I am Proud to be an Indian

An Indian has  been and would always be proud of India. Not because he is a citizen of this country rather because India is indeed a great and wonderful nation that has bestowed numerous of  remarkable reasons to its people to cherish and to feel proud of. India is a great land that has been a symbol of great culture, traditions, philosophies, sciences, humanity, brotherhood, harmony and prosperity. India is the only country around the world that has been renowned as a highly sophisticated, spiritual, secular and religious country. The vivid glances of art and culture, achievements, inventions, sciences and insightful philosophies which are present in India, could not be found anywhere else in the world. Although with the advent of Modernization and Westernization we cannot remark the present conditions as much praiseworthy but still India’s history is purely incredible and phenomenal. Great thinkers, achievers, philosophers, scientists from across the world never laid back in praising India because India is truly considered to be the mother of great history and traditions.

India has been supposed to treasure the most prolific and constructive elements of human civilizations. Albert Einstein, American Scientist once stated that, “”We owe a lot to the Indians  , who taught us how to count, without which no worthwhile scientific discovery could have been made.” Max Muller a German Scholar also believed that it is only India that possesses the finest and most developed human minds who have deeply evaluated the greatest problems and have successfully found the solutions as well. Being born in India is itself a privilege to an individual who has been directly blessed by the almighty to experience the greatness and abundance of Indian culture and heritage. The land of India is considered to be holy and sacred and it has always fascinated people from across the world.  The mesmerizing beauty of nature and lands, colorful and vibrant traditions and customs, varied languages, varied cuisines, flamboyant attires, dance forms, finest architectures, diversified sciences, beautiful natural reservoirs and a vast treasure of knowledge and peace have always been alluring and fascinating for the people living in and out of India. And nothing is more admirable and honoring for a person than to live in such a magnificent nation that fills us with a feeling of pride and self-sufficiency.  Following are the reasons why an individual should feel Proud to be Indian :

LAND OF GREAT VALUES :  we live in a nation where we are brought with great values of patience, tolerance, humbleness, compassion, respect, dignity and wisdom. Such values make an individual not only morally strong but also emotionally independent to lead the life in a good way. In India, since the childhood children are taught about the great people who followed and practiced high values in their lives and had set huge examples, for the common people. Inculcation of such great values in Indians makes them outstanding and different in terms of their attitudes and actions with others.

WE RESPECT ALL RELIGIONS : Indians should be really proud to live in a nation that gives them full freedom to follow the Religion, Castes, and Religious beliefs of their personal choice. There are no boundaries or limitations over the religious practices and beliefs of the people living in India. Varied castes, groups and communities freely follow their beliefs, there are neither compulsions nor any coercion employed on the people by the government and the constitution. And this is what creates a harmony among different religious groups and larger communities. Each member feels free and contended and this ultimately helps them to accept the beliefs and actions of other religions very gracefully. It is only in India that people of different religions live together under the shelter of One Country, they follow their respective religious beliefs yet maintain a cooperative and harmonious atmosphere.

LAND OF SAINTS, THINKERS & PHILOSPHERS : India is a treasure of enlightened and awakened souls. It is a land where people seek for knowledge and liberation. Self-realization is something that has always fascinated enlightened people in India. There are numerous names and examples of the saints and great thinkers who were not only born in the pious land of India but they also lived up their whole life with wisdom and knowledge in order to enlighten other people in the country. That is why India is considered to be the land of saints and thinkers. These saints and thinkers sacrificed their lives for the welfare of the human race, they willingly and happily spread the words of knowledge so that the mankind could be benefited from it and could liberate themselves from vices and false beliefs. Buddha,Mahavir, Mahakasyapa, Nagarjuna, Adi Shankaracharya, Ayya Vaikundar, Chaitanya Mahaprabhu, Ram Mohan Roy, Tukaram, Kabir, Swami Vivekananda, Swami Dayanand Saraswati, Moinuddin Chisti, Amir Khusro, Guru Nanak Dev ji are just a few of the names of great saints, thinkers and philosophers of India who had spread the jewels of knowledge among the human race, they enlightened the people with Truth of Being and Supreme Being.

