My Culture Experience in India

I decided to write about my trip to India in 2005 as my culture experience. Amritsar is the capital of Punjab, the heart of a bustling country of over two million people. The city offers a stimulating sensory experience to travelers with never a dull moment; enriched by India’s unique cultural heritage. A culture where guests are treated as gods and family members live under the same household. Hindu believes that gods and spirits play the significant role in their life.

Hindu culture is a rich, diverse and exclusive in many ways. There are many aspects as to what makes India unique, one belief is their food. Indian cooking is rich, and simply delicious. It depends on a wide variety of spices, herbs, and gains for its specific taste. The different types of food which India carries include basic spices, traditional foods, and tasty snacks. It is notable that India has been one of the worlds main dealer of spices for at least 3,600 years.

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During my stay in India, I visited a temple Shri Swaminarayan Mandir in Amritsar and realized that how religion plays an important role in food. Having different religion and culture, I decided to ask more questions about Hinduism. At that time, I was acknowledged that Hindus can only consume a lactovegetarian means no meat, poultry, fish, and eggs but milk products are allowed and encouraged. Beef is prohibited as the cow is considered sacred. 82.8% of the population consumed greater amounts of legumes, vegetables, roots and tubers, dairy and sugar, while other non-vegetarian population included minority religion those consumed fish, poultry and very less beef.

What I learned: At the restaurant in Amritsar, I was served Paneer Tikka as my starter dish made from chunks of cheeses marinated in spices and grilled on coals. It is vegetarian alternative to chicken tikka and other meat dishes; afterword’s I was served rice with mix vegetables on a banana leaf, with small bowls of curries and curd lining the periphery. In the centre of the plate is placed a heap of rice, which is refilled as I moved through the meal. Traditionally eaten with fingers of the right hand, specifically left hand is only for pouring the curries onto rice and to grasp water glass. Thalis are one of the most delicious and an inexpensive dish that I had throughout my stay in India. Even though, here in Canada Indian restaurants Taste of Bombay are serving Thali in Ferry St, Niagara Falls and Hamilton. The taste is not like what I had back in my stay in India, but they are still making good business out of it. This tradition has its roots in Ayurveda; eating is supposed to be a sensory experience and eating with your hands evokes emotion and passion. According to Vedas, our fingers are the most precious organs of actions one of the Ayurveda texts reveals. Every finger is an extension of the five elements. Through the thumb comes space, with the forefinger comes air, the middle finger is fire, the ring finger is earth and the little finger represents water. I have learnt from resources during my visit to Shri Swaminarayan Mandir, eating with your fingers stimulates these five elements and helps in bringing forth digestives juices in the stomach. The nerve endings on your fingertips are known to stimulate digestion. You become more conscious of the taste, textures and aromas.

Societal view

As a public view vegetarianism is becoming more popular and people want to learn more about the plant-based diets and their nutritional facts. Religions such as Hinduism took vegetarianism observance one step further by declaring: “The greatness of a nation and its moral progress can be measured by the way in which its animals are treated”. In addition to the cow, cobra and monkey are also adored directly as divinity. People choose to become vegetarian because it’s healthy, and they can eat nutritiously without killing animals in the process. The proof is that “India has a rich and highly varied cuisine, and its various diets are strongly related to social identity, religion and other culture factors”. Many restaurants are often separated areas “vegetarian and non-vegetarian” often the same dishes presented in the two varieties. Vegetarianism can express itself in more traditional forms like a “Thali”. Vegetarian restaurants providing spaces where people could share meat-free meals and cautious and develop their concerns about food. Vegetal manufacture is less destructive on our environment.

Changed View

My trip to India and exploration about Indian culture changed my viewpoint It has enhanced my knowledge more about culture, religion and food. Even tough being non-vegetarian, falling in love with everything from the “paneer tikka” in multiple variations. My journey was such an eye opening from uncompromising non-vegetarian diet to health conscious. Being a future nurse, I have changed my view about health and reason for eating healthier foods. “Nurses are also an integral part of providing nutrition related information to patients. As such, patients may be very conscious of the health habits of their nurses. Eating for good health is one way that nurses can rescue the impact of stressors on the body and positively influence their health”. Nurses have a role in nutrition guidance and health promotion with the patients, educating to the prevention of obesity, over weight and serious non-communicable disease, by changing my view of taking healthy diet and staying up to date with current Canadian dietary guideline. “I believe that a large portion of people would no longer eat meat”. I feel vegetarianism is a lifestyle choice that has been proven to increase lifespan and promote a more healthy and active life. Producing vegetarian food is more ecologically sustainable, and it reduces damage to the environment.

Nursing Implications

The experience I had in Amritsar inspired me to consider Leininger’s cultural “Culture is the learned and transmitted knowledge about a culture with its values, beliefs, rules of behaviour and lifestyle practices that guides a designated group in their thinking and actions in patterned ways”. As a nurse who provides nursing care will have clients from various ethnic and cultural backgrounds. In addition, there was an increase in the migration of people within and between countries worldwide. Transcultural nursing is needed because of the growing diversity. “A comprehensive cultural assessment is the basis for providing culturally competent care. A cultural assessment, combined with critical thinking skills, provides the knowledge necessary for transcultural nursing care”. “The goal of cultural assessment is to generate from the patients themselves significant information that enables culturally congruent care”. “Several models of culture assessment exist, each involving different levels of skill and knowledge”. Madeleine Leininger’s sunrise model is very suitable and relevant to transcultural nursing; where people get services and nursing care according to their cultural values. I will keep up professional standards, laws and regulations darning my practice at work place. However, despite the increase in information and research concerned with ensuring that the culture and religious beliefs of patients are considered in health care and nursing, there remains a distinct lack of evidence on what is available to help us to achieve this Religious/spiritual characteristics of physicians influence their attitude toward integrative medicine and spiritual care.

Conclusion

My experience at Amritsar had derived me to believe that culture experience is something superior to what I made up. I learned after researching many articles, that now I have greater knowledge to continue to promote health with the information I have obtained about the cultural diversity. I can confidentially promote health because I feel that I am at my healthiest and hopefully my patients will follow by my example. I am now more aware of that I may have on my patients. Nursing not simply about skills it is also about giving patients the therapeutic care and relationship they need to feel. This experience has led me to think about the others cultural values and why they are so passionate about their choice. As a future nurse I have realized that I need to continue learning about different cultures to give my patients the best culture cares they deserve.