Glory of Bha_rata: Tagore

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>The History of Bharatavarsha >Bhadra 1309 Bengal Era (August 1903) >by Rabindra

Nath Tagore > >Translated from Bengali by Sumita Bhattacharya and Sibesh

>Bhattacharya, Indian Institute of Advanced Study, Simla. > >The history of

India that we read and memorize for our examinations >is really a nightmarish

account of India. Some people arrive from >somewhere and the pandemonium is let

loose. And then it is a free- >for-all: assault and counter-assault, blows and

bloodletting. Father >and son, brother and brother vie with each other for the

throne. If >one group condescends to leave, another group appears, as if, out

of >the blue; Pathans and Mughals, Portuguese and French and English >together

have made this nightmare ever more and more complex. > >But if Bharatavarsha is

viewed with these passing frames of >dreamlike scenes, smeared in red, overlaid

on it, the real >Bharatavarsha can not be glimpsed. These histories do not

answer the >question where were the people of India? As if, the people of India

>did not exist, only those who maimed and killed alone existed. > >It is not

that these bloodletting and carnage were the most >important things in

Bharatavarsha even in those miserable days. >Despite its roar, the storm can

not be regarded as the most >important event in a stormy day. In that day too,

with sky overcast >with dust, it is the flow of life and death and of happiness

and >sorrow that moves on in the countless village-homes, even though

>beclouded, which is the most important thing for man. But to an >alien

passer-by the storm is the most important thing; the cloud of >dust devours

everything else from his view. For, he is not inside >the home, he is outside.

This is why in the history narrated by the >foreigners we get the accounts of

the dust, of the storms, but we do >not get even a word about the homes. These

histories make you feel >that at that time Bharatavarsha did not exist at all;

as though, >only the howling whirlwind of the Pathans and Mughals holding aloft

>the banner of dry leaves has been moving round and round across the >country

from north to south and east to west. > >However, while the lands of the aliens

existed, there also existed >the indigenous country. Otherwise, in the midst of

all the >turbulence who gave birth to the likes of Kabir, Nanak, Chaitanya,

>and Tukaram? It was not that only Delhi and Agra existed then, there >were

also Kasi and Navadvipa. The current of life that was flowing >then in the real

Bharatavarsha, the ripples of efforts rising there >and the social changes that

were taking place, the accounts of these >are not found in our history

textbooks. > >But it is with the Bharatavarsha, which lies outside our

textbooks, >that we have our real ties. If the history of this tie for a

>substantially long period gets lost our soul loses its anchorage. >After all,

we are no weeds or parasitical plants in India. Over many >hundreds of years,

it is our roots, hundreds and thousands of them, >which have occupied the very

heart of Bharatavarsha. But, >unfortunately, we are obliged to learn a brand of

history that makes >our children forget this very fact. It appears that in

India, as if, >we are nobody; as if, those who came from outside alone matter.

> >From which quarter can we derive our life-sustenance when we learn >that our

tie with our own country is so insignificant? In such a >situation we feel no

hitch whatsoever in installing others' >countries in place of our own. We

become incapable of feeling a >mortifying sense of shame at the indignity of

Bharatavarsha. We >effortlessly keep on saying that we did not have anything

worth the >name in the past and thus we have to now beg for everything, from

>food and clothing to conduct and behaviour, from foreigners. > >The countries,

which are fortunate, find the everlasting image of >their land in the history of

their country. It is the history that >serves as the introduction to one's own

country during one's >childhood itself. In our case it is just the opposite

thing that >happens. It is the history of our country that has kept our own

land >obscured to us. From the invasion of Mahmud to the arrogant imperial

>declaration of Lord Curzon, that is, all the historical annals till

>yesterday, are only a mass of strange mist for Bharatavarsha. These >accounts

do not help clarity of vision about our motherland. In >fact, these only serve

to cloud it. These accounts throw a beam of >artificial light on such a spot

that in our own eyes the very >profile of our country is made dark. And in that

darkness the >illumination of the pleasure chamber of the Nawab makes the

dancing >girl's diamond ornaments gleam and the purple froth of the wineglass

>of the Badshah appears as the bloodshot sleepless eyes of excess and

>dissipation. In that darkness our ancient temples cover their heads >and the

peaks of the tombs of Sultans sweethearts fashioned in white >marble and

embellished with gorgeous craftsmanship haughtily bids to >kiss the world of

stars. The sound of galloping horses, the trumpet >of elephants, the clanking

of weapons, the wavy grey of the vast >array of army camps, the velvet covers

flashing golden rays, the >foamy bubble-shaped domes of masjids, the eerie hush

of that abode >of mystery – the inner apartments of the royal palaces with

eunuch >guards keeping vigil over them – the ensemble of all these strange

>sounds and colours and sentiments produce an enormous magical world >in that

darkness. What is the point in calling this as the history >of Bharatavarsha?