VIBRANT, TRADITIONAL INDIAN WEDDINGS : we live in a country where marriages are performed not only as mere a practice or a custom but they are truly being enjoyed and celebrated like a festival. Indian weddings are extravagant, full of excitement and a multi-day affair. Lots of traditions and rituals are practiced during the weddings which fill so much of uniqueness in the whole ceremony. Being a country of 28 states India, is a package of diversified cultures where varied rituals and customs are followed. Each state of the country has its own unique way of performing the wedding ceremonies. In fact there are various kinds of wedding been popular in India such as Kashmiri Wedding, Punjabi Wedding, Gujarati Wedding, Bengali Wedding, Assamese Wedding, Rajasthani Wedding and etc. Each of the wedding is performed with different rituals and customs. Different attires are worn by the people, traditional dances are different which all together add so much of colors to the weddings and make the occasion truly memorable. Indian weddings bring closeness, harmony, joy and togetherness among the people. It is not only a sacred knot between the bride and the groom but also a sacred tie between two families and relatives of the two distinct families.

FESTIVALS OF INDIA   : In India, festivalsare not merely  a way to get a change from the daily busy life but they are actually associated with a deeper spiritual, religious historical and especially an astrological significance. Here,the festival is also known as Utsav that is a word derived from the Sanskrit language of ancient India. ‘Utsav’ literally means the removal of worldly sorrow and that is why each festival in India is marked with certain observances like Puja, Aarti, fasting, charity, offering to the deities, rituals and etc. the great saints of ancient India propounded the Truth of Self to the mankind and conceived the notion of festivals as a means of uplifting the physical, social and spiritual elements of mankind by uniting the mind and intellect of the individuals. Each Indian festival has something unique to reveal and administer. Festivals in India bring the people of the society all together and some of them are celebrated at the national level that is what makes the people of India; United. There are no discriminations while celebrating the festivals, people of different religions, castes and communities celebrate each other’s festival in fact most of the famous festivals like Diwali, Eid, Republic Day, Independence Day, Karwa-Chaut, Christmas, Janmashtami, Makar Sakranti/Pongal, Raksha Bandhan, Mahashivratri, Dusshera, Navaratri, Hanuman Jayanti and etc., are much enjoyed by the people of different castes, groups and communities. This is so wonderful to know that the Indian festivals raise the closeness and harmony among the people on a large scale.

LAND IS TREATED AS MOTHERLAND :  For Indians the land of India is not just a land but they give an utmost regard and respect for the land similar given to a mother. The land of the country is regarded as the Motherland. And this is only in India where the land is considered to be the Mother who bestows everything that she has and protects her children.  We Indians give much regard to our motherland for the natural resources with which our survival and livelihood becomes easier, we owe to her for protecting us from the outer enemies through her enormous and highest peaks ; the Himalayan range. We live in a land where the rivers are also regarded as a mother. The river Ganga is considered to be so sacred and pious that it washes away all the dirt from the hearts of the mankind and makes them pure and blissful. We call it as Ganga ‘Maiya’similarly Yamuna, Jamuna is also considered to be sacred. This feeling of mother love is deeply rooted and also much reflected in the soldiers who can sacrifice their lives in a second to protect the dignity and limits of their motherland; India. We Indians are already brought up with love and respect for our motherland that she always deserves. Because our motherland has given us so much of treasure of natural reservoirs, resources, beautiful nature, wonderful seasons and moreover the climate is always so pleasant, the soil is so much fertile. In precise the land of India has given an abundance of things to the people living in here and that is what fills us with so much of deep love and respect for our land. We all Proud Indians Love India   more than our Lives.

ENDLESS CONTRIBUTION IN VARIOUS FIELDS:  we should be truly proud of the fact we are the part of such a great nation that has made various phenomenal and outstanding contributions in various fields of knowledge, language, sciences and medicines. Sanskrit is the most primitive language of India that is supposed to be the mother of many languages. The Number system would always be one the remarkable contribution of India in the field of Numerology and particularly Mathematics. The Indian mathematician; Aryabhatta was the first one to invent the Zero “0” that further helped immensely in the algebra, trigonometry and calculus. Our country only taught the art of Navigation to the world on the river Sind around 6000 years back.  Bhaskaracharya was the first one to calculate the accurate time does the earth take to rotate around the sun. It was only India to establish the first school of medicine that is the Ayurveda. Charaka was the founding father of this school of medicine who consolidated this school around 2500 years back. The most famous mind gambling game; Chess was only discovered in India. Sushruta was the father of Surgery in medical sciences. He was the first one along with other health scientists to administer the complicated surgeries like cataract, cesarean, artificial limbs, urinary stones, brain surgery and even plastic surgery. The contributions are still going on and also endless.

