ 36.03 billion, or 1.83% of GDP. Defence expenditure
9760-437: The Wildlife Protection Act and Project Tiger to safeguard crucial wilderness; the Forest Conservation Act was enacted in 1980 and amendments added in 1988. India hosts more than five hundred wildlife sanctuaries and eighteen biosphere reserves , four of which are part of the World Network of Biosphere Reserves ; seventy-five wetlands are registered under the Ramsar Convention . A parliamentary republic with
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#17327975073219920-441: The direct administration of India by the British government. Proclaiming a unitary state and a gradual but limited British-style parliamentary system, the new rulers also protected princes and landed gentry as a feudal safeguard against future unrest. In the decades following, public life gradually emerged all over India, leading eventually to the founding of the Indian National Congress in 1885. The rush of technology and
10080-487: The genitive marker, and the dropping of case marking in directionals. Both literary and spoken variants borrow from related or influential languages. The written language most often borrows Tibetan loan words, especially for words or concepts that may otherwise not yet be standardized in Bhutia. Because of this, non-literate speakers may have difficulty with these loan words. Conversely, the spoken language borrows more from neighboring Nepali as well as English. Spoken language
10240-405: The sacred water from the vase is that the first cup of sacred water is taken out for blessing the members of the royal family of the Chogyals, then the second cup is meant for the Lamas and the third cup of water is meant for the devotees to whom it is distributed. Pilgrims come to the monastery from all regions of Sikkim to be blessed with the holy water. The festival is of particular importance to
10400-405: The temperate coniferous forest of the Himalayas , the moist deciduous sal forest of eastern India, and the dry deciduous teak forest of central and southern India. Open forest , whose canopy density is between 10% and 40%, occupies 9.26% of India's land area. India has two natural zones of thorn forest , one in the Deccan Plateau , immediately east of the Western Ghats, and the other in
10560-400: The 10th century, Muslim Central Asian nomadic clans, using swift-horse cavalry and raising vast armies united by ethnicity and religion, repeatedly overran South Asia's north-western plains, leading eventually to the establishment of the Islamic Delhi Sultanate in 1206. The sultanate was to control much of North India and to make many forays into South India. Although at first disruptive for
10720-526: The 17th century was a factor in India's economic expansion, resulting in greater patronage of painting , literary forms, textiles, and architecture . Newly coherent social groups in northern and western India, such as the Marathas , the Rajputs , and the Sikhs , gained military and governing ambitions during Mughal rule, which, through collaboration or adversity, gave them both recognition and military experience. Expanding commerce during Mughal rule gave rise to new Indian commercial and political elites along
10880-653: The 1820s. India was then no longer exporting manufactured goods as it long had, but was instead supplying the British Empire with raw materials. Many historians consider this to be the onset of India's colonial period. By this time, with its economic power severely curtailed by the British parliament and having effectively been made an arm of British administration, the East India Company began more consciously to enter non-economic arenas, including education, social reform, and culture. Historians consider India's modern age to have begun sometime between 1848 and 1885. The appointment in 1848 of Lord Dalhousie as Governor General of
11040-596: The 1980s and the collaboration with Soviet Union for technical know-how, has created a large urban middle class, transformed India into one of the world's fastest-growing economies , and increased its geopolitical clout. Yet, India is also shaped by seemingly unyielding poverty, both rural and urban; by religious and caste-related violence ; by Maoist-inspired Naxalite insurgencies ; and by separatism in Jammu and Kashmir and in Northeast India . It has unresolved territorial disputes with China and with Pakistan . India's sustained democratic freedoms are unique among
11200-473: The 3rd century BCE, the kingdom of Magadha had annexed or reduced other states to emerge as the Maurya Empire . The empire was once thought to have controlled most of the subcontinent except the far south, but its core regions are now thought to have been separated by large autonomous areas. The Mauryan kings are known as much for their empire-building and determined management of public life as for Ashoka 's renunciation of militarism and far-flung advocacy of
11360-633: The 4th and 5th centuries, the Gupta Empire had created a complex system of administration and taxation in the greater Ganges Plain; this system became a model for later Indian kingdoms. Under the Guptas, a renewed Hinduism based on devotion, rather than the management of ritual, began to assert itself. This renewal was reflected in a flowering of sculpture and architecture , which found patrons among an urban elite. Classical Sanskrit literature flowered as well, and Indian science , astronomy , medicine , and mathematics made significant advances. The Indian early medieval age, from 600 to 1200 CE ,
