Elizabeth Ashe The Link between Culture and Biodiversity in India Indian culture which is often thought of as being

interchangeable with Hindu culture has a deep connection with many different animals. For this reason, the India government works to protect these animals and in turn protect the culture of India. While many religions may have to look deep into their past to examine relationships with animals and nature, Hinduism and Buddhism, both religions that began in India, have strong current connections. The cultural diversity of India is directly linked to its biodiversity. Since the faith first evolved near Asia's Indus River more than 3,000 years ago, respect for animal life has been a central theme in Hindu life ("Hinduism's sacred animal," ). There are numerous different animals that play important roles in the Hindu faith. Elephants, tigers, snakes, monkeys, cows and peacocks are all part of the Hindu religion. Elephants and Indians have a long history together. In wartime, elephants were used in battle. In the woods, they are used to carry logs, and in the city it is not unheard of for elephants to be used for transportation. ("The 5 holy," ) The largest population of Indian Elephants is in the Indian state of Kerala. In Kerala, elephants are decorated and worshipped during religious festivals.

("Decorated Indian Elephant," Decorated Indian Elephant)

Ganesh, the elephant-headed son of Lord Shiva and Parvati is widely worshiped as the god of wisdom and prosperity. He is worshiped first before any auspicious work ("Eco-friendly ganesh festivial," ).

("Ganesh Print 1," Ganesh Print 1) The Bengal Tiger is an endangered sub-species of the Tiger family found in and around India ("Bengal tiger," ). In Hindu cultures, the tiger is the sacred vehicle of the Durga, the (Durga-mata, Durga-mata) warrior goddess ("Durga-mata," Durga-mata).

Another sacred animal in the Hindu religion is the snake. Nag Panchami, the festival of snakes, is a Hindu festival dedicated to the worship of snakes and serpent deities. Cobras are the most sacred snake in India and despite the fact that their dangerous venom kills nearly 10,000 people every year, they are often trained or charmed to music ("Indian cobra," ).

(Linghorn, Snake charmer, Jaipur)

Monkeys are believed to be the form of God Hanuman or Bajrang Bali, the god of power and strength ("The 5 holy," ). Every Rama temple has an idol of Hanuman as a minor deity. His worship is believed to destroy all evil. His image is found in many forms, often with one head,

two arms and a long tail looped over his head. He normally has a monkeys face on a very well built and strong human body ("Hanuman, the monkey," ). The animal that is possibly the mostly widely recognized as being holy to Hindus is the cow. However, unlike other animals, cows are not worshipped in the Hindu religion. In Hinduism, the cow is revered as the source of food and symbol of life and may never be killed. The cow remains a protected animal in Hinduism today and Hindus do not eat beef. Most rural Indian families have at least one dairy cow, a gentle spirit who is often treated as a member of the family ("The cow in," 2007). Since many of these animals such as the tiger and the elephant are endangered, the government in India is working to protect them. This is a difficult job as they are not only fighting poachers, but the growing population in India which is encroaching on their habitat. As you can see, the Indian culture is intrinsically linked to its biodiversity through the reverence and worship of animals.