Essay on India: The ‘Splendid Isolation’ of India (Physical features of India)

India is a peninsula, though its quadrilateral shape is uneven. Its present area is 32,87,782 sq. km., its length from North to South is 3214 km. and breadth from east to west, 2933 km. It is a sub-continent in Asia and has a population of over 100 crore.

Geographical unity of this vast sub-continent has been a feature from ancient till modern times. The Vishnu Purana [11.3:1] gives a cryptic version of the geographical location of Bharatavarsha in the following manner:

“Uttaram yat samudrasya, Himadreschaiva dakshinam;

Varsham tad Bharatam nama, Bharatiyatra santatih .”

or ‘that country which lies in the north of the sea and in the south of the Himalayas is known as Bharata; it is inhabited by the descendants of (king) Bharat’]

Extending the point a bit further, one finds four natural divisions as features of the geography of India. These are :

(i) The Himalayan Mountain range.

(ii) The Indo-Gangetic plains,

(iii) The coastal Ghats, and (iv) The Deccan Plateau.

The Himalayan range stretches from Kashmir and Hindukush to Khasi, Jayantia and Assam. The Himalayan range is lofty and insurmountable. Thus, while it isolated India from the rest of the world, it helped India to develop a distinct and original civilization of its own. This is called the ‘splendid isolation’ of India.The Indo-Gangetic plains stretch across 3200 km of northern India between the Bay of Bengal and the Arabian sea. These highly fertile plains are watered by the rivers, most prominent among which are the Ganges, the Indus and the Brahmaputra. This region formed the core of India’s civilization over a cycle of centuries. Its richness has been the envy of the world, attracting foreign invasions from the ancient times to the beginning of the modern.

The region between the Vindhyas and Cape Cameroun that slopes down from the west towards the east is called Deccan Plateau. It is flanked by the sea on three sides. It is thus as distinct and original as the northern region. The eastern and western sea-boards on either side of south India form the coastal ghats. They explain the maritime glory of ancient India. Naval trade, commerce and imperialism were pioneered from here to south-east Asia and to Africa and Rome.

Influence of Geography on Indian identity :

Geography has thus helped the growth of Indian identity. Some of its influence can be found in such fundamental tenets like the growth of a variety of local cultures, growth culture in valleys and forests, maritime activities, growth of fine arts and craft, rich warrior traditions and a deep sense of spirituality arising out of isolationism and aloofness.