11520-545: The 6th and 7th centuries, the first devotional hymns were created in the Tamil language. They were imitated all over India and led to both the resurgence of Hinduism and the development of all modern languages of the subcontinent . Indian royalty, big and small, and the temples they patronised drew citizens in great numbers to the capital cities, which became economic hubs as well. Temple towns of various sizes began to appear everywhere as India underwent another urbanisation. By
11680-585: The 8th and 9th centuries, the effects were felt in Southeast Asia, as South Indian culture and political systems were exported to lands that became part of modern-day Myanmar , Thailand , Laos , Brunei , Cambodia , Vietnam , Philippines , Malaysia , and Indonesia . Indian merchants, scholars, and sometimes armies were involved in this transmission; Southeast Asians took the initiative as well, with many sojourning in Indian seminaries and translating Buddhist and Hindu texts into their languages. After
11840-433: The Andaman, Nicobar, and Lakshadweep island chains. According to the Indian naval hydrographic charts, the mainland coastline consists of the following: 43% sandy beaches; 11% rocky shores, including cliffs; and 46% mudflats or marshy shores. Major Himalayan-origin rivers that substantially flow through India include the Ganges and the Brahmaputra , both of which drain into the Bay of Bengal . Important tributaries of
12000-528: The BJP became the first political party since 1984 to win a majority and govern without the support of other parties. In the 2019 general election , the BJP was victorious again with majority. In the 2024 general election , the BJP failed to achieve majority and the BJP-led NDA coalition formed the government . Narendra Modi , a former chief minister of Gujarat , is serving as the 14th Prime Minister of India in his third term since May 26, 2014. India
12160-646: The BJP was able to form a successful coalition, the National Democratic Alliance (NDA). Led by Atal Bihari Vajpayee , the NDA became the first non-Congress, coalition government to complete a five-year term. Again in the 2004 Indian general elections , no party won an absolute majority, but the Congress emerged as the largest single party, forming another successful coalition: the United Progressive Alliance (UPA). It had
12320-601: The Buddha is recorded in the Pali canon to have sought enlightenment. Many Indian species have descended from those of Gondwana , the southern supercontinent from which India separated more than 100 million years ago. India's subsequent collision with Eurasia set off a mass exchange of species. However, volcanism and climatic changes later caused the extinction of many endemic Indian forms. Still later, mammals entered India from Asia through two zoogeographic passes flanking
12480-656: The Buddhist dhamma . The Sangam literature of the Tamil language reveals that, between 200 BCE and 200 CE , the southern peninsula was ruled by the Cheras , the Cholas , and the Pandyas , dynasties that traded extensively with the Roman Empire and with West and Southeast Asia . In North India, Hinduism asserted patriarchal control within the family, leading to increased subordination of women. By
12640-685: The Congress saw a change in leadership in 1984, when Indira Gandhi was assassinated ; she was succeeded by her son Rajiv Gandhi , who won an easy victory in the general elections later that year . The Congress was voted out again in 1989 when a National Front coalition, led by the newly formed Janata Dal in alliance with the Left Front , won the elections; that government too proved relatively short-lived, lasting just under two years. There were two prime ministers during this period; V.P. Singh and Chandra Shekhar . Elections were held again in 1991 ; no party won an absolute majority. The Congress, as
12800-917: The Dubdi Monastery 23 km away on its northern direction, the Khecheopalri Lake (wish fulfilling lake) on the northwest, the Pemayangtse monastery on the west, the Shiva temple at Legship on the south, the Mongbrue gompa and Ravangla Bön monastery on the southeast, the Ravangla Gelug monastery on the east, the Karma Kagyud Ralang Monastery on the northeast. Gulia summarising the importance of this monastery has said: For tashiding one can say "seeing
12960-476: The East India Company set the stage for changes essential to a modern state. These included the consolidation and demarcation of sovereignty, the surveillance of the population, and the education of citizens. Technological changes—among them, railways, canals, and the telegraph—were introduced not long after their introduction in Europe . However, disaffection with the company also grew during this time and set off
13120-816: The East is the Sharchog Bephug, on the South is the Khandozangphu, in the West is Dechenpug cave and on the North is the Lhari Nyingphug. The main deity deified in the monastery is Tashiding and hence the monastery is also known as 'Drakkar Tashiding' ( Sikkimese : བྲག་དཀར་བཀྲ་ཤིས་སྡིངས་, Wylie : brag dkar bkra shis sdings). In the 17th century, Ngadak Sempa Chenpo built a small Lhakhang at this location. This
13280-943: The Ganges include the Yamuna and the Kosi ; the latter's extremely low gradient, caused by long-term silt deposition, leads to severe floods and course changes. Major peninsular rivers, whose steeper gradients prevent their waters from flooding, include the Godavari , the Mahanadi , the Kaveri , and the Krishna , which also drain into the Bay of Bengal; and the Narmada and the Tapti , which drain into
13440-555: The Himalayas and the Thar Desert, both of which drive the economically and culturally pivotal summer and winter monsoons . The Himalayas prevent cold Central Asian katabatic winds from blowing in, keeping the bulk of the Indian subcontinent warmer than most locations at similar latitudes. The Thar Desert plays a crucial role in attracting the moisture-laden south-west summer monsoon winds that, between June and October, provide
