Different Countries, Different Customs

Sadhus_Indias_holy_men
Society

After spending a lot of time in India, I’ve learned about many different customs. Some seemed logical to me while others didn’t. I was lucky to meet a very special and patient man who explained every rule, custom, and regulation of his home country to me. During this whole period of time, the question, “Why?” was the most prevalent question, as everything was so new, different, and breathtaking.

Here, I would like to share with you a few insights into Indian customs:

First of all: Indians aren’t dirty. It’s true that most of them don’t use toilet paper, but this is more economical, clean, and beneficial for the environment. They have bidet showers or a toilet with a stream everywhere, and if there’s no “bum gun” as it is called, then there’s a bucket. If there’s only a bucket, for example, in rural areas, then they’ll follow a very specific procedure (in case you ever wondered like me): with their right hand, they hold the bucket and pour the water, and with the left, they clean themselves. Afterwards, they wash their hands: first with water, then with soap, then again with water and again with soap. In places where there isn’t a lot of water, they’ll use firewood ash, as carbon is a super absorbing material. Hence. the right hand and never the left hand is used for eating and for receiving Prasad (consecrated food) in the temple.

When going into a temple, you are never allowed to take your shoes inside – regardless of whether you’re wearing them, holding them, or carrying them in your bag. In Amritsar, Punjab, at the famous Golden Temple, every time I entered, I was asked for my shoes and my bag was checked. Not taking your shoes inside a temple is a strict rule, because, in many religions like Hinduism, Buddhism, and even Jainism, shoes are considered dirty and impure, whereas the temple is considered as pure and holy. In front of every temple, you will find a place where you can leave your shoes, mostly for free or for very little money; otherwise, you can also ask at a nearby shop if they will keep them for you.

When visiting a Jain temple, it’s mandatory to wash your feet and even your mouth before entering, as they’re very keen on keeping bacteria outside. It’s also not allowed to bring any leather items or even your camera inside. Actually, people who practise Jainism strictly follow the law of  “Ahimsa”, non-violence, and, because of this, they sweep the path ahead of them while walking or before sitting down, in order not to kill any form of life accidentally. They also cover their mouth in order to prevent the accidental swallowing of any germs or tiny insects.

Signs_in_front_of_Jain_temple
Signs in front of a Jain Temple

It’s strictly forbidden to point your feet towards the statues in the temple, or even to elderly people and teachers, as this is regarded as a sign of disrespect. Hence, try to sit crossed leg or with your feet pointed in the other direction. And if a person is sitting on the street – and you’ll find many people doing this in India – never step over any of their body parts as this again is a sign of disrespect, but rather walk around them. In Thailand, I once stepped over the foot of a man, rather than making a circle around it, and the man began shouting at me – at that time I didn’t understand why.

Buddhist_monks_Bodghaya
Monks praying at Mahabodhi Temple in Bodhgaya, Bihar, India

When attending a ceremony or visiting someone’s house, it’s a custom that the guest is fed with something small, like e.g. sweets. The host will come and offer you the food from his hands. If there’s more than one host, then more people will feed you. This happened to me when visiting a small village in the Thar desert of Rajasthan: as it’s very disrespectful to say no, at least 15 people fed me. This might seem weird to us Westerners as most of us are very concerned about parasites and bacteria and that is correct. However, I believe that life is all about experiences and mostly I try to live by the rule of a foreign country, I live how the locals live – to get the most out of it.

When sharing a water bottle with an Indian, even if it’s your friend, don’t “kiss” the bottle, i.e. put your mouth on the bottle. Indians are used to drinking without touching the glass or the bottle; it’s a great skill to learn, a little bit tricky at the beginning but much more hygienic.

If you’re invited to someone’s house, as a guest, you’ll be treated like a king, as for Indians the guest is seen as a God. Be prepared that they’ll cook a lot of awesome food for you, serve you, watch you while eating (maybe take a few pictures and selfies with you), and only when you’re finished will they themselves eat. They’ll even give you the best room in the house, even if this means that they might end up sleeping on the floor.

You’ll see women, children, and even men with “greasy” hair – it’s not because they don’t wash themselves but because it’s a custom to put oil in their hair daily. That’s probably also the reason why Indian hair is so well-nourished.

