India of our dreams
India is going to celebrate the 76th anniversary of her independence this year.
It is our pleasure and privilege to live in a free country since 1947, free from all foreign rules and influences.
Our independence in 1947 was our invaluable inheritance after a long and strenuous struggle for her freedom.
Recently I came across someone’s article that read, “ India is still taking baby steps after her 76th independence anniversary.
This notion can be true in some perspectives. In most of the parameters, India stands tall with all her grit for her inherited greatness.
India is not just 77 years old as it is projected keeping a view on her independence in 1947.
The existence of India, the aura of India, the marvel of India is beyond her history of a colony of Britishers, it is beyond her tryst with invaders and their rulings during the medieval period.
Any parameter to calculate India’s achievements ( it might be an exaggeration for some ) would never be enough regarding the mammoth difficulties faced by India because of her prosperity and her indigenous talents.
If you try to encapsulate India by certain standards, it is impossible because it is large, full of diversity, a country full of diverse cultures, multitudes of centrifugal forces, and a sea of different races of people with different living standards.
If you wish to know something about India you must empty your mind of preconceived notions. Why be imprisoned by the limited vision of the prejudiced? Don’t try to compare. India is different and, exasperating as it may seem, would like to remain so … This is the secret of India, the acceptance of life in all its fullness, the good and the evil.
Indira Gandhi
Within a great span of almost 3300 years of the great Indian civilization, many kingdoms flourished and disappeared, and many dynasties, empires, invaders, and foreign rulers – India and her tryst with destiny can’t be written in a simple article.
When we talk about India –
- It is about the world’s one of the oldest civilizations, the Indus Valley Civilization
- It is about the revered Vedas, Upanishads, and epics like Ramayan and Mahabharata.
- It is about the world’s oldest and largest democracy.
- It is about the impeccable contribution towards Astronomy, Mathematics, Yoga, Meditation, spirituality, Board games, Ayurveda, the Zero, Human Philosophy, the Proto-writing system, and the exquisite drainage and sewer system.
- It is about Hinduism, Buddhism, Jainism, and overall her unblemished philosophy of “ The world is one family “ ( Vasudhaiva Kutumbakam ).
- It is about a country that faced too many invasions and had several foreign rulers including British rule.
- It is about a country that faced an unwanted partition post her independence.
- It is about a country that was bruised in every term at the time of her hard-fought freedom from British rule.
- It is about a country that faced the heinous assassination of Mahatma Gandhi.
- It is about a country that is surrounded by countries like China, and Pakistan which are her foes in the real sense.
- It is about the country with maximum possibilities of intra-clashes among the citizens in the slightest case.
India is a country of people of diverse identities, and oneness is evident despite this.
The communal harmony is well cemented in the soil and the soul of India.
The Indian talents and the brain drain may have affected our ambition of making India more prosperous as it should be, India may have suffered from inept and petty politics, India may be witnessing her not-so-good days, but, certainly, phenomenal India is still phenomenal because of the effervescent attitude of her citizens despite of severe setbacks because of the resilience and perseverance of the people here, and because of the grassroots level of solid and sound democratic habits of Indians.
India, no doubt, has a legacy of arts, culture, science, literature, and many monumental wonders.
Post 15th of August, 1947, the groaning, mourning India was to start afresh, and the mounting pressure of healing the country was a herculean task.
The vision of a flourishing, blooming, and booming country was made possible with visionary policies and dedication to re-establish the country’s pride and position.
From the very first budget of just 1970 million to an ambitious 5 trillion dollar economy, India is gaining the right momentum at the moment and we are hoping to make our country reach at zenith very soon.
Freedom has always been an expensive thing. History is fit testimony to the fact that freedom is rarely gained without sacrifice and self-denial.