13600-462: The Himalayas. This had the effect of lowering endemism among India's mammals, which stands at 12.6%, contrasting with 45.8% among reptiles and 55.8% among amphibians. Among endemics are the vulnerable hooded leaf monkey and the threatened Beddome's toad of the Western Ghats. India contains 172 IUCN -designated threatened animal species , or 2.9% of endangered forms. These include
13760-401: The Indian elites, the sultanate largely left its vast non-Muslim subject population to its own laws and customs. By repeatedly repulsing Mongol raiders in the 13th century, the sultanate saved India from the devastation visited on West and Central Asia, setting the scene for centuries of migration of fleeing soldiers, learned men, mystics, traders, artists, and artisans from that region into
13920-463: The Mughals united their far-flung realms through loyalty, expressed through a Persianised culture, to an emperor who had near-divine status. The Mughal state's economic policies, deriving most revenues from agriculture and mandating that taxes be paid in the well-regulated silver currency, caused peasants and artisans to enter larger markets. The relative peace maintained by the empire during much of
14080-464: The Sino-Tibetan language family, and more specifically, is classified as a Tibetic language, descending from Old Tibetan. For most of the language's existence Bhutia was an oral language, and it was not until 1975 when Sikkim became a part of India that a written language was developed. Until this point, Classical Tibetan was the primary mode for writing. After Indian statehood, Bhutia was one of
14240-557: The advent of independence in 1947, but tempered by the partition of India into two states: India and Pakistan. Vital to India's self-image as an independent nation was its constitution, completed in 1950, which put in place a secular and democratic republic. Per the London Declaration , India retained its membership of the Commonwealth , becoming the first republic within it. Economic liberalisation, which began in
14400-512: The agricultural sector 18.1%. India's foreign exchange remittances of US$ 100 billion in 2022, highest in the world, were contributed to its economy by 32 million Indians working in foreign countries. Major agricultural products include rice, wheat, oilseed, cotton, jute, tea, sugarcane, and potatoes. Major industries include textiles, telecommunications, chemicals, pharmaceuticals, biotechnology, food processing, steel, transport equipment, cement, mining, petroleum, machinery, and software. In 2006,
14560-498: The banking sector, 44th in business sophistication, and 39th in innovation, ahead of several advanced economies. With seven of the world's top 15 information technology outsourcing companies based in India, as of 2009 , the country is viewed as the second-most favourable outsourcing destination after the United States. India is ranked 39th in the Global Innovation Index in 2024. As of 2023 , India's consumer market
14720-663: The beginnings of a nonviolent movement of non-co-operation, of which Mahatma Gandhi would become the leader and enduring symbol. During the 1930s, slow legislative reform was enacted by the British; the Indian National Congress won victories in the resulting elections. The next decade was beset with crises: Indian participation in World War ;II , the Congress's final push for non-co-operation, and an upsurge of Muslim nationalism . All were capped by
14880-495: The coasts of southern and eastern India. As the empire disintegrated, many among these elites were able to seek and control their own affairs. By the early 18th century, with the lines between commercial and political dominance being increasingly blurred, a number of European trading companies, including the English East India Company , had established coastal outposts. The East India Company's control of
15040-452: The commercialisation of agriculture in the second half of the 19th century was marked by economic setbacks, and many small farmers became dependent on the whims of far-away markets. There was an increase in the number of large-scale famines , and, despite the risks of infrastructure development borne by Indian taxpayers, little industrial employment was generated for Indians. There were also salutary effects: commercial cropping, especially in
15200-625: The contribution of petrochemical and engineering goods to total exports grew from 14% to 42%. India was the world's second-largest textile exporter after China in the 2013 calendar year. Averaging an economic growth rate of 7.5% for several years prior to 2007, India has more than doubled its hourly wage rates during the first decade of the 21st century. Some 431 million Indians have left poverty since 1985; India's middle classes are projected to number around 580 million by 2030. Though ranking 68th in global competitiveness , as of 2010 , India ranks 17th in financial market sophistication, 24th in
15360-579: The cost of increasing economic inequality. India is a nuclear-weapon state , which ranks high in military expenditure . It has disputes over Kashmir with its neighbours, Pakistan and China, unresolved since the mid-20th century. Among the socio-economic challenges India faces are gender inequality , child malnutrition , and rising levels of air pollution . India's land is megadiverse , with four biodiversity hotspots . Its forest cover comprises 21.7% of its area. India's wildlife , which has traditionally been viewed with tolerance in India's culture ,
