1) Badminton – or at least the modern version of badminton originated in Pune in the end of the 19th century. A similar version was also popular in Tanjore in the 1850s. It was later on brought to Europe by the British.

2) Chess – originated in the 6th century with just four pieces: elephant, infantry, chariotry and cavalry. The game was spread to Persia where it was picked up by the conquering Moors that later on invaded Spain, thus introducing the check board game to Europe.

3) Dentistry – it has been established that the earliest evidence of dentists healing cavities and drilling teeth is from 8000 to 9000 years ago and is traced to the Indus Valley Civilization which is now on the territory of modern Pakistan. We might not love visiting the dentist but we sure know that we can’t be without it.

4) Hookah – according to some accounts, the first hookahs were invented about a thousand years ago on the territory of Rajasthan and Gujarat in India. They had a simple design where the bottom was made of a coconut shell and were mainly used to smoke hashish and opium.

5) Hospital – Indian emperor Ashoka (273- 232 BCE) established the first hospitals on the territory of modern Sri Lanka where people were mainly treated with herbs. He is also credited for pioneering veterinary clinics where animals where taken care of.

6) Pajamas – it is not exactly clear how the Indians invented the pajamas but when the British colonized them, they found out that the comfortable attire was popular among Sikh men and Muslim men and women. In the 1870s they were introduced in Britain as a sleeping attire for men.

7) Plastic Surgery – was first performed in India around 2000 BC and then popularized in the Arab world that actually launched it to Europe. The person behind this groundbreaking medical practice in India was Sushruta who operated in the holy city of Varanasi. He is credited for performing the first rhinoplasty (nose-job) with a unique understanding of the circulation system.

Sugar – under the rule of the Gupta dynasty (approximately around AD 350) found a way to crystallize sugar which was deemed an innovation mainly because up to this point most people had to chew the sugar cane in order to taste its sweetness. When the Persians invaded India, they were surprised to discover the sweet treat that was made by humans and not bees.

9) 0 – while it was the Babylonians who came up with the zero concept, the Indians were the first ones to use it as we do today, namely as a number and not just a symbol utilized for separation. By the 9th century, they were using it for calculation just as any other number.

10) Decimal Number System – is the most popular numeral system in use today. While many cultures contributed to inventing it, the Indians were the first to compile it and give it coherence. It is crucial not only for scientific calculation but also for everyday financial calculations. So next time you check the dollar exchange rate, you should know who to thank.

And here are a couple of honorary mentions: negative numbers, cashmere wool, circulatory system, cotton, shampoo, linguistics, ruler, bangle, oven, buttons, iron, dyeing, Pi (infinite series)

Make Your Bed Before You Lay In It

Making ones bed is something that many of us, including myself, often fail to see the importance of, or disdain because of nagging parents or spouses. At times I have had the attitude of “why bother it will only be messed up again tonight”. However, I started to realize that if I want to travel more then just maybe the way I keep my bed at home will somehow attract more experiences of walking into a hotel room with a freshly made bed. I like to travel and I like the feeling of entering a hotel room that is clean and organized. Leaving bed linens in disarray at home just may be stopping you from having more opportunities to travel. The more sheets you have on a bed will make it harder to make, so stick to one sheet and a heavier quilt or douvet.

Monsters Under The Bed

Dust bunnies are obviously not actual creatures, but they do harbor many scary monsters such as dust mites and other microscopic creatures that cause illness. Our sleep time is a time of rejuvenation and if it is inhibited by various forms of pollution that times has a less positive effect. Additionally the sight of dust bunnies, cobwebs, and dirty carpets as our last thing before we go to bed at night, or the first thing we see in the morning, can effect our mental wellbeing. This may also may effect our financial wellbeing. One of the ways that a dirty dusty bedroom can work against our financial wellbeing is that diminished health that lessens our abilities to make money, or in greater health care costs, even if it is just the sniffles. Beyond this, if all our eyes see is filth and squaller we will attract more of it. No matter what your living situation is, a broom, mop, or dusting cloth, will make it better.

Counting Sheep, or Pigs?

I happen to like both sheep and pigs. What I have come not to like, is a bedroom that looks like a pigpen. My bedroom is not overly pristine, or antiseptically clean, and I am not suggesting that yours should be either. What I am suggesting is that if you keep it reasonably clean and neat that it will have a positive effect on your attitude at night, when you go to bed, and in the morning, when you get up. That this attitude will begin to have a positive impact on all other areas of your life.

Does Your Room Look Like A Junkyard?

