Cultural and Professional Heritage

Heritage consistency is a concept developed by Estes and Zitzow (1980, p. 1) to describe “the degree to which one’s lifestyle reflects his or her respective tribal culture”. The attempt is to study the degree to which a person’s lifestyle reflects his or her traditional culture, such as European, Asian, African, or Hispanic. Culture is a way through which we express ourselves. It is the sum of beliefs, practices, habits, likes, dislikes, norms, customs, rituals, and so forth that we learned from our families during the years of socialization (Spector, 2009, p. 9-11). Indian culture is very unique and diverse. Health traditions in India have its roots from the history.

There are various health traditions and customs in Indian culture. Our traditional lifestyle is oriented towards herbal medicines. Ayurveda, Homeopathy, Herbal medicines, and Yoga are some other health tradition used in treating diseases. Indigenous or traditional medical practitioners continue to practice throughout the country. The two main forms of traditional medicine practiced are the ayurvedic (meaning science of life) system, which deals with causes, symptoms, diagnoses, and treatment based on all aspects of well-being (mental, physical, and spiritual), and the unani (so-called Galenic medicine) herbal medical practice. A vaidya is a practitioner of the ayurvedic tradition, and a hakim (Arabic for a Muslim physician) is a practitioner of the unani tradition. These professions are frequently hereditary ("Health Care in India", n. d.). Traditional healers used herbal medicine to prevent and treat diseases. Yoga is an ancient art of healthy living practiced by saints in India. Yoga is the integration of body, mind, and soul. Practicing yoga regularly helps peop...

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...raditional ways of health maintenance and is still used by people. Cultural heritage is unique to every culture and plays an important role in peoples’ healthy living. Professional heritage is another branch which deals with the lives of people. I am proud to become a part of my professional heritage.

References

Top five traditional Indian health Practices. (n. d.). Retrieved February 27, 2011, from http://www.rediff.com/getahead/slide-show/slide-show-1-specials-top-5-traditional-indian-health-practices/20101122.htm

Health Care in India. (n. d.). Retrieved February 27, 2011, from http://www.indianchild.com/health_care_in_india.htm

Spector, R. E. (2009). Cultural Diversity in Health and illness (7th ed.). New Jersey: Pearson Prentice Hall.

The Middle Eastern Community. (n. d.). Retrieved February 27, 2011, from http://www.culturediversity.org/mide.htm