15520-581: The design and implementation of Vikrant -class aircraft carriers and Arihant -class nuclear submarines . Since the end of the Cold War , India has increased its economic, strategic, and military co-operation with the United States and the European Union . In 2008, a civilian nuclear agreement was signed between India and the United States. Although India possessed nuclear weapons at
15680-507: The early 16th century, northern India, then under mainly Muslim rulers, fell again to the superior mobility and firepower of a new generation of Central Asian warriors. The resulting Mughal Empire did not stamp out the local societies it came to rule. Instead, it balanced and pacified them through new administrative practices and diverse and inclusive ruling elites, leading to more systematic, centralised, and uniform rule. Eschewing tribal bonds and Islamic identity, especially under Akbar ,
15840-536: The early mediaeval era, Christianity , Islam , Judaism , and Zoroastrianism became established on India's southern and western coasts. Muslim armies from Central Asia intermittently overran India's northern plains, eventually founding the Delhi Sultanate and drawing northern India into the cosmopolitan networks of mediaeval Islam . In the 15th century, the Vijayanagara Empire created
16000-727: The east. To the south, the remaining peninsular landmass, the Deccan Plateau , is flanked on the west and east by coastal ranges known as the Western and Eastern Ghats ; the plateau contains the country's oldest rock formations, some over one billion years old. Constituted in such fashion, India lies to the north of the equator between 6° 44′ and 35° 30′ north latitude and 68° 7′ and 97° 25′ east longitude. India's coastline measures 7,517 kilometres (4,700 mi) in length; of this distance, 5,423 kilometres (3,400 mi) belong to peninsular India and 2,094 kilometres (1,300 mi) to
16160-660: The east. In the Indian Ocean, India is in the vicinity of Sri Lanka and the Maldives ; its Andaman and Nicobar Islands share a maritime border with Thailand , Myanmar, and Indonesia . Modern humans arrived on the Indian subcontinent from Africa no later than 55,000 years ago. Their long occupation, initially in varying forms of isolation as hunter-gatherers, has made the region highly diverse, second only to Africa in human genetic diversity . Settled life emerged on
16320-513: The endangered Bengal tiger and the Ganges river dolphin . Critically endangered species include the gharial , a crocodilian ; the great Indian bustard ; and the Indian white-rumped vulture , which has become nearly extinct by having ingested the carrion of diclofenac -treated cattle. Before they were extensively used for agriculture and cleared for human settlement, the thorn forests of Punjab were mingled at intervals with open grasslands that were grazed by large herds of blackbuck preyed on by
16480-402: The entrance gate of the Monastery. The Monastery itself consists of a 'Mani Lhakang' at the entrance surrounded by flags, and lead to the guest house. From this point ahead is the main 'Tashiding Gompa' which is called as Chogyal Lhakhang or the monastery, followed by the 'butter lamp house', four chortens, 'Tsenkhang', a new butter lamp house and finally terminating at the 'Guru Lhakhang', which
16640-499: The final /k/ [k̚]~[ʔ] because the glottal stop is only phonemic in the word-final position. It also differs in the high and low register because it only happens in the high register and it is considered a phonetic feature of initial vowels. Yet, although the glottal stop is considered phonemic in the word-final position, it still is not really under that status clearly. That is because the production of final glottals in continuous speech crosses over with vowel length. Vowel length happens as
16800-481: The final /l/ is produced as a vowel lengthening and fronting and also only happens in reading and spelling-style pronunciation. All the laterals are word-medially voiced. Denjongke's syllable structure follow's CV(V/C) or (C) (G) V (C/V) where C stands for consonant, V stands for vowel, and G stands for glide. Denjongke is a verb-final language, and their sentence structure follows SOV or subject-verb-object order, similar to languages such as Japanese and Korean. Although
16960-421: The following year will be prosperous. If it is empty, famine will follow, and if it is half-filled also a prosperous year is predicted. If the water is polluted with dust it is interpreted as a sign of strife and clash. Once inspected and the Bhumchu festival is concluded, the lamas fill the vase with fresh water from the river and seal it for the opening in the following year. The procedure followed for taking out
17120-564: The front-short position are i and ɛ. In the front-long position are iː, yː, øː, ɛː, and eː. The only vowel in the middle-short position is a and the only one in the middle-long position is aː. The vowels in the back-short position are u and o. The vowels in the back-long positions are uː and oː. Due to the complexity of Bhutia, it has been deemed difficult to analyze vowels on a much deeper level since there are different varieties of bhutia spoken in Northern and Eastern Sikkim. One of those varieties
17280-418: The glide is /j/ most of the time, it can sometimes be an /r/ pronounced as [r], which is called a marginal glide. Not all varieties of Bhutia have this feature. Glides might follow bilabial and velar stops as well as the bilabial nasal /m/. There is also a mandatory vowel that can be preceded by plenty of consonant phonemes and any vowel can fill that position in as long or short vowels. The vowels /i/ and /u/ are
17440-488: The hidden and blessed land of Sikkim/Beyul Demozong. Tashiding is the nearest town to the Tashiding Monastery (Gompa) Tashiding means "The Devoted Central Glory" and the monastery by this name was founded in 1641 by Ngadak Sempa Chempo Phunshok Rigzing who belonged to the Nyingma sect of Tibetan Buddhism . Ngadak was one of the three wise men who held the consecration ceremony crowning the first King of Sikkim at Yuksom. It
