4Rajasthan with Desert Safari

4The Royal Rajasthan

India known as Bharat as well, has history, culture and civilisation of more than 5000 years. The Himalayas have played a crucial role in the destiny of India. Together with the Karakoram and Hindu-Kush ranges to the north-west, and the Arakan mountains to the north-east, they have stood sentinel over the subcontinent, separating it from the Asian landmass, and allowing its peoples and cultures to flow together over the centuries, to form an organic composite entity. The genius of India lies in its ability to absorb and encompass the many cultures with which it has come into contact; at the same time it has allowed these cultures to flourish as distinct entities. Both host and guest- have subtly altered and have themselves been altered by this contact, to mutual benefit. The separate evolution of all these strands, and their continuing interaction, have produced a complex cultural kaleidoscope. All the world's major religions are practised and respected; Hinduism, Buddhism, Jainism and Sikhism were born here, while Islam, Christianity, Judaism and Zoroastrianism were brought by settlers.