The moment the slave resolve that he will no longer be a slave, his
fetters fall . He frees himself and shows the ways to others. Freedom and
slavery are mental states - Mahatma Gandhi
Today we are meeting with this
historic day once again. It is a time when the tide of patriotism surges exponentially. It is a time when
we acknowledge ourselves as a nation ( although for rest of the year it is the
states, religion, and geographical areas
which represents and governs us).
The magic of this date 15, August is such that the years accompanying this date fade away in the
sand of time but 15 Aug outshines as
always. Perhaps because of its worth . Perhaps because it deserves. It is not
an ordinary date embedded in the calendar with a red hue indicating a –
holiday, rather a symbol of great ‘turning
point’ in the world’s history which redefined and showcased many things to
the world simultaneously –‘ freedom and
democracy with dignity’.
The day 15 august 1947 is
unparalleled in the history of our nation. We are enjoying the fruits of
liberty, just because our freedom
warriors who dared to sow the seeds of freedom into the brazen land of slave mind.
Even as, we are observing and celebrating ‘our Independence Day’, we must pause and introspect for few reasons in such ways ; what kind (
quality ) of freedom are we enjoying ? Is it just that we can roam around
anywhere , speak anything, express anything or business anywhere? Is the
freedom merely means the absence of slavery from white skinned foreigners who were strangers to us for all those long years?
While exploring these few questions,
we would obviously land on a big – NO. What we are consuming ( let alone enjoying ) today, is the superficial and subverted form of our most hallowed Freedom , which was bestowed
on us by our forefathers through their unparallelled sacrifices.
If we flip through the pages of
oxford dictionary for the word freedom, we would find some comprehensive definitions
of it. Which reveals an astonishing contrast and strange paradox of our own defined freedom.
1- The state of not being prisoner or slave-
Although, today we may not be equated
or counted as slave or prisoners as a whole . Yet , if not half, then a
significant part of that half population comprising of women are forced to live under the clouds of
different modern sorts of slavery and
virtual prisons.The remaining vestiges of feudal mindset, rotten social norms,
and unbridled patriarchal structure are swift enough to overpower and enslave the aspiration of women belonging
to different age groups from all strata of society.
2- The state of not being affected by the things – Fear/ Pain/
Hunger.
In his speech in Jauary1958, Martin Niemoller a German anti-Nazi theologian said ,” Ask the first man you meet
what he means by defending freedom, he will tell you privately he means
defending the standard of living”.
We must concede this brutal truth
that we are still a nation of helpless poor people. Despite of, the glitz of globalization and enticing GDP figures,
this poor man is striving really very hard -
first to fend for himself and family and then maintaining a standard of
living. Few fortunate , today , enjoys an stable standard of living. Few
gadgets in hands and increased purchasing power can not, in any way, outdo the
quality of standard of living”.
3- The right to do or say what you want without anyone stopping
you -
As George Orwell says, ‘
freedom is the freedom to say that two plus two
make four . if that is granted,
all else follows.’ .What is visible today, a few mortals enjoy special prerogative to say ‘two plus two
makes four’.
Merely executing the rituals
of “ independence day “ is as hypocritical as worshiping the idol without
addressing the ever present soul behind it. It makes the entire process futile.
Number of years does not guarantee the
true wisdom. This we have to understand
first as an individual and as a nation as well.
The pillar of democracy can not stand on the sand of shallow and
rotten values but on the rocks of true national wisdom, which emanates
from the mental liberty of an individual.The onus lies on our
shoulder to preserve the few remaining
traces of our glorious past, which always taught us to value and celebrate the freedom of an individual which results
into an unfading – National Emancipation .
A Song of Freedom.....
A molten beauty
of an evening
in the cage of a tyrant scorching day
a heart
in a solitude
finds itself in a timeless dismay.
they say-
there is a carnival
to the other side of the wall
O wind!
sway me-
to the other side
before the joy of-
dancing spring
silently decay ........
HAPPY INDEPENDENCE DAY !!!!