Maybe your parents have said to you at some point in your life “you don’t appreciate what you have”. I am guilty of this as I am sure most of us are at one point or another in life. We throw our clothes or other belongings on the floor of our bedrooms. While this can be forgiven in the throws of passion, the rest of the time it shows a lack of gratitude and respect for what we have. This lack of gratitude for our belongings could be responsible for lack in other areas of our life. Try placing your clothes neatly in a hamper if they need to be cleaned or hanging them in there proper place if they are clean, and see if treating them with gratitude and respect draws even nicer clothes to you. The same goes for such items as jewelry, books, CDs, or DVDs and so on, that you may keep in your bedroom.

“But They’re Comfortable”

So you are tired of the life you are living and would like more. More money, more travel, a better house, a better relationship? Then why are you still wearing those ragged pajamas that are faded, coming apart at the seams, are dirty, and have holes in them? “Because they’re comfortable” and because you are comfortable with being in the state you are in is most likely why you are not achieving some of the dreams you have in life. A symbolic changing of your pajamas from those tattered ones to some fresh new ones or even the action of being comfortable in your own body, enough to sleep naked just may be one of the best things you can do to start down the path of embracing and receiving your dreams.

Cut the Mustard:

This saying actually refers to the zest or zip of mustard. Someone who can no longer cut the mustard has lost his zip.

Balls to the wall:

Although I know you can come up with a colourful meaning that needs no explanation from me for this one, the real meaning of the phrase comes from old fighter planes. The balls were the knobs on the throttle controls and when the pilot gave full throttle, the knobs were pushed all the way toward the wall of the cockpit.

The Full Monty:

Sir Montague Burton (not Monty Python) who was a tailor by trade, was known in his business for his made to order men’s three piece dress suits complete with waistcoat. It is said that repeat customers would explain their suit of choice by simply asking for the “Full Monty.”

Dead as a door nail:

At one time nails were salvaged for reuse when buildings were torn down. The door nail was driven right through and then bent over at the end. This way it couldn’t work it’s way out from the continuous opening and closing of the door. Door nails were never salvageable and were considered to be “dead.”

Freeze the balls off a brass monkey:

Nope! It’s not a brass door knocker on a cold winter’s day. Cannon balls used to be piled pyramid style on a low wooden triangle shaped platform. It was made with a lip of about 2 inches which held the bottom balls from rolling off. This platform was called a monkey. The wood wore out easily so brass platforms were devised. They were far more sturdy but, in very cold weather the brass would freeze. This would cause the metal to contract squeezing the bottom layer of balls up and out of place sending the balls scattering in the ground. (Young boys who carried and set the powder for cannons were called Powder Monkeys)

Dead Ringer:

This is an old gambling expression used in horse racing. Shady horse owners would have two horses who looked enough alike to be mistaken for one another. One horse was slow and the other horse was fast. The slow horse would was run enough times for people to lose interest in betting on them. Once the odds were at a desired level, they would switch to the fast horse called the ringer. Dead meant a dead shot or dead stop. Hence, the name Dead Ringer.

A perfect toss in the game of horse shoes. The horse shoe hits and spins around post making a ringing sound. This is also called a dead ringer.

Don’t throw the baby out with the bathwater:

Before the luxury of running water and modern day bathrooms, Sunday night’s were family bath night. The water would be heated on the wood stove or in the hearth in a large pot and the water was poured into a tin wash tub. Because father was the bread winner and the head of the house, he would be the first to bathe. Next came the sons, mother, daughters and last of all baby. Long before baby’s bath time, the water was very dirty holding seven days worth of dirt from up to eight or more family members. People often joked that one day they would not be able to see baby in the dirty bathwater and accidentally throw throw them out along with the dirty bath water.

Cat’s pajamas:

This phrase comes from the early 1800’s. The English taylor, E.B. Katz made silk pajamas for royalty and the wealthy. They were said to be the finest pajamas made anywhere in the land and they soon came to be known as Kat’z pajamas.

One meaning of an idiom is a grammatical, or structural form peculiar to a language. We can tell by the examples above that they are indeed peculiar. In their day, they may have made perfect sense, through the years people continue to use the sayings but their meanings became lost in time and we tend to attach modern meaning to these age old sayings. Now when we mention “Full Monty’” it is a reference to someone without clothes, when we hear “Balls To The Wall” we think of Pink Floyd’s The Wall, and many people now refer to a brass door knocker as the originating meaning of “Freeze The Balls Off A Brass Monkey.”