17600-406: The high register. In the low register, a low pitch is produced along with a modal or breathy voice when producing vowels. The low register is also used when producing voiced and breathy consonants. The following are the Bhutia vowels, there are 13 of them: ɛː, ɛ, eː, a, aː, o, oː, øː, yː u, uː, i, and iː. For the following explanations, the terms "short" and "long" refer to the vowel lengthening. In
17760-445: The language continues to be used in different media. As of 2021, currently one active newspaper exists, with another paper that has plans to begin printing again. Moreover, in the last 2 decades multiple dictionaries have been published. Finally, the "Bhutia Language Website Development Committee" plans to launch an informational website about the language and peoples in the future. Speakers of Bhutia can understand some Dzongkha , with
17920-494: The largest single party, was able to form a minority government led by P. V. Narasimha Rao . A two-year period of political turmoil followed the general election of 1996 . Several short-lived alliances shared power at the centre. The BJP formed a government briefly in 1996; it was followed by two comparatively long-lasting United Front coalitions, which depended on external support. There were two prime ministers during this period; H.D. Deve Gowda and I.K. Gujral . In 1998 ,
18080-401: The last four are voiceless. Quite a few Bhutia speakers produce voiceless nasals in a similar way they produce voiced nasals that fall in the high register. Voiceless nasals occur only word-initially, whereas voiced nasals occur word-initially, medially, and finally. There are two lateral approximants in Bhutia, one is the voiceless /l̥/ and the other is the voiced /l/. In regular conversation,
18240-425: The life of its exemplar, Mahavira . Buddhism , based on the teachings of Gautama Buddha , attracted followers from all social classes excepting the middle class; chronicling the life of the Buddha was central to the beginnings of recorded history in India. In an age of increasing urban wealth, both religions held up renunciation as an ideal, and both established long-lasting monastic traditions. Politically, by
18400-526: The loose-knit Maurya and Gupta Empires based in the Ganges Basin . Their collective era was suffused with wide-ranging creativity, but also marked by the declining status of women, and the incorporation of untouchability into an organised system of belief. In South India , the Middle kingdoms exported Dravidian-languages scripts and religious cultures to the kingdoms of Southeast Asia . In
18560-471: The majority of India's rainfall. Four major climatic groupings predominate in India: tropical wet , tropical dry , subtropical humid , and montane . Temperatures in India have risen by 0.7 °C (1.3 °F) between 1901 and 2018. Climate change in India is often thought to be the cause. The retreat of Himalayan glaciers has adversely affected the flow rate of the major Himalayan rivers, including
18720-433: The many minority languages in the region to be taught in schools over the next few years. As a result of this, a written language was developed, adopting a modified version of the Tibetan script. The first literary materials were school books translated from Tibetan, and in the following years original works would be authored, including novels, poetry, and plays. While the total number of bhutia authors number approximately 30,
18880-505: The most part quite mutually intelligible in Bhutia as most differences that exist are minor. One big difference, however, is the lack of honorifics in some Northern villages, discussed in more detail in a separate section below. Also occurring in these villages are the largest dialectal differences in pronunciation and vocabulary. In the area of Bhutan closest to Sikkim, non-Bhutia speakers can understand Northern varieties of Bhutia much more easily than they can varieties from West Sikkim. It
19040-420: The nation to liberalise its economy ; since then, it has moved increasingly towards a free-market system by emphasising both foreign trade and direct investment inflows. India has been a member of World Trade Organization since 1 January 1995. The 522-million-worker Indian labour force is the world's second largest , as of 2017 . The service sector makes up 55.6% of GDP, the industrial sector 26.3% and
19200-445: The newly canalled Punjab, led to increased food production for internal consumption. The railway network provided critical famine relief, notably reduced the cost of moving goods, and helped nascent Indian-owned industry. After World War I , in which approximately one million Indians served , a new period began. It was marked by British reforms but also repressive legislation , by more strident Indian calls for self-rule, and by
19360-418: The ones that typically go in the second vowel position. The last consonant position can be a plosive, a rhotic, or a nasal. VV CV CVV CGV CGVV CVC CGVC High and low are the two registers in the Bhutia language. Both have many features. The high register produces a cranky or stiff voice when producing vowels. The high register also produces a high pitch. Voiceless and aspirated consonants happen in
19520-595: The precincts of the monastery within the Tashiding town is provided in five distinct blocks namely, the Sinem market place, the outskirts, the main market place, the main Tashiding Monastery and the Chorten area. The Sinek market place is located on an incline on the ridge between Rathong Chu and Rangeet River. There is a gompa here called the Sinolochu Gompa from where an approach leads to the Tashiding Monastery on
