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India, a land rich with history, tradition and cultural heritage. At the Beijing International Horticultural Expo, you're offered a glimpse into India's diversity. CGTN's Wei Lynn Tang fills us in from the Indian garden.
WEI LYNN TANG BEIJING "Namaste, a respectful way to greet people in India in the Sanskrit language. Stepping into the India Garden here at the International Horticultural Expo, what first catches my attention is the varying hand sculptures surrounding it. I am told each represents a philosophy in Buddhism and Hinduism, and each has a meaning behind it."
For example, this represents teaching, this - fulfillment of wishes, and this - a gesture of reassurance.
How does one seek to overcome fear?
RAKESH JAIN ARCHITECTURE DIRECTOR DEVELOPMENT AND RESEARCH ORGANIZATION FOR NATURE, ARTS AND HERITAGE "This is called Dhyana Mudra, a person meditating for enlightenment. And he's sitting on a lotus. Lotus is a sign of purity apart from being India's national flower."
And just below, a traditional Indian method to conserve water, which has been around for the past 2-thousand years.
RAKESH JAIN ARCHITECTURE DIRECTOR DEVELOPMENT AND RESEARCH ORGANIZATION FOR NATURE, ARTS AND HERITAGE "It's called the step wall where people used to store rain water in such a structure and it's used throughout the year."
WEI LYNN TANG BEIJING "The steps grant people access to the water stored deep down the step well. People used to value water so much that they would conserve it this way."
Around the garden, you will also find trees like Banyan and Bodhi as well as medicinal plants.
RAKESH JAIN ARCHITECTURE DIRECTOR DEVELOPMENT AND RESEARCH ORGANIZATION FOR NATURE, ARTS AND HERITAGE "This is Indian marigold. It is used in traditional ayurvedic medicine. People crush the leaves and put it under their feet if they have an injury and it cures overnight."
WEI LYNN TANG BEIJING "I'm also gonna give the Indian mint a try - I am told it is used to treat digestion-related problems which fortunately I don't have!"
And if you want to take home a contemporary taste of India, you can try Henna. Also known as Mehndi, it's a form of Indian body art, a dye prepared from a plant.
And how we can talk about a country and not dive into its cuisine. And here I have in front of me the famous masala roast chicken and teh halia, which means ginger milk tea.
Whether it's the flowers, the architecture, or the food, your 5 senses are sure to be aroused here.
NARENDER NATH CEO, INDIA GARDEN PAVILION "So it's not really just a question of religion, it is also the question of finding peace and well-being within the body and the mind. So the India garden is a garden for harmony, for the body, mind and the soul."
WEI LYNN TANG BEIJING "Indian designers hope to portray their country's ancient philosophy to the Chinese. And they hope through this Expo, more Chinese will have a chance to visit India in the future, and vice-versa. I'm WLT from the Indian Garden, at the International Horticultural Expo in Beijing."