With a population of 900,000,000, 100 different ethnic types and 15 recognized languages, it is surprising that India has remained a cohesive democracy. Yet now, not only is its economy advancing rapidly, it is attracting the attention of the outside world, which has in the past been all too ready to ignore India with its complex political and cultural problems. There will be much to surprise the visitor, not just the extremes of poverty in the major cities, but also the extent to which intensity of religious and social observance continues to be very much part of everyday life.