More About Pankajan

Included with Pankajan's latest letter was some interesting info about India. I thought I'd share some of this on here so that we can all be a little informed about her country.

The National Flag

Saffron - Courage, Sacrifice and Spirit of Renunciation
White - Purity and Truth
Green - Faith and Fertility




The National Emblem - the Lion Capital from Ashoka's pillar at Sarnath: The Sarnath lion capital shows four lions standing back to back. The base depicts a galloping horse, a bull, an elephant and a lion separated by intervening 24-spoked chariot wheels. The wheel is called Dharma Chakra and is an example of Buddhist architecture.






The National Animal - Tiger: A symbol of Power, Bravery and Magnificence. Tigers are widely present in Assam - a state in India.

The National Flower - Lotus: Considered a sacred flower and hence widely used in all Hindu rituals. The lotus is known for its beauty and fragrance.

The National Bird - Peacock: The male bird of the species P.cristatus is a native of India and known for its upper tail marked with iridescent ocelli when unfuried in ostentatious display.

The National Game - Field Hockey: It is similar to soccer, but played with a peculiar stick. It is widely played in Punjab - a state in India.

That's just some of the interesting facts included on the back of her letter. The following was included in the Compassion newsletter that was also in the envelope. I consider this to be more important info (in particular the facts about religion and the Compassion project) because it lets us know more about what we're involved with, so be sure to take a look at it.

Population: 1,095,351,995

Languages: English enjoys associate status, but is the most important language for national, political, and commercial communication; Hindi is the national language and primary tongue of 30% of the people; there are 14 other official languages in India.

Ethnicity: Indo-Aryan 72%, Dravidian 25%, Mongoloid and other 3%

Life Expectancy: male 63.9 years, female 65.57 years

GDP per Capita: $3,300

Religions: Hindu 80.5%, Muslim 13.4%, Christian 2.3%, Sikh 1.9%, other 1.8%, unspecified 0.1%

Number of Compassion Projects: 350

Number of Children Enrolled: 76, 674

There's a lot more info here, including a story about the influence Compassion has had on one particular Indian family. I'll put this info, along with everything else we have, with our Pankajan offering box so that you can take a look at it.

We should be taking up another offering soon, at which point we should be thinking about writing her another letter. So be thinking about that. I, for one, would like to encourage her to look for opportunities to make a difference in the lives of people around her, just like she encouraged us (read her letter if you haven't already). What are some of your ideas?