19680-546: The proportion of the area of a forest covered by its tree canopy . Very dense forest , whose canopy density is greater than 70%, occupies 3.02% of India's land area. It predominates in the tropical moist forest of the Andaman Islands , the Western Ghats , and Northeast India . Moderately dense forest , whose canopy density is between 40% and 70%, occupies 9.39% of India's land area. It predominates in
19840-556: The reign of the first ruler of Sikkim, Phuntshog Namgyal , the Terton recited the holy hymn "Om Mani Padme Hum" five billions when several unique events were also witnessed in Sikkim. After the religious ceremony the vase with the water has been kept on display in a small chamber in the Monastery under the custody of the Chogyal himself, which is opened once a year during the Bhumchu festival. This monastery located at an altitude of 1465 m
20000-449: The relationship between the addresser and addressee, and/or how the speaker perceives the addressee. Typically there are two different groupings, with the lower group being considered common and simple, and the latter honorific. For example, there are three levels of the second person pronoun; the low level may be used with social inferiors or friends, the mid level with social equals, and the honorific with social superiors. There are also
20160-548: The seas, greater resources, and more advanced military training and technology led it to increasingly assert its military strength and caused it to become attractive to a portion of the Indian elite; these factors were crucial in allowing the company to gain control over the Bengal region by 1765 and sideline the other European companies. Its further access to the riches of Bengal and the subsequent increased strength and size of its army enabled it to annex or subdue most of India by
20320-463: The share of external trade in India's GDP stood at 24%, up from 6% in 1985. In 2008, India's share of world trade was 1.7%; In 2021, India was the world's ninth-largest importer and the sixteenth-largest exporter . Major exports include petroleum products, textile goods, jewellery, software, engineering goods, chemicals, and manufactured leather goods. Major imports include crude oil, machinery, gems, fertiliser, and chemicals. Between 2001 and 2011,
20480-481: The sky and thereafter merged into the holy water contained in the vase. The vase then overflowed and the water dispersed in "all directions in the form of rays." This ritual was immediately followed by an earthquake, which was considered an auspicious sign. The divine moment also witnessed the presence of the four guardian divinities namely, "the Gyalchen Dezhi/Cutur – Maharajika of Dharma and the gods of
20640-425: The southern direction. The settlement is spread lengthwise and is 23 kilometres (14 mi) from Yuksom. A large 'Mani' stone is seen at the entrance to this settlement and the Tashiding market. From the main market centre the approach to the Monastery is through a road, and also a footpath. The footpath in the southern direction has a gentle slope and passes through a Mani and then prayer wind wheels terminating at
20800-576: The southern supercontinent Gondwana , began a north-eastward drift caused by seafloor spreading to its south-west, and later, south and south-east. Simultaneously, the vast Tethyan oceanic crust , to its northeast, began to subduct under the Eurasian Plate . These dual processes, driven by convection in the Earth's mantle , both created the Indian Ocean and caused the Indian continental crust eventually to under-thrust Eurasia and to uplift
20960-416: The subcontinent from the north-west. The caste system , which created a hierarchy of priests, warriors, and free peasants, but which excluded indigenous peoples by labelling their occupations impure, arose during this period. On the Deccan Plateau , archaeological evidence from this period suggests the existence of a chiefdom stage of political organisation. In South India , a progression to sedentary life
21120-513: The subcontinent in the western margins of the Indus river basin 9,000 years ago, evolving gradually into the Indus Valley Civilisation of the third millennium BCE. By at least 1200 BCE , an archaic form of Sanskrit , an Indo-European language , had diffused into India from the northwest. Its evidence today is found in the hymns of the Rigveda . Preserved by an oral tradition that
21280-526: The subcontinent transitioned from the Chalcolithic cultures to the Iron Age ones. The Vedas , the oldest scriptures associated with Hinduism , were composed during this period, and historians have analysed these to posit a Vedic culture in the Punjab region and the upper Gangetic Plain . Most historians also consider this period to have encompassed several waves of Indo-Aryan migration into
21440-441: The subcontinent, thereby creating a syncretic Indo-Islamic culture in the north. The sultanate's raiding and weakening of the regional kingdoms of South India paved the way for the indigenous Vijayanagara Empire . Embracing a strong Shaivite tradition and building upon the military technology of the sultanate, the empire came to control much of peninsular India, and was to influence South Indian society for long afterwards. In
21600-414: The support of left-leaning parties and MPs who opposed the BJP. The UPA returned to power in the 2009 general election with increased numbers, and it no longer required external support from India's communist parties . That year, Manmohan Singh became the first prime minister since Jawaharlal Nehru in 1957 and 1962 to be re-elected to a consecutive five-year term. In the 2014 general election ,