BRAVE & VERSATILE INDIAN WOMEN : Indian women have set so many great examples of their talents, bravery, wisdom, knowledge and versatility. In the present scenario Indian Women have proved their worth in a number of fields across the world. Since ages Indian women have made their fair efforts despite of all the discriminations and restrictions employed on them. And this is what makes them real heroes in their lives. May it be Indian culture , Indian Art, writing , media , Indian defence  , beauty pageants, sciences, entrepreneurship, management, medical science, sports, politics, social activities and many other fields, Indian women have always come out with flying colors. We Indians are proud to have such talented and versatile women in our nation who have made their country recognized and outstanding, among the other countries of the world. Indian women are a symbol of virtues, patience and wisdom, they have proved to the world that they are the daughters of their motherland who are brought up with great values.

VAST INDIAN LITERATURE: the Indian literature is like an Ocean! That contains a vast treasure of literature in its extended form including the religious and prosaic, lyric and epics, didactic and dramatic poetry, oral poetry, stories, science and narrative prose and songs. The Indian literature in Archaic Indian languages includes the Vedic literature, Epic Sanskrit literature, Classical Sanskrit literature, Prakrit literature, Pali literature. Besides there is Indian Literature in Indian Common Languages such as Hindi literature, Bengali, Kannada, Kashmiri, Manipuri, Marathi literature and so on. The Vedic literature is mythical and the language used in the symbolic manner that has multiple meanings. Ramayana written by Valmiki and Mahabharata by Veda Vyaas are the two great Epics in Sanskrit literature. Kalidaas’s ‘Raghuvamsha’ is a part Classical Sanskrit literature, Kaalidaas was considered to be a great poet and scripter of classical Sanskrit literature who also wrote the most famous plays like ‘Meghaduuta’ and ‘Recognition of Shakutala’.  Pali, Maharashtri and Shauraseni were the most notable languages in Prakrit literature. Pali literature includes many philosophical works of Buddhism, some grammatical works and poetries. Dhammapada, Mahavamsa and Jataka tales are few famous works among the pali literature works. Rabindra Nath Tagore a Noble Laureate was internationally renowned writer and poet from the Bengali Literature who besides the magnificent poetries and plays, novels, essays and short stories also wrote the National Anthem of India and Bangladesh; “Jan Gan Man” and “Amar Sonar Bangla” respectively. In the 19^th century with the beginning of first struggle for freedom in India, the Modern literature actually began to take a shape. The writings of that era showed a deep impact of political consciousness and western civilization. Further those writings reflected a nationalistic and reformistic ideologies. Raja RamMohan Roy, Bankim Chandra Chatterjee, Madhav Govind Ranade, Vivekananda and many others. Rabindra Nath Tagore  was the person who added Federalism to the nationalist ideology as an important part of it. Indian Romanticism also comprised a significant part of modern literature. In precise we can conclude that Indian Literature has lived through a century where it has been originated, developed and evolved. It is as vast and limitless as the sky. It has witnessed many changes under the influence of inter- languages, forms, translations, motives and movements.

