Continuity and Change in Indo-arab Cultural Relations: a Survey with Special Reference to Oman

India had never aspired to live in isolation and always kept its doors open for the people and culture from across the world. The philosophy of tolerance and coexistence of all faiths and races had been the essence of its civilization. It remained a melting pot for the world culture and civilization. The intensive interaction between India and Arab world was dynamic, diverse and multidimensional. However, the impact of this interaction was very much visible and lasting in the domain of culture and thought. The main aim of this paper is to focus on the cultural exchanges and the civilizational affinity that existed for several centuries. The cultural linkages in the past, in fact, have brought these two regions more close to each other and provided the base to maintain the relationship of similar sort in the contemporary times. In view of the enormity of the subject, I have divided my paper in two parts. First part is an overview of India Arab cultural relations that existed through out the ages. In the second part, I have tried to highlight the cultural affinity between India and Oman. 'Culture' and 'civilization' are the two coterminous terms, though each one possesses a distinctive semantic domain with clearly defined meanings. There is a burgeoning trend in the present religio-political context to use both synonymously. Most of the discussions then tend to confuse ‘culture’ with ‘civilization’ and civilization inevitably with ‘religion’. These discussions then prepare ground for identifying the essence of culture in terms of ‘civilizational clash’. Quite unfortunately these ‘civilizational clash’ theories never believe in an inter-civilizational dialogue and exchange of cultural goods between two civilizations.١ So there is a need for understanding culture and civilization that travel beyond the contemporary civilizational debate.