21760-478: The thirty-three heavens (Samchu Tsasumgyi Lhanam) who showered flowers from the sky." The event was witnessed by devotees and Padmasmabhava distributed the holy water from the vase to all assembled people, which spiritually benefited one and all. The vase was then hidden as a treasure under the care of the divine deities. However, the vase was rediscovered and passed through the hands of several holy men and finally placed at Tashiding by Terton Ngadak Sempa Chenpo. During
21920-677: The time and was not a party to the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty, it received waivers from the International Atomic Energy Agency and the Nuclear Suppliers Group , ending earlier restrictions on India's nuclear technology and commerce. As a consequence, India became the sixth de facto nuclear weapons state. India subsequently signed co-operation agreements involving civilian nuclear energy with Russia, France,
22080-407: The tongue touching the alveolar ridge and the back of the upper teeth. The following are classified as dento-alveolar: voiceless dental fricative, voiceless unaspirated dento-alveolar laminal plosive, voiced dento-alveolar laminal plosive, voiceless aspirated dento-alveolar laminal plosive, and voiceless lightly not consistent aspirated dento-alveolar plosive followed by breathiness. All can be found in
22240-518: The two nations have gone to war four times: in 1947 , 1965 , 1971 , and 1999 . Three of these wars were fought over the disputed territory of Kashmir , while the third, the 1971 war, followed from India's support for the independence of Bangladesh . In the late 1980s, the Indian military twice intervened abroad at the invitation of the host country: a peace-keeping operation in Sri Lanka between 1987 and 1990; and an armed intervention to prevent
22400-639: The union territories of Jammu and Kashmir , Puducherry and the National Capital Territory of Delhi , have elected legislatures and governments following the Westminster system of governance. The remaining five union territories are directly ruled by the central government through appointed administrators. In 1956, under the States Reorganisation Act , states were reorganised on a linguistic basis. There are over
22560-426: The unpredictability of some of Bhutia's registers and the lack of difference between modal and breathy voicing, Bhutia is considered a toned language even though tone itself is not provide too much of a functional load like other languages that are also considered to be toned. All consonants happen word-initially with the exception of the glottal /ʔ/. Voiceless nasals and liquids actually don't occur at all. Aspiration
22720-566: The upcoming forecasts and events for Sikkim in the coming year. Undoubtedly, one of the most important and holiest festivals for all the Buddhists in Sikkim and around, it also provides for a perfect platform for all those Non-Buddhists who seek a deeper insight into Buddhism and its religious customs, beliefs and rituals. History of the Festival- Somewhere between 755 and 804 CE in Tibet under the reign of King Trisong Deutsen . It
22880-432: The use of honorifics is associated with one's speaking ability and language skills. While the spoken and written language are similar, there are some minor differences. Notable types of change are phonological reduction/modification, as well as morphosyntactic reduction. Some morphosyntactic changes include the dropping of case-markers in certain contexts. Examples that have been observed include noun modifiers losing
23040-495: The western part of the Indo-Gangetic plain, now turned into rich agricultural land by irrigation, its features no longer visible. Among the Indian subcontinent's notable indigenous trees are the astringent Azadirachta indica , or neem , which is widely used in rural Indian herbal medicine , and the luxuriant Ficus religiosa , or peepul , which is displayed on the ancient seals of Mohenjo-daro , and under which
23200-563: The word represents a very large spectrum, encompassing, for example, both tree leaf green and sky blue. While there are words that describe this range more specifically, they are of (Classical) Tibetan origin and do not see regular use. Other colors, specific shades of colors, and qualities of color like paleness, darkness and brightness are represented by using the basic color terms with word compounding or suffixation. In Bhutia, there are different forms of many nouns, pronouns, and verbs varying in politeness and respect, and whose use depends on
23360-475: The word-initial position. The following are also known as "retroflex" even though the tongue is not curled backwards as strongly. They are as follows: voiceless unaspirated postalveolar apical plosive, voiceless aspirated postalveolar apical plosive, voiced postalveolar apical plosive, voiced alveolar flap, and voiceless lightly but not consistent aspirated postalveolar apical plosive followed by breathiness. The glottal stop differs from glottal vowel endings and
23520-444: The world in nominal per capita income and 125th in per capita income adjusted for purchasing power parity (PPP)—the vast majority of Indians fall into the low-income group. Until 1991, all Indian governments followed protectionist policies that were influenced by socialist economics. Widespread state intervention and regulation largely walled the economy off from the outside world. An acute balance of payments crisis in 1991 forced
23680-437: The world's most populous democracy since the time of its independence in 1947. It is a pluralistic , multilingual and multi-ethnic society . India's nominal per capita income increased from US$ 64 annually in 1951 to US$ 2,601 in 2022, and its literacy rate from 16.6% to 74%. During the same time, its population grew from 361 million to almost 1.4 billion, and India became the most populous country in 2023. From being