All these have kept the Indian ancient text of >eternal and beatific value

(punyamantra) covered within the jacket >of an Arabian-nights romance. Nobody

any longer opens that book; and >our children commit to memory every line of

the Arabian-nights >romance. And later, on the eve of its dissolution, as the

Mughal >Empire lay dying, it signaled the beginning of a spate of deception,

>treachery and murder among, as though, a group of vultures coming >from afar

and descending on the crematorium. Is an account of this >too the real history

of Bharatavarsha? And then began the English >rule with its five-yearly

divisions like the crisscross houses on >the chessboard. Bharatavarsha is even

smaller there. In fact, the >only difference it has with the chessboard is that

here houses are >not evenly distributed between black and white; here ninety

percent >are only white. For the sake of just a morsel of food we are now

>buying everything, from good governance to good legal system to good

>education, from a huge 'Whiteway Ledle Store'. All other shops are >now

closed. May be, that from courts to commerce, everything >relating to this

concern is 'good', but in it in a corner of its >clerical office the space

assigned to Bharatavarsha is awfully small. > >The superstition that history

has to be similar in all countries >must be abandoned. The person who has

become hardboiled after going >through the biography of Rothschilde, while

dealing with the life of >Christ is likely call for his account books and

office diary. And if >he fails to find them then he will form a very poor

opinion of >Christ and would say: 'A fellow who was not worth even a nickel,

how >come, he can have a biography?' Similarly, those who give up all >hope of

Indian history because they fail to find the royal >genealogies and accounts of

the conquests and defeats in the 'Indian >official record room' and say: 'How

can there be any history when >there is no politics?' are like people who

lookfor aubergine in >paddy fields. And when they do not find it there, in

their >frustration they refuse to count paddy as a variety of grains of at

>all. All fields do not yield the same crop. One who knows this and >thus looks

for the proper crop in the proper field is a truly wise >person. > >An

examination of Christ's account book may lead one to from a poor >opinion of

him, but when one inquires into other aspects of his life >the account books

become utterly irrelevant. Similarly, if we view >from a special perspective

with the full knowledge that in matters >of politics Bharatavarsha has been

deficient, this deficiency can >not be dismissed as of no consequence. By not

viewing Bharatavarsha >from Bharatavarsha's own perspective, since our very

childhood we >learn to demean her and in consequence we get demeaned ourselves.

An >English boy knows that his ancestors had won many wars, had >conquered many

lands and had done extensive trade and commerce. He >too wants to be an heir to

the glory of war, of wealth, of success >in commerce. We learn that our

ancestors did not conquer other >countries and did not extend trade and

commerce. To make just this >fact known is the very purpose of the history of

India. What our >ancestors did, this we do not know; therefore we also do not

know >what we ought to aim for. Therefore we have to imitate others. Whom

>should we blame for this? The way we get out education since our >very

childhood, with every passing day, we get increasingly >alienated from our own

country till a sense of rebellion against the >land of our birth overtakes our

mind. > >Even the educated people in our country are often dismayed and are

>found asking every now and then, 'What do you mean by our country? >What

distinctive attitude marks it out? Where is that located now? >Where was it

located before?' We can not have answer to these merely >by raising questions.

Because the issue is so subtle and so vast >that it can not be comprehended

through mere arguments. Neither the >English nor the French, or for that

matter, the native of no country >can answer in one word the question: what is

the distinctive >attitude of one's own country or where is the real location of

its >spirit? Like the life inside the body this spirit is a directly

>perceptible reality. And like the life it is extremely difficult to >fathom

through logical definitions. Since the very childhood it >enters our being

through diverse avenues in diverse forms; and it >finds passage into our

knowledge, our love, our imagination. With >its wonderful powers it

unobtrusively fashions us; it does not allow >the growth of a barrier

separating our past from the present. It is >by the grace of it that we are not

delimited, we are not atomized. >How can we give expression in a few words of

logical precision to >this primordial and hidden spirit endowed with wonderful

vigour to >satisfy the skeptic inquirer? > >What is the chief significance of

Bharatavarsha? If a precise answer >to this question is sought, the answer is

available. And the history >of Bharatavarsha upholds that answer. We find that

a single >objective has always been motivating Bharatavarsha. This objective

>has been to establish unity among diversity, to make various paths >move

towards one goal, to experience the One-in-many as the >innermost reality, to

pursue with total certitude that supreme >principle of inner unity that runs

through the differences. It has >also been her endavour to achieve these

without destroying the >distinctions that appear in the external world. > >The

ability to perceive this oneness in diversity and to strive to >extend unity

are the native characteristics of Bharatavarsha. It is >this quality that has

made her indifferent to political glory. For, >it is the mode of conflict that

forms the basis of political >achievements. Those who do not wholeheartedly

regard others as truly >outsiders can not accept the achievement of political

glory as the >supreme goal of life. The urge that impels one to establish

oneself >against others is the foundation of political achievement. And the

>endeavour to form communion with others, and the effort to harmonize

>divergences and contradictions within one's own fold are the basis >of ethical

and social advancement. The kind of unity that the >European Civilization has

opted for is discord-centered; the kind of >unity that Bharatavarshiya

Civilization has opted for is concord- >centered. Although the noose of discord

that the political unity of >European kind wears around its neck is able to keep

it arrayed in a >tight pull against others, it is unable to provide harmony to

its >own self. And because of this, the antagonism and distance between >man

and man, between rulers and the ruled, between the rich and the >poor are

constantly kept alive. It is not that these various >sections carry in harmony

the whole society together with their >distinctive roles in their respective

spheres. In fact, they remain >mutually antagonistic. The constant and ever

alert effort of each >section is to try its utmost to prevent the increase of

power of >other groups. Where everybody is thus engaged in pressing and

>jostling, equilibrium of power is not possible. There numerical >strength

acquires ascendancy over excellence and collective >accumulation of wealth from

commerce overwhelms the householders' >savings. Thus the social equilibrium is

lost. And in an attempt to >keep these mutually antagonistic and repugnant

parts somehow cobbled >together, the government keeps on enacting law after

law. This is >inevitable; for, when discord is the seed, the harvest too would

>only be discord. The well-nourished and luxuriant thing that is seen >in

between is only the sprightly and strong tree bearing the fruit >of discord. >

>Bharatavarsha has endeavoured to knit together in ties of >relationships

diverse elements, even if these elements are >disparate. Where there are real

differences, it is only by ordering >the differences and assigning the

differences their proper places >and by reining them in can unity be really

achieved. By enacting a >law to the effect that henceforth everybody is united

does not bring >about unity. The only way to knit together in ties of

relationships >those that can not be unified is to distribute them over

different >areas of special preserves. If the incompatibles are artificially

>forced into a unity, through force again they split. And the breakup >is

accompanied by shattering events. Bharatavarsha knew the secrets >of

integration. The French Revolution had the haughtiness to think >that it would

wipe off all differences among men with blood. But it >has produced the very

opposite results. In Europe, the rulers and >the ruled, the wealthy and the

common people, all the repositories >of power, are gradually becoming fiercely

antagonistic to each >other. The goal of Bharatavarsha too had been to tie

everybody in a >bond of unity; but the method she adopted was different.

>Bharatavarsha tried to delimit and demarcate each of the >antagonistic and

competitive forces of the society and make the body- > social fit for both

functional unity as well as diversities of >occupations. She did not allow

conflict and disorder to remain ever >active by giving room to constant

attempts at overstepping the area >of one's own rights. She has not made the

duties and works, the home >and the hearth and everything else subject to a

terrible vortex of >sullied directionlessness by driving all the energy of the

society >to the single path of twenty-four hour fierce competition. To

>discover the heart of unity and to achieve integration and to secure >the

space for attaining the ultimate fulfillment and liberation in >peace and

stability were the quests of Bharatavarsha. > >The Providence has pulled in

diverse people on to the lap of >Bharatavarsha. Since antiquity Bharatavarsha

has been provided with >the opportunity to put into practice the special talent

her people >were endowed with. Bharatavarsha has forever been engaged in

>constructing with varied material the foundation of a unifying >civilization.

And a unified civilization is the highest goal of all >human civilizations. She

has not driven away anybody as alien, she >has not expelled anybody as inferior,

she has not scorned anything >as odd. Bharatavarsha has adopted all, accepted

everybody. And when >so much is accepted, it becomes necessary to establish

one's own >code and fix regulation over the assorted collections. It is not

>possible to leave them unrestrained like animals fighting each >other. They

have to be appropriately distributed into separate >autonomous divisions while

keeping them bound on a fundamental >principle of unity. The component might

have come from outside but >the arrangement and the fundamental idea behind it

were >Bharatavarsha's own. Europe wants to make the society safe by >driving

away the strangers, by decimating them. Specimen of this >behaviour can be seen

even now in America, in Australia, in New >Zealand, in the Cape Colony. The

reason for this is that they lack a >proper sense of cohesion within their own

social fabric. They have >not been able to give appropriate places to the

various communities >of their own and many a limbs of their own societies have

become >burdensome to them. In such a situation where would they find room >for

outsiders? Where one's own relatives are ready to create >trouble, there the

outsiders would never be offered hospitality. A >society that has order and has

a principle of unity and where >everybody has one's own demarcated place and

rights, only in such a >society it is easy to accommodate others as one's own.

There are two >ways of dealing with others: either by thrashing and killing and

>driving them away and thus making one's own society and civilization >safe or

by providing them proper places in one's own system and by >disciplining them

with one's own customs. While Europe by adopting >the former method has kept

alive its antagonism to the whole world >and remaining ever ready to strike,

Bharatavarsha by adopting the >latter method has been trying slowly and

gradually to make everybody >her own. If righteousness (Dharma) deserves

reverence, if >righteousness is regarded as the highest ideal of human

>civilization, then the superiority of the method of Bharatavarsha >has to be

accepted. > >It needs talent to make outsiders one's own. The ability to enter

>others' beings and the magic power of making the stranger completely >one's

own, these are the qualities native to genius. That genius we >find in

Bharatavarsha. Bharatavarsha has unhesitatingly entered >other's beings, and

has effortlessly accepted things from others. >Bharatavarsha was not frightened

at the sight of what is termed by >foreigners as idolatry and did not sneer at

it. Bharatavarsha has >adopted even grotesque elements from communities like

the Sabara, >Pulinda, Vyadha, etc., and has infused her own philosophy into

these >elements and has given expression to her spirituality through them.

>Bharatavarsha has not discarded anything and has made everyone her >own after

accepting him or her. > >It is not only in social organization, but also in the

area of faith >and belief we notice the same trend of the building of unity and

>harmony. The effort to establish harmony between knowledge, action >and

devotion that we see in the Gita is a trait that belongs >especially to

Bharatavarsha. It is impossible to translate in Indian >language the expression

called 'religion' that exists in Europe, for >within the domain of faith

Bharatavarsha has resisted the dividing >of the mind. Our intellect, our

belief, our conduct, all that we >hold dear in this world and in the next, all

of these together >constitute our Dharma. Bharatavarsha has not divided the

faith into >the pigeonholes of 'everyday use' and 'formal occasions' . For

>example, the life-force that courses through various limbs of the >body like

hands, feet, head, stomach, etc., is really the same >entity and is not

divisible as the life in hand, the life in feet, >and so on. Similarly,

Bharatavarsha did not slice the Dharma into >various pieces like the Dharma of

belief, the Dharma of conduct, the >Dharma of Sunday, the Dharma of other six

days, the Dharma of the >Church, the Dharma of the home, etc. The Dharma of

Bharatavarsha is >the Dharma of the entire society. It has its roots struck

into the >earth while its head soars into the sky. Bharatavarsha has not

>looked upon the roots and the top as disjoined parts. Bharatavarsha >has

looked upon Dharma as one magnificent tree stretching from the >earth to the

heavens and covering the entire life of man. > >Amongst the civilizations of

the world Bharatavarsha stands as an >ideal of the endeavour to unify the

diverse. Her history will bear >this out. Amidst many travails and obstacles,

fortunes and >misfortunes Bharatavarsha has been seeking to experience the One

in >the universe as well as in one's own soul and to place that One in >the

variegated, to discover that One through knowledge, to establish >that One

through action, to internalize that One through love, to >exemplify that One

through one's own life. When through the study of >her history we would be able

to realize this everlasting spirit of >Bharata, then the rupture of our present

with the past will >disappear. > > > >------------------------

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