Happy Independence Day
By We all know INDEPENDENCE DAY is approaching. And why won’t we, suddenly all the shops are filled with different avatars of our respectable National Flag! Everywhere we can see.. Facebook, Whatsapp, Instagram.. messages, videos, short films filled with patriotism which suddenly creep up like a weed from nowhere to everywhere asking us to share with the maximum. On Red lights, when we disheartened push on the brakes of our vehicles beating our heads and abusing the government for making us stop every time the light turns red, small flags are sold and later on 16th August (sad to say) they are in debris. People are seen wearing combinations of tri-colour, even though it’s not allowed. But I feel that these acts of CIVIL DISOBEDIENCE run in our veins. We HAVE TO DO what is forbidden. Getting up late, enjoying the holiday, flying kites, planning for shopping (as its “50% off” almost on all major brands) end our day. This is how we celebrate our Independence Day. (And I know I am right because I am certainly one of those and this ‘I’ is not only me but the soul of every reader.)
I bet three-fourth of our population finishes their Independence Day celebration like this only. This is what we think is justice to all the sacrifices made for achieving this independence. Like those slavery days, no one is asking us to wear khadi or not to go to English schools. Or stop conversing in English. Simple little things that we can do to show our respect to the nation are expected of us. Harming our National heritage sites, monuments or buildings is one such thing we should avoid. They need to be preserved rather than turning them to love points and carving the name of youth’s ever changing love feelings.
Wearing helmets, respecting red lights, taking tickets while travelling in rails and buses, paying taxes on time, filing returns, paying our bills with dignity without certain loops of notices…controlling nature calls and other such activities like spitting, these are just small things on our part which we as responsible citizens can do. This is not only for 15th August. This should be brought into practice and eventually into the natural order of Indian citizens. This is our share of responsibility to shoulder. This is nothing as compared to what our soldiers do for us on the border. Then can’t we contribute even this much to our nation?
I asked one of my students what do you do on 15th August? She said it’s a holiday so we get up late and have lunch, evening we fly kites with high volume music and then the day is over. I was hurt ….really hurt. I was reminded of the days when my father used to wake us up early and make us stand in ‘attention’ for the National Anthem being played for the whole country on Doordarshan and then we used to watch subsequent programmes. Then, whole day my mother used to be nostalgic telling us stories about how her own grandfather who was a freedom fighter (she takes proud in it till date) used to tell them so many related stories. Not only on that day she used to make us hear ‘jaimala’ which is a radio programme for soldiers. As per her, this used to connect us with that feeling of patriotism of our soldiers. After so many years, I feel it really worked.
Today I feel, we as parents, as teachers are failing to fulfil our duties. It’s we who have to take up this responsibility in making the youth of today aware of what we have lost to gain, what they enjoy today. Our armed forces who fight day and night on the border should be thanked for their endless efforts.
That reminds me of the poem by Rabindra Nath Tagore written long back.
Where the mind is without fear and the head is held high
Where knowledge is free
Where the world has not been broken up into fragments
By narrow domestic walls
Where words come out from the depth of truth
Where tireless striving stretches its arms towards perfection
Where the clear stream of reason has not lost its way
Into the dreary desert sand of dead habit
Where the mind is led forward by thee
Into ever-widening thought and action
Into that heaven of freedom, my Father, let my country awake.
Every time, I read this I wonder when our mind will be without fear. Every day, we are fearful of sending our daughters out. Fear of bomb blasts and other terrorist activities never abandons us. Our children, our youth are falling into the pit of drugs and other anti social activities. We have to shoulder the responsibility as elders to bring them to right path. We have to awaken our country to that heaven of freedom.
With that hope, I wish all of you a very HAPPY INDEPENDENCE DAY. Jai Hind…Jai Hind ki Sena.
Proudly by Nidhi Sharma
India is the oldest sub-race of this fifth Aryan Root race and that it is, in terms of age, the most mature of all nations. Its concepts of freedom, as voice by Tagore above, touch the very heart of our being. Freedom from the growing terrorism in the world today is a number one priority the world over. Terrorism is an attitude imprisoned in the dominating Materialism of our world. There is a growing interest in a Spiritual paradigm but it faces a great challenge by the material world since it has been dominant since the Atlantean Civilization. The citizens of the world desperately need to turn inward and question who they truly are and what is the purpose of being on this planet; the answers to such questions being answered by spirituality. Our current President in the USA is unfortunately a follower of the left hand path, and is under the dominion of the Darkness. Fortunately, most of humanity is of good heart and good-will which outshines any evil attitudes. But their voices must be heard, especially at the ballot box, just as in India. Unity is our human goal, and not the divisive and separative ideas of many of the world’s leaders. This is a fight that all of us need to get involved in; fight for justice and freedom and the dignity of Man. Blessings to all.
It’s a hard fact about our youth that we have to digest. We are running away from joy, celebration is taking the form of joy. We can’t stand for our causes wherever we can’t see our hidden benefits. I am too sad to hear this how our younger generation thinks about Independence day.