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May our greetings strengthen the bonds between us and shape our communities.
The painting for this year's calendar were created by Sheena Singh, the founder of the Multicultural Calendar (a non-profit organization). The paintings depicts people of different cultures greeting each other. Each caption explains the meaning behind the words of the greeting.
The theme "Greetings of the World" was chosen for the 18th edition of the Multicultural Calendar to make people aware of the origin of the words that are used in greetings amongst other cultures. Perhaps, when we become mindful of these words, the next time we meet someone, our greeting will take on a fresh meaning. It was difficult to choose just twelve greetings for this calendar, so we decided to showcase the most commonly used phrases around the world. Greetings may take many forms. In India, joining the palms constitutes an every day greeting. In Japan, people bow. In the West, they shake hands. The Maories of New Zealand stick their tongues out at each other while the Inuit people in Canada rub noses. In other cultures, people expect to kiss each other once, twice, or even three or four times on one or both cheeks! Greetings demonstrate absence of animosity or indicate feelings of affection or respect. Each form has its own special nuance. For example, bowing emphasizes respect, whereas a handshake shows affection."
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