Beloved Countrymen!!

“Where the mind is without fear and the head is held high,

Into the heaven of freedom my Father, let my country awake.” Sang Rabindranath Tagore.

Independence day 64 years ago was marked by a great anxiety and fear as well as by an ardent hope as our nation tasted the sweetness of freedom from the clutches of foreign colonial rule. The infant India then was like a dream realized from Mahatma’s struggle, a nation was truly born, though our freedom was tempered by the horrors of partition.

In the wave of freedom our leaders spoke a new tongue, they breathed a new spirit into the dry bombs of a buried nation. They instilled in the minds of every Indian to think rational, and think national. Hence, a bond was made to be untorn. August 15 was repeated since then, every year adding new life, new vision for change and renewal. Today as India joyfully commemorates her 60^th independence day, we ought to remember and appreciate our leaders who initiated the first Indian freedom movement. Though they adjugated to be timid, yet their efforts stands in need of appreciation. It would also be unjust to remain silent about the thousands of insignificant unnoticed martyrs ad freedom fighters, who dared to give their life for the cause of an independent nation. They were all inspired by the zeal of winning an independent India.

If we look back to the past, we see history repeating itself. We notice the themes of triumph and trauma, of survival under strain; repeat themselves over and over again. But the progress India made in every decade was accompanied by conflicts and tensions – over language in the 1950s, economic strictures in the 1960s and 1970s and communal and caste divides in the 1980s. In 1990s India reaped the benefits of liberalization. Yes dear countrymen, we have made a steady progress over the years in all spheres - political, social, economic, science, sports, agriculture, etc. From the beginning, it has made a wonderful contribution in the field of spirituality. The Buddhist concept of Ahimsa-“ahimsa paramo dharmohi, ahimsaiva param tapaha”, “one caste, one religion, one god” of Sri. Narayana Guru are few among the many rich concepts of Indian spirituality. The phrase ‘Satyam eva jayate’ itself speaks volumes for the deep-rooted spirituality in India.

64 years after independence though India is free from the monopoly of the British, yet in real sense of the term India is not free even today. With the recent bomb blasts in   different parts of India, we sense threat to our life whenever we travel. Can you be free in fear of being killed? Can a minority community live peacefully without facing any threat to the exercise of its fundamental rights in a democratic India? Atrocities against women are increasing in a country where we respect women. Can a woman take a stroll in the streets without facing threat to her modesty and security? The same age old problems appear repeatedly as old errors in new labels. India is infected with the age-old caste system, thus relegating the low caste people to the lower state than a domestic animal. It is still not uncommon to find the ethnic clashes between tribals; morality is degraded in a country where we uphold the spiritual values. Domestic violence, rape and murder are a perennial issue. Children, the future leaders of our country are abused and exploited. Where are we? Where is the respect to human dignity? Our politicians (except a few remain honest by principle and they are rare) have grown individualistic. The British devised a policy of divide ad rule, but our politicians have adopted a theory of rule and ruin.  When will we see a free India and freed Indians? Are we to wait in long expectation? How shall we move from a fear factor to freedom factor? We have to be reminded that we are no more under the clutches of the foreign imperial rule. But we are all in bondage of our own petty selfishness and narrow-mindedness. We have to break free the shackles of indifference, antipathy and negative attitudes. The cause of something going wrong outside would be sought inside. The change must begin in me, in you and in seeing us others will change. Therefore, the biggest ever change we can bring is to change our own self-perception about life and freedom.  We have to make a move from egoism to altruism, which leads us to interdependence. Let our prayer be like Mary the Patroness of India – “Lord make me a captive, then I shall be free”. Let the truth set us free.


One more thing to add finally - IS INDEPENDENCE an idea or a myth? Some would say that it is a myth because there is nothing like independence, but only interdependence.........Think about it....

                                                  Satyam eva jayate!!! Jai hind!!