Children_south_india_oil_hair
School kids in Kumily, Kerala, South India with oil in their hair

Sometimes you’ll see a whole family, mostly males, with a shaved head. Be careful about what you say, e.g. “nice haircut”, as shaving one’s head means that someone in the family died …

Shaved_head
Mundan or “shaving the head” after the death of elderly family members

People wearing a turban in India do it either because of the extreme heat, to protect the head from the cold or because they belong to a religion called Sikhism. Sikhs aren’t allowed to cut their hair anywhere on their body: they wear a turban and sometimes even carry a spear, a knife, or a sword as they belong to the clan of warriors. Sometimes, even women follow this custom very strictly.

In India, “black magic” is common. At times, at large crossings, busy or even isolated streets, you might see a little fire or some lemons with chilies. Don’t step over it, as it’s said that every person who does so might have some “bad luck” from the spell. Also don’t let random people read your palm, as people who practise black magic can take energy from you.

Nimbu_Mirchi
Nimbu-Mirchi = lemons with chilies (when hanging they protect and take bad energy when stepping over it’s the opposite effect)

In India, it’s not a general custom to shake hands, although nowadays it has become more common. But traditionally folding your hands in a prayer pose and saying Namaste is the general greeting. Namaste means as much as greeting the God inside of you. If a man tries to shake hands with a woman, it’s seen as something sexual – as men and women don’t generally touch each other in public in India. Better to try to avoid this and just say Namaste.

I hope that this will help fellow Westerners who travel to India to become more aware and understanding of their customs.

Credits

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Sadhus_Indias_holy_men Sadhus_Indias_holy_men Isabel Scharrer CC BY-SA 4.0
Indian_toilet Indian_toilet Isabel Scharrer CC BY-SA 4.0
Bidet_shower Isabel Scharrer CC BY-SA 4.0
Wooden_shoes_in_front_of_temple Wooden_shoes_in_front_of_temple Isabel Scharrer CC BY-SA 4.0
Shoe_collector Shoe_collector Isabel Scharrer CC BY-SA 4.0
Shoe_collector_2 Isabel Scharrer CC BY-SA 4.0
Golden_temple_Amritsar Golden_temple_Amritsar Isabel Scharrer CC BY-SA 4.0
Golden_temple_2 Golden_temple_2 Isabel Scharrer CC BY-SA 4.0
Signs_in_front_of_Jain_temple Signs_in_front_of_Jain_temple Isabel Scharrer CC BY-SA 4.0
Buddhist_monks_Bodghaya Buddhist_monks_Bodghaya Isabel Scharrer CC BY-SA 4.0
Living_like_locals2 Living_like_locals2 Isabel Scharrer CC BY-SA 4.0
Living_like_locals Living_like_locals Isabel Scharrer CC BY-SA 4.0
Water_jar Water_jar Isabel Scharrer CC BY-SA 4.0
Children Children Isabel Scharrer CC BY-SA 4.0
Village family Village family Isabel Scharrer CC BY-SA 4.0
Children_south_india_oil_hair Children_south_india_oil_hair Isabel Scharrer CC BY-SA 4.0
Shaved_head Shaved_head Isabel Scharrer CC BY-SA 4.0
Sikh_devotee_7 Sikh_devotee_7 Isabel Scharrer CC BY-SA 4.0
Sikh_devotee_5 Sikh_devotee_5 Isabel Scharrer CC BY-SA 4.0
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Sikh_devotee_3 Sikh_devotee_3 Isabel Scharrer CC BY-SA 4.0
Sikh_devotee_2 Sikh_devotee_2 Isabel Scharrer CC BY-SA 4.0
Man_in_Rajasthan_2 Man_in_Rajasthan_2 Isabel Scharrer CC BY-SA 4.0
Man_in_Rajasthan_1 Man_in_Rajasthan_1 Isabel Scharrer CC BY-SA 4.0
Man_in_Gujarat Man_in_Gujarat Isabel Scharrer CC BY-SA 4.0
Hindu_monk_turban_Kathmandu Hindu_monk_turban_Kathmandu Isabel Scharrer CC BY-SA 4.0
Nimbu_Mirchi Nimbu_Mirchi Isabel Scharrer CC BY-SA 4.0
Namaste_Iskon_temple_1 Namaste_Iskon_temple_1 Isabel Scharrer CC BY-SA 4.0
Namaste_Hindu_monks Namaste_Hindu_monks Isabel Scharrer CC BY-SA 4.0
Namaste_Golden_temple Namaste_Golden_temple Isabel Scharrer CC BY-SA 4.0
Buddhist_monks_Namaste Buddhist_monks_Namaste Isabel Scharrer CC BY-SA 4.0