Culture of Himachal Pradesh
Himachal Pradesh is an almost completely mountainous state in Northern India. Culture of Himachal Pradesh is different from the other state of India. Till recently, it was one of the few states that had remained largely untouched by external customs largely due to its difficult terrain. The modern technology has changed that very rapidly. The state however still retains a lot of its old charm. Culture of Himachal Pradesh is like as the village's culter. Most of the people in Himachal depend on agriculture for livelihood. Many people derive their income from sheep, goats, and other cattle. Ninety percent of the people live in villages and small towns. Villages usually have terraced fields and small two storey houses with sloping roof. The villages are mostly self-contained with a few shops to take care of basic necessities of life. Most villages have a temple, where people congregate for worship. In many parts of the Himachal the village Gods is carried on palanquins to village fairs.
Art And Architecture: The Monuments of the state of Himachal Pradesh reveal crosscurrents of cultural and stylistics exchange along with local innovation in Art. This art has mostly grown out of age-old cultural heritage and numerous religious beliefs. It represents and reveals the many faceted realities of the people living there. It is functional as well as decorative, the result of people's reaction to their natural environment and hoary civilization.
Dance and Music: The dance and music of the state is mainly religion-oriented where gods are invoked during the festivals by singing and dancing. This practice has continued since ancient times. The major dance of the state are the Rakshasa (dem0on) dance, the Kayang Dance, the Bakayang dance, the Bnayangchu dance, the Jataru Kayang dance, Chohara dance, Shand and Shabu dances, Lang-dar-ma dance, Nati dance, Jhanjhar dance, Jhoor dance, Gi dance and Rasa dance.Musical instruments like Ranasingha, Karna, Turhi, Flute, Ektara, Kindari, Jhanjh, Manjara, Chimta, Ghariyal, and Ghunghru are played to provide music for the songs and the dances.
Religion: Most of the people in Himachal are Hindus. There is a sizable number of Buddhists who live in Himachal. Hinduism practiced in the areas of Himachal that are closer to the northern plains is very similar to the Hinduism practiced in theplains.sUpper hill areas have their own distinct flavor of Hinduism. Their practice of religion combines the local legends and beliefs with the larger Hindu beliefs. The temple architecture has also been influenced by local constraints such as availability or lack of availability of certain construction materials. Most of the upper hill temples are made of wood and more similar to Pagodas in design.