23840-537: The world's newer nations; however, in spite of its recent economic successes, freedom from want for its disadvantaged population remains a goal yet to be achieved. India accounts for the bulk of the Indian subcontinent, lying atop the Indian tectonic plate , a part of the Indo-Australian Plate . India's defining geological processes began 75 million years ago when the Indian Plate, then part of
24000-513: Was resolutely vigilant , the Rigveda records the dawning of Hinduism in India. The Dravidian languages of India were supplanted in the northern and western regions. By 400 BCE , stratification and exclusion by caste had emerged within Hinduism, and Buddhism and Jainism had arisen, proclaiming social orders unlinked to heredity. Early political consolidations gave rise to
24160-457: Was amended in 1971 to "a sovereign, socialist , secular , democratic republic". India's form of government, traditionally described as "quasi-federal" with a strong centre and weak states, has grown increasingly federal since the late 1990s as a result of political, economic, and social changes. The Government of India comprises three branches: India is a federal union comprising 28 states and 8 union territories . All states, as well as
24320-541: Was enlarged into the present monastery during the reign of Chogyal Chakdor Namgyal . Pedi Wangmo built the main monastery and installed many statues which are still seen in the monastery. Lhatsun Chenpo built the Chortens; which are considered holy. Yanchong Lodil, the Master craftsman crafted the flagstones that surround the monastery. These are carved with the holy Buddhist mantra 'Om Mane Padme Hum'. An overall picture of
24480-513: Was extended and renovated in 1717 during the reign of the third Chogyal Chakdor Namgyal . ' Bhumchu Ceremony' or festival is a popular religious festival that is held on the 14th and 15th day of the first month of Tibetan Calendar . The Tashiding Monastery is part of Buddhist religious pilgrimage circuit starting with the first monastery at Yuksam in Sikkim known as the Dubdi Monastery , Norbugang Chorten , Pemayangtse Monastery ,
24640-426: Was nominally worth $ 3.94 trillion; it was the fifth-largest economy by market exchange rates and is, at around $ 15.0 trillion, the third-largest by purchasing power parity (PPP). With its average annual GDP growth rate of 5.8% over the past two decades, and reaching 6.1% during 2011–2012, India is one of the world's fastest-growing economies . However, due to its low GDP per capita—which ranks 136th in
24800-516: Was noted for nonviolent resistance and became the major factor in ending British rule. In 1947, the British Indian Empire was partitioned into two independent dominions , a Hindu-majority dominion of India and a Muslim-majority dominion of Pakistan , amid large-scale loss of life and an unprecedented migration. India has been a federal republic since 1950, governed through a democratic parliamentary system , and has been
24960-528: Was pegged at US$ 70.12 billion for fiscal year 2022–23 and, increased 9.8% than previous fiscal year. India is the world's second-largest arms importer; between 2016 and 2020, it accounted for 9.5% of the total global arms imports. Much of the military expenditure was focused on defence against Pakistan and countering growing Chinese influence in the Indian Ocean. In May 2017, the Indian Space Research Organisation launched
25120-532: Was succeeded, after his own unexpected death in 1966, by Nehru's daughter Indira Gandhi , who went on to lead the Congress to election victories in 1967 and 1971 . Following public discontent with the state of emergency she declared in 1975, the Congress was voted out of power in 1977 ; the then-new Janata Party , which had opposed the emergency, was voted in. Its government lasted just over two years. There were two prime ministers during this period; Morarji Desai and Charan Singh . Voted back into power in 1980,
25280-411: Was the world's fifth largest . Driven by growth, India's nominal GDP per capita increased steadily from US$ 308 in 1991, when economic liberalisation began, to US$ 1,380 in 2010, to an estimated US$ 2,731 in 2024. It is expected to grow to US$ 3,264 by 2026. However, it has remained lower than those of other Asian developing countries such as Indonesia, Malaysia, Philippines, Sri Lanka, and Thailand, and
25440-461: Was under his rule that Guru Padmasambhava when invited to Tibet performed a holy sadhana and consecrated the land with water from his SACRED VASE, which was then later concealed as a hidden treasure in his most blessed place, the Tashiding Monastery in Sikkim. Somewhere around 17th century, the vase was again discovered by one of the reincarnations of Padmasambhava and it is since that time, this festival again resumed with all its glory and splendour in
25600-912: Was used widely since the era of the Mughal Empire . The meaning of Hindustan has varied, referring to a region encompassing the northern Indian subcontinent (present-day northern India and Pakistan ) or to India in its near entirety. By 55,000 years ago, the first modern humans, or Homo sapiens , had arrived on the Indian subcontinent from Africa, where they had earlier evolved. The earliest known modern human remains in South Asia date to about 30,000 years ago. After 6500 BCE , evidence for domestication of food crops and animals, construction of permanent structures, and storage of agricultural surplus appeared in Mehrgarh and other sites in Balochistan, Pakistan . These gradually developed into
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