WHERE FOOD IS CONSIDERED TO HAVE SPIRITUAL IMPORTANCE : India is abundant in natural resources and also an agriculture based nation. It has been ever rich in food grains and seasonal fruits and vegetables. And that is what makes it much lavish in cuisines and food. India offers a vast variety if cuisines and food items. Each state of India has vivid cuisines to offer that makes India country with varied flavors. In fact the food and cuisines of India are internationally renowned , people across the world come to taste the rich flavor of various Indian cuisines. For Indians, food is not just a physical necessity of the human body but we attach much of spiritual, emotional and social significance to it as well. We consider food to be sacred and literally worship it, because in India food plays a major role in life as it directly constructs/ affects the mind and soul of the person. Food is considered to be an energy and this energy is directly interrelated with consciousness, hence in order to attain the purity and clarity of consciousness one should follow the purity in food also. One of the ancient Upanishads ; Chandogya Upanishad stated that the human mind is consisted of the food, the subtle part of food that we intake moves upwards and creates, the mind of the person. In fact the Indian philosophy dictates that “we are what we do eat”. Our food habits and the kind of food we intake creates our attitudes and behavior and those are directly reflected through our personalities. And that is why Vegetarianism is the earliest recommended food trend in the Indian philosophy. Vegetarian food creates positive energy within the mind and body whereas the toxic food items like meat, beef, alcohol, drugs and nicotine create negative energies and reflect destructive results. In fact if one really wants to lead a Yogic life and wants to attain the highest perception/clarity of consciousness then food is the foremost factor that he must take into consideration. We Indians worship the food and believe in the fundamental fact that Food is ever essential for physical, spiritual, emotional and social development of a person.

BROTHERHOOD : the foremost reason for being a proud Indian is that we are the part of the oldest civilization of the whole world where we have been living among varied ethnic groups , communities, religions, castes and cultures. Around 1650 dialects and languages are spoken in India. Numerous of vivid cultures, cultural ideologies, traditions and customs are practiced in India and still we can count tremendous of compassion and brotherhood among the people of those diversified cultural and religious groups, communities and castes. This brotherhood is not only observed in the cultural scenario but the struggle for freedom before the independence had been one of the best examples of it where people of varied castes and creed, groups and communities came together to fight for their freedom. There were no discriminations and stratification but only the brotherhood that led people of different religions and cultures to join together for a single cause. This had been the biggest instance where people of India were tied to the feeling of brotherhood at a large scale. This brotherhood only worked as the biggest weapon against the Britishers in order to push them away from India. We Indian never showed a cold shoulder to any of the religion rather we have embraced different religions and cultures of each other with wide open hearts. It is only in India that equal respect and regard is given to the saints, sages and shrines of different religions. Whether it is Hinduism, Sikhism, Christianity , Muslim, Buddhism, Parsi or any other, each of the religion has always been admired and honored. Like the sacred shrine of the Sufi Saint Khwaja Moinuddin Chishti in Ajmer is considered to be equally sacred and given equal regard as given to the Hindu’s shrine; Vaishno Devi in Jammu. This feeling of brotherhood has always enabled the Indians to survive under so many variations yet could be called as United.

CHARISMA OF PERFORMING ARTS : what a delightful fact this is to know that our country India possesses the hugest collection of writings, dance forms, music, theatre, folk traditions, arts, customs and rituals, performing arts which is precisely be known as the ‘Cultural Heritage’ of India. It is only India that has given the Classical Dance forms to the world of performing arts. 28 states along with Union Territory own their unique styles of folk and tribal dance forms. It is only in India where dance is considered to be the worship of God. It is considered to be a form of meditation that seeks a lot of perseverance, hard-work and determination. Various facets of performing arts, bring so much of joy and happiness at the time of celebrations and festivals and reaffirm the faith of the Indians in their cultural heritage. The Classical Performing Arts evolved under the glory of temples and palaces and for the pleasure and entertainment of kings and rulers. We have seven major classical dance forms; Bharatnatyam, Kathak, Kathakali, Kuchipudi, Odissi, Manipuri and Sattariya. Folk and tribal performing arts are a significant part of common life. In order to share the joy and happiness on festivals and auspicious occasion traditional folk dances are performed. They are not rules bound rather everyone becomes a part of these dances and express his/her joy and bliss. Dance in India is cherished and always been enjoyed by the people because we truly understand that dance is a way to express the joy of the heart and we simply follow this rule.

STRONG FAMILY BONDINGS & RELATIONSHIPS : family and relationships play a vital role in the lives of the Indians. We Indians give a lot of importance to the harmony and cooperation among the family members and relationships building. We truly believe that without a family it is tough for a person to lead the life. Because since ages we have been observing and perceiving family as a cornerstone of the society and the individual in particular. In the ancient India, the joint family system was the earliest way of life where a huge number of people of kinships used to live together under a one roof. In India, the family is considered to play the most significant role in the development and growth of the person be it personal, psychological and social. We truly believe that it is only the family that can cultivate the feelings of compassion, tolerance, adjustments, cooperation and harmony within an individual. That is why in India a lot of emphasis is given to the building of cordial relationships among the family members and relatives. Family and its members are supposed to cooperate, support and help at every step of life that gives the moral and emotional support to the individual in order to face any hurdles in life. The elders of the family are given much regard because they are considered to have the highest experience among the family members. We Indians conceive a family as a building block for an individual.

EDUCATION THAT AIMS AT MAKING OF A MAN : We Indians are proud to live in a nation where education is evolved with a higher vision and perception. India has always been involved in an enriched tradition of learning and imparting the education.  In fact the whole Indian Education system is based upon the basic idea of creating a man through the means of right education. Creation of a man does not imply the physical significance but it rather means to create a personality of truth and higher values. Self- realization and manifesting the true purpose of life are also the basic aims of Indian education system. And with this perspective the spiritual and physical, perishable and permanent values and interests of life have always been clarified and differentiated in the ancient education system of India. Indian education aims at self-fulfillment and not merely the acquisition of objective knowledge. And for an organized attainment of all those aims the ancient education system was based in schools in the forests, far away from the worldly hustle and bustle. Those schools were known as ‘Gurukul’ purely based in forests where the pupils were strictly trained in self-management, patience, self-control and self analysis. And here the pupils followed the three basic and simple processes by which the education was imparted to them. Those were the processes of Sharvana (listening to the word/teachings of the teacher), Manan (interpreting the knowledge given by the teacher) and Nidhyaasana (the complete comprehension of the knowledge and performing actions which reflect that knowledge). Takshila, Nalanda, Vikaramshila and Vallabhi were the famous ancient schools known for the excellence in education.

SYMBOL OF TOLERANCE, NON-VIOLENCE AND UNIVERSAL ACCEPTANCE : We are proud Indians because we are part of a nation who has always shown commendable gestures of tolerance, Ahimsa (non violence) and universal acceptance. There is not a single evidence present where India has even invaded any country in its history. Rather we have always accepted and accorded the refuge to all the people who became victims of atrocities and oppression from their own respective countries or continents. India accorded refuge to the Jews who became the subject of the barbarity of the Romans and those who searched for shelter in India after their holy place of worship were destroyed by the Romans. The Parsis; basically the followers of Spitama Zoroaster, also reached India in search of a refuge and here they got accepted with a wide open heart. There are many other human groups and tribal groups who always had been attracted by the great land of India and got settled over here in the history.

India’s greatness cannot ever be summarized, concluded or even measured. Every time I look at the history and heritage of my country, I feel how much blessed and honored I am to be born in such a great land! I feel blessed to be born in such a highly spiritually elevated land where I got to manifest the eternal human-divine relationship, where great saints and thinkers left their legacy of knowledge for the welfare of the human race. It multiplies my pride to realize the fact that I am born in a nation where numerous of great men, personalities, saints, sages, brave men, soldiers, scientists were born, where values are highly admired and practiced, It has been a privilege to be a part of a nation that is worshipped as the Motherland. The list is endless and so the feeling of pride for the country. Undoubtedly India has a unique charm that has joined the people of various castes, creed, religions, cultures and philosophies together, since ages. To have  a feeling of pride for India is not an obligation for an Indian rather it is very natural feeling one truly cannot get over with. We might run short of words to praise our motherland  but the hugeness and immensity would always be limitless. And  with a few lines of Swami Yogananda Paramhansa I would like to end up this write-up :

Better than Heaven or Arcadia
I love thee, O my India!
And thy love I shall give
To every brother nation that lives.
God made the Earth;
Man made confining countries
And their fancy-frozen boundaries.
But with unfound boundless love
I behold the borderland of my India
Expanding into the World.
Hail, mother of religions, lotus, scenic beauty, and sages!
Thy wide doors are open,
Welcoming God’s true sons through all ages.
Where Ganges, woods, Himalayan caves, and
Men dream God –
I am hallowed; my body touched that sod.

– Swami Yogananda Paramhansa

Proud to be Indian , Proud to be a BHARATIYA!!

Image Courtesy